Hand embroidered social media icons: basic materials

I started stitching 4″ versions of these hoops last year, but they were a complete mess. Especially the Pinterest hoop…so I decided to make it a little easier this time by going smaller. Each hoop is 3″ (7.5cm) and I’ve used satin stitch for each one using 3 strands of embroidery thread. It’s actually quite tricky to get hold of 3″ wooden hoops in the UK, and when I looked in my usual sources they had all run out. Thankfully, they came back in stock at Cloud Craft so I ordered a few to keep me going!

I also wanted to paint each hoop, and originally wanted to colour match to the icon colours but this proved to be quite difficult. So instead, I chose a lovely bright turquoise – something different to all the icon colours that would tie them all together.

Facebook hoop

The Facebook hoop looks like it could be the easiest of the four, but it was actually quite tricky. The curve of the F was a bit challenging, and I spent ages trying to get the top of the circle right. It seems that I’m better at sewing the bottom of a circle rather than the top, strangely! Eventually, I decided that slight lumps and bumps don’t matter. They are hand embroidered social media icons after all

Only one colour was needed for this hoop, and I used DMC 312 (Anchor match is 979).

Pinterest hoop

As I said at the start of the post, when I made my first version of this Pinterest logo it was SO bad! When I stitched it the first time, I didn’t go straight across around the circle but stitched outside in, if that makes sense?! Like the Instagram hoop later in this post. But that made it look so messy, as it was hard to get a neat edge. So this time I just stitched straight across from left to right, and I think it’s much neater. That’s the key to consistent satin stitch I think!

Only one colour was needed for this hoop, and I used DMC 304 (Anchor match is 1006).

Twitter hoop

This was probably the simplest of all 4 of my hand embroidered social media icons, which I wasn’t expecting! This is one of my favourite shades of DMC thread – the blue is just so vibrant. I was wondering if the detail of the beak would come out clearly in such a small hoop, but it is fine. Again, I kept my stitches consistent going left to right across the hoop.

Only one colour was needed for this hoop, and I used DMC 996 (Anchor match is 433).

Instagram hoop

Finally, it’s my favourite – Instagram! This was the most challenging by far, just because of the number of colours and getting the shading right between each one. But I LOVE how it has turned out! I have been a bit cheeky with this one, because I’ve used the colours from the new (ish) logo, but the shape of the old one. I just prefer the design of the original logo – what can I say?! So sorry, Instagram! I love the combination of colours in this one – yellow, oranges through to pink and purple. Can you spot the tiny hint of blue at the top? Just a small amount but it sets it off nicely

I’m actually going to use this colour palette for the next in the series of #craftycolourpalettes so you’ll have to wait to find out what they are…

Which one is your favourite?

You can follow me on Facebook, Pinterest (I really LOVE the new-look Pinterest!), Twitter and Instagram. Do pop over and say hello! What are you up to this weekend?

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The felt that I used is made from recycled plastic bottles, so it’s vegan-friendly and good for the environment too! I was really surprised at the selection of colours – they are so vibrant, and the felt is lovely to work with. It was important for me to work with materials which fit with the ethos of the magazine, and together with the design I think it compliments it well (I hope you agree with me!). You’ll find all the details along with downloadable templates on the Bibelot Magazine website. If you missed my interview with them a few weeks ago, you can read that here.

A really big thank you to Chloe Owens and Bibelot Magazine for featuring my work. I have been a big fan of Chloe’s for a really long time, so it feels amazing to have created this retro floral felt hoop with Bibelot Magazine in mind.

For more creative inspiration you can check out the crafting category on my blog. And do let me know if you have a go at making this project – I’d love to know how you got on, and to see your brilliant design of course!

Post updated 12th February 2020.

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Crafty Colour Palette #2: Colour list

Yellow: DMC 3078 / Anchor 292

Orange: DMC 3856 / Anchor 1010

Pink: DMC 3689 / Anchor 49

Purple: DMC 155 / Anchor 1030

Blue: DMC 3811 / Anchor 1060

Mint: DMC 966 / Anchor 206

These colours immediately made me think of the amazing wool felt colours from Cloud Craft. They are definitely the best colours in wool felt! So I got in touch with Nicole from Cloud Craft, and she very kindly sent me the felt for this project. I have such a large collection of embroidery thread that I had all the DMC thread that I needed! If you would like to purchase the thread or the felt in these colours, you can find the links in the project list below.

