Joseph Bunting

November 15, 2015 by tinyinc

My great niece Ella has bunting for her room and although my great nephew Joseph has the jungle chums blanket that I made, he has to have bunting too so that he and his lovely big sis are the same.

S flag

Ella’s bunting is (of course!) pink and largely floral

Joseph Bunting

But Joseph’s is all the primary colours, checks and spots. I love both equally.

I think his nursery decor is quite simple so it should fit in and hopefully last him quite a while.

hanging bunting

I have been banned from buying more fabric since my stash is slightly unmanageable at the moment but it is amazing what I find that I forgot that I had!!

I’m not getting much sewing done at the moment anyway so I shouldn’t buy any more until I have worked my way through what I have.

Joseph Bunting

I think I might have to get on with Christmas bunting next though as the weeks are flying by and the season is creeping upon us.

I haven’t even started some of the things I need to make as Christmas gifts! Aaaaagh!!

House Warming

September 19, 2015 by tinyinc

Applique

Our lovely friends Caroline and Nat have moved away from North London to live by the coast in Hove with their little boy, Drew and Labrador, Bosley.

Bosley

It’s been a few months already and I feel really bad that their house warming present has taken this long to be sent.

Big Bad Bosley

After making a terrier cushion for ourselves and a couple of Daschund presents for other people, I decided that a labrador cushion in the likeness of Bosley would be a well received present. Drew and Bosley are firm friends (as are Max and Bosley) and Bosley is a very important and well loved member of their family.

Buddies

We have had Bosley staying with us at times when his family have had holidays or couldn’t take him with them and he is a very lovely boy. He is our favourite king of house guest.

Max and Bosley

We miss him as much as we miss Caroline, Nat and Drew.

Baby Walton is here

May 3, 2015 by tinyinc

Joseph Thomas Walton born 05.04.15 at 8lb 7oz.

He is the first of many boys in our family not to be born in March although he was due on 25.03.15. I think the little chap got quite comfy in there and nodded off.

He is a little brother to Ella and a great nephew to me.

His dad Gareth & mum Natalie have just finished decorating his nursery in their new home which will be filling up with lovely presents for him as we speak.

It’ll be interesting to see what his big sis thinks of him now he has finally arrived. She was very much looking forward to his arrival but I suspect that sharing mum & dad won’t quite have the appeal she thought.

We will visit in a few weeks when things have calmed down and the exhausting flow of well wishers of the first few days has ebbed away.

It’s very exciting and since it has corresponded with me finally finishing the Jungle Chums blanket, it seems a fitting welcome present. I popped it in the post with a few cuddly jungle toys to adorn his newly ready nursery room and hope he enjoys it.

Jungle Chums

April 6, 2015 by tinyinc

flamingo square

My progress with the jungle chums blanket I started for Bertie quite some time ago is slow but I am gradually getting there.

Work is constantly busy and because it stays at our house, I only get to work on it at weekends. Recently there has been no time and we have had visitors so there hasn’t been much sewing for me.

tiger and banana tree ready to appliqué into place

There are 7 squares completed and 5 more to go before I can attach and appliqué them to the main green cover. The finish will be plain backed, a brown edge and then I will hand quilt the spaces between the animal blocks.

If I were doing it again, I’d probably do it a bit differently and make it more like the patchwork of Max’s blanket or Henry’s blanket with the appliqué squares forming the middle of each repeat. I am attaching the animal squares by appliquéing them to the blanket so I will have to get my edges spot on.

elephant

I love the characters, especially the lion (who has also become a favourite cushion for little boys like Jack and Arthur), the tiger and the elephant.

the leopard waiting to get his spots

I’m hopeful that my next blog about this will be it completed!!

canine cushions

March 22, 2015 by tinyinc

JRT cushion on my sewing chair

I made a JRT cushion for our sofas a while back and have found a few minutes to finish the other ones that I cut out and prepared at the same time.

grey gaberdine cushion with stone coloured daschund

I love the striped linen daschund one & I’m really tempted to keep it but we don’t have a daschund (yet!) so it’s not necessary, really.

stone coloured daschund detail

Silhouette appliqué is simple and effective and with a huge soft spot for dogs, these canine cushions are becoming my favorites.

My sis & friends have labs and we also have friends with a beautiful lurcher, all of which would make fabulous silhouettes.

grey striped linen cushion with grey daschund

They will have to go onto my huge the list of ‘to dos’.

Once I’ve finished the jungle chums blanket which is my next unfinished project to get done, I need to get on with a patchwork quilt requested of my by a very special girl what seems like a very long time ago.

grey daschund

I think I need to give up work, it’s definitely getting in the way.

weekend workspace

January 31, 2015 by tinyinc

vintage table cloth

Well I have finally got my little sewing corner finished and the wine box shelves are in place with everything just where I need it now.

workspace shelves completed

I started arranging this little weekend workspace in spring 2014 but managed to finish it in October (just not had time to talk about it).

rows of buttons

I’m really pleased with the use of the wall space that the wine boxes provide and it is an inexpensive way to get storage and shelving.

