Isla B Baby

Martha Stewart's clever shirt dress

2011-07-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

I recently bought a Martha Stewart sewing encyclopedia and its filled with fab gems of info and lovely patterns that come in a very sensible CD format that means you can print them time and time again. My first project from the book is this little shirt dress/nightshirt that I made for Lottie using a mans shirt from a charity shop! It was so simple to make and a great use for any unwanted shirts. I shall be scouring for my shirts to chop up this week!

Easter Bunnies

2011-03-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

Couldn't resist making beds for these adorable little bunnies!

Snuggle Blankets

2011-03-09T05:28:00.000-08:00

In our house a snuggle blanket is an essential item, not because we have a cold house but more because the children have all grown up with a blanket to cuddle up with on the sofa. These blankets generally get dragged around from sofa to bed, to car, to garden, to Granny and Grandads and would possibly make it to school if I didn't intervene!

So when my new Dr Seuss fabric arrived I knew I would be making some blankets so others can experience snuggling in luxury! These blankets are backed with softest cuddle sherpa so feel like a super soft teddy bear. The blankets will be available to buy on my website in the next few weeks and at the next More than a Mama fair.

A book day happy Birthday to the cat in the hat

2011-03-03T14:49:00.000-08:00

As you probably know it was World book day today, so our house was even more chaotic this morning than normal. Grace went as The Gruffalo last year and truly looked the part so I was rather dreading her costume choice this year but I really couldn't complain when she picked "The Cat In The Hat". A most fitting choice not just because I have recently purchased masses of Dr Seuss fabric but more so because this week celebrated The cat in the hat's birthday! 54 years ago he was created to be an alternative to Peter and Jane books. Lottie also picked well and thankfully a much simpler choice, she went as Winnie the Witch and I confess I cheated and bought this one in my local oxfam as I just knew when I saw the outfit that Lottie would love it! So here are my girls ubba excited and raring to go at 8:30 this morning!
Oh and yes Lottie is wearing her knitted hat under the witch hat as she insisted she needed it!

My first item of clothing

2011-02-10T05:11:00.000-08:00

I know I sew quite regularly but I have always avoided sewing the children any clothing, I think I have always found sewing patterns to seem unbelievably complicated and intimidating.
About 6 months ago I bought a lovely book called "making children's clothes" and have been flicking through it for the past month thinking I really must get over this fear of pattern following. So yesterday when Finlay settled down for his afternoon nap I got out the book and made the simplist item from it I could find and it worked! It may not be perfect and the stiching may be a little wibly in places but it worked! Its lined, it fits and with the help of some lovely Tanya Whelan fabric its quite cute!
So I quite proudly present you my first item of clothing!

New Fabric

2011-02-10T05:02:00.000-08:00

After much pondering I took the plunge and order in a bunch of Dr Suess fabrics and I love them! It fair to say we have been a little Cat in the Hat obsessed of late in our house so it was only going to be a matter of time before I stumbled upon this fab range of fabrics.

I think they will make a wonderful range of baby products, changing mat bags, hooded towels, burp cloths and other blankets. As I have often offered a much more girly range of fabrics its also nice to have something more boyish.

Love is in the air!

2011-01-19T13:29:00.000-08:00

Love is in the air, well OK not quite but if I am to get my valentines cards made in time to sell any then I need to get my act together now. I have 2 new designs ready to sit alongside of the traditional heart that I did last year and 2 more to follow.

Love Bird (in case your in any doubt)

I am a stationary Junkie

2011-01-05T06:01:00.000-08:00

Its official I am and always have been a stationary junkie! I try to keep a lid on this habit of buying notebooks before finishing old ones but sometimes you come across a range of goodies that are just too irresistible. I therefore thought you might like to share in my excitement and have a look at the fabulous website www.artbox.co.uk where these goodies can be purchased for very little! They make great party bag fillers and there patterned tapes are a great way to decorate a dull Tupperware lunch box.

Lottie Started School Today

2011-01-05T05:37:00.000-08:00

I can not believe it has come around so fast but Lottie started school today! She was so excited and adamant that she wanted to go in on her own and be left on her own! No tears or hesitation, I was a very proud Mum it has to be said.
So it was just me and Finlay that walked back this morning and will be just the 2 of us for 3 days a week till September when Lottie goes full time.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T14:42:00.000-08:00

My Mad Hatter New Years Eve Costume

I do love fancy dress, so when my husband and I were invited to a New Years Eve Fancy Dress dinner I found myself in dressing up heaven! I think all grown ups should take time to be childish every so often and fancy dress instantly takes me back to being a child and makes me smile.

As for new years resolutions which I know I should be making, they can wait. Christmas seems to have gone by in a blink, the fridge is still groaning and the house looks like Hamleys! I don't want the holidays season to end and making resolutions makes me feel like its over so I shall make my resolutions on Wednesday when the Grace and Lottie (first day at Nursery) go back to school. For the meantime though I will ignore the laundry stacking up and spend as much time as possible playing with the children and enjoying listening to the amazing adventures that the newly acquired Sylvanian Families are having in our house!

