A Hectic Week

Hello Everyone I do hope you are all well and happy.  I am sorry that it has been a long time since we last met, the week has whizzed by as always but these last seven days have been so so busy it has been unbelievable.  I hope you have all have a more relaxed and comfortable time of it.  Do come and have a sit down and chat for a while - let's put the kettle on.

 

I am sure you must all get fed up with me going on about how work is so busy and pressurised, I am sure that you all have equally busy lives but still find time to create and craft.  This week I have managed to find odd pockets of time in order to do a few things here and there.  I am still working on the projects which will eventually become gifts and I am conscious of the time which is running away with me.

 

I was up early this morning catching up with work and had a quick glance at the paper supplement from yesterday. 

 

 

 

Take the ultimate personality test - always intrigued by these things so I had a quick scan of it.  As usual with me I didn't have time to look closely at them all but picked up on the workaholic test.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am sorry to confess lovely Readers but I fell well and truly in the bottom section, although I do not agree that I am chained to my desk!  I won't tell you my score as I am too embarrassed but it wasn't good so it is back to the drawing board now in terms of managing my time more efficiently if I want to carry on crafting and blogging. 

 

I had to go to Liverpool this week on business but managed to pop into John Lewis one of my favourite stores for a coffee.  There was a huge sale on but sadly I didn't have time to have a shop around.  I had a quick dive into the haberdashery department and picked up some small pieces of gorgeous fabric which was all half price - do I need more fabric, of course I do!  Silly question.

 

 

 

I also had to buy these little containers which I thought were so sweet, again half price.  Not sure why I keep telling you they were half price - anyway they are jewellery boxes which all stack together but I just saw them loaded with buttons, fasteners and pins and can't wait to fill them.  My granddaughters will just love filling them up for me.

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 



 

I think they are just so cute and I know that I will get a lot of pleasure out of them - I have so many buttons as I have collected these for years, at home we always had a button box which was the source of many pleasurable hours just sorting through them with my friends.  What simple delights they were in those days - no computers then.  

 

I am very conscious that I have so many little delights stored away in boxes in the cupboards so am looking for ways of making them more accessible to me when I am making things as I seem to spend a lot of time searching for buttons, threads and so on.  I have a box of old buttons which I just look at from time to time so I need to get these organised as it is such a shame for them to be put away out of sight. 

 

Do you love buttons lovely Readers, even when I have knitted things up as gifts I have been loathe to put my old buttons on in case they get lost or thrown away.   Maybe I need some treatment...........

 

I did try to get in some practise putting in zips.  I had found a little kit from Clothkits which I had bought years ago so decided to have a go at making a little pencil case for my granddaughter.

 

 

The pencil case came with a zip and the purse just has a press stud fastening so as time was short (ha ha) I just had a go at the case.  It was very simple to cut out and put together and came with a lining as well.  I followed the instructions to the letter and it came out pretty well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I felt pretty pleased with the result although the final case could have been a little bit neater.  I know that I have to spend more time on the cutting out and finishing process which I always seem to rush.  Good preparation is the key to all types of craft and this is something I have to work on lovely Readers.  Would be interested to hear from you all with regards to your time management of things, am sure you are much better at it than I am.

 

Onwards and upwards I thought - after getting home from Liverpool with my gorgeous new fabrics |I was very keen to do some more sewing.  So, after tea (it was getting quite late now so not good news here Readers!), I cut out some fabrics and decided to make a small make up bag with a zip. 

 

Once I started it I was like a woman possessed and although I was getting very tired and should have had the sense I was born with, I carried on and on and on.  I firstly added some beads to the fabric, then had a dry run of putting the zip in with pins which came out fine.  So, my confidence running high I carried on. 

 

The result wasn't that good, although if you look at the photography it doesn't look too bad.  I added the small flower the following day.

 

 

As you can see one end of the bag is quite neat - I had put in a small piece of fabric to cover the end of the zip and it worked quite well.

 

 

Now experienced sewers of a nervous disposition should look away now or go and have a lay down in a darkened room. 

 

This is the other end which was a complete disaster as you can see - obviously this is not a gift and is staying firmly in my room!  I found fitting in the zip with the machine so fiddly as I couldn't really see what I was doing so was working blind.  It is all a mess.  I also made the mistake of sewing up the lining and the bag and realised that I hadn't put in a line of stitching under the zip to keep both lining and outer fabric flat. 

 

 

Lovely Readers I was getting very tired now and fed up with the whole things so decided, quite rightly to go straight to bed and forget about it all.  I had a look at it the next day and had thought about adding a little flower anyway so decided to carry on.  I think it looks sweet, but shame about the finished bag.

 

 

The pattern for the flower comes from the Tilda book which I love and have had for years, before I started sewing as the photographs are so gorgeous to look at.  Some people find them quite twee but I have always liked them - what are your views Readers, I would love to know.

 

 

I think this bag is so nice, could see me carrying my crochet and knitting projects in this - real cute.

 

 

This is the rose pattern I followed but using the smaller of the two - I am going to have a go at the bigger flower as I do find the small one quite fiddly and as you have probably picked up, I am sometimes short on patience.

 

 

 

 

I did have a go yesterday at a small brooch which came out ok and I quite like it but would prefer the bigger rose.  I am going to set some time aside today lovely Readers and have another go at this - I am determined the crack the zip problem and know it is only practise, practise, practise and then it will all fit together. 

 

 

Well lovely Readers it has been a real treat to see you all, I have missed you.  I am going to try and get on with some crafting today and will try and speak to you very soon, I do hate leaving it a week as it is too long.  I do love blogging and have such delight when I read all the many wonderful blogs out there, wish I had more time to write and read all the wonderful stories that are available.

 

I do hope you have a wonderful day and a good week ahead with some warmth and sunshine and lots of happiness.  Do leave some comments if you have time as I do love to hear from all of you.  Bye for now, lots of love, Dorothy :-)xxxxxxxxx