Crafty Colour Palette #2: Enamel pin holder

When I was thinking about what to make with these felt colours, I knew that I wanted to showcase each shade and I thought that a rainbow effect would be the best way to do this. I have recently started adding to my pin collection and thought it would be great to have something to keep them on. Ta-dah!

Materials

Templates (click here to download – prints on A3 paper)

7″ embroidery hoop

Needle and pins

Sharp fabric scissors

Paper scissors

A pencil

You will also need wool felt in the following colours (with matching thread in brackets):

Buttery (no matching thread needed for this layout, but matches DMC 3078)

Barbie (matches DMC 3858)

Ascot (matches DMC 3689)

Lavender posie (matches DMC 155)

Spearmint (matches DMC 3811)

Pistachio (matches DMC 966)

Step 1

Print out your templates and cut them out using your paper scissors. Lay out the template pieces next to your felt colours, so that you can work out which one goes with which colour.

Step 2

Carefully pin each pattern piece on the colour you want to use, and cut around them using your fabric scissors. Then layer each piece with about 1cm overlap on each side (I went from left to right putting the next piece on top each time). Pin in place. Don’t worry if it doesn’t make a perfect circle, we’ll sort that out shortly!

Step 3

When all the pieces are in place, check the positioning by putting the outer ring of the embroidery hoop over the top. Make sure you can see enough of the outer colours, and adjust the positioning if you need to.

Step 4

When you’re happy with the positioning, you can start to stitch! You only need one stitch for this, which is back stitch. Using the thread colour to match the felt (I started with apricot), thread your needle with 3 strands. Come up through the fabric and make a small stitch, a little way from the edge (see 1 and 2 in the photo below). Then bring your needle up one stitch length away from that (photo 3), before bringing the needle down through the felt at the point where your first stitch ended (photo 4).

Step 5

Repeat all the way along the line, following the line of the felt as a guide. Then do the same with the other colours, matching the thread colours each time.

Step 6

When all of the stitching is complete, turn the felt over so the wrong side is facing up. Put the outer ring of the hoop over it, and draw around the inside with a pencil. Use your fabric scissors to cut out the circle. You might cut some of the knots off at this point, but that’s ok!

Step 7

Once trimmed, place the felt back in the hoop and tighten the screw to secure it. You can leave the back open to see the pretty colours! I thought about adding an extra circle of felt at the back to cover it up, but this makes it too thick to put the pins through. No-one can see the back anyway! You may notice that I’ve painted my hoop to add a bit of extra colour.

Ta-dah!

Your hoop is ready to display all of your lovely pins on! Or just leave it plain if you prefer – that’s the beauty of this project

The pins on my hoop are by the following makers: Sally Sunshine pin by Leslieanne Made It, Fuelled by Tea pin by Samantha Eynon and I Love Tea pin by Kate Garey.

Want one of these enamel pin holder hoops?

If you’re not a crafter but you’d like to get your hands on one of these, fear not! They are now available in my online shop, where you’ll also find a vegan friendly version too. Also, head over to @hellohoorayblog on Instagram for details of a giveaway coming this week! You could win this hoop! Give @cloud.craft a little follow while you’re there too as Nicole has a super inspiring feed!

If you want to get your hands on some pastel highlighters, you can find them here.

Thank you so much to Nicole at Cloud Craft for providing me with the felt for this project. All other materials and tools my own.

Post updated 11th November 2019.

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I’ve been super busy getting everything organised and sending out my first few orders (yay!) that I completely forgot to share this with you. My poor blog has been neglected lately, but I’m hoping to change all that…I know I’ve said this before! Juggling family life, the day job and my shop and blog is a bit of a military operation, but I’m getting there. And after years of wondering about making things to sell, I’m so excited to finally be doing it!

Colourful and fun hand embroidery

So I had to think of a way to best describe hellohoorayshop, and basically it’s all about colourful and fun hand embroidery. I love colour and it has been really great to start designing my own embroidery patterns. I have a LOT more ideas than time at the moment, but the pattern for my Sunbeams banner (which features a super quote from Roald Dahl) is available to purchase now. Just click here if you fancy a look. I have designed all of the hoops and banners in my shop, so it’s great to see my designs come to life!

Limited edition hoops

One of the things that put me off opening a shop for so long was that I don’t really enjoy making loads of the same thing. Do you know what I mean? I personally find that it takes the enjoyment out of stitching if I’m constantly making the same design in the same colour. So when I had the idea to sell my hoops as limited editions, I knew I was on to something that could work for me.

So all my designs are limited editions, either one of one or one of two in the given colour combination. This means that you’re guaranteed to have a limited edition when you make a purchase!

