Signs of the Sewdiac
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start off stashing
Today I'm sharing a monthly sewing themed treat and my new favourite custom thread organiser!
How brilliant are these stickers?!
Part of the latest Signs of the Sewdiac subscription box from Sew Crafty, which has now ended but you can still snap up some of the goodies from the range in Samantha's Etsy shop. I'm not a knitter but still appreciate the design of this month's box 'The Knitting'.
And although I will probably pass the pin on to my knitting mum, these two products made me do a happy dance...
handmade : play : prepare
Creativity has been on my mind recently. The role it plays it my life, the way I use it... or sometimes chose to ignore it. How different types of sewing/crafting affect me. Wondering "what do I get from creating/sewing/hand stitching?" and "is it (the act of making/the product) meaningful?".
My mind fills up with these types of questions and I try to unpick how I'm feeling, to work through some things and get to a place of inspiration, motivation and satisfaction.
One of the best things to do when I'm in that state of mind is to follow Cheryl Arkison's Morning Make practice. To create something just for the process. It doesn't have to be a finish because it's the play that is important.
I had some neon pink jersey fabric (not sure why) and these beads, both from ebay and decided to make a key ring for myself. I had seen this key holder by Ina Seifart and thought I'd make my own version. A bit more rock and roll.
It was really calming; threading beads, knotting and creating.
new 💌 pink bambi!
I'm posting this on a day when everyone goes % sales and shopping mad. I've actually not bought anything today (except ice cream!) because I'm pretty sure this lovely lot will keep me busy, along with the rest of my fabric stash.
First are these pretty prints from Rose Garden Patchwork, a brilliant UK site to shop for Japanese prints and notions.
clockwise from top left: Pretty Cards in Lilac by Yuwa; Paper and Marguerite by Suzuko Koseki and Fashionable Cat - Sobakasu Kids, I was also kindly sent a bit of Fruit Love by Atsuko Matsuyoma with my order.
Next up is one metre of Essex Yarn Dyed Metallic in Sorbet from Sew Hot, which I ordered for a specific project... and now I don't remember what!! It is super pretty through, shot through with blue, pink and yellow metallic strands.
The new and upcoming collections from Tilda really are beautiful, I always like the colours they use and when I saw they had some basics I couldn't resist ordering from Sew and So. I bought the medium dots, which I think will be a great blender and would also make a lovely binding fabric.
This isn't at all sewing related but as I occasionally document my life here too I wanted to share the new tattoo I got last week. It's been one I planned for some time and I finally found an artist I wanted to do it. I contacted Alex Fraser and he custom designed my tattoo with everything I wanted in it! The flowers all have personal meaning for me, the anchor is for my faith and 'mutiny' is a reminder of the brilliant manifesto in the book Be More Pirate - which I highly recommend reading, very thought provoking! He works at Tooth and Talon Tattoo in Manchester, it was such a good atmosphere in there and a completely enjoyable experience.
Back to more sewing stuff, today was a good post day! The latest Signs of the Sewdiac subscription box arrived, probably my favourite design so far - so pretty and hand sewing is my favourite thing! The notebook is gorgeous, with dot grid paper, another beautiful pin, sticker, card and a pen. Some starry bias binding too, which I know will be useful!
And this little cutie arrived! I ordered it from Etsy, sold as a vintage planter - obviously now destined to become a pin cushion. I just have to find the perfect fabric...
I love it's face. The nice shade of pink and the gold accents. Also the sweet birds on the pot, totally reminds me of Bambi. Which is what I was calling it but then is it more Faline (the doe in Bambi)? It doesn't have to be a girl because it's pink does it. I like both names, I'm still undecided!!
It's all go preparing for a busy weekend. We've got the middles birthday, a print fair and a family get together. If you happen to be in Manchester this weekend, come and say hello - look for Prints of Cats.
I hope you have a great weekend what ever you are up to!
sew stash sew
Obviously I am slightly obsessed with fabric. There are so many lovely prints/patterns/colours available and I'm sharing some new collections with you today, along with an older find I'm treasuring and a few other goodies!
This is my kind of Christmas fabric, a collection of cute graphic prints, Noel by Swaying Lily for Cloud9 Fabrics. It is festive novelty in the best way.
The colours of this next collection really appeal to me, I really like modern brown prints (hard to find!) and when they're mixed with pink that's even better!
what's new
Every month I get the awesome subscription box Signs of the Sewdiac, it's a fabulous creative lifestyle box themed with Samantha Claridge's designs. This month is The Seam Ripper, the panel above is a kit to make a zip pouch and there's a patch, pin, holographic pencils, greeting card, print and a seam ripper! All gorgeous and I adore the design. I need to find a good place for the patch.
