Mood/Theme boards, Quick Pics.

Found some Mood/Theme boards from previous projects today. I love layering sketches, drawings, fabric samples, prints and mixing textures together to create these inspirational starting points. Laser cutting acrylic was also pretty fun – the triangles and floral shapes were designed and cut out on gold, black and purple plastics.

Bath Spa Textile Degree Show

Today was a great day for seeing some fantastic textiles work. The quality and creativity of the pieces on show at the Sion hill Bath campus was impressive. Knitted samples, printed wallpapers, structural textiles, home products, 3D pieces and fabrics with layers of enhancing techniques were on display to the public from the 11th – 15th June. The work was both innovative and beautiful. Below are some ideas which really stood out….

Charlotte Raven – Textile Print Artist

Louise Smales-Cresswell – Textile Designer

Laura Osgood – printed textiles for interiors

Megan Shepard – Textile Designer

The Hunters Become the Hunted…

A few weeks ago I created a post showing my ultimate festival fashion wish list. Well, as luck would have it, I have just inherited a pair of Hunters (which were actually top of said list). The Hunter brand sits alongside other UK greats such as Barbour and Mulberry in terms of brand heritage, countryside sport inspiration and classic yet practical style.

The initial products from these companies were mostly designed for hunting and fishing, hence the super practical design features. For example, Barbour jackets have an easy pull 2 headed zip for horse riding, waterproof inside pockets (for holding kill) and outside pockets with drainage to stop them filling up with rainwater when out facing the unpredictable English weather for several hours at a time (out on a hunt – see the theme there?)

Some of these features still remain whilst other product lines develop in more glamorous ways. The Willow bag from Mulberry has a zip off clutch bag meaning you buy 2 fabulous bags in one. Practical, yes, but in a much more urban way.

All 3 companies also have a well publicised celebrity following. Kate Moss is pictured regularly at Glastonbury in Hunters, Alexa totes her best selling Alexa Mulberry bag around the coolest places in town and, well, Barbour wins with The Queen being an official fan.

I realise that the sunshine needs to be appreciated but I really can’t wait to stomp around in the mud in these! I’ll be teaming with tall socks, denim cut of levis, a pretty oversized tee and a floral garland (such as the one I picked up from Bestival last year, below).

Design and Make Project: Summer Travel Bag

  In summer, weekends seem to book up pretty fast.  Before you know it, your diary is full of weddings, holidays and festivals.  Hoorah!  The downside?  The feeling that you are living out of a suitcase! I thought that this translucent travel bag would be an ideal sewing project for right now (and incredibly practical, did I mention?).  I used PVC, grey polyester thread and a jacket zip which fully opens to allow easy access to your favourite health and beauty products.

Here’s how I did it:

• Draw out 1 x rectangular front, 1 x triangular side and 1x rectangular base pattern pieces onto graph paper (this makes it easier to achieve an accurate product).  Remember to add your 1.5cm seam allowance.  Cut out.
• ‘Pin’ or rather, stick, the pattern pieces down on to the plastic using tape (pins pierce the plastic so masking tape works much better).  Cut out.  Cut 2 x front (= front and back pieces) and 2 x side pieces.
• Tape then sew bottom of front and back pieces to longer side of base using a standard straight stitch (e.g. On a Bernina machine the length is on the 2.5 setting for a normal straight stitch.  Consult your manual for other stitch variations).
• Tape then sew bottom of sides to base
• Tape then sew sides to front and back pieces
• Masking tape zip in place and use a tacking stitch to secure.  Sew over using zipper foot.  This bit is tricky as the zip slides around the plastic so take care here.  The zip only needs to be attached at the longer sides – leaving it free to open more easily.
• Trim edges neatly with scissors and turn inside out so that seams are on the inside.

Voila!  You could also experiment with different sizes and colours.  I have some neon pink plastic which would make a pretty cool version which you wouldn’t lose easily!  Happy Sewing 🙂

Modern Living: How to Make this Sumptuous Charcoal Rag Rug…

You will need…

• A big pile of scrap fabric – fleece is ideal but cotton works too
• A plastic or fabric mesh (to use as a sort of weaving frame)
• A latch hook if you are working on a small scale
• Some durable, thick fabric for the base
• Scissors
• Needle and thread

The materials I used for this were 90% recycled:  fabric cut offs and a square piece of unwanted plastic mesh.  Luckily the fabric scraps were a gorgeous charcoal grey colour which matches my living room perfectly!  The mesh had holes of about 2cm x 2cm, you can find similar online.

1. Cut the fabric pieces into strips of around 4cm x 20cm.  I varied the size of these strips as I like things to look a little ‘Tim Burtonesque’ and not too uniformed!
2. Thread one piece of fabric through the mesh and tie 2 knots at the top to secure.  This is where you would use the hook if it is too fiddly for hands to thread through.
3. Repeat until you have covered all of the mesh and are the proud creator of a full, fluffy rug.  Note – inviting a friend round to watch a film works well for this project as you can ask them to help you tie on the pieces whilst viewing; it’s very therapeutic you know…
4. Optional – depending on the appearance of the underneath of your rug and the materials you used, (and, let’s face it, how much you care about what you can’t see!) you may want to cover the messy bit underneath.  I did this by cutting out a large square of fabric, folding under the edges, pinning, and invisible stitching the square to the fabric pieces of the rug.  I made a paper template for this first as it needs to be accurate and have enough room to turn the edges under (about 3cm for thick fabric).

Hope you enjoy this project – if you have any technical questions feel free to comment below and I’ll get back to you asap xxx