Sunday 25 November 2012

My first Oilcloth bag!

Helloo!!  It's me again! My posts are like buses - you wait ages for one, then two come along together!

I've just finished and photographed my latest commission, it was for an oilcloth messenger/saddle bag and the customer pretty much gave me free rein on it, I just hope that she is as pleased with it as I am. This was my first foray into the world of Oilcloth and it's quite a tricky material to work with. You really have to sew everything right first time, once your sewing machine bites into the fabric, the mark is there for good. If you have to unpick then the only option is to sew again in exactly the same place - I'm sure that there is some sewing machine wiz out there who can do it with ease but I'd rather not have to try! Oilcloth is also hard to manoeuvre through the machine as it is fairly rigid and doesn't squash up as easily as other fabrics and if you are sewing shiny side down, then it will just stick to your sewing machine. The only way round this is to place an off-cut of oilcloth face down on the machine bed in front of the needle - this will stick itself to the machine and enable the piece that you are sewing to move freely over it.
There are two things that I could not have managed without; the first being a Teflon sewing foot. A normal sewing foot will stick to the oilcloth and you will be unable to sew, so a Teflon foot is a must.



The second must have are these little plastic clips. Pins will leave a mark int the laminated cloth if you accidentally place them outside the seam allowance, the clips won't distort the fabric and are great with thick, multiple layers. I must confess that I bought them on a whim thinking that they might come in useful, and they certainly did!


The design is one I've been thinking about for a while but hadn't yet made, it has two pockets on the front, and two pockets inside, one of which is zipped. I will be making more, but probably in regular fabric, though I may be tempted to dabble in laminated fabric again at some point.


The finished bag!

Thursday 22 November 2012

Folksy Friday - Christmas decorations

I haven't done a Folksy Friday since the beginning of November and now we're only days away from December so I think a theme of Christmas deckies is in order. I love, love, love Christmas and I love to decorate the house. We always have two trees, a real one in the conservatory and an artificial one in the porch. My Granddaughter does the porch tree and we all decorate the one in the conservatory, well apart from my OH who just stands and admires. Oh and we usually have a little drinky poo while we decorate, well it is Christmas!
Here's this weeks selection:


These shabby chic Christmas trees are so pretty, they're from  PANTSANDPAPER




Love these Santas, they're by  Hettie & Mabel




This cute trio of reindeer are from  The Dreaming Hare




Even your teapot can look Christmasy,  it's from  The Crafty Bride




How about this Christmas 'knitiviy'  from  Wiggys Mum




This cute Santa is by  Coggsy Coops Creations




This lovely glass star is from  Gooseberry Fool




This pretty Christmas wreath is by  Handcrafted Hannah




A stunning heirloom Christmas stocking from  Rosie Bears Crafts




And lastly, from me, a Christmas tree garland  Wild Rose Designs

Hope you enjoyed my selection, thanks for looking,

Linda

Friday 2 November 2012

Folksy Friday - Sewing

The theme for this weeks Folksy Friday is Sewing. Sewing has been a part of my life since childhood and I love it! I love everything to do with sewing; the fabric, the trims, buttons, haberdashery, even the gadgets! I dream of a work space filled with rolls of stunning fabrics, reels of ribbon and thread - all neatly displayed. not like the unholy mess that is my workroom most of the time......anyhoo, here is this weeks selection.


Love these tape measure heart brooches, they're by  Ruby Bijou




This beautifully detailed print of a Singer sewing machine is by  Ink and Stylus




Fabulous pearly pins from  the Crafterie




Oooh! buttons, my favourite colour and they're from  Gertie & Mabel




As a bag maker I just love this fabric from  Koh-I-Noor Quilts




So true!  It's by  Of Life and Lemons




I'm sure I have this pattern somewhere! This card is by  Made at Home by Leigh Clothier




What a great pair of earrings! They're from  Lisa's Jewellery & Gifts




What a gorgeous sewing box, I want!  It's from  MarrianeLeyDesign




These are really unusual, and they're by  The Bird & the button




And finally from me, a pin cushion and needle case  Wild Rose Designs

Hope you enjoyed my selection, thanks for looking.

Linda