Following your dreams

6 months! 6 months! That’s how long it’s been since I have written a blog. Disgraceful! I should be ashamed of myself! Fear not though lovely fellow crafter’s, I am still alive and crafting!

Now to fill you in on my adventures. No crafty pictures yet as I have had no time to take any! Life has gotten pretty busy lately. I have just moved to a lovely, beautiful shiny, non-mouldy  house in Eastney which is minutes from a lovely big park and 10 minutes to the beach. Perfect! So that was pretty intense, but we are settled in as much as you can be after 3 weeks and loving life here. I will take some pictures and post them soon so you can all have a nosey.

I have also started driving lessons to the horror of every other road user. I’m loving it! It’s pretty awesome being in control of a massive piece of metal with wheels!

 

I have only so far only nearly killed one person. It’s not my fault there was a ridiculously adorable puppy on the other side of the road distracting me!

And finally I have started an Access Course two evenings a week in Health and Social Care which will be for the next year in the hope I can then go on and study to be an Occupational Therapist.

 

Phew!

So yes, these amongst normal everyday things are the reasons I have been really rubbish at updating my blog and filling you in on my crafty adventures! But I am hoping now I have sort of settled into some sort of new routine I can continue with my lovely, little world of Humbug and keep in touch with all you lovely loyal readers. So stay tuned people 🙂 x

Pompom Pillows!

You can now find these two pompom trim pillows for sale at ‘Like a Teatray in the Sky‘. Made with some awesomely funky fabric and complete with a playful pompom trim!

You can also find some of my other creations for sale there too. See anything you like? Why not take a wonder down there and grab a crafty creation and a slice of cake at the same time!?

I am always happy to do commissions too, just drop me a line and I am sure we can create the perfect item just for you. 🙂 x

Happy Easter!

So last night I finished my Easter Wreath just in time for the bank holiday weekend! I have been working on/ procrastinating on it it for a few weeks. I have been wanting to make one ever since seeing the wonderful Lucy’s many wreaths on Attic 24. Hers is of course a work of pure brilliance, and mine fails miserably in comparison, but still I am rather pleased with the outcome and it cheers up the dreary corridor no end! It isn’t as busy with flowers and pompoms as I would like, but surprise surprise! I ran out of time! But it is something I can continue to add to every year until it is perfect, and seeing as it took me so bloomin’ long to complete it is staying up throughout the entire summer period!

Please try to ignore the beautiful Artex walls!

So here’s to a happy Easter to you all. I hope you all have a lovely long (hopefully warm!) bank holiday weekend and enjoy lots of chocolate and hot cross buns 🙂 x

Happy Easter!

Crochet Ripple Blanket

One of my friends at work is having her first baby and I knew instantly I wanted to make her a crochet blanket.As much as I LOVE granny squares I have been looking for a new challenge to get my teeth into and the ripple stitch seemed like the perfect fit. The amazingly talented Lucy from Attic 24 has a wonderful step by step tutorial to follow so I got cracking with a test piece. Pleased with the results, it was time to move onto the real thing! eep! I chose nice and cheap, but equally lovely StyleCraft DK wool in gorgeous ice cream colours.

Here’s a picture of the work in progress back in Devon when we stayed with Andy’s Parents. It was the perfect way to spend an evening; curled up under a blanket with the open fire after a long walk with Monty.

Now here’s the finished blanket  What do you think?! I’m really pleased with it. The colours work so well together and the ripple stitch is just so lovely and subtle.

 

I love the rippled edging too 🙂

Next time I do one of these I’m going to try and make my stitches a little tighter, but apart from that for my firs ever attempt I am chuffed to bits! I just hope mum and baby to be love it as much as I do 🙂

Southsea Flea Market

Today I popped into Southsea Flea Market on Waverley Road to have a quick rummage amongst the bric-a-brac. I wasn’t looking for anything in particular, I just like to have a gander and see if I stubble across any bargains, old plates or vintage fabrics etc.  Today was my lucky day as hiding at the back of the hall perched on top of a radiator was a pair of GORGEOUS Vintage curtains in my favourite colour (Orange!) It’s one of those heart stopping moments where you find something you absolutely love and can’t quite believe someone else hasn’t snapped it up already! At £10 for the pair which are in fabulous condition I simply had to run to the cash point and purchase them immediately.

