A random 'Dukes of Hazzard' reference (& a couple of cushions!)

 

I'll come back to the bit about The Dukes of Hazzard in a minute...(!) but for now I want to tell you about this cushion I've made for a little girl, Beatrice.

 

It is Beatrice's Christening on Sunday and her Auntie is one of my oldest and bestest friends.  Said Auntie asked me to make a Christening gift...we agreed on a cushion and that it was to be personalised.... a few sketches later & I came up with this design. I didn't want to make anything too 'baby-ish' as I think Christening presents should have a bit of longevity about them. Hopefully this will grace Beatrice's bedroom for many years to come.

 

It uses my favourite natural cotton/linen base fabric and then incorporates lots of lovely Tilda floral, stripes and spotty fabrics for trims and applique, with a bit of ribbon thrown in to finish it all off.

 

 

Having made a girls cushion, I thought I'd better redress the balance and design/make a style for boys...It's quite different from the soft, gentle shades of the girls' version....it is, indeed, a bit bright.....!

 

I do love a bit of orange for boys. It makes a refreshing change from blue, green and brown and is an alternative 'bright' to red, which always feels a bit 'school-uniformy' to me....Plus, it actually looks great as a 'clashing' colour.  I had some orange linen-type fabric and a small piece of this blue star fabric which was a bit 'busy' just on it's own...but with the orange, works much better I think. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So this now brings me to that Dukes of Hazzard reference......whilst making this cushion, I had a nagging thought in the back of my head that it reminded me of something...struggling to place it all morning and then suddenly, of course...'The General Lee', the car from that fantastic (maybe I'm being a bit nostalgic here thinking it was fantastic?!)) 1980s U.S show.

 

 

 

 

See what I mean?...sort of??

...and whilst I was looking for pictures to reassure myself that The General Lee was what I was thinking of, I came across these:

 

 

 

How brilliant!...original Dukes of Hazard lunchboxes. Sort of wished I'd had one of these for my school packed lunch in the early 1980s instead of that pink plastic 'My Little Pony' one!!

 

 

Anyway, I digress...back to cushions.  These make lovely, personal gifts and I can make them to match any colour scheme/theme (including Retro 70s/80s TV Shows, it would seem!), so give me a shout if you fancy one for someone in your life.....xx

 

Keeping 'tags' on it...

Yes, I know that the saying is 'Keeping tabs on it' but that doesn't work in the context of this post, so excuse the bad pun.

Just a quick one this...had lots of small pieces of fabric leftover from various makes, so thought I'd try out some personalised key rings/ book bag/luggage tags.  They measure about 9cm/7cm and feature a printed fabric reverse with applique on the front.

 

I've noticed that it appears to be a big trend in the playground (at least at T's school anyway) to attach as many key rings as possible to ones book bag...which I do quite like the idea of - it adds a bit of individuality and personality to an otherwise dull piece of school kit.  These tags would perhaps make a good addition to anyone's collection..personalised with an initial or a little motif...or even just plain featuring a favourite print.

 

Might be a nice little gift for adults too, in an appropriate fabric, to attach to luggage(or obviously, keys!)...?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, one last thing before I finish, this is the first time I've written since I 'went public' with this blog and whilst I was feeling rather self-conscious and embarrassed about it all, I've received some really lovely compliments and reassurances, so a big THANK YOU for the positive comments and feedback xx



 

Ok, so I've nearly used up all those zips...for now!

 

Not wanting to waste the scraps left over from the various items I've made recently (& needing a use for all those zips I impulsively purchased), I've had a go at some little coin purses using fabric remnants. Made with the natural linen/cottons that I love working with & matching linings, they have a little tab with key ring to attach to whatever you may fancy attaching them to...!

They measure about 10cm/6cm and although I was originally thinking of them as 'coin purses', I've come up with a variety of uses:

 

1. Coin Purse (obviously)

2. Credit Card/Receipt holder

3. Gadget Case (just about big enough to hold some mobile phones/head phones/bits & bobs

4. (For Dog Owners) Doggie treat & poo bag holder

5. Lip gloss/mascara (make up essentials for night out) purse

6. Mini pencil case for those little crayons/pens. Good for Mums to keep in handbags to keep little ones occuplied in an emergency!