A gift for a friend

2010-09-23T14:11:00.000-07:00

A friends little girl is getting christened at the weekend so after much deliberation I thought I would make her a little doll as a keepsake. She is yet to be named and at the moment has a set of PJ's for bedtime and a little dress. If time permits she may get a handbag and some another dress!

A day of sewing

2010-08-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

It's been a productive sewing day! I am doing a little sale event in my local town of Berkhamsted in the morning so I set myself a great big list of things to sew this morning thinking I would have the whole day to get through it all. This is generally a bad idea as I don't get even half way down my list normally. It is 12:00 so just managed it all today but I have made 12 cards, 2 appliqued pictures and 4 appliqued tote bags!

New Shoes

2010-08-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

Great excitement in our house this morning as the children all got new shoes yesterday from the lovely Hippity Hop and I couldn't' t quite resist sharing Lottie's new shoes with you all. They are just the sweetest shoes ever and as she hasn't yet reached the age where she needs boring school shoes we went for the fun red option.

I have spent the afternoon making little cards (more on that to come) so inspired by Lottie's new shoes I made a little shoe card.

A lovely day

2010-08-22T10:41:00.000-07:00

It's been a lovely Sunday with a good mix of family time, catching up on jobs and a bit of sewing time! The result is 3 content children, a very clean rug and this lovely tote bag for a little girls PE kit.

And thank you to the little girls next door for the flowers from their Granny's garden, they are looking very splendid in the little glass bottle that Grace dug up on a bottle digging session with her Daddy.

Rather Random Bits

2010-08-12T02:51:00.001-07:00

Graces Mug and Plate

The beautiful haba dolls

The Girls in France enjoy so much space!

Well as the title suggests this blog may be rather random but I decided a random blog entry is better than no entry at all! I had visions before the summer began of me spending lots of lovely time with the children, making, baking and really getting to grips with some of the sewing projects I have had on hold. The reality of my summer though has been nothing so idyllic, we have had a lovely holiday to France but this was before the schools broke up (frowned upon I know!) We have really just been at home and as the weather hasn't been the glorious summer that was promised we have had a lot of time indoors and its all felt rather boring!

We have had some highlights, Grace turned 5 and we had a lovely day surrounded by a lot of Haba dolls that we have been collecting since Lottie her sister got one for her 1st Birthday. Graces party is not till September as most of her friends were all on holiday so we do still have this to look forward to.

We also had a lovely visit to our local pottery project cafe where a beautiful plate was painted and a very sweet mug which Grace now uses daily.

I am hoping we manage to squeeze in a visit to Great Granny Alnmouth and perhaps a little visit to Devon to Granny and Granddad's but as the time is whizzing by I am not so sure.

I am doing a little fair in my local church hall (St Peters) on the 26th Aug with my friend and her fab business Hippity Hop shoes so if anyone is free would be lovely to see you I shall be there till 2pm.

Little wooden bed

2010-07-05T14:34:00.000-07:00

A while ago I bought this lovely little bed in my local Oxfam store that was in need of a little love and care and it has been sitting in the dinning room for some time now looking at me and bugging me as I really haven't had the time to clean it up. So today with my fayre, Birthday parties and holiday all behind me I made a little time for the wooden bed.
It now has a lovely red ticking mattress, an appliqued quilt, matching cushion and with a fresh coat of white paint it has scrubbed up rather nicely.
I am however rather convinced that I will come downstairs in the morning and find the cat snuggled up inside it!

The Princess an the Princess and the Pea!

2010-06-23T04:04:00.000-07:00

For all those coming to the Berkhamsted Pimms and Pamper evening tonight in Berkhamsted town hall, will be in with a chance to win this lovely handmade Princess and the Pea that comes with a lovely princess from The Puppet Company. Each bed has a lovely handmade blanket, 2 pillows and 5 scrummy mattress's.

As I am trying my hand at some boy versions of things I have also made to sell a lovely Prince and The Pea bed. Tickets to win the girls Princess and bed are a bargain £1 or £3 for 5 tickets so someone is going to go home with a great deal!

Happy Birthday Lottie

2010-06-22T12:05:00.001-07:00

Well with one day to go before our lovely Pims and Pamper evening a welcome break was taken today from all the preparations to celebebrate Lottie's 3rd Birthday. She had a lovely party in the Garden this morning with 6 best friends and has spent the rest of the day dancing around to ballet music in a lovely new dress from Granny and Grandad. And although her cake was not a patch on the fabulouse cakes from Nievie pie it still went down a treat with the little ones.

Can not belive that this is the same little baby in the photo that was taken 3 years ago today she seems so grown up in just a blink!

If only I had more time!

2010-06-07T09:50:00.000-07:00

I sometimes wonder how much work I could get done in a day or a whole week without children, dinners, and housework to juggle at the same time.

Most of my work gets done in little snippets here and there and today was a really good example of that.

