Cushions

 I saw these cushions featured in a garden at Chelsea flower show earlier this year, and thought my hubby would love something similar featuring Welsh Guards, I have searched and could not find anything like this, these are for Chelsea Pensioners. 

I had trouble finding fabrics, saw one lot in a sale, which hubby said was not right, so I left it to him to find some. He finally managed to find authentic tunic fabric for sale, he had to purchase 2 meters running length, which was their minimum sale, I'm not telling what he paid for it, that's his choice, it is lovely material.

He already had buttons, for one style and with so much material, I said I could make at least 2, he ordered a badge and stripes. Here I'm working to ensure the buttons are placed right, the white marks (tailors chalk) will be buttonholes, which I will sew but not cut open, just place the buttons over them.

In a complete unabashed theft of the design into a Welsh Guard style of cushions, here are ours, hubby is very happy, I really enjoyed making them. The effort of making the five button holes is not reflected as they can't really be seen, but I know they are there. These are bigger and will look better on our new sofa, we will chose a bigger style.

And just because I could an extra cushion made for his best army buddy, who with his wife are popping in later this month for lunch and a catch up. This one is slightly smaller, I only had the smaller cuff buttons to use, 6 would have fitted on here better, but 5 is the correct number to have.

It is always great to get out my sewing machine, I get so much joy from sewing, often designing items myself, this time shamelessly stealing the look, with just a few small changes. Cushions are a very simple thing to make, I did pop zips along the bottom, but I could have hand sewn them together. I had red cotton fabric to line the cushions, but it was not necessary, the tunic fabric is very strong. 

I still have alot of the red fabric left, the black material was in my stash, hubby got the zips, black piping and the badges. I have used older cushion inserts in the bigger two, I will get new inserts just to make them look a bit neater. 

I would love to use my machine more often, years ago I made all my own dresses, tops and trousers, I have even made a couple suits, but I rarely wear that type of clothes, mainly I live in jeans and T shirts, much softer for my lifestyle. I also made wedding dresses for my daughters and various SIL's, as well as remodelling wedding dresses for friends and family, I am hoping Molly might take an interest as she gets older, it would be nice to pass on skills. I have made Molly some bits but again she loves leggings and soft T shirt dresses, which are so cheap to buy and the fabrics are so expensive, these days with clothes so cheap, it's never cost effective to make things.

Repurposing

I have 5 cross stitch designs made into small decorative Christmas cushions,  these are tiny, I have not been using them much as they get thrown around or sat on. I don't want to get rid of them, so I have a plan, firstly I dismantle the cushions ensuring the canvas is not damaged.

I cut out a piece of calico the size of an existing cushion, I placed 4 pieces, it was too crowded with 5 designs, I have stitched them on, this has been the easy bit. This will give the cover strength and help stop the canvas from stretching. I have a good stash of Christmas fabrics, and thought I would do some sort of patchwork, but it was too busy. I tried cutting panels in just one simple design, but I'm not sure I like it. 

And here it is, a few weeks later, I found the fabric in our local shop, it's just perfect, not plain, not too fancy with gold bling, I cut holes in the fabric and then stitched along the edge where I had folded back the fabric, I have done this way before, it works for me. I did unpick from the backing as I wanted each hole to be level and along the pattern edges to look neat, it probably would have been OK not unpicking each panel, but I am a neat freak and I won't take a risk they were not perfect. 

The final small design, I popped on the back, it looks good here, won't be seen much, but I know it's there, I had a cushion inner I purchased a while ago, I did have to cut it down a bit, originally I was just going to make this into a cover to go over another cushion, but I sent the cushion to the charity shop.

We all love a robin, this is my first attempt at needle felting one, I have mixed feelings about him, he does look like a robin, I do like his wings and tail, I don't like his red breast, it's too much just one colour, and the edges need to be broken up, his eyes were a total mistake, I used fibre, I was being lazy, I do have tiny shiny black beads, which would have looked much better, I will have a play and see if I can improve him. 

