Handmade Monday #12

Welcome to our weekly craft linky, Handmade Monday.

This is the place to share your makes, bakes and other handmade craft ideas and to find some new inspiration. Did you know we have a Facebook group where we share tips and ideas? If you like to link up here regularly you are welcome to join us, just send a request.

Have you got any exciting projects on the go at the moment? I've not had much time for making this week apart from Wednesday when I sat waiting for 3 hours whilst our youngest had a uni interview/audition and thankfully I'd remembered to take something to do. I've got a simple hand stitching experiment I'm working on which fitted in my handbag nicely and passed the time.

Now here are the features from last week's Handmade Monday.

If you need a lastminute.com valentine card idea then how about this easy modern geometric one from The Craft Lumberjacks? Plus, if you have a minute. I highly recommend watching the 'how to' video, I laughed so much I spat my tea over the keyboard at one point! 

Have you heard of Planned Pooling? It's a big trend in crochet right now where somehow people are able to get amazing patterns when using a variegated yarn. I first saw it on Instagram a few months ago but thought it looked a bit out of my league. The Patchwork Fairy has made it work and has advice and links to more support if you fancy giving it a try. 

Congratulations, here is a "Yay! I was featured" button for your blog.

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And now for this weeks linky, remember every entry gets pinned onto our Handmade Monday pinterest board
We also have a Facebook group where we share tips and are trying to get a share thread off the ground. If you like to link up here regularly you are welcome to join us, just send a request.

The rules for Handmade Monday are simple:

• Did you make it? Yes - hooray, we'd love to see it!
• Add the link to a specific blog post, not your main site URL.
• Link up to 3 posts each week.
• Mingle - visit some of the other links - comment - share - let's support one another and grow our craft community.

If you're not sure, more information can be found here.

An InLinkz Link-up

Stitched Cushion Cover

A simple stitched Cushion Cover, or the snappily titled "Getting to Know my Sewing Machine a little better" Cushion Cover!

I had a lovely new sewing machine for my birthday last year. It's a Janome 525s which is a fairly basic one, nothing too complicated, but with a few fancy extras and a selection of decorative stitches which I was just not using at all.
I saw this beautiful bag and felt inspired. It's a guest post from Patchouli Moon Studio on Handmade by Mrs H.

It's such a gorgeous fabric embellishment technique, I knew I'd need to try it out and get to know my machine a little better.
Quite a few months passed, but now I've finally been able to spend a little quality time with my machine and find out how it's pretty stitches actually turn out.

My version turned out really quite different to the original inspiration but that is often the way. 

You need fabric, sewing thread in various colours and some yarn, lace or other haberdashery trimmings as take your fancy. Some of these threads have been in my sewing box for quite a long time, they don't make wooden reels anymore do they?

I took a piece of textured cream fabric that was 53cm(21") x 61cm(24"). It was already in my stash but you could use a different size if you like. You could even use a ready made cover but you would need to unpick the side seams in order to be able to embellish the fabric with your sewing machine.

This is a shocking photo, I'm not even sure why I've included it. I'm pretty sure you all know what a piece of fabric folded in half looks like! It gets dark here pretty early this time of year so most of my chance to make things is in artificial light - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

My fabric has a slight woven pattern in it so I found myself stitching in straight lines, following the pattern in the fabric, instead of the wavy lines in the inspiration bag. That just happened so I went with it.

It's really easy, you just pick a decorative stitch on the sewing machine and stitch a line across your fabric.
Then pick another stitch you'd like to try and stitch another line. Try different widths and stitch lengths as takes your fancy.

Keep going until one of two things happen. A) You think that's enough of that colour or B) you run out!
Then thread up your machine with a new colour and repeat as much as you like.
I also added a few lines of lace, eyelash yarn and other haberdashery trims that were in my sewing box. Just stitch over them. The tutorial on Handmade by Mrs H has lots more detail and tips about doing this if you need help. 

I just stopped when I thought it was enough. You could add more or less or the same, more texture or less, whatever you think looks best.

I laid it on our living room rug here to explain my colour choices of thread and ribbons. 

To turn this piece of fabric into a cushion cover simply fold it in half right sides together and stitch along the long side and one short side. Turn it out, slip a cushion pad inside and slip stitch the remaining short side.

