Bags of Busyness

31 March 2016


March is almost over, gone in a whirl of busyness, a good happy kind of busyness, it has felt shorter than February!  I thought, when I sat down to write this post that I had not done much creating and making this month, but as the list grew I realised there was plenty, it has been all about small projects.


My jumper has grown and I hope will be finished soon, after my last project I knitted for myself ended in failure I have been trying this on regularly to ensure it fits!  It is cool enough here to wear wool knits all year round and I chose this colour with that in mind, it will go with both my summer and winter wardrobes.  Just a few more rounds on this sleeve and the neck and hopefully a ta da moment soon.



I wanted to make 2016 the year I sewed something that I could wear, I have been talking about wanting to for the last couple of years.  I don't have a dedicated space for sewing, I am a nomad using which ever space is best for each project.  There is a lot of effort involved in getting everything out and putting it away, which I have to do each time I want to sew.  It has hindered larger projects as I always want to start and finish in one go.  I have made peace with the fact that that isn't going to happen and learnt to break down projects into bite sized chunks, the issue then is where to store the work in progress.  This is only the second time I have bought and followed a pattern, I usually just make up my own.  It is not quite finished yet, I just need to make some bias tape to go round the armholes.  I say just I have never made it myself before, I couldn't find any that matched.



I am entering birthday season here which is why I thought I had made little progress on projects.  Between the end of April and mid June we have 15 birthdays amongst family and friends for most of these I send a present. In the past I have tried to make them all but to give myself enough time I have to start in January which meant that with the Christmas makes I was spending nearly all year making presents a rather ridiculous state of affairs.  I make what I can sewing, rather than knitting, as that tends to be quicker.  I try and have a theme, so that they are all fairly similar which saves on thinking time!  This year it is all about games in bags.  I will reveal the contents of the grey bag at the top in a separate post, these colourful bags are for my twin nephews, a bag of beanbags, I shall be making two more this month for a friends children and one other for a June birthday.



We haven't marked Easter in our house before, inspired by my Advent project, I have started to build a project for us to do each year, stories, crafts, songs and poems.  We have been making use of our crafternoon time each week to make some small pieces for our seasonal table.  We now have two hares, a knitted chick and some decorated eggs hanging from the plant that also sits on the table, they have joined Mother Earth and her root children (who are replaced with flower fairies as they come into season), a snowdrop fairy and a sheep with her lamb.  I have wanted to decorate eggs for a number of years, I tried blowing eggs with disastrous results, the shells just kept breaking.  Then I chanced upon a new, to me, blog with the perfect answer, decorating polystyrene eggs with fabric, I have lots of scraps of fabric!  We wanted to hang ours up so I threaded a loop of cotton through the last piece of fabric we glued on.  These will keep for years to come, I hope!

My socks are still as they were last month and the balls of yarn are waiting in a bag, they will get some attention once the birthday season making is over, it is Alice's presents on the top of the list now.

Joining Jennifer for the last Winter Linky Party of the season.

25 comments:

  1. Wow, some wonderful making happening in your home, love it all!! That top bag is beautiful and your sweater is going to be lovely, the colour is amazing. And what a sweet gift idea...might have to use that one :)

    Happy making!

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    1. Thank you. Please do and enjoy making it :).

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  2. Beautiful, beautiful makes. I'm really looking forward to seeing the finished jumper, I made some socks in a very similar colour, it's lovely. I have never really done any sewing before, I think I would struggle but your top is making me want to give it a try.
    Easter has been marked for the first time in our house too. I crocheted some eggs for an Easter tree.
    Hope you and yours are keeping well. X

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    1. Thank you. Sewing is more forgiving than knitting in some ways. I find it easier to make it up as I go along than with knitting. I always say to people give it a go, but only if you really want to! Your heart has to be in it :)

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  3. Lots of lovely crafting! I like the bean bags in their colourful bags - a super present! You have reminded me that I have papier machee eggs that didn't get decorated this year - or last year!!

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    1. Thank you. The quilt is noticeably absent...........there is always next year for the eggs?

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  4. I love the beanbags in their bags too. How wonderful for a young child to receive a gift like that!

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  5. You've done lots of crafting this month. I always like to see the things you make for gifts, they're always so well thought out and I'm sure they're very well received by the recipients, the beanbags in a bag is another wonderful idea. I like the idea of a seasonal table, things can be added to it each year. How cute the little hare is.

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    1. Thank you Jo. I love coming up with the ideas it keeps my brain cells whirring! I have wanted to start a seasonal table when Cameron was little but I knew that Alice would make off with all the little bits and pieces! It had to wait, but in many ways that has been a good thing as now they are old enough to make many of the bits we want to add. They love getting the box out each month we store all the out of season pieces in to add and take away bits.

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  6. You certainly are busy with your bags and many other hand crafted items! The lilac color of your sweater is very pretty. I love that little felt rabbit.

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    1. I have been, it is the cutting out that always takes me the most time :)

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  7. Love all our beautiful projects! I really like the texture of your violet sweater - what a great stitch definition!

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    1. Thank you, I am pleased with how it is turning out. I am drawn more and more to projects with detail in the stitching they make for an interesting knit too rather than row in row of stocking stitch.

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  8. I thought March whizzed by as well, usually it doesn't for me. Lovely bags, so creative and yet functional!! Love your sweater and hope it's off the needles as quick as March flew by :)

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  9. What a creative month you have had. I love your bags...so pretty and practical. I recently sewed bags with my daughters and it was so fun.

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  10. IT looks like you have been very busy and all of your projects are really fantastic.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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  11. Such great projects, you have been busy. Love the idea of the bean bags in a bag.

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  12. Everything is just so lovely! I love the fabric wrapped Easter eggs. I'm gonna make those next year for certain.

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  13. I am intrigued by your rye flour shampoo. I wash my hair with grated pure soap simmered with herbs (chamomile leaves are very fpgoingoing) or blossom and do a final rinse/condition with a homemade Rosemary infusion. I've been doing this for about 20 years in an attempt to reduce plastic. I always use pure soap to wash my body and hands and (dare I say this) I don't use deodorant. My bible for such things is "Nature's Foods" by Peter Deadman and Karen Betteridge and every time I refer to this book which was first published in 1973 I find it more and more relevant to my life today.

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  14. So many beautiful projects. The bias binding is easier than you probably imagine. Lots of tutorials out there. The only part that alarms me when I make some, is how much fabric it seems to take, as its cut on the bias. Your bags are so colourful. Love the eggs and peg dolls.

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  15. Hi there, thank you for joining in with my link party. I love all of these things you've been making. The bags are a great idea. I think handmade gifts are the best kind. I'm sure yours will be loved. The eggs and dolls are wonderful too. You are very talented!

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  16. Game in a bag is such a lovely idea and I love those hares! I have the same issue with no sewing space as such so it can be really demotivating thinking about getting everything out and then packing everything away again before the kids come home. One day maybe! I'm glad I've finally found the time to find your blog!
    Lucy xx

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