‘This bell will ring…’

Last Summer (my how time flies!) I blogged about my first foray into the world of Clothkits. Since then, I’ve tackled another two projects, both in the form of A-line needlecord skirts. First up was ‘Hold Me‘ designed by Rob Ryan, in a pewter shade. It was a pretty straightforward sew, and thankfully the fabric wasn’t nearly as tricky to handle as I’d found it whilst making the purse.  The second skirt features the Jane Foster design (‘Big Birdie‘) to match my bag and purse- but don’t worry, you won’t catch me sporting all 3 at once :-). I absolutely love both of the designs, and they have had a lot of wear, which is always a good indicator of the success of a project! Here they are floating in the Huddersfield breeze (can you spot Castle Hill?):

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Elephant brooch

This Elephant brooch is the second of my ‘Sew Hip‘ projects. Coincidentally, I purchased one of these brooches from the designer (Kiss Prudence) at the Christmas Craft Candy fair in Sheffield. So, when I spotted the pattern in Sew Hip I couldn’t resist making it. I struggle to find decent felt in the shops locally, so I treated myself to a bundle of brightly coloured pieces from Lupin Handmade who I’ve previously bought felt brooches from. This felt is 30% wool, although I must say it’s nowhere near the quality of that used in my Kiss Prudence original. Given that the felt wasn’t quite as thick as I could have hoped, I compensated by using 3 layers of interfacing as opposed to the suggested 1. Eagle-eyed readers might recognise the ear fabric as one of those I purchased at the Knit and Stitch Show! Elephant is a belated birthday pressie for a friend, so I hope he is well received 🙂 I think he would make any lapel look most fashionable!

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Mr Bear

Issue 29 of Sew Hip magazine contained a bunch of projects that appealed to me, including a couple by local designers. Having recently inherited some fun fur which had been languishing in my Mum’s fabric stash since the 1980’s, the Plush bear toy by Sian Wheatcroft (aka Strawberry Kitten) was an immediate draw. I’m really pleased with how he turned out- probably the favourite toy I’ve made so far (fun fur makes for a much cuddlier toy than wool). The only problem I had with the pattern was attaching the paws. I don’t know if it’s that I incorporated too much of a seam allowance into the arms (there was no indication on the pattern), but I just couldn’t get the paws to fit their corresponding holes. I got round this by simply trimming them down to an appropriate size, and I’m happy with the result. I guess my only slight niggle with the design is the raw edges of fabric around Mr Bear’s snout- but my poor little brain struggled to find a solution to this. After heading over to Strawberry Kitten’s Flickr site for inspiration, I decided Mr Bear would look even more dashing in a little scarf. Here he is challenging gender stereotypes in a fetching pink number:

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