Friday 3 August 2018

Embroidery


 The first crafting medium i tried many years ago, was Cross stitch.
 I love cross stitch, but i find it very time consuming, so after years of doing larger pieces, i now only sew Cross stitch samplers.

But i have found a new love for Embroidery,as the work comes together a lot quicker.
I have made many Embroidery pieces in the past, but looking back at them my stitches were very basic. Over the last few weeks, i have been trying out new stitches, and i am so excited about creating lots of new pieces.



 This was from 2011, when all i knew was 2 stitches, running stitch and french knots.











I have been working on rope stitch, Lazy daisy, wheel stitch, and feather stitch. Instagram has been a great source of knowledge, and there are some wonderful Emboidery art pieces to inspire the soul.
One of my favourite things to do while stitching, is to turn up the Music and stitch away.


 


This piece was inspired by Fleetwood Mac. The full lyric is "Listen to the wind blow, watch the sunrise."












 Sadly i do have a bit of a crap phone, and the the details are always lost when i take a pic.
 I still need some practise with some of the new stitches.
 I am really happy, because i think i have found the perfect crafting medium for me, and i have so many idea's, and sketches that i have drawn over the years. Funny thing is, i never knew that i was drawing at the time, were going to be designs for Embroidery pieces, but they will be perfect  for what i want to do it.

Not to forget the sewing machine

 Over the next few days i will be doing a stock take of fabrics, threads and cottons. So i can see what i can make from my stock levels. I will be ready for a Sewathon next week, as i will be working out timings and costs for the items i make.

In other news i applied for job, in a local sewing factory. Making the most amazing baby linen's.
I have every thing crossed for an interveiw, and lots of luck wouldn't go a miss 😇

Here's to an Awesome August.

Love Maisy Lee















Monday 23 July 2018

Picnics and sunshine



A few weeks ago my niece Sienna came to stay over night. The next day before she went home, i thought we could have a picnic in the garden. I got my picnic blanket out, my best China coffee pot, with chocolate milk in it, teacups, sandwiches, and my birthday cake on a cute little cake plate.
Well you should of seen her face when i said she could be in charge of the pouring, i remember how excited i was when my Nan would let me pour from the teapot, i don't know why but being in charge
 of the teapot kinda make me smile deep inside.



 So i went about making her own little Picnic set for her birthday.
I also made a cutlery roll, which has a place setting of 5, for all her family to join in too.

I embroidered around part of the fabric design picking out a few flowers, the fabric was from a local Fabric shop, Abakhan fabrics. It has a few store in Northwest and they have a great selection of fabrics and craft supplies  https://www.abakhan.co.uk
 I've had the red and white gingham about 3 years, so i was happy to use it up.



All the things i am making at the moment are to hone in my skills, since i have not made any items for sale for around 5 years.
 This came together a lot quicker than i thought it would, i loved the finished picnic blanket it looked really pretty. Sadly i don't have the best camera phone so the photo quality isn't that good.









 I then got her this cute little tea cup and saucer set, and a Teapot.
This was bought in the local St. Anne's Hospice shop, and was £3.00 for the whole set, which was a perfect set of five.

I will definitely be making more of these, Sienna loved her picnic set and has the chance to use it a lot this year, which is really unusual for a British summer.
 I  also had a lovely morning with my son, scouring the charity shops trying to find the China set.


I'll be doing a lot more sewing from August,i have set myself a goal of  making myself a weekly planner for sewing, but i will also be planning a lot of my life, i need to focus in on were i need to be heading, so i'm hoping for an Awesome August.

Love Maisy Lee












Tuesday 3 April 2018

I sew, there fore I am.

I have been away from my sewing Machine for at least three years. A lot has been happening in life, so i really didn't have the time to sew, and when i did, my projects would mainly go unfinished.

Sadly i have become quite ill again, and i have had to leave work for the time being. (hoping no longer than 12 months but still so unsure)
I'm trying to remain positive and take care of myself both mentally and physically,.
 While being ill is not what i want, it has given me the time to start sewing again.
What i had not realised is how important sewing is towards my whole personality, It really makes me feel relaxed, happy, and it gives me confidence. Sewing, kind of makes me fell whole again.

Confidence was not what i was expecting to get from sewing, but at the moment while my body is limiting me, it is nice to be able to start and finish a project. I am intending to find, and finish all those unfinished projects.

One of the things i intend to do is, to stop buying New clothes for the next 18 months. After working in high street retail for 6 years, and then in charirty shop retail for a year. I noticed how much clothing is passed on but in really good condition. So I intend to buy my clothes only in Charity shops, and teach myself how to alter clothing.
 I have always been a bit nervous about altering clothes, since i have always found it easier to sew from scratch.

I have found my first project which is a lovely denim/linen shirt dress from Wallis. I'm not sure if i will embroider a design on it, or if i will just be adding some Ric-Rac to the sleeves, hem and pockets. I'm obviously hoping that i find some awesome pieces of clothing.







This was taken quite a few years ago now, and I was obviously in a buying pink fabric frenzy stage, of my sewing life.
I hope to be able to to get back to my machine more and more over the next few moths, i intend to just build up my skills again and see were it takes  me.
I would love to be able to sew again as a job, sitting down and doing something i love, and to be able to get paid for it would just be an amazing career.


love and luck
Maisy Lee