Thursday, April 30, 2015

Tutorial: Twisted Infinity Ribbon Flower hair tie or hair clip


Wow that's a mouthful of a headline!

I had intended on popping this completed ribbon in my stash for future gifts but a certain little Miss 6 had other ideas. I’m sure she thinks the centre is real diamonds!!

This is a very simple yet effective bow which can be used on a hair tie or a clip. No sewing required but be careful with that hot glue gun!


Instructions

  1. For a small bow, cut three 6 inch strips of 9mm grosgrain ribbon (other types work well too like satin ribbons). 
  2. For a layered larger bow, cut three 6 inch strips and three 8 inch strips of 9mm. 
  3. Fold in half and make a crease or mark a line with a pencil. 
  4. For this ‘infinity’ bow you need to twist the ribbon to meet in the middle. Not flat like the tuxedo bow but twisted into an infinity symbol shape. See photo below.
  5. Place a dab of hot glue in the middle and twist your ribbon to meet in the middle. Hold for a moment to secure – be careful not to burn yourself. 
  6. Do this for all three or six strips.
  7. Now the fun part – work out how you want them layered. Do a dry run first before adding the glue. 
  8. If you make a hair tie, you can place one beneath the elastic as per my example below or with the big Ladybug one I made, I glued it after and covered with a one inch piece of 22mm black grosgrain ribbon. You could use a circle of felt too. 
  9. Place the first one so the join is facing up. You will cover it as you go. With a dab of glue, place the next one on top. Finish with a button, flatback cabochon or sparkly rhinestones like I have here.
  10. You can also add them to a snap clip or covered alligator clip.

Twisted infinity symbol

Place ribbon under thin hair tie

Layer your ribbons with a dab of glue
Supplies

Special thanks to Sarah Lauren (aka Janine) for the supplies to play with. Be sure to head over and take a look at her amazing range.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Pattern Review: Tree Climber Hoodie by The Pattern Studio

Seriously - those dimples!!!
Thanks to my April Sew Box Subscription, I had the chance to make something for Master 8. He just loves when I make something special just for him as I'll admit there is a disproportionate made for his little sister.

I let him design this one and used a bunch of left over polar fleece from previous projects - awesome way to use up those little bits left. The pattern includes extra short sleeves which I chose to not include on this version. I wanted something more streamlined looking. 


There is a tonne of extra top stitching in this project but I think the end finished look is worth it. Just looks more professional and less 'handmade' (nothing wrong with that but you know what I mean right?



For some reason my hoodie didn't meet or cross over at the centre front like it was suppose to but I didn't stress about it and just left it like that. It isn't wrong, right? lol

My double needle broke just before I finished so I wasn't able to finish the bottom hem like I would prefer. I should probably redo it but .... yeah I probably won't!

Overall, it was a great pattern and I'm really happy with the end result. I'll definitely make another, possibly a girly version for his little sister (but then that's another thing for her!). The pattern is sized from age 2 to 10 so I'll get a bit of use out of this one. I made him the size 8 and it has a bit of room for winter layering. 




Will I make this again? - absolutely.

Will I make this to sell for Lil Pip? – not at this stage

Pattern: Tree Climber Hoodie, The Pattern Studio

Fabric: Polar fleece and knit fabric from Spotlight

Difficulty (1-10 scale with 1 being easy and 10 hard): This one is not difficult at all. So perhaps a 4 or 5 if you are new to sewing with stretchy knits and all that topstitching.

Time: Took me maybe 2 hours including cutting the fabric.

(Lil Pip has received no payment or sponsorship for this review – I do it because I want to share my experiences)

And my outtake photos. I love this kid!




Monday, April 27, 2015

Sunday Stash #1 Minimalista in Noir

I'm new to this fabric sharing caper - clearly it's Monday and not Sunday!! 

I blame Ros from Sew Delicious and her Quilt Block Boot Camp and the need for low volume, neutral tones and fabrics I've never even considered before. 

I bought this bundle from Hawthorne Threads a few weeks ago - Minimalista in Noir. I was expecting more creams and greys than white and black but I'm sure I will still use it. 

I'm off to a traditional quilting shop on Saturday and I can't wait. I don't have anything close by (and I'm not counting those big retail ones!!). I'll be on the search for more coordinates as I seem to still have plenty of bright and cheerful fabrics - just not this low volume business!


Linking up with Molli:
Molli Sparkles


Thursday, April 23, 2015

Birthday gift ideas with Sarah Lauren

I'm thrilled to bring you a series of blog posts with different ideas to use ribbon and supplies from Sarah Lauren. If you are like me, you will get lost  in her website (seriously - I LOVE ribbon!) so I've included a supplies list at the end. 


This is my regular go-to gift idea for all the various parties my socialite Miss 6 seems to get invited to.

Two age-appropriate books - I think these are both Billie B Brown chapter books. We have a little local bookstore in our suburb which I like to support and they offer little return cards to pop inside the front cover. That way the birthday girl can easily return if she has duplicates.

