Colourful Christmas Creations

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2014, Artist, Artistic commissions, Artistic design, Arty, Atistic, Caren's canvas and craft, Christmas, Christmas creations, Christmas customised, Christmas gift ideas, Cotton creations, Created from my own ideas, Creative crafting, Cushion covers, Custom creations, Design your own, Father Christmas, Hand crafted, Happy New Year, Heirloom, Merry Christmas, My Etsy Shop, New friends, Original, Original creative crafting, Original gifts, Patchwork, Patchwork pillows, Pillow covers, Quilted, Something unique, Traditional Christmas, Unique, Wordpress

 

Joshua’s giant stocking/sleeping bag!

Over the last few weeks I think I have almost worn my fingers away creating very individual custom ordered creations. (Though I am more than pleased to be able to do so – if any one should have a request in 2014 please feel free to email me about it and I can arrange to create something special for you or a loved one)

The clients who asked me to make the gifts gave little more brief than the names and ages of the recipients, allowing me to go into an enjoyable surge of creativity – which is completely fine with me, though I always wonder while I am making things ‘will it be what they perceive, will they like it or will they be disappointed?’ The children were aged between two weeks and six years so I tried to cast my mind back to when my children were of similar ages and what they were interested in and build a theme around it. The patchwork, appliquéd and quilted feature handmade cushion covers are all hand cut and each separate piece has been stitched into place to form the overall picture.  The youngest was Elliott (with 2 T’s- I didn’t do it wrong) and for him I felt the little bear was most appropriate and the oldest was Oliver for whom I guessed a space theme was more grown up (probably because of my daughter at that age, everything was awesome to her about space back then….in fact some things never change… as she is now in her final year of her PhD of planetary seismology, studying ‘Mars Quakes’! And, indeed, when she came home for the holidays yesterday, I showed her pictures of the order, which had already been picked up, she admitted her favourite cover was the space one after confessing to loving them all. More to the point though, the client absolutely loved them, and, without knowing, I had apparently got each name matched with what they most liked, which I was thrilled about 🙂

The last minute order was for a giant stocking (the first picture) ”As big as you can make it with Joshua on it, Please” was the request.  For the rest of the day after the order was taken, was spent designing and conjuring ideas to create a stocking for a little boy which would be used year on year. I wanted to make something more than just your bog standard red stocking with a fluffy white top which is what most people would have expected on a last minute order. I wanted to create a potential heirloom stocking with a timeless quality, inserting all my self taught sewing skills from the past year or so and something which would bring a’whoop’ of delight that first viewing from Joshua… SO, a giant penguin, in my own style, it would be!!! In the rush to get it ready I have worked for twelve hours per day for the last five days sketching, cutting and sewing each piece, adding tiny beads to the trees and then hand quilting over the entire front and back of the stocking. When I handed it over this evening to Joshua’s father, he was so pleased with it and totally unexpected from the ””Red stocking with a fluffy top he had imagined”’ he said, ”He couldn’t wait to go home and show Joshua’s mother”. Literally as he must have gotten home and shown her, I got a text to say how over the moon they were with it and they couldn’t wait to show it on face book. That means so much to me as a creative crafter and artist, to be able to share a mini creation, or in this case, a very large one. The stocking had a final size of 40.5 inches long by 23 inches wide at both top and toe. just perfect for a three year old to camp out in! 

These handmade and designed pieces will be winging their way via ‘Father Christmas’ to several little people as part of their exciting presents to be opened on Christmas morning. After finishing the last one today I think it an appropriate time to hang up my needle, threads and paint brushes and spend the last week preparing for our own family holiday as I have much shopping to do.

I wish each and everyone a Merry Christmas and a VERY Happy and Healthy 2014.