Fancy a custom order?

I am always happy to take requests for custom orders – if there’s a quote you would like stitching or you’d like something else designing just for you, let me know! Get in touch by email clare@hellohooray.com or send me a convo via Etsy.

More new designs will be coming soon! And I’m hoping to get my website shop back up and running very soon too…thanks for your patience!

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Workshops

I am doing my first workshops in November and December – they are both sewing workshops and you’ll be able to complete a project in 3 hours. The first is on Saturday 19th November and it’s a vintage floral embroidery workshop. My design is inspired by vintage tablecloth designs, which I love. You will learn straight stitch, back stitch, lazy daisy, satin stitch and French knots. I’ll also show you how to transfer your design on to the fabric, and how to finish the back of the hoop so it’s ready to display. There will also be cake – yay! Places are limited to 6 so that you can ask lots of questions on the day.

Workshop location

My first two workshops are taking place at The Glamorous Owl in Newcastle. It’s a super little shop that supports local artists and makers, and they have a great workshop space upstairs. I’m really grateful to Claire for contacting me to offer the space – I love it!

Downloadable patterns

I’m also selling downloadable patterns in my shop, which I love designing and stitching! I decided to go down this route because as a crafter, I don’t really like making loads and loads of the same thing. I’m always excited to start a new project, and I’m just not in a position to be able to do loads of stitching to sell the finished article. There’s also the usual ‘I could make that!’ thought that I personally often have, so I decided that selling my patterns would be the way to go. I designed the vintage-inspired floral bouquet (pictured above) which is available to buy now. There will be more patterns added soon, so I’ll let you know when they’re available!

Hello! Hooray! crafters

If you buy one of my patterns or a place on a workshop, then you’ll be invited to join the ‘Hello! Hooray! crafters’ Facebook group. You’ll be able to watch stitch tutorials, ask me any questions about the pattern or project, and get to know other lovely crafters too. Yay!

I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who has been following my progress here on my blog and on Instagram – it’s great to have your support! And to Tom for being brilliant, looking after Little One so I could get this all done and supporting me in this throughout. I’m looking forward to growing my little shop! Please feel free to share and I hope you like it!

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The design comes from the Flow magazine colouring book, which has the most gorgeous designs by Helen Dardik and Carolyn Gavin. Although I’m pretty good at stitching, I’m rubbish at designing so this was perfect!

I traced the design to make my own pattern on A4 paper to use as a template, as this was easier than trying to trace it onto my fabric out of the book. I used an air erasable pen to transfer it onto my fabric, which was some premium white Kona cotton that I love using for embroidery projects. The colours I used were the following:

Anchor 206, 208 and 210 (greens)

Anchor 28 (pink for the large flowers)

Anchor 26 (pale pink), 293 (yellow), 187 (teal), 146 (cornflower) and 119 (purple) for the shapes

DMC 3845 for the letters

I embroidered the design and then put the banner together in the same way that I did in for my painted banner (click here for the written tutorial or here for the video). I attached the pom poms at the end so they are visible at the back, but no-one is going to see that anyway! The pom pom trim is jumbo size and is from Frumble and I really love it! Each pom pom is 20mm in diameter, so it’s a great size for this banner. I’m obviously trying to think of other things to make with it haha!

I’ve already got my eye on a few other designs from the colouring book that I want to stitch (I will probably colour them in at some point too!). I love this bird and the tea pots too…

I’m now stitching something else for another friend – I am seriously into my embroidery at the moment! When it’s done I’ll share that with you too. What are you making?

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I love pineapples and they’re everywhere right now. Sadly, I’m allergic to real pineapples, but that doesn’t stop me from stitching a pink pineapple embroidery! I spotted this project in last month’s Mollie Makes (issue 55), which was designed by Catherine Greenslade, and knew that I’d have to have a go at making it. The original project uses golds and oranges for the pineapple, but having seen pink pineapples on Columbia Road a few weeks ago, I decided to make mine with a twist!

These are the pineapples that were the inspiration for the adaptation of this project. I had wondered about trying to stitch the pink to cream to green shading on the leaves, but to be honest it was just a bit too small to be able to do that, and I like the contrast of the greens and pinks on the final project.

