Making things – Page 3

So far so good

It seems to me that 2014 is moving quite slowly. We are only at the beginning of the second week of January, but New Year seems so long ago.

A week ago, I set myself the task of completing some of the kits I have stashed in my craft space and recycling some of my craft magazines; one craft kit a week and one magazine a day.

On 2nd January, during a #creativesunite session on twitter, I picked up a couple of Christmas Cross Stitcher magazine cross stitch kits from my stash and made some progress. The robin is more than half finished now, and the houses kit has all the cross stitch finished ready for sewing together.

I have succeeded in finishing a kit for this week though. This one is from Homemaker magazine.

I was quite pleased with the tree, although some of the detail was lost on the star because of the layers of paper. In the magazine, the glitter appeared opaque, but as you can see from this photo, it is very transparent.

I think I am up to date with my magazine recycling. Since Monday, things have been crazy, but today I managed to get a bit of planning in place.

How is your 2014 panning out?

Theo Paphitis #SBS Winner

I wanted to get more focused on my blog and my webshop in 2014. I’m still on catch up, so my targets for January were just to get my workspace organised. Simple but achievable.

However, I did start a couple of things. I have a plan in place for what themes I am concentrating on for www.craftyguider.com month by month. I have started following more accounts on instagram, pinterest and twitter, as well as more blogs on bloglovin, and I started entering Theo Paphitis’ Small Business Sunday competition on twitter. Two weeks in, I won!

My winning tweet said “When I was a Guide, I earned 2 Craft badges. Now I’m a leader, I design and make badges.”

I am so pleased Theo Paphitis personally chose me, and having had a quick look through the #SBS winners website, the benefits are fabulous, I’ve increased my exposure on twitter, and I hope this, with a bit of hard work, translates to more sales in my webshop. And best of all, I hope to meet Theo and get a certificate at his next winners event.

I’d love to hear from you if you have any creatives you think I should be following on social media. And obviously feel free to click on the links above to follow me!

Organising Cups

There is a game we have played at Guides. The group is split into about seven different groups and are shown a pile of cups. Each group is given a secret instruction to carry out such as put all the cups in a straight line, keep one cup in each hand, turn all the cups upside down, keep all the cups right side up, take all the cups outside etc. Pandemonium then ensues as the Guides run around, the cups go flying and violence breaks out.

A halt is called and the Guides then share their instructions with each other and work out if they can work together to achieve harmony. Lots of the challenges can be achieved by working together: the person holding the cups can hold them whilst they are placed in their straight line. However, sometimes a compromise cannot be reached: you cannot have all the cups upside down and right side up at the same time.

I have lots of cups that I am trying to arrange: kids, blog, business, house, volunteering, crafting etc. On Wednesday evening after a day making Christmas cards with the kids and making sure they had started their homework, they were having their bath with their dad and I was waiting for the first one to get out for hair drying. I started thinking about what I was going to do once they’d gone to bed. I am on the cable rib for a baby’s pullover which I need to get finished. I want to get my blog going and have lots of themes I want to cover. In doing Christmas cards I found some of the Christmas kits from magazines that I’d never made so I could make them. Great British Bake Off is on. I can actually participate in #handmadehour on twitter as I’m not at Guides tonight. I need to tackle Magazine Mountain. This carried on until my head exploded.

In the end, I wrote this blog post whilst watching a recorded Bake Off Masterclass after finalising my online shopping order. I had to abandon the knitting and cross stitching; not easy to type, sew and manipulate yarn at the same time. I got a couple of tweets onto #handmade hour to show my face, but after several nights of disturbed sleep, a full on half term day and a couple of hours on the laptop, I wasn’t fit for anything else.

I see other bloggers who post every day or couple of days. Some people run successful craft businesses whilst working full time. Surely I can do all that too? Am I just being disorganised or distracted too much by twitter or Minion Rush?

I have to remind myself that everyone is different. Do these people have two bright little girls who deserve their mum’s attention? Do they have a Guide unit to run weekly? Do they also have other volunteer roles?

