frayed at the edge

Tuesday Tutorial 2

 

Tidy Bag

This week, I am going to show you how to make a little bag which hangs from a ceramic coaster on your table or desk, to collect bits of wool, thread etc  ... this is what will you will need

 a small coaster (or tile) - it needs to be heavy to support the weight of the bag, a piece of felt (I used a leftover piece of woolen fabric which I had felted in the washing machine), fabric for the outer bag, lining fabric (I used a sample of roller blind fabric, you could use shower curtain fabric) velcro spots and tape.

First, cut  a square from the felt that is just a little bit smaller than your coaster, then to make the bag, I used the same method that I used to make the little gift bags.

Cut a rectangle from your outer fabric and your lining fabric - they should measure approx two and a half times the size of your coaster, by about one and a half times.

Sew the two rectangles together on a long side, using a quarter inch seam, and press the seam open.

Fold in half, and pop a pin in to keep the seam in line, then stitch

press the seam open

Fold the bag so that the lining is on the outside, making sure that the seams are lined up, and the outer bag is lying flat inside the lining, and sew across the bottom

 

 

 

Refold the bottom of the bag, as shown in the photo, making sure the seam is centred

 

 

 

Position the ruler to where it measures and inch and a half, and mark a line.  Do the same for the other side, then sew across the points

 

 

 

Trim the points off, leaving a quarter inch seam

 

 

 

Turn the bag right side out - the bottom should look like this

 

 

 

Next, you need two six inch lengths of tape.  Turn over a small hem and press, then turn it over again and press again.  do the same at the other end, but turn the hem to the other side.  Repeat with your other piece of tape, then sew across the hems.

 

 

 

Stitch two velcro loop spots onto the felt and two hook ones onto one end of each piece of tape

 

 

 

Sew the other spots to the other end of the tapes and the inside of the bag

 

 

 

Last, glue the felt to the bottom of the coaster

 

 

 

The finished tidy bag on the table.  If you only want to use the coaster, simply take the bag off .....

 

 

 

.... and if you want to take your bag to a workshop, simply tuck the coaster and tapes into the bag!
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

At last!

Yes - we finally went out in the new car yesterday!!  As expected, it is lovely - very quiet, very comfortable and drives like a .... well I don't know that bit, because there's no chance I'll be driving it any time soon!!  We went to a garden centre for a bacon roll for breakfast (and to stock up on bird food) then went on to Galashiels for some food shopping, so altogether a good morning out!

On Friday, I decided to have an extra giveaway, to celebrate my 300th post.  After a rummage in the studio, I came up with this as a prize

 

it's a notebook that I bought in Singapore - the back is cute too

 

 

( there may be a little extra something in the parcel!)

I posted the parcels this afternoon, so hopefully they will be with the winners soon.

 

I mentioned that I thought 'octopus' when working on the 'circles' scarf.  This in turn made me think of an octopus knitting!  I had a go at drawing one on Saturday.  I wasn't entirely happy with it (we all know about my lack of drawing skills) so I asked Malcolm if he could tweak it for me .... he took one look at it, turned over the page and drew another one!  So here are are drawings (I coloured both of them in!!)

this is my offering ....

 

.... and this is Malcolm's

I thought for a bit of fun, I would ask you to say which one you prefer, and why .... there will be a little prize for the best comment!!

 

I read a delightful post on Lee's blog about how her daughter is famous in Germany - you can read it here and if you want to make the Christmas tree, you can see the tutorial here.  I decided to have a go last night while we were watching tv - I used a magazine from one of the Sunday papers.  My tree isn't as good as Lilly's - I should have used a magazine with far more pages - mine only made half a tree!!

 

We were watching the film 'Sleeping with the enemy', with Julia Roberts and Patrick Bergen.  It reminded of this book

.... it's a very moving novel, telling of the efforts of a battered wife to leave her husband.  I have read it several times, and every time I cry!!  I bought the book in Borders Bookshop in Singapore - I used to spend a lot of time (and money) in Borders!  I think I have told you this story before, but I'm going to tell you again!  When there was political unrest in Indonesia, I, along with another BP wife, had to go to stay in Singapore.  When we moved into our apartments, we went out to buy the necessities to make our stay comfortable ... she bought tonic for her gin ... and I headed to Borders to buy a book and a magazine!!

 

While I'm typing this, I am watching the news, and the terrible pictures from Haiti.  I am full of admiration for the people who go to help - I know that I couldn't do it ... all I can do is make a donation and hope that it helps to make a difference.
 
   
 
 

 

Shadow Shot Sunday

 

 

It hasn't been a good week for shadows, as the weather has not been very nice at all!  However, I spotted this one the other morning .... our wine glasses sitting by the sink, waiting to be washed 

 

 

Then, later on, I got out the last little bit of Christmas cake, to have with our morning cuppa

 

 

You can find out what the other shadow addicts have been up to at Hey Harriet!

 

And the winners are .....

