The Make Something Swap is Closed!

Thanks everyone who showed interest in the make something swap. I had a great response - 18 swappers in total!

I have now allocated swap partners and will email you all separately with details.

Thanks for signing up and please let me know how your swaps turn out!

Under an Hour Tutorial: iPhone/iPod Case

Want a quick and easy tutorial that will take you under an hour to make? A cover for your iPhone (or any other mobile phone of your choice) or iPod (yes yes, or other similarly shaped mp3 player) is the perfect thing to make. This took me no longer than 45 minutes to make (not including embroidery I hasten to add!)

You will need:

• A plain cotton fabric - cut to 2 rectangles measuring 9.5cm x 15 1/2cm
• A patterned fabric for the strip - 2 thin rectangles measuring 9.5cm x 3cm 
• A piece of embroidery (I'd recently worked on this octopus from my Doodle Stitch book)
• A matching button

Step 1

In order to have a nice clean edge on the opening of your iPhone cover, create a hem. Fold down 1 cm at the top of the back and front of the cover (the large rectangles). Pin in place. 

Step 2

You may want to sew at each stage - but I prefer to pin everything first and do all the sewing together. 

Next, you want to pin on the stripe of fabric in a contrasting colour. In order to get a neat edge fold down about 1/2cm of each rectangle and pin in place. 

Step 3

Pin on your main decoration. Again, fold around 1/2cm around all of the edges to get a neat finish. 

Step 4

Now you need to get sewing! Choose a matching thread and sew on the main decoration. Keep quite close to the edge. 

Step 5

Straight stitch the top hem and your contrasting strip on both the front and back of your cover. 

Step 6

Time to put it together! With right sides facing pin in place and sew the sides and bottom leaving the hemmed top open. 

Step 7

Turn the fabric inside out - I always find using a knitting needle to poke out the corners works wonders!

Step 8

Sew on your button. This is purely for decoration but looks so cute! 

Your iPhone/iPod cover is complete!

Tips

• I made this cover quite big so I could use it for either my phone or my iPod. If you wanted to use it just as a phone cover I'd suggest making it slightly narrower. 
• You could easily have a "working" button either by making a button hole or by looping some thin elastic from the back to the front in a hoop. 

There are loads of ways to customise this cover - and it's so quick to make. I think it could easily be done in 30 minutes!

Hand embroidered rings

After my stint with embroidery last week I thought I'd have a crack at making something I've been thinking about for a while now.

For my birthday this year my lovely boyfriend bought me a badge maker (I'm talking a proper jobby not a plasticy Badge It! from Toys R Us!) I was completely over the moon with it, but have to admit I haven't actually used it much.

So this weekend I finally put it to use and rather than making badges, used it to make the front of my rings!

I sketched out a couple of designs and hand embroidered a cute little bird and a skull. I then simply used the badge maker to make the front of the badges:

And then glued on the ring parts! 

Here are the finished rings - how adorable?

SW Craft Club - Guest Blogging!

I've just started guest blogging for the amazing SW Craft Club and you can check out my first post here.

 

SW Craft Club is a fantastic South London craft blog. After much frustration about having to travel to other parts of the city, the blog was launched to make sure craft lovers were kept in the know! So whether you are after crafty tutorials, local events or advice on the best craft fairs - this is definitely one to follow.

I'll be regularly contributed to the SW Craft Club blog so keep your eyes peeled for more posts from me!

Link Love Sunday

I love maps and this link is fab - 25 map inspired crafty goodness!

(Via: Babble)

I adore everything in the Flapper Doodle shop, but I particularly love the designs in this calendar - gorgeous.

(Via: Flapper Doodle on Etsy)

Regular readers will know how big a fan I am of antique sewing machines. So when I saw this article my eyes lit up! Harry Berzack owns 500 antique sewing machines and they are stunning!

(Via: Collectors Weekly)

Monkeys!!!!!!! This tray is too cute.

(Via: Dottie Angel on Etsy)

This design was done by the fabulous Georgia Coote's Mum! When I saw it I was reminded of not only Alice and Wonderland but a book I had as a kid called Snow White and Rose Red. Did anyone have that book? The inside cover was beautiful!

(Via: Georgia Coote)

This tutorial on how to make a cute little lace flower brooch is definitely worth checking out.

(Via: Totally Tutorials)

The Day Job

My regular readers will know that I've recently started a new job, and whenever I read people's blogs I'm always intrigued to know what it is they do to earn a living. So I thought I'd share what I'm now doing.

