All done and finished...my first set of a new product...

Did you guess right?

I'm really pleased with how these have turned out and can't wait to get into my studio and get more sets made.

I've already picked out a load of fabrics (my favourite bit of any project) that are sitting waiting patiently for a few spare moments.

The first set is in the shop now

I've been playing around with a new idea and it's almost ready to show.

Ever since Ruby got her little sewing machine for her birthday I've been hankering after playing around with Stitch I. It's that scalloped stitch you can see here.

I haven't been able to get it out of my head and I kept thinking of ways I could use it. Needless to say, it's all come together...

I've had a new product in mind to try out and today when I was experimenting with it, I suddenly remembered Stitch I and new at once how I could incorporate it.

It's almost ready for show and tell and you've probably got a pretty good idea what it is going to be...

Any guesses?

I had an extra special delivery today. One I have been waiting for for some time. I saw these cuter than cute kits from Kayanna of Junecraft a while ago and I can't believe they are here.

The kits are super easy and perfect for a first project, but oh so funky enough to want to do anyway, however advanced you are.

Kayanna's funky designs have been printed onto fabric and included in the kit is a piece of vintage fabric. To make each Guitar and Dog even more special, the fabrics used will vary.

They are perfect to give as a gift or have fun making one yourself and give that as a perfect gift.

They come in Long Dog and Folk Guitar and are just too irresistible.

They can be found right here.

Forgive me for gloating for a moment, but I am actually quite impressed with myself. I always have big plans to make handmade gifts for all the children at Christmas, but time always runs away and I never get started early enough.

But not this year! It's still only October and I've already made the starting point of 4 of my nieces' and nephews' gifts.

The rabbits are all done, as are the fabric baskets. I just need to make a couple of gifts to put in the baskets. Just something little. Nothing too challenging or demanding on time.

So, I am quite pleased with myself. And I'm hoping to even get started on a little something for the grown-ups too. Ok, so now I'm gloating...

Ever since I was invited to join the Flickr group "My morning cup", I've been hooked on these little 'mug rugs' that everyone seems to be making at the mo.

They are very sweet and I love the idea of them. However I am partial to a tray to put my morning cuppa on, so they weren't actually going to work for me.

But, as I said, I love the idea of a splash of colour on the table and adding texture when a full cloth may not be desired or practical. Just a little decorative touch to break up a surface.

So I have extended the idea a fraction and made a couple of mats for various positions in the house. The first one above is now sitting in the middle of the kitchen table. It's already, within the 24 hours it has been sitting there, been used for a fruit bowl, the coffee break, oh and I think breakfast juice and glasses.

I've just finished this second one and it is now sitting on top of our new fireplace. I absolutely adore our new fireplace, but couldn't quite put my finger on what was missing.

A touch of soft fabric to break up the hard surface...perfect!

I'm hoping to make some of these for my shop, so if you like and are interested, drop me a line and I'll make sure I do some in the colourways you like.

(I managed it! and they are right here and here)

I wasn't quite expecting to get Jack and Jacketta done quite so swiftly. I honestly thought that I would be making them way past midnight the day before they needed to go.

Even when I started to choose and cut the fabrics on Sunday evening while we were all sitting watching X Factor, I assumed the pile of cut pieces would sit on the shelves for a few more weeks.

I should know really that I am the most impatient person on the planet when it comes to a project waiting to be completed. I can not switch off from knowing it is there. Strangely, I don't have the same compulsion with a pile of ironing...

I should also know that I get rather absorbed when doing something for the first time. The excitement of the challenge, along with wondering whether I will be able to do it is something I can't switch off from when trying something new.

My creative journey is on the whole an organic one. Lots of trial and error. Plenty of making it up as I go along. And certainly a distinct lack of formality of following a pattern or anything of the like. I could never have had the confidence to tackle something like this a couple of years ago. But I am pretty confident with knowing my way around my machine, fabrics, the lingo, so I didn't feel too daunted by the prospect. I did however wonder whether they would come out as they should, or even half-way rabbit-like.

And since I've never ventured into the world of making clothes either, I did wonder whether they were going to come out right too. Needless to say, I have now started yet another obsession and am making shorts and skirts for all of Ruby's teddies!

So when they turned out like this, I was more than just a teensy bit delighted and am now so excited to give them to my niece and nephew that I'm actually wondering how I will manage to wait until Chanukah. I'm just only too pleased that Chanukah this year starts December 1!

It's been yet another mad and crazy week. Madder and crazier than ever I might add. Not only has work been testing the boundaries of possibilities, but it seems that when life is so manic, there are a shed load of other things to juggle too.

This week was one of those weeks. Parents' evenings every evening this week, along with a Prize Giving Evening for Sam and then family birthdays galore. This meant whipping up neccessary presents, oh and other members of the family quickly ringing to ask if I could just pop something in the post for the afore-mentioned people's bithdays.

It's really lovely that everyone comes to me for gifts. But it would be a whole lot better if they could do it sooner than the night before!

One relative's birthday is today. My lovely sister-in-law Ruth. Last time we were down at theirs she mentioned that she would love me to make her a Tea Cosy. Obviously I never got around to making it any sooner, so a perfect idea for a birthday. At least I knew I'd be giving her something she wanted!

Ruth and Dan have just redone their kitchen...in my favourite shade of Duck Egg Blue too. So making an accessory for this scheme was an absolute pleasure. And certainly not a problem in terms of having the right colour fabrics in my stash ;-)

I had recently bought these Denyse Schmidt fabrics from Kate, and knew instantly that they were going to work for this project. I'm really pleased with the outcome and delighted to report back that Ruth is too.

I think this may be the beginning of a new range too...

I'd like to think that this week life was going to give me a bit of a break. But it's not looking that way. matthew is away for most of it, which means all falls on me. And it's 2 nephews' birthdays at the end of the week. I'm pretty sure though that I won't be russtling up anything for the 15 year old...too cool for handmade...