I love Pinterest!

I discovered Pinterest a few months ago and it has really changed the way I research what I am going to make next. I was doing my own version of collecting on-line inspiration, but boy it was hard work, cumbersome, and often involved losing stuff! If I had a good colour printer I would probably have contemplated printing some things out, just so I could keep them!

For many years I have kept what I call "happy books" - scrapbooks filled with pictures I love or find inspiring - and I still do keep these to hand for pictures I cut from magazines or birthday cards I receive. There's still a place for the book and the paper record after all. But I find Pinterest incredibly absorbing and a great way to find inspiration whilst I have a quick cuppa tea.

It was on Pinterest that I discovered Planet Penny , a fellow crafter who is as mad about rainbows as I am. I first discovered (and fell in love with) Penny's rainbow mice:

Aren't they just gorgeous?? Penny has now written a pattern for these so I shall have a go at making them myself.

I also found a picture of some lovely storage jars that Penny has decorated - look:

 I fell in love with the "stuff jar" and decided to do something similar to a container I use for putting in all the little bits of cotton and scraps that I always seem to accumulate (usually on my sleeves!) when I am sewing. It was plain plastic and a little boring. However it looks a bit more interesting now!

 A little progress has been made on the shed. It is still in need of painting (I fear that might take a while!), but I did manage to put up some bookshelves earlier in the week. That means about half of my worktop is now clear, so I can utilise it a little better. The aim is not to just clutter it up with junk!

My current evening project is making some more granny squares for my rainbow granny that is covering my old Parker Knoll chair in my shed. This is my "sitting and knitting" chair which is ever so comfy but definitely benefits from a cheerier look! As you can see it doesn't quite cover the chair at the sides so I am in the process of adding a couple more rows down the side.

I've also been making some lovely spring goodies for sale ... watch out for a post later in the week!

Lots of news and deliciousness!

So much has happened over the past week!

Firstly, I have started working with a lovely local gift shop called Eye Candy who sell some fabulous gifts. She has some cupcakes and owls that I have created, look!

They look like they are jostling each other for the front spot, don't they?!

 I also made her some little Easter chicks - aww cute!

Soon to go into Eye Candy - exclusive bags and birthday bunting. Watch this space! It's lovely to work with a local business who "gets" handmade craft :o)

Another local business who I mentioned recently has just taken delivery of some more gorgeousness for their shop. Puffin Croft Farm Shop in John O'Groats now stocks these yummy lavender hearts:

And the commissions continue - here's a cupcake phone cover I made last week:

It even has cupcake lining fabric and a cupcake button - more cute!

As you can see, I have been busy, with lots of things in progress behind the scenes too!

I am very busy at the moment trying to improve my workspace. Currently I have all my things squished into a couple of cupboard shelves, with the overspill behind the sofa. However the overspill is threatening to take over and so Nick has cleared all his things out of the cupboard this afternoon so I can organise my own things in there a little more efficiently. I reckon that once I have sorted everything out I will save at least a couple of hours a week that I currently waste looking for things! Well, that's the theory anyway. If I am brave I might post some before and after pictures. Hmm.

A busy week

I have been trying to get on the computer for a while now but it seems to have taken forever to get near it to post this week! I've been busily working on a few projects, two of which are still under wraps, but can post up a couple of completed ones and a couple of teasers!

First up is my first attempt at an iphone case. This was a wee bit of a challenge as I don't have an iphone, so I did a lot of careful measurement-taking and calculating to make sure it was just the right size and not too big or small! Fortunately it is a perfect fit, I am told. I was asked for a pale pink ipod with "a big fat strawberry on the front":

Then I added a couple of extra surprises in the form of a strawberry button:

And lined it in strawberry fabric:

One very pleased recipient!
Another commission I have been working on this week is the bunting. I hit a major problem in the middle of the week - my usually trusty 1980s Singer sewing machine refused to sew through the bias binding and the flannel layers to create the final effect. After changing the needle, thread, bobbin, and giving it a thorough clean and oil, I finally admitted defeat and broke out the big guns - namely, my 1941 Singer machine! I haven't got a picture of it but will post one next time as it is a beautiful specimen and cost me the princely sum of £30 (baaaargain!!!). True to expectation, my vintage Singer performed the job perfectly and my bunting is now winging its way across the channel to California and its new home. Until it arrives I shan't share a picture of the final result, but here is a little teaser:

Yummy colours!!
Also in the parcel was this, a thinking lemon (I love these, they are so deliciously random!)

And finally ...

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... the heel has turned!