7. An alternative to the 'party bag' for girls.....(not if you're providing them for the whole class of course...that could get silly expensive), but for a few girls; one of these with a bag of chocolate buttons/haribos/hair clips etc etc,could make for a nice 'thank you for coming to my party' gift.

 

 

J quite liked these...said they were very 'practical', so I made one for him too...not sure if boys would go for these, but perhaps I'll come up with some design ideas...they could use them to keep hold of their Lego Mini figures/ Go Gos/ Other Treasures, I suppose.....

Lovely Linens & Linings

Today I've been busy making some more zipped pouches (make-up/accessories/bits & bobs bags) which would make lovely girly gifts. They are all made from natural linen/cottons with pretty  lining & contrasting zips...they're nice and rigid so will withstand knocks & bumps in a handbag/suitcase. 

 

Not much more to say about them really...I like them, hope you do too x

Rainy Days & Mondays

...always get me down...(as the lovely Karen Carpenter famously sang).  Today it is both raining and a Monday...the worst of all.  However, I'm determined that being stuck inside will not be a chore and will use this enforced time indoors to get on with some 'making'.

Last week, I didn't get much done as I had a few projects to get on with in the garden.  I did however have a play around with a dinosaur applique design & pencil case, using green camo fabric as a trim, lining and the applique T-Rex, a little keyring tab and contrast orange zip & stitching.

...and I've discovered a new obsession: 'free-motion machine embroidery'.  It's basically sketching on fabric using the machine.  A bit random and messy and quite odd to get to grips with, but fun to do and I quite like the results.  Here are my very basic, first attempts, so nothing special...but everyone has to start somewhere, right?!

Pottering around...

Yay! Back in the ceramics workshop today & back at the (sometimes frustrating) wheel!

3 hours later, some (not too) wonky pots thrown, ready to dry out, neaten off and then start to add the decorative finishes before they go for their first firing (It's a long old process from lump of clay to finished pieces)








I'm covered in clay but very happy....

Zip It.

At last...I've done some sewing!!

This week's project has been all (well, mostly all) about zips....seeing as I seem to have acquired (impulsively purchased) a load over the summer. 

I get really fed up of the lack of 'stuff' (by that, I mean clothing & accessories) for boys that doesn't feature some kind of branded image. Now; I appreciate that Lightning McQueen, Ben 10, Star Wars are all 'awesome', as a certain 5 year old boy might put it, but I'd rather these 'characters' stay on the TV, in the cinema and (I'm even willing to concede) toys. Merchandise that isn't branded is out there, but it is harder to track down.

Therefore....ta dah....I'll take my zips and darn well make my own......

(Ok, ok, this first pencil case does feature Comic Book Super Heros, which therefore makes me something of a hypocrite, but the print is kind-of-retro & not straight out of a Disney-Pixar animation!)

Love the boxy shape and the chunky zip, as does T apparently...looks like this one is for him!

Celebrating 'Brand Britain' again with union jack appliqued guitar and matching lining. This one is made from an old pair of jeans. Yay..upcycling that fabric again.

I had some blue camo fabric which I thought might make a great shark applique. Bit of an experiment this one, but worked out ok.














so ok that I made a matching toy bag too!

...and then on to the girly things...Really pleased with this pouch. Especially the little fabric tab on the end of the zip. This is made from a rustic piece of natural linen cloth, with a bright, colourful Japanese floral & geisha print fabric for the base & the lining.  Hmmm, might make a good gift for someone.....

This one is for ME ME ME. I needed a new makeup bag and couldn't find one I liked, was the right size, or wasn't a silly price.  The fabric is an offcut from an oilcloth table cloth we used to have on our kitchen table!!! 

I've not taken a very good picture of this pencil case, but you can just about sneak a peek at this '1960s owl' print used in the lining. I've a pile of fabulous 'girly' print cottons that I'd like to utilise in coin purses, tote bags, more zipped pouches and toy bags, so lots more of this sort of thing to come over the following weeks.....