Woo-Hoo!

Have you heard about the fabulous website known as Pinterest?    Check it out for lots of crafty info.  I saw a great Pin about an owl recently and just could not resist downloading the pattern and making these two fine looking fellows.  My daughter-in-law has recently revamped their sitting room and I know she is going to love finding these two little guys sitting on her couch when she gets home from work!

Little girl's dress

I've been busy recently making more little dresses for Dress A Girl Around The World.  Someone asked about using shirring elastic, and as I have made several dresses using this method I thought you might like to see what I did.

I cut one straight piece of fabric 102cm wide by 61cm long, and four pieces 51cm long by 4cm wide.  Taking the large piece I stitched a tiny hem at the top using a fancy machine stitch.  This gives a pretty ruffle effect when the dress is finished.

 

Measure 8cm down from the hem and mark seven lines for the shirring (on the front of the fabric).  Loosely thread your bobbin with shirring elastic and the needle with thread.  Slowly sew across the fabric.  When you reach the end carefully draw out a few cms of thread and elastic then turn and sew across the next line.  (I found that I could stitch three rows before I needed to fasten off and refill the bobbin.)

Now add a ribbon or lace trim if desired to the skirt.  Join the single back seam with a French seam.  This makes for a neater finish.  (A French seam is stitching a small seam down the length with the wrong sides together, then turn wrong-side out and stitch the seam again, encasing the raw edges.)

Turn up and stitch a small hem at the bottom of the dress.  Then stitch the straps along the length enclosing one end.  Turn right-side out.  This can be a bit tricky, see the note below.

Hand stitch the straps (seam inside) tucking the raw open edge under slightly.  Start and finish the stitching just below the top hem to leave the ruffle free.

You can choose to press the straps flat or leave as a rouleau.  Press the skirt, but don't  press the shirring.  Just hover your steam iron over the shirring, which will tighten it up.

In this photo you can clearly see the before and after effect of hovering the steam iron over the shirring.

And here's a view of the finished dress - hope you like it.

By the way - don't spend money on expensive Loop Turners to make the straps.  I used a drinking straw and a chopstick!    Slide the straw down inside to the stitched end of the strap, gently push the chopstick into the end of the straw and slide the fabric up over the chopstick.  Simple!  

Busy, busy - I seem to turn around these days and a week has passed by!  Where does time go to?  Think I'll hop on a plane and head west and keep going, so every time I cross the International Date Line I'll recapture one of those lost days lol.

Thought I'd show you a photo of my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Bracken, today.  He is such a lovable little chap.  He was recently diagnosed with a heart problem, so we have to be extra careful with him now and he is on medication for life.  Love him to bits xx

The grandchildren are back at school and our holiday is looming, still a few more bits to do.  A cousin contacted me the other day, asking if I could do some research for him on his paternal line (we are cousins through our mothers), so I've added another line to my family history research.  That makes eight trees I'm working on now!

See you soon  x

Along with sewing for my holiday I am still making dresses for girls-around-the-world.  I have recently heard of a charity that wants help making wiggly-bags.  These are little bags to hold hickman lines for children in hospital.   http://strawberrypatchramblings.blogspot.co.uk  is the site to check out if you are able to help in this very worthy cause.

Team GB Paralympics are off to a good start - well done everyone.  I think these athletes are quite incredible - not only are they fantastic at their chosen sport, they have had huge difficulties to surmount to reach the peak of their ambitions.  Every one of the 4,000 plus men and women from around the world deserve medals to my way of thinking.  And wasn't the opening ceremony terrific too?

Been busy these last few weeks - helping out with the grandchildren during the long school holidays.  And sewing like mad so I can have a few new things to take on holiday soon.  Also been trying to lose a bit of weight, so those new outfits fit!  

 A friend saw the iPad pouch I had made and asked if I'd make one for her - finished it a few days ago and she is happy with it (thank goodness lol)  I enjoyed making it, but not sure I will do another one.  Having enough material left I made a patchwork cushion cover to match.  




         Front views below.

Wasn't the opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics fantastic?   I didn't intend to stay up to see the whole show, but once it started there was no going to bed.   I think it was a great window on GB and must have raised millions of smiles around the world.   Some of the items may have needed explaining to viewers in other countries - and I wonder how many people now believe that our wonderful Queen really did jump out of a helicopter?????   In my opinion Danny Boyle deserves a knighthood for that fantastic show.  His ideas were out of this world - and proved to be one of the best evenings of entertainment and enlightenment on tv for a long time.   The next must-see on my list is Tom Daly - come on Tom win another gold for Team GB.  We are off to a good start - with the silver in the women's cycling road race today - and more to come I'm sure.  Let's fly the flag for Team GB!