I am a packaging junky, I am attracted to a certain type of packaging regardless of the content or item and so I decided to give my lovely new hair towels a shiny new label that then ended up with my making 3 more labels to enhance their packaging! So in between school drop-off, lunch, flyering for the next event, school pick up again and tea I have made 3 labels and it has made me really want a week to just get on with all the things for Islabbaby that I keep meaning to do.

Tomorrow Finlay is having a few of my friends around with there little ones for cake and pass the parcel so I really now must crack on with the list of jobs for today that got set aside in favour of doodling labels.

Sneak Peak

2010-06-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

Here is a sneak peak at my new labels for one of my lovely new products that will be available at the Pimms and Pamper evening on the 23rd June in Berkhamsted town hall from 7pm.

I am super excited about them as they have truley solved the wet hair problem in our house. (Product shots to follow)

My very soon to be 3 year old and soon to 5 year old can not keep a towel on their heads long enough after a bath to dry even a strand of hair so by the time they get downstairs their poor Pj's are dripping wet. So my lovely new gingham trimmed childrens Happy Hair Towels are just the job!

The wedding party

2010-05-31T15:39:00.000-07:00

My older brother got married a little while ago and then this weeked he and his wife threw a great party for friends and family to celebrate with them. It was a lovely weekend as most weekends in Cornwall seem to be and my three children had a fantastic time. I had no idea my soon to be 5 year old had such great dance moves! She now of course would like a disco party just like uncle Dave and Auntie Zoe had for her birthday, she would like it to run from about 8pm to midnight, unfortunatly I don't think this will be a wish that gets granted but I couldn't resist sharing her dance moves with you!

The Princess in the woods

2010-05-15T13:57:00.000-07:00

We went for a lovely family walk today to bluebell woods in Ashridge and on our way there we drove past the Ashridge College which looks very like a castle. The girls asked if a princess lived in the castles and I on true make believe mode said "yes of course" so when we got to the woods and Grace shouted out "Mummy there is the Princess" you can imagine my surprise when sure enough we saw what could to the eyes of a 4 year old and a 3 year old very well have been a Princess. As the said Princess then approached the girls became very shy and excited especially when the Princess actually said hello!

So for those who are reading this who are wondering what the Princess looked like I have attached some photos to help solve the mystery.

The bunk beds arrived

2010-05-13T13:38:00.000-07:00

Well after a rather long wait the bunk beds arrived! Grace has been counting the sleeps till the arrival and was incredibly excited to get home from school today to test them out.

I of course just had to put 2 new sets of Isla b baby bed linen on them to finish the look!

The next event!

2010-05-10T14:37:00.001-07:00

The party season approaches our house

2010-05-08T05:34:00.000-07:00

With a string of parties both to attend and to plan for my 3 children it can get a little dull trawling the high street to find something worthy of the Birthday child. I never know what they already have or sometimes even like and can not feel anything other than guilt when I do cave in and buy plastic fantastic! So when Jo Esson at Stealing Candy said she has some new gifts for children amongst her new range I was very excited. I even bought a little girls present well in advance of her party as I couldn't resist her new garden sets! (don't want to share a picture of that one in case her mummy gets a sneak peak that spoils the surprise)

I bought for this weekends 5 year olds disco party a lovely set of writing paper and then personalised it by making her a little bag with her name on it and a pretty face cloth to help clean up all the cake later today! Making part of a gift of your own is great way to keep costs down and still end up with something scummy.

I won something!!!!

2010-05-05T05:17:00.000-07:00

I never win anything so you can imagine my excitement this morning when a lovely package arrived for me from http://bearpawandbearpaw.blogspot.com/ with a fab "sew it yourself" picture to adorn my sewing area wall, some lovely ribbon and a gorgeous little patchwork keyring!

So i just wanted to say a very BIG thank you to Jo Avery at Bearpaw for all the lovely goodies and if you don' t already read her blog I heartily recommend you do! x

A new member of the mouse family

2010-04-11T11:50:00.000-07:00

We had lots of excitement this morning as our latest Maileg family member was given its own home. Earlier in the week Finlay got a pair of star child soft slippers that came in a very nice box that was just the perfect size for a small mouse to nest inside.

So here is Grace and the new mouse in the garden this morning enjoying a beautiful day of sunshine!

funny day

2010-04-06T08:57:00.001-07:00

My day has been filled with both frustration and amusement of equaling amounts. It began this morning with Grace declaring that she is old enough to choose what she wants to wear in the morning and at almost 5 she's right she is but its the lack of regard for the weather that this morning caused the argument. Grace carefully selected a summer dress then refused point blank to back down when I told it was too cold for a dress on its own so she decided that a pair of leopard print legging were the solution with her pink snow boots!

I then took Finlay to get his first pair of cruiser shoes only to discover that he didn't fit any as he curls his toes!! So despite a 40 min battle in the shoe shop we left disappointed and headed to the park. At the park I got a call from a company I would love to buy from for my website who have been lovely and patient in waiting for me to get the site ready and my act together but they do always seem to call when I am juggling the children and today was no different, when they called I did amusingly tell them that I was at the park with the children as it was school hols so they know not to expect my total attention, however half way through the conversation I looked up to see that Lottie my 2 nearly 3 year old had her trousers down and was shouting Mummy I've done a poo! When it was time to leave the park Grace decided to shout that she wasn't Grace and that I wasn't her Mummy and she didn't want to come home with me!! Quite a good delay tactic from her as I then felt the curious looks of lots of other parents checking me out to make sure I was really her mum.

