another PDCC colour challenge, this time it's needle felting!

I did start a journal page with this week's PDCC colours but some extra colours crept in when a blue butterfly wanted to take part!

Then, following a bit of blog hopping this morning, I decided to get out my needle felting after seeing Jackie's wonderful pieces over at Dog Daisy Chains.  Jackie's base fabric is wet felted but I don't often have the patience for that and got out a few scraps of wool and fabric and my trusty embellisher.

The images were inspired by some patterns in my V&A fifties patterns book...

Jackie's work had really made me think of Angie Lewin's prints, jam packed full of imagery and texture.

Virago have recently republished some modern classics and as one was in an Angie Lewin print I had to read it!  I enjoyed it actually.  It was written in the 1920s and it turns out I own a book by this author - it's in my nice second hand books to recycle pile, or it was, I'm now intending to read it lol!

So, a happy hour 'dumpfing', as Twiglet would say :)  I'm not sure yet what this piece will become part of yet, but that's ok, it's purpose will appear at some point!

Sewing is a good distraction!

After spending most of yesterday and this morning sleeping, suffering with nausea and headache from my bloomin' sinuses, I managed a bit of sewing this afternoon.

I had a bit of wool blanket lying around that I'd needle felted a while back as part of another project I've been in the middle of for a long while.

At first I sketched out a doodle from my sketchbook using my sewing machine (the orange stitching) but I didn't like it so cut the fabric up into a tag shape then added a flower!

The ribbon at the top is from Ray-Stitch, a fabulous shop in Angel, Islington, London.  If you look closely there are some tiny beads around the centre of the flower.

AEDM days 17 and 18 - more of the seahorses!

I've moved onto the next step with my felted seahorses, mounting them on a background.  I used my dumfing machine (that's an embellisher for those unfamiliar with this wipso and twiglet term ;) ) to add merino wool and some other bits n pieces to a piece of cotton fabric.

I then moved over to my sewing machine and added some bubbles and texture lines.  I started adding some french knots and tiny beads the other night, then realised I'd struggle to sew it onto the background with them there so stopped!

I've placed a second seahorse behind a rectangular mount.  This actually took longer to do as I felted and sewed this piece without an embroidery hoop.  Now to work out how to attach it to the mount!  Any tips gratefully received :)

I'm not selling them framed, just thought I'd try one in a frame to see how it looked.   I can't decide which type people will prefer though, the funkiness of the embroidery frame or the safety of being able to put the image behind glass.  What do you reckon?

AEDM day 11 - felted seahorse

What Art Every Day Month is doing for me is focusing my attention on following through an idea.  My 'emergency' tags on which to make something if all else fails are still in their packet!  I used one of yesterday's  as inspiration for my felted seahorse.

I started with some curly locks and used them to 'sketch out' the outline of the seahorse using my needle felting tool.

I then added in various colours of merino wool before felting in bits of felt, organza and old scarf!

Next stop, the sewing machine ;)

edit:

oooo, just love it :)  Now it will sit for a while whilst I decide what to do next!

AEDM day 5 - drawing with my sewing machine

... one of my favourite activites, which Kirstie Allsopp described as "the crack cocaine of the craft industry" on 'Kirstie's Handmade Britain' this week lol; not sure about that one but it is great fun :)

I used the designs I did in my sketchbook yesterday, stitching them onto patches of felt I had lying around near my sewing machine.

I had saved a funky label from a cardigan I'd bought from Fat Face this week and decided to add one of my pieces to this.

I 'drew' onto my fabric, then cut around the body of the flower before adding it to the tag and stitching a stem and adding a leaf.

Tonight we're off to a bonfire party :)  I love it all, the sights, the smells, the treacle toffee and melted marshmallows, but fireworks still frighten me from a safety point of view.  At least the dog is getting deaf as he gets older so the loud bangs don't bother him so much.

