Xmas Crafts

So this should be the post where I belatedly talk about my new years resolutions but have instead decided to focus today on the belated photos of all my Xmas makings.

First of all it wouldn't be Xmas without all the presents. So here is a round up of all the ones that I managed to get photo's of (with all the excitement I completely forgot to take a few snaps!)

First of I made this Picture/ Notice Boards:

Two like this for my sister and a third for my best friend made from sewn together scraps of some very pretty Chinese fabrics. These were all my own design and I'm really quite proud of them although the rubbish picture quality (there hasn't been any good photographing light in a while) doesn't really do it justice.

Next, for my Mum, I made oven gloves as like me she likes to bake. 

The inside of the pockets is line with a pink spotty material which you shall see later.

Next was a peg bag for my Grandma made from some awesome fabric that my mum picked up cheaply at a market in Mallorca. 

Both of these creations have been adapted from patterns found in this Cath Kidston book.

It also wouldn't be Xmas without all the cooking and me and my Mum decided to cook in style this year and we both made aprons!

Mine is on the right! I also made one for my Gran's Xmas present - it was made from the same fabric as the oven gloves with the pink spotty fabric as the contrast and together we made one for my Aunt exactly like my Mum's but with pink edging instead of green. The pattern is from this awesome book.

And now some actual baking. Back in October I cooked three Christmas cakes (1 big and 2 small) and here they are all decorated.

The small ones were presents for the grandparents but the big one was all for us greedy lot!

Snowed In

Ok so maybe snowed in is a bit of OTT but we did have quite a few inches of the white stuff yesterday. Enough to put a halt to all public transport going anywhere near the homestead and for both my mum and my sister to be sent home. However my dad's boss decided that the office should clearly stay open as the buses were still going passed the office window (he works in the city centre) and she didn't see what everyone was worrying about which meant we had to launch a rescue mission to fetch him.

The snow stopped yesterday evening and public transport seems to have got itself going to an extent. So, fingers crossed, I will make it to the jobcentre in a bit.

On a happier note - the prospect of being snowed in led too much baking. We stocked up by making food supplies including ginger cupcakes, welsh cakes and strudel. So we're in no danger of having a low food supply.

Just Hanging Around

So after illness put a stop to my productivity for a day (unless watching Real Rescues and eating cake counts as productive) I have doubled my productivity today and finished my commission for some fabric wall art.

My parents recently decorated our living room so I made them something to hang on the walls and jolly the place up.

(I apologise for the awful pictures - the lights not the best plus they were hanging on the wall and I wasn't feeling up to fussing around to get better shots)

Anywho, back to the point. My grandparents have also decorated their hall recently in and have asked me to make some for them and they'll pay me. They are my grandparents but selling something is selling something.

So now my fingers are covered in glue (which reminds me I need yet more fabric glue!) but my 'to do' list is steadily growing smaller although not to worry there is plenty of things on the 'things to go on my to do list' list! 

Deck the Halls

It's nearly Christmas!!! And yes I'm getting a little bit excited. Three more presents finished yesterday, cakes need to be decorated and delivered and my wall hangings need to be finished and delivered.

And now to get you in the Christmas Spirit: A Christmas Tree!

Snowed Under

This blog was not running for a while because of the snow. Ok, Ok so we didn't really have that much snow. Not even enough to justify a snow day unless you are First Bus that is. The lack of snow seemed to be sufficient reasoning for me to be left stood at the side of a busy road in the middle of the countryside where there is no pavement for over an hour and a half.

We did have snow though so I took the opportunity to take a few snaps.

It was very pretty but actually only lasted a couple of days and even when it was at its worst the roads were clear 

Regrettably I am still unemployed and attempting to decide what to do with my life after the rise in uni fees have put a stop to any plans to further my education and get the job I actually want. However this has meant that I have been incredibly productive in the crafting business. This year I have made 80% of my Xmas pressies and now only have a couple more to finish. Pictures will be put up after Xmas so as not to spoil the surprise for the receivers of my crafty creations. 

But I do have some craftyness to show off. First off my best friend, Maddy, got me this for my birthday and it came free with all the bits and bobs to make a bag: 

So way back here I was making a bag that looked a bit like a Chinese boat (or at least I thought it did). Well a couple of months ago I finally finished it and it still holds the award for being the most labour intensive thing I have ever made. I used four and a half reels of thread as there were so many bits of stitching! 

Bags of Stuff

So I haven't updated in a while. Job hunting is a very time consuming activity. So is being ill. And both have meant that there has been very little sleep from me - I spend hours jumping between worrying about not having a job and contemplating by imminent death. Then when I finally settle down enough to try some relaxing breathing exercises I take one breath and am reminded of how I could die of this illness at any moment!!

Enough of that. I have actually managed to be vaguely productive in between my fits of hypochondria. I've finally caught up with the backlog of sewing bits and bobs I was doing for other people. Finishing nicely with the bag I was stitching for my best friends birthday present (I would like to take this opportunity to remind you all that her birthday was in January - thank god she is patient!). So without further ado here it is:

I also added in a little something else to make up for the lateness. This hat to keep her brains warm on the way to work and ridiculously early times of the morning!

The finishing of all these projects means that I now have time to finish off the bag I have been making for myself for ages (as seen in this post). All I have to do is sew on the bias binding to make the edges look neat and it's done! And then I have more stuff I have to start: 1 firm order of some fabric wall art (I haven't posted about them yet - I'll put it on my to do list) and a possible order for a bag. And even better they are both paid orders. I also have to get cracking on all the stuff I'm making for Xmas presents.

Speaking of Xmas; thanks to a special offer a local garden and leisure centre we now have all our xmas decorations for this year. There was free mulled wine and mince pies, 20% of xmas stuff and 10% of everything else.

But before we can have Xmas there is November to get through: and November is National Novel Writing Month which I'm having a go at for the first time so wish me luck!

Sewing is dangerous

First of all some pictures of the bibs I made for a baby shower.

Although during the making of these bibs I discovered that sewing is actually in fact one of the more dangerous of my occupations. I have been Gorge Walking (walking in a river, up waterfalls that kind of thing),  climbing, caving, abseiling and other related activities and come to no harm whatsoever so I thought I'd be pretty save doing a bit  of sewing.

But I was wrong. All I did was drop my pin tin on the floor. So of course Sods Law dictated that, as I stood up to retrieve the scattered pins and needles, I should stand on the biggest, longest, fattest needle I own which just had to land pointing upwards.

Great. So I had just a few hours to finish the bibs and now I had a pin stuck in my foot. And just to make things a little better my nose, who along with my ears, likes to take centre stage as far as medical issues are concerned, decided to get involved by pouring blood everywhere. It's very hard to call for assistance when you have a giant pin stuck in your foot and blood pouring out of your nose.

Thankfully by the time my mum arrived my nose had decided it had done enough bleeding but it did mean that arrived at the Health Centre covered in blood, looking a bit like I'd had some kind of terrible accident. This, however, did mean that the old ladies didn't complain when I skipped the queue for the Treatment Room! I'm guessing they didn't appreciate my zombie costume.

(You will, I'm sure, be glad to here that the bibs were finished in time oh and my foot has now recovered!)