Monday 12 October 2009

Lavender bags


I've done nothing on the crafting front for ages, (so much for the new years resolution of making loads of stuff and holding a table sale around now!!) but have made up my mind that this Yule all of DD's presents will be home made.

This terrifies me and it's a HUGE challenge because me and the needle and thread are still not best of friends!

I decided to start with something I hoped would be simple. DD loves lavender and we have dried some this year from the garden, so I made this set of three small lavender bags. As she was up to 2am reading, perhaps these will help her sleep for longer too!

I've made the following list of ideas and would love some suggestions from you - DD is eight and loves animals (especially cats) reading and fairies. I can do very basic sewing and just about knit plain stitch - I can't crotchet, can't draw or paint and you won't catch me making cross stitch!

Here's my list. Note, I'm not intending on making it all, I'm just brainstorning LOL! Thanks to some of the wonderful ladies over on Green Parent, I have some great suggestions:

  • I collected some small flat pebbles on our last holiday and am going to write words on them so she can use them for 'divination' - she loves using my angel cards, so these will be her own version. I'm wondering what to write on a pebble with - any ideas?
  • Morsbag with appliqued cat or flowers on it; have got a kit from cloth kits as a standby ;)
  • Will make some tiny containers from old decorated egg boxes and put organic sweets and chocs in them
  • She's started sewing, so was going to make her a pincushion
  • MP4 case
  • bath bombs
  • lip gloss
  • couple of fairies to hang from her bedroom ceiling
  • felt cat
  • Some kind of trinket case for her to keep her 'treasures'
  • Pen pot from decorated tin can
  • clothes for her babies and barbie-type dolls
  • She loves the idea of perfume and deodorant, so will make something from essential oils
  • Set of juggling balls or bean bags
  • Would love, love, love to make a doll - again have a it from cloth kits, but really scared to get started.
If you've got any experience of making these and have tutorials, pics or inspiration for me, PLEASE share, I need all the help I can get (although I'm rather proud of my lavender bags and they are all hand sewn!).

Remember I'm a total novice, so nothing too complex.
Would love links to your own blogs too, so I can gather ideas. (I'm good at gathering ideas, not so good at grounding them ;) )

6 comments:

  1. I love the lavender bags, they're so pretty! Your list sounds good too! What about pencil cases? They make nice presents and you could put some pens or pencils inside as part of the present. I have sent for a Clothkits Kitty doll for Rosie to make, to give her some practise on the sewing machine.

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  2. Ahhh, pencil case would be good; although I hope that doesn't mean poppers or zips LOL! DD is always drawing and always losing her crayons. Thanks!
    I hope Rosie enjoys her doll :)

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  3. Not terribly green....but you can write on pebbles with those silver or gold pens that you get at Christmas time. I went to e wedding once that had pebbles with names on to show you where to sit. Pretty, but as I said not exactly eco!

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  4. That's a great idea - thanks Rachel!

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  5. If you have the clothkits doll it is straightforward and works well for a slightly older child (6 ish). I don't think it is THAT durable-wouldn't take punishment doled out by my younger kids (puddles, extreme tea parties, etc).

    Only thing is, DO read the instructions first. then read them again. The material is pretty much impossible to unpick, sadly, and I ended up having to just use the original as a pattern for another cloth doll.

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  6. Hi Edith, thanks for sharing your experiences. My fear is making a mistake, then ruining the whole thing, So I'll take your advice and read and read again before I go anywhere near the scissors and thread!

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