My new job is working in Marketing. So what do I do exactly?

First let me tell you a bit abut the company. It's focus is in corporate sustainability. This basically means that businesses need to be thinking about the effects they have on the world - not just the environment but economic and social impact too. This used to be very much about the company just "doing good" and taking responsibility. However, nowadays it's also about shareholder value and decreasing the costs of your business.

Let's look at an example; Starbucks. When Starbucks make a cup for a takeaway coffee they have to consider the whole chain involved in making that cup. Were the people paid fairly? Were the resources sustainable? Is this information positively representing their brand? There are so many factors to consider to ensure that they aren't hurting anyone or anything in the process, they are seen by their customers to be positively contributing to sustainable development and are keeping costs for themselves to a minimum.

In this day and age of the wonderful internet, if a company is behaving badly it will be spread across the social networks like a bad rash; trashing their reputation in a matter of mere days or even hours!

So back to my company and what we do. We seek out the people who know what they are talking about on this stuff and place them in roles throughout all of the different industries. We have a lot of lovely knowledge of who is fabulous and what, and where they'd best be suited. It's a pretty exciting business, and I'm really looking forward to getting my teeth stuck in to all the issues going on in the world.

In my job I'm in charge of all the Marketing for the company. This means everything from establishing a clear brand, to launching and maintaining 4 different websites. I'll also be putting together marketing brochures, support documentation and running the company's social media. At a basic level it means thinking up ways of how we can make the company look it's best and how we can shout about ourselves.

My day to day tasks include writing copy, optimising the website for SEO (search engine optimisation - this means getting your website to rank higher in the search engines and for relevant terms for people to come to your website and do something you want them to do), organising design for marketing literature, analysing stats from the website, tweeting, writing articles on sustainability, ensuring consistency of brand across all internal documentation, coming up with ideas on the best way to share information within the company. The list goes on.

So that's it! That's what I do. What do you do for a living? What does it entail? I'd love to know!

Mixed media: printmaking and embroidery

On Monday I posted about my excellent print making class at Just Sew. Tonight I finished off my cushion cover and here is the finished results!

Before - without any embroidery

Heat transfer dyes and embroidery

I really think the embroidery adds an extra something

I decided to ditch the plain backing and go for something a little bit more lively!

Just Sew's Print Making Class

On Sunday I went along to one of the classes at Just Sew; a lovely little craft studio right in the heart of Brighton. Run by the same folk who run the lovely Brighton Sewing Centre, Just Sew offers loads of different sewing classes and last weekend they were running a Print Making class.

The idea was to experiment with heat transfer dyes and produce a scarf and a cushion cover.

The class was the perfect size, 7 lovely ladies and 2 teachers (the fabulous Jo and Sam) meant there was always someone on hand to help out or ask advice.

First of all we experimented with the dyes - painting pieces of paper, cutting out shapes and ironing them onto the material.

Next the group were split into two - half to work on scarves and half to work on the cushion covers. There were several ways you could work with the dye - either painting the dye onto sheets of paper and cutting it out, or painting out a picture and transferring the whole thing. 

The great thing about this class was the mix of different craft techniques. To finish off the scarf we were taught how to use an overlocker. I'd never used one before, and now I am massively in love and want to buy one! They are so easy to use and really make an amazing finished product. 

Next I moved on to my cushion cover design. I decided (in true Fran fashion) to do a flamingo design. I sketched out the design and then painted on the dye. 

Once the dye was dry I simply ironed it on to my cushion and voila!

I loved the design, but felt it definitely needed more detail - so instead of sewing mine up into an envelope cushion in class I decided to bring mine home to hand embroider detail onto the birds. I'm getting started on this tonight so will be sure to post pictures once it's complete. 

Here are some of the other designs by the lovely ladies in the class:

The great news is that the amazingly talented Jo and Sam are planning to run a "Craft Club" every month - featuring a different skill and also maybe using mixed arts. I really hope this goes ahead because it was such a good day. I not only learnt a bunch of new skills, but met some great people and was continuously fed tea and cake!

Sam and Jo - our lovely teachers for the day

So if you fancy doing a crafting class, I can't recommend Just Sew enough. Fantastic value for money and a day well spent. You can check out all the other classes they run here.

Link Love Sunday

I adore these tree coasters! Find out how to make them yourself here.

