My Stitching Companion

Today I would like to write about my little Companion that has been very helpful on my stitching journey. Maybe you have read about Take Along Stitching Folder that I made not long ago. While working on it, I was hoping that the folder would be easy to use and would be useful. After using it for less than two months, I have to say that I am surprised at how much I enjoy using it and how really useful the folder turned out to be.

Last weekend we were away from home, we were at an air field where my dear husband and our not so Little Boy were flying gliders while I enjoyed the prettiness of the countryside, the sweet singing of unknown birds, the freshness of morning breeze and the warmth of the spring sun.

Work in Progress: ATC

Autumn... What comes to your mind when you hear this simple six letter word? Trees and bushes festively dressed in their best attire. Yellow, red, orange, green, brown. Fire red rowan berries, slightly touched by the night frost, glistering in the morning sun. The cool crispy air filled with hardly noticeable earthy scent of mushrooms, grass and dry leaves tickles my nose. Lovely seasonal bouquets of maple leaves and acorns. Flocks of birds flying high in the sky. It's a time for berry and mushroom picking, for picnics near a river with warm rugs, hot teas and camp fires. It's time for a change, time for nature's colourful celebration before everything falls asleep warmly wrapped in white soft fluffy blankets of snow till next spring.

Little Bags For Herbs

Hurray! The little bags have been finished. It took me longer than expected but I am truly happy with the outcome.  I felt really excited while filling the bags with dry herbs. They look so cute standing next to each other. A set of four.

Artist Trading Card Swap

I am so excited! I have joined a first ever Textile Artist Trading Card Swap ran by Ali from Very Berry Handmade.

Do you know much about ATC? Well, I did not know about it too until just recently. According to a wikipedia article, ATCs are "minuter works of art produced in various media. The cards are usually traded or exchanged". You can read more about the ATC and the swap on Very Berry Handmade blog.

The rules of this swap are quite simple:

Theme: Autumn
The card must be 6.4cm by 8.9cm
The card must be predominantly textile
The back of the card must show some basic information about the artist
It is a secret swap - I know who my partner is and I have to keep it a secret

My head is full of different ideas so let the creative process begin!

Work in Progress: I Am Stuck

I am stuck. Totally and absolutely. I thought that by this time I would be able to show you my new creation and would switch my attention on to something new and exciting but I am still trying to finish the bags for herbs.

As you probably know, I create my own patterns and designs, and sometimes it takes me more time to finish the project than expected. Same thing happened to me this time around. The sketches were done easily; I sketched most of the herbs straight on to fabric. Stitching did not take long either. After all the embroidery patterns were finished, I was not happy with Calendula. The leaves were too big and too bare compare to the flower. So I had to fix it somehow. It took me about ten attempts until I was happy with the result. Luckily I did not have to redo the entire stitching, just the leaves.

Then came the time to sew the bags. I got stuck again because of miscalculating the width of the binding.  After some cutting and sewing, I realised the mistake I made. The seam ripper was very useful at this time and helped me a bit to reduce the amount of frustration I had by this point.

I wish there were more hours in a day so I could sit and enjoy my stitching or have enough time to get frustrated, calm down and finish all the work in one day. But I have only a limited amount of time that I can dedicate to my "sewing adventures",  so I have to stay positive and keep on trying. The good thing is that when I was still little and tried sewing (had to do it at school), I never had enough patience if there were any challenges with the work. I simply left it crooked or unfinished. But not this time though.

Have a lovely day and keep frustration at bay!

Work in Progress: Calendula, Yarrow...

Herbs, herbs... and more herbs. Just a sneak peek at what I am working on. I am stepping outside my comfort zone by using different embroidery stitches combined together in order to create the pictures of the plants.

As you can see, I am using more colours than ever in my stitching. I love the warmth of yellowish-orange calendula in combination with muted green leaves. Yarrow, calendula... As I mentioned in this post, I am not going to stop at just one bag.  I am making a few. A few for my dry herb that I can't wait to fill the bags with. Have a great weekend everybody!

Fabric Stash Tickling Imagination

It's been a while since I bought any new fabric. Well, not that long but long enough to make me feel a bit fabric deprived. So I went shopping. Not really, just had a little look around one of the shops that has a teeny-weeny shelf with pre packed fat quarters. I picked up about eight rolls but stopped myself (Good girl!) and got only four. The four that I liked.

Kiss Lock Coin Purses

May I share with you two adorable kiss lock coin purses for little girls or maybe big girls who like anything pretty and cute. I made them using Belle & Boo fabric called Tea Party. I simply love this print!