Detritus, Big Birds and an Exotic Bloom....

When I first started crafting I lived in just a small two-bedroom apartment. Space wasn’t really a problem at that point. Having only just stumbled onto the crafty path that I now follow, I hadn’t yet developed the enormous stash of yarns and fabrics, books, patterns, UFO’s and equipment that I have since come to own. When we moved into a much larger house, however, I thought it sounded terribly grand to refer to our unoccupied box room as ‘the studio’ or ‘the workshop’ and as I began to accumulate more and more stuff it did, indeed, start to feel like a truly bohemian, Aladdin’s cave of creativity and artistic promise.


Sounds good right? Wrong….. Just look at it now – and please don’t judge me!

N.B. Apologies for the poor quality of the pictures. I am having a little camera trouble at the moment (shopping opportunity?!) so these were taken on my blackberry.

I am only showing you the chaos that confronts me whenever I enter this room as I am desperately hoping that the saying ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’ will, by some miracle, mean that 50% of this terrible mess will be cleared up by the same fairies that still have yet to re-arrange my sock drawer, re-carpet the hallway and repair the garden fence! Can anybody offer some words of encouragement? I really must sort this all out at some point this weekend! The only solace I can find in the situation is that, at the very least, the disarray proves that both the room and my crafting equipment are well used and well loved!

Now, forget all that and look at this cutesy cushion that I started making last night. As with most things I do, you won’t be overwhelmed by technical ability or groundbreaking construction -the cushion is a very simple unadorned square with a zipper inserted along one side in order that the cover can be removed and washed. I do love how this is turning out though (still to complete one edge), but I am sure this is more to do with the fabric that anything else.

It is a large-scale print that I got from IKEA several months ago. I forget now what it was called, although I do remember that there was another one in the range in a gorgeous azure blue with little goats on it! I’ve got a real thing about birdie fabric at the moment (seriously never saw that coming!). I’m also pleased because there is quite a sizeable chunk left over so I am hoping to cut out some of the key images (the birds and the city skyline) and appliqué them onto some simple tote bags. What do you think?

Frustration reigns at the moment – I am still waiting to receive the fabric that I ordered from ‘The Cotton Patch’ over a week ago. I think perhaps it is time to find a different supplier. Fabric Rehab has some beautiful prints on the site, so I imagine they will be getting my next order! I’ll finish today’s post with one final ( I know, I know, low resolution) picture.

Nathan keeps one of his multiple orchids on the windowsill in the hallway and just recently it has started to flower again. This morning as I rushed downstairs to leave for work, I paused for a moment to take a quick photograph of the bloom. I felt that it was worth sharing with you all. Pretty, huh?