All this said my day is getting better as the dinner is nearly ready and my lovely knew pink breakfast stool has arrived for my sewing area.

On a mission

2010-03-27T14:11:00.000-07:00

Grace, Lottie and Finlay are all together for a photo!

The lovely hangers are far to cute to go in a wardrobe so will be adorning the walls of the children's room with favourite outfits.

Ballerina princess Lottie

Am really pleased to be enjoying my sewing, even after a busy fortnight of sewing for the More than a mama fayre!

The children got out some Maileg skittles the other week and the solders inspired me to make Finlay an appliqued name for his room as blogged about yesterday. Having 3 children means I'm going to make one for each child so while I was on a role I made Lottie's little ballerina princess.

Am hoping that by the end the week the children will each have an applique hanging above their beds and one of these beautiful Maileg hangers with a dress or outfit from when they were little to decorate the walls.

Am ready for the fayre! (I think)

2010-03-25T15:38:00.000-07:00

It has just gone 10:30 the night before a fayre and I am organised! This is normally where I still have a million and one things to do and end up going to bed in the small hours, now I am sure this doesn't mean I am actually organised but more that I have just forgotten about 3 hours worth of things that do need doing, and so because I think I have everything ready I have just spent the last hour making Finlay a sign to go above his bed.

Tiny cost tops

2010-03-24T16:32:00.000-07:00

Making my son 2 funky t-shirts was not really top of the list of priorities today but the Boden catalogue arrived with a welcome thud this morning and lots of pages had the corners turned over by mid morning! Alas though this is a wish list at the moment as I can not justify spending £16 on a gorgeous T-shirt for a 9 month old who is growing super fast and getting food stains on everything!

So on my trip into town this afternoon to collect Grace from school we found some very very cheap T-shirts that I decided I could embellish with my own characters, so instead of sewing for the Fayre on Friday I veered of track and had fun making these.

They were very easy to do and although not quite the super cool appearance of a Boden T they certainly do for a 9 month old.

More bunnies please

2010-03-20T14:51:00.000-07:00

The bunnies all went to loving new homes last night and looked very cute tucked up in their little beds!

Will need to get some more made for this Fridays More than a Mama fair as I am sure they will again be a success.

Swim bags

2010-03-20T14:39:00.000-07:00

At the last couple of fairs I have sold tote bags for PE kits that have done well so it was no surprise last night at a local pamper evening when I was asked to make some swimming bags in the same style. After some playing around with various dodgy designs I have finally settled on these and now just need to get them finished off for Friday.

Finlay helping me sew

2010-03-14T08:58:00.001-07:00

Couldn't resist adding this lovely photo of my little man on mothers day. He was helping me sew, well helping may not be the right choice of word but he did have fun pulling the thread out of the draws and I did eventually make a couple of tweed purses while my lovely husband cooked me a delicious lunch of eggs benedict. All in all its been a very nice day so far x

purses

2010-03-13T14:53:00.000-08:00

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Got a bit carried away today and made 7 little purses so thought I would share my 3 favourites with you.

The lovely pink and green velvet has been sitting in my fabric pile for months waiting to be used for something scrumptious so I combined my stash of Liberty print fabrics with the velvet to create these little purses. Am now wishing I had bought more velvet at the time!

Spring Clean

2010-03-10T03:16:00.000-08:00

At last my little designated sewing area at the back of the kitchen is looking small but workable, despite the fact that we have a lovely big summerhouse at the bottom of the garden that my husband works from, I need to be able to work from the house and juggle the children around fitting some sewing in here and there. I would love a whole room to sew in but for now I am happy with my little sewing haven.

Easter Bunny products

2010-03-06T13:36:00.000-08:00

My bunnies arrived today to tuck into my sleep sacks and although I would have preferred to see them with some maileg bunnies these are cute substitute and should make them a nice affordable alternative to an Easter egg. They even come with their own little tale to tell nestled inside the sack and are available to buy on my islabbaby website or at the next More than a Mama fair on the 26th March.

The Gruffalo Costume

2010-03-04T02:23:00.001-08:00

As its national book day today my 4 year old had to go to school dressed as her favourite character from a book so when she chose The Gruffalo I thought ok am sure we can buy a costume online. I then came to realise there are no costumes available! So we made one and here is the result.

All was going well this morning until everyone started to pay lots of attention to Grace and then it suddenly became a little overwhelming for her and she burst into tears. So here I am at home feeling really pleased that we managed to get the costume made but very deflated that Grace was upset this morning and that perhaps today won't be the warm fuzzy day I had hoped it would be!

