Better late than never!

Well, I won't lie and say my new years resolution was to keep up to date with blogging. Good thing too, I would have failed catastrophically. It was however, to finish all the crafty projects I have on the go (which is errrr... an embarrassing amount) before starting any new ones.

She'll never do it! We've all been there before! I hear you cry. Maybe, but it's worth a go. I made good progress in the earlier part of the year before I started to get bogged down with Uni stuff. So here's a few examples!

I started this cushion as a way to practice my budding crochet skills last year, and finally sewed it all up, put the buttons on and tucked away all the ends! I also wanted to make a cushion that used the same colours as ones I already owned.  

Everyone loves a close up! The yarn is Louisa Harding Kashmir Baby by the way. So nice to work with, really springy, and extremely soft... Recognise this? 

It's the DNA scarf that I finally finished! (Including a key for fellow geeks) Technically It doesn't have a back yet, so the perfectionist in me doesn't really consider this finished, but it does function as a scarf! And it is a work of art!

Most people on Ravelry have knitted this up in a single colour, which would have been a LOT less hassle... But I wanted each base pair to be coded properly so I did it in colour. It meant a lot of crossing over at the back, more brain power than I thought I could muster and just tucking away the loose ends took a whole evening. 

But wasn't it worth it??

First things first...

OK! So I got my new sewing machine and then suddenly thought- "Oh... what am I going to make!?" My trusty old dressform (and I mean OLD, 1940's stock) was back home on the Wirral, as were all my threads, tools, fabric stash, buttons etc. Not ideal...

But I have this Burda style account that I've never really used, being mostly down to my not having a digital camera because (guess what) it's on the Wirral, and partly because some of the stuff on their is made by truly skilled and talented people and I felt a little bit like a poser... Nevermind, it's time to make use of it somehow, someway! I owe it to myself and I have to justify having bought this gorgeous sewing machine.

Obviously I quickly experimented with figuring out what all the buttons did and made myself a needle booklet and a pin cushion. Nothing marvellous, just made out of some craft felt that I had lying around in a colour I knew I probably wouldn't use for anything else. Now onto something clever!

But what?? I had lots of cushion fillers hanging around the flat, so that seemed like a fairly obvious first move. My stash was reasonably limited so I had to formulate a plan! I wombled off to the local fabric shop and got some olive green cord which is just so soft and has this really nice sheen on it when the light shines on it. "Olive green cord?" I sense you think, it's not as dismal as it sounds, honest! Because as I say, I'd made a plan.

I had recently been to visit my boyfriends parents and his Mum (who is notoriously creative and always learning a new craft) gave me a weaving lesson. Her loom takes up most of their lounge and is 100% worth it, she produces the most wonderful cushions, bags, scarves, fabrics etc. It was a little odd trying to think of colours that would go together because as you are making the fabric, it can look quite awful (in my case anyway!). It only comes into it's own once you've finished it. I used a golden brown, and various pinks and greens. I had no set pattern in mind, I just wanted to try out some different techniques and patterns.

The patch I made was only small about 11" by 11". I felted it up as per my instructions and then spent a long time thinking "Oh but what can I do with it?". I wanted to do something special because She also gave me a really nice button to go with it in a sort of orange colour that really complemented the brightness of the pinks, and the depth of the greens. 

Surely you can see the natural train of thought from here on in proceeded rather rapidly along a fairly traditional route! A cushion cover!

So here it is, my special felted, woven-cord cushion! and the first proper creation with my new sewing machine.

I used the large button on the back to hold it together which I rather like because now it has a feature on the front and the back!