Creative Spaces: Crazy brooches

I'm joining in Our Creatives Spaces this week. Visit here to sign up or see other spaces.


I've been super busy since finishing my crochet order. There's so much to 
catch up on, but it's been heavenly to take time to dabble with things as I 
feel like it... I've been dabbling with some old Indian embroidered fabric and 
making it into brooches.






It's brought out the Bollywood-Baroque in me I think... or some kind of brazen 
beading-mad hussy ;)












This one (below) is a reject. I really did go just a teensy bit crazy with the beading 
here. I hadn't realised before that good beading is actually an exercise in restraint! 
I think it was finding a scrap of orange leather... sent me a bit wild! :))
I'll be unpicking and cutting and re-doing soon.





Beading-hussy approved brooches will go into my shop soon.
Hope you've had a wonderfully creative week :)


UPDATE: Okay, so reject brooch now looks like this....





and there's a new cream one that looks like this...





AND YAH! I finally have some new listings in my shop! :)

Creative Space: Finished Crazy Chevron

You might remember this crochet design... It wasn't chosen for the shop order 
but it was still liked by some. In fact, someone liked it so much they're getting 
it for their birthday :)





I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but the shop order is almost finished! 
I have finished crocheting the front panels, have washed and blocked them 
and waiting for them to dry. I've also pre-shrunk the linen and waiting for that 
to dry too.





Anyway, it was a good project to do while waiting for all this drying ;)
Hope you've had a creative week? Find more spaces here.

Our Creative Spaces: Long time no see

I'm still frantically crocheting my cushion order... Sorry I haven't been around lately.
I have, however, found a brooch to show you that I came across while looking for 
some yarn in my craft room.


Hello old friend! I remember you...





I was planning a whole series of these brooches and they were put on hold in 
all this busy-ness. I will be making more, probably next month though. 


In the meantime, this one has come along at just the right moment for a friend's 
birthday :)





More creative spaces can be found here.

Our Creative Spaces: Finished Ripple Cushions

Apologies to everyone and anyone... I haven't been answering the phone, 
not looking at blogs (let alone commenting), forgetting promises, letting 
people down, working into the night... I cannot believe how long it has taken 
me to finish these cushions!






But finished they are!! So happy :)






Hope you've had a great week. You'll probably be seeing more of me now ;)
See more Creative Spaces here.

Our Creative Spaces: Finishing cushions

I'm playing along with the Our Creative Spaces meme again this week. 

To sign up or see other spaces visit here.

In my space this week, I've been finishing the ripple cushions. Actually, 

I'm a bit stressed at the moment because my machine is playing up... I take

my foot off the pedal and it won't stop  :( 

I'm investigating solutions... Meanwhile, this is literally my space...

I really like details and finishing touches that have a practical application 

but also work aesthetically. Linen tape, found here, binds the cushion seams

to shape and looks pretty cool too I think ;)

Hope you've had a wonderfully creative week ... and sewing machines that 

work well for you!

Our Creative Spaces: Finished Ripple Blanket

It feels like ages since I've joined in with the Our Creative Spaces meme. 
Visit here to see more spaces or to sign up yourself.





So, in my space this year has been a massive order for 16 ripple cushions 
(front panels finished but not made up into actual cushions yet)... 4 crazy 
chevron cushions (only 1 panel made up with plans to re-design the pattern 
and start again)... and a ripple blanket (finished!).











I love how it's got a lovely bumpy form to suit the pattern.








The yarn is Biggan Design and the ripple pattern is Lucy's.





It's so nice to have something finished :) Must get back to finishing the rest of 
the order now. Hope you've had a productive week? Happy creative space day!


UPDATE:
I've crocheted some matching bunting to go with the blanket...

Our Creative Spaces - Red Ripple

I've been wanting to do a ripple for a while. Actually, what I really want to crochet 
is a proper pointy chevron but have been unable to find a pattern. Anyway, I thought 
I'd start with a ripple for the time being.