Poor AbbeyCat

2010-02-27T11:45:00.000-08:00

We had a dog (nettle) visitor last night staying and poor AbbeyCat was petrified! She spent the whole evening hiding upstairs and most of today under Grace's bed until I finally carried her downstairs to show her the dog had gone. Despite the fact that the dog has left she is now sulking upstairs on our bed seeking sympathy.

Roosters

2010-02-26T05:35:00.000-08:00

Charlotte over at cottontails http://cottontailsbaby.blogspot.com/ has just received the traveling rooster which reminded me of the rooster items I made for the last fair and so have started to make some more rooster bits this morning in my bid to keep my resolution of sewing each day. I wasn't sure what to tackle today but on seeing cottontails blog and comments I knew exactly what to make.

My little snuggle sacks for toys dolls are the perfect size for a small baby maileg rabbit that my daughters have lots off! http://www.cottontailsbaby.co.uk/product/maileg-baby-boy-bunny

2010-02-25T02:22:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged for sooo long, where has February gone? The more than a Mama group http://morethanamamaberkhamsted.blogspot.com/ that I am a member off met yesterday to discuss our next event on the 26th March and I sat there and realised just how little I have managed to get done this year. So although a little late in the new year for resolutions I need to make a resolution to sew every day!

If you do live near Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire then save the date for our next event as its sure to be a lovely morning out full of Easter fun.

A cosy Easter!

2010-02-02T05:45:00.000-08:00

Well I know we haven't got Valentines day behind us yet but as a Mum of 3 I have to factor in a lot of time to get things made. So with this in mind I have started to look at Easter products and here is exhibit number one.

My website is live!

2010-02-01T16:18:00.000-08:00

Well as the title says my web site is live! There are 101 changes I know I will make over the coming weeks, days and months but its a start. I think because I knew nothing about website building (as any web designer will tell you is very evident) there is a great sense of satisfaction at having got this far and other than my web hosting it was free to do!

So feel free to visit my website www.islabbaby.co.uk

Easter Fair!

2010-01-27T05:46:00.000-08:00

Am very excited to say that the More than a Mama group are going to have an Easter Fair! March the 26th is the date we have penciled in subject to hall availability. So its going to be an Easter sewing fest.

Valentines Cards

2010-01-25T13:30:00.000-08:00

Islabbaby Valentines cards! Decided I could make some that would be just as nice as anything I had seen in the shops. So here are my Islabbaby valentines cards all made with beautiful Liberty fabrics.

As a teenager I hated Valentines day and all the hub about who gave who a card, however as a happily married Mum of three I love Valentines day and all the romance it brings.

Ballet Shoes

2010-01-18T13:12:00.000-08:00

These ballet shoes are making their way onto a drawstring bag for a customer order. Will definitely make some more as I think they could prove to be popular. I know my daughter Lottie would love them as she has suddenly decided she likes ballet and dancing around the house.

Need to get making

2010-01-12T05:28:00.000-08:00

The schools are now back after the snow so its time to get my act together realise the holiday is over and get sewing!

I recently found these lovely tins that are just crying out for a little doll with lots of scrumptious bedding so I have finally set too and hope to have a little Isla B doll to tuck into bed very soon.

Such a beautiful book

2010-01-10T05:21:00.000-08:00

Occasionally I come across a book I just know from the front cover I am going to love, so I thought I would share my recommendation with you. Incase you have exhausted all the books on your shelves these last 2 snowy weeks here is one sure to refresh your zest for children's books.

Both my 2 year old and 4 year old love this book, especially the last page where all the rabbits leap out of the field in a spectacular pop up page. We have now ordered 2 more Emily Gravett books and are eagerly awaiting there arrival in the post.

Grace started school

2010-01-05T02:50:00.000-08:00

A very excited Grace went off to school this morning to start in Reception class. Fingers crossed she is as keen to go tomorrow as she was this morning.

My little mans first Christmas!

2010-01-02T02:55:00.001-08:00

We travelled in the car for 7 hours (due to the snow) and Finlay was fantastic so he has certainly earned his travel legs

He got a fab new hat from his Granny in Alnmouth that came in handy for beach walks and of course we made him wear a paper hat for Christmas lunch!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T14:09:00.000-08:00

We arrived back home today from our little trip to Wales, Devon and Cornwall but sadly the beautiful snow has gone from Berkhamsted.

Snow Snow Snow!

2009-12-18T14:13:00.000-08:00

We were all so very excited this morning to get out and about in the fabulous snow that fell last night while the children were sleeping!

Apart from not noticing the smudge on my camera lens (most annoying) I managed to get some nice photos of the snow.

We are hoping that tomorrow there will be enough snow to make a snowman for the garden.

One more fair to go!

2009-12-12T02:55:00.000-08:00

Today is my last fair before Christmas! Am then going to make time to finalise my website and get stock built up ready to go live with it.

Have really enjoyed these last few months and with a lot of help from my husband have managed to juggle 3 children with it all. I am however really looking forward to Christmas and no sewing for a week or so.

This evening is the Northchurch Baptist church Christmas fair and the children are coming too as it promises to be a fun evening for the family. I do however need to go and finish some more little nurses aprons and hair bands as they sold out at Wednesdays fair.

