Quiet Book or Busy Book

I had seen QUIET/ BUSY BOOKS on many blogs and I decided

THIS HAS TO BE MY CHRISTMAS PRESENT  for J

so my journey began…..

I say journey because it took in many aspects before even cutting into any fabric …

a few decisions had to be thought about first:

How many activity pages?

How to fasten the pages together?

What size?

What activities did I want to include?

BUT my one criterion was

EVERYTHING MUST BE FASTENED TO ITS OWN PAGE

no bits to get lost!

With that in mind I thought I would show a few pages each week

with a comment or two ….

So here is page 1

The velcro shapes live inside, and are attached to the pocket by ricrac,

also attached to the pocket outside ….

is a waistcoat buckle to undo,

this also fastens with a velcro tab,

(the two slide up and down buttons are just to fiddle with!)

encourages:-

simple shape recognition and hand eye co-ordination

page 2

a sorting page,

novelty buttons attached to coloured ribbon to sort into pockets

two for each colour, : red car, scissors, yellow rabbit, blue house etc.

ribbons fastened under black velvet ribbon for sensory touch,

encourages:-

early problem solving and colour recognition

BUT ALSO ….

in a pocket on the inside cover of the book lives ……

a concertina

I Spy book!

TA-DAH!!!!

this encourages:-

language development, adult participation,

observation and FUN!

I   L O V E D making this flip flap concertina book :0)

for a tutorial skip along to …..

http://fishsticksdesigns.com/blog/the-fabric-i-spy-book-tutorial/

I will add the next few pages each Wednesday….. so

till next few pages are due,

Bye for now xx

Decopatch …. how to!

Decopatch is fab!

It’s a funky, very addictive papercraft that’s amazingly simple to use,

a modern twist on the traditional decoupage.

All you need is the paper …….

the object that you’re going to cover and the special glue varnish.

Believe me , you’ll find projects everywhere,

you can cover practically anything:

old furniture, glass, wood, stone, cardboard…

So here we go!

1. Choose your object – it can be anything!  I am using an old photo frame ….

2. Cut or tear your paper into small pieces – about postage stamp size.

(First make sure the label on the back of the paper is removed)

(sorry that it looks like a plate of vegetables ….. green is my colour of the moment!)

3. Paint some glue onto your object, making sure the area is bigger than the piece of paper

4. Use the brush to place a piece of paper on the object

5. Paint a thin coat of glue varnish over the paper

6. Repeat steps 3-5 until your obejct is completely covered.  Check there are no bare patches!

here I have done all the front facing edges before starting on the top

and sides …..

7. Hey Presto – you’re a Decopatcher!

8. And now you can look for your next project!

Boxes!

and of course …..  my favourite! ….

coat hangers :0)

All my materials are from The Decopatch Place …. visit their website

http://www.thedecopatchplace.co.uk/

for quick and very friendly service …..   and …..

E N J O Y!

Please click on the photos to enlarge …. and let me know if you

become …..

A D D I C T E D!

Have fun :0)

A crafty gift

While on the subject of woolly things I thought I would share

a little happy time I had recently …..

In the summer my oldest friend

(though she isn’t old, at least 15 years younger than me,

but she IS my oldest friend because we have been friends since about 1978ish)

came to visit …..

Angie  lives in New Zealand and so a visit from her is

VERY SPECIAL and looked forward to with great anticipation …..

She is very gifted in many ways, but she  is a very gifted pianist.

We first met when she was studying and for 50p and her tea she taught our boys piano!

We were very privileged :0)

But I want to show my pressy that Angie made for me and popped in the post

aren’t they GORGEOUS!

they came in the post because they weren’t quite finished when she had to go …

How about a closer peep …

The yarn is Kaffe Fassett and the pattern is called

Mermaid …… because it twirls round like her tail!

This is Angie’s 40th pair of socks …… and not a pair for her yet!

Ever Hopeful!

OK ….. in a minute then !

Whatever you are doing …… have a good day!

I’m addicted to decopatch coathangers!

Dolly Donations

Let me introduce you to

BETINA

who will soon be heading off to Haiti via the USA

But just now ….. she is sitting around waiting for Alfredo to show up ……

(they have a joint air ticket )……

but he is late in the making.

When he arrives they will wing their happy way to Sarah at

http://dollydonations.blogspot.com/

Betina is made from

on Sarah’s blog ……

Must dash now and look for fabric for Alfredo!

See you soon

PS

Betina and Alfredo are my part of this idea

click on the button on the righthand column for more inspiration :0)

20 Minuters

It is absolutely  AGES since I showed anything to do with my

20 MINUTERS commitment – it is very lacks of me

and my apologies to my Leader Fiona! http://marmaladerose.blogspot.com/

Truth is I just didn’t have a camera available

but also Truth is I have been 20 Minutering just the same!

Sometimes patchwork, sometimes crochet and sometimes

DECOPATCHING! :0)

I love Decopatching ……

Here’s my favourites of the moment …..