I do love these project which start with a simple idea and grow as I work on them, some how I always manage to get them looking right, I have some soft red fabric which would have been great to use but it was not wide enough, I used it for the children's stockings, made here, I can't remember where I purchased the fabric, and I don't think they would still have any in stock, that's the down side of keeping and using your stash. It did take a couple of weeks to find the right fabric, but well worth the wait. 

I've finished knitting my sisters socks, I have my sewing machine out, I have more badges to sew on my friends sons blanket, he had a trip to Canada in the summer, we have ordered him a bigger badge as he could not find one on his trip, his mum agreed he will love it.

Not been outside much, hubby did manage to make the final veg bed, we are looking to dig in the flower bed, once it is in place we can order the huge bag of topsoil, then I will move a few plants from the bed infront of the greenhouse to the new bed. Any purchases for the garden is coming out of our garden budget, at this point I only need topsoil and 1 more of our black railings.

Cushions

I am really buzzing with this project, another repeat pattern along the right edge, very easy to remember, so quicker to stitch, the colours chosen were the same as the original design. I now have the lower middle section to fill, I have an idea, but it's a case of stitch a design and then decide on the next one, using parts of this design. I can clearly see the finish line here.

Just the very top not seen,

makes me smile every time I look at it.

This will be another cushion.

I do love my hand made cushions, I also cherish them, so they are all in our bedroom, where no-one can abuse them, it is a shame as I think they are beautiful, but the hours of work involved in making them, mean they need to be placed carefully. The big cushion on my bed is 2 designs mixed together, the smaller one is called Spanish sampler, it should have been smaller, but I repeated some of the panels. On my memory box, still in our bedroom, the front cushion is old european pattern, by Steve Rousseau, the pink cushion is my own mix-up of designs, I made this in 2010, whilst I was receiving chemo, this is the most special of my work, it helped me through a hard period of my life. 

 When sorting out my wardrobe the other week, I found this packet, so I still have one more 28dpi to use, pure joy to find. I have one design which once made I gave away, I have used it loads on my mix-up designs, and I think I will stitch it once more as a complete piece. 

I have used the label final 28dpi for this project I am working on, as I did not think I would purchase such fine canvas again, when I started this project I thought my eyes might struggle, but with a new lamp and daylight bulb, I am stitching with ease. I only have a few of my big designs, most of the designs I have finished I have given away. Most of the time the joy I get is in the making of the designs, once finished very few stay with me, I am not keen on having loads framed and hanging on our walls. 

I am reading most evenings, I am being restful as I gather my strength again, I do like to be active in the daytime, ensuring the house is clean, and then out into the garden whilst the sun shines, I am spreading my task out, before I would get everything done in one day. I have changed the contents of a few pots around, I am keeping to my promise of no new pots, and given 3 cracked and broke this winter, I feel I am doing well. 

True to form, our neighbour is unhappy with the replacement fence, hubby checked our boundary and  the last two old fence panels were out of line, so they corrected the line, something I probably would not have done, as it was only about six inches.  BUT, she has noticed and sent correspondence stating we have stolen her land, and damaged her items behind her summer house, she did not want the panels replaced, she wanted them repaired, we need to sort this out. Hubby has replied, the fence stays, the boundary is shared, but as we have paid fully for the replacement panels and work, she is not to touch anything. Just waiting to see what happens next.

Planning

 I've had a few days off from this cross stitch project, I was struggling to choose which design to use on the left hand side, I realised my issue was I was unsure how much space I have there. I had always planned the two or 3 designs for the bottom left corner, and I also knew I wanted 2 complete oblong designs along the left boarder, so I have popped the bigger side bars on, and I am doing the lower designs, this way once finished I can know what designs to fill the middle section. 

I am loving stitching these hexagons together, I can stitch 4 flowers most evenings, it's a restful thing to be doing, and of course Grace gets to sit on my lap. My work box is emptying, each flower uses 7 hexagons, I still have some to sew around the paper template, I'm not sure I will use them, the workbox sits by my chair, tucked out of sight, so easy to pull out and work from. I still have no idea what to make with the stitched flowers, I have far more than expected.

