A very crafty birthday

I was super blessed this year with a wonderful birthday surrounded by all my fabulous friends who have made moving to London the best decision I've ever made. Not only that but everyone absolutely blew me away with all their thoughtful presents and not only that but I hit the craft girl jackpot!

I got the cutest new knitting bag which is exactly what I needed as my other one was bursting it's so full! 

I also got this great little kit for building your own bird feeder which is super handy considering I've and two bags of bird seed in my press for the last two years and should really get it out to the birds....

As readers of this blog will know, I love colouring in and I equally (okay, maybe a little bit more..) love Harry Potter and some genius has combined this two into the Harry Potter colouring book, of which I got not one but two!! I was also given lots of colouring pencils and pens which means I can start colouring straight away! HAPPINESS overload.  

Unfortunately, the lovely woman my mother did home help for passed away earlier this year but she left a legacy of a life of crafting behind her. So much wool, crochet patterns, material that she probably could have had her own shop. One beautiful thing she left behind was this unfinished embroidery project which my mother sent to me. It's such a beautiful pattern and I can't wait to finish it and turn it into a beautiful cushion which will always be a reminder of this awesome woman. 

 

My family and friends also did something wonderful with their present buying - they supported independent artists. The awesome print is from Emily Mc Dowells studio. I love the sentiment of it and it's a mantra I'm going to try and take into my life going forward. I hate getting things wrong though so it may take a while.... 

The calendar below is from the awesome The Native State which not only is one of my favourite instagram accounts to follow but also makes awesome inspirational arts and stationery. Be sure to check them out. If nothing else happens at least I'm going to be inspired next year! :) 

Not only did my friends support independent artists but they became artists and got very creative with their envelopes and cards. This card is probably the greatest card I've ever received. Handmade is the best way. 

And finally the pièce de résistance.....

Meet Phoebe! Although I love my old singer sewing machine, it's impractical if I want to attend workshops or bring it to another workspace as it's so heavy so my wonderful mammy and daddy gifted me with this shiny, new, lovely beast of awesome! I am so excited to get started and finally get making some actual clothes... well trying to, at least. 

As you can tell I am super set up for a crafty year so expect a lot more making and blogging in the New Year. 

Thank you to all my friends who gave me such thoughtful presents, craft related and non-craft related. You are all wonderful people who made me feel so special and loved. xxxx

If you go down to the woods today...

I have been waiting on my sewing machine being delivered before taking on any sewing projects but I couldn't wait to try this one. I came across this picture tutorial on making a teddy bear from a sock quite a while ago on Pinterest and it's been playing on my mind since. So last night, out came an old pair of socks and my sewing kit. The socks I was working with were a pair of knee high socks so a LOT bigger than the ones in the tutorial and then I messed up cutting out the head so I ended up working with my own imagination to make my own version! 

I'm not too happy with the stitching in places and how visible it is so that's something I will work on when making another one. I also got very impatient when sewing so the gaps between stitches are quite big which I'm sure means that the stuffing will start making an appearance at some point. 

My plan is to redo everything when my sewing machine arrives to prevent the stuffing escaping and to make it neater. I also want to work on my hand stitching to be able to hide the stitches when I have to attach certain bits by hand. 

BUT in saying all of that I absolutely love this little teddy and I'm quite proud that I was able to make it myself! I am very excited to make many more and possibly try this monkey if I'm feeling brave! But first I've got to think of a name for him...

Sewing Dreams Come True

Today is the best day! I have been given the most beautiful sewing machine. Look at it - it's so pretty. My boyfriends great aunt no longer wanted it and so she's very kindly gifted it to me. It's in fabulous condition and hasn't been used since it's last service so she's got a lot of life in her yet.

The only problem now is figuring out how to get it home.... oh yeah and the small matter of learning to sew!