A new addiction is born

Due to an injury I have been confined to the house for a while, mostly with my leg elevated. I have knitted, crocheted, read.... Finding all sorts of ways to pass the time. Because we want to teach the YW how to make a journal using some sort of stitched binding, I needed to learn how to do it myself. "See one, do one, teach one".

My lovely friend Tina taught me the basics and off I went... 

This was the first one. Covered in handmade paper. The paper on the front cover was actually originally from the wrapping of a wedding present we received almost 15 years ago.  

                          

Having stitched one journal under Tina's supervision, I felt more confident, and more followed:

A small square notebook

Another journal

A bigger square journal with kraftpaper pages.

A more vintage looking book... 

A small Notebook for Little Possum. She wanted a book to write what makes her happy ever day. So her "Happy Book" came to be, with brightly coloured pages and bound in colourful hemp thread. Now she has her very own gratitude journal, just like Mum.....

Then I got a little bit fancy. I stitched buttons on some Osnaberg fabric and embroidered stems. I decided to try a little French lattice binding over a ribbon:

.... I'm now set for journals for a while..... but that will probably not stop me from making more, because there are still new techniques to try out!

My name is Mari. I'm an addict.

last minute handmade Christmas

 The Christmas songs are playing, the tree is up with presents starting to pile up under it. The kids are increasingly excited. Yes, Christmas is definitely on the way. My sewing machine is running warm at night with the last minute presents like this bag

Little Possum is getting a smaller version of this bag in some very special girly fabric...... can't pull it out to take a photo of it now though....

Handmade Christmas - part 1

 2010 is the year of the pillowcase, seriously!

The turtle pillowcase is for Turtle who just happens to love green. This pillowcase will compliment the jigsawpuzzle quilt I'm making for his bed in which the turtle fabric will feature prominently  :)

The orange/red pillowcase is for a very colourful niece

The dr Seuss pillowcases I made just for fun, and I don't know where they'll be going yet.

These tube pillowcases are shockingly easy to make. I learned how from watching this tutorial.
Gotta love YouTube!

 Here's a set of a small quilted reversible tablerunner/mat and coasters. Nothing fancy and very quick to make!

 There's a scripture tote for a special little Possum with extra special sparkly embellishments which I have still to sew on when said little girl is in bed asleep.

Some wall art to go with a quilt that is still in production, but that will look something like this:

The pattern is called "Dandelion Windows" and was designed by the very clever Kate Conklin.

Handmade Christmas

A couple of years ago I committed myself to a handmade Christmas and had such fun with it. Obviously I hope that all the recipients of my efforts were as excited about it as I was :)

Don't know what happened last year..... I think I just left it too late in the year to do anything about it. This year I feel that urge again, and the production has already started. Here's the dilemma.... how do I share it all here without spoiling the surprise.... ?

I might show some sneak peeks


but not today :)

school holiday fun - easel art

some time back I bought a job lot of these mini canvas/easels on eBay (gotta love eBay!) and Little Possum has been putting them to good use in the school holidays. I think I know what we're doing for Christmas presents this year!

Handmade Christmas - tutorial treats

This Christmas I made several presents and decorations using the tutorials of several clever people out there in Blogland - here are a few:

Melleny's Christmas star YouTube tutorial
Domesticali Origami wreath


Old Red Barn Co Headband
Linaloo Decorated candle
Heart of Mary Notebook cover with penholder

It was all so much fun, I can't wait until next Christmas!.....

I think I might start a little bit earlier. September, perhaps?

Handmade Christmas - pencil rolls

In my quest for handmade presents this year, I decided that pencil rolls would make a perfect present for nieces and nephew. I searched for patterns and found one at Pink Chalk Fabrics. Pencil rolls must have been an inspired choice, because the following week Toni had her pencil roll pattern published in the Handmade magazine and Homespun magazine's Kids Issue has a pencil roll made using the wonderful "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" fabrics. All of a sudden I had an abundance of ideas.

I decided to combine elements from all three patterns and made a strippy lining in rainbow colours to match the colouring pencils I had bought while using Hungry Caterpillar fabrics for the outside layer and pocket. Instead of using a third layer of muslin or flannellette in the middle, I substituted interfacing with iron-on pellon for the outside layer.

Selecting fabrics from the stash was a whole lot of fun!

At the end of it all my work table out on the deck was a bit of a mess.