(Via: Country Living)

Who doesn't need a dino hoodie in their lives? This are utterly fantastic. Want want want. Plus they are all handmade. Fabulous

(Via: Dino Hoodie)

This is a great tutorial for a beautiful corsage. Really top quality. I'm very impressed.

(Via: Holidash)

I really love Tiffany lamps. One day I will own one. Hopefully I'll find one at a carboot sale for a fiver. That would be a dream come true!

(Via: Tiffany Lamp UK)

Remember this post where I made those gorgeous blueberry and orange cupcakes from a recipe over at Cakes and Other Things? Well the lovely Emma Jane has posted a new recipe for this delicious looking lemon cake! I adore lemon drizzle cake. It's up there with cheesecake and key lime pie. The fact it has icing just makes it even better. I will definitely be making this cake soon. You can find the recipe here. 

(Via: Cupcakes and Other Things)

One of my favourite galleries is Castor + Pollux in Brighton. Right on the seafront it's just as small little place but has some amazing artists featured there. Currently you can see new prints from Lo Cole. I urge you to go check it out. 

(Via: Castor + Pollox)

The Make Something Swap

THE SWAP IS NOW CLOSED! 

-------------------

Many of the blogs I follow regularly partake in swaps. A swap is simply defined by two people being paired up and sending each other something. This can be anything from fabric to wool (as lots of the blogs I follow are crafting). I absolutely love swaps. I like giving things to people and packaging them up and hoping someone likes it - it also means you get to know the blog community a little better too. Of course, it also means you have a package coming your way and I'm pretty sure everyone loves packages right?

So on that note, I am organising a MAKES SWAP. This simply means you make something and swap it for something someone else has made. Lots of the people who follow my blog have a range of talents from sewing, knitting, drawing, all sorts. So I thought it would be interesting to do a bit more of a random swap!

The Rules

1. If you'd like to be part of the swap simply leave a comment on this post. Please make sure I have some way of contacting you so either leave your email address if you don't have a blogger account or feel free to email me with the details. 
2. The deadline for signing up is the 30th September 2011. After that I'll pair up all of the swappers and introduce you via email. It's then up to you to swap addresses, and communicate with each other on what you would like to make. 
3. Please only sign up for the swap if you have time to commit to it!
4. Aim to send your swap make within a month. 

Suggestions

1. Keep it realistic - It might seem like a great idea to make someone a jumper - but I'd suggest keeping it small. Try and make your swap partner something you can send them within the month. 
2. Find out a little bit about your swap partner - this will help hopefully inspire you with what you will make. Find out what they are like, what they are into and tell them about your skills to help you both decide. 
3. Ideas - The point of this swap is just to have some fun and receive a nice homemade gift. This can be anything from a pincushion, a sketch of you, a painting, a sewn purse, a keyring, a necklace, a card, a cross stitch picture, a cushion, cupcakes (if you can send them fast enough!) or a song! If you are struggling for ideas I'm happy to help. 

Please feel free to link to this post on your blog, facebook or twitter account so we can get as much interest as possible. 

Featured Artist: Dotmund

Today I got really excited as I discovered the fantastic artwork of Dotmund. Actually it's quite embarrassing I've only just discovered it because:

1) We are Twitter buds
2) We are blog buds
3) I actually remembered raving about his artwork when a mutual friend showed me some stuff he'd done for her

So to sum up I'm an idiot, but that only makes me want to shout even louder about how awesome his artwork is!!!

I love this bear. I love how simple this picture is yet expresses so much character.

I am absolutely in love with the tortoise. He has exactly the right expression for a tortoise. My mum and stepdad have one. His name is Joey and he's a right little character. Over 70 years old, survived a war and yet his favourite game is to headbutt shoes. Tortoises are mental. 

Here are a few more of my favourites:

Dotmund also does personalised cartoon avatars for a tenner or for £25 you can get the original artwork too! Definitely something I shall consider in the future. As you can tell by my blog/twitter avatar - I am a massive fan of stuff like this!

Not Everyone Wants Kids

Not everyone wants kids. A simple enough statement right? Apparently not.

It's the 21st century yet for some reason people still seem to think that all women want to have a baby. It's still perfectly acceptable for a man to not want children, but if a woman decides it's not for her, it's a scandal - or a situation that needs rectifying.

At 27 I currently think I do want to have a family at some point. I think I'd make a decent enough parent and that's my choice, however I haven't always felt like that. Throughout my 20s there were definitely times when I thought that maybe I wouldn't want children. Even though now I've decided I probably do, I completely respect any of my friends that have decided they don't want children, and there are actually quite a few - including several women.

