Blue and white upcycled shirt quilt

July 13, 2019Leave a comment

Blue and white is such a classic combination. It is both fresh and calming with the relaxed feeling of a lazy summer’s day on the beach.

I used blue and white as the starting point for a quilt that would be a gift for my brother. He loves rummaging in charity shops so it seemed appropriate to use pre-loved shirts and create an upcycled quilt for him.

Trawling the local charity shops, I looked for men’s shirts in a variety of patterns. Anything would do – stripes, spots, checks, tone on tone designs – provided the fabric was 100% cotton and the colours were predominately blue and white. I even found a few floral, James May shirt style patterns. Best of all was the little boy’s demin blue shirt covered in dinosaur skeletons! I mean, who doesn’t love a dinosaur?

Stack of blue and white shirts

I wanted to keep the design uncomplicated so as to show off the patterns of the shirt fabrics. A straight forward nine patch block seemed just the ticket. The shirts were cut into 4 1/2 inch squares and sewn randomly together.

Blue and white shirt blocks

Men need encouragement in their lives too, so I embroidered positive affirmations onto some of the plain fabrics and incorporated these into the quilt blocks.

Affirmation blocks

White sashing, 2 inches finished width, was added to separate the blocks and to give it a fresh look.

Blue and white quilt

A swirling design, called Hot Cocoa, was chosen for the long arm quilting. It adds a great texture to the quilt.

Quilt detail showing quilting design

And here is the finished quilt, complete with a dark navy binding to frame the quilt.

Quilt made from upcycled blue and white shirts

At 72 inches square it is a great size to use as a bedspread or to throw over the back of the sofa. I love that it is a classic design with little personal touches that make it unique.

Have you made a quilt from upcycled clothes? I’d love you to share a photo and if not, I’d encourage you to give it a go. So much clothing ends up in landfill and it seems a crime to waste it when it can be re-purposed for a longer life.

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A great gift for that hard-to-buy-for person

November 28, 2016Leave a comment

I’m been wracking my brains thinking of Christmas gifts that might appeal to that hard-to-buy-for person, or the person who has everything, for the fussy person and the ones who just don’t know what they want (let’s face it, we all have at least one of these types on our lists). The last thing you want to get them is something that they will stuff in a drawer, or worse, re-gift to you next year. So my suggestion is this – cupcake toppers that you add to your own cakes!

Wait, hear me out. Who could refuse some delicious cakes – perhaps they’re shop bought or you’ve made them yourself with some help from the kids – topped with luscious buttercream and some WOW cupcake toppers. Your cupcakes will be beautiful to look at, yummy to eat AND no need to find space for extra stuff. Plus they will be handmade which will make them just that little bit more special.

Here are some lovely designs for you to consider. Teachers, dads and granddads would love cupcakes decorated with these cheery Santa and reindeer toppers.

Cupcake toppers – Santa, presents and Rudolf

Friends who like all the trimmings would delight in these cute pudding and robin toppers (just so you know, the pudding and robin are made from chocolate flavoured fondant for extra tastiness).

Cupcake toppers – Christmas pudding, trees and robin

Or what about these adorable snowman and polar bear toppers? They would certainly put a smile on someone’s face.

Cupcake toppers – snowman, snowflakes and polar bear

The ones I like best however are these ones, which will look like a little painting when presented in a cupcake box. First up, a scottie dog playing in the snow with a snowman. How cute is that?

Cupcake toppers – snowman and scottie dog

Scottie dog again, this time posting a letter to Santa. I hope Santa gets it in time.

Cupcake toppers – letter box and scottie dog

And my favourite – bright lights welcoming you home on a dark, snowy evening.

Cupcake toppers – silent night

All these designs will be available at my table top stall at the Frost Fair in Thame (it’s on 1 December between 8pm and 10pm at the John Hampden School if you are in the area). And if you’d like something custom-made to reflect the interests of a special someone, then do contact me. I look forward to seeing you at the Frost Fair!

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Lined drawstring bags

April 22, 2016Leave a comment

Over the past week, I have been busy making cute little drawstring bags in preparation for my Bucks Open Studios event. For those who don’t know, Bucks Open Studios is the largest visual arts event in Buckinghamshire. It takes place in June each year and allows members of the public to visit local artists to learn more about their work and the artistic processes involved. I will be exhibiting my work at St Nicholas Church in Kingsey along with seven other artists. We’d love to see you if you fancy an interesting day out.

To whet your appetite, here are a couple of the bags that you’ll see on my display. Each bag is approximately 10 inches high by 7 inches wide and is made from Jeni Baker’s fabulous pattern available at Incolororder.com Jeni calls it the Everything bag and it really is suitable for everything. Her little bag makes a great re-usable present wrapping, or a fabulous gift in its own right.

Lined drawstring bag in Mori Girls fabric

I love the little houses and apples on this one. Fill it with a pretty tea towel, specialty coffee and homemade biscuits to make a great housewarming gift for someone moving into a new home.

Lined drawstring bag in Fablewood fabric

This is one of my favourites. Just love those little leaping foxes. Add a baby-gro, a copy of Peter Rabbit and some dribble bibs (Hot Chop Threads makes some fabulous ones) and you have a great gender-neutral baby gift. The little bag will get so much use later as it is perfect for carrying toys or a change of clothes.

Lined drawstring bag in Briar Rose by Heather Ross

Lined drawstring bag in Heather Ross fabric

Don’t you just love those sweet little knitting bees? Pop a couple of balls of yarn and some knitting needles in this bag to make a lovely gift for a crafty friend.

Like what you see? Remember you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more lovely makes.

Christmas presents for men

December 11, 2015Leave a comment

Choosing Christmas presents for men is something I always struggle with. Finding presents that are useful, that they might actually like AND that are light and easy to post to Australia makes it even more difficult. Socks might fit the brief however there are only so many pairs of socks any man would want.

Having decided to make as many presents as I could this year, the hot water bottle cover designed by Emma of Simple Pleasures Sewing was a perfect choice for my hard-to-buy-for male relatives. Hottie covers are light, unbreakable, soft, practical (well, perhaps not in summer but come winter time and it will be their best friend) and, most importantly, easy to personalise.

The mechanic in the family is getting this great vintage car blueprints hottie cover (It’s ok. He never reads my blog so it is safe to show it here). The cover is lined in the teal Flurry spot that you can see behind the hottie cover. As well as this indigo colour way, the outer fabric comes in other great manly colours of charcoal and black and also a fabulous vintage planes design.

Vintage cars hot water bottle cover

Whilst the teenage boys will be finding hottie covers made in this gorgeous London maps fabric under the tree.

London map hot water bottle covers

I love this map fabric (Passport by 3 Sisters for Moda). It is like a giant i-spy game and comes in coloured versions too. Being teenagers however I thought the masculine grey tones looked more grown up and would suit them better.

Their hottie covers are lined in a co-ordinating grey spotted Flurry fabric, making the inside just as fabulous, and all hottie covers are machine quilted to make them extra cosy.

I’ve loved making these hot water bottle covers and know that the men who receive them will also love them. A win-win situation all round.