Here's Niamh with Gerby, the giraffe I made for her for her first birthday.  Her mummy said it was ok to post this lovely photo of our gorgeous little girl.

This is the patchwork quilt that I made for Niamh's cot when she was born.  Look closely and you will see it is full of Winnie the Pooh pictures with Pooh's famous red and yellow in the smaller squares.  I worked her name and date of birth in some of the bottom squares and, of course, signed it too.   My husband is holding it up - can you see his hands at the top corners and his legs at the bottom of the photo?

I made this patchwork holder for my ipad.

I like to use a stylus rather than my fingers, so I added a little pocket inside the cover to hold it.

Just one of the things I have made recently in patchwork.  I'm working on two full size quilts at the moment.  Photos when they are finished.

These are the first two dresses I made for 'Dress A Girl Around The World'.   I used a little bit of the material left over from Gerby to make the pocket on one of them.

  Would you believe that all four are made from pillowcases?

 Add a few pretty trimmings and some bias binding and voila!  They are now on their way to some little girls in Africa.

This is "Gerbera the giraffe" more commonly known as 'Gerby'.  Isn't she cute?  I made Gerby for my great-granddaugher for her first birthday.  Forget the teddy bears - Niamh is into giraffes.  I'll have to ask her mummy if I can post a photo of Niamh with Gerby.  For she is one gorgeous little girl.

Gasp!  (holding hand to my head) is it really so long since I've been here?  No, can't be, I don't believe it (said in Victor Meldrew tones).  Ah well, maybe it is.   Somehow the days, weeks, months (even years?) roll by when you are busy and enjoying life.  Well that's my excuse anyway.   


The most fabulous news since I last rambled on is the arrival of a great-granddaughter.  Niamh (pronounced Neeve) arrived on 19 June 2011 and is the most gorgeous little girl ever born.  Well, I'm entitled to say that aren't I?  She really is a poppet, a hyper-babe says her grandma - my daughter Tracy.  Still can't believe she is a grandma, even though she has eight (yes eight) step-grandchildren.


Apart from all the cardmaking and scrapbooking that I do I have been busy sewing.  Firstly, a patchwork quilt for Niamh's cot, then a couple of full size quilts.  I've also been making little dresses for Dress A Girl Around The World, a wonderful group of people who make dresses and shorts for children in deprived areas of the world.  They are sew easy to make (pun intended) and if you have a pillowcase you no longer use, check out sewscrumptious.blogspot.co.uk and join in.


I'll be back again soon - till then, take care and enjoy life.

Here's the card I've just made for my sister.  We both 'love' (that's a joke!) ironing.  Several years ago I cross stitched an ironing fairy for her - sadly her dream didn't come true as the fairy did not come to life and do the job for her, lol.  So this time I've made a card which I hope will help her along - especially with a glass of vino to hand!   Once again it is a La Pashe Flippin' Women, but with the larger size there was no backing sheet.  Scratch, scratch - what to do - then an idea.  I opened up the Rustico kit which is a freebie from Jaelop Designs and found the window.  Then set to work and made a scrapbook page of a room with a view, so she can enjoy the butterflies in the wood whilst doing the ironing.  Maybe she will want to iron more often!!   Yeah, right!

Enjoy browsing - see you soon peeps . . . . . .

Hi everyone.  Been so busy lately, just haven't had time to update the blog.  Being school holidays we have been looking after some of our grandchildren while their parents were at work.  I've managed to make some greeting cards here and there and I am especially pleased with the one I made for my daughter's birthday earlier this month.  Couldn't post it before as she looks at my blog!  I made it using the Le Pashe Flippin Women cards.  My daughter, like me, is a keen crafter and this design was just made for her.  As well as making the basic card I added a lot of bits and pieces and made her craft 'room' almost as messy as mine!  Here are two views of the cards.

More to come with the card I've just made for my sister . . . . . .

Where do the days go to?  Had visitors for a few days and blogging goes out of the window then.  I made this page yesterday of my two daughters when they were little (oh, was it really that long ago??).  Even their children are older than this now.  The photo was taken when the eldest was as primary school. We were invited to take younger siblings along for the photo-shoot and my youngest daughter was a little overwhelmed by all the attention.  My all time fav pic of the two of them. 