My lovely housemate for example doesn't want to have children. She's not against children, and she has toyed with the idea in the past, but when it comes down to it, it's just not for her yet for some people this seems to be an absolute outrage. I was shocked to discover that one of her colleagues on finding out said housemate didn't want children, decided it was her mission to change her mind and get her wanting babies. I WAS LIVID. How rude? Imagine if it was the other way around and you tried to convince this woman not to have children! Secondly, I'm pretty sure if my housemate had been a man, this woman wouldn't have given it a second thought.

So it appears we are still living in a very sexist world, and it really does seem that way. In the last year or two I've definitely noticed an increase in "when are you going to have a baby?" questions being fired my way. I highly doubt my boyfriend is experiencing this same problem (ok apart from his Mum...but I'm not counting that). This question remains exclusive for women of a certain age going hand in hand with "when are you getting married?".

People who decide not to have children aren't bad people, they are just people making an informed choice.  They are people who have actually given some thought to whether they think bringing a child into this world is the right thing for them to do. The world is already vastly overpopulated, the UK is struggling to support it's population and it appears on the whole people can't really afford the children they are having. So surely it's better people choose not to have children rather than bring a child into the world they don't really want, or don't feel they can commit all of their time to?

Women in particular seem to have this pressure put upon them, that when they reach a certain age they will become googly eyed and broody and will want to do nothing else but have babies. Sod the career you've spent your whole life working towards, sod your social life, sod the book you were writing or any aspirations you ever had. It's baby time. You'd think that in this day and age people would have finally realised that we aren't all cast from the same mould. Sure, some people might feel exactly like that - and that's amazing, good for them! Other women might never feel like that but still decide to have a baby - awesome! Yay for you. And some women might feel like that, yet decide that the feeling doesn't outweigh all the massive changes and upheaval in their lives that having a baby would cause, and so decide not to have children - also, amazing! Great for them.

Women should be able to choose what is best for them - and it should be ok for them to state they don't want to have children without it being followed by a sharp intake of breath and a deathly silence.

Link Love Sunday

I thought this week I'd have a theme for Link Love Sunday, and that theme is.....AUTUMN! Autumn is a funny one for me, it's one of my favourite seasons because I love, love, love the colours. I love walking to work, kicking the leaves, a gentle breeze through my hair, wearing tights and boots and scarves. It means Halloween is just around the corner and Bonfire Night soon after that. Yet it also means the nights are getting longer and the days much shorter, and for me that's not a good thing. As regular readers will know, having suffered with depression - darker days and long dark nights are not good for me and it means everyday life is just that extra bit harder.

So instead I'm going to post about all the things I do love about Autumn to help me focus on those rather than all of the light we'll soon be losing.


1) The beautiful leaves! Such fantastic colours and shapes

(Via: Port Wallpaper)

2) Getting to wear boots! I absolutely adore the boots/tights combo. 

(Via: New Look)

3) Baking! Ok I love baking at any time through the year, but there's nothing like baking cakes on a blustery saturday afternoon in Autumn. 

(Via: Palm Beach Runner)

4) Curling up with a good book under a blanket. Autumn gives you the excuse to not have to go out if you don't want to.  

(Via: Piccsy)

5) New TV shows! "Fall shows" from America and the Autumn schedule over here in the UK. I'm particularly looking forward to the new series of Downton Abbey, New Girl and The Playboy Club.

(Via: Unreality TV)

6) Beautiful walks in the countryside. Over just a few weeks the colours of the leaves will change so fast. I love going to Stanmer Park every week for a month over Autumn and seeing how quickly everything changes. 

(Via: The Telegraph) 

7) Roast dinners - Ok us Brits love our roast dinners all year round, but often in Summer (when it's been a good Summer) you don't really fancy it. Come Autumn, pork crackling and roast potatoes is a must!

(Via: The Garden Store)

8) Hot Chocolate. Big mugs of chocolate and hot milk with whipped cream and marshmallows. Mmmm gorgeous. 

(Via: BBC Good Food)

9) Being cosy! Whether it's big chunky knit cardigans, slippers or hot water bottles. Being cosy is great!

(Via: Pinterest)

10) Knitting! Autumn is definitely the time I want to get out my knitting needles and start making something nice for the winter. 

(Via: The Sister Project)

What are your favourite things about Autumn?