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Posts Tagged ‘handmade’

Baby shoes

Thursday, February 9th, 2012 

Mothers day gift ideas

Friday, March 25th, 2011

If you havent decided about your mums present for next weekend let me help you out.  I have a few very good ideas that I can assure you they will put a big smile on her face.  The only down side is that you will love them so much that you might have to buy one for yourself (I speak by personal experience here, so be warned ).

My suggestions are in no particular order, but lets start with 2 talented sisters, that I am proud to say that they are friends of mine too.  The 2 Pink Sardines have quite a few goodies in their Etsy shop, from clutches, iPad covers to very fashionable cowls, basically they can source presents all year around from mothers day, birthdays, to Christmas, even that cheeky treat to yourself! You can't go wrong when something is made with lots of love

Another shop that I find myself very often browsing is Three Red Apples.  I own two of her handmade goodies and I cannot tell you enough how happy I am with the attention to detail and the how her designs just bring happiness to any room.  Do check the hoops and the messenger bag (if you dont get it I probably will!) Adorable handmade goodies by Three Red Apples

Another clever girl with an Etsy shop is Fiona from Patchwork Delights.  I do love her Mug Rugs and the fabric covered magnets will be welcomed with open arms.  If your mum has a crafty soul, go for the covered buttons, they will certainly brighten up any project. Presents like this are always cherished

Of course, I couldnt miss the opportunity to do a sales pitch here, so if you think that your mums fabric stash is getting a bit low, come over the shop and get her one of our bundles or go ahead and buy fabric by the length.  Ths is a great option if you mum is anything like my nan, because she uses anything that I give her to make something for me :) You can't go wrong with fabric, but remember that you have to give it away!


Tags: gifts ideas, handmade, mother's day, pano pra mangas, patchwork delights, three red apples
Posted in Inspiration | 8 Comments »

About bags and fabrics

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011

Those two words used in the same sentence are just heaven for me, and they often put my strong will power to the test when I am a bit short of cash; but it was certainly heaven when I made this bag a few months ago with 3 of  the fabrics that I have in stock.  I didn’t blog about it then because it was going to be birthday present for my sister.  I say “was” because she never got it.  The bag is still with me and I don’t feel the tiniest bit of remorse about it (as they say, to accept your problems is the first step to solve them). I can fit anything in this bag!

The pattern is the Cosmo Bag from Amy Butler’s latest book Style Stitches (read my review here) and I used 2 of the fabrics from the Botanica Collection by Lourdes Sanchez and Kona Zucchini for the lining.

The bag was incredibly easy to make, for some reason if I see a big bag with pockets and things I usually think it is going to be difficult, but this pattern proved me wrong.  I do like the designs of the fabrics, but perhaps I should had used Springs in Cream for the handles instead of the one that I used or maybe a solid colour.  The thing is, I was so desperate to use Leafy Stripes that I convinced myself that it was the way to go.  I don’t think it looks bad, but I guess it could have looked better as the pattern of the fabric is difficult to appreciate, or what do you think?

Anyway, the bag is done and I am very happy with it.  Now whilst I don’t feel too mucho remorse I do feel guilty! so I must crack on and make one for my sister!

Tags: Amy Butler, bag, Botanica, Cosmo bag, fabrics, handbags, handmade, pattern
Posted in Sewing stories | 9 Comments »

More than I expected

Saturday, March 12th, 2011

Yersterday I started my weekend a bit earlier and headed down to London to meet two lovely and very talented girls.  To my surprise, I didn’t only spent a great afternoon in Central London looking around fabric shops and eating cake with Margarida and Vânia but also they gave me this sweet little bag: Handmade in Portugal - Click on the photo to check their lovely shop

If you haven’t met them, I’d strongly suggest you visit their blog for lots of handmade inspiration, drawings, baking, and all about those little things in life that make you smile.

