Rainbow Bluedog

Meet Rainbow Bluedog, a relative of Bluedog VII!

I used 3/4 of the fat quarter by Wild Cotton Fabric I picked up at the Stitches & Craft Show this year.

Rainbow here has his own amigurumi bone which he will never let it out of his sight.

The eyes are 100% wool felt in bright aqua colour.

He is a special request by the owner of Bluedog VII for her little nephew''s upcoming birthday and I can't wait until he receives him!

Stitch with love xx

Year of the Horse 2014

Happy Lunar New Year!

31 January 2014 marks the first day of the Year of the Horse. Apparently people born in the year of the horse are said to be great communicators but can be impatient. They love attention and very popular among friends. Maybe there's where the term "show pony" comes from… 

I was a bit slow in coming up with an amigurumi pony this year and I also had a hankering for some hand stitching so I made Harry from felt. 

Harry is a Pony, despite what he tells ya, he is not a Clydesdale or a Brumby. He is not an exhibitionist he imagined himself as, though this is not to say that he can't a clown amongst friends.

Basically a simple 3 piece pattern I hand drawn but I did add darts the top of the head as well as on the body where the tail is to give him some shape.

A different shade of brown for the snout gives him a added dimension too.

 May the Year of the Horse brings you happiness and good health!

Stitch with love...

Squish the Bunny Wabbit from the Planet Peace

Two of my Squish the Bunny Wabbits went to their homes this week, just in time for Christmas! I believe they are making their journey overseas!

Made from adult sized crew socks and measuring at approximately 30cm tall from tip of the ears to the toes, these guys are perfect for those who love a good cuddle. They are extremely soft and squishable, not to mention the vibrant bright colours, completely reflect their personality.

Warning: On Planet Peace, the Squish Bunny Wabbits are named party animals of the year! On Planet Earth, they are pretty tame.

I machined sewed these guys using a walking foot. Here are some progress pics:

Travel safe, Squishies!

 Stitch with love...

I have my sewing mojo back! Introducing the Cavernous Carpet Bag

Last weekend I finished the Cavernous Carpet Bag designed by Lisa Lam of U-handbag.
I love Lisa's designs and I have made a few of her bags, the last one was the Grace Kelly bag and looking back, it was more than 12 months ago!

I am happy with how this bag has turned out and especially now that it is done, I am quietly excited because this is a present for a very dear friend who is having a milestone birthday this week.

To ensure that I have all the components, I purchased the kit from U-handbag online and it includes everything except the fabrics which has worked perfectly because I had a very specific picture of how I wanted the bag to look. I bought the fabrics from an Etsy store called BeeYourselfFabrics, very speedy delivery, definitely shopping with her again! The exterior fabric is called Marqueterie Ginger from Indie Collection by Pat Bravo for Art Gallery Fabrics and the lining fabric is Fiesta Stonehill - Green / Teal Polka Dots by Donna Wilder for Fabric Traditions.

As usual the pattern is extremely thorough, all the details are there, just need to pay attention (the most important ingredient in this recipe) - ahmm… the kit came some weeks ago but I procrastinated because hardwares and I don't mix well. I read the pattern twice before measuring and cutting and even with this level of preparation, I was still a little nervous… Yep, I felt like I had lost that sewing feeling…

I couldn't help thinking that this isn't a draft, I only have one set of the tubular bag frame, one set of the leather handles. This is going to be something for a friend. So deep breath and off I went.

I had trouble with the plastic bag bottom. Not anything to do with the pattern, full instructions are there, I just couldn't seem to top stitch properly, even with the walking foot.

I broke the needle! There were a few thick layers, the needle got stuck, I tucked thinking I could push through, I slipped and stepped on the presser foot… well the result is one broken needle and some crooked stitches! Grrrr… Well, good thing I wear glasses - that's all I can say. At this point, I just stepped away from the machine, cleared my work surface and packed up for the night.