Dinosaurs Rock

2009-11-30T14:17:00.000-08:00

Have just finished the appliqués for two little boys draw string bags, one with Stegosaurus and one with T-Rex! Think I may have to make one for Finlay maybe a Triceratops? Its amazing how having children teaches you all the dinosaur names you thought you had long forgotten.

Cute Aprons

2009-11-29T04:41:00.000-08:00

Saturday was a apron day! An apron is a much needed accessory in our house with my two daughters always being up on a stools helping in the kitchen. It seemed only right that Grace should then get her choice of apron from the ones I made yesterday.

The Cookie Recipe

2009-11-27T23:51:00.000-08:00

I think sometimes you come across a recipe that you just know is going to be passed around and cooked hundreds of times and this cookie recipe is certainly worth its weight. Not only is it supper easy to make but you can pretty much throw anything at it and it seems to work!

So here is my recipe for Cranberry and white chocolate chip cookies.

Ingredients

215g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

115g soft butter

125g light brown sugar

50g caster sugar

1 egg

100g dried cranberries

200g white chocolate chopped into chunks

Set the oven to 190 c /375 f/ gas mark 5

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix it all together till it forms a dough by hand this takes a bit of work but in my fabulous Kitchen Aid it takes seconds!

Place little rounds of the dough onto a baking tray lined with grease proof paper (you should get 18 cookies from the mix)

Cook in the oven for 10 mins or until they are just beginning to colour at the edges. ( you still want them to be soft as they will firm up when they cool)

Let them sit on the tray when you take them out the oven for 5 mins then transfer to a cooling tray.

And there you have it! I have tried lots of combinations of these cookies and Milk chocolate and hazelnut work really well too as does a bar or Cadbury's Bornville Chocolate Orange chopped into chunks!

A weekend of sewing is needed!

2009-11-27T15:33:00.000-08:00

Have had a very uncreative week with virtually no sewing! I have however been on a bit of a cookie baking frenzy with the girls that really needs to stop as its me that ends up eating them!!! So this weekend I need to get back on track with my sewing as I have another Christmas fayre coming up on the 9th December and move on and away from the oh so nice cranberry and white chocolate cookies Mmm.

Time for bed

2009-11-19T16:43:00.000-08:00

Well its time to catch some shut eye before tomorrows More than a mama fayre.

Its been a busy week what with last Fridays fair at Victoria School and now this one, I'm really looking forward to the weekend, I will try really hard to resist the temptation to make anything all weekend.

Little handbags

2009-11-19T16:38:00.001-08:00

Bags galore! Had a bit of a bag spree this evening and made 3 lovely little bags in the softest cord fabric. Perfect for just about anything a little girl may want to carry about

I think my favourite though has to be the "Lucy Goosey" bag.

Your invitation

2009-11-17T10:41:00.000-08:00

Its official your invited to come and join us for a Christmasy evening of shopping in Berkhamsted. Have glass of mulled wine listen to some music and be pampered. We have put together a line up of stalls that will offer gifts galore to add sparkle under any tree this festive season!

Rocky Rooster products

2009-11-16T02:29:00.001-08:00

Rocky the Rooster has made it onto a large tea cosy to keep your pot hot!

home to roost dolls bed. This little bed comes complete with 2 pillows for your favourite little doll to get a good nights sleep!

Rocky the Rooster

2009-11-15T15:22:00.000-08:00

Its been a busy weekend, my 4 year old had a friend over for a sleepover although not much sleep was had and I cracked on with some sewing for the next "Bumps babes and beyond" fair on Friday this week. However in the midst of all of this I did manage to come up with a new character to adorn some products and am happy to share with you the lovely 'Rocky the rooster' Rocky is a very busy rooster who spends his days dashing around!

Aprons for little angles!

2009-11-08T15:40:00.000-08:00

Had a go tonight at making some little aprons and although I discovered just how difficult it is to sew on bias binding (gave up in the end) I think generally they were a success. Will have a go at some full size ones next.

Finlay has a new gorgeous blanket

2009-11-07T12:10:00.000-08:00

Some time ago after Finlay had arrived I saw a baby blanket that was really beautiful but sadly had a beautifully large price tag to go with it!

I couldn't justify spending such a large sum on a baby blanket but I did decide I would look out for some nice fabrics and make one myself so today I made his blanket and I love it! It was certainly worth shopping around for the fabrics as its exactly as I wanted it to be. Lottie also had a test run of the new blanket and seemed to approve.

Finlay made it to the table

2009-11-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

Well it is official my little boy is growing up!

He is still only 5 months but we started weaning him last week and it seems to be a big step in the grown up direction. We even got Lottie's old chair that attaches to the table out of the attic so he can join us at the dinner table. The girls of course think this is just the best thing ever and are already arming him with bad habits like banging your cup on the table and generally throwing things around. I think even more so than I did before that someone should produce oil cloth wallpaper for dinning rooms!