On top I usually include a hair accessory of some type. The little covered button hair tie is in the school colours which is practical but not terribly exciting so I included this little 'tuxedo bow' hair clip. 

If you want to make one they are super easy.

Instructions

  1. Cut one length of 22mm grosgrain ribbon to 8 inches (bottom ribbon). Fold in half and make a crease or mark a line with a pencil. 
  2. Fold each end in to meet in the middle on a dab of hot glue. 
  3. Cut another length of 22mm grosgrain ribbon to 6 inches (top ribbon). Repeat above instructions. Note: I wanted to position the ladybug and the love words so I think it was a little smaller or bigger than 6 inches!
  4. Glue one on top of the other at the middle point. 
  5. Cover your chosen clip with 9mm ribbon (remember to heat seal each end) and glue to the folded ribbons on the back (see below photo). 
  6. Choose your favourite slider (diamante buckle on top), thread the 9mm ribbon through. Place on top and glue on the reverse. Again you will need to heat seal the exposed ribbon end. 

How awesome is this Quatrefoil ribbon!!!
Supplies:


Special thanks to Sarah Lauren (aka Janine) for the supplies to play with. Be sure to head over and take a look at her amazing range. I seriously would love to have a coffee break in her studio/workspace!!

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Cross Stitch Block



I'm so behind in my blogging lately. My camera is kinda broken. It has this little fuzzy spot on the pictures. Perhaps a scratch on the lense. So unfortunately it is bad iPhone photos until I can get it fixed or replace it. 

So just a quick one to show you another Quilt Block Boot Camp block - the Cross Stitch Block (too many 'blocks' in that sentence) by Pile o Fabric.

I loved putting this one together and love the end result. I probably need some sashing around the edges to make this a larger cushion. For the moment it is just sitting there waiting to see what I will do with it (actually have a bag of little quilty projects like that now!!)

Picked these three fabrics up in a discount bin with no selvages so I don't know what they are. I wish I could find more of the floral one as it is lovely! Any suggestions?

Until next time (and promise this isn't turning into a quilting blog!). 

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Back to school baking

Ok - I am not a food stylist/photographer. I also don't create recipes - I'm not that cool and will leave that to the experts. (Waving at the awesome people who create - thank you!)

But I can bake and do a lot. I thought I would share my favourite back to school baking recipes with you. All these go in the freezer and then I tend to keep adding every couple of weeks so the kids have lots of options to choose from. 

I leave out the nuts and cut these into little bite sized slices. Lovely a soft (rather than crunchy as the biscuits sometimes can be). 



This is a cake recipe which I just bake as muffin size. Particular favourite of Mr Lil Pip and great to use all the ripe bananas that I hoard in the freezer. Awesome alternative to creaming the butter and sugar - simply melt together. 




When this recipe popped up, I simply had to try it. If you have a Thermomix you are in luck, if like me you don't, Peta offers options to cook the old fashioned way. Shhhhhh don't tell the kids there is zucchini in there. I actually blitzed it completely rather than grated. 




Another one that I make into muffins rather than the loaf and works fine. These are usually the last ones left in the freezer as the kids go through phases of eating it or not. I don 't mind as it does offer something for me to have with a coffee or take to work. 




My kids love these biscuits. They actually freeze quite well after baking and you can do so much with them. Pop sprinkles on top, cinnamon and sugar, ice them and more. A fantastic basic recipe. 




With all these sweet treats, I thought I should make something savory. These cheese and bacon rolls are fantastic and even easier as we have a bread maker. I did make some that were Vegemite and cheese (those dark ones on the end there). 



I also tried this Apple and Sultana Muffin on the weekend (sorry no photo) and it was great. 

Hope you have found something you would like to try and if you have any recommendations that your kids love - please leave me a comment with a link! I prefer to try ones that others have found successful. 

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Baby boy quilt



This is what happens when you start out with a plan to make the Cluck Cluck Sew Road Trip Quilt and end up making something completely different! Let's say it is inspired by it!

A work colleague knew she was having a baby boy and I wanted to make something special for her. She actually was my maternity leave replacement when I had baby number two (now 6) and now it is her turn to be a mumma. 


I've had this Fat Quarter bundle of Riley Blake's Scoot for ages and was waiting to find a special purpose for it. The solid grey/blue colour is actually a Tilda fabric that I bought with the intention of making dresses from but it wasn't quite what I expected. Thankfully it was absolutely perfect for this quilt. 

I used a method of binding the quilt using the quilt back (see tutorial here). I should have read the tutorial more carefully as it recommends using this method for small things like hotpads, table runners or mini quilts. This is a regular cot size quilt so big! I'm happy with the end result but I wouldn't use this method for a cot quilt again.

I just did single line quilting along the length. I'm currently watching a Craftsy class on Free Motion Quilting as that is the next skill I would love to master. 




I think the best moment (and one that justified the hours of work that went into it) was getting a message the night after gifting it saying her husband "LOVES your quilt. He said ... can't believe Jane made that, it's beautiful and so 'us'. Thank you again". Made my heart sing!!

Welcome to the world little one. 


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