I Have Discovered Little Wee Felt Folk

Little Wee folk and particularly fairies are something that have always been close to my heart. Thankfully both my daughters share this same love and fascination. My youngest still makes special fairy recipes from flowers and other treasures she finds in my garden, and I often come across a small dish with her latest offerings amongst the toadstools. Because as all knowledgeable fairy lovers know, that's where fairies assemble for their fairy parties!

With her birthday fast approaching I was thrilled to come across a wonderful and very special book written by Salley Mavor. It's one of those books that you could ponder over for hours, enjoying the magical world of Salley's Felt Wee Folk.

The book arrived on my door step a few weeks ago and I eagerly opened it up and was mesmerized by what each page had to share.

A few days later I clutched the book with excitement as I journeyed to my friend's house for our regular craft get together. I knew that all the group would fall in love with what I had to share with them. As they "gooed and gahed" over each page, excited by the possibilities of what they saw, a serious wee folk sewing day was decided upon.

Our day was held yesterday and I'm pleased to report it was a huge success with little fairy wee folk appearing from all directions, even our craft friend with 4 boys got in on the act. She was impressed that the book offered ideas for wee pirates and medieval kings!

I just have to share with you our delightful little fairies, they will capture your heart.
Here are some pics of them:







Aren't they adorable? There are different sizes in Salley's book although we opted for the smallest size, they stand about 8cm in height.
Sewing their little clothes was so cute. I felt a bit like Cinderella making clothes for the mice. Here are some wee felt jackets in progress:





And I must show you the creative mess we get into. You've just got to laugh!
I'm ashamed to say the sad looking sponge cake was my effort and probably the worst one I have even cooked but my lovely friends ate it all the same. I shouldn't have said anything because you are now going to look for it on the table, aren't you?.



One of the nicest things about these "crafty get togethers" is the swapping of resources that goes on. The red hair used on some of the fairies was something I bought about 10 years ago...thank goodness it finally had a use. The creation of little wee skirts was a combination of artificial flowers we had each bought and one resourceful friend even found some cotton beads which were perfect for the little wee heads which we painted using water colour pencils.

As we admired out fairy creations one friend glanced at the clock and exclaimed "quick time to pick up kids". There was a scurry of hands and our creative mess was cleaned up within seconds. An amazing accomplishment in itself. I couldn't help but smile as they all hurried out the door cupping their little wee folk in their hands over joyed at the day's efforts.

My little fairy is now hidden in a special timber draw waiting patiently for my daughter's birthday. I hope to make some fairy friends for her. Just one fairy is not nearly enough. I thought it would be nice to have a fairy for each season so I need to secretly keep making of an evening.

The great news is that I have tracked down the book for you just in case you would like to start making wee folk as well. Maybe you have a young daughter or grand daughter who would love their own little fairy to play with. Or maybe you have a young boy in mind who would like a fee felt pirate for his pirate ship, or maybe a knight for his castle. There are lots of ideas in the book and there are also some cute little felt purses and brooches to temp us as well. I can see another day being planned very soon.

Here's the book cover and some links of where you can get your own copy to treasure.
The picture on the cover is a wall hanging that is also included in the book. I'd love to make this as well!



Here's the link for Australian buyers
Felt Wee Folk: Enchanting Projects

Here's the link for Amazon as well:
Felt Wee Folk: Enchanting Projects

I can highly recommend this book. It's one of those special books that I am proud to have in my collection and I'm grateful to be able to share it with all my friends.



Happy wee folk creating!
Warmly Lenna

Sneak Preview...New Block of the Month Quilt

I'm so excited because my new block of the month quilt is starting to take shape. This is a huge relief, up until now it has been floating around in my head.

As pencil and eraser finally come out and patterns are drawn up, my creative side seems to smile at me as if saying "Thank goodness it's about time!". I fear it had been caged up far too long! Other pressing jobs have been taking up my valuable time and alas my designing has suffered a little. The good news is that my creative side is fighting back and ideas are bursting forth in their dozens, how I wish I had more than one pair of hands and twice the number of hours in a day.

As the ideas flow the journey begins, fabrics are chosen and threads are carefully matched. Slowly but surely stitch by stitch the new quilt starts to evolve.

