Writing

Posted on 26. Jan, 2012 by suse

Since a young age, I've always been intrigued by storytelling. More specifically, putting words together to tell a story.

When I was in secondary school I had a fictional essay returned by my English teacher with a comment that she was unable to mark it as due to the standard of work she suspected it had been copied from a published author. Fortunately, I didn't let that stop me, and I continued to write.

Tablecloth

Posted on 24. Dec, 2011 by suse

Tablecloth with cross-stitched and embroidered corners
One plain tablecloth, preshrunk
Make sure it fits
Pick a decoration
Copy your pattern before marking it off
Find some threads
If you don't have the right ones...
...this colour book is pricey, but invaluable
A reworked list
Pick some Aida and cross hatch it in ten squares
Placement is crucial
Pin, but then tack to avoid lost pins and skewed work
Complete the cross-stitch part
Try and keep the back neat
Cut round the edges and tweezer out the threads
Backstitch the rest of the design
Beautifully finished in time for Christmas Day

Here we start with one plain white tablecloth. First off, I machine washed and then tumbledried it. I did this to preshrink it, even though it it will never be machine washed nor tumbledried once decorated. I have sad memories of towels with handstitched trims that shrank after the first wash, leaving the trims puckered or stretched. Always preshrink anything that is going to be washed or is likely to be the victim of spillage.

Bunting

Posted on 23. Dec, 2011 by suse

Bunting!
An old shirt
A pillowcase
Some abandoned projects
And some generic scraps
Plus two charm packs
Template cut and fabric started
Stash fabric cut
Charm packs cut
Big stack of triangles
Stitching time
And turning the right way round time
Much ironing
Ironed flat
Sorted and stacked
a 50 metre roll of 25mm cotton tape
Here's the theory..
..and here's the practical
Big pile of finished bunting
Bunting up
Bunting up
Looks very nice!

Fabric bunting = because I'm tired of spending money every Christmas on tacky cheap plastic things to festoon the house with (that invariably are single use only because they rip when you take them down or fold in on themselves like a black hole when you store them).

Owls!

Posted on 05. Dec, 2011 by suse

Owls!
Owl 1
Owl 2
Hypno Owl
Trio of owls

These lovely little chaps are made from upcycled fabric (that was once a pair of corderoy trouser legs) and some coloured felt for the trimmings, topped off with double button eyes.

The belly feathers were blanket stitched on with contrast embroidery floss, and the wings edged with blanket stitch.

They were stuffed with just wadding as they were intended for decorative purposes (and the occasional cuddle) rather than as a doorstop.

Adapted a little from the doorstop owl pattern from Sew Hip issue 17.

05 Dec

Working away

It's a busy time of year.

Since my last craft update I haven't been idle, dear reader.

There's a handbag (possibly with matching coin purse) in the works being upcycled from an unwanted skirt.

There's a Christmas tablecloth that is currently taking top priority.

I've got the seed of a new needlebook settling into my brain.

My mending basket has been emptied.

And there have been Owls. The owls will get their own post in the craft section in but a mere moment.

Christmas tablecloth in the making
The start of a handbag and possibly a matching coin purse
Owls!

suse's blog

Fence

Posted on 13. Nov, 2011 by suse

The fence panels have been creosoted
The bike cave has little more than just a bike in it
Paving slabs along the existing fence are taken up
The existing fence will remain, the new one will go up on our side of the boundary
1 of 4 posts in, courtesy of a fence spike and a lump hammer
Aha, look, concrete where we want the new spikes to go
Much chiselling later, 2 of 4 posts up
3 of 4 posts - thrilling stuff
The last post was fixed to the house wall
Panels were then slotted into place and screwed down
Finished!

The addition of a fence gives us privacy from our neighbours and a structure to hang flower baskets from.

We will also benefit from being sheltered from the wind a bit more. We aren't likely to lose much sunlight either. The long side of the fence faces due west. We only get direct sunlight at the height of midday in the summer.

The Back Yard

Posted on 13. Nov, 2011 by suse

The project: to turn our tiny inhospitable concrete back yard into a family friendly area!

Upcycling challenge - 3: Nightdress

Posted on 06. Nov, 2011 by suse

Finished child's nightdress
Original pyjama top
Inside out and laid ready to measure
Snip snip goes the surplus
The surplus cut from one side becomes a template to cut the other side
Sides and sleeve seam put in
Sleeves cut to length
Inside seams finished with overstitch
Sleeves hemmed and turned up
Finished child's nightdress

Back to the upcycling challenge!

The item to be remade was a flannel or wynciette type adult pyjama top. A little on the small side when purchased in a hurry for a hospital trip and an entire size too small once it had been through a hot wash and tumbledry.

With the onset of the chilly weather, it seemed an appropriate time to dig it out of the remake pile and get it made down into something to fit the resident Small Child.

Lining a mask

Posted on 11. Oct, 2011 by suse

Lining a mask!
Here is an unlined mask
Look, it has no lining
Before lining, attach the straps
Use very strong glue
Ensure there is enough fabric
Glue, stick and trim
Finished!

Here's a mask that had no lining or straps and therefore was functionally pretty useless.

Before lining, attach straps. I picked a wide red satin ribbon that was similar in hue to some of the mask pattern. Cut, and use very strong glue to attach. Trim the raw ends and seal.

Pyrography embellished bolero (LRP/ LaRP)

Posted on 01. Oct, 2011 by suse

Finished jacket
Pyrography tool with safety holder
Always keep a bit of scrap leather to hand for testing the heat
4 in squares of waxed veg tan 1mm leather were used
This shark turned out a bit more like a dolphin
The start of a squid: I work freehand from a visual guide
Starfish
Collection of squares
The edges of each square were given a border
8 squares were needed for each sleeve
and 6 were done for the front, although the top 2 were not used
For the back I decided to do a 9 square pattern
Again this was mostly freehand although I used some paper templates to help me apportion the tentacles
The head of the octopus took a long time to do as the patterns were intricate
Finished 9 square pattern
As the leather was prewaxed, shoe polish colour took to the leather in a faded almost prewashed look
The back of the jacket, with squares polished and riveted on
One sleeve
The front
And the other sleeve
The inner was lined with fleece
And the raw edges were edged with faux fur
Finished (the brown fur is another garment)
Finished!

This is a project that I undertook to 'armour' a light faux leather jacket for purposes of live action roleplay (LaRP/LRP). Please note that this 'armour' is for largely aesthetic purposes and forms no actual bodily protection against actual weaponry: it is not of a standard suitable for SCA combat or in fact any sort of combat apart from qualifying as light armour in a system where you will be hit with latex and foam 'weaponry'. In short, if you make one, don't rely on it to save you from anything except pulled blows with foam weapons.

Disclaimer aside, on with the detail.

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