It is so important to work out how your life works for you. You cannot know the full circumstances of someone else’s life. They might have a cleaner to do the housework. They may be 3 years into their chosen path whilst you are at the start of your journey.

In the meantime, I will carry on doing what I can and trying to follow my own advice! Some of the cups will remain the wrong way up, but as long as I have the important ones in a row, that’ll do me.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

I’ve been lucky to have been able to get a move on with quite a few crafty projects to tick off my WIP list. Last month’s #WIPslinky post was a bit up and down with success in clearing my archive, so I set myself a realistic task list for this month.

I have started my Christmas cards. I am about halfway through making them and really enjoying thinking up different designs. I am also enjoying using up the different elements that I have collected over previous years. Perhaps I will be able to store all my Christmas crafty bits in just one box this year!

I have also managed to get lots of fabulous new products made and listed on Craftyguider.

These frame purses were featured in a previous post and are now on the website. This polka dot one is my favourite.

I’ve made five kilt pin charm brooches with themes of sewing, gardening, owls, party girl and this knitting one.

I’ve also added some more rings to the Rings and Things category, including these two fabric covered button ones:

And I’ve been sewing Christmas decorations too.

These stockings are made of soft fleece with a furry cuff. I’ve made several different versions including these ones.

I’ve also been making Christmas tree decorations for the website this year. The pine cones are made with pins and folded fabric, and the cute Christmas trees use some funky Christmas fabric.

One of my biggest sellers last year was Christmas fabric bunting so I’ve got four colour combinations listed including this one.

Quite a successful month! Just as well as I have a craft fair to go to on 17th November in Puckeridge, and there are bills to be paid at Guides (where all the profit goes).

Next month I think I’ll focus on getting the Craftyguidelets’ WIP list started. They use the dining room as their craft room and I need to reclaim it in time for Christmas. They need to make Christmas cards for friends and teachers, there is a half finished hama bead ballerina that needs completing and ironing before it gets knocked on the floor (again!), and there are numerous projects and kits that they have started and never finished.

What do you need to get finished before Christmas?

Linking to Tales From Mount Pleasant’s #WIPsLinky party. Come and join us!

Getting my craft on

I have a lot of craft stuff as I have many different crafting interests. I am an expert at packing it away, but this causes problems as I never know what I have, or it is so difficult to get at I never use it. This week I have a had a sort out and tidy up as in 2 months, 18 days, 6 hours and 19 minutes (at time of writing!), a certain bearded, rotund, elderly gentleman will be doing his rounds.

My ribbons are more organised, although I still have 2 disorganised boxes of scraps, lace, ric rac and “miscellaneous”. I have also sorted my embellishments for card making so it is easier to select a box of flowers or some crystals to use on projects.

I’ve had a few family and friend cards to make including supervising these 3 for my dad. From left to right, created by eldest Craftyguidelet, youngest Craftyguidelet and me. Having access to all my stamps again meant a stamping frenzy.

The sewing machine has also had an airing.

I’ve been meaning to make these holsters for the Craftyguidelets’ water bottles for some time. When they travel to and from school they have all sorts of luggage including book bags, PE kits, music folders and cardigans, and it’s come up as a problem at the school parent forum. Perhaps I can sell these at my next craft fair.

Having posted a picture of my Rainbow unit’s latest batch of ‘patrol’ badges, a Rainbow leader on twitter requested some for her unit too. She loves them and hopefully the Rainbows will too.

And now, those with delicate sensibilities should look away. I am about to use the C word.

CHRISTMAS!!!!

Christmas card production has started.

I have made 23 cards and glued together 14 decoupaged toppers. Fortunately I have lots of pre-prepped bits and pieces so at the moment it is full steam ahead. Needless to say it will slow down when I start on the stamping and colouring.

I have also started a bit of Christmas crafting.

These angels came in a kit I bought and didn’t get round to making last year. The instructions were poor but I managed to adjust them to make three decorations for my Christmas tree this year. I also tried to finish making the leftover fabric pine cones that the Guides had last year for their Christmas craft. The aim is to put them up for sale to put the funds back into the unit, like everything in my Craftyguider shop, however I ran out of pins so it’s back to the shop I go for more.

