Recent Makes...

I've fallen in love with felt a bit lately... There's something really satisfying about having a little glass pot of random cute buttons, picking up a needle and sewing them on to everything. And there is something so soothing about embroidering on to really soft felt. So it's what I've been creating lately, snuggled on the sofa in the cold (even-though-it's-supposed-to-be-summer-and-sunny) evenings after work. The weather has been sunny one minute, rainy the next, and this project seems to be perfect because I can happily carry my shoebox of embroidery thread and buttons around the house with me or out in the sunshine in the backyard.

I started making ribbon bracelets which I love. I've been collecting all sorts of pretty ribbon everywhere I go and it's been sat in a little basket in my craft room waiting. My favourite is this little thin grey cotton ribbon with tiny white embroidered hearts on. I used it for the "leaf" on the yellow ribbon bracelet and then made a felt cuff bracelet with it. I still haven't decided how to finish the cuffs, whether to use velcro or a tiny elastic cotton tie. I'm just enjoying sewing all the designs on now, I've not done much hand sewing in ages and I love using beads on them.

One of the downsides of working an office job where I have to type ALL day on a keyboard is that I can never wear really nice bracelets as accessories. They always scratch against the desk when I'm moving the mouse, or get in the way when I'm typing, and I always inevitably end up taking them off and they sit there sad on my desk all day. Ian bought me some really nice tie cord friendship bracelets from Etsy for my birthday (www.tiedupmemories.etsy.com) and I love them so much I wear them all the time, and because they are flat again my wrist and are soft they don't bother me at work. 

So that got me to thinking that the felt and the ribbon bracelets would have the same effect, and it would be a nice bright cheerful bracelet or cuff to wear to work to brighten up my outfit. 

I still have to figure out how to finish the back of the cuffs off as well as I don't think one layer of felt is quite enough for it as a bracelet, I might try sewing an extra layer on. We will see how it goes!