Another small project is for me to unpick these 5 small cushions, which I have made over the years, I intend to stitch them into one big cushion cover, which will be easier to have out at Christmas. Over the years these have been sat on, tucked out of the way, last year I did not get them out. I am thinking a patchwork design around them. I intend to make just a cushion cover, so in December I can pop it over a cushion I already have.

My first attempt at patchwork freestyle, this is using some of my many scraps of cotton, I am sewing them onto another piece of backing fabric, I did cut the backing fabric in one big size, but decided to cut it again into 4 and make four similar designs just over 7" square. Once all four are done I can sew them together, with or without extra fabric boarders, which would make a cushion cover or a front for another bag, I don't need either, but I don't want to not use it and still have it in my stash. There are alot of greys in this design, but the blue cutting board has distorted the colours, I really enjoyed doing this, took me about an hour, mainly because it took ages choosing what to stitch next. 

Saturday was wet as we got up, but it dried slightly and we managed to get out for a short walk, so another day at home with nothing much to do, it was dull the whole day. Thank goodness hubby and I get on so well, we are spending too much time home alone. 

Sunday we woke up to blue skies, hubby got all the towels on the line, it was windy enough to get rid of most of the damp. We popped out, we need cat food, which we purchase it in tins, and Grace is fussy eater, so we went to find her food, most places only sell pouches, and like everything else the price is now so much more. We still get our cat food in tins as they recycle easier, less shops sell tins. I know you can recycle pouches, but the local store is in an area we only go to every 5-6 weeks and I don't want to have to store used pouches. We also got cleaning items and a few tins of food. 

Monday we took the bus to town for our fruit and veg, again the stall was not there, we are going to check other markets to see if they go, we do love their fresh produce. Hubby got a new battery put into his watch, I got some more bread, and we popped into Wilkinson's for a few items. We did not stay out long, the wind is now bitter cold, I'm a soft southerner. 

Today is sign group, I have had a cough for over a week, it's annoying in the day time and can keep me awake at night, so I decided to miss the group today, quite a few of the ladies are older and I don't want to pass on germs. I spoke to my doctor on a follow up call, he thinks my issues are all a result of my kidney infection last year, and whilst I still have a few abnormal results, they are within an acceptable level, he want's just one more test, if that's OK, then I will have another blood test in 3 months to see if I am back to where I should be. I am happy with his diagnosis and how he has checked everything relevant. 

Denim cushions

I had to make cushion inners first, I wanted these cushions to be much bigger, full and firm, my brother's new sofa is big. I had an old quilt cover, where the corners had worn, but the cotton was still good, perfect for the inner covers. Here is one by a normal sized cushion. 

 I had already cut the legs from jeans, now I cut 4inch wide strips, the denim is thick, so I did not want tiny widths, which the seams would have made the cushion bulky. I used my cutting wheel, perfect for this task.

 I already knew I would not make them matching, and had decided I would have a panel with the seams going a different way, this would add to the interest. As you can see, there were different shades of blue. 

 I had planned this design, but I did not have a piece long enough to go across the cushion, as I planned, so I stitched this together and then stitched it to the panels. 

 On my sofa, which is really small, they do look good, and are really strong, I backed the cushions with some black velvet, which is firm enough to balance the weight of the front panels. 

I finished the bottom seam by hand, I did think of using a zip, but these are huge and the zips, which would need to be strong are expensive. I can always undo and restitch should they require washing.
It took most of Friday to make these cushions, cutting and remaking, much like a simple quilting, does take time, plus I did not want to rush, I wanted the panels to be equal sizes, which meant stitching slowly and careful.
Hubby was out all day with the car, so it was perfect to finish this task, I even managed to pack away the rest of the denim pieces in my stash in the attic. I am on a tidy trip around the house, packing my yarn stash in my wardrobe upstairs, so the spare room is tidy. I have also sorted my craft area in our office, I still have projects out, but most are stashed away for the next couple of weeks.
George had his footprints done for his 1st Christmas tree decorations, daughter will pick them up next week, his foot print was tiny, he is just 3 weeks old, Will was 10 months when he did his 1st ornament.
I have now finished all the hand made gifts, and most of my presents are wrapped, but in truth we don't get too many gifts, our grandsons always have money, so they can get something they want. I do have to finish my cake, but it's just a case of rolling out icing and covering the cake, I have already made my Santa topper.
Today is sunny and bright, but so very cold, we have few plans, Will is coming after lunch for a sleep over, mummy and daddy are not going out, we just wanted Will to see all our lights in the dark and a sleep over was the best way, well that's my excuse for having him here.

