Just Bead It!

Remember the smocking that I did on my clutch? I made it last February and left it unfinished in my sewing bag. I thought of adding some embroidery work to the smocking but later decided to sew beads on each corner of the squares.

I only add beads on the smocked area. The smocking alone makes the design looks empty, so adding the beads or sewing some embroidery work would be necessary. Now I have to sew all the parts together to make a clutch before it rots in my sewing bag! Haha...

I'll post the finished work later. :)

Learn how to make this type of smocking here

Fabric Flower Tutorial : 5-Petal Flower

I made this fabric flower last weekend. Here's how to make one: 

What you need:

- fabric

- poly-fill

- needle & thread

1. Draw a petal and a small circle for your template. Cut out the template and trace it on your fabric.

2. Cut out 10 petals and 1 small circle. Put the petals aside. Make the center yo-yo ball first.

3. To make the yo-yo ball, sew a running stitch along the corner of the circle. Pull the thread slowly to gather the fabric into a bowl shape and fill it with poly-fill. Pull the thread tighter and sew shut to make a ball.

4. To make the petal, sandwich two petals with right sides facing and sew along the corners.Leave the bottom part open so you can turn the petal right side out. Sew the rest of the petals. 

5. Turn all the sewn petals right side out. Sew a loose running stitch along the open edges.

6. Attach the next petal and stitch it along the open edges. Repeat until the last 5th petal.Now you have a chain of petals.

7. Gather the petals by pulling the thread slowly to form the flower. Secure with back stitches.

8. The back of the flower look like this. Don' cut the thread yet because you're going to stitch the yo-yo ball to the center of the flower.

9. Sew the yo-yo ball to the center of the flower. Tie a knot to the back of the flower to secure it. You can glue a felt circle to the back to hide the stitches.

Now here's a flower to jazz up your bag, clutch, pillow, hat, or box.

Have fun sewing flowers :)

Coffee Bag

Here's the result....

The coffee stain is not that visible on the fabric but it does create an aged look. I've soaked the bag with 1 cup of coffee for about 1 hour. This type of natural dye works better on light colour & natural fabrics.

So next time I will try on some light color cotton or linen.

You can use tea to dye fabrics too to create an old and antique look.

If you're not into dyeing fabric using something edible, why not brew some coffee & dunk your favourite biscotti in it :P

I've made some chocolate almond biscotti. The recipe is from one of my favourite baking guru David Lebovitz

You can get the recipe at Joy Of Baking

Happy Crafting :)

Bag Prototype

I sew this bag yesterday. Whenever I'm designing my own bag pattern, I would always make a prototype first. That's when all my scraps come in handy. After I'm satisfied with the design, then I'll proceed using the fabrics that I like.

This bag prototype was made using school uniform fabric.I still left an opening inside the lining unstitched so I can make any adjustment later. I added loop & button for the closure. But for this prototype I just pinned the button to the bag so I can see how it's going to look like.

Most of my prototypes would end up as a hideout for my fabrics and sewing equipments. The looks not bad for a fabric that reminds you of school uniform....:P. 

I'm thinking of soaking the bag in coffee! I'll post my 'experiment' soon :)

Slice of Cake Pincushion

I accidentally sew the sides of this cake pincushion upside down...uhuhu..:( Whatever! 

The design is by Cindy Taylor Oates originally designed for Quilts & More magazine (spring 2009).

I didn't add any interfacing, so mine is more like an imperfect slice of cake. A puffy slice of cake :)

The finished size is 4 3/4" X 3 3/4" X 3 1/2". 

Visit her blog here: Taylor Made Designs

Her retro apron patterns are so cool.

*Retro Aprons by Cindy Taylor Oates

My Labels

I'm making & designing my own labels.After doing some sketching I ended up with this bird perching on a needle. :) Instead of scanning the sketch, I just snap a photo of it. Much faster that way.

Then I edited everything with photoshop, play around with the design & I ended up making many version of it.

Here are some of my designs:

 

This is the 1st design. I like the raw edges, it sort of creates a rustic feel. The circles was a last minute addition.

*No grid lines in the actual design.

 

 

My 2nd design with clean, smooth edges looks more put together. I chose this design for my label.

 

 

And then......I just can't stop making more of it. This logo is suitable for my recycled works.

 

Now I have this birdie logo in 4 colours, blue, black, red & green. This is my favourite so far.

Which logo do you like?

Spectacle case & Wallet

These are what I've made recently, a small spectacle case/ pencil case and a wallet.

The case was made using a repurposed blouse & the finished size is 6 1/2" wide X 3" tall.

You can see how small the case is. It can only fit pens less than 6 1/2" long.

I made this wallet using Ikea fabrics.After stitching everything together, turning the wallet right side out was the hardest part. Many layers of fabrics make the corners too thick. I guess binding the borders with binding strips would be much easier.

I just sew some Velcro for the closure. Next time I might try using magnetic snap for the closure.This wallet has 1 full width pocket to hide your money,3 card slots & 1 pocket for coins.

Finished size: 4" X 3 3/4" (when folded).

Do you like it?

Needle Field 1st Giveaway WINNER

 

Thanks a million for participating in my 1st giveaway.

1.Najibah 2.Anin 3.Aishah 4.Cicakgirl 5.Hajalicious 6.TeacherNunu 7.Eyriqazz 8.Iqakiko 9.Liwaniel 10.Zura 11.My love 12.Azatiesayang 13.Delaila 14.Nurul Aziyana 15.Ayu Arjuna Bigosh 16.Maklang 17.Zliah 18.Nida 19.Mamalyna 20.Jom makan 21.Hoodie Cam 22.Lisa VsKhusairi 23.Froggie Blue 24.Izan Cute 25.Segalanyer kuterima 26.Asya 27.Inahasan 28.Inasepi 29.Juniza 30.Ogy 31.Syakila 32.Taufidris 33.Fadz Fadzil 34.Temp.housewife 35.Em's family 36.Rozy

The winner is randomly chosen using random number generator.

Congratulation to.....

 * Liwaniel * 

 

*Liwaniel - I've sent you an email. You'll be getting the featured sock doll & a surprise gift, a drawstring bag (measuring 10" wide & 14" tall).

Have a nice day :)