THIS BOOK HAS NOW BEEN SOLD.

I literally let a out of squeal of happiness when I stumbled across this book.

SO MANY cute embroidery patterns influenced by Scandanavian design – Moomin, teacups, kitchen utensils, iconic furniture, woodland creatures …. and that’s not all of the patterns you’ll find in this little treasure trove.

It also has sewing patterns for a few home and personal items like slippers, bags, book covers, cushion covers and a tea cosy. This book is written in Chinese (Mandarin) but includes easy-to-follow illustrations on how to put the projects together.

This book is now out of print and I only have one copy, so if you love Scandanavian design, this is a fantastic craft book to add to your collection!

More information on the book:
Paperback: 88 pages
Publisher: Reascend (2007)
Language: Chinese (Mandarin)
Book Weight: 300 Grams
Condition: Brand New

It’s now in my etsy shoppe here: Love Small Nordic Scandanavian Style Embroidery (Out of Print) – Chinese Craft Pattern Book SOLD!

It’s no secret that I love craft books! I have a huge collection of all kinds of craft books back in storage in Melbourne and – let’s be honest – another ever-so-slowly growing collection here in Hong Kong :-) I do spend quite a bit of time in bookshops in Hong Kong and I have come across some fantastic craft pattern books. Yes, they are in Chinese (Mandarin) but just like the awesome Japanese Craft Patten books many of you are familiar with, these books also have very easy-to-follow illustrations and photos.

What better way to share the love then make some of these books available in my etsy shop. So from time to time – when I come across really awesome craft pattern books – I’ll put a few books up in my shoppe.

The first of these is “Lovely Small Felt Mascots“.

This book has the patterns for 30 super cute, animals, sea creatures, people and fruit! All are made using felt and require simple hand-stitching, some glue and a little bit of fibre-fill/stuffing.

Here are a few pages to give you an idea of what you can find inside the book.

They are small, which makes them an easy project for kids and adults. If you’re keen to learn about how to make softies, these small, felt projects are a great way to learn about simple form and construction as a basis for making larger softies.

Other information about the book:
Paperback: 80 pages
Publisher: Arts Ippudo (2007)
Author: Chen Chun-Chin
Language: Chinese (Mandarin)
Book Weight: 300 Grams
Condition: Brand New

Please note that I have only found one copy of this book (it was published back in 2007) – so if you do want it, snap it up quick!

It’s now in my etsy shoppe here: Lovely Small Felt Mascots – Chinese Craft Pattern Book

I keep forgetting to blog about all the cute stuff I’ve found in HK! One of the things I love doing is going to the book store and picking up a magazine by e-Mook. I have no idea what theses magazines are about as they are in Japanese, and they are sealed shut so you can’t flick through the pages, but they usually have a cute tote bag inside for free and unbelievably cute covers.

I’ve picked up a few issues previously (and therefore have some really cute tote/shopping bags!) and this is the latest one that caught my eye:

It’s a magazine on Japanese artist Ado Mizumori’s work. Ado is an actress, comedian and singer and had her own kids TV show in the 1970′s where she sang and painted (with both hands!). It’s hard to find a lot of information on her work on the internet (that is in English) but you’d have to say that her nostalgic illustrations must have been a huge influence in what has shaped ‘kawaii’ art.

These are some of the products that have featured her illustrations:

And Ado in her studio (don’t you love that she’s sitting on a toadstool-stool?!):

I understand that Ado is about 70 years old now and still exercising her creativity and doing what she loves – that’s inspiring!

I have fond memories of my first teddy bear – I had it for almost ten years and then had to throw it away as it had basically completely fallen apart from the years of cuddles and being dragged everywhere! But there is something very special about Teddy Bears. And I love the how they come in all kinds of different styles, shapes and forms on etsy.

Here are a few of my recent favourite teddy bears on etsy – some handmade and ready for a new home, and some that you can make yourself!