........ yes, the moment has arrived, for the draw for the anniversary giveaway!  So without further ado, Malcolm will you please draw the two winners ......

 

 

Our first winner, for the UK prize, is ........

 

the multi-talented Helen McCookerybook (artist, musician and prolific blogger .... oh, she also has a 'proper' job!)

and what, I hear you ask, has she won?

some beautiful pieces of silk, an 'orphan' ball of yarn, a selection of wooden beads, and a small pack of hand-dyed angora ... and that's not all!  After taking the photo I added some extra goodies!!

 

The other  winner, from overseas, is

Mattenylou from Massachusets - but in one of those funny little coincidences in life, her Granny was born in Hawick! 

Her prize is ...

... a Thistle Stitchery Kit (designed by me!!), a kit to make a scissor keeper, some cute little buttons, one of the tags I made for the Tuesday Tutorial (very special, as it is made from the card Malcolm gave me!) and a gift bag (that I also showed you how to make).  And, as with Helen, some more goodies sneaked onto the pile when I wasn't looking!

 

BUT ... that's not all ..... because (fanfare, roll of drums) this is post number 300!!!  So I tipped all the names into one bowl .......

and I drew out ......

Cathy, who lives in Italy, and is a fabulous artist!  As this was a last minute decision to have another prize winner, I don't actually know what her prize will be, but I am sure I will find something in the studio!

 

It has been wonderful to have so many people leave comments - not only from here at home, but from France, Holland, Italy, America, South Africa and Australia!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend - we are hoping that the thaw continues and that we will finally be able to go out in the new car!!

Love, Anne
 

 
 
 

  

 

Just when we thought it was all over ....

...... we got up this morning to even more snow!!  We are thoroughly fed up now, but the weather is supposed to improve over the weekend .... I think these sheep will be very glad to see the end of the snow

 

 

as will this bird (I think it's a thrush) eyeing up the empty birdfood tub (don't worry, I have more!

 

 

and as for Malcolm's poor car - he had just got all the snow cleared off it in the hope we would be able to go out today .......

 

 

Oh well, all this enforced leisure time means that good progress is being made on the knitting and embroidery front!  First, the 'circles' scarf.  I have finished the main part and have started on the circles (but I keep thinking 'octopus'!)

 

eventually all the black stitch lines will become circles

 

 

the only drawback - two ends to sew in for each circle!

 

Progress on the cross stitch front has been a bit slower - I guess my eyes aren't as good as when I started (I didn't need glasses for close work back then!) and I need really good light to work on such a small scale

 

 

Remember, this is your last chance to leave a comment and be included in the great anniversary giveaway.  I have two piles of stuff sitting in the studio, ready to go to the lucky winners, so come back tomorrow evening when I announce the winners and reveal the magnificent prizes!!!

 

Hoarders Challenge

The lovely Anne Gaal, who makes the most wonderful cards, issued a challenge to hoarders to raid their stashes and make something.  She listed 15 categories of supplies, from which you had to choose 3 or more to use ...... I don't have a lot of the things on the list, as they are specialist card-making things, but I headed for the studio this afternoon and did the best I could with what I have .......

 

The card is made with two colours of parchment, with paper flower embellishments, which have a little jewel in the centre.  The wording is done with peel-off stickers.  I finished it with a satin ribbon bow

 

Inside is a piece of handmade cotton rag paper, with a handwritten greeting .... and who could resist adding the little chick  in the corner!

 

and just for fun, I added the 'handmade by' sticker on the back.
 

  
 

Tuesday Tutorial

Well, here it is, the first Tuesday Tutorial!  I've come up with some ideas using Christmas cards.  They are fairly simple ideas, but hopefully they will inspire you to experiment ...... and have fun!!

 

a basket of goodies - let's go!

 

 

first, gift tags

 

 

I used a luggage tag as a template

 

and a hole puch to make the hole for the ribbun

 

a piece of festive card and a card with three crackers ....

 

produced these three tags

 

another three cards produced these tags

 

Next, I used some bits from cards to make new cards!

 

I used a punch to cut out the stars from a piece of Christmas card, and a hole punch to make the holes for the ribbon, and mounted this on a gold card from my stash

 

 

The decoration was from the card I gave Malcolm (!), again mounted on a card from my stash

 

I decided this little angel wasn't just for Christmas, but could be used for a birthday card

 

After the tag and card making, I then made some little boxes, which can be used either as decorations or as gift boxes for small presents such as earrings.

 

 

You start with a square cut from a card

 

use a ruler and pencil to find the centre

 

fold the four corners into the centre

 

then fold the four sides into the centre

 

I have drawn over the folds to let you see what they should look like (you don't need to do this!)

 

next cut along the line as shown, so that you end up with this

 

the cuts are made on two sides

 

fold in the two long sides

 

then fold the short sides over, which will hold the box together

 

 

to make the bottom of the box, cut your square a quarter of an inch smaller, then make the same way.  If you are using the box to give a gift, put a little bit of tissue paper or cotton wool in the bottom, then tie it with ribbon.  To use it as a decoration, add an extra loop of ribbon to hang it up

 

I hope you have been inspired to recycle your cards  to use next Christmas!!

