Saturday at the studio....

It's raining here. again. The gloomy and sleepy mood is back but I am fighting it off with some toy making. I was hoping to take pictures for the monster pattern today but not sure how it will work out with the lighting... 

Anyway, there are plenty of things to do around here. I finished a fox with fabric called "Cherry Woods" by Saffron Craig that I paired with rose pink felt. She turned out to be very cherry sweet, didn't she? 

Mid morning I caught a glimpse of light and took pictures of doilies for the Plushka's Makery store.... These are just a few of them, there are also crochet hearts in store that I just love!

More of my new "Blossoming love" lavender hearts are in the making right now, in lighter shades of pink. 

.....and that's how I spend my morning. 

Hope you are having a delightful weekend! 

My creative space....

In my creative space this week, besides stitching items for the new Valentine's day collection, there are a few toys on the production line as well as another blanket. 

I took me a few days to pick the fabric for this fox. Raspberry felt proved to be a little tricky to match fabric with, even with my gigantic stash! However, after consulting with Mr. Plushkin last night, we came to the conclusion that these hearts will look nice. Due to multi-coloured design, there are a few matching shades of pink in there and white background goes beautifully with white features on her face. 

Would you agree? 

This blanket is ready to be put together and, in a few days, I will share pictures of both finished blankets. I did try a new boarder on the pink one and will experiment with another pattern on this one as well. 

It's completely new to me using black as a background but I really like it now. Black really highlights the other colours, doesn't it? 

Finally, two baby owls are waiting for their feet and wings and they will be ready to fly off. I've been waiting to try this shade of pink for some time as I had this fabric just asking to be used. For the aqua one, I went with a safe option by choosing the most popular fabric from last year. 

Hope you are having a creative and fun Thursday, whatever you are up to!

We are having a slightly cooler day before another heat wave here and it's nice to be out and about after being pretty much locked up with the air on all day on Tuesday! 

xxx

Saturday crafternoon: fox, pincushion and other creations

Today is my first day at the studio full-time this year and I am making the most of it! Although there are  many things on my list that need to be done sooner then later, I am still in my holiday mode - creating whatever I feel like. First from the production line is a fox that I cut out in my creative space before Christmas. Unfortunately, I had some technical issues with the grey one so I finished orange one first. You can see I am still using that method that I told you about in my tips for creating with felt post, and so far it works beautifully. 

fox in progress

 

she is finished! 

She is lovely, isn't she? The fabric used on this fox is organic from "Forest friends" collection by Rebekah Ginda. It is very nice to work with and I made sure I fit as many cute animals as I can, placing a little fox in the heart shape. 

After finishing a large toy, I usually feel like making a few smaller creations. I completely sold out of apple hair clips during Christmas so I am making more for the shop and experimenting with new colours too. These purple ones are a new colour addition and featuring another lovely Liberty of London print from my stash. 

Pincushions are always fun to make. I am in the process of re-designing them for my Valentine's day collection so stay tuned for more of them turning up in my creative space next week...

Happy Saturday! 

Jolly Gingerbread man DIY

This cute Jolly Gingerbread man is a third DIY in my series of Christmas DIY posts and I am having so much fun creating them. Hope you enjoying them as much as I do!

This fellow can be easily made from felt and fabric scraps, a few little buttons in about an hour. It's another quick project so you can have a few of these guys to decorate your Christmas tree with by the end of a weekend. You can also use one of them to add a handmade touch to a gift wrapping. 

To make one gingerbread man you'll need:

Plushka's gingerbread man pattern 

(it can be downloaded from HERE)

felt in red-ish brown 12 cm x 12cm

(finished size of the decoration is 10.5 cm)

small piece of white & black felt 

(All felt is 100% pure new wool felt from Plushka's Makery)

white, cream, black embroidery threads

(I used cream thread to stitch around the body as it makes it more biscuity looking)

3 small buttons 

ribbon 12 cm long

fabric scraps for the back of the decoration 

Instructions:

1. cut out the body and the eyes as per pattern 

2. place eyes on the head and stitch them in place. Then add a smile, making small stitches in white embroidery thread.

3. add "crosses" in white thread as per picture.

4. attach the buttons.

5. pin your gingerbread man to the piece of fabric as shown on the picture and stitch around using cream thread catching the ribbon in place as you go.

6. cut around the excess fabric.

That's all, you have a Jolly gingerbread man! 

Make a few more with different buttons and ribbons and  display them proudly on your Christmas tree! 

Happy stitching!

I would love to see your creations so don't hesitate to leave a link to your blog post or post pictures on my Facebook page).

My creative space....

