Paisley St Claire

Meet Luca...

Here he is, hiding in the garden. Its Luca the Lion my Softies for Mirabel entry. I have no idea if I'm way too late but he'll be making his way to Pip today.

Regular readers will know that I started making a turtle for my Mirabel entry. Unfortunately, the poor turtle requires more adjustments, his legs/feet are too long and seem to stick out at awkward angles and his head actually looks better around the wrong way. The poor thing needs a bit of an overhaul and I don't have the time or the patience to do it right now. So, along came Luca. He's a cuddly little lion who loves to chase butterflies and nibble clover. My kids love him so I'll be making some little lion friends eventually. I'll post pictures of them.

 

Linnet: Minimalist Heaven

Unfortunately, as a result of my designing and blogging, I have discovered that I am no good at being a minimalist. I have a compulsion to make things as bright and colourful as possible. I had half hoped that my blog would be as elegant and design focused as a lily in bloom or Another Shade of Grey but I can never choose just one picture for the post, I need to have many, and then I put big colourful headings on everything. Its interesting to discover your true style when you allow yourself creative freedom.

As a tribute to minimalism, I'm introducing you to the Japanese store, Linnet.

See, other people would have chosen just one of those pictures for the post.

Linnet is a fabric store in Kyoto specialising in natural fibre products like linen, wool and organic cotton. Most of the fabrics are made in Japan with a few imported from Italy  or the UK.  Their online range includes linen, cotton and wool fabric, ribbons, lace, buttons and linen thread. The imagery is exquisite. Visit the Linnet website for more details and products.

Softies for Mirabel

On the weekend I found out about a wonderful activity via the fabulous soft toy maker One Red Robin.

Softies for Mirabel is a cause organised by the gurus of crafty goodness, Meet Me at Mikes. Basically, anyone and everyone makes adorable soft toys and sends them to Mikes. Then the toys are auctioned on eBay with the proceeds going to the Mirabel Foundation. Any left over toys are given to the little Mirabel kids. The Mirabel Foundation is a Melbourne charity established to assist children who have been orphaned or abandoned due to parental illicit drug use. You can get the full details of Softies for Mirabel on the Meet Me at Mikes blog here.

I have a stack of fabric and patterns for toys to make for my kids. Of course, its been a year and I haven't actually made anything yet. This might just be the incentive I need to get started. Although, I do feel a little intimidated when I see the amazing toys by Jhoanna at One Red Robin.  If I could make ones even half as good, I'd be happy.

Visit One Red Robin's blog, etsy shop or Flickr page for more.

The Softies for Mirabel picture was designed by one of my favourite artists, the talented Helen Dardik. Her website is here and her blog is here.

So drag the sewing machine out and get sewing!

The Chronicles of Craft

I love doing crafty things, I always have. When I was little I had all sorts of kits - embroidery, cross-stitch, knitting, doll making, latch-hook, tapestry, etc.

Although, I never learnt to crochet. I guess I thought I would probably never need skills that only led to doily making. Now it seems there is a fantastic reason to crochet... amigurumi! Who knew you could make the cutest little animals from crochet?

Pink amigurumis by Laura Diez and White Bear from Pepika's Flickr photos

Luckily, Chronicle Books have plenty of crafty books to teach and inspire us.


Check out the fantastic selection of books on their website and you'll soon be up late every night making adorable things.