It also appeals to the recycler in me so ticks many boxes (!!) and only took about 10 minutes to install.

my gorgeous little singer featherlite

I have somewhere away from my sewing table and sewing machine to store my collection of vintage table cloths, napkins and cloths, the staggered line breaks up the width and the spaces between are perfect for those long awkward knitting needles.

sewing table

There is a stash of unfinished work (no!!) in a trunk nearby and some fabrics in a rather nice basket ready to be turned into something. All this and a commission for the pooch pouches (Sorry it is taking so long, Barb. I haven’t forgotten!!)

cut glass bowl of threads

Now I need to find some ever elusive time to sit there and get busy.

scraps and spares

Camo Christmas

January 3, 2015 by tinyinc

Henry all kitted and saluting

JC’s godson and his brother are some of our favourite people to buy for at Christmas. They are 8 & 5 and still at the age where us big kids can indulge ourselves and buy them stuff we would really have liked as kids.

Henry is still into machinery, be it tractors or JCBs, William is very much into his ball sports and loves the beautiful game (but he is an ace with a rugby ball!!).

I have to confess to always being on the look out for little things to take along for them when we see them and also ideas for their birthdays and Christmas.

William decided that a kitkat was a good thing to at the bottom of his HUGE kit bag

Whichever little man’s birthday it is, the other gets a non-birthday present so they both have some fun stuff, there is no fighting and everyone gets to enjoy the event equally.

The challenge for birthdays and christmas if getting hard though. They are getting bigger and they are no longer impressed by silly bits of plastic (or cardboard boxes!!!).

Attention!!

I like to put a bit of thought into what they get and I also like to have made some of it.

This year, we have gone camotastic, camo overalls, camo wells (who knew!!!!), camo walkie talkies, camo helmets (they have webbing like the real ones), dog tags engraved especially for them and a big camo kit bag to put them all in.

Henry to Control, come in

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the shopping and I have made the kit bags myself for all the camo things to go in (individually wrapped inside the kit bag that is also wrapped – evil present wrapping).

What do you think?

William was despatched to the end of the garden to see how far the walkie talkie’s reached

I’d have loved this little lot as a kid!!

soft furnishings

November 23, 2014 by tinyinc

JRT cushion

I rarely make things for myself or our home these days but I have started a range of cushions inspired by our JRT, Max and one of them is now on our sofa.

detail

I’m not the first so nothing new there, there are lots of makers who are putting silhouettes of their pooches on bags, cushions and T-Shirts.

detail

But the covers on our sofa cushions, have become a bit shabby and with a plan to build an extension and fit new curtains soon (I think I know which will be easier), it got me thinking about bringing some of the colours together.

detail

My inspiration for all the decor in our living/dining room has been 2 limited edition lithograph prints by Brenda Hastin. They aren’t worth anything more than about £40 each but I love them with a passion.

Max

The colours are gorgeous and as a result, everything in our living/dining room is based on these colours and the textures in these 2 prints.

The walls are white like the clouds, the floor is american black walnut like the substrate, the sofa is dark grey like the layers of the rocks, the rug is pale grey, winter white and the pale teal like some of the other layers of rock, sea and sky. So far, this is about it really.

weiner!!

It’s a simple and easy pallet that I love and one that I could inject any number of other colours into (if I felt so inclined).

I’m fundamentally lazy though (& scared of colour – can you believe it?) and things stay the same for very, very long periods of time.

I fancy lime, I fancy yellow and I fancy khaki but I probably won’t go there (although I do have some lime napkin rings!!!) so working with the pallet that I have and love, this cushion fits in perfectly. I just need to add more of the colours to the next ones now.

ready to start

I’m going to add to the range with other slightly different cushions (sausage dogs, labradors and other popular breeds) that I will sell but finishing this one has inspired me to make more things for us. I’ll finish accessorising our living room which will enable me to tie together the colours from the prints onto the additional cushions for the sofa that sits in the bright light of our lovely victorian window.

same colour way as our JRT cushion

Another job to add the ever lengthening list of things to do!!

Vintage Apron

November 16, 2014 by tinyinc

ready to wear

All the aprons I make are generally long bib aprons with decorative appliqué.

wide pocket

I have just finished a short waist apron in vintage floral fabric that is decorated with yellow velvet ribbon and I rather like it. It is something I will make again.

pocket trim

It is roughly based on a very old apron that my gran used to use (I think it was hers – it has certainly been around a while) which is very thread bear and much the worse for it’s years of service.

waist band trim

The pocket detail is full width and divided to hold cloths, tools and anything else you need when wearing it, be that in the kitchen or elsewhere.

tie at waist

I love this fabric. I picked it up a few months ago and I have already used for a different apron but I have been waiting for an excuse to use this lovely yellow velvet ribbon for an age and this was it.