Gift Tags By Design

I have to confess i dont always add tags to presents that i give but after seeing how lovely my first effort of a handmade tag looked on my last gift i think i will be making more in the future.
It's a very simple design. A cut out tag. 2 cut out hearts with the receipient's name printed on one and a small kanzashi flower stuck at the top.






So that's my own personal design, what about what other crafters make?
I came across a fab tutorial this week to make these lovely tags (below). You can find the tutorial on Carolee Crafts Blog if you fancy having a go.



And if you dont fancy making them yourself then you could always visit the Folksy website where you will find many fab handmade tags.
Below is just a small selection of what you can expect to find in store.

Love these sweet Teddy Bear Gift tags by Aunty Joan Crafts



Gorgeous primitive Wooden Tags by Spotty Dotty



Gorgeous and so original Felt Heart Tags by ARTFELT


And finally,
I Love these funky hand stamped flower tags by Plowmen's Clocks



So what's your favourite?
Until next time
xxx

Car Boot Bargains

Car boot sales have become an increasing popular way to de clutter your house and make some pocket money. As the saying goes "One mans junk is another mans treasure"
As a crafter i love to have a rummage round for things to display goods in at fairs or objects to upcycle and, in general, any bargains.

Today was a successful day for me as a buyer. I found these great storage baskets for home to house all my ribbons,cottons,buttons etc

Bargain for only £1

I've often seen crafts displayed on easels so was really pleased to buy these 2 for £1

And finally i bought this tie for only 20p. "It's a lovely tie" the man said and looked absolutely astounded when i told him i intended to cut it up!

So i washed, dried, cut it open and starched it.

Cut some circles.

And look how it turned out!! A bargain for 20p!!

If you want to see what other crafters have been up to this week pop over to 1stUniqueGifts blog where handmade Monday is organised by Wendy and proves to be a great blog read each week.

Thank you for popping by.

Until next time

xxxx

Garlands and Home Decorations

OOo it's good to be back!
Since my last craft fair on Bank holiday Monday i have taken some time out from the blogging scene just to take a break from things before they became mundane and not so enjoyable.
Today felt like a good time to return with my new project.
I had an invite to a Christening today and because money is a little tight at the moment and because it's a special occasion i decide to make the young lady in question something rather personal.
I knew i wanted her name on it and it HAD to include fabric flowers!
So i drew some letter templates, transfered them to fabric, stitched and then filled them with polyester toy stuffing.
When each letter was complete i made 6 fabric flowers. I then cut, baked and attached fimo clay flowers to the center instead of my usual buttons. I think they work really well.
Letters and flowers were then strung together to make this rather fab hanging garland.

Looks great hanging on a bedroom door!

I was so pleased with how my present turned out that i have listed it on Folksy as a "made to order" item and then decided to make more home decorations.

Really pleased with how they have turned out.

And if you would like to purchase these or any other personalised garland please pop along to my Folksy shop CottonsAndDreams.

Thank you so much for popping by, i wont leave it so long next time.

And if you would like to see how other crafters have spent their week pop along to the 21st Handmade Monday blog hop organised by Wendy of 1stUniqueGifts

Until next time

xxx

Kanzashi Flower Bag Charms & KeyRings

Been playing again with the Kanzashi flowers and have put them on ribbons and attached swivel trigger clips so can be attached to your bags for decoration or used for the safe kepping of your keys.
Available through my folksy shop CottonsAndDreams . First one sold this morning.
Until next time
xxx

How To Make A Bow

You may remember a few weeks back i posted a photo of this bag made from William Morris fabric and said that i felt it wouldnt look right with my usual Kanzashi flower and wondered if a bow would suit it better.
Well i havent made bows before so this was a new one on me and finally this week i got round to making one. I folded a strip of fabric in half and marked out 2 parallel lines 13ins long and 1.75ins wide finishing the ends off to a point and sewed around them leaving an opening at the centre for reversing. After stitching i trimmed around to leave a small seam allowance.

Turn right side out and press.

Fold and stitch 2 tucks at the centre of the strip and 2 tucks 3ins in from either end.