Materials

If you’d like to stitch your own you’ll need to download the templates from Mollie Makes, and then enlarge it to 150%. You will also need:

A needle and small sharp scissors

An air erasable pen

White fabric

An 8 x 12″ oval embroidery hoop – I got mine here

Paint and paintbrush (optional)

The thread I used is Anchor thread in the following colours (EDIT: DMC now also given), and you’ll need 1 skein of each:

Shade 1 = 59 (DMC 3350)

Shade 2 = 57 (DMC 601)

Shade 3 = 54 (DMC 956)

Shade 4 = 52 (DMC 899)

Shade 5 = 50 (DMC 957)

Shade 6 = 257 (DMC 905)

Shade 7 = 255 (DMC 907)

Shade 8 = 258 (DMC 904)

Shade 9 = 254 (DMC 472)

Shades 1-5 are pinks, and 6-9 are greens (refer to template for shade numbers and placement).

Let’s get stitching!

I had to draw over the lines a few times as they kept disappearing faster than I was stitching, but that’s ok! You can outline the satin stitch on the pineapple if you wish (I didn’t bother with that). You’ll need to use 6 strands for the pinks and 3 for the greens, so separate these carefully.

I decided to paint my hoop to add a little colour, and I just picked up a tester pot of the ‘minted’ shade from Wilkinsons. Their tester pots are only £1 so I’m always getting them for new projects! This colour is nice and bright and gives good contrast with the pinks and greens of the stitching.

I’m so pleased with how my pink pineapple embroidery turned out. We’re going to hang it up in our hall This is because the pineapple is the symbol of welcome – that’s why you often see them on top of grand gateposts at the entrance to big country houses! Hope you’ve had a super weekend – have you been working on any craft projects?

Post updated 28th July 2017 and 12th February 2020.

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A few weeks back, I was really excited to see that the latest book by What Delilah Did (created by Sophie Simpson) is about to be released. A limited number of advance copies of Secret Garden Embroidery (pictured above) were available to buy so I snapped one up! I know people always say that you should never judge a book by its cover, but this is one that you can instantly fall in love just by looking at the beautifully stitched bee and the sweet cover illustrations. These illustrations run right through the book, and the projects are all tied together with the story of Mrs Merriweather and her wonderful garden. I am a big fan of Sophie’s books and wanted to find out more about What Delilah Did, and I’m delighted to say that Sophie very kindly agreed to do a little interview for Hello! Hooray! to tell us all about it…

Tell us a little bit about What Delilah Did, and how you got started.

I started up the business about seven years ago after being made redundant. I had always known I wanted to work for myself and do something creative, so it was a blessing in disguise. I had just rediscovered cross stitch but couldn’t find any patterns I liked so I started to design my own – at that time the choice was between teddy bears, kittens and Disney characters, none of which I would let within a mile of my house! I opened a little online shop and blog to sell my patterns and original stitched pieces, and word spread quite quickly through design blogs, Flickr and the like – apparently I wasn’t the only young person wanting to stitch something a bit different.

After a year or so my mum told me about the Best of British Open Call at Liberty, and I put together a prototype range of kits to take along – they bought the whole range and launched the kits in their London store a few months later. I sold my kits through Liberty for the following three years and it provided the exposure and opportunities I needed to expand my customer base massively. I now sell my patterns, kits and books to customers all over the world via my website, www.whatdelilahdid.com, and through boutique haberdasheries and lifestyle shops throughout the UK.

Little Bug Magnets from Secret Garden Embroidery by Sophie Simpson – Credit Rachel Whiting

Describe your creative process – how do you develop your designs?

My designs almost always stem from how I want the end product to look or function, so I often begin with a particular kind of linen or type of frame or style of cushion in mind and then design something to fit it. For larger patterns I sketch out different versions of an image in black and white until I am happy with them and then transfer them to the computer to make them into something stitchable. If I am making a very small pattern though I generally prefer to just use a pencil and some graph paper and play with the crosses until I have something I like the look of. Once I have the chart, I start to test colours and fabrics until I come up with a combination I like – this can be the longest part of the process because for threads can look completely different once they are stitched, so even if a bundle of colours looked beautiful together in your hand, they may look hideous on the fabric. I also like to check that there are not too many lone stitches and awkward little fiddly sections as these can make patterns a nightmare to complete. I never release a pattern until I have stitched it myself and know that everything works.

Mr Magpie Cushion PDF Pattern – Credit What Delilah Did

What is your typical day like? Do you design and write full-time or do you fit it around a day job?

Running What Delilah Did has been my full time job for the past couple of years (and by ‘full time’, read ‘all the time’!), though before that I did have to fit it around a number of day/evening/weekend jobs until I was confident that it was strong enough to stand on its own two feet.