1. Sweet Amigurumi Teddy Crochet pattern by Anapaulaoll
2. Teddy Bear Softie Stuffed Toy PDF Sewing Pattern by DollsandDaydreams
3. Limited Edition Peony the Woodland Bear by SleepyKing
4. Green Polka Dotted Pocket Bear by Gabrielefelt
5. 4-inch Miniature Artist Bear Winston by TippyandTeddy
6. Gilbert Teddy Bear Plushie by KnittingDreams

Thought I’d do another featurette, inspired by some random surfing on etsy, which led me to some really cute vintage shoes!

1. Vintage Coffee Bronze Amalfi Italian Heels by shopREINVINTAGE
2. Vintage Lace-up Buckled Riding Boots by Kinakt
3. Vintage Jean Piere Apricot Leather Cutout Peeptoe Sandales by Kenalone
4. Vintage 1950s/60s Sandy Bone Wedge Heels by shopREINVINTAGE
5. Vintage 1950s Ruby Red Nylon Canvas Lace-up Stacked Oxford Heels by Generationthrift
6. Pretty-in-pink Peeptoe Flats by TotallyKitschn
7. Vintage Maroon Leather Wedge Closed-toe High Heels with Ankle Buckle by ElectricCupcakeCo
8. Awesome 1960s Multicolor Striped Nubuck Shoes by RagsFeathers

Unfortunately none of these lovelies came in my size – but perhaps they will fit you? :-)

One thing is for sure living here in Hong Kong – there is no shortage of cuteness when it comes to dolls!

These are some Cultural dolls I came across a few weeks ago, made of a wooden base and decorated with fabric and embellishments. I love their little faces and the detail on the clothing.

These dolls can be found at markets so are quite cheap – we picked up a few at markets here and in Taiwan. They come in a wide range of cute outfits and have key chains attached to their heads. I started off with one, …. then two…. then three ….

And this is a larger one we bought in Taiwan. Their clothes are glued on but I reckon you could cut them off and make your own little clothes. Dollie #4:

I will admit I did buy these dolls for myself – but hey, I’m thinking they provide some much needed inspiration for some new fabric dollies I hope to be working on soon :-)

I haven’t come across any stores selling Pullips or Blythes yet. Which I think at this stage, is a good thing!

Thought I’d share some Robin-related handmade/art/design loveliness I’ve stumbled upon in Etsy … because, well … I’m partial to Robins :-)

1. Mr American Robin (needle-felted) by Tracy Mueller
2. Robin (original watercolour painting) by Dimdi
3. Needle Felted Red Robin Jingle Ball Toy by Asher Jasper
4. “Gray Autumn” fine art print (wrapped canvas) by Tracey Capone Photography
5. Robins on a Branch brass earrings by For the Cross Jewelry
6. Birds Nest Necklace with Robins Eggs by Jacaranda Designs
7. Large Robin Pillow Case by Mirthquake
8. Little Robin print by Yumi Yumi
9. Bird Cages Vinyl Wall Art by Goat Grin Studio

This was fun to put together – hope to do more little featurettes on the blog this year :-)

I made this little guy for the baby boy that is currently being cared for by the Project18 Orphanage as part of the handmade doll appeal:

The fabrics come from the amazingly generous box that Dawn sent me almost two years ago :-) I always struggle with boy dolls, so hopefully he’ll get lots of cuddles from his new owner. A little girl doll is also in progress and should be wrapped up soon.

Also in my creative space, three vintage owl ornaments I managed to snatch up from Agnes Darling’s cute etsy shop – lots of goodies there, be sure to check it out! These will be the newest additions to my (growing) owly collection. They are quite special, me thinks :-)

More creative spaces over here!

As promised, I have a few Ikea goodies to giveaway!! In total, there are 3 prizes on offer:

2 awesome fabric bundles – each bundle has two pieces of fabric and each piece is roughly 1 metre by 1.5 metres in measurement, and is 100% cotton.

