D.I.Y - Teacup Pin Cushion!

I've been meaning to pop this post up for a while now, it seems I haven't done a D.I.Y in aaages!

This one is quite simple, and can be a really cute addition to your sewing tool collection- whilst being very pretty and practical to use!

You will need:

~ 1 x pretty teacup and saucer (make sure its an old one!)

~ 1 x glue gun and glue sticks to go in it

~ 1 x (approx) 30cm x 30cm piece of scrap fabric

~ Scissors

~ A handful of cushion stuffing/wadding

Most of these are things that can be found quite easily. I bought my teacup from a local charity shop for 50p (I definitely recommend popping down to your local charity shop, you'll get a lovely one for half nothing!). I also got the fabric from my fabric stash, any kind is suitable, as long as it goes nicely with your teacup! I took the wadding out of a cushion I had made in GCSE textiles (shh!), but you could easily get some from any haberdashery shop. The glue gun was borrowed from my mum, but you could use any glue to fix the pieces together :)

Instructions:

1. Take your teacup and saucer, and turn the teacup upside down. Run a thin layer of glue around the rim of the base of the teacup, just where it would touch the saucer when they sit together.

2. Line up the bottom of the cup and the ring in the centre of the saucer:

...and press it down firmly in the correct place.

3. Wait a while for it to dry (this will vary depending on the type of glue you use!)- if you use a glue gun, it should fix pretty quickly :)

All fixed nicely :) The saucer will give you a handy place to store your thread, scissors, thimbles, buttons etc whilst you are sewing!

4. Take your wadding and make sure it is just the right amount to fit inside the teacup. Try it for size:

5. Now take your fabric, and place the wadding in the centre and wrap the fabric around it, pulling it in at the bottom:

6. Take a strip of the fabric you have been using (although you can just use string, or even an elastic band!) and tie the ball of wadding into the fabric. Give it a prod and a poke to make it a nice even blob shape to fit nicely into your teacup :)

7. Snip off the excess fabric with a pair of scissors. This doesn't have to be neat as it will be hidden!

8. Next, pop the cushion into the teacup and just take note approximately where the sides touch so you know where abouts to put the glue. Then remove the cushion, and put a generous amount of glue about mid way up in the teacup, all the way around.

9. Quickly, whilst the glue is still wet, take your cushion and press it into the teacup, making sure the sides touch the cushion. Hold it down for about 30 seconds or so (again depending on the glue you use!) until it is fixed in nicely!

10. Now you are ready to fill it with your pins, and pop all of your sewing essentials onto the saucer! Very handy to have next to you when you are sewing, and also a nice ornament to have decorating your workspace :)

Let me know if any of you lovelies try this, I'd love to see what you come up with!

Happy sewing :)

x

The brown slouchy jumper!

Hello lovelies!

With this small amount of work-free time I have had recently (due to deadlines having passed, yay!) I have been able to get back into making a couple of bits and bobs to enjoy wearing :)

Here is the first one for you to have a look at. It's a slightly over sized slouchy jumper, made from some lovely brown ready-knitted fabric that I bought down at my local branch of Fabric Land.

I adapted a kimono sleeved-top patten that I had previously drafted in class at uni, and just extended the arms and hem, and widened the neckline.

I made it using my very beautiful, new overlocker sewing machine (I'll share pictures with you soon!) which allows me to neaten off all the edges of everything I now make, and also to be able to use stretch fabric such as knits and jersey in my creations!

I also made a little bow to sew onto the centre of the neckline to add a little bit of interest :)

I got the boy to take some pictures of me wearing it :) see below!

Below are the sleeves- I doubled up the cuffs and made them extra long so I could fold them up to give a chunkier look to the end of the sleeve :)

...and a little picture of my boots again.

They're abit messy now because I wear them so much!

I hope you enjoyed this post, I'd love to know what you think

:)

Keep your eyes peeled- I have a exciting DIY on the way, just getting the pictures ready!

(If you want a cheeky hint, there may be a clue in my new layout...)

x

In the post this morning...

I got THESE!

I had them custom made :D

Very excited to put them in all the things I make!

x

Finished prototypes: Toiles :)

For this current project, we have to design and make 4 garments in keeping with the theme and concept derived from our personal research :)

I have chosen 4 of my designs to make, and here are my toile prototypes (all made from calico) that I have recently made!

Garment number 1 - Roses dress:

I made this from an adapted corset (without cups) patten, after elongating each panel to create the skirt and also adapting it to have a one shoulder strap.

I added an eyelet fastening at the back to allow a comfortable and close fit of the dress on the body. I am still yet to decide as to whether I will put corset boning in the final piece!

Here is a close up of the knitted rose on the dress! Hopefully, the final dress that I make will be covered in these knitted roses made out of all different colours and sizes.