I initially thought I could use the fabric to make some cushions or something but they were in such a good condition that I couldn’t bare to put a pair of scissors to them! Luckily for me they are the perfect fit for the window in our living room! Groovy or what?!

Spring Time Tea Cosy

Ok, I know it’s not quite Spring yet, but I thought I’d welcome it early!

Anyone that knows me, knows that I love a good old cup of tea. I come from a tea chain drinking family; your cup barely touches the coaster before another is made! For this reason I brought myself a lovely spotty, red teapot a while ago and I have been dying to make it a cosy but other crafty projects just kept on getting in the way! I have recently started attending a knitting group on a Tuesday night held at ‘Like a Teatray in the Sky‘ (which my work is now stocked in too! Yays!)which was the perfect time to get cracking on a cosy.

I chose a VERY simple pattern of K2 P2 ribbing stitch and created two identical sides which then drawstring at the top, then you simple sew up the edges leaving gaps for the spout and handle. Voilà!

The giant flowers I crocheted and sewed on top. I love it! So bright and colourful, just in time to say goodbye to long dark nights and hello to spring sunshine, daffodils and cute baby animals!

Make

‘Make‘ is a brand new craft cafe that has recently opened on the lovely Albert Road. It will be running a range of different workshops  by local people,teaching a variety of crafty activities. It is a lovely bright and airy workspace with a massive craft table, several sewing machines and also a cosy corner where you can drink tea, eat cake and work on your latest project! Perfect!

This Saturday they ran a Valentines taster session between 1-3pm. So I went along to check it out. I dragged my slightly begrudging husband along and made him get stuck in!

He made a pixel art heart keyring with the help of the talented Eyecandy.

At the same time I was taught by my lovely friend Georgina Giles how to make a woven felt heart. It was a lovely way to spend an hour of my Saturday.

This Wednesday evening between 7pm-9pm they are holding an open craft night. You pay £3 to eat cake, drink tea and work on your latest project. I for one will be going! If you live locally and fancy a couple of hours of crafty goodness, why not pop along and show them your support?

My kind of flower arranging

I’m not very good at keeping flowers or plants alive. I do try, don’t get me wrong but what with a rabbit who just wants to eat them all and a puppy that thinks they are a toilet/chew toy doesn’t really help! So I tend to stick to Cacti, spider plants (which are immortal!) and the occasional bunch of daffodils. So what can a plant murderer do do help brighten up her windowsill? Why, buttons on wire of course!

 

 

 

Happy Birthday Mum

It was my mum’s birthday yesterday and after buying  Christmas presents  I always find it hard to think of something nice to get her in January. Luckily I remembered her mentioning something that she wanted a while ago and it also happened to be something that I have wanted to have a go at making for ages. A fabric memo board!

They are so easy to make, but seeing as I hadn’t made one before I thought it best to have a practice run, that way I get to make one for myself as well! So I gathered my supplies; a cheap pin board, some wadding, ribbon and buttons, a staple gun and some funky fabric, and off I went.

For my memo board I used some vintage curtain fabric that my sister in law gave me along with some yellow ribbon and buttons. I think it’s beautifully simple.

Happy with the outcome of my first attempt I cracked on my mums birthday present. She’s a big fan of blues, so I chose a lovely blue floral fabric that I’ve had hiding in my stash for a while. I picked out some lovely chunky blue buttons to sew through the joining ribbons and also used some of the ribbon to create a hanging handle. I covered the back of the board with some plain blue cotton to hide away the staples and back of the board.

I really enjoyed making these and will definitely be doing them again to sell at craft fairs and on my Etsy page. I particularly loved using the staple gun!

Kindle Covers

I was asked to make a kindle cover for someone’s Christmas present , she loved cats and her favourite colour was red. This is what I made her. She really loved it!

After posting a picture of it on myFacebook page I then got two more orders! Here they are 🙂

Beautiful Berries for Jemma

Plush pink for Lucy

 

Like what you see? I’d be happy to make one for you in your favourite colours! They are £15.00 plus postage. What are you waiting for?!

Pretty Parcel wrapped up and ready to go