I made one 24 pencil roll and two 12 pencil rolls (ran out of interfacing, otherwise I think I would have made some more!). The 24 pencil roll is for our oldest niece and I thought she might feel a little too grown up for the hungry caterpillar so for the pocket I used a fabric bought at IKEA last year.

Handmade Christmas - wrapping paper

One sunny Saturday morning:

2 eager children in charge of a roll of paper + 4 trays of paint + stamps, brushes and hands=

homemade wrapping paper for Christmas!

Fascinating, isn't it, how craft projects seem to take up so much more time in planning, setting up and cleaning up than the actual crafting itself?

But, it was worth it for a lovely time together out on the deck, painting and using our stamps that we had made:

The sponge stamps were made cutting up kitchen sponges, and for the other stamps we glued string/twine into a shape.

Handmade and recycled for Christmas

We bought a new cover for the ironing board the other day.... about time since all our clothes had lattice print after ironing. What do you do with an old ironing board cover? The fabric was not much good with all the stains, but the lining...... that nice fluffy heat resistant lining? Although it was too compressed for ironing, it still has a lot of mileage in it. Couldn't bring myself to throw it out, so thinking cap went on.......

/light bulbs go off in brain/ Oven mitts and potholders!! What better material to use for lining oven mitts?

I got 2 long rectangles and some squares out of the lining, and made the first one yesterday in a nice Christmas print. Forgot to sew a little hoop in the binding for hanging the thing up.... but I'll unpick the seam and sneak one in.

I am now pondering embellishment of the pockets..... I am thinking some applique holly leaves and suffolk puff berries to match the print, but I may settle for glued on green felt leaves.... I'll see how I feel later. But, now I have to go back to the sewing machine and quilt the other rectangle and squares! I am feeling quite Christmas'y making all these presents.... much more than when I go shopping for presents. It must be that making the gift is a gift itself...... double giving, double soft mushy feeling!!

Handmade Christmas - pebbles and pegs to fridge magnets

The kids painted pebbles with acrylic paint.... hot glue a magnet on the back for a lovely fridge magnet. Perfect grandparent present!
Meanwhile I made clothes peg magnets. I saw this idea in a magazine..... think it might have been Better Homes and Gardens...

It's a little fiddly, but the wooden clothes pegs can be taken apart for painting and then reassembled.

A few strips of scrapbooking paper, some scrapbooking buckles and a coating of ModPodge (wonderful stuff)

I've just got to glue the magnets on and Voila! memo pegs for the fridge....

Handmade Christmas - Garden markers

I bought a bumper pack of the large paddlepop sticks some time ago and I think they will feature in several Christmas presents this year. One idea came to me after Serena and I made an outing to the nursery and came home with seedlings that we divided between us. But each batch of seedlings only had one marker. So I decided to make some.... then I decided to get fancy and paint pictures on each marker.

Once the paint had dried, I covered each marker in 3 layers of varnish to make sure it would be weatherproof

Gift idea no 1 - garden marker and a pack of seeds

Gift idea no 2 - garden marker and a seedling in a pot

Gift idea no 3 - garden markers and some gardening gloves

Handmade Christmas - Dolly peg nativity

The 'Juleverksted' is now open. Remember my very bad sketch from last week? This is what I was thinking of - a nativity of dolly pegs..... Here's what we have done so far:

Materials used: Dolly pegs, paints, pigmapen, chenille sticks for arms and various scraps of fabrics for clothes.

Until I made Mary and the angel Gabriel, the lineup looked a little like a group of hairy hippies. Once they were dressed they looked a little more respectable and in their time... I think.

Once painted I pegged the dolls down on the side of a cardboard box to dry..
I had to provide a moderating hand for fabric selection since LP's colour of choice is mostly pink which would look more "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" than Wise Men in the desert....

We'll make some fairies with the remaining dollypegs so that she can pink up to her little 6yr old heart's content.

(Gabriel needs some hair, doesn't he?.... bald doesn't suit him)

One Crafty Mumma provided me with some inspiration with her popsickle house, and I am thinking about a design for a stable made from paddlepop sticks or tongue depressors (really big paddlepop sticks...) so there's more fun to come.

Our gingerbread house!!!

Last year I had all the fun of assembling and decorating a gingerbread house at an activity, so this year I thought the kids could have a turn. I assembled the house and let the Turtle and Little Possum loose with lollies and icing.

There was intense concentration here as Turtle built a fence and LP was making sure the Smarties were lined up perfectly.
Just a few finishing touches......

And here is Turtle showing off the result - the house on the right is ours...... Now let's see how long this house will last before being demolished....