I am really enjoying this flurry of crafting. In a tough week health-wise, it’s kept me going and I’m ticking off the WIPs.

Have you started your Christmas crafting yet?

Linking with Handmade Harbour’s Handmade Monday linky party.

Satchels and Rainbows (and Guides) #WIPslinky

Another month, another opportunity to confess my WIP busting progress at the #WIPslinky party.

I have had successes in the past. The dresses for the Craftyguidelets continue to be worn, I still love my tablet case, and I think the draughts have ceased in my friend’s hallway.

Last month I set myself the target of finishing my satchel which at the time looked like this…

Well, ta dah!

Yes. Not very impressive is it? I’ve ironed on all the interfacing, made the strap and made one tab. I did start another one but it was so fiddly being upholstery fabric, and it started fraying everywhere so I had to cut out a new one. It was also taking up so much time, it’s gone back into the project bag and back into the drawer for a bit. I haven’t given up on it forever, but I need to concentrate a bit more time on the business and getting ready for Christmas craft fairs.

My other targets from last month were to finish my frame purses…

…tick! and to carry on making a new uniform for the Rainbow mascot, Olivia. Fortunately, Girlguiding UK has started to stock large Olivia’s again so I am saved from this task. I still need to design and make a Rainbow banner for Remembrance Sunday, as well as make some new badges for our Rainbow groups like this.

At Guides, we are going to be making macrame bracelets so of course I needed to learn how to make them myself. After a bit of practice, I’ve finished a sewing machine charm one. I just need to source some different charms for the Guides that are a bit more age and interest appropriate.

And as for October’s #WIPlinky party target? I suppose I should start making my Christmas cards, as well as getting my Christmas craft fair stock ready.

Which WIPs are you attempting this month?

Linking with Tales from Mount Pleasant’s #WIPslinky party

Frame Purses

In my quest to clear some space in my office, I have set myself a challenge to work my way through my WIPs (work in progress). I’ve mentioned Anthea Willis’ #WIPslinky party in a previous post which is an additional incentive to get things done (come and join me!).

One of the WIPs for this month was to turn this pile of fabric…

…into these frame purses.

Ta-dah!

I have had the frames for months and the fabric (in most cases) for even longer. You know the ones. You bought them because you loved them but the right project never comes along. I bit the bullet, cut the fabric, and they are made.

What WIPs do you have lurking in the back of the cupboard?

Linking to Handmade Harbour’s Handmade Monday. Pop over and see what fabulous things everyone else has created.

Who gets your cards?

As someone who makes cards to sell, I should use this post to try and persuade you to buy everyone you have ever known a card for each wedding, birthday, anniversary, thank you, RSVP, new school, exam good luck, exam congratulations etc. etc. etc. It would generate a good income for my Guide unit and I could happily craft away all day and all night.

However, I am having a dilemma. As I make cards, people expect handmade cards from me. I can just imagine family members thinking “This is a shop bought card. Why don’t I deserve one of her handmade cards? Couldn’t she be bothered to make me one?” However, I know so many people through school, university, work, family, friends, their kids, their grandchildren… I was there when they got married. Each date gets religiously entered on my fruit phone and set up to remind me every year of the date. Can I really keep coming up with original cards for every occasion (and also remember which ones I sent them last year)?

Where do I stop? How many anniversaries do I send cards for? Do I keep sending cards to a friend I haven’t spoken to in years, who never sends me cards and whose kids I’ve never met? “Mummy, who is Louise on this card?”

I’ve made a decision over the last few months to stop sending cards to most friends’ kids once they’ve had a couple of birthdays. My friends don’t send them to my kids so I’m sure they won’t notice. Equally, I think I’ll cut back on the anniversary cards. We just got cards from our parents, one relative and a friend this year. We’ve been married 8 years now so it’s not a big anniversary.

