Artists Bag

Artists Bag - pockets inside and out fully lined with matching art book cover (A5) with paint bruch pouch

Fabric is a lovely tulip print on cotton sateen

The base is wide-whale corduroy

A present for an arty friend

New Dragon Tail Scarves

Been catching up with these - seems as fast as amke them they get snapped up!

NORO Dragon's Tail scarf - a special order and she was so thrilled with it!

Here are a selection of the shaded colours

These were done a while ago - the flu whichstruck last weekend has laid me low ............ but feeling better even if back v painful

Now to try and get caught up!!

New baby jackets

Pretty in pink - Zimmerman jacket with picot edge

Back view

Pink snuggly - made with 2 balls wool and made from sction to section without cutting the yarn! = Less sends to weave in!!

Pink pinwheel jacket in bamboo

Sorry been no blogs but the CFS has taken its revenge ..................... but been trying to get things made for Christmas between zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

PENINSULA CRAFT SHOW - this weekend!!

ALL kinds of wonderful crafts available to purchase

Be there or be square ........the Peninsula Craft Show is this coming weekend

at

IPSWICH HIGH SCHOOL

SHOTLEY PENINSULA

10-4

SATURDAY & SUNDAY

Hope to see you there!

Friday will be busy helping set it all up

Dragons Tail Scarves

Latest crochet design off dah hook ............................... an asymetric scarf with a ziggy-zaggy edge like a dragons or dinosaurs tail

Dragon's Tail - shaded boucle yarn

All soft n scrunchy

Top one in shaded black-white

Bottom one mauve to cream

Dragons Tail - left one in shaded wool blend and the right one a Kaffee Fassett wool (comes with a 10 year guarantee!)

On the model you can see how it works - has graduated scales along the edge

In shaded burgundys/pinks/grey greens

Here is the Kaffee Fassett one - just sumptuous colours and will go with everything!

Keeps you warm - but no bulk around the neck perfect for winter coats

Blue Mondrian Book Cover

Decided to have a change of craft - as wrists and fingers getting very complainy as I have been doing too much crochet of late!
So been thinking up designs for book/diary covers - so here is my first stab at it .................. not what I had planned as did not have the right fabric (OK those of you falling down laughing - those privileged few allowed into my sewing room - and have seen my ROOM full of fabrics and yarns....) I kid you  not so had to go to plan B and design  a cover with what I had!

here is the front - tweedy blues with appliqued blocks in tweedy reds and gold with couiched threads and crocheted trim and book marks (one red and one blue), with a red satin lining.

here is the spine

back view

Was great fun to make - now 9 more to make !

All filled with coloured heavy paper/fine card - I ahd some made up in one colour others with a variety of colours

RE-CREATE IS OFFICIALLY OPEN!!!

Sorry a bit late in reporting this - but not been feeling too great :-(
The other week really took it out of me ........... but fighting back!!!

Anyway - last week was the OFFICAL OPENING of Re-Create ............. so heres a few pics of the happy event!

The ribbon being cut - freeing the Ipswich Team football players - and more improtantly allowing us all in!!

And this a pic of just all the amazing people and goodies on show - plus there was lots purchasing going on!!

So we can buy some of the many goodies on offer ....here counting out that change - now make sure you got it right!

Those football players were put hard to work - showing that the work being done is not as simple as it looks ....rolling out the lengths of pre-cut punchinella - he thinks it can't be that difficult ........can it............???

.... but he does not know his own strength and breaks the punchinella - much to everyone's amusement!

So the experts show him how it is to be done - PROPERLY to our famous Ipswich Team football player .........................

Now being shown by one of the trained workers, how to make up the booklets that they sell .....such concentration getting it all aligned properly!

and here is a selection of the end product - plain card booklets with snazzy covers and now new Calendars.

AND they are selling like hot-cakes .... prices start at £1.00 ......the stand was almost empty at the end of the day!

Reward for all their efforts - signed pics of Ipswich Football Team!

There were lots happy people there .............

and great food!

being enjoyed by ALL!

More pics and further information about this wonderful organisation, employing and training disadvantaged/disabled people - teaching them useful skills, plus making them feel a useful part of the community; and its a great venue for them to interact and socialise. Customers benefit with lots of items on sale - its like a HUGE bag of Liquorice Allsorts of things to rummage through plus they are all at great prices!

Membership costs are low as are the things on sale - it's a real win-win situation - so please support them!!

MORE info on the Re-Create website.

http://www.recreate-enterprise.co.uk/

Ohhhh errrrr a scary day

Well nothing on blog as had a rather scary day last Sunday - I sort of collapsed with my arms being dead weights - all tingly and felt all dizzy with pains down my arms and in my chest ..........and all I was trying to do was give my DH a hug!! ............so Paramedic came - a super girl called (I think) Emma and after a thorouigh exam she said she wanted me inhosp for an overnight - so ambulance called (they were already on their way) and was rapidly and efficintly transported to hosp ................... tests galore n lots blood taken - a kindly doc (called I think Hassim) who even came and checked on me before going home .........................so when chips are down the NHS came through

So thanks again to all the emergency staff - sorry about names was feeling rather dizzy n hazy!!

Was kept in several days - staying in various wards - blood tests came back OK (BIG sigh relief as not a heart attack as they thought) so had to work out cause so Xrays taken of my neck - showed osteo-arthritis and damage to spine ...................... so needed an MRI to check no pressure on spinal cord ................ well when that was done (bit of a wait there) that showed the nature of teh damage to my vertebrae but thnakfully no pressure on spinal cord
So eventually allowed home ..............feeling rather sore n bruised from all the prodding of my back and manipulating of joints ............ but relieved to be home!!