The next day, I examined the top stitches, took a deep breath, still unhappy that they weren't straight but I kept chanting "there are worse things in life" and hopefully apart from her dog, no one will look up to see that often. I just hand stitched the plastic bag bottom to the inside of the external bag all the time being careful not to stitch through to the outside - VICTORY! All secured inside and nothing outside!

 

I then stitched my label onto one of the inside pocket pieces. In hindsight I should have made another pocket with a zipper too.

The rest of the bag was mishaps free - YAY!

Check out these neat corners - so chuffed!

The leather handles give the bag a classy look but one must be prepared for numbed fingers afterwards. I am just thankful that they were even - by naked eyes anyway :)

I forgot to take pictures of how I inserted the tubular frame but it wasn't as scary as I thought and so happy that the joints matched up nice!

The bag is very roomy, as the name suggested. I made the large size which has the finished size 48cm by 23cm by 12.5cm. Yes, my finished bag has the same measurements as the pattern intended.

** HAPPY DANCE! **

An iPad 2 fits comfortably, laying down!  

I do have some extra lining fabric but I have learned that there are worse things in life….  

All in all, I am proud of this bag. I think I have my sewing mojo back!

Stitch on!!!

My work space

We are fortunate enough a dedicated bedroom as a home office which is also my craft/ sewing room. It's a decent size room with a big desk, filing cabinets, book shelves and sewing table. All all that space, I still manage to crowd it with all the fabrics and yarn but of course all other office stuff like printer, modem, paperwork, filing trays etc etc. Every now and then I go through a cleaning/ clearing frenzy and I just realised that the last time was over a year ago!

This morning I had another one of those urge to tidy up so I spent a couple of hours doing just that... Since the market in March, I found myself doing more and more of the non machine sewing crafts in the living room, spreading out on the lounge... So rather than a crazy invasion, set up a little mobile work station a couple of months ago using a large serving tray which I found stashed at the back of a cupboard in the kitchen. I gave it a good tidy up today too and I thought I would take some photos cause it will be messed up again before I know it!

So it carries all the essentials! Notebooks, reference books I am reading, embroidery threads, one of the current projects, felt pieces, safety eyes, pens, pencils, crochet hooks, knitting needles, scissors, my sewn-on labels and lots of other bits and pieces

I keep frequently used convertible circular needles in these clear plastic containers so I can see them easily.

It's always handy to keep the little bobbins of different colours sewing threads and knitting stitch markers. The other compartment houses felt pieces I cut out for eyes and noses.

Since I started to do the amigurumi workshop, I decided to put a number of various sized crochet hooks, stitch markers, pair of little scissors and pens in a little clear plastic case for portability.

Now that the work station is tidy, I can get on with more crafting!!

I socking love the walking foot!

Ah walking foot, how I love you! After I hand sewn a number of sock softies for the Dreamers Market in March, I swore I would invest in a walking foot so that I could control the stretching sock materials and those slippery minky fabrics.

Well true to my word, I did buy one not long afterwards (a tiny investment) but it took me a little while to take it out of the packaging. Frankly I was totally intimidated by the odd looking chunky attachment... After staring at my trusty Janome My Excel 23L for what seemed like forever (probably only 15 minutes), wondering what went where, I realised that it wasn't just an unclick and click part... So I rummaged through the storage compartment and found the little screwdriver that came with the machine. Unscrewed the existing normal foot and voila, things are beginning to fit...

A little happy dance... then I thought... well, what the heck, the only way to find out is just try.. so let's sew!

I tried with a little scrap piece first and it went well. Nothing got stuck or caught - eggcellent! So I picked up a piece, then the next piece, then the next...

... before I knew it and in UNDER 45 minutes, I sewn up enough pieces to make 6 sock softies! Last time when I sewn these by hand, one took me an hour!

This is exciting cause I will be able to make them quicker!! Did I say they are addictive?

Well it's a pity that the weekend is coming to a close and I won't be sitting in front of the sewing machine until next weekend at the earliest but at least I have them at a stage where I can do the rest on the lounge in the evening sometime during the week... NICE!

Stitch with Love...