The Perfect Purple Pinny

Hello there,
Nope! This is NOT a Christmassy or New years themed post (I'm wayyy too disorganised for that !!)
Just a little post to share with you one of my little projects of the past week.
Its a perfect purple pinny made from some vintage Laura Ashley fabric I've had in my stash for at least 15 years and some purple polka-dot quilting cotton I picked up recently.

I've challenged myself to do so many new things with a needle and thread this year but one thing I haven't cracked yet is making clothes (the more observant of you may have noticed how there was no follow up to this particular post!!).
This apron is so sweet and at a stretch I do think that it could possibly be classified as clothing....sort of !!!
I came across the pattern in Issue 17 of Mollie Makes (What a great magazine!)
The pattern features in a book called Sewing Made Simple by Tessa Evelegh

Here's what her vintage style apron looked like ... (on a lovely sunny day!)

And here's what my effort turned out like .....(on a chilly winters eve!)

I made a few changes from the pattern as printed in the magazine ; like leaving out the ric-rac (I had none)...

And adding in a few folded pleats. I added interfacing to the top of the bib and the waistband
(just because I'm an interfacing addict!)

It was my first ever attempt at gathers , I tried to do the 'pull the back thread' thingy
 you seem to read about in EVERY sewing book !.I failed miserably
and in the end I just hand sewed the gathers in place before machine stitching in place.

I had lots more of the floral fabric than the dotty one so I made up all the ties with a dual colour scheme !
(dotty one side - floral on the other!) I think they look pretty sweet!

I also finished off the tie ends at a 45 degree angle - I just think it looks nicer. than square ends. 

It was a lovely quick project and I would say it took only a couple of hours to complete. The pity is its a bit to pretty to get dirty! I was thinking it might be fun to do a smaller version too for a mommy & daughter gift.....or maybe add frills to some rubber gloves to match ! Or maybe tea-towels to match !!

What do you think ? 

Have you ever made an apron ? If so, I'd love to see it!

Thanks for visiting , have a happy New Year & do come back soon !

Love Siubhan x x x

Black Beauty

Hello there !
A short post today as like the rest of the known universe I'm rushing and racing trying to get everything ready for Christmas. This year a few things have fallen by the wayside; there have been be very few Cards written in the CraftLee house this year, and if you do receive a card from me I can almost guarantee it will be late!!

My favourite part of Christmas is the chance to get together with friends and family. My siblings and parents are all too far away from me every year, but I do love the opportunity the season brings to catch up with all my great friends closer to home.

Out with my book club friends last week one of the women remarked that if I didn't make her a bag from the beautiful black Irish Linen she admired on a recent visit to my sewing space, then she would have nothing under the tree for Christmas.
Ladies & gentlemen .... I have been that solider! and there was no way I was going to let any poor woman wake up on Christmas morning to a gap where her gift should've been !
Aaaaagghh!! I HAD to get this bag ready in time !

So here she is .....a real black beauty!

Turned out pretty nice ! The Linen was a little bit awkward to work with and benefited hugely from the use of interfacing. I know the new owner reads this blog so I'm not posting a photo of the interior as a surprize for her (yes! I forgot to take a pic !)

I'm truly NOT  in a black mood (turning off the radio & TV news for the past 10 days has helped on that front) but I'm also working on another little black project. My pins are cold so I'm hooking a pair of black leg-warmers (FAME!!! I'm gonna live forever!!!) to wear under my bootcut jeans.
I'm making them up as I go and will post a tutorial if they turn out ok!.
Here's a sneak peek...

A 'V' & three stitch I made up - no doubt it has a real name somewhere !

Yup ! I DO indeed look like the grinch in legwarmers !!!

Hope to post again before Christmas but if I don't ..
Wishing you all a happy and peaceful Christmas and New Year, Thank you for all your lovely comments and encouragement and I am so looking forward to getting to know you all better in 2013 x x x

Lots of Love,
Siubhan x x x

The Cutest Bag I've Ever Made!

Hi There !
After a super restful weekend I've been a busy bunny this morning finishing off a custom order for a friends daughter. This lucky little girl will be receiving what is now Officially 'The Cutest Bag I have EVER made' !!! Taaa Daaaaa....

Wellie-tastic fabric!

I had lots of fun picking the fabrics for this project and it was my first time using complicated equipment like dog clips , double sliders & D-hooks. I'm simply D-lighted with how it turned out !!!

The dog clips, D-rings & slider give it a very professional finish.

How the straps attach at the back.

 The new owner of this bag loves horses so I picked this funky wellie print for the exterior and  I've lined the bag with some galloping horses to make her smile every time she opens up her new bag.

Sling bag - there are 2 handy pockets inside too.

 I followed the pattern for the Cross Body Purse in the 'Sew Serendipity Bags' Book by Kay Witt.
This is the third book I've made from this book and by far the easiest (once I got over my fear of D-rings!).
I followed the pattern pretty much to the letter except for the fact that I added a velcro closure rather than a super expensive clasp.

I'm hoping that mom & daughter are happy with the finished bag ... I sure am !

Thanks for visiting & come back soon !

Love
Siubhan x x x

CraftLee - Fab Fabric iPad Cover

Hello there!

After the success of my Fabric Kindle Cover I was delighted when my friend Gina asked me to make her an iPad cover from some funky fabric. Gina popped around on Tuesday and we had some lovely coffee and scones before we had a good look through my fabric stash to decide on which fabbie fabrics to choose.
I made the cover up this morning and am really delighted with the results! (I hope Gina likes it too!)

Have a look.....

We picked this lovely combo of darkest brown & beautiful cream & green fabric with a lovely stylised flower motif

Theres a pocket to keep your iPad safe when your on the move.

Theres a velco tab to keep the cover closed.