So a quiet few days at home .......................as didn't get much sleep there ......................... but managed lots of reading - Wolf Hall an excellent book.

Amish Neopolitan Crochet re-mix Blanket - real fusion crafting............

Take a classic AMISH Bars pattern
Re-interpret it in bright neopolitan Italian ice cream colours - pink, coffee, cream
Re-do it in Crochet
and result is ............................... taa daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

A baby blanket based on a traditional Amish deisgn but reinterpreted in Italian Neopolitan Ice Cream colours but crocheted rather than pieced fabric

Made in pure machine washable wool - so pretty, but warm, yet practical

PATTERN coming!!

Re-Create ...............pics of the goodies on offer!!

Well back today to my fav store .......Re-Create and came home with a load of fabric (how did you guess!!)
and some nifty bound books for me to make covers for ............ anyway back to the store and all the great people there.....

These are the bookswith snazzy card covers, in all sizes, with plain card inside - are they not GREAT???

Such fun - and who doesn't need some fun in their lives???

There's Graham (Dah BIG Boss) - and lovely bins of goodies to either side.....

Here they are cutting up my card for my books ............ such concentration !!

These are the people who made my books up and those on the display stand - what a great effort

Card cutting - grommet sorting and CD packing - a wide range activities ........ this is all downstairs

Meanwhile upstairs .....

Graham again - more sorting, chopping and punching - making books and goodie bags of well just useful things .....

such as

reels shiny perforated tape ....

being expertly rolled and bound - with such a cheery smile (made my day!)

here are the raw materials awaiting bundling into pieced lengths ....

ribbons ............all colours

Stationery - envelopes, note books, dividers ...etc

Plastics and all sorts - no not liquorice all sorts sadly :-(

and there are evcn MORE goodies ......................

MORE pics to follow - my laptop just glued up :-(

Re-Create is OPEN!!

Hi everyone  - Re-Create is a great new store that recycles and upcycles all sorts things - plus you can get stationery, glue sticks and all sorts at great prices. In addition they give disadvantaged and disabled people all sorts of jobs which additionally provides them with much needed support and social interaction

http://www.recreate-enterprise.co.uk/

This is their URL - go look it will tell you all about it
Plus for a small fee you can become a member and get 50% discont on everything .............. not to be sniffed at (but then neither is their glue - but they only do non-toxic PVA and glue-sticks  - LOL )

Next time I go will take a few pics of the facility and stuff on offer ........................ my favourite place to shop .... ok well after shoes - and they dont sell them :-( !!

Dancing Figures - progress

Embroidered Figs 1, 2 and 3 (left to right) just need to cut away the excess fabric

Now must rest hand and wrist and fingers till they recover before I tackle the last 2 on the right  (No 5 & 6) and add a little bit to No 4 ............ then to either pad it or stretch it onto a stretcher frame as all the embroidery has caused it to pucker a little

But so far so good - am really pleased with it

I see no ships ........or beach huts

Been busy trying new ideas and approaches - this time in preparation for paintings or piecework - I dont know at this stage
Idea is to take a Mondrian style approach and build a geometric series boats and beach huts .................... ideas so far ...........

1 Mondrian graphic

2 Fractured landscape

3 - Harlequin Huts

4 - Shaded fractures

Chinos .......what to do with them ...recycle!

What to do with 4-5 old pairs chinos that are way to big for 'his nibbs'

+ 1 nasty blanket

+ 1 flannel sheet

........................

Well I cut them up - ripped them into strips

Sewed them up randomly

Added blanket doubled with sheet doubled

=

1 thick warm floor rug runner

Broke 3 sewing machine needles .................... but result is a rather stunning rug

So surprised that a ramschackle bunch of naff old chinos and recycling a horrible pilled blanket made such a thick soft stunning rug!!

Not finished yet - deciding if I like the ragged edges or not ................ before I cut off the horrible orange padding and either fringe or neaten the side edges

Brilliant way to use up old jeans or any other old trousers - the bigger the better as get more fabric!

Baby Quilt

Pretty in Pinks

Made with plain and patterned cotton fabrics on the front 

Stitch in ditch quilted 

The back is in snuggly fleece

This made for future grand-daughter - my son and his girlfriend

Beach Huts - Cushions, Lavendar Sachets and Secret Pockets ........

Well Sept 4th only a day or two away now .................... results of this weeks labours in hope people will like them
What do you peeps think???

Hand painted and hand quilted cushions - with vintage buttons in the corners 

Sizes from 14-18"

All in prewashed and ironed cream calico

The two central huts are hanging pockets (secret pcket in the back for keys/ice cream money or even a mobile) 

One is hand beaded  

Both have satin ribbon hanging loops with button trim

Some are named - such as MArram, but others have no name as yet - thought I could add the name people wanted on the day

Lavendar sachets - small,medium and large

All hand made with ribbon loops and hand inked designs

Each one is different and all stuffed with fresh lavendar from my garden and they smell gorgeous!

Designs are:

Lorum Ipsum

Greensleeves

Scot's Corner

Chequers

Scott's

Tulip

Birds Nest

Ship Shape

Fleur

BlueBell

FORGOT to add the wallhanging

This is hand painted, hand quilted and hand beaded.

Padded and mounted for hanging on a board with optional clip frame hangers

Detail of the beading and painting