Finally finished up the green fawn over the weekend:
He’s off to a good friend’s newborn son. I hope he brings the little guy many smiles and giggles :-)
It’s good to be back into the routine again. I’m looking forward to starting a new softie project this week!
Hope your week is filled with happy things too!
I’m throwing a little sale over at the One Red Robin shoppe on etsy. I’d love for the softies and cushions to find new homes so that I can make way for some new items in my little craft room :-)
The sale will continue until all the softies and cushions have been sold.
And speaking of craft room, mine is almost done! In fact, I was able to work on a fawn the other night and I was so happy to be sewing once again (it’s been weeks!). The other thing that I love? That I can leave the little fella in the middle of the room, close the door, walk away, and know that he isn’t in anyone else’s way!
My previous craft spaces were in open areas with quite a lot of walk-through traffic. So *nice* to have just one dedicated room for my happy hobby and to be able to hide it from the rest of the world if need be :-)
Find out what’s on sale here: One Red Robin Shoppe
A few weeks ago, I tweeted this whilst waiting for the phone guy to turn up at our new place. The brooch display frame was really easy to whip-up and took less than 15 minutes. I added a few more improvements since then and thought I’d share it with you, should you have a love of brooches too :-)
What you’ll need:
First step: Take the frame apart. You’ll be using the cardboard for the rest of the steps, so you can put the other pieces of the frame to one side.
Second step: Place the cardboard on the batting and using the cardboard as a template, cut around it so that you have a piece of batting in the exact same size as the cardboard.
Third step: Place the cardboard on the fabric and using the cardboard as a template and leaving a 3cm (or 1 and 1/2 inch) border, cut around it.
Fourth step: Place the fabric you have cut from the Third step with its right-side facing down. Then place the piece of batting in the centre. Then place the cardboard on top.
Fifth step: Start with one of the shorter sides and fold fabric over the cardboard. Staple as close to the edge as you can, down the side, ensuring that all layers are stapled together. This will ensure that the staples won’t show when you put the frame back together.
Sixth step: Repeat the Fifth step on the opposite short side, making sure to pull the fabric taut as you staple down the edge.
Seventh step: Repeat Fifth and Sixth steps for the long sides, making sure to pull the fabric taut as you staple down the edge.
Eighth step: Put frame back together. For my frame, I put fabric-batting-cardboard piece in the frame first, followed by the piece of glass (since I may want to re-use the frame in the future), and then the backing piece.
And that’s it! Now it’s time to pin your brooches on! Make sure that when you do pin them on, the pin goes through both the fabric and batting. You could fancy it up by using antique or more extravagant frames.
I must thank Dear Fii for providing the idea :-)
*My display above holds some of my growing brooch collection (haven’t unpacked them all yet!). Top row: American Eagle Outfitters brooch; Betty Jo owl; Finki brooch. Middle row: Love by Geneine Honey Deer brooch; American Eagle Outfitters brooch; Vintage owl brooch. Bottom row: Diva Cameo brooch; Betty Jo Cuckoo Clock; Malgorzata Bird Brooch.
Just popping in to say that we have finally moved into the new (old) place :-)
A few have asked for progress shots of the craft room. Ermmm . . . must admit, there has been very little progress! The unpacking of other rooms has taken precedence. For what it’s worth, here’s what it looks like at the moment:
My favourite part of the house is the dining room. The sun lights up this nook of the house brilliantly in the morning. And don’t you love that nautical-themed light fitting, hehe!
Can you spot the orchid in that pic above? My BFF gifted it to me on my birthday way back in April and it’s still thriving. Orchids are my favourite flower - they are known for being resilient. The fact that this orchid is still alive and strong means a lot to me.
So yes, setting up the craft room is slow going. It’s frustrating because I really want to get to work on some projects but THIS time I want to be sure that there is a place for everything and everything has its place. My craft room at the other house was such a mess and it was driving me BONKERS.
It has been said that moving house is one of the most stressful life experiences you can have. I have to say thank God, this one went pretty smoothly! The girls and I saw a brilliant rainbow in the sky on the morning of the move and I just knew it was going to be a good move. I love rainbows because to me they scream “HOPE!“. And that’s just what I needed to be reminded of that day.
I’ve moved house 15 times in my 34 years of life so I don’t find the actual moving part stressful - lest I even admit that I find packing therapeutic? (Weirdo, I know - don’t judge me). I actually find the cleaning and the unpacking at the other side stressful!! I hired professional movers this time (the first time I have ever done so) and though it burned a whole in my wallet, it was worth it - the move was done in under 4 hours. Nothing was damaged or broken, and the rain held out until the move was completed.
We’re settling in very well and have slipped back into familiar routines. I love how warm and cozy this little house is (even though it has a slightly strange old-house funk. Give up the funk I say). Thank you for the lovely comments on the previous post - so glad you love the character of this place too :-)
Also, it seems that the demographic of people living on my street are very friendly 60+ year old retirees. To say we live on a very quiet street is an understatement. Is it bad that one of the reasons I want to befriend my neighbour is because I want to take a look into their home and gaze admiringly upon their vintage possessions??
Okay, better do a little more unpacking before I turn in for the night. Thanks for listening to my ramblings. Hope you’re all having a great week so far!
I’ve taken to calling our new home, the new (old) home because, well . . . it is rather mature in age! It has been untouched by any desire to renovate and update, and seems to have maintained most of the fixtures it did when it was built. But it has so much charm and while I was cleaning it up yesterday, I took some photos with my phone. So a quick break from the blog break to share with you some snapshots:
The retro-tastic kitchen:
Complete with gas oven and stove that must be lit with a lighter:
Floor coverings:
And light fittings:
Thank you for the well wishes on the move! The new (old) home has been cleaned up and now begins the slow moving-in of stuff :-)