More legs

7 pairs of Jeans

 Couple of zips

I have had these jeans for ages, most are good quality, when my older brother Mel lost his battle with cancer years ago, I kept his jeans to make a keepsake for my brother Martin, I have made myself cushions before with old jeans, seen here. My brother Martin has a new sofa, so it's time for me to use the denim and make him 2 large cushions, this will be a Christmas gift from me to him. I can show this here, blogging does not interest him.
Yesterday hubby was sorting our small attic space, he does it every year after we get the Christmas decorations out, I now have a huge space in my fabric stash, not that I plan to purchase any more, I still have more fabric than I can use.
So today the sewing machine is out, I have cut the legs off and will have 28 strips of denim to use, they will be square, with a black velvet back, I hope to have them finished and under my tree by the end of the weekend. As yet I have not decided how I will stitch them together, or even if they will be matching cushions, the design desions will be made as I work with the colours of the denim.

Finished

My book cushions, I made two

 Another bag with big front pocket. 

Sunday it rained all bloody day, heavy, not going out in that rain, all good for our water table levels and our gardens, but depressing to look at. Hubby was driving between 1pm and 7pm, so plenty of time for me to play inside.
I have another 5 items made, and some fabric set aside to cut out more. The reading cushions used some off cuts of fabric, purchased from a charity shop, just costing 50p each one, both have zips at the bottom so covers can be removed and cleaned. we have gifted to two grandson these type of pocket cushions which they love. The pocket on the bag was another off cut, the main body of the cushions and bag came from a good quality curtain, purchased from a charity shop, which is a cost effective way to add to your stash.
I am adding this extra cost to my stash list, but I will record the purchase prices to off set the total cost.
I also made two plate carriers, using tea towels, same as here, the fabric was not strong enough for bags.
I have been looking at my WIP, mainly cross stitch, I am the nearly woman, I have nearly finished 3 projects, plus nearly finished knitting my 1st pair of socks, so I will finish both the socks and Mandela this week. I have a Christmas cross stitch I would like to use this year, I last stitched on it in November 2017.
Weather is predicted to be better today, so I might get outside for a while.

A letter and a parcel

Two nice items in one day

Letter from our boss, 2.5%pay rise 

back dated to May, in our pay tomorrow

An expected parcel from Dawn

 Dawn makes the most wonderful craft items in her beautiful cabin

 These are for bunting for two of our grandsons

perfectly made for me to finish and string together

 Plus an extra gift for Finn

A book cushion, I asked for Dawn to use the same fabric. 

 Up close

the most perfect words, just need to get a great book.

Today has been up and down, the morning was much the same, then the boss handed out our letters, we knew the pay rise was coming but 2.5% was more than we expected and to be told it's back dated for 6 months and in our salary tomorrow.
We were all called into a meeting our roles are changing, not by much, myself and Mel has changed for the better, I now deal with one of the top customers and all retail stores, and Mel takes all the smaller companies. The work is now balanced better and I am dealing with locations with lovely people. The other two ladies are not at all happy with their changes, but for the moment I am in favour at work.
To come home to the wonderful stitching from Dawn, I put my order in a while ago, I could do the letters for the bunting, but I knew Dawn could do them a whole lot better. Dawn has a second blog, if you don't know her click on either of the links, grab your favorite drink and enjoy getting to know her.
Last night hubby asked me chose my birthday present for next month, and I have a couple pairs of Fiskars scissors coming, it's much nicer to know what is coming and for it to be useful.
I also popped to Marks & Spencer web site, they have a huge sale, Per una range was discounted so three items later, it should have been four, but one sold out before I got to the pay section. I spent £28.47 on three items, a jacket, a cardigan and a jumper, I saved over £100 on the items, just have to pop to town on Saturday to pick them up.

