Thursday 31 October 2013

Happy Halloween and Little Knitted Purses

This is just a quick post to wish you a happy Halloween and also to show you these little purses that I've been knitting over the last few days.....


They've been fun to make.....and very easy...

They're to put in the Christmas shoe boxes to send to children that don't get much at Christmas...my sister, Clare, has been collecting items for them...

See you again soon,

Maggie xx

Thursday 24 October 2013

Easy Peasy Half Hour Cushion Cover

Last Friday evening, I was really pleased as I had a bit of spare time to whip up a couple of cushion covers.



They are for my son, George, as I'd promised to make him some for his student house in Cheltenham (it was looking a bit sparse on home comfort front!)

I knew this fabric was perfect for George as he has visited all the featured cities...New York, Paris, London, Rome.....twice as many as me!!



I had been out shopping (and lunching) with my mum and sisters on Friday daytime (it's a hard life!) and picked up a couple of nice cushion inners.

The method of making these cushion covers is so quick and easy I thought I'd show you how......

This is my very first tutorial so please bear with me.....

Gulp!

My cushion inners are 20"/51cm square and the tutorial is based on this size. It can easily be adapted to other sizes by adjusting the measurements slightly. It works best with sizes of 16"-20".

Do you remember my Cushion Cover on a Whim post in the summer?

This was the method I used then.

 It's so great for a quick and easy solution to brightening up a dark or dull corner with a new cushion in next to no time ( about half an hour).....



To make an easy cushion cover, you will need:

20"/51cm length of full width (44"/110cm) fabric
Thread
20"/51cm Cushion inner
Sewing machine
Rotary cutter/scissors
Ruler/Measuring Tape
Pinking shears (optional)
Basic sewing machine skills

I like my covers to be slightly snug so this cover will measure 19"/48cm square when completed.

Take your fabric which should measure 20"/51cm by approximately 44"/110cm.



Now depending on how easy you want to make this, here you have a choice. I like the selvedges of some fabrics. And some fabrics have a pattern that goes right to the edge of the fabric so that you can hardly see the selvedge. 

If you like the selvedge or you have a fabric with a selvedge that doesn't show, you can just leave them as they are. 

If you don't like the selvedge or don't want them showing, you can sew a simple hem by folding the selvedge over and sewing in place.

Fold the selvedge over and sew in place


The fabric I used for George's cushion covers has one 'unsightly' selvedge and the other one is good. I will place the 'unsightly' one on the inside so it won't be showing so I'm not going to worry about sewing them.

Good selvedge


Put a pin in the centre of the longest edge of your fabric. This should be about 22"/56cm from the selvedge (may vary slightly depending on the width of your fabric and whether you've sewn a hem on the selvedges).

Mark the centre with a pin

Press your fabric.

Lay the fabric right side up on a flat surface.

Lay the fabric right side up


From your centre pin, measure 9.5"/24cm  towards one of the selvedges and mark with a pin (my pin is the white one)

Measure 9.5"/24cm from central pin and mark with another pin



Then measure 9.5" from the central pin towards the other selvedge and mark this point with another pin (turquoise pin).

Measure 9.5"/24cm from central pin to the other side and mark with another pin


Remove the centre pin. The length of fabric between the remaining 2 pins (white and turquoise) should be 19"/48cm.

19"/48cm between remaining pins


If you are leaving the selvedges unsewn, fold the selvedge that you want showing on the back of the cushion over towards the centre..........


Fold over towards the centre

................so that the fold is at the nearest pin.

Fold at nearest pin


 Straighten and smooth so the fabric edges line up.

Line up the fabric


(If you have sewn the selvedges, it doesn't matter which side you fold.)


Repeat this process with the other side.

Fold at pin and line up fabric


The width should measure 19"/48cm.

Width across 19"/48cm

Remove the 2 marker pins.

Pin the openings at the top and bottom.

Pin the openings at the top and bottom.



Sew along the top and bottom using a half inch/1.25cm seam removing pins as you sew.

Sew top and bottom


Finish the raw edges of the seams with pinking shears if you like!

Pink the raw edges


Turn the cover the right way round.........

Turn cover right way round


and push the corners out gently from the inside with a blunt object.

Push out corners gently


Press.

Pop your inner inside the cover and le voila!!


I told you it was quick and easy!


You can now sit back and enjoy your new cushion!

After making George's cushion covers, I made another one to brighten up our sofa!


I hope my tutorial made sense!

Maggie xx

Monday 21 October 2013

Giveaway at My Little Piece of England

Just to let you know there's an extremely nice giveaway going on at Cheryl's blog, My Little Piece of England.


There's a chance to win this crochet book,Hip Crochet. Looks absolutely fab!




or The Hairy Dieters book........I love these guys!


So pop on over to Cheryl's lovely blog by clicking on either of the above pics or by clicking here.

Good luck!

Maggie xx

Friday 18 October 2013

Favourite Fabric Friday - Michael Miller's Eiffel Tower

I know many of you may have come across Michael's Miller's fabulous collection of Eiffel Tower fabrics. But just in case you haven't or you just want to enjoy looking at these stunning fabrics again with their beautiful colour combinations, well here you are.....

My favourite......Turquoise with Red.....
Michael Miller Eiffel Tower Turquoise
 Delicious Sorbet....Orange and Pink....
Michael Miller Eiffel Tower Sorbet
 Refreshing Watermelon.....very light Green (looks yellow in the photo) and Pink....
Michael Miller Eiffel Tower Watermelon
 And so pretty Blossom....Pink with Black.......
Michael Miller Eiffel Tower Blossom
Lovely to the touch 100% cotton, perfect for bags, quilting, dressmaking....

I'm lucky enough to be in possession of small quantities of these fabrics. You may find them in my Ebay shop, Daisy Patchwork, by clicking on any of the photos above.

If you prefer to shop on Etsy, they are also available in my Etsy shop here.

Or please feel free to contact me by email.....maggiemoore@aol.com.

I love selling fabrics for many reasons.....one reason is that when a fabric is sold out, there's usually a small amount left for me to add to my stash!! 

You can find the entire collection including other colour combos on the Michael Miller website here.

 (I'm not getting sponsored or anything by the way...I just love these fabrics!!)

Enjoy!

Maggie xx

Sunday 6 October 2013

Our October Garden

Yesterday I was in the process of collecting together and sorting all my WIPs to show you.....I have quite a few, you know....then the weather turned sunny and I thought I'd better go outside and do some tidying .....so the WIPs will wait for another time.....

So here is a glimpse of our garden instead....

Delicate Cosmos...

Garlic flowers....

Rudbeckia......

A spider above our heads.....

Marigolds....

This sunflower just about to open....

Hot lips Salvia has been blooming all year and is still pretty.....

A sedum.....just bloomed....

 Japanese anemone...first time this has flowered.....

Looking forward to roasting this butternut sqaush....

A few damsons this year.....

 Spot the spider!

I've been clearing the greenhouse and tidying the roof terrace....

Still a bit to do yet!!

I've picked the last of the tomatoes and a few sorry specimens of pepper and cucumber...


Spencer has been helping me as always....


There's still lots of runner beans....they have been delicious and tender....we've tried to pick them before they get too big..

Looks a bit cloudy over the town.....time to go in for a cuppa....

If it starts raining, I'll be sorting my WIPs!
 

I'll leave you with these curious calves that I met on the Common last week...


Adorable innocent little faces...

Thanks for visiting!

Maggie xx