Thursday 19 August 2010

Little solutions to little problems

Hair clips are a big pain in the bum in this house. I've lost count of how many sets I've bought for Izzy just to end up with lots of single clips and no matching pairs.

Does anyone else suffer from this problem? Where do these clips go?!

Anyway I saw this tutorial and it's such a pretty solution.

I used a frame from a charity shop which, as it was the first one I grabbed, is not in the best condition but once painted it looked a bit better.


I loved choosing scraps for the dresses and found some denim to use for the jeans.


It was really quick and easy to make so I might make a few for friends.

Next problem.....

...my daughter has a tiny bedroom but I love finding ways to get around this.

She recently got some chalks in a mixed box of Crayola bits and has been begging for a blackboard since. With no room for an easel I bought some blackboard paint and covered the front of her wardrobe with it.

Et voilà - one happy little girl and no extra space used! 


I had just baked cakes when I wrote this!

Friday 6 August 2010

The Never-Ending Tea Towel


It's amazing how much you can make from just one tea towel! I had already turned my £1 CS tea towel into an apron and oven mitt and was finding it difficult to dispose of the scraps so I turned the leftover strip into a headband for Little Miss. P instead!


Shame she won't keep it on for more than 30 seconds! I still have a small strip left too so there may be hearts in my next post!

Speaking of the little girl who is the recipient of 99% of my makes, I am gradually turning her bedroom from a neutral nursery to a pink, girly bedroom.

She did have a cream and brown light shade but she now has a pretty pink one instead.


I used a delicious Robert Kaufman cupcake fabric, a pink flowery one I had lying around and some pink gingham from some of her old bedding.

Monday 26 July 2010

Car Caddy

I mentioned a few posts back about the car caddy I made using this tutorial

I managed to get some pics...


I used some denim someone gave me a while ago and some spotty Laura Ashley fabric I found in a CS.


It's such a cute gift for a little boy who loves his cars!

I might try to make a girly one for Miss. P's Sylvanian Families (actually they were mine when I was a little girl)!

Friday 23 July 2010

Little Hands that Bake!

Little Miss Pink has recently moved into a grown-up single bed from her toddler bed and as it's a cabin bed the underneath has been transformed into a little playhouse.

As you can see she has a kitchen in there and she quite often has friends (of the stuffed variety) over for lunch and tea parties! 


She has been busy serving tea and baking cakes without the most basic of kitchen essentials so this afternoon I managed to whip up some accessories.

I found an Emma Bridgewater Tea Towel in a charity shop a while ago which was perfect for a little girl's kitchen.


I just cut the tea towel into an apron shape and sewed some bias to the raw edges. The straps are one length of ribbon threaded through the bias to make it adjustable. 

There was enough of the fabric left over to make an oven glove.


My little cook is very pleased with them!



In the near future I'll be making some curtains for the bed/playhouse which will hopefully turn out looking something like this or this!

Monday 19 July 2010

Making Technology Pretty!!

I wouldn't be without technology. My Macbook gives me my internet fix, my DSLR camera is my plaything and my TV provides me with episodes of Mad Men (which I'm loving at the moment)!

Now I have a hand-me-down iPhone thanks to Mr. P's need for the latest model! It's not the prettiest but most technology is fairly unattractive in my eyes, making an exception when it comes to one of these of course!


Of course I had to pretty my iPhone and who other than Cath Kidston would be the one to assist?!



Now isn't this nicer than a boring black phone?!


Even the inside is pretty! How wonderful.

Thursday 15 July 2010

Remember me?!

I can't believe it has been so long since my last post! I have been very neglectful of my poor blog but since going back to work full time I haven't had the time or energy to post, let alone do anything to post about!!

But I've had a (much needed) week off and managed to do a cross a few things off my ever growing list!

First was this dresser unit that had been in Miss. Pink's bedroom for the last few years.


I needed to move it out to make way for a dolls house that was mine when I was a little girl (I'll post photos of that soon). Unfortunately our home isn't big enough to keep it so I thought I'd have a go at painting it before selling.

I finally got around to it this week and this is how it looks now.


I did try to varnish the top to keep the pine colour but it went horribly wrong and I ended up having to paint the whole thing!

I quite like it (more than I should for something I'm having to part with) and even Mr. P said he was impressed and he dislikes this kind of furniture!

I did also make a cute little car caddy for a friend's son's birthday (from this tute) but realised after I gave it to him I forgot to take photos! But it's a great guide for anyone wanting to make one.

Anyway, I will hopefully post again sooner than 2 months from now!

Saturday 1 May 2010

Better Late than Never!

I had been planning to make a cover for my sewing machine for months and bought the fabric ages ago. Finally got around to it now I have a nice new machine and even more reason to protect it from evil dust (which there is loads of in my house)!


It hasn't got interfacing or anything so it's a bit floppy but it does the job.

Unfortunately Mr. P is not a fan of all things pink and flowery so I had to go with something a little less girly as my sewing corner is in the lounge.

I'm quite pleased with it especially as there was no pattern, I just made it up as I went along!

Wednesday 28 April 2010

I have a new friend!

I won some money in a competition last week and chose to spend some of it on a new sewing machine.

The one I had was kindly donated by my mother in law and I've wanted to choose one of my own for some time but could never justify the expense when I already had one that worked perfectly well. Some unexpected cash was the perfect opportunity to treat myself.

It arrived this afternoon and I have had a little play around with it but thought I'd share my excitement before getting really stuck in. It has 40 different stitches to play with! What fun!

Thursday 22 April 2010

Tuesday 13 April 2010

Winner!