The best news for you is that I'm about to take you along for the journey. I'm a bit nervous because I've never done this before. I've always hidden away out of sight and not shown anyone projects I am currently working on, except my family of course . They don't really have a choice in the matter and have to put up with living amongst my mess and sewing clutter in the process. Now and again they will peer into the maze of creation and offer words of approval which is always reassuring.

Today mid way through my journey you too can caste an eye on what I have been doing for the last few weeks. I've put together a slide show, especially for you that I hope you will enjoy. I've included glimpses of some of the blocks so that you can have a sneak peek and I also show you some things that have given me the inspiration for this quilt.

The program will take a few minutes to load. For best results select full screen. If everything is working you should hear some music as well. Simply select the Esc button on your computer when you are ready to close it down.

So here it is...a special peek into my world.

I hope you enjoy it. I on the other hand shall get back to my sewing.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

I'd love to hear what you think so feel free to leave some comments.

Until next time happy stitching!
Warmly Lenna

Finding the Right Fabric

It's no secret that Patchworkers and Quilters are always on the look out for fabrics. This seems to be the case whether we have a project in mind or not. Once you get the fabric bug (and I warn you it is very addictive) the mere look and feel of a special piece of fabric is all that is needed to get us in a buying frenzy. In fact I have the condition so bad that the fabric doesn't even have to be special. Sometimes I just take pity on even the most ordinary looking fabric in the hope that I can transform it into something beautiful one day. I've even been known to take on the discarded remnants of someone else's stash.

My most precious pieces of fabric are in my old pine cupboard. They are all stacked in colour ways, neatly folded and waiting for that special day when I discover a project worthy of them. But I am about to disclose a secret. I have a second stash that only my closest friends know about. I don't mind sharing this secret with you though because I know you will understand. My second stash, which is far less glamorous than the first, resides in the attic. It is made up of lots of fabrics, many of which date back to a past life when I used to sew clothing for myself and kids.

The magical thing about this stash is that each piece of fabric tells a story that only I know. This became apparent to me just recently when a fellow sewing friend came to my door in need last week. This sewing friend had discovered my secret last year when we plunged head first into the box in an attempt to find fabrics suitable for craft items for the school fair.

This year the mission was to make items for Mother's day and so we both journeyed upstairs into the darkness and warmth of the room. Before long the box was reopened and we were pulling out lengths of fabric. As each piece saw the light of day its story had to be revealed. Fabric that was once used for a skirt, fabric that had once belonged to my Grandmother, fabric that was once used to make a dress for one of my daughters, fabric that was intended for a shirt for my hubby and fabric that once belonged to my sister in law. As all the memories associated with these fabrics floated out of that box I found it almost hard to let go of some of them. Although I was glad that their day had arrived, I felt the memories almost disappear as my thankful sewing friend hurried out the door clutching bundles of fabric.

And so the box was resealed for another day.

As I descended the stairs I was comforted in the thought that parting with old fabric surely meant that I had paved the way for new fabric to enter my life. Yippee!

This is particularly exciting because I keep finding more fabric that I just want to have in my precious stash.My fabric passion has lead me to starting another blog site called Find a Fabric. I figured if I was trying to find certain fabrics then maybe fellow fabric collectors may find my trail useful as well. I write about fabrics I find on sale, as well as fabrics I just adore. I also let everyone know about new designers and ranges I come across.

So if you are looking for some more fabric for your stash take a look at my fabric blog, it's here to help you on your quest for the right fabric.

Click here for my Find a Fabric blog.

Hope you enjoy it.

Happy fabric hunting!

Warmly Lenna

A Touch of Inspiration from Little Green Cottage

Every now and again I stumble across something that just makes me go wow!
In fact it has been happening a lot lately.

Just last weekend I attended an art exhibition with my family. The theme of the exhibition was portraits and as we examined each work in detail we all went "wow these are amazing!"

It also happened when we went for a family hike in the Tasmania wilderness a few weeks ago. There were gasps of "wow" all round as we marveled at the rugged coastline and wildlife we discovered on our journey.