Still busy practicing with the CraftRobo - getting there and will eventually upload something else.  Been checking out some of the blogs I love - there are some great goodies to be had if you take a look.  Just click on some of the links below to have a peek.

Happy crafting - be back soon.

Wow - is it really a week since I was here.  Where are the days flying to.  School is out and the kids are on holiday.  The weather here has been wonderful, but yesterday the rain started - and did it rain.  Mind you, we really, really needed it.  Don't know about you all, but we have brown grass!   Saves hubby a job every evening going out with a watering can, lol.   Busy making cards this week.  Here's one I've made for my son-in-law who is rather keen on motorbikes (that's an understatement!!).   Anyway I used the workshop framin cards from La Pashe, but wanted to add a motorbike, so I cut out the bike from the bottom layer of La Pashe's motor bike pile up set, then stuck it to the outside of the frame to make it look as if it was going into  the workshop.  Now I've put the card on here I hope son-in-law doesn't take a sneaky peak at myt blog until after his birthday!!

Still plodding on with the Craft Robo.  There is a lot to learn, but it is coming along.  I've not been very adventurous so far - but I'll get there eventually and will then post some of the creations.

So take care all - happy crafting - Byee

Doesn't time fly!  A week since I wrote anything here.  Busy few days.  On Friday my husband and I joined our son, his wife and her parents when we went to see our grandchildren perform in their end of term concert.  What a great show; considering the kids are aged 5 - 10 their performances were terrific.  Our grandson, aged five, opened the show with a song about a chicken.  He was dressed as a little chick and looked so cute, we all teared up!   Our granddaughter is nine and quite a talented performer.  She is learning to play guitar and together with her group they performed; she is also in the school choir.  Recently she learned to hula-hoop, so she choreographed a disco routine using a hoop, taught two friends and they performed it.  3 1/2 minutes without dropping the hoop once and dancing at the same time is quite a feat I can assure you.  I was breathless for her!   There are a lot of talented children - some sang, others danced, one nine-year-old boy did a Michael Jackson routine - another lad performed a rap song.  There was also a French Horn group - they were exceptional - and a group of seven year olds played their recorders.  I don't think there was a dry eye in the house at the end.  All those mums, dads and grandparents - a super evening.  The photos we took didn't come out very well, but I made a scrap-page with a cartoon chick to remember the evening.

I'll be back again soon - happy browsing!

Well, here it is - my first attempt on my new Craft Robo.  He does look rather funny, but cute, I think.  The head was cut from a template, but the rest of the body and limbs I drew the shapes and hoped for the best.  Ah well, not bad for a first attempt!  It should raise a laugh anyway.  They say that practice makes perfect - don't know about that but I am off to practice anyway  lol  

Well, I'm no nearer setting up the Craft Robo than I was yesterday.  Got half-way through watching the instruction video when I had a phone call and paused it.  When I got back, I found I hadn't paused it - I'd turned the b****y thing off!  I hope I can find where I was and not have to sit through the same thing for another hour!   It is very, very interesting - don't get me wrong, but just a flaming nuisance when I was just getting to the important part about plugging it all in grrrr!

At least I've learnt that it has to be on a flat surface - I can't have it at the edge of my desk and let the paper hang over - it must be supported flat. Soooo - that means it has got to be put in a different place.  And that means - I've got to rearrange my whole work space.  Some of my family history files have got to find a new home and the only place for them is where I keep my jars of ribbons and flowers, which means that they, too, have got ........  well you get the idea!  So now its a case of chicken and egg - not which came first, but which gets moved first.  I'll let you know how I get on!

Meanwhile, have I mentioned that I use Digital Scrapbook Artist by Serif?  Well, if I haven't, I have now and I have to tell you that one of my daughters has bought the program and it is such fun having lengthy telephone calls (she lives a couple hundred miles away) where we sort out what we are doing and help each other.  If anyone reading this is a member of Daisy Trail - which is where we DSA users show off our layouts - you will find us on there.  I am Craigs Mum and she is Tallular.  

Another  group I belong to is Craftrak.com which is quite new - only been going about four months.  We make tiny greeting cards, similar to ATCs, and exchange them - on there I am known as KraftKnut.

Much as I am enjoying rambling on, I must away and start moving everything around and then maybe, just maybe, I'll be up and running with the Craft Robo tomorrow - in which case I'll make something and upload a piccie here - so watch this space. :-)

Byeee for now .........