I'd just like to say that my heart goes out to those who've lost friends and family in the M5 Somerset crash last night.  Involved in a crash myself this time last year, similarly in the dark and wet, I still cannot begin to imagine how horrific this one was.  Surely they can't now raise the speed limit to 80mph on the motorways!

happily dumfing :)

I just LoVe that word!  It's what Twiglet and Wipso call needle embellishing as it is the noise the machine makes.  

I have spent such a happy evening with my sewing machine and embellisher side by side, working on pieces for my exhibition.

I've since added a few seed beads and the piece is framed and waiting to be displayed :)

I have had...

... the most fabulous day down at The Cubby Hole!  I taught a felting workshop for the first time and although the table started off fairly empty and most un-Sarah like, by the afternoon we'd got lots of supplies around and about and we all felt (ha ha, pun not intended but funny so I'm leaving it!!) much more comfortable.

Still no phone, so no pics as yet :(  Hoping Tracy'll blog her pieces so I can nick her pics, although I have caused her a massive amount of money today as she fell in love with my embellisher.  

Fabulous Christmas presents :)

I hope you all had a great Christmas!  I did - full of family fun, pressies and food.  We had a great time, and Santa, family and friends all brought me some great gifts so I thought it would be fun to share some of my favourites although be warned, it does show what a weird mind I have!!!  

I am a very lucky girl in that Santa still visits me...twice!  He fills a pillowcase in my own house and at my Mums's!!!  And he knows I love picture books :)  I have some that are just ace stories (I just love the Aliens in Underpants stories) and some for their illustrations

I AdORe Angie Lewin's prints so was thrilled to find this book in my pillowcase :)

It has some great images of pages from her sketchbooks...

and I can feel some eraser carving coming on. although how Angie gets such tremendous detail I do not know!

Santa also brought me a new Martha Stewart punch :)

My Mum and sister both got me a cushion from BHS (I always forget about the new section of The Trafford Centre where they've put all the home shops!)  

Wendy at The Stamp Attic knows me well, I love this pencil case with these gorgeous flower images on

and she also understands my love for corrugated card lol

And how fantastic is this mouse from my friend Tracy?

I just LoVe his legs made of nails, and his safety pin arms.  He is now living in my attic :)  

My 'main' present this year was an embellisher, for needle felting, which was immediately ambushed by my daughter and youngest son!  Sophie made a fantastic mouse (it was going to be an owl but ended up more mouse like so Tom made it a tail!)

then went into production making flowers for brooches.  These feel soooooooooooooo yummy and warm when held together in your hand

Tom had a play with different fabrics and fibres

And once I made it onto the machine I too had a play

I'd love to see what you got for Christmas...great books?  fun gifts?  handmade items?  If you'd like to share them, please link them on my sidebar so we can all go and take a look.  :)

i just LoVe owls!

... so for a bit of relaxation this weekend I got out my felting tools and made myself a phone case.  The idea came from Etsy but I designed the owl to fit my own quirky sense of fun :)

I just love the distressed look you get when felting sheer fabrics so used my hand felting tool to embellish a circle for each eye, the wings and the body.  I then hand sewed the eyes and beak together, something I find very relaxing, before sewing the pouch together with the sketchy machine sewing I so enjoy.  

I don't 'do' neat, specific sewing on my machine as the slightest wrong stitch would really bug me, but I love the look of sketchy, mad stitching and enjoy doing it too.

Now to design some little keyring owls for the Advent Fair at church on Saturday...watch this space :)

not brave enough..

...to go into a shop and ask where you can get felt? [sorry, terrible joke, but couldn't resist!]

Well, it's great fun making your own!  I'm teaching a needle-felting class at Paddy's Stamping Place next week.  I LoVe needlefelting, it's like collage but with bits of wool roving, ribbons, wool, beads...

And for this piece, I cracked open my mold and made a daisy or two :)

Hmmm, maybe I should sit outside in the sunshine and get some of these made up as pressies!  Got a lot of birthdays coming up.

There are still spaces on the workshop if you can join me [dates in sidebar].  Phone Paddy on 0161 798 5115 to book.