I’m sorry dear friends and family. I do still think of you on your birthdays. Hopefully you’ll all get a handmade Christmas card this year (or at least one of those school fundraising cards drawn by the Craftyguidelets and printed), but perhaps I won’t be sending a card for your second cousin twice removed’s decree nisi.

Having said all of that, please do support crafters who hand make cards. They can usually create personalised cards to a specified theme in a few days for around the same cost as the celestial hog lot, and to a higher standard. And you know that there will not be another card like it on their mantelpiece for their special day.

And obviously I would like to put in a special word for my Craftyguider online shop. 100% of the profit goes to my local Guide unit to contribute to running costs, and the postage cost is a flat fee so no matter what you order, you only pay £1.50.

How many cards do you send out each year?

Craftyguidelet Dresses #WIPslinky

Last month I joined the Tales from Mount Pleasant #WIPslinky party. The idea is to confess to your work in progress projects and then actually get round to making them. The link opens near the end of the month, and you have a month to finally get round to finishing those projects that you have been getting round to ‘one day’.

I shared just part of my WIP collection and chose to finish my daughters’ summer dresses. After a packed summer, they are finally finished.

It is probably the last warm day of the year but they have worn them. I also made them in the next size up so they get to wear them next year.

My 4 year old loves pink, so I chose these gorgeous fabrics from Sew La La with rose shaped buttons.

My 6 year old really suits this red colour. It looks like Kath at Sew La La has just got some more of this Gypsy Rose Red fabric so I might stop by for some more.

Being more aware of my WIPs has led me to finish more this month.

I’ve wanted to make a case for my tablet for some time, and I used some of these gorgeous fabrics to make a patchwork padded case.

I’d promised my friend that I’d make her a draught excluder. I managed to finish it in time for a visit and even managed to blog about it.

I have also cut out fabric for a collection of frame purses that have been sitting in my cupboard for months. They will either be given as presents or put on sale in my shop.

And for next month’s entry? I’ll be revisiting my quest to make all the bags in Lisa Lam’s Bag for all Reasons book and aiming to complete the ‘too cool for school satchel’.

I’m using a gorgeous Cath Kidston upholstery fabric and all the bits are cut out and stashed in a bag ready.

Along the way I really should finish making the new uniform for our Rainbow Guide mascot, Olivia, a banner for the Rainbows to use at Remembrance Sunday parade, and also transforming that pile of fabric pieces above into frame purses.

Come on everyone. Join the WIP busting crusade and post your WIPs on the linky tool and let’s cut fabric, use papers, grab that pattern or kit you’ve saved for a rainy day and do what we all love to do – CRAFT!

Ay up me draught excluder

I have a very good friend from Nottingham. We met when we worked together in London, and a mutual friend introduced her to her (southerner) husband. They had a son together and settled in Hertfordshire. One Christmas I saw a remote controlled duck that you use in the bath. As we frequently ribbed each other about the differences in my Highgate accent versus her East Midlands one, I thought a bath duck (barth duck vs bath dook) would be a little joke, as well as being a great present for a little boy. He loved it, the joke was appreciated and it began a long saga of duck related presents.

Mother and son moved back up north and the little boy became a fluent East Midlands speaker. Ay up me duck and all that. We have carried on exchanging presents for years now, and each birthday and Christmas we increase the duck related merchandise. Duck tape anyone? Yes, I have done that!

She moved house last year and her new front door is very draughty. I said I’d make her a draught excluder, but events overtook me and she had a draughty winter.

She is coming to stay with me at the weekend, so I made up my mind to get it made. I can’t believe I didn’t do it sooner. It was so quick to make. In fact the thing that took the longest amount of time was chasing rogue polystyrene balls around the carpet.

I bought the fabric at the Knitting and Stitching show at Ally Pally specifically because it had ducks (dooks) on it. I still have more so she may get something else made from it at Christmas.

As well as the polystyrene balls, I added some lavender. The front door is where the footie trainers are kept, so a bit of lavender may help matters.

I still have some polystyrene balls left so I may make some more for my Christmas craft fairs.

Linking up with the Handmade Harbour Handmade Monday blog.