Take a peek at the sketch below:

I made the knitted roses by knitting a long thin strip, just over a meter long, on the Brother knitting machines at uni. They are so easy to use and knit so quickly! (But are rather temperamental...) I then used a special folding technique that I learned a while ago at school, to make the strips into roses. I plan to use ribbon and lace too!

Garment number 2- Cable knit jersey jumper:

Now this one took me the longest to make out of all my toiles! I graded up a basic long sleeved stretch t-shirt pattern by 2 sizes to create a baggy look. I then hand-knitted 2 cuffs with ribbing (knit 2, purl 2) and also hand-knitted a ribbed collar and hem (however I never actually got round to sewing on the knitted hem..oops). I also hand-knitted a large cable panel to go in the centre front of the jumper, and put two little Aida cross stitch bows through the gaps in the cabling. (These will be embroidered in the real version!)

A close up of the bows and cabling - I had to hand stitch all the knitted bits onto the jersey, which took foreverrr!

Garment number 3- Peter pan collar puff sleeve blouse:

I have made the collar so that it is detachable, and with the final garment, I will make 2 versions of the collar. One in the tapestry fabric that you can see in the background, and one in the cross stitch fabric, embroidered with the pattern from my Grandma's carpet!

Garment number 4 - High waisted turn up shorts:

Apologies if you cannot see them very well, I had to model them myself as they don't fit my poor mannequin, as she is without legs :(

When I make the final version of these shorts, I will make them from the tapestry fabric hat you can see in the background, and also not have the lining showing on the pockets!

They fasten up with a concealed zip at the side :)

Let me know what you think! I will show you the finals in a few weeks once they are finally finished!

x

My sketches!

Here is a board that I created to show all of my designs for my current project at university. I have chosen 4 of these designs to make and turn into garments!

Before I make them in the final fabrics, I will make prototype toiles in calico. I'll share these with you soon! :)

x

A few project samples: Cable knitting!

Over Christmas, I spent a lot of time experimenting with knitting and such :)

Here are a few cabling samples that I made, with rather thick, chunky wool and size 12 needles. I'm rather happy with how they have turned out!

I plan to use the one pictures on the far left as a piece for one of my four final garments for my current project at uni.

Wait and see for some pictures of my prototype garments!

Anyone else like a spot of knitting? :)

x

Sketchbook snippets

So, I thought before I showed you all what I'm making for my current project, I'd just give you a little preview of my research and show you a few of my sketchbook pages that I have been working on :)

I have used these little scrabble tiles on each folder I have used, for my patterns, designs, research, samples, swatches and toiles :)

I have collected a large number of images that have a old 'granny style' sepia tone to them. I love the antique-y look to them, and also the colour scheme of browns, neutrals and cream colours.

...and I also found this editorial in Pop magazine, where the stylist had used clothes and accessories from the current season and styled them in a way which had a really awesome 'granny chic / bag lady' look to it, using beehives, granny glasses, head scarves and a huge number of vintage and retro luggage :)

Then to focus more on my concept, I have been looking at hidden meanings and interpretations. I really like how certain items of objects can hold different sentiments to different people, provoke memories and have many stories behind it :) I am not sure if any of you have seen the french film 'Amelie'- but I have done a page here that relates directly to my concept. There are several references to it in the film, when she finds the little tin box behind one of her bathroom tiles (with the little boy's keepsakes inside it, which she later returns to him as an older man) and when she picks up the mysterious man's photo book, and tries to deduce the meaning behind it with her friend Bretodeau :)

I then looked at things that people could keep for sentimental reasons, like letters. These ones I found were particularly special as they had been decorated as 'Mail art'. Oh, and stamps. I like stamps :)

I then asked my mum if I could rifle through all my Grandma's boxes of keepsakes and photographs, and I found so many wonderful things! I found loads of really old photos of family and childhood holidays from the 1920s onwards. It was odd as I didn't know who most of the people in the photos were, but after my mum explained it all to me, it gave them a meaning, and made them all the more special.

I also found a collection of love letters that my Grandad had written to my Grandma when they were young and in love :) It was so lovely to find these!

I also found a little scrap book of these postcards (the ones in my sketchbook are printed scans, as the real postcards were about 70 years old and very, very fragile!) that my Grandma's father had written to her and her sister when we was away fighting as a soldier in the war. The illustrations are beautiful, and you certainly don't get postcards sent like this any more!

Now this page here shows a photograph that I took of what used to be my Grandma's carpet at her old house. I had always loved the print and the colours, even though it was quite loud and floral and was a nightmare to find lost pieces of playmobil on :)

I have started to replicate the pattern on a piece of Aida cross stitch fabric, which I plan to use as a detail on a couple of my final garments- as bows and a peter pan collar made from this fabric, and decorated with this pattern!

Just another load of images that I am yet to stick in :)

...aaand this is just a few things I have collected that have that I feel fit well with my theme :)

I have a few more posts in the pipeline to show you more on this project!

I hope you are all having a good start to the new year :)

x