& a coordinating strip down the other edge to help keep the cover clean.

And when your iPad is in its cover you can still access the charging socket ... brilliant!

I wish I had time to make a tutorial but Im just too busy getting ready for Christmas. I WILL have to make one of these beauties for myself soon and I'll be sure and turn it into a tutorial to share :)

& for those of you who are following me on Facebook you'll know that I am working on a lovely bag for a special little lady for Christmas. Here's the progress thus far.....

I'm just waiting on some bag making parts to come from the UK before I can finish this job.

I think its going to be really cute when its done!

Thanks for visiting, hope you have a lovely weekend & do come back soon !

Love
Siubhan x x x

Le Chat Noir Christmas Fair 2012

Ohhhh! What a lovely day I had on Sunday !
I took a stand at Le Chat Noir Christmas Fair in the Flying Enterprize Complex in Cork city and had a super day meeting lots and lots of lovely sellers & buyers!

I am really busy today with lots of custom orders for Christmas
but I just HAD to share with you some pictures of the day....

I sold out of these little beauties ! No wonder ! They ARE pretty cute!

Plenty of lovely bags on my stall including this little beauty made from lovely Irish wool fabric - may have to save this one for myself ! Shhhh!!!

Just for fun I made some baby bibs to add a bit of vintage flavour to my stall

I sold lots of cute crochet bits !

Obviously HAD to test the cupcakes from Freckles Cupcakes on my break ! How yummy does this lovely cake look ? ALMOST too good to eat (but not quite!)

The organisers arranged a fab fashion show to show off some of the vintage fashions on sale

Here's some of the other sellers wares - LOVE these !

I want! I want! I want!

These paper and button flowers were super cute!

Lovely Christmas ideas...

Vintage bits & bobs 

Cute cushions in funky fabrics!

A lovely frame & coffee table from www.Quaydesigns.ie

Vintage Wedding dresses from Miss Daisy Blue! Love her sign too!

Many of the wares were handmade, great news for craft !

I collected a few caeds from other stalls but NOT ENOUGH!!!

I treated myself to a vintage hair-doo too !! I loved it ! Wish I knew how to do it myself !

Thanks for visiting & do come back soon !

Love
Siubhan x x x

Free Tutorial - County Christmas Cushion

Hi folks !
Its beginning to feel a lot like ......
Christmas decoration making time !!! yayy!
Well I'm been super busy with my lovely crochet snowflakes over the past week
(think I may even be able to crochet them in my sleep at this stage!)
and I love them soooo much thought I might just come up with an idea or two
to use them in other festive ways.
I've also been scheming of ways to use the ribbon I received from the lovely people
at Abakhan through the tutorial exchange at Totally Tutorials.

So here's a little tutorial I put together this morning for a

Country Style Mini Pillow Christmas Decoration With Ribbons & Crochet
(he! he! now that's a mouthful !) Its a super easy and fun little project - took me about half an hour


Here's what your going to need -

Some yarn & a crochet hook
Hessian or Burlap 2 pieces - mine were 7in x 9in
Some scraps of Christmas Ribbon
Wadding or stuffing (I used some leftover stuffing from my scatter cushion)
Sewing needle & thread

Lets get started !

2 pieces of hessian (burlap) , mine were 7in wide x  9in high but you can use any size you fancy.

Lay your Christmas ribbon down across one piece in a random pattern, pin it all down when your happy :)

Pin about 4 inches of ribbon in the centre of the top of your burlap (this will be your hanger)

Lay your pieces right sides together and whip out the machine & stitch all round the cushion leaving a 3 inch gap at the bottom for turning out and stuffing.

I like to double stitch (go over it twice) as the weave is so open on the material)

Trim the excess & trim your corners

Now carefully remove all your pins & turn right side out , carefully push out the corners.

Time for some Christmas Stuffing ( he he ! Couldn't resist! )

When your cushion is stuffed , hand sew the opening closed with coordinating thread.

Ahhh! Now we're getting somewhere !

 Next up the mini crochet snowflake...
'Whaaa!!' I hear you cry 'I can't crochet!!!'
Well that's why I'm here ! Its easy!!

Grab a crochet hook & some yarn you only need three stitches to make a snowflake -
Chain (C)
Slip Stitch (SS)
& heres where things get a little hairy! one more simple stitch called
Double Crochet (DC) (UK) or Single Crochet (SC) (USA)

You can learn how to make these 3 stitches HERE, HERE and HERE
Got it ? Great then lets make a mini snowflake! ...

Chain 4 

Join your chain with a slip stitch (ss) to form a loop.

Working into the loop chain 2, 1 Double crochet (US- Single), Chain 3 

2 Double Crochet in the loop (as above) then chain 3 - do this 3 more times 

 then SS into the 2nd chain of your initial ch 2. now you've formed a cute little 5 pointed star shape.

Slip stitch into the closest loop (formed by your chain 3 in the previous round) & do the following-
DC, Chain 3, DC, Chain 5, DC, Chain 3, DC

Now move onto the next loop and do it all again !
DC, Chain 3, DC, Chain 5, DC, Chain 3, DC
Continue in each of the 5 loops ...

SS into the base of your first DC and hey presto ! Your done !!

You can at this point block your crochet snowflake if you like. The difference between blocking & not blocking is demonstrated in the photo of a larger snowflake below - the snowflake on the right has been blocked.

& this is how you do it - pin your snowflake open on a folded towel (I use some foam behind my towel to save the table). Spray with water or a spray starch & then leave to dry. Its a simple as that !

Sew that critter on to the front of your mini cushion & wayyy hey!!
Your done ! Now all you've to do is decide where to hang your creation !
It will look great hanging on a door handle or on a hook and what a lovely Christmas gift it would make !

Thank you for visiting & do come back soon !

Love Siubhan x x x