In my creative space this week, a few new and exciting things happened -  I made my first Polar bear and finished a raspberry frog that has been laying around for some time. 
December is a difficult time of the year for me (and I bet every Indie business owner) as I have orders to make and pack, make sure I stay on top of the paperwork, try to get out of the studio still to keep me from burning out... plus, as it is the last month of the year, I subconsciously want to draw the "curtain" on the shop, hang the "closed" sign and plan the next year! 

I already have so many ideas but, in the meantime, here what I've been making:

Happy creative Thursday! 

More creative spaces HERE. 

"Folk flower" Christmas ornament DIY

I love folklore art and this ornament was inspired by my Pinterest board with all the different folk prints and patterns! This decorations, same as a snowman last week, can be easily made from felt and fabric scraps, beads and a ribbon in about an hour. Another very quick project to make this weekend for  your Christmas tree or you might want to use one of them for a gift wrapping. The choice is yours! 

To make one ornament you'll need:

Plushka's "Folk flower" pattern 

(it can be downloaded from HERE)

3 pieces of felt in 3 colours of your choice 10 cm x 10cm

(finished size of the decoration is 9.5 cm)

(All felt is 100% pure new wool felt from Plushka's Makery)

matching embroidery threads (I used white and red)

16 beads in silver or any matching colour to your felt

(white will look great!) 

ribbon 12- 14 cm long

fabric scraps for the back of the decoration (or double the amount of green felt - felt used for the Part 3 and use it instead)

Instructions:

1. cut all the pieces required as per pattern 

2. Take Part 3 and stitch the beads on as you see on the picture.

3. Take Part 2 and Part 1, place Part 1 slightly on a side of the circle and stitch on using contrast threads. Add a little heart.

4. Place them on Part 3 and stitch around. 

5. Take a piece of fabric (or felt), pin the ornament to the wrong side of the fabric, insert the ribbon and stitch around catching the ribbon in place as you go.

Voila! A Folk flower decoration is ready! 

Make a few more in a different colour combos and hang them on a tree for everyone to admire:) 

Happy stitching!

I would love to see your creations so don't hesitate to leave a link to your blog post or post pictures on my Facebook page).

My creative space...making a PJ pillow

I don't get customer request like this too often, but when I do, they are really fun and sometimes even challenging. This project did take me a while to work out how to make. However, I am now pretty sure I can make it happen and that's a  great feeling of accomplishment:) It's going to be a pillow with a space at the back for the PJ to be stored during the day. I re-designed my original owl toy and made it in a sleeping owl. I really like the way it turned out. What do you think? 

I cannot wait to see how it is going to look all sewn up together! 

Happy creative Thursday! 

More creative spaces HERE. 

Snowman Christmas decoration DIY

This cute gentleman-snowman is opening my series of Christmas DIY posts. He can be easily made from felt and fabric scraps, a few little buttons in about an hour. So, quick project with a few snowman to decorate your Christmas tree by the end of a weekend or use one of them to add a handmade touch to a gift wrapping. 

To make one snowman you'll need:

 Plushka's snowman pattern 

(it can be downloaded from HERE)

felt in cream (off white colour) 13 cm x 13cm

(finished size of the decoration is 11.5 cm)

small piece of white felt about 4cm x 4 cm

black felt 8 cm x 8 cm for the hat and eyes

tiny bit of carrot orange for the nose 

(All felt is 100% pure new wool felt from Plushka's Makery)

white, cream, black embroidery threads

3 small buttons 

ribbon 12- 14 cm long

fabric scraps for the back of the decoration (or double the amount of cream felt and use it instead)

red felt 2 cm x 2cm for the heart on a hat (optional, you can use a button instead)

Instructions:

1. cut all the pieces required as per pattern 

2. place eyes on the head and stitch them in place, following by a carrot nose. Then add a smile, making small stitches in black embroidery thread.

3. pin a ribbon to the top of the head.

4. attach the buttons to the bottom part of the body.

5. pin a snowman to the piece of fabric (or felt) as shown on the picture and stitch around catching the ribbon in place as you go.

6. cut around the excess fabric.

7. Take one of the black hat pieces and stitch the red felt heart on (or a button).

8. "sandwich" a head of the snowman between 2 hat pieces and stitch around making sure you catch all the layers. 

That's all, you have a festive snowman! 

Make a few more with different buttons and ribbons and hang them on a tree for everyone to admire:) 

Happy stitching!

I would love to see your creations so don't hesitate to leave a link to your blog post or post pictures on my Facebook page).

My creative space....

Christmas craft, especially robins, does take over my creative space in two months leading to Christmas. I am sorry, I promise new things are coming soon that are not red, green and brown! 

If you are not yet tired of looking at my robin production line, read on.... Although I did make something other then Christmas items - owl key rings in new pastel colours. 