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

 

 

Reduce clutter, create space!

One day last week, I was reading one of my favourite blogs fra(a)ing, when I saw that Anairam had a new badge on her side bar - of course being a nosey kind of person, I clicked on it ......... and this is what I found reduce clutter, create space  .... a wonderful idea on Shannon's blog.  A lot of her ideas tied in with my New Year's resolutions, so I was happy to sign up to her campaign for people not only to physically declutter, but also to declutter their minds ....... I'm sure, like me, some days your head is just too full of stuff, and it would be good to clear out the unnecessary items.  As you know I have made a start in sorting out the studio, making a serious effort to finish longstanding projects and to use things from my stash instead of buying ever more stuff.  When tidying up I came across these little socks and two scarves

 

my sample socks from practising knitting 'two at a time'

 

 

left over stock from a craft fair

 

I took them, along with a cd I didn't want, into a charity shop this morning, where they were gratefully received.  I'll update you now and then on how the decluttering goes (and of course more will be leaving the studio soon, as prizes in the great anniversary giveaway!!).

 If I had slightly better computer skills, I too would have a badge on my sidebar, but for the moment, I'll just have to put one here 

And now for the weather update!  When snow first falls, it looks very pretty, but in Hawick this morning, we saw the other side of snowy weather

great piles of dirty snow

There are also problems with thawing snow coming down off roofs .... this is what happened when the snow came off our neighbours roof yesterday

a large section of gutter dislodged by the snow

We were woken through the night by the sound of snow coming off the roof at the back of the house, and this is what we found this morning

this is an olive tree (with a fleece tent round it) flattened by the snow

 

Both Malcolm and I had a narrow escape this morning - I was about to go out the back door, and Malcolm was about to come in, when another huge amount of snow came off the roof - I think we would have been badly hurt if we had been caught under it - it was like an avalanche.  Here is Malcolm starting to clear it

 

If you haven't yet seen the details of the anniversary giveaway, scroll down to the end of Friday's post to read all about it.

Remember to come back tomorrow for the first Tuesday Tutorial!!

 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

  
  

Shadow Shot Sunday

 

 

 

My goodness, where has the last week gone?!  It's that time again ..... as soon as I've posted my Shadow Shots, I'll head over to Hey Harriet to see this week's participants (and have another look at the collage of some of last week's shadows, because I'm in  it!! .... and I have to give credit to Malcolm for spotting the cat on the fence)  So, guess what ... yes, more shadows on snow .....

 

 

 

 

 

When you have been surrounded by snow since the 17th of December, there is only one thing to do .... get drunk have a Singapore Sling to bring back memories of our wonderful holiday in Singapore, lounging by the pool in lovely, glorious HOT sunshine .....

 

cheers!!

ps - I'm having a giveaway to celebrate my first anniversary ..... scroll to the end of the previous post to see the details.
 

 

 

 
  

 

What's today's date ........

........ let me just look at a calendar or two (or even three!!)

 

this gorgeous chicken thinks it's the 8th

 

 

the cute sock monkey agrees!

 

If you are of a sensitive nature, scroll past the next calendar quickly (Malcolm bought it for my Christmas ..... on the other hand you may want to click on it to enlarge it!!

 

this handsome chap also agrees that it is the 8th ....

 

..... which can only mean one thing ...... it's my first anniversary!!!!! (did I hear a fanfare and a roll of drums?)

I can't believe I have been doing this for a year and haven't yet run out of things to say (ok, I admit it, my friends will tell you that I never stop talking!!).  I thoroughly enjoy writing my blog, and I'm amazed at how many people now read it.  This is my 294th post and I have received over 1100 comments.  I have made many friends, mostly blog friends, but of course last year I met Sarah and Lee, and this year I hope to meet Meg, as she is moving from Idaho to Italy.  

Of course an anniversary means a giveaway!  To be included in the draw, which I'll make next Friday, simply leave a comment, mentioning if you live in the UK or abroad, as there are two separate giveaways, because of the cost of postage.  Multiple entries are welcome, so feel free to leave a comment every day!!

To finish, of course there has to be an update on the weather!  We have had another day without snow (hooray) BUT ...... it is still well below freezing, so the snow willl be here for quite a while yet (we've had snow here since the 17th of December - we remember because it was the day we went to Falkirk to see Stuart!!).  We went for a walk after lunch, and this is what our road looks like

 

It is passable with care - but the cleared bit is only wide enough for one car, and the ploughed snow at the edges is frozen hard, so it would be a bit hairy if you met a car coming the other way - or worse, a tractor!!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend - we will be staying in and keeping warm!

Love Anne

ps - Malcolm also bought a calendar for Jennifer.  When we were there on Christmas Day, her mother-in-law had a very good look at all the photos, then declared that she really didn't fancy any of the men (she's 92!!)