Enjoy the weekend xx

Tags: 2pinksardines, bag, handmade, pano pra mangas, purse
Posted in Homemade gifts, Inspiration | 2 Comments »

Christmas Presents in the making

Sunday, November 14th, 2010

This year, as with the last few years, I have taken a pledge that it will be a homemade Christmas.  It wouldn’t be fair to say that I have failed previous years, because quite a few of the presents that we gave were in fact homemade… not all were made at my home, but in someone else’s home, and yes, I did made a few with my very own hands.

I thought that Christmas 2010 was going to be a bit different, and my house was going to resemble Santa’s workshop than just clicking away at Amazon for last minute presents.  The truth is that many of our clients are indeed creative crafters that make wonders with fabrics they have bought from The Fabric Loft, so they are keeping me busy and leaving me very little spare time to make my own presents.  I am happy to know that they are busy as well selling their goodies in Christmas Fairs all over the country and a few abroad too (yeap we are international now!).

The clock is ticking and I had to find pretty things that wouldn’t take ages to make, I hit the target when I got Fat Quarterly‘s Holiday Special Edition.  I made the sweetest doll ever designed by Katy Jones from I’m a Ginger Monkey.  It is one of those projects that are easy and quick to make and once you finish it you end up with such a great feeling!

I am on a roll now and have a few fabrics pinned together ready to be the next smiley long legged doll… will post more pictures soon in our Facebook page, but in the mean time, feel free to check the ones I’ve published on our Flickr page. Initially made to be given away... now I'm really considering keeping it for myself :)

Fabrics used:

Head: Tiny Flowers by Sevenberry

Body: Henna Garden by Sandi Henderson

‘Supermodel’ long legs: Sun Spots in Turquoise by Amy Butler

Tags: Christmas, doll, fat quarterly, gift, handmade, imagingermonkey

About presents

Friday, October 29th, 2010

I am absolutely mad about buying presents, specially for my loved ones. I am not really into buying lots of presents, I rather give one or a couple of good ones, carefully chosen, than give lots of presents just for the sake of it. Another thing that I like about present is choosing the wrapping, ribbons, tags, etc. I have even designed and printed my own when I can’t find what I want.  I have always thought of the wrapping as part of the present.

Yesterday was my husband’s birthday and after buying his gift I went to all of the shops that sold wrapping paper but couldn’t find one that made me 100% happy. So I thought of putting my stamp on it and wrapping with fabric. After all this is what I am, a fabric lady :) So here it is how it looked: Prince Charming loved it, both the present and the wrapping. I am sure you agree with me that it is such a great feeling to see people that you love with a big smile on their face. But the very best part of the whole thing was that after he went off to play with his new gadget, I still got a bit of fabric to use for my hexis! And seeing as we are in a celebration mood, I have teamed up with Fiona from The Sewing Directory for a Giveaway.  For the chance to win a £15 voucher from The Fabric Loft just let us know which fabric or fabric designer you would use to wrap a present, or you would love to receive as a present from the ones that we have in stock (of course feel free to add these to your Fabric Loft wish list and send it to your loved ones!).  Send your answer to email@example.com or by filling out this easy form.

You must be quick, the winner will be drawn at 6pm Monday so you have only got this weekend to let us know which one is your favourite!

Tags: Amy Butler, Contests & Giveaways, gift, Giveaway, handmade, ideas, The Sewing Directory
Posted in Contests & Giveaways, Inspiration | 6 Comments »

Style Stitches

Thursday, September 30th, 2010 

Bag heaven

Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010

I was very happy when I found out that Lisa Lam was writing a book, I am an avid reader of her blog and I just knew her book was going to be great!  When the publishers David & Charles asked me to review it I said “yes” before they finished the sentence; but I never thought how difficult it was going to be to review this book.  If you have already looked through the pages of The Bag Making Bible, youre probably thinking that I am not making sense because it is such a cool book that it must be so easy to give it 5 stars. It is true that the book is a wonderful compilation of all you need to know about how to make a bag, including what tools you do need, the techniques to master, the materials to use, everything.  So why it was so difficult for me to write a review?  Well, I have already read lots of reviews, spoken to people that already own the book including sewing tutors, who all say the book is fantastic, even Amy Butler has said wonders about it, that quite honestly I am struggling to find something new to say about it.

