Sewing liberation!

Last week, it was with some relief that the second lot of five bags with matching coin purses that I've been working on were delivered to their destination. Of course I forgot to get pictures, doh.  

Anyway, as happy chance would have it, their destination is 5 minutes away from Brit Bee buddy Terri's house, so Felix and I popped in there for a spot of tea and for me to pick up a rather lurrvely fabric haul.

Of course I hadn't been able to resist when Terri had previously told me she was planning on heading up to Superbuzzy on her recent trip to California....I've been quite abstemious since before Christmas and planned to spend some of the bag payment on a fabric top-up. 

This is what she had for me!

(L-R, a Japanese print, plus three chunks of Echino)

Recipes, cheeky monkeys, a seedy thing, and a gorgeous linen map print

Various others - The houses on the right are a flannel, not sure on the plan for them yet!

 That's not to mention the red fabrics for a swap, and two delicious bags of proper caramel popcorn, bless her luminous pink socks!

I feel a little liberated now the bags are done and I have no other specific commissions on the go. Whilst I've got shops to make for, I can choose what I make and with the fabrics above to inspire me, I'm feeling rather spoilt! 

I started with a test pair of baby shoes, with suede bases - fiddly but quick to make:

Then cut into my new fabric yumminess and made a pencil case

And then I turned this panel I'd made a while back

 Into a giant 24" floor cushion

And my brain is still buzzing with stitchy things, yippee!

x

Bag factory..

I took a large order for bags just after Christmas, well large by my standards anyway, and a couple of weeks ago I delivered the first half of the order: Five over the shoulder bags with zip closures and matching coin purses. 




The second lot are well on the way too, filling up every available surface in the sewing room.  Doing these has been a lot of fun, but has also put a bit of a dampener on all other sewing....so it was a relief to get a break today with some fun and slightly messy preparation for my month in Brit Bee..  more about this in the next post but here's a little taster snap.

Back soon, once I've cut all of these up and got them in the post!

x

Hello! blog hiatus officially over!

Hello everybody, after a fabulous weekend with some VERY dear sewing buddies and then, yesterday, the first ice cream of the season, I suddenly feel compelled to blog again! 

Felix with buddy Matthew

I'm so sorry it's been so long.  I kind of got out of the habit, and then struggled to get back into it.  And now, I'm very much hoping that I'll pop up on the Readers or in the inbox of some of my followers and they'll have a vague memory of who I am!

Hopefully, you'll be pleased to hear that I haven't stopped sewing..and although the following isn't too exciting or new, here's a few snaps of what's currently "in progress" at the sewing machine..

Cushion commission 1 of 2 for my Aunty Jane (see, I haven't forgotten, Jane!)

And a bag order for local shop - there are bag pieces everywhere and the addition of zip closures has made this a bit of a mammoth task...

and just to show that practice does NOT make perfect in this house, look what I managed to do this evening...somehow get the bag handle completely entwined in my machine whilst top stitching bag outer to lining.

 I couldn't stop halfway without ruining the stitching so I just kept going and got more and more tangled!

Once these are out of the way, I have a pressing engagement with my foody Brit Bee Blocks from last April :) These need to be turned into a giant menu, and I am VERY looking forward to the challenge!

Hopefully back soon!

x