Sewing with Cath...

Another of my greatest loves is Cath Kidston. I love the fabric, the designs and the homemade element of her things.

I particularly love her craft books: 'sew', 'stitch', 'patch' and 'make'. Free with her 'sew' book is the fabric and pattern for a bag. And I thought I would give it a go.

The instructions were easy to follow but I was grateful that the pieces were pre cut for this first project as I felt that this project was not for the beginner although the book does come with a massive pattern sheet which is, again, very clear.

It got me used to using my sewing machine (which was very new at that point) which was very useful but as the material was quite thick it made me test the tension on the machine too (another skill I had to learn!)

The project took me a couple of evenings to complete. However, I did tweak the instructions a little and did not make a loop for the button but instead sewed Velcro on the inside of the bag for a fastening.

All in all a great project for Cath Kidston fans... I'm certainly hooked!

Just dance...

After the success of my 'smile' bag I wanted to make another tote bag for my sister and step sister who are both crazy about dancing. My sister in particular always has a thousand-and-one shoes for her hobby so a bag would come in useful for her.

In fact, it was nice to return a favour to her as she once made me a tye dye bag at school which I kept my tap shoes in for many years - it goes without saying that I was a rubbish tap dancer!

 The principal of the 'dance' bags was the same as the 'smile' bag - the letters were traced out of different fabrics and then bondawebbed on and then appliquéd!

 The bag wasn't as good a quality as the previous one so if you attempt this yourself use a calico bag rather than a cheap one!

Starting with a smile...

When I first moved to York I was in desperate need of something to occupy my mind other than my work which was taking over pretty much every ounce of my life. I then made a discovery that was to change my life forever. Hobbycraft.

This discovery was made when me and my husband went to do one of our favourite pastimes. Looking at fish. This particular fish watchery was The Deep in Hull - an amazing place which we have visited many times since and has plenty of things to do for families. At that time though we were still unmarried and the idea of children was a dim and distant thing for the future.

We ended up getting a little lost around hull. Anyone who knows me will know that this is not an unusual occurrence as I probably couldn't find my way out of a paper bag. My sense of direction is rubbish. Anyway, we ended up in a car park outside Hobbycraft. My day brightened up immeasurably!

From that day I have spent many an hour wandering around the store.

I also love their website (hence the link appearing on my blog many, many times. On this website they have an ideas page which is a wonder to behold and I challenge any seasoned crafter to look at it and not come away with a bit of inspiration.

And this is what happened with my 'smile' bag. I was still relatively new to the whole crafting thing so I wanted to start with an easy but effective project. And this was it:

I didn't want my bag to say 'love' on it but 'smile' instead as I considered using it for my school books (as a Lamda teacher I ALWAYS have books!) and thought it would be a nice sentiment for my students to see especially first thing on a Monday morning. I also wanted the letters to have an almost monochrome effect.

I typed the letters in a word document on the computer and played with the fonts so they were all different. After printing the letters out they were then cut out and I traced the letters on the fabric. The letters were then cut out and then I out bondaweb on the back and ironed the letters to the calico bag.

 I find bondaweb heaven and hell ... Heaven when it works. Hell when it sticks to the iron!

I then appliquéd the letters.

It was satisfying finishing it. I again plan to do another couple of these but what they will be - who knows!