Obsessions & Distractions - Day of the Dead

Day of the Dead (or Día de Muertos) is a Mexican holiday to remember those who have died. It takes place from October 31st to November 2nd, so in preparation here are some ideas for inspiration!

Blast from the Past - Fabric Pumpkin

Hello! This is a new feature where we share projects which have been on our 'things to try' list for a while.... but just haven't got round to yet. They will still stay on our list (or Pinterest board!), but in the meantime we thought we'd share them for inspiration!

... and a Handmade Wedding Ring Pillow

My friends Eleanor & John got married last weekend, and it was an amazing day. The whole wedding was meticulously planned out by the the couple (the bride mainly!!) and there were lots of handmade touches that made it really special. My contribution was a wedding ring pillow that Eleanor requested - "not too traditional, or bridal - and colourful to fit in with the rest of the theme". This is what I came up with:

... and some Mixed Media Cards

Last weekend was Mother's Day here in the UK. For the first time since Mally was born I had the day to myself with my boys. So obviously I had to make sure that I sent some extra special cards to my mum as well as Dunc's mum. They do so much for us!!

... and a Third Textile ATC Swap!

We're excited to be able to reveal our ATCs for the third Very Berry Handmade Textile ATC Swap! This time round, there was a choice of themes between "Spring" or  "Books / Literary". As the votes from the participants was split, both themes were included!

Obsessions & Distractions - Hearts

"Love is in the air, everywhere I look around".... are you humming the song yet?! With Valentine's Day on the horizon, what better time to share a round up of some great heart crafts!

... and No Nails String Art

One of our good friends has just become a Grandmother! (Remember Lants who made the Pink Furry

Headboard?!). Her daughter Abbie has had a beautiful baby girl called India and I wanted to make something extra special and personal for her.

.... and our Autumn Textile ATC Swap!

We really enjoyed our first Textile ATC (Artist Trading Card) Swap back in June, so when we heard that Ali at VeryBerryHandmade was organising another, we couldn't put our names on the list quick enough!!

... and a Stitched Textile Books Course

Jane Bonney is a fantastic local Textile Artist, who we first met on our Stained Glass Class last year. We've wanted to take part in one of her textile courses ever since, so when a date came up which we could make, we jumped at the chance to sign up!!

Obsessions & Distractions - Fireworks

Remember, remember the 5th of November!! It's Guy Fawkes (Bonfire) night here and so we thought we'd share some of our favourite firework crafts! Enjoy!

... and Embroidered T-Shirt Art

Halloween is over... but Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is still going on so what better time to share this project to make a unique piece of artwork. Of course can be used for any idea / theme but I have been holding onto it for now for obvious reasons ;)

... and a Fabric Scrap Bowl

The only problem with saving all your fabric scraps is then finding different ways to use them up!! I've had an idea in my mind for a while on using different scraps to make a bowl.... so it was about time I gave it a go!

... and a Denim Wine Bottle Bag

One of my favourite things is to go to my friend Eleanor's house, armed with a bottle of wine (or two) for a cheap alternative to a night out. And Eleanor LOVES her wine! So for her birthday I decided to make her a present for when she is carting her bottles around to whoever is hosting the next wine night - a travel friendly bag, upcycled from a pair of jeans!

... and an Embroidered Pencil Pot

I have been obsessed with all the posts on Pinterest where people have used embroidery and cross stitch on every day objects... And I finally got round to doing one of my own! This could be a great back to school project to organise a homework station, but we don't have to deal with any of that...yet!

Tips, Tools & Techniques - Making Fabric from Scraps

Like all good crafters, I have been saving every scrap from my sewing and embroidery projects. Even the bits of thread and tiniest snippets of fabric. I knew I was saving them for something (stuffing maybe?!) but then I came across this post by Just Jude and I had to try it immediately! The idea is that you can create a fun, new piece of fabric that you can then use for whatever you'd like.

... and our Embroidery & Mixed Media Course

As mentioned before, we recently went on an Embroidery and Mixed Media Course at Farncombe Estate. Our tutor was Rosalind Davis, who is an amazing artist, curator and tutor - please check out her website here for more information and some examples of Rosalind's work.

Obsessions & Distractions - Constellation Crafts

There's something so magical about stars. And as we are science geeks, mixing astronomy and crafts is a dream come true! We think these projects are very cool and the idea of using embroidery to make constellations can be applied to so many things!

So here's a round-up of our favourites - we can't wait to try some of these!

... and a Felt Needle Case

June is busy month for family and friend's birthdays, so I have been using it as a good excuse to spend time looking on Pinterest for inspiration! My brother's girlfriend, Alice enjoys crafting so I decided that a little needle case may come in handy, especially for while on the move.

Here's what you'll need if you want to make your own version....

... and a Textile ATC Swap!

As you may have seen from our sidebar, we recently signed up for a Textile Artist Trading Card (ATC) swap, organised by Ali at Very Berry Handmade.

... and Thread Sketching a Notebook Cover

I have been obsessed with the idea of sketching with my sewing machine for AGES. Problem is my teensy machine is pretty basic and everything I had read about called for free motion stitching with a special foot, and the ability to drop the feed dogs. None of which I can do!!