My cushion did not turn out standard cushion pad size - I didn't think that far ahead when decorating my pieces of fabric - so I just made one from an old pillow case and stuffed it with the insides of 2 old and slightly flattened cushions, fluffing the stuffing up as I went.

It looks pretty along side the running stitch embroidered cushion I made a while back.

Your cushion cover could be any size or shape you like. Mine is only a bolster shape because that's the fabric I had. I do have a bit of a thing about there being pattern on both sides though. I don't even like clothes when it's all fancy smancy on the front and plain on the back, I feel so cheated. I like to look just as nice as I walk away! 

I realise that may just be me, so you could easily decorate just one side of a cushion cover if you prefer.

My sewing machine and I were on good terms before this, she has been in my life for 8 months now, but I feel this project has given us a much greater understanding of one another. We are closer than ever... well, at least know I know how to do decorative stitches if I need them again.

You might also be interested in:

Knitting Needle case

Making Toys from Kids Drawings

Star Sweatshirt Refashion

Simple Embroidered Bag

I'll be linking up at these great link parties

A little Tribute to Jenny - part 4

My Mum's birthday was 7th February so today I'm remembering her and sharing something she made.

This embroidered picture is one my mum stitched at some point in the 90's. It is a kit from Rowandean Embroidery and they still sell it today. In fact I saw it on a stall at a craft fair last year. 
I remember when mum bought the kit. About a year before, she had started a very large cat cross stitch picture and I'd ended up having to finish it for her because it was just too fine and detailed. When she chose this one she was determined she was going to finish and frame it and not let it be a 'forever' work in progress. The slightly more freestyle embroidery technique suited her much better. 

It is framed without glass as some of the embroidery is quite fluffy and textured.

To keep it clean I gently vacuum it now and again but I guess another option would have been a box frame. 
We've got it hanging on the wall on the landing in our house. 

There is a lot of stitches here - a lot of hours spent. 

So today I'm remembering my mum, someone who made lovely things and encouraged me to do the same, someone for whom this blog is named.

You can read more of the tributes to the women who encouraged all my crafty antics as I grew up here

Handmade Monday #11

Hello and welcome to our weekly craft linky: Handmade Monday.

This is the place to share your makes, bakes and other handmade craft ideas and to find some new inspiration. 

Have you had much time for making this week? Following on from what I said last week I've been mostly trying to finish off some half done things rather than starting anything new. Easier said than done with so much inspiration around. That's the biggest problem I've found with hosting Handmade Monday, I visit all your lovely ideas and then want to try them all! 

Here are the features from last week's Handmade Monday.

Josie from Sew for Soul had this beautiful design of hers published in Sewing World Magazine. I was looking out for the magazine this weekend but sadly they didn't have it in my local supermarket. I'll have to find a copy in the week. 

Have you ever tried making soap? I thought it would be really difficult and science-y but Laura from Over the Apple Tree makes it seem easy with her Coffee Spice Soap

Congratulations, here is a "Yay! I was featured" button for your blog.

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And now for this weeks linky.
Every entry gets pinned onto our Handmade Monday pinterest board, don't forget to follow the board and ask for an invite if you'd like to join.
We also have a Facebook group where we share tips and are trying to get a share thread off the ground. If you like to link up here regularly you are welcome to join us, just send a request.

The rules for Handmade Monday are simple:

• Did you make it? Is it craft related? Yes - hooray, we'd love to see what you've been up to. This is not the place for shops, link parties or posts with just other people's work. Giveaways are fine as long as they are craft related.
• Add the link to your blog post, not your main site URL.
• Link up to 3 posts each week, but please try to make sure it's something you've not linked up here before.
• Have fun! Mingle - visit some of the other links - that's the whole point! Leave them a comment, maybe share on pinterest, twitter or your other favourite social media. Let's support one another and grow our craft community.
• If you'd like to follow me in some way (buttons to find me are on the side at the top) then that would be just lovely. If you'd like to tell others about Handmade Monday then that would be just lovely too.

An InLinkz Link-up

Crochet and Knit Fingerless Gloves

I love to knit and I love to crochet, these fingerless gloves bring both of those crafts together.