Fabric Bundle 1:

Fabric Bundle 2:

I also have on offer an art pack for a little aspiring artist you may know, consisting of a make-your-own-cards/stationery pack, water colour paint, markers, crayons, and pencils, and 2 pairs of decorative-edged scissors:

To enter this Ikea giveaway, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post before midnight Sunday, 21st November (Australian Eastern Standard Time) with the following details:

1) Which prize you’d like to win – a fabric bundle OR the art pack,
AND
2) As mentioned in the previous post, Ikea Family will be holding how-to seminars in the near future. What’s one how-to topic you’d like to see Ikea do as part of their seminar series?

THREE WINNERS (2 people will receive one fabric bundle each, and 1 person will receive the art pack) will be drawn randomly next week and I’ll post the winners up next Wednesday. Looking forward to reading your ideas!

I was invited by Ikea to visit their store in Richmond and spend a few hours with Mark (General Manager of Ikea Family, Australia) and Sarah, to discuss the new Ikea Family program and to have a look at some of their products for kids and storage/craft rooms. How could I resist?!

I’m quite sure you’ve heard of Ikea and perhaps you’ve even got one (or two or five, or ten) of their products in your home. I use a lot of their storage solutions for my craft room and for the girls’ room, so I was really excited about a new program that they launched this past September for Australian customers – the Ikea Family. It’s free to join and these are just some of the benefits:

• Free bottomless coffee every visit
• FAMILY discounts on meals in the IKEA Restaurant
• Exclusive savings on lots of products
• Exclusive seminars and events
• 10c donated to charity every time you swipe or scan your card
• Free store to home insurance
• Extended 12 month return policy
• Free IKEA FAMILY LIVE magazine home delivered
• Ask any questions you like online and have experts answer them

Now if you are an avid Ikea shopper (like I am!) you’ll actually reap the benefits very quickly – and you’ll also be donating towards a charity at the same time. When I got to the store and met up with Mark and Sarah, I was able to join the program on the spot by signing up via these in-store kiosks.

Of course, you can just as easily sign up online. Sign-up instore took 5 minutes and at the end I was given a receipt, which was my temporary card (the actual card will be sent to you a few days later).

With the receipt in hand, I was then able to enjoy a free (and bottomless) cup of coffee straight away. Then it was time to tour the store for a little browsing and shopping!

I couldn’t wait to get to the fabric section!!! Well, this is a no brainer for me! A really great range of 100% cotton fabric in graphic and vibrant designs.

These were just a few of the other things that caught my eye:

Top to bottom:
>> Retur – okay, so this is meant to be a waste-sorting bin, but I reckon it’s a fantastic stackable storage solution! Made up of different sizes, this would be perfect to store crafty notions and materials. And you can make them pretty with decals, wallpaper, etc :-)
>> Skojig – cute toadstoolesque lamp for the kid’s room
>> Vika Glasholm – love the design on this table top
>> Vika Blecket/Vika Artur – something a little more adaptable. I could use this flat as my sewing and cutting desk, then clear it and adjust the height for painting/drawing projects
>> Alvine Flora – smitten with this cushion and the embroidered design (in fact, this one is now sitting on my bed!)
>> Duktig – super cute, gelato-coloured, ceramic 10-piece tea set! (not all pieces shown)

After picking up a bag of goodies, I used the receipt at check-out, which meant an instant donation to charity. I then went home and logged into my Ikea Family account and filled in further details on my profile. By doing this, I’m helping Ikea send me information, offers and news that will actually be relevant and interesting to me. The other great news is that Ikea will be running events in the new year for Ikea Family members – from social events to how-to seminars.

So if you love to shop at Ikea, I’d highly recommend joining the Ikea Family!

Thanks to Mark and Sarah for their time and company :-) And thanks to Ikea, I have a few goodies to give away! So please pop back here mid-week to see what’s up for grabs!