Hand built ceramic rose Jug

Those of you who follow me on Instagram will know that I have been attending some drop in ceramic classes lately (I say lately, I've been going since Xmas so its been a good 6 months!). The classes are run by David Sampson at the Art rooms in Long Eaton and you can find a link to the workshops here. What I really love about these classes is that they are drop in so you aren't tied to a class every week, this is perfect for people with unpredictable little monkeys like me!

This was a little pot that I started between other projects one evening when I had a bit of time at the end of a session and was just playing around. I think its turned out really nicely.

This is the first piece of work that I've been able to bring home since I started but this is because of  the time it takes for the work to dry out, the number of firings each piece of work has to have and obviously the availability of the kiln. As most of my other pieces need a final glaze fire they have been taking a little longer as they need extra firings.

This jug shaped pot was built using the coil method of hand building. I then added some cute little rolled roses onto the side and did a bit of sgraffito for the stems. The main pot has been coloured with oxides, the leaves have been painted on with a coloured slip (I think) and the roses have been done in a red glaze. 

 

To say this little pot was a bit of a by product I think its really cute. Sadly when it was fired it got a little crack in the bottom which means its kind of failing in its main function as a jug so I think it will just have to be some kinds of pen holder/trinket keeper instead. It is still lovely to look at though. I did make this pot with my mum in mind around mothers day (she sort of collects jugs) so I will definitely be gifting it to her this week, I hope that she likes it and can find a suitable use for it.

Davids workshops are hand building only (no throwing) and I have been really enjoying them. Its really nice to just play around with different techniques just to 'see what happens' and its nice to be able to learn some things along the way (even if they are through making mistakes). Ceramics is one of those things I have always wanted to have more of a go at as an adult but due to finds and availability hadn't managed to get round to it. I was very lucky in that Mr Fox organised paying for a few sessions for me as an anniversary present last year and spoke to David to get me to go on the class. I'm really glad he did, and its lovely to have a few hours on a Monday when I can just forget everything else and get lost in the clay.

So if your local and have been thinking about giving ceramics a go you could come and give the sessions a go, the first one is free and I have put the flyer below:

Marvin the Sock Monkey

Meet Marvin the Sock Monkey! You will probably already know that I have been making cuddly toys for years (take a look at my Monster Magic page if you didn't already know) but I have never ventured into the world of sock creations. There are two reasons for this, firstly that I much prefer the idea of using plain fabric, I think I decided it was less restrictive. Secondly, and more importantly, I have a good friend who makes sock creatures and is much better at it than I will ever be. She does make them to sell so if you are interested in purchasing a sock creature, or just want to have a nose at her brilliant work check out her Socksy Beasts page on Facebook.

 
Anyway, back to Marvin, why did I made a sock monkey? well because I was gifted a sock monkey kit of course! A great excuse to take a sneak peak into the world of sock creations. The kit is from www.sockcreatures.co.uk and contains everything you need to make your very own sock monkey. Of course they don't just do monkeys. there is a huge range of sock creature kits from a sock fox to a sockasaurus, you really need to take a look to really appreciate how many different kits there are.

So, what do you get in the kit? Well, the bag contained a pair of socks (doh!), I have to admit the colour put me off making this for a while but never mind. You also get some printed instructions on how to make the sock creature, stuffing, thread, needle, accessories to decorate your creature and some sweeties (which really do help the creative process!).

The instructions were very easy to follow and the kit was a doddle to use so I would recommend this. It would be a brilliant gift for a young child to help them learn to sew, but is also a bit of fun for adults too. There are however a couple of comments I would like to make about this particular kit. Firstly, why they sent neon orange/black socks with lilac thread I will never know, the stitching is really obvious. Secondly the pattern shows the arm being cut the wrong way round. The diagram implies you cut the arms with the ribbing close to the body, I did this and it looked really daft as the ribbing on the legs and tail are all at the opposite end to the body. So I had to chop the end open and re-sew to make it look less daft. Apart from that a very lovely kit.

After following the instructions to make the sock monkey you are then left with the option of customising your creation. Now as he is a very dapper monkey, and orange and pink are one of my favourite colour combos I made him this lovely giant pink felt bow tie <3. I think it makes him look very sophisticated!


So what do you think to Marvin? I hope you like him, even if hes not the most perfectly sewn.

If anyone would like to adopt him he is free to a good home, I will happily cover postage, just leave me a comment at the end of the post expressing an interest. If I get more than one response we will do a random number generator by the following week. Please don't post your address details in the comments I will get in touch with you for more details. I should point out though he is not brilliantly sewn so should not be given as a toy to very small children as he is not CE tested for safety.

