A new collaboration

I've been working with my very good friend and awesome designer Ian Cull to add some pattern to his furniture range for four zero.

Photo by Ian Cull of four zero

I helped source and make up the fabric shelves for his gorgeous poche shelving - featuring Glasgow's own Showpony, and the ever-lovely designs of Lu Summers from Summersville in the set shown above.  I think that British designed and screenprinted fabric works so well with Ian's own homegrown furniture designs.  If you're interested in being one of the first to invest in these classic pieces, drop Ian a line.  Or if you can catch them in person at various European design shows this year, more news over on the four zero website.

Scrapbooking

One of the reasons I decided to work on a travel zine was to encourage me to put all the loose tickets and photos and stuff I have from living in Paris and New York and various other travels, as well as all the planning and making from my wedding, into albums which I can get out and look at, instead of keeping in a box indefinitely.  I mean, just look at this.... not a great souvenir of all the good times I had, just a box of random gubbins, really.  One of the things that holds me back is my ridiculous perfectionism.  I’ll be disappointed in myself if I stick something in squint, or in the “wrong order”, whatever that may be.  I mean, seriously, just get on with it, right?  I think the balance has slowly tipped towards ‘get all this carp out of my kitchen’ and ‘when has anything turned out the way it looked in my brain?’ has kicked in.  Good.

I had a big market event planned for February and had taken quite a bit of leave from work to prepare for it, but now it’s been cancelled I have a bit more time on my hands.  So I’ve set some of that time aside to work on my scrapbooks, and I’ll update you as I progress with them.  This really is going to be my year of getting things done!

For those who enjoyed my blanket pattern

basketweave baby blanket by girlindustries.com

How about knitting up a co-ordinated cushion cover by Answers on a Postcard contributor handknittedthings? 

Photo by Julia at www.handknittedthings.blogspot.com

Click to look back at my pattern here.

Special zine offer - go and check it out!

Marceline over at Pushpin Zines is running a special limited time promotion on my zines right now - you can pick up any copy of Answers on a Postcard for £1

Head over there and stock up, quick!

I'm still accepting enquiries about taking part in my travel zine, so do get in touch.  I have about 15 people interested so far, and need a nudge to make a start on my seriously organised spreadsheet, so if I hear from say another two or three people that would definitely push me over the edge into getting organised!  So far people want to tell me about Singapore, Norway, Australia, Canada, America and a couple of different places in Britain.  But I want more! 

Belated Day in the Life for 1 February

Photo by Marceline Smith of Asking for Trouble

Yikes!  I missed out!  So I'm looking back at my entry in the fantastic 5 year diary I bought from Asking for Trouble to see what I did...

Here goes:

Drove from Alloa to work.  A tree was falling down across the road at the Forge Retail Park so I was diverted.  Took ages.  Not an exciting day.

The round up is on Nikki's blog.  Nikki makes excellent cushions, which my in laws got for Christmas, and they match the suite in the conservatory perfectly!

My first venture into clothes making

I had a fun Sunday morning giving this outfit a try on my sewing machine.  With an old duvet cover that I was given by Claire, and a length of what was unbleached cotton (dyed in the washing machine at the same time as a pair of trousers I needed to revive), I set about making a child's top using a pattern in the second ever issue of Sew Hip!  a few years back.

I found it really fun to get my teeth into, and although I messed a couple of bits up at first, it's nothing that my seam ripper couldn't handle and I'm very pleased with the way it turned out.  I'm going to work on the pattern a little bit so I can make a longer, more a-line version for a summer dress.

That's my girl!

Ahhh!

Craft room before....

Now if this isn’t the picture you’ll find under the dictionary definition of ‘depressing’ I don’t know what is.  I can’t wait for the after picture.  I have plans which include PAINT.  Yes.

Eventually one day I'd like it to look a bit like this room I found in the Guardian weekend the other week.  One day.