Lava necklace....

A while ago I wrote THIS post about The Ultimate DIY contest, and my proposed entry into it....

Now - obviously I did not organize myself well enough to actually send my entry in, but I did make it and have worn it several times since, so thought I might as well show the final product to justify my efforts!

Its amazing what you can do with an extra long shoe-lace, some seed beads and a needle and thread!

Coral wristwarmers...

This is a semi-tutorial for a pair of wrist-warmers from an old sweater / cardigan, I was given a beautiful Coral pink cardigan for my birthday a couple of years ago, and it was the victim of an ink stain last xmas whilst printing my gocco cards....

Anyway - I loved the colour of it and it is the softest angora merino mix so I didn't want it to go to waste, and as it was freezing on Friday night it spurred me into action!

So - I cut 2 pieces out of one of the sleeves :


Then I turned them inside out and then flattened them out and stitched down the vertical center of each :


Then turned them right side out so that one side fits into the other and there is a double layer as below :


Et Voila!


Roasty Toasty Wrist-warmers for no extra cost!

felt tipped fabric...

Photo by Valentina Frugiuele, via Ben Trovato.

Today I saw THIS post on the fabulous Outsapop blog, and it has inspired me to have a go at altering some of the plain t-shirts in my wardrobe, it also reminded me of the Ikat design I did on one of my t-shirts last summer, very easy to do!

Weekend stitching - part 2, the packable shopper...

This is a little project I whipped up at the weekend, using THIS excellent tutorial from Craftster.

The beauty of it is that it folds up neatly into the little pouch that I made and fits easily into your handbag without taking up too much space, so should you come across any unexpected goodies to purchase you have the perfect bag with you for such an occasion!

I made mine out of a very strong nylon which is water-proof as well as being relatively kind to your hands, unlike the bog standard supermarket plastic version.

I would definitely recommend making one or two for yourself, I can see these being good gifts or stocking fillers....

Dainty bird feeder....

This is a lovely idea and a very clever tutorial from Cap Creations which uses a teacup and saucer to create a bird feeder for your garden, the saucer acts as the bird-seed holder and the cup as the water holder - the tutorial can be found HERE.

Military and brooches....

I love everything about this image, the felt military coat is something I am planning to make this Winter..... and any old brooches from your local charity or vintage shop would do the trick, I also love the idea of a black shirt buttoned all the way up with an oversize brooch at the neck for decoration, Victoriana style....

Earring stand idea

I love THIS tutorial from 'Kevin & Amanda' for a Shabby Chic style dangly earring display, I think its a wonderful idea because mine are all jumbled up in a box and easily forgotten about, so this would be a lovely way to see what you have and an easy tangle-free way to keep them.

It is so easy to find frames in your local charity shop, just remove the back and the often questionable art within, give it a lick of paint and gather the required bits and bobs in the tutorial and you are ready to create!

2 into 1

Jacket by Alexander Wang (Picture found via Outsapop) from Opening Ceremony

I love this jacket - brought to my attention by a post from the ever-brilliant Outi of Outsapop fame, I had never considered putting the 2 together, so this post is a perfect example of her inspiring vision and different way of seeing things.

I already have everything I would need to make this at home thanks to the genius of Uniqlo, I have a black cotton trench and a grey sweater that I have never worn and have realised that by hacking them together I could actually make 2 new garments from 1......... A trench coat with grey sweat sleeves, and a bomber / sweater jacket with black cotton sleeves, which would be very handy for spring/summer showers!

Plus - i already 'Wang'ed (studded) my own version of the bag in this picture which I have been sporting this week and am loving (post to follow).

Knitting Green Pouffes

Knitting Daily are holding a competition in homage to the book Knitting Green by Ann Budd.

So for this challenge I thought I would make a pouffe/foot stool from old jersey t-shirts with an XL crochet hook a la Pickles!

Here is a picture of their Puff Granny's Baby Pouffe from their lovely knitting blog :

Keep this cup

I love the idea of this!

Wish they sold them in the UK.