So today was a good day

A sewing post

Colours for my next project

 Hubby has set me a task

He would like this design on a cushion

I have already turned the design into a pattern

The threads and canvas cost £28.00
so I have already spent more in Feb than Jan

Still loving this
I have two crossed blades to stitch under the white rose
so inside will not be all black

 I am loving the simplicity of this

March - Joyful World

a quick stitch for me

 This is for Jo, Through the keyhole

I always fold my fabric whilst stitching on a large piece,

the double fabric holds tighter in these clips

but the folds are never too bad and always iron out

I roll my work in between stitching each update. 

I have not stitched my patchwork cushion, it's still in the frame, waiting, some time soon I will finish it. I am enjoying the stitch along, this one is very different to the normal designer I follow. Later I will do some more on Sheffield.
Logan is with us for a few days, so later in the week I will post loads of photo's.
We had another great night out on Saturday, good company, lovely food and loads of music to dance to. Most of Sunday was resting, the knee's can't take it, even if the mind is willing.

My happy post

Hubbys present from me

I normally don't do Valentines, 

but there is a new local shop  with great prices. 

Sam loved it as soon as he saw it.

 One way to learn music

Sam came after school yesterday

 Our poor Magnolia tree

Weather burnt buds and loads of new buds

 The sky last evening, after the bad frosty start

the day turned out bright and dry

 These were waiting for me when I got home last night

Hubby got me flowers to celebrate my happy news, and it's real happy news, I finished work today at 12.15, and I have next week off, with nothing to do but stay at home. Grandsons will be involved because it is half term.
On 22 February I start a new job, I got an interview as soon as I put my CV out, and I got the job, handed my notice in yesterday, only one week required and asked to finish today. Was let go, so other than sadness for leaving a few of my work friends behind, no more having to listen to the horrible woman who is now dominating the office. Plus better conditions, more days holiday per year and a pay rise. Last Wednesday I spent the afternoon with the new company, a suggestion I made to ensure I would be happy with the work and new office, they jumped at the chance to try me out. So again I am starting a new role, this one is permanent.

So plans for next 9 days,

Hair cut tonight. 

Tomorrow a lunch at home for friends old and new. 

Tomorrow evening Valentines ball at HMS Collinswood (local Naval base). 

Sunday free.

Next week, lunch with Ann on Wednesday, 

sewing machine out, rest, read, gardening and 

HAVE FUN.

Quick meal

Maliee Quiche

4 eggs

cheese

1 onion

chopped bacon

4oz flour

1/2 pint of milk

Lightly fry the bacon and onions drain and cool

mix milk , flour and eggs

add other ingredients

place in greased 7" oven dish and bake

med heat for 40 minutes

You can add any other ingredients.
NO PASTRY

I don't often cook, but this is a good standby, no pastry to make, very quick and cheap, great if suddenly you have extra people for your meal. I cooked it using gluten free flour, so Fliss could have some, hubby is a way for a few days so I could add cheese. I added mushrooms and tomatoes, as the quiche cooks the edge forms a bit like pastry, so simple and quick. It's a shame I can't add smell, the house was full of warm cheesy smells, we had baby potatoes and salad with it and some left over for lunch today, bliss. 

My sewing is coming along well, 

I am loving stitching this design again,

I love my work when it looks like patchwork, this is so tiny and neat. 

I have another book to read

We popped for a walk
Lee on the Solent, we have not been here for a while
nice to see so many people catching the sunshine.
You can't see but the water was busy as well.

I picked up Sam and Josh from school, we had a pillow fight on my bed, it now looks a wreck, but so much laughter and fun, the boys are very different to each other, but get on well together, I really love Tuesdays.

We have done more to the wedding cards, other cards has been created, one is mirror card with hotel details on the back, we have a white card which will be RSVP and a final top navy card with the Wedding Invitation logo. Just a couple of tweaks and they will be designed, then all I have to do is make loads of them.

The house is quiet, I'm home alone,  hubby is at my brother Martin's house for a couple of days.