There isn’t really any such thing as a typical day for me; every day is so different. Things always take so much longer than I think they are going to, so more often than not I end up spending a whole day/week on one thing and just keep going until it is done. That might be photographing new products, updating my website, answering emails, putting orders together, working on a commission, or designing new patterns and kits. Actually getting time to stitch in the day is a rare luxury – I normally end up doing that part in the evenings. I have tried many times to change the way I work so that I have more of a routine, but I still haven’t managed it yet.

Gigantic Circus Letter PDF Patterns – Credit What Delilah Did

Where do you get your inspiration? Do you have any favourite crafters/artists/bloggers?

I actually follow very few blogs and other artists now, partly due to lack of time, but also because they can sometimes leave me feeling a little overwhelmed – there is so much amazing design about that it is all too easy to be swayed by what other people are doing or feel that your own work isn’t good enough. I feel much more inspired when I shut myself off from all of that and rely on my imagination.

Most of my inspiration comes from sources that are not directly related to artists and crafters: old houses, stories, period dramas, film scores… Most recently I have loved the styling and music in Far From the Madding Crowd and Wolf Hall. Often I will try to capture the feeling that I get from a film or piece of music, or take a particular element such as a colour or a shadow in a piece of cloth or a building, and then translate it into my own work. I listen to a lot of period film scores while I work, so that has a strong influence on me.

Bee Cushion PDF Pattern – Credit What Delilah Did

The garden in your latest book, Secret Garden Embroidery sounds wonderful! Is it based on a real place?

The garden itself is fictitious, but the house and the setting is real – it belonged to a kind old man who lived down our road when we were children. I’m not sure how faithful my memory is to the true interior; I still look at it through a child’s eyes so it would probably seem smaller and less rambling if I were to view the inside as an adult. The house still exists but it has been made over and no longer has the overgrown trees at the front, or the orchard, or the air of romantic dishevelment. The dark rabbit warren of rooms that I remember being inside have probably been knocked through to suit modern tastes – arguably more practical, but less charming to me. Despite that, I have always hankered after that house and if I was ever in a position to buy it I would snap it up in a heartbeat.

Projects from Secret Garden Embroidery by Sophie Simpson – Credit Rachel Whiting

Secret Garden Embroidery is your third book – can you tell us a little more about what goes into writing and getting your books published?

I adore books and had always wanted to write my own, though I never imagined they would be about embroidery back when I was dreaming of being an author! My first book, Storyland Cross Stitch, came about when an editor saw my work in Liberty, looked up my blog and then contacted me to ask if I was interested in making a book for her publishing house. At the time it came completely out of the blue, and in all honesty I would have no idea how to go about getting published if I hadn’t been approached by publishers in the first place. Almost all books are commissioned these days and it is incredibly rare to get an unsolicited manuscript published, so I feel very fortunate that I didn’t have to go down that route.

Photo credit: Storyland Cross Stitch – What Delilah Did

The books themselves take more work than I could ever have anticipated. It was marginally less daunting to approach Stitch the Halls! and Secret Garden Embroidery because I knew what to expect, but the amount of work involved is still pretty hardcore. The main problem is that the deadlines are just insane. Most publishers are under a lot of pressure to get books made quickly (bearing in mind that it can take almost a year between a finished book being submitted and it actually landing in the shops), and they just have no idea about how long things take to make. An embroiderer is given the same amount of time to make a collection of projects as a papercrafter, despite the fact that it takes about thirty times as long to make embroidery projects. I also make things worse for myself because I am very particular about how I want things to be, so I end up doing a lot of the work that would usually be done by the publisher, just to make sure it ends up how I want it. The books are a wonderful thing to do, but more so in hindsight than while you are actually making them against the clock!

Photo credit: Stitch the Halls – What Delilah Did

If you had to choose, what would be your favourite project that you have worked on?

The most enjoyable things to work on are my PDF patterns, because there are no deadlines, no briefs and I can take all the time I need to make exactly what I want, so they are my favourite thing to make. But the books are probably the things I am the most proud of; partly because of the work that went into them, but also because it is lovely to hold a tangible object in your hand; almost like a beautifully produced diary of what you did that year.

Mini Folk Letter PDF Patterns – Credit What Delilah Did

What does the future hold for What Delilah Did?

I have had my hands in so many different pies for the past few years that what I am really craving is something simple. Once my new studio is up and running I want to spend some time working the way I did at the beginning, making small quantities of lovely things for my shop with my imagination as the only limit.