(Note Grace is grabbing his hand its not that he has a strange extra finger that goes in the wrong direction)

Lucy the Goose

2009-11-04T15:56:00.000-08:00

Am really enjoying my sewing at the moment and have finally got to grips with how to make a drawstring bag. Just need to work out how to make nice neat French seams now and I shall be extremely happy with myself.

This week has seen the creation of Lucy Goosey which Grace and Lottie both want (may have to make another) and some other cute little Purses.

We also picked up a beautiful vintage dolls bed in the local charity shop that is just awaiting some lovely handmade bed linen to do it justice and of course I shall post it when its complete!

Buttons, school kit bags and handbags

2009-10-31T16:16:00.000-07:00

Have a had a lovely sewing frenzy and have some cute buttons, a handbag and some PE kit bags in the making. Decided to make kit bags that were all different so that the child knows which bag is theirs by the design and with no two bags the same teachers should be able to find the right bag.

Just need to think of some more lovely designs but am thinking boats, cars, aeroplanes, hearts, geese, birds and cats would make nice additions.

Exhibit number one from my new sewing machine!

2009-10-27T16:56:00.000-07:00

As you may have guessed from the title I have a new sewing machine as my old one spluttered its last stitches at the weekend. It was the most basic of basic machines so when my new computerised machine arrived this afternoon there was great excitement!

So as soon as the children were in bed I prioritised making something over all my other tasks and after a lot of swearing at this and that I finally produced something! It still needs a red button to finish it but all in all it was a fun little project.

Lau Lau the golden apple snail!

2009-10-25T05:37:00.000-07:00

Just as the title suggests we have a new addition to our fish tank!

After a conversation with a friend on friday who told me about Golden apple snail, my husband trooped out with the children on Saturday and duly purchased one. I have to say I was a little sceptical about its ability to clean the tank but oh how wrong I was it, its fantastic!

The girls have spent most of this morning drawing pictures of the snail who has now been joined by some rather unhealthy looking plants and a lump of cucumber. (the snail will apparently munch away on this if is gets bored of eating algae)

Ok I am off to have a go at doing some freehand embroidery on the machine of some snails after reading the beautiful book that Poppy Treffrey has just written I feel inspired to give it a go.

Keep a look out for snail pictures to follow x

London Bus & The Queens Guards

2009-10-18T14:59:00.000-07:00

Its been a lovely weekend and a visit from Granny and Grandad to make it extra special!Grace and Lottie managed to stay asleep till 6am before they wanted to wake Granny and Grandad up, goodness knows what time they shall want to be up this Christmas!

As the weather has turned colder Finlay's newly acquired hat bought from the gorgeous stealing candy http://www.stealingcandy.co.uk/has both come in use and inspired me along with a card that I bought months ago (I don't seem to be able to part with it) the two items seem to have a similar lovely childish feel about them. So today I set to and had a go at a "Queens Guard". Not sure where he is heading, either into a picture frame or maybe onto a bag and he could do with some tweaking but he seems to have a worthy character so he may well get some friends to join him!

Numbers on the stairs and Finlay the dog.

2009-10-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

This week has also seen the return of the numbers to our staircase. As Lottie our 2 year old is getting to grips with counting we thought we would help her out a little or at least get her past 1, 2, 3!

With so many things to do over the next few weeks to get sorted for the up and coming Fayre's making a dog for Finlay was really not high up on the list of priorities yet sometimes you just need to ignore the lists and have a bit of fun! So last night when my 3 beautiful children were finely off to sleep I had a go at making the Cath Kidston dog. Not something I would ever mass produce as I have neither the patience nor the skills however as a one off he was fun to make and is now hanging next to Finlay's cot.

Bitsy Birds

2009-10-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

Well our lovely new Cath Kidston book arrived this week called "Sew" filled with lovely sewing projects that I know my daughters will love and I am sure I can find something that even Finlay may like!

So this Sunday afternoon we set to and made a couple of birds from the book that my eldest daughter Grace has named "Bitsy's"

I am sure that the Bitsy'swill be joined over the next few days by some more friends to keep them company, we may even attempt a dog!

More Hairbands

2009-10-11T05:51:00.000-07:00

Am really pleased to have more hairbands available especially with the Victoria School Christmas shopping evening coming up! At the bargain price of £2.95 a hairband I suspect there success will continue.

I have now promised to make some up in red dot fabric to go with one of the other local school uniforms. They really are a great way to keep hair out of eyes and as you can label them with your child's name it means you are guaranteed to get it back at the end of a school day unlike all those missing hair clips we have lost over the last 6 months!

Photo's Photo's Photo's

2009-09-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Am sure I shall be adding yet more images soon but its getting late now and I have the first of our More than a Mama December fayre meetings tomorrow so best get some shut eye!

I could go on and on with the photos but wanted to include one of my bandanna bibs as they to are proving to be very popular.
And of course what better place to stash all these yummy goodies than a Isla B Baby changing bag, its amazing what you can fit into one of these little changing mat bags.

Can not wait to see some of these pretty fabrics made up into products!