I am totally smitten  :0)   :0)   :0)

and now I live within walking distance of ….

http://www.thedecopatchplace.co.uk/

well, the sky is the limit!

Mary Poppins two

One place I had in mind that was a  BIG MUST  to visit

was:

You see the fantastic giraffe and elephant?

Well, can you believe that someone

drew up in a car, hopped out, put them in the back of their car

and drove away.

Pinched them!

Shame on them!

What could you say to the policeman?

Anyway, I wanted to go there desperately after being introduced to

Decopatching through Lucy at Attic 24

(November/December 2009)

She made the  L O V E  sign and made-over her lampshade

by using this fantastic craft called Decopatch.

So, when the family had trotted of to work I hot-footed it down to the

High Street to

The Pottery Place where lovely Grace patiently waited

while I changed my mind so many times as to just What I Wanted to Make!

There are so many options!

So many gorgeous papers!

On that FIRST day ( yes, I couldn’t keep away!) I decided

on the letters  L O V E  for my lovely family’s wedding anniversary.

mine was in wine/purples

I couldn’t wait to start it,

I couldn’t stop once I did start it,

then I wanted to do more when it was finished!

It is very addictive and therapuetic and absolutely Nothing is Safe

because ANY article could be improved upon by

Decopatching it!! ….. except perhaps crochet, well it wouldn’t stick would it?

(Check out their Gallery page)

Anyway, I bought myself a mid sized giraffe to take home – I had to change

my elephant for a lizard as Nelly wouldn’t fit in my case.

Why don’t you pop over to

http://www.thedecopatchplace.co.uk/index.htm

and take a look for yourself …. they do post orders too……

but be warned …. IT CAN BE ADDICTIVE …. but in a good sort of way!

and now ….. Introducing …….

drum roll I think …..

Geraldine Giraffe

what do you think? Isn’t she just G O R G E O U S?

Inspiration

I am really inspired by this:

luscious lemons by D Sharon Pruitt

by these:

fabulous fabrics by Kaffe Fassett

and these:

helmets by AGV

BUT

B I G  T I M E  by :

Valentino Rossi

to do WHAT??

Perhaps I’ll tell you soon …….!!

Don’t miss the first race of the season MotoGP on 11th April

20 Minuters

I have been busy for a while now, off and on, making paper pieced Dresden Plates.

I really enjoy the experience of hand piecing.

Tacking the fabric shapes over their backing papers and stitching them together to create a new textile ….. yes, it is very absorbing and satisfying.

You can become totally immersed in the process of

choosing the scraps …….

tacking on to the papers …….

then arranging each piece into the desired sequence for your plate ……

Yes, it  is very rewarding and the slower pace than machine patching is quite therapeutic.

When it’s all put together, I think the softer look that the stitches produce lends charm and individuality to the finished piece. Well, I hope so anyway! But  I don’t know what they will end up being – a quilt, a throw, place mats ??? Who knows! I am happy to be making them just now so I will wait until I have enough to decide. :0)

It is thought that the Dresden Plate design originated in America in the 1930’s when it would have been made up using small scale dress prints on a white background.

So here are two of my plates coming along,

bit by bit,

20 Minutes at a time!

What do you think?

Click to enlarge photo

Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt-Along

“Friends are those who nourish the spirit.”

It’s not often that a collection of fabrics makes you all warm and fuzzy inside. This recipe has a spoon full of sugar that melts the heart and soothes the soul. Bright, happy colors and beautifully painted motifs designed by Mary Engelbreit for Moda.

I love this range, my curtain in the kitchen is a patchwork of “Recipe” charms and it just makes me smile  – even on a grey day!

I bought my JR at sale offer price – it doesn’t seem to be around any more – so if you find it I would seriously recommend you push your boat out and buy whatever you can afford … it’s so worth it! And it will make YOU smile on a grey day!  :0)

I have used my Recipe Jelly Roll for the Jelly Roll Quilt Along from http://moosequilts.blogspot.com

The second block has been designed by April Mazzolini who gives quite a frank account of how she designed it! So encouraging to read how she “Made do and mended” her original block. Her blog is at http://april-makingendsmeet.blogspot.com/

Here is my second Jelly Roll Sampler Block …..  the green one ……  hope you like it!

20 Minuters

This has been a great crafty group to belong to.  I really have been inspired to “do my bit” most days and enjoy the diversity it has given me. Here is my latest post for my efforts …. a fabric flower!

Looking at it makes me smile.  It reminds me of a silly song popular on the “wireless” when I was growing up ….. “I’m a lonely little Petunia in an onion patch …… and all I do is cry all day”

The great spin off of belonging to a crafty group like Fiona of http://marmaladerose.blogspot.com/ (the Originator of the 20 Minuters) is that you meet up with other inspiring crafting folks ……. Like for example …… Alison at

http://alisonb2.wordpress.com

We have never met, but through this lovely internet group I have found that I have lots in common with Alison and I am really encouraged by her writings (I wish I could write like Alison!)  her exuberance and her creativity.

Take a look and see what I mean!

You won’t be disappointed!

I’m sure you WILL be inspired!