Miss Millicent Hare from Secret Garden Embroidery by Sophie Simpson – Credit Rachel Whiting

Thank you so much for taking the time to natter to us, Sophie – I know you’re super busy with your new book and renovating your house, so I really appreciate it! If you love Sophie’s designs as much as I do, you can buy them in her shop, and the Little Bug Magnets and Miss Millicent Hare (featured above) are available as limited edition kits here. I am just starting work on one of the projects from the book, and will be writing a little review of it over the next couple of weeks or so, so be sure to look out for that. You can also find out more on the What Delilah Did blog, Facebook page, Flickr and Twitter feeds.

Secret Garden Embroidery is published on 11th June by Pavilion – but if you can’t wait until then, you might find an advance copy here!

All photos used with kind permission from Sophie Simpson/What Delilah Did.

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It was my Mum’s birthday in April, and I made her this top. It’s my favourite top to make and wear – cool and comfy for summer and the only really tricky-ish bit is the neck binding. I got the fabric in the sale ages ago and it was nice to finally make it!

I also made her a caramel cake for her birthday cake, and I haven’t got around to sharing the recipe yet – but I will! It’s from the Clandestine Cake Club book, which is brilliant. I want to make everything out of that book!

Our dear friend Hannah got married earlier this month, and I stitched this sampler from Hoopla! magazine. It has been ages since I did any hand embroidery like this, and I had forgotten just how much I love it! I painted the hoop a lovely turquoise colour and it worked really well with the design. Hannah and her husband went off on honeymoon straight away, so I hope the last bits of disappearing pen had actually gone by the time they opened it! If you want to download the template, you can get it here from Bakercourt (designed by Stacey Siddons).

I also have to share the wonderful cake that Hannah made – if you’ve been following my blog a while then you might know that a Hannah made our wedding cake. Well, this is the same Hannah! She’s so incredibly talented. Just look at those flowers!

This month I have found some lovely things in the blog world.

How gorgeous is this outfit by Lucky Lucille? I love everything about it, and the styling of the photos is just gorgeous. I know I used the word ‘gorgeous’ a lot there, but it really is!

So is this floral DIY for your bike – makes me really want a bike! A pink vintage style one, obviously…

My lovely crafty friend Dizzy Miss James was featured on Beak Up Crafts this month – yay! Her story is really inspiring, so well worth a read.

I have also found some cool new things via Instagram this month. Stylusboy (aka Steve Jones) commented on one of my photos and so I checked out his music on his website. It’s great! It’s billed as ‘handmade indie folk music’, and that’s a good summing up I reckon. It turns out that he’s supported lots of great people on tour, and I’ll definitely be adding some of his music to our ever-growing collection. Have a listen here!

Have you heard about Caboodle Magazine? I also found this through Instagram, and the first edition was released this month. It’s a super mix of craft, fashion, food, vintage…lovely, lovely stuff. It’s also produced in my home town of York! Really hope that the team can keep going after such a great start – looking forward to seeing how the project develops. I’ll be reviewing it properly on my blog for you soon!

The Blogtacular speakers were announced this month – even more excited now! Check them out here. You can also listen to Kat Molesworth’s podcast for A Playful Day here – it’s all about creativity in blogging. Fab!

What new discoveries have you made this month? Share them by leaving a comment below! Hope you’ve had a great April

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Even the outside is lovely – not sure how sewing things ended up in a box for developing formula, but it’s a good combo and it’s all part of the history!

When I took off the lid, this is what I found: a selection of what turned out to be beautiful vintage iron-on transfers! I’ve got no idea how old they are, but some have been used and others haven’t.

The ‘A’ in these next couple could be a connection to our family name (which is Albans) – I wonder what these letters were embroidered on to…

These napkin designs are just wonderful – they even have a vintage name to match!

Hiding underneath the transfers was a glorious selection of embroidery floss. Look at the lovely colours!

And I’m saving the best until last here…there’s a transfer for a beautiful table runner! I’m definitely going to have this as a long-term project, as it would be so lovely to stitch. I’m not sure whether the pattern will transfer easily without spoiling the original, so I may trace it. I’d actually quite like to frame the transfer, as it’s so lovely!

I even have the original instructions, so hopefully I’ll be able to get the right colours too.

Not sure when I’ll be starting, but stay tuned for progress pictures when I do! I am so lucky to have been given these beautiful treasures, and I really want to do the old pattern justice so I’ll be taking my time… I hope you enjoyed seeing the photos! Hope you have a great weekend – what are you up to?