And then there was the amazing fig tree and garden we came across while visiting a National Trust property on Sunday. As I peered up into the huge mass of twisted branches and fruit I found myself saying "wow!".

These "wow experiences" all stir something within me and contribute to my sense of being inspired. Inspiration lies everywhere and the more I look at my natural environment and discover the creative pursuits of other talented people around me, the more creative I feel.

This is good news because it has me thinking about some new embroidery patterns and designs. My sketch book has come out and I find myself sketching and planning some new projects. I hope to share them with you soon.

In keeping with this line of thought I have put together something special for you that I know you are going to enjoy. I hope that it will inspire you to pick up a needle and thread and enjoy creating yourself.
Just click on the play button, it may take a few moments to load but it will be worth the short wait.

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

All these patterns from Little Green Cottage and more can be found on the Stitching Cow website.
Click here for the link

I hope you too find some inspiration, happy stitching!
Warmly Lenna

Three Little Bunnies

Easter is just around the corner and I find myself surrounded by little bunnies. In fact my home has been invaded.

It all started when I met a new friend who shared with me her love for bunnies. Upon visiting her lovely home her fondness for these little creatures was apparent. I admired her collection which took pride of pace on her mantel. They were all different shapes and sizes and each of them brought a smile to my face.

When this same friend generously gave me some fabric for a gift, I knew straight away what I should do with it. I started making little bunnies.
(By the way she also has a fabulous blog site that could save you heaps of time and money).
Click here if you would like a peek.

Here is the first one I made for my "bunny loving" friend.




Then they started to multiply and jump across my window sill!
One turned into three.



That same week I came across some more beautiful fabrics that I just had to had.

Here are the fabrics I came across, aren't they gorgeous?



I also came across some lovely old buttons when rummaging in an antique shop recently.
They are a rich, aged cream colour and are very thick, just perfect for bunnies.



And so with beautiful fabrics and buttons at my fingertips more bunnies started to emerge
Here they are in my sewing basket, all huddled together, multiplying like only bunnies can!.



Here they are on the run across my mantel, all intact with arms and legs.



I hope that they will be well behaved to decorate the table at Easter. It's my turn for the family get together this year and I thought the little bunnies might look cute in the middle of the table surrounded by chocolate Easter eggs.

They would also make a wonderful Easter gift.

If you would like some of these bunnies to visit your house click here for information about the pattern.

But be warned you won't be able to stop at just one. Bunnies will be bunnies. Before you know it your window sills, mantels and table tops will be covered with bunnies.

Happy Easter and Happy Stitching!

Warmly Lenna
http://stitchingcow.blogspot.com

Dreaded UFOs...I have a plan!

If you're passionate about sewing you've probably got a few unfinished projects hidden away,commonly referred to as UFOs. It seem to be something we sewers are all guilty of. When UFOs or unfinished objects started surrounding me and cluttering up my work space, I knew I had a bit of a problem. But my main aim was to get them out of sight so that hubby could not see them. Otherwise he would enquire now and again (usually when I started looking for some new fabric or pattern) "What happened to that other project you were working on?" Oh those dreaded words!

I soon worked out that the best solution was to tuck them away safely in a lovely sewing bag or sewing pouch. That way they could stay out of sight but still be close at hand. I had come up with a great plan especially considering that I love making bags of all shapes and sizes. These sewing bags have now become my friends in crime. My secret is safe with them and they love being out on show and used. It's a win win for everyone.

That's one of the reasons I decided to launch a new bag pattern on my Stitching Cow website. I now have another secret place for a UFO clever me!

Here's a photo of the bag. It features two patchwork pockets that are hand embroidered. Making stashing even easier.

Below is the view of the back pocket.




















Here are some close ups of the embroidery.





Click here if you would like some more information about this pattern

This bag project was lots of fun to make. It gave me a chance to use up some special off cuts of fabrics that I had been saving. The hardest part was deciding which ones to use.

Even if you don't have a UFO to hide away in this bag, it would make an ideal gift for a special little girl, or for a special older girl who has lots of sewing bits and pieces.

Until next time, happy stitching. I hope you get to finish at least one UFO this year.

Warmly Lenna
http://www.stitchingcow.com