Sunday 30 November 2014

Crafty Christmas Gift Ideas

As I am feeling particularly festive today, I thought I would upload a few gift ideas if you are looking to buy something for someone who loves abit of crafting! With the 1st of December looming, hopefully this post will help you get organised and find the perfect gifts for your creative loved ones!

First up on my list is the Kirsty Allsopp Craft Kits from Hobbycraft. There are so many different kits to choose from, including a Lavender Bath Bomb Kit (I may have my eye on this one), which is great if you know someone who loves to dabble with abit of everything and try new things.

Image Source

I have stumbled across the Sock Craft Kits on Not On The Highstreet and think they are so great! They have so many different kits to choose from, including a Monkey, an Owl & a Sockosaurus (of course). My favourite has to be the Bunny - it is just too cute! These are appropriate for most ages (although children under 12 may require help) so would be fab for mini crafters too!

Image Source

If you are buying for someone who is an avid sewer, then I would definitely suggest taking a peep at the Cath Kidston website. They have some great sewing accessories that would look fabulous in anyones sewing basket, and sewers will always appreciate an extra tape measure, a new pair of scissors or a packet of pins. Seriously. Cath Kidston also have some amazing sewing baskets too. Isn't this Kingswood Rose Radio Sewing Basket just the cutest...?


Image Source

 (NB: Only purchase a sewing basket as a gift if you know the recipient actually needs one - I love my sewing basket, so definitely won't be replacing it for a while)

 Hopefully this has helped you out a little with your Christmas Shopping. Or maybe it has just inspired fellow crafters to go out & treat themselves to a pre-christmas gift! Either way, I hope you have enjoyed todays post. Let me know in the comments box below if you have any other gift ideas!

 
ZoFlo

Friday 28 November 2014

Thursday Thoughts #2 (The Friday Edition)

Sorry, I'm a day late! This weeks Thursday Thoughts relates more to my job searching struggles, but can still be applied to the world of crafts.


I think pretty much everyone has been in a situation where they can relate to this one though! So next time you're feeling blue / panicking about something - remember the 3 P's!! We will all get there eventually!

 
ZoFlo

Sunday 23 November 2014

Sunday Baking // Dainty Lemon Cakes

I realised that it has been a little while since I have uploaded a Sunday Baking post - August to be precise - so I thought it was about time I uploaded another baking creation! I decided on Dainty Lemon Cakes, a recipe from my Bake-a-Boo cook book.


The recipe says it makes 20 mini cupcakes, however I didn't have any mini cases (and when I went shopping for the ingredients I found Edible Cupcake Cases...could not resist), so I made 8 normal size cupcakes topped with plenty of lemon butter icing. YUMMY! They were really simple to make, just a standard cake mixture with some lemon zest & juice added. I did put more lemon juice in than the recipe states as I like the flavours to be a little more obvious. What do you think? I love the edible wafer flowers too, they add a cute, girly touch!


Have you done any baking recently? If you have any recipes you would recommend, please let me know in the comments box below.

 
ZoFlo

Thursday 20 November 2014

Thursday Thoughts #1

Sorry for the lack of blog updates recently - I've been busy graduating!

Horraaay!
Although I think Graduation is a valid excuse for this week, sometimes I am not so great at blogging regularly. I think it is much more difficult to keep up when it comes to Craft Blogging as some projects aren't as quick as others and I don't want to upload a rubbish post for the sake of it. My aim is to make Sunday my regular "post uploading day"  but I still want to give you all a little mid-week helping of craftiness - so here are my Thursday Thoughts!

Photo Source
For me, the above quote is completely true! I am still finding my feet after finishing University and find that crafting is the only thing that keeps me happy. It helps to keep my mind off of the real world, but also keeps my brain working! I hope to post weekly quotes of a crafy nature, so if you have seen any that you would like me to share, please let me know.

 
ZoFlo

Thursday 13 November 2014

Upholstery // Part 3

For anyone who has been eagerly awaiting this post - I am so sorry it is later than I had planned. Real life has taken over recently and with a few sewing problems along the way, it really slowed up the process. But it is finally here, the finished chair!

 

 The arms were quite difficult as it was important to get them looking the same. The left arm looked perfect, but the right arm was a little more tricky - typical. I asked my Gran to do that bit as after much pulling and stretching I couldn't get it to look right. I think she did a great job and they match really well. Today was spent carefully sewing up the back with a curved needle. I was really pleased with how neat this looked. The final piece was plastic sheeting stapled to the bottom!

The only part that is missing is the cushion. I did spend a whole day working on this and accidentally snipped a little too far with the scissors and made a hole (yes yes, I wanted to cry). I am going to attempt it again next week, but it is so difficult. If anyone has made a box cushion before, please give me some tips in the comments box below as I am struggling with the corners! Once I have mastered it, I plan to do a blog post to show you all how it is done.

 So what do you think?

 

It took quite a little while to get this one done, about 5 / 6 days in total but I would definitely recommend taking on an upholstery project if you have the time (and the money - material can get expensive). I think my next upholstery project will perhaps be something a little smaller though!

 
ZoFlo


Be sure to catch up on Post 1 & Post 2 of this project!

Sunday 2 November 2014

Upholstery // Part 2

If you haven't already, please take a look at part 1 of this project, as today's post is part 2!! After completing the base section & one of the wings, we then had to work on the other wing, the back, the front, the arms & the cushion - so much sewing & piping! This was a lot to take on and for some reason me & my Gran thought this was doable in two days. Turns out it really wasn't, but we have managed to completed both of the wings, the front & the back (so only the arms & the cushion left to sew). 


To make it feel a little more like we had actually made some progress, we spent most of yesterday putting it all together. You can use tacking pins, but we used a staple gun, a glue gun when needed and plenty of wadding & foam for extra padding. I won't lie, it was much more difficult than I expected. You have to make small cuts so that the material doesn't pucker when you're pulling it through to the back of the chair, which is so nerve-wracking when you're making something for someone else (in material that they have paid for)! The area around the legs is the most challenging, as it's the area that everyone will notice/see if the fabric is wonky or puckered. It's also really important to make sure the grain of the material is always going in the same direction! When we were attaching the wings, the grain on one of them was vertical whilst the other was pulling diagonally. With the type of material we were using, it may not have been noticeable to many, but as this is for my sister it would annoy me everytime I go over to her house, so I had to unpick the wing and sew it back together so it was correct. It is definitely worth taking your time and doing it properly on a project like this - you definitely need to have a lot of patience.


It's taken a little longer than we had planned, but I will hopefully be able to share with you all the finished chair in the next few days! Horaay! What do you all think so far?

 
ZoFlo