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The magazine has a 2-page spread with an interview where I’m quizzed about all things craft-related, and I also designed a copyright free tutorial that appears on the Craftseller blog. I wanted to design something that people could adapt with their own designs too, so I came up with an embroidered felt brooch with a little bird on it. What do you think?!

You can find the full tutorial on the Craftseller blog – just click on the link above! And don’t forget that you can use the basic principles from this tutorial to design any brooch you fancy, so just adapt it to whatever design you like. As a little bonus project, I’ll be sharing a new design on my blog over the next week, so keep a look-out for that!

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I love vintage finds – especially when they are craft related! I have to admit that these were not actually my finds, but Tom’s He found them in the second hand bookshop during our visit to Clumber Park a couple of weeks ago, and thought that I would love them. I do, and at £1 they were a steal! I’ve put together a little gallery of photos here to show you just how lovely these books are.

The first book is Quilting For Today by Moyra McNeill, and it is signed by the author, which is a bonus! It was actually written in the 70s and I love looking at the modern 70s styles here. The quilting based on parts of a car is particularly wonderful, as are the quilted garments!

The second book is my favourite of the two. The Embroidery Book by Winifred M. Clarke was published in 1949, and features lots of beautiful designs of the time (which I imagine most sewists could recreate back then!). Throughout the book there are some beautiful diagrams showing how to do the stitches and the different designs used. I’m definitely going to have a go at sewing some of the designs, and there are some useful tips and ideas in this book which will hopefully allow me to do so!

I hope you’ve enjoyed looking through these books! Have you found any interesting vintage books?

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It’s almost Easter, and I’ve designed this little project to help you celebrate! I love Easter eggs (who doesn’t?!) but I really dislike all of the packaging that they come in. So this is just like your stocking at Christmas – an Easter egg that you can re-use each year!

This project has been designed for The Festival of Thrift’s School of Thrift, and is exclusively available through their Google+ page. So if you want to see more, follow this link! I’d love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to leave a comment here

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March seems to have gone in a flash! Here are my favourite Instagram photos from this month

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As many of you know, I love all things sewing and embroidery! I’m always keen to develop new skills and learn new stitches (I seem to get stuck with split stitch sometimes!). For Christmas I received a beautiful teapot sewing kit designed by Nancy Nicholson (thank you Helen and Keith!) and I finished it yesterday, so I thought I’d do a little review of it here.

The kit is really well-designed and would appeal to anyone who enjoys sewing – it’s a great introduction to new stitches if you’re a beginner, and is a good way of putting your skills into practice if you have more experience. Nancy has designed the kit so that you can practice the stitches on the fabric along the lines of the helpful diagrams that show you how to stitch.

Once you have stitched on the practice panel, you can keep this forever in a sample book or your sewing notebook, to remind you of how to do the stitches. This is such a good idea – I’m forever forgetting things if I don’t practice, so this will be really useful! I’ve learnt how do do some new stitches here, and have revisited some older ones too. Couching stitch was new to me, but it is really effective.

The kit comes in a lovely little bag which can be embroidered as well – what a sweet idea!

Another great thing about this kit is that you can quite easily put it down and come back to it again, so I’ve really enjoyed doing little bits of it on an evening. I think I must have started doing it about 10 days ago – I’m working on the bag now that I’ve finished!

You can simply cut out the finished embroidery and frame it, or use the panel for a cushion or another project if you wish. I’m going to frame it and hang it up in our new kitchen when we get it done later this year.

You can buy this kit (and other lovely ones too) through Nancy’s website – she is happy to take custom orders and also has a lovely blog too!

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I love embroidery and I love badges, so this little project is perfect as it combines the two! It’s also a really good way of using up fabric scraps – I hate having random little bits of lovely fabric left over with no idea what to use them for. I’ve made these badges using coverable buttons – the small one is 29mm and the larger one is 38mm – and they are so versatile. I’ve got lots of ideas for these badges, so look out for more projects to come soon!

You can get a tool to make coverable buttons, but the biggest size on the tool is 29mm. I was worried that this would be a problem, but the larger buttons are really easy to pop together so it doesn’t matter. When choosing fabric small patterns work best, and I’ve chosen contrasting colours so that the embroidery stands out. To mark out the letters you could use an invisible pen (mine disappeared too fast for me to be able to see it!) – here I used some parchment paper and embroidered through it as I find this much easier. This paper is actually baking parchment but it makes amazing pattern paper – this is my top sewing tip!

