Leah Duncan
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two favourite pouch patterns
I've been sewing a lot of small makes recently and I want to share two brilliant pouch patterns that are easy to sew, useful and great as gifts!
First is the Lola Zipper Pouch by Svetlana Sotak. I have made these before and it's such a clever design with well written instructions. I picked a fun Riley Blake glasses print for one and did a double sided version with Gramercy by Leah Duncan and a bird print (no idea what it is sorry!). I used metallic canvas by Cotton + Steel for the bottom and the gorgeous Petite Plus, Black and White by Cotton + Steel for the binding on both.
These makes were sent out to friends as happy mail this week!
The next pouch pattern is a new one by Laura, from an Instagram mini tutorial she did for the See It All Pouch. So fun and quick to make! These could get seriously addictive!!
Sewing with vinyl can be tricky but I had no problems making these. If you find your vinyl sticks to your machine foot then try using a piece of tissue paper between the plate and the vinyl and/or the vinyl and the foot, it tears out easily.
Another tip is if you have creases in the vinyl, very carefully hold your iron over the crease (not on it) and give it a burst of steam.
I like that you can see everything in these pouches. The tops are a little floppy compared to the vinyl so next time I think I will add some interfacing between the fabric. Check out #sewitallpouch to see all the gorgeous versions of this pattern.
It's also fun playing with zip colours and I love how these pop!
And in personal news, I'm so thrilled to finally have my braces off!! You can see my big grin in my new profile picture :)
Tomorrow is my Nan's 98th birthday and me and the kids are going out for lunch with her and my Dad, should be another good day!treats
I've been treating myself. I couldn't treat myself to the doughnuts I've been craving since I'm still not eating/drinking processed sugar but fabric and gorgeous soaps work as treats for me :)
First up this bundle from Patchfinders:
From left to right: Freshly Cut Hyacinths, Meadow by Leah Duncan; Piggy Pirouette #3172 by Benartex; Gentle Breeze Red, Meadow by Leah Duncan; Butterflies and Cat Dream, Catnap by Lizzy House.
I'm planning on doing something with just these prints and I'm hoping they will play nicely together.
Recently I've been neglecting my skincare routine and my skin has felt really dry and sensitive as a result. Now I'm 35 I figure I really need to get back to better habits and taking care of myself. I'm not one of those people that freak out about wrinkles but I know my skin is changing and doesn't repair itself as quickly. I have a lot of hormonal breakouts but mostly very dry skin. I came across the Wild-Olive website and thought some of the soaps would be a nice way to cleanse my skin.
I got a couple of smaller ones to try, I have dry skin on my body too so couldn't resist the Oatmeal and Vanilla. The Coconut Clay one smells utterly incredible. The French Clay Soap is full of minerals and it lathers really nicely, the oils used in this one are Lime and Himalayan cedarwood and it smells so gorgeous! They included a free Bath Tea Bag with my order, I always love getting samples of other products from companies especially when I haven't used their products before.
Once I've used them for a while I will give an update on how I like them but I imagine I will order more! The company is family run, producing natural and environmentally friendly hand made soaps in Derbyshire. I think they would be lovely gifts and it's nice to support a company that is actually not too far from me!
it had to be done
I just couldn't leave work this week without some Meadow by Leah Duncan, Art Gallery Fabrics. I got some Sprinkled Morning and Valley of Azure for my rose star quilt - her prints have the best names! I also picked up some hand quilting thread and between needles for quilting the vintage quilt. One of the best things (of many) about Patchfinders is that we cut fabric as small as 10cm x width of fabric and can go up in 5cm increments. It's so perfect for English Paper Piecing or any project when you need only a small amount of fabric. Obviously I only needed a little but I got 1/4m of each anyway! I really want to make a Staple Dress and I'm thinking of getting Geos Deep Marina because I love that print but am nervous it will be too bold - your thoughts please?
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Yesterday I went to the Minerva Crafts Meet Up day (more about that tomorrow) and I couldn't resist getting these cute FQs - I think I was in a girly mood!
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Clockwise from top left: Cute kitten - kittens, fruit and bees oh my!; Happy Mochi Yum Yum by Monica Solorio-Snow, Lecien; Russian Dolls; American Country Collection, Lecien.
As I'm writing there's still about 12 hours left for you to link up any projects that fit the theme 'Charity' over at le challenge. Any finished craft projects or quilt tops can be linked and anyone can join in! There's a prize from the Fat Quarter Shop for one random winner. You can find out all about le challenge here.
And we've just announced the next challenge theme... SMALL. So if you missed the last link this should be a pretty easy theme to create something and link up with us on 15th July!
It's 18 years today since the bombing of Manchester city centre. No one was killed but I was working there that day (Saturday job, I was 16) and it was a horrendous experience. So grateful and thankful it wasn't worse and I'm very proud of my wonderful city!
Oh and Happy Father's Day!
a win and progress on having cosy toes
I was lucky enough to be a winner in the recent Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day and I got this gorgeous parcel of goodies this week from Staci at Vintage Fairytale. I can't believe how much there is and it's all beautiful and useful. I will happily be using it all and that bright pink tape measure and pen really make me smile! You can get all this and more in the Vintage Fairytale Etsy shop, she has some really cute Japanese prints and other lovely patterns too. Thank you so much Staci!
I was working at Patchfinders yesterday and was thrilled to see Meadow by Leah Duncan for Art Gallery Fabrics has arrived. I only managed to unwrap one bolt but I'm back in on Thursday so obviously I will be bringing some home then! These prints are even more vivid and beautiful in real life and I can't wait to use them.
I'm currently working on finishing up these slippers using Ayumi's brilliant pattern from Stitch Magazine (Summer 2011). You can get a PDF of the pattern here. It feels so so good to be working on something just for me and my cold toes are going to love being in their own little quilt!
oohh and I'm thinking about bringing the Fugly Fabric Party back because it's been TOO long! Anyone up for another round of Fugly swaps and giveaways??
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