A random number generator picked a winner of the giveaway and it's Crafty Helen!

Please send me your details so I can get your goodies off to you!

Was going to post without a picture but it looked naked so thought I'd show you my new bath hat! Very, ahem, happily modelled by Miss. P!


Friday 9 April 2010

Delays due to good weather!

I have been so busy enjoying the good weather that I'm behind with everything! So I won't be picking a giveaway winner until Monday 12th April.


If anyone still wants to enter, you have all weekend to comment here!

Monday 5 April 2010

Pretty Useful

Some things are necessary and useful but it doesn't mean they can't be pretty! I have some lovely round cake tins but they are no good for loaf and square cakes so when I saw these in Tescos I knew they were essential for my kitchen! A bargain too at only £6 for the set!


Spending my hard earned pennies need not be so painful when I'm using a purse that makes me smile every time it comes out of my bag (which is far too often)!


Hope everyone is having a lovely easter weekend and don't forget to enter my giveaway here!

Friday 2 April 2010

Been Unfaithful + Giveaway

I'm sorry to say I have been cheating on my hobby with another. (Please note that was hobby and not hubby)! My new camera has been getting lots of attention and it has left my sewing machine feeling rather sorry for herself!

I did make a sock monkey for my brother's birthday recently and he was quite a giant! I forgot mens socks were bigger than ladies!


I managed to get the Rosali bedding I wanted although it took me forever to decide between the white and the blue!!!


I even managed to get a bag from Primark when a kind blogger by the name of Claire over at Dolly Dollop spared me from my misery and sent one to me!

Now, as way of apology to my poor neglected sewing machine I am doing my first giveaway! Plus I need to give something back to blogland as I have won a few giveaways and been on the receiving end of the kindness of bloggers.

Not sure exactly what will be going in the parcel yet but definitely something handmade along with some other bits.

So leave a comment on this post by Friday 9th April and I will draw a winner after that.

Friday 26 March 2010

Blogging is Torture!

Through the wonderful world of Blog I have seen many a pretty item that I want but cannot have! Those lovely Primark bags but when I travelled a considerable distance to my (not very) nearest store, alas there were none.

And now the gorgeous Rosali in Ikea which I would love for my bed but I do not live near any Blue and Yellow stores! Could I, should I make a long trip for something when I may again come home empty handed?


We shall see!

Friday 19 March 2010

Happy Snapper!

Today I am a very happy girl indeed. When the postie arrives at my door holding a parcel he is a most welcome visitor but especially when it is an unexpected delivery. I was ready to make an accusing call to Mr. Pink at work for ordering things without consulting me (although I am the one guilty if this!) when I read the message on the delivery note. It was an incredibly generous gift from a family member completely out of the blue.

One of these.....


I do enjoy photography and have been coveting a DSLR for some time but there has always been something more sensible (boring) to spend our money on. Now I can surround myself with photography books, magazines and websites while I try to figure out what ISOs, Apertures and White balances are! I am already making notes of the lenses and accessories I will be saving for!

Obviously I had to try it out so got snapping with some of the goodies I bought in this shop. Some pretty fabrics.


And some lovely ribbon.


During the couple of hours I get to myself whilst Miss. P is at pre-school I often enjoy a child free stroll around the charity shops. It is lovely to be able to rummage without trying to stop a two year old from rummaging too! Yesterday I found these trousers made from Ikea CK Rosali. Unfortunately they are a bit faded but I think will look ok if used for smaller projects and I was pleased anyway as I'm always hoping to find some Rosali.


Wednesday 17 March 2010

I need to be more picky!

I bought this from a local seller on ebay with the intention of painting it and putting on the wall in my bedroom. This was last August and I'm ashamed to say that up until this afternoon it was still sitting by the back door completely unchanged. Actually, it had gained a layer of dust and some cobwebs!

The trouble was it wasn't exactly what I was looking for but I bought it anyway. I didn't have the motivation to do the makeover as I wasn't really in love with it. From now on I will only buy something if I really want it, promise!

Anyway, I've now almost finished the makeover so here's what it looked like before......


...and this is what it looks like now.


There are still some areas that need touching up with a bit of paint but apart from that I'm quite pleased with how it looks now. It's painted in a colour called 'Sketchbook' by Crown which is a really pale grey/off white.

The glass shelves I covered with some pretty ck-like serviettes.


I painted it with a mini roller so when it came to the more intricate leaf design the roller didn't get into all the nooks and crannies but I actually quite like it like this so I might leave it.


Unfortunately now I have completely gone off the idea of a shelf unit in the bedroom so I'll be sticking it back on ebay! So there ends the seven month story of why I must be more choosy with the purchases I make! Lesson learnt!

Tuesday 16 March 2010

Pretty and Cute Overload!

I'm back from my trip to Wales visiting family. Had lovely weather, better than I have ever seen that side of the border! I also managed to squeeze in a trip to the lovely shop that Mary Poppins previously mentioned. It was so full of prettiness I wanted to stay there all day.

I took some piccies but be warned, there are quite a few!







There were some lovely handmade bits in there but my budget was tight so I couldn't buy anywhere near as much as I wanted!


I must admit I planned to spend more of my hard earned pounds in the fabric shop next door.






My parents were with me and I really felt guilty as I took forever choosing which ones to take home!

On Mothers Day we went to visit some gorgeous little lambs and a couple were so new they were still very shaky on their legs. It was very difficult to resist smuggling one home on the train!



ETA - I forgot to say the two shops are called Copperfield and are on the Four Mile Bridge Road in Valley, Anglesey. Worth a visit if you are in the area.