My lovely hair bands have sold out until next week. They have been really popular so I am making them in some of the new fabrics that have arrived.

Thought I would start with the lovely Meg the Peg in all her colourful outfits, she is such fun to make I think I could get a little carried away!

Well as the title suggests I Have spent some of today taking photo's of my stock, it seems no matter how many I take I sit down and discover I haven't taken one of the item I need! Still have to start somewhere If I am going to put my sales skills into practice.

More photos from the Harpenden Fayre

2009-09-27T15:46:00.000-07:00

Princess beds and Fabrics

Burp cloths and Bandana bibs

Changing mat's and Handmade wrapped soaps

More Princess beds with peg dolls

Meg the peg and re-usable wipes

More Meg the pegs!

A visit home and Harpenden Fayre

2009-09-27T15:14:00.000-07:00

Its a been a busy week, travelling north to vist Alnmouth where I grew up http://northumberland-cam.com/alnmouth/2.htm then back south in time for the Harpenden More than a Mama fayre. So I thought I should update my blog as its been looking like a cookery blog recently!

The Harpenden Fayre was a great success! I met so many lovely Mum's and like minded crafters that it didn't feel like work at all!

I did however forget to take my camera so have to thank Marie http://www.heartfelthandmade.com/ for being more organised and taking photo's for me!

My tinkle tents caused much hilarity amongst the Mum's. Those with only girls were very amused and those with boys heartily agreed that they were a fab idea. Meg the Peg made her debut as did My range of bed linen in bags having previously only avaialble to order.

Hair bandana's and baby dribble bandana's were a big success as were my re-usable wet wipes perfect for toddler hands as well as babbies when out and about.

Funny old week!

2009-09-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

Grace and Lottie at Grove Farm having a blast! We picked carrots and turned them into Yummy carrot muffins and Raspberries for a delicious Pavlova as well as lots of other vegetables!

At the start of the week we made it to Ivinghoe to the fabulous farm to pick our own fruit and veg. The girls loved it and it triggered a cooking frenzy in the Powell kitchen with much bowl and spoon licking by the girls

It has however been a funny old week, what with me turning 36 and my dear old Grandma passing away at the age of 92 its been a week for reflecting.

My grandma when I was a child would make the most exquisite dolls clothes for my dolls as well as making me a beautiful rag doll that I treasured for many years her talents far exceeded my own but I know she would love the group of More than a Mama's that I am involved with.http://morethanamamaberkhamsted.blogspot.com/ So with next more than mama fayer on the horizon I know the next week is going to be one crammed with organizing as well as traveling home for a long overdue walk on the beach!

Finlay learned to giggle!

2009-08-18T14:33:00.001-07:00

More importantly than any website building or meg the peg making this week Finlay learned to giggle at 10 weeks old! Am thinking that this bodes well for the future as he is certainly going to need a good sense of humor with his two big sisters in charge!

Meg the Peg

2009-08-18T14:21:00.000-07:00

Meg the peg went of in the post this week with a king size duvet order to her happy new home, meg will be joined by lots of her friends at the up and comin Harpenden Fayre on the 24Th September where all bedlinen will now come in a bag with a meg the peg attached. Oh how I love packaging!

Set up my domain name!!

2009-07-30T15:54:00.000-07:00

Feeling very nervous and apprehensive, have finally registered my website domain name and committed to a web hosting site. Need to really get cracking as I want this up and running for the next show so I can start to sell, sell, sell. Me being me I have opted to do this the hard way and build it myself. My head is buzzing from all the geek speak I have tried to take in from various books on building your own website. I don't think I shall be fluent in html in the next few days but am certainly learning how to take step 1.

Isla B Baby Products

2009-07-29T14:25:00.000-07:00

Tinkle tents the perfect solution for catching an unexpected tinkle when chaniging a boys nappy.

Re-usable wet wipes!

All the burp cloths come packaged in pretty voil bags making them a perfect gift.

Boys need burp cloths too!

These proved to be a huge hit at the last show so will be making an apperance at the next show in the new fabrics.

Our Next Fayre

2009-07-29T14:18:00.001-07:00

Beautiful New Fabrics

2009-07-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

My gorgeous green fabrics have arrived and are looking lovely. Decided I needed to offer something more than that the pretty blue's and pinks that I had on offer at the last show. Can't wait to see them made up into bandanna bibs with toweling backs and burp cloths not to mention my oh so successful changing mat bags!

More than a Mama's next show

2009-07-29T13:51:00.000-07:00

Very excited about our next up and coming show, following on from the success of our Berkhamsted show were are going on the road, well off to Harpenden so a little down the road!

We then have 2 more shows back in Sunny Berkhamsted on of which will be an evening show.

Sunday 24th July 2009

2009-07-26T16:17:00.000-07:00

Finally got around to setting up a blog site and can see it could easily become addictive!

Spent the week researching how to build my own website and plan to spend this week getting it all started. All seems very exciting and a little overdue as I have had my finished products ready for 8 weeks now. Still with 3 small children (age 4, 2 and 7 weeks) its not surprising that nothing happens quickly around here.