I've used Lucy's pattern at Attic 24. Her explanations + photos are always so easy 
to follow. I haven't had to pull it apart and start again, not once.





There's something so fresh and happy about ripply stripes. 





I've started on a chartreuse stripe already and plan to do a yellow one next.
Figuring on getting together a mass of rainbow stripey cushions. (Can you tell 
I've been watching The Dukes of Hazzard? The late 1970s version was on TV just before while 
I was crocheting... I always end up speaking like that after watching it! :))





Anyway, for all my plans I haven't finished the red ripple yet. This one's still 
a front panel only but I've draped it over a cushion to see how it will look. 





If you know of a pointy chevron pattern for crochet I'd love to see it.
Hope you've had a lovely week. See more spaces here.

Our Creative Spaces: Printing + Bagging

My creative space this week has been all about fulfilling promises. Some of 
these involve screen printing and this orange number somehow came out of it. 



I began by printing with fluorescent yellow... but this was all but invisible 
except in the sun. (And don't get me started on lining up a screen to print when the 
rest of the printed pattern has disappeared into the fabric!)



So, I overprinted with fluorescent pink... but it's kind of bland too. Another sun shot 
here... too proud to show it's real dowdy self.
I think the more I use the computer the more I see colour in my mind as this 
back-lit explosion of vivid brilliance... which is obviously not the case in real life ;)



Next, out came the trusty embroidery floss... my attempt to add texture and colour 
brilliance to lift the bland-ness. I do rather like it but it can't be meterage... too high 
maintenance. So, they are going to be bags.



And I've accidentally ticked another job in my to-do list for someone I said 
I'd make a bag for. The others may go in the shop or they may end up as 
xmas presents.



I've only made up the front and back panels so far but I am pleased with how 
they are shaping up.



Note: flash photography can sometimes imitate that back-lit screen look ;)


What's in your creative space this week? See more here.

Our Creative Spaces: Sausage and greens

I've been making up some more crochet panels into cushions.



I think this one looks like a sausage dog :) He's in the shop.



And there are (finally) two finished green cushions – a custom order for a lovely friend.





What's in your creative space this week? See more here.

Our Creative Spaces: bubble and squeak week

I'm playing along with Our Creative Spaces this week - find more spaces here.





Actually, I've been quite sick with the flu this week, but I do have some bits and 
bobs to show you... I over-printed the fabric failure, with mixed results again.
Thinking I should leave it till I'm feeling well again ;)





There's been some experimenting with making the long narrow shape cushion 
with the crochet triangles....





I've also been toying with a new pixelated cushion in luscious dark shades....





Hope you've had a healthy and creative week? :)

Our Creative Spaces: Playing with New Technique

I've been doing lots of playing this week... experimenting with just what works 
(and doesn't) with the new-to-me crochet technique I posted on last week.



Play 1: Multiple colours and creating shapes and shading.
So, multiple colours (I had three going at once) was straight forward.
Creating shapes wasn't too bad (as long as you don't mind a fuzzy definition!) 
but shading didn't really work. 







Play 2: One colour small shapes.
This was very easy and much more effective. The shapes still don't have definition 
but instead look like paint dabs, which I rather like. I like the little speckly peeks of
colour you can see in the spaces in between too :)





Play 3: I did try text too but it was just terrible AND I forgot to take a photo before
madly unravelling it all... sorry ;)


Anyway, I feel like I understand the limitations of this technique a bit more.
I also added bits here and there so I can make something useful out of it...
I'm thinking it could make a cute pencil case if I fold up the halves and crochet a
couple of panels for the sides? 
Just an idea... you may see it in the shop one day ;)


Hope you've had a great week... Find more creative spaces here.





p.s. I have a 500 posts giveaway that will be drawn this Sunday 30th October.


p.p.s. There's also a Pay it Forward happening if you're keen?




UPDATE
I have crocheted sides and have an almost pencil case.
All it needs now is some lining and a zipper....