Photo credit Carla Nyanyo
Oh dear, this post has been a long time in the making.
I actually made these fingerless gloves for our daughter for Christmas 2 years ago! We've been meaning to take some finished shots since then but she was away at Uni, then we just kept forgetting. You can see that these finished gloves are not brand new, they have been well used for 2 years now, there is a little bobbling but that's real life. It shows what a great and useful make they have been!

Photo credit Carla Nyanyo
Let's go back in time a couple of years ..... I'd seen these beautiful gloves from Cherry Heart and just knew I had to make something along these lines, with those lovely little buttons.

Cherry Heart has a free crochet pattern so you may just like to mosey on over and make those. They are just so pretty I wouldn't blame you at all if you just click on over there right now!

I loved this edging and look but thought maybe I could make more stretchy gloves if the main body was knitted. I used a stitch that I have always known as Fisherman's rib, however a quick google shows that there are other types of Fisherman's rib - confusing! The one I do is:

row 1: *knit 1, purl 1 repeat from * to end of row

row 2: knit 

Also note all these crochet terms below are English ones. (also confusing!)

I chose a variegated yarn for a colourful effect but so I didn't have as many ends to sew in (#lovestripesbuthatesewingintheends) and constructed the edging in a slightly different manner to the original inspiration.

So this is what I did:

Crochet and Knit Fingerless Gloves

1 50g ball of Sirdar Click yarn in 'Verve'

6mm knitting needles

4mm crochet hook

A small amount of co-ordinating yarn of the same thickness for the edging. It was double knitting but I'm afraid I don't know how much, I just used up some leftovers. 

12 small buttons

This pattern makes fingerless gloves big enough for an average size woman. They are pretty stretchy.

Cast on 21 stitches.

Work 14 rows in knit 1 purl 1 rib

Then work 22 rows in fisherman's rib like this:

row 1: *knit 1 purl 1, repeat from *to end of row

row 2: knit

Cast off, leave a long tail for sewing up the sides.

It should look something like this:

The fisherman's rib part is different on each side, you can pick whichever side you prefer to be the right side.

From the top, sew up the sides for approx 5cm/2".

Pop your hand inside, you are sewing up from your mid finger to your thumb, so adjust as you need to.

Now we switch from knitting to crochet for that pretty edging.

Take a 4mm crochet hook and join the contrast yarn at the bottom cuff edge. 

Row 1: Chain 2 then HTR 27 stitches along the knitting edge to the point where you have sewn the edges together.

Do 2 HTR in each of the next two spaces (either side of the seam) then another 28 HTR back down the other side. You should have 30 stitched on each side so 60 in all. Turn.

Row 2 forming the button holes: 1 chain, 1 DC in next stitch, *2chain, skip 1DC(makes button hole), 2DC in next 2 sts, repeat from * 6 times. Then finish row by DC in each st to the end. Turn.

Row 3: DC in each stitch until you reach the button holes. Work 3 DC in each button hole loop, SS into the DC's between the loops, repeating to the end then DC into the last stitch.

Fasten off the ends and weave in the ends.

For glove 2 just flip the button border. Work row 1 as described above but then work the button holes on the other edge. So for row 2 you will work all the way to the top to the thumb space, then work 10 DC down the other side. Now start your button hole loops as described in the pattern. 

If you do make 2 identical gloves I really don't think anyone would notice though!

Sew the buttons on to the non loopy side of the border and you are done.

Photo credit Carla Nyanyo

You can be pretty flexible with this pattern; you can make your gloves longer just by knitting more, rib or fisherman's rib. If you do that you will need more crochet stitches for the edging of course and maybe more button holes. Don't get to worried about the edging, as long as it goes all the way round it's all good. You may have 60 stitches, you may end up with just a couple more or less, it's pretty forgiving and not especially crucial to be precise. 

Do you ever wear fingerless gloves? Our daughter likes them when she is using her camera outside and I know some people like them for touch screens, if they have to handle money etc. Personally I still wear these embroidered gloves from 3 years ago, so my fingers are cosy but then when I want to use my phone.......

Photo credit Carla Nyanyo

You might also be interested in:

Diamond Stitch Crochet Baby Blanket

Earphone Wire Tidy

Rainbow Heart Garland

Basketweave Cowl

I'll be linking up to all these great link parties, why not go and have a look!