Perhaps if I tell you about my relationship with bags and the effect that The Bag Making Bible has had on me, you will get a bit of a different perspective of how good this book is.  I LOVE bags, this is not the typical girly thing about having lots of bags; I truly have this thing (you can call it an obsession) with bags.  Apart from the simple tote bag, I much prefer buying bags than making them (yeap I said it).  Dont ask me why but I do. Or I did until I read Lisa’s book.

The BMB (as I call it, fingers getting tired) offers you endless possibilities of how to make your ideal bag.  It teaches you the skills to construct each part of a bag, plus it also has a few patterns that apply the techniques that are shown in clear, step-by-step instructions with useful images (not only those pretty and artistic photos that are not very helpful when you have a question midway through your project), and best of all there are tiny little tips throughout the book, a sort of post-it notes that the author has left to guide you on your way.

So my perfect bag is a real possibility, I can now modify bag patterns to make it 100% suitable for what I need and want.  Enough pockets to keep my stuff in place, but not too many that I spend hours looking for keys; a lining that is not too dark that camouflages my mobile phone; long enough handles that it can be used as a shoulder bag, but not so short that is just a handbag; nice edges to make it look professional, and well, the fabric that suits my mood!

The Bag Making Bible by Lisa Lam is published by David and Charles click here to buy it.

Tags: bag, David & Charles, handmade, Lisa Lam, u-hangbag
Posted in Book Reviews | 25 Comments »

Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts and….

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Almost everybody that knows me will know that I am a huge fan of Martha Stewart, so when this book arrived a few days ago I knew I was on a good start.

If you are familiar with Martha Stewart’s books, The Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts follows the same great formula.  This book has been well thought out and all of the information is very well organised and structured; so well in fact that this might be one of the best sewing reference books that you will find.  For me, what makes a good reference book is not just the photos, but how easy you can find what you are looking for, this book has both, lots of cool pictures and easy to follow layout. The book is aimed at both the newcomer and seasoned crafter alike, starting from explaining the different types of fabrics, and moving on to tips on setting up a sewing area, through to basic techniques, including hand sewing, appliqué, different types of embroidery (yes, it also includes sashiko too!), quilting, patchwork, dyeing fabric, and even printing.  It comes with a CD that includes all the patterns and templates needed for the projects in the book.  So there is no need for guessing shapes, sizes or risk of damaging the book trying to get a photocopy of a pattern!

The projects are many and varied and to be honest quite a few of them you will find on Martha Stewart’s website; but if you are a little bit like me, I much prefer having all of those instructions, tips and photos in a beautiful hard cover book.

The projects are very creative and inspiring.  Reading through the book over last few evenings I found myself saying several times in my most affirmative and almost imperative tone “yes, I am going to make this bag, after this patchwork cushion cover, and these felt book cover are just perfect Christmas presents, but first I must make this pincushion too, I need it for all this sewing (by this moment my tone has changed and I sound a bit more like I am reading a letter to Santa), and our bathroom towels would definitely look nicer if I add this little touch…OMG Japanese sashiko patterns, I have always wanted to learn…”

Of the long list of pretty things that I want to make from this book, I might only get around to making a few, but I know that time and time again I will look to this book for some inspiration and a bit of guidance too.

Well I close for now, I must get started with one of those pincushions.

Lizzet xx

Martha Stewart’s Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts is published by David and Charles click here to buy it.

Tags: bible, David & Charles, encyclopedia, fabric, handmade, homemade, ideas, Martha Stewart, patterns, projects, review, sashiko, sewing
Posted in Book Reviews | 2 Comments »


Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

Just thought of showing you some of the hexagons that I have been making with my scraps.  Still a few hundred to do but I literally just take one at a time. Tags: handmade, hexagons, quilts
Posted in Inspiration | 4 Comments »