Fold the strip into a bow shape and stitch into place.

Add a small strip of fabric accross the centre made in the same way as the bow to create the bow knot. You can make this any width you prefer, mine is an inch wide. Secure with a few stitches at the back.

Decorate with a button or brooch.

My lovely brass button was acquired from a lovely 50 year button stash that i have just been given by a family member.

Attach to the bag with small hidden stitches and VOILA here it is and definately suits the bag i think!

And if you dont fancy making this yourself you can find the bag for sale in my Folksy shop CottonsAndDreams.

Many thanks for popping by and if you would like to see what other clever crafty folks have been up to this week follow the link to 1stuniquegifts and have a read of everyones blog for Handmade Monday.

Until next time.

xxx

Handmade Monday Week 11 - The Kanzashi Fabric Flower

The Kanzashi Fabric Flower are the decorative hair ornaments used in traditional Japanese hairstyles. Today, they are most often worn by brides and Geisha participating in tea ceremonies.For Geisha, the style and manner in which Kanzashi is worn indicates status. Apprentice Geisha wear more elaborate Kanzashi than older Geisha do, and they progress through several hairstyles where the Kanzashi ornaments must be worn in a fixed pattern. These flowers have become quite a large part of my products just recently (as you have probably noticed!). I think they make each item just that extra bit special. Very easy to make so i thought i would record each stage in todays post. Start with cut out circles of fabric. For my large flowers i tend to have 12 petals in the flower but that is entirely your choice. Take your first circle and fold in half.

Fold in half again

And again.

Next fold down one flap

And the same on the other flap

Thread your needle and pass through all sections of your fabric at the base of the petal

. Do the same with each circle and add to your thread. When they are all threaded take your 2 cotton ends and pull all the petals together and tie a knot.

Sew a button into the center. I usually put glue on the button base also to keep in place securely.

And glue a circle of fabric on the reverse to hide all the raw edges.

And there you have it. A perfect embellishment for your new bag!

This is the next bag in my collection and can be found for sale on Folksy.

As you know i also make them with a brooch back sewn on the reverse. Inspired by Carolee Crafts black and white fabric last week i went out and purchased some for myself. Looks great as a brooch.

And on Folksy this week i was asked if i could put a flower on a hair clip or barrette as i have found out that they are called.

Of course i could!!

You can find more of my flowers for sale in my Folksy shop CottonsAndDreams.

Find out what other crafters have been up to this week by visiting 1stuniquegifts blog and clicking on the links.

Until next time.

xxx

Handmade Monday Week 10 - Mother's Day

Welcome to week 10 of Handmade Monday organised by Wendy of 1stUniqueGifts. Well it cant have escaped anyones notice that this weekend was Mothers Day. The only day of the year that your children show just how much they appreciate what you do for them. I got bacon sandwiches, cards , bath bombs,soap and spaghetti bolognaise for tea! For my own mother i wanted to make something special using my new BigShot machine that i bought at the NEC last week. So i used my new butterfly cutter (coz she loves butterflies). The felt cuts beautifully in the machine.

There is a shop on Folksy called PantsAndPaper (my absolute favourite i have to admit) selling beautiful butterfly brooches so i used that for my inspiration.

I know it's not nice to copy others work, even though often classed as a compliment, and i couldnt print on fabric the way Sam does, so i tried to do my own thing and my own design.

I was really pleased with how it turned out. Apparently it hasnt arrived in the post yet so my mum has yet to see it!

I loved making it so much though that i decided to make a few more today. Not sure yet whether they will be brooches though, i may use them in other ways.

Also for mothers day this week i was asked to make a phone case for an i phone4.

And 2 pen cases.

And finally i had my 3rd sale in Folksy. This gorgeous Lilac and White Kanzashi Brooch will be winging it's way to Manchester in tomorrows post. What a lovely feeling!

Thank you so much for popping by. If you want to see what other crafters have been up to this week pop along to 1stUniqueGifts blog and click on the links.

And if you are interested in seeing what other beautiful items PantsAndPaper have on offer please follow the link to her folksy shop.

Until next time.

xxx