Scented Hand Warmers

Happy Halloween! This weekend I will mostly be dressed as a pumpkin (check it out on instagram...)

It feels a bit fraudulent to be writing a post on Halloween which has no relevance to Halloween whatsoever. Especially as its one of my favourite holidays. That's just the way the cookie crumbles I guess, I have Christmas crafting to prioritise this week instead in time for Christmas project craft (which is only 9 days away).

So what do we have here? It's getting colder outside, well I say that, its really not, its pretty warm today and I am roasting pretty much all the time now (tropical moment anyone?) but in theory its getting colder, and the nights are most definitely drawing in. So on that thought we have made some scented heated hand warmers. These little things are great when heated up as they keep your hands toasty warm, but not only that they can be put inside your mitts or socks to keep your extremities warm. Then when its not cold outside anymore they can be popped in your dresser drawer and you will have sweet smelling unmentionables for the rest of the year! Brilliant.

The insides are very simply stuffed with some dry rice which was very expertly scented for me by Ellen with some essential oils.

You simply cut out 4 rectangles, about 3 inch x 4 inch and placing 2 pieces wrong sides together (right sides facing out) sew around three edges in a U shape using a 3/8 seam allowance. Repeat with the other 2 pieces so you have two hand warmer socks. The seams will be on the outside but thats perfectly ok.

Stuff the little bags about 2/3 full with some of your smelly rice

Then stitch the final open seams together making sure the rice is pushed out the way of the machine needle. Ensure that the stitching meets the original seams as we don't want those little riceicles escaping now do we!

The final step is to trim those big seams with a pair of pinking sheers to make them look all neat and pretty and decorative. The great thing about pinking sheers is that they also stop the fabric from fraying all over the place.

In order to make your hand warmers toasty warm you just need to pop them in the microwave for no more than 15 seconds and them take them out. Be careful though as they could be quiet hot to touch as soon as they are done. I don't want to hear of any of you burning yourselves!

And that's it. This was a very quick tutorial but it was so easy it was silly not to show you all how to have a go!

I hope you all have exciting plans for Halloween. We likely won't be doing anything, I am shattered now after a morning at the machine. Its also sad to think this time last year we were in Mexico for Day of the Dead, I would definitely like to go back there one day. But here's looking forward to many future Halloweens with little people in them to make costumes for and take out trick or treating.

I got me an overlocker!

Last weeks edition of The Great British Sewing Bee was so timely as it came just 4 days after I put in my order for my very own overlocker. I am so excited to give this baby a go.

I have never used an overlocker in my life and have no idea where to even start. All I know is that looking at my wardrobe, and the type of clothes I like to wear, they are mostly all made of some sort of jersey or stretch fabric so this will make attempting to sew them so much easier. Now I know I don't NEED an overlocker by any stretch of the imagination, but I came it to a bit of bonus money recently and thought I might as well treat myself. Who doesn't love a new piece of machinery or tool!

I wanted to make sure I did a bit of research first as this was my first time buying one. Things which are looked out for are:

• 3 or 4 Threads: Having the option for either or means that you have a larger range of stitch type options.
• Rolled Hem: This will turn under and overstitch them edge of the fabric, perfect for hemming
• Differential Feed: This is an adjustment to alter the feed so that fabrics don't become too stretched or gathered giving you a beautiful flat seam (see example below).
• Retractable Cutting Knife: Allowing you to sew decorative stitches without cutting the seam
• Colour Coded Threading: Allowing you to see easily how to re-thread the machine
• Adjustable Cutting Width: Change the amount of the seam which is cut
• Variable Seam length and width: Some come with one or the other or neither. I wanted a good variation on this.

I opted for the Janome 9300DX in the end because it was within my price bracket and on comparison gave a good range in stitch adjustments for what I wanted. However if you are thinking about a cheaper version Tilly has been raving about her Brother 1034D.

The picture above shows you what differential feed really means (the clue is so not in the title). It is a dial that changes the amount of 'give', for want of a better word, in the seam stitches. If you look at the top one my differential feed is not set correctly and so the seam is stretched and out of shape (not good). If you turn the dial (up for jersey) then you change the differential feed and you can see this has made everything nice and straight and flat, magic. So that is what differential feed means, I know, I didn't have a monkeys either so don't worry. I will definitely be showing you what happens when I get to have a proper play with this.

Do any of you have an overlocker and have any tips or tricks for me? Alternatively, if you are thinking about one why do you want it? And I hope this post might have given you a bit of an insight in to what to look out for.