It has been quite a journey being on WordPress this last year for me, I have loved discovering exciting sites, following people’s journeys of creativity, expressions, expertise, or day to day living. One which I am very please I ventured into, after coming across many lovely people. I look forward to a better year next year and hope the same for you too!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Below are the custom handmade cushion covers…

Harry’s dinosaurs

George’s pirates

Elsie’s bunnies and hearts

Elliott’s teddy

Joshua’s jungle

Oliver’s space theme

A very special Jenny bunny cover for a very special girl

 

 

 

 

 

Handmade Patchwork, Quilted and Appliquéd with ”Gingerbread Guys” Tote/Bag(s) – (Times 2!!!)

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Appliquéd gingerbread guys, Applique with felt, Buttons in craft, Caren's canvas and craft, Clever crafting, Colourful patchwork bag, Colourful tote, Cotton fabrics for patchwrok, Created from my own ideas, Creative crafting, Cute gingerbread design bag, Decorative button ideas, Etsy shop, Felt applique, Hand quilting, Hand sewing ideas, Handmade patchwork bag, One off designs in craft, Original, Patchwork and quilting, Patchwork tote, Pleasing patchwork project, Recycled buttons

Sweet Gingerbread Guys

Some of you may have seen my last post when I was busily creating my version of seasonal greetings cards, some of which included cards with Felt Gingerbread Guys on. Since then I seem to have caught some kind of gingerbread craze and needed to get this out of my system so I could move on with other creating both for my Etsy shop and the upcoming craft event I will be doing – Santa’s Christmas Cracker at the Greenmount United Reformed Church on the 30th November. So, to achieve this, I decided to make a handmade patchwork bag and applique on a couple of gingerbread guys to use the last of my felt of that colour and that would be that ….I thought!

But no…….decisions, decisions….Hmmmm… I couldn’t make up my mind which background cotton to use for the bag! After cutting out the little guys ready to sew on the  centre panel I did a few ”dry runs” with different fabrics until I narrowed it down to two contenders, a navy print and a light brown/beige print. But still I couldn’t quite decide. So off I went rummaging in the felt box and lo and behold (because I had promised myself I will not go and buy any more felt in this colour until after Christmas – as that would make this gingerbread craze continue I am sure) I found a slightly different shade that would still pass for some more of the little guys….so there I was cutting out even more… the final decisions was made I would make two bags/totes, one of each colour.

After sewing the felt shapes to the cream cotton centre panel I added little beads for eyes and little buttons to decorate them, as always I love to use and recycle old buttons so also decided to hand sew a grass border beneath their feet with more colourful buttons to give the impression of flowers between them. After much constructing I was then ready to hand quilt around the little guys to ‘raise their profile’ a little and then also over the entire bag/tote. Inside I added one of my multi-pockets,one with a zip, and then a magnetic clasp on the centre flap. There finished……..bag/tote number one!

I took a deep breath….   ;-D …….

and then…..

set about bag/tote number two repeating the same process all over again. They might have the same idea but they are equally very different…AND I am pleased to confess – my gingerbread guy craze is definitely over now … for this years at least!

Below are a couple more pictures of the finished bags/totes

 

Reverse of the appliquéd ”gingerbread guys” bag/tote which has been hand quilted.

My multi-pocket feature inside the bag after is is finished – it has a large open pocket at the back with a zipped pocket in the middle and then a small open pocket at the bottom making organising easier!

A picture of the patchwork multi-pocket viewed flat before being put inside the bag. I even add little buttons here to strengthen

And then the second one…….

Handmade and designed patchwork and quilted gingerbread tote/bag…Again!!!

 

The hand quilted reverse of the gingerbread guys bag/tote with e magnetic clasp open for viewing purposes

 

My multi-pocket feature inside the finished bag/tote

A picture of the patchwork multi-pocket viewed flat before being inserted into the bag/tote

That really was the very last pieces of felt I had in those colours so as not to waste it I made one very very very last gingerbread guy and sewed it onto the last pocket! then I ironed the cream cotton and connected the fabrics to finish 🙂

Now I can finally move on!