Mothers Day Crafting - The Gifts

There were two things that I made my Mum this year - a case for her tablet computer and an apron.

Tablet Case

I found a pattern to make tablet cases which I had to try. I experimented first making one for my Kindle Fire HD which worked quite well and was fairly easy to do so I decided I could make Mum one.

This is the finished product. It was made with some Cath Kidston style material and lined with pink. It's slightly padded as well, which was created by sandwiching some wadding in between the two layers of material.

It was only my second time making button holes (the first being for the case I made) and I think I got the hang of it quite quickly. It was a perfect fit as well and she really liked it.

Apron

I fell in love with this black and pink flowered material when I saw it on the market stall and knew I had to make an apron for Mum with it. She has a lot of aprons that my nan used to make, but they are all wearing out so I adapted a few patterns and made her a new one.

I lined it with black material to make it more sturdy and give it a more professional finish:

There is a large pocket on the front as well which I divided into two by sewing a zig zag stitch down the middle of it.

The apron is then edged with some pink bias binding tape and finished with the straps. The straps were made by cutting out the material, folding it in half and sewing it with right sides together. I turned them inside out with the help of a large safety pin and ironed them flat. I then sewed the straps on and carried on with the sewing to decorate the edges.

I was very pleased with the results, even though the apron was a little bit too long and the pockets too deep, but it fitted around the waist and was the perfect gift!

Claire

Sewn Items

I decided to take a bit of a break from papercrafting to make some sewn items. I have booked a stall at a local craft fair in November and am busy making lots of gift type items to sell. Although papercrafts is what I am best at, I thought that the sewn items would sell slightly better (fingers crossed!)

First of all, I found this pattern for pin cushion mice over at Bustle and Sew's website. I thought they would make really cute gifts so I tried one out using pink felt and contrasting pink flowery ears:

He was very easy to make and looks very sweet. I now need to try and make some more with some different material. This one's staying with me though and not being sold!

I then found some bag kits from My Mind's Eye in their See Me Sew range, which I just had to have. Here is the messenger bag which I am very proud of. It's even got a pocket inside it.

I have made a note of the dimensions and am planning to make some more just like this to sell. I think they will go down well and would make great gifts.

Now, the next item is a bit of a bug bear of mine. I really like the effect that blanket stitch has round the edges of items such as these flowers, but for the life of me I cannot seem to get it right when I am starting the stitch and it's very frustrating! Once I have started the rest goes well I think:

I have made these as brooches which could be added to a bag or a jacket. The white one is my favourite which has probably got the neatest stitching. I will certainly be making more of these and possible making some as keyrings as well?

That's all for now, back to the needle and thread.

Oh yes, if anyone has any tips on the blanket stitch then feel free to send them over!

Claire