You will need:

Metal self-cover buttons (I found these on Ebay)
Parchment or pattern paper
A pencil
Some fabric and embroidery thread
Sharp scissors
Needle and pins
Tweezers
Some brooch backs
Superglue

Step 1:

Remove the wire from the inside of the front of the button, and draw around it on the the parchment/pattern paper, leaving a bit of room around the edge. Then write your word(s) so it fits inside the circle (don’t go too close to the edge – and keep your word choice short enough for your button size!). Cut out the paper and pin onto your fabric.

You may wish to use an embroidery hoop to keep the fabric steady – I find it easier to hold a smaller piece, so I cut it out. Do whatever works for you!

Step 2:

Thread the needle with your chosen colour cotton and then sew over the letters. I prefer to use a split stitch, but you could use any you like as long as the letter is clear.

Make sure that when you change a thread, tie a knot and trim the excess as close as you can to the fabric.

Step 3:

Carefully remove the parchment paper. You may need to hold on to your stitches at times! Use tweezers to remove any small, tricky pieces.

Step 4:

Place the fabric face-down on a flat surface, and then line up the front of the button over the embroidery. Hook the excess fabric over the back of the button and adjust as necessary. Once lined up, place the back of the button over the top and pop into place.

Step 5:

Very carefully, use the superglue to attach the brooch back to the button, making sure that it is horizontal in relation to the embroidery. Make sure that you don’t get any on your fingers! Leave to try for a few minutes.

There will be a little bit of discolouration with the superglue, but it is on the back so who will know?! I’ve tried loads of other glues and none of them hold, so this is the best option by far!

That’s it – as soon as the glue is dry, your badge is ready to wear! There are so many options with this project, and the possibilities are endless. I have some others in the making but I can’t share them with you just yet…you’ll have to keep looking out for them!

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Many, many years ago, I made a bag for our Scrabble letters with my Mum – here it is:

Yes, that does say ‘1993’ and I was 7 and 3/4 (the 3/4 is very important!). Unfortunately, it got a hole in the bottom and I think something was spilt on it, so we had to wash it – so the colourful tiles that I had drawn on were washed away! This lovely faded creation has served us well, but it was about time that we have a new one for the next 20 or so years.

I found this gorgeous fabric and decided that it would be perfect (I did suggest to Tom that I could make a skirt out of it, but he didn’t like that idea – it would be ‘too jazzy’ apparently!). I teamed it up with some neon pink ribbon and decided that I’d make some little Scrabble tiles with some wool felt.

The first thing I did was to draw around a Scrabble tile onto the felt, before copying the letters and points onto the felt too. Then I embroidered the letters on using split stitch.

Then I made the bag (modelled on the old one) – after folding it in half with the right sides together, I pressed seams that would allow the ribbon to pass through the top and then stitched close to the edge of the hem. Then I pinned the sides, stitched them together and then trimmed off the excess with pinking shears. After turning the bag the right way around, I pressed it.

The next step was to attach the letters – I used a small running stitch to do this.

Next, I finished the edges of the tops of the bag, before threading the ribbon through and sewing the ends together.

Ta-dah!

Here’s to many more fun games of Scrabble!

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On Thursday I had lots of crafting planned (I’d been thinking carefully about it all week!) and was really looking forward to making the most of my part time days. But I woke up with the most horrible migraine and ended up staying in bed for the whole day! Needless to say, I didn’t get anything done – never mind any crafting! I do get migraines every now and again and I’ve been meaning to get around to making an eye mask to help when I get one. I really could have done with it on Thursday, but at least I’m prepared for the next one!

Aimee Ray has an embroidered eye mask in her book, Doodle Stitching, and I used the templates from that but designed my own pattern on the front. I have looked to see if the templates are available online but they don’t seem to be – but the book is worth investing in! If you don’t want to buy it, I found another template and tutorial from The Red Kitchen which is slightly different to this one but has really clear instructions.

I used some scraps of fabric left over from our wedding waistcoats to make the mask, so it was good to put some left over bits to good use! Once I’d finished the embroidery on the front of the eye mask, I was able to cut out the remaining pieces and sew it all together. The important thing to remember is to put the right sides together so that it’s the right way around when you turn it inside out!

I decided to use some elastic instead of ribbons (as suggested in the book), and had this gorgeous chevron elastic that I got from Etsy a while ago. I had to get a bit of pink on there somewhere!

A mask would be a really good gift and if you used some pretty patterned fabric instead of embroidering the front, they would be even quicker to make. Perfect for a relaxing night’s sleep!

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