I have notebooks a plenty, I fill them with writing, ideas and sketches. I've saved all the ones that are full and I have a collection of blank ones waiting to be used. Many of them are different sizes but recently I bought some Field Notes memo notebooks, small enough to carry around and fill with whatever is in my head. It also means I can keep these specific notebooks for my creative ideas and they'll be easy to store once they are filled. Due to the fact that I am a lover of stationery and a 'planner addict', I know about the bullet journaling trend and have seen people use some beautiful covers to hold their journals. I knew this would be a great way to protect my notebooks and keep them together. The Foxy Fix is a simple leather cover with elastic strap, that can hold plenty of Field Notes notebooks. I got a small one but it can easily fit three notebooks in (probably more!).
This is the Boss Babe Single Couture in Moonlit with powder pink stitching and elastic. Of course I got embossing in rose gold too. It's so well made and one of those things that will get better with age as it softens and gets character from being thrown in my bag!
There's been lovely squishy parcels too, more new fabric arrivals. This is the stunning underwater and tropical collection Sirena by Jessica Swift for Art Gallery Fabrics
The leaf prints are so pretty in lovely bright colours, the focal mermaid print is so whimsical and the whales and octopi are SO cute!
Can we talk about these moons?!! Those adorable faces! Stargazer by AGF Studio is utterly adorable, with furry space friends and constellation / planet themed prints. AGF Studio are nailing it in my opinion, not only do they create excellent feature prints but they are amazing at designing really useful blender, neutral prints too. So even if you don't go for the childlike space prints, the Stardust, Lunar Stamps and Interrupted Signal prints are perfect stash builders and would look gorgeous mixed with other modern fabrics.
Both collections are available soon, visit Hantex to find UK stockists for fabrics in the ranges.
Finally I am working on a secret project with these incredible prints from the new Anna Maria's Conservatory by Anna Maria Horner, Monika Forsberg, and Bookhou. They are utterly stunning. I've already started cutting and I'm so excited to share this with you when I can!
I hope you all have a wonderful week and get to enjoy some sewing time!
shopping small
This is a haul post, full of fabric & sewing goodies (and shoes) from small independent shops/sellers - all of whom I know and love!! They are all places I've bought from before too so they may be familiar names if you're a regular round here. It's a testament to the quality and wonderfulness of the products. There's also a fun Stitch-Along announcement that I encourage you to join!
First this pile of beautiful panels from Karen Lewis Textiles, the May bundle from her fabric club. The stripy triangles design is so beautiful, with a beachy vibe, on lovely Kona colours. I seem to be collecting Karen's prints, they find their way into lots of my projects because they so good but I would still love to make something with just her fabric.
And other screen printed fabric added to my stash recently was from the second edition of The Bees by Lucy Engels - I got some in the first run and HAD to have these ones too. I adore them (bees!!!) and they are so brilliant for fussy cutting. The colours are also fabulous - I bought Shitake, Oyster and Mac and Cheese - Kona colours again! The Mac and Cheese is truly such a great yellow/orange.
a treat for hard-sewing hands {haul}
Sharing some happy mail delights I've received recently. Grab a cuppa, I have a lot to show you!
I'm working hard on secret makes so no finishes just yet but it always nice to nosy at people's recommendations and fabric stash additions. And just to be clear none of this is sponsored or affiliated, one item was a gift and the rest I bought myself.
I have been doing a lot of hand sewing; like the demo of the lovely Hexie Kisses pattern by Jen Kingwell (above), embroidery, working on my own epp and hand piecing projects. Combined with all the cold weather we've had over winter, my dry skin was really acting up. I have always had dry skin and sometimes it gets itchy and can even crack. I'm really careful about what I put on my skin, trying to avoid chemicals like SLS, because it's sensitive.
Signs of the Sewdiac
I am incredibly fortunate to have worked with and met some wonderful creatives, many of whom have become true friends. One such talent is Samantha Claridge, owner of Sew Crafty. Sammy has incredible taste, her designs are always so beautiful and she inspires me with every make and photo - her new instagram feed showcases this perfectly!
When Sammy told me she was releasing a new line of products with a subscription box club I got very excited. And then when she kindly sent me January's box I squealed, gasped and left her a rambling voicemail through tears of joy.
It wasn't overly dramatic. You see I LOVE sewing and I LOVE stationery; I value great quality and unique, well thought out design (especially when it's within my budget!). Signs of the Sewdiac has all that, it is a box of perfection covered in stars.
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