So, here are a few pictures of my creative space in the last few days:

 More creative spaces HERE.

Hope your Thursday is as creative and fun as mine! 

Christmas decorations made after midnight...

Sometimes, creativity comes from unexpected sources and in unexpected circumstances. The jet lag keeps me up at night until I just collapse. I really can do without discovering how productive I can be at 2 am but I did exactly that yesterday. Apparently, I am still quite creative even that early! I set down at my craft table and couldn't bring myself to pick up any projects that I already had in front of me so I made something new. I modified my Christmas pudding decoration into gingerbread hearts with white icing, holly berries and little bell for an extra festive detail.

I also filled them with some lavender and so far these cuties received a great response from my lovely customers.

Have you ever done your best work while tired or half asleep?  

5 tips for creating with felt

I've been working with different felt for a few years now. It is very easy to work with, especially pure wool felt,  but there are a few tips for creating with felt that you might find helpful:

1. Same as with fabric, always use sharp scissors to avoid uneven edges.

2. I use DMC threads to stitch my toys together, it show off the hand-stitching beautifully. If you are not sure about your hand-stitching, wool felt can be sewn together quite nicely with machine too. Only make sure you clean the needle and dust the fluff off in between projects:)

3. If you are using not a 100% pure new wool felt (viscose or wool and rayon blends), do not pull the thread too tight as it might result in wobbly edges where the felt got pulled in by the thread. Also, thick needle might leave holes in felt blends so try different thickness needles and pick the thinest one. 

4. Sometimes, when I cut second body piece for a toys, it turns out smaller then the front, even with a pattern! So, I decided to find a way to make sure they match in shape perfectly without having to pin it all over. 
Here is what I recently came up with: when you stitch a toy together, do not cut out the second (back) body part, just cut out a rectangular/square shape instead. Stitch around and cut out after. 
(If you try it, I would love to know what you think!)

5. When cutting out small pieces that don't usually have a pattern, like pupils or tiny spots for example, cut out 4 or 6 circles and pair them according to shape to find 2/3 that look great together. 

I cut my toys out just by pinning the pattern on, like clothing patterns BUT if you just starting, try using freezer paper. More information and great tips HERE.

If you have any questions regarding crafting with felt, just ask. I am happy to help! 

No questions, then get some felt and start stitching;) 

My creative weekend

This weekend was such a busy one for Plushka with almost all Christmas orders ticked off the list. I am aiming on sending as many as I can before going on my little break next week. Every year I try to take a few weeks off before busy festive season starts to prevent the burnout in the middle of the busy months. It is really not a nice thing when you loose you sew-jo with 10 or so orders waiting....
Here are a few of the creations that were finished last night:

In between orders I cut out a few felt apples for the hair clips in bright Spring colours. Changing tasks is my little secret to a productive day!

Happy Monday! 

My creative space....

In my creative space this week, a few new production lines started - owls, Mimi garden birds with one brown bear mixed in, just because I wanted to try a new felt colour. 

It took me some time to find a fabric for this bear. I went with a safe yellow polka dots and really hope it will work....

After cutting out so many different toys, my pile of felt scraps  looks so colourful!

More creative spaces HERE.

            Have a wonderful creative Thursday! 

Inspirations Monday: Creations in Green to Welcome Spring!

Spring is here, bringing us more warm days with grapefruit, avocado, oranges, broccoli, papaya and other lovely fruits and veggies back in season. 

Inspired by the Spring feeling of  freshness and new beginnings, I thought I should take myself out of my "colour zone" and play with all the shades of green my felt stash had to offer. I must say, although green suppose to be fairly easy to match colours with, I really felt that it needs more attention when matched with other colours. Shades are very important here so I was tying to make sure they do not clash and overpower each other.

I couldn't resist making a froggy too. This fabric has been in my stash for too long waiting for me to make it. Named Hopkins, this rattle toy will make anyone smile, don't you think? 

Have a wonderful Monday! 

My creative space....

Today I would like to share with you one of stages in the robin production line. This one is a fun final stage of making a dozen or so robins and it 's my favourite one. No, not because they are finally done (although that makes me happy too) but because this stage involves playing with buttons! 

I have three big packs of each colour: green, red and white and first thing I do is finding two of the same size. I like that they all have different designs and sometimes slightly different colour. I think it makes robins a little quirky and adds character. Would you agree? 

When I have buttons paired, I cut out the wings. There is no template for them as I prefer just cut them out as I go which makes every bird different and unique. 

Finally, I sew the wings on and sit them all together for a family photo before they get wrapped up and posted to the new owners. 

Some of these birds will be for sale on the 3rd of September, at the market night on my Facebook page and they are also available to order:) 

More creative spaces HERE.

               Have a wonderful creative Thursday!