Crafty Jemima's First Giveaway!

Well here we are: the 100th blog post! Exciting times! I remember starting up last year not really knowing what I was doing. But now I love my little blog - what a great way to record all the things I accomplish that would otherwise be forgotten. And it still amazes me that so many of you take the time to stop by and read! As it happens I also have a couple of other things to celebrate too. I've clocked up 100 followers over on Facebook and last week I got my very first supplier. Happy Days! But that's for another blog post.

Because as promised, today is giveaway day so here's what I'm offering up as a main prize:

One of my hand stitched heart button brooches and a matching keyring. Now I made these for my last craft fair and any I had left have been handed over to my aforementioned new supplier, so here's your chance to nab one of them before they're available for sale on Folksy.

I'll also chuck in a few extra little treats - it's always nice to get a surprise too!

So if you want to try your luck, here are the rules:

To enter the giveaway you can:
1 - follow the blog;
2 - follow me on twitter;
3 - like me on facebook.

Leave a comment below telling me which of the 3 you have done. Each one is equal to one entry - do all 3 and you have 3 entries.
If you already do any / all of the above and wish to be entered into the giveaway then leave a comment telling me which you do and your name will be added to the pot!

Overseas entries are very welcome. The giveaway will run until midnight on Monday 19th of July and the winner will be announced on Tuesday the 20th. Good luck!

Three Things

Three things that have made me smile on this beautiful day are:

this beautiful postcard and personalized thankyou note that came with my order from Sepia Smiles this morning;

my new breakfast of choice - blueberries, strawberries and yogurt - nom nom;

and these blue brooches that I've been working on. Love how they turned out.

Facebook, Folksy, and Weekend Sewing

Well I was a busy bee over the weekend - I set up a facebook fan page and also started to list items on Folksy. So far I have Hang Hearts and Flower Brooches for sale:



Now there's a lot more to do and I'll be continuing to list more items today, but I'm really pleased that everything's taking shape. And when I was fed up of typing and uploading I sat curled up in front of the TV and worked on my latest obsession:




Hexagons. I've been teetering on the edge of starting a hexagon project for a while now but last week I found the Texas Freckles blog and it pushed me over the edge! So far I have 81 of them. I need to branch out and add some more colours next. I'm excited to see what they look like sewn up. And I'm completely undecided as to what to do with them. So many options! Any suggestions?

Easter Weekend

Hello everyone. Well we arrived back safe and sound from our trip to Wales. We had a lovely Easter break, but had one too many a late night and I'm finding it hard to settle back into the old routine. Anyway I thought I'd pay blog land a flying visit before getting on with some making. Here are my weekend highlights:


Finally the Daffodils are in full bloom. After such a harsh winter they're very very late this year. I remember a couple of years ago my dad saying he'd seen some out in mid-December!


Now I'm not a massive chocolate fan but Lindt is my absolute favourite. I haven't cracked into my bunny yet - maybe a couple of chunks will accompany my mid-afternoon cuppa!


And look what I was given - I was visiting my aunt and spotted this lovely little brooch in her kitchen. She caught me admiring it and told me to keep it, as it was made from the spare fabric left over from my dress when I was bridesmaid at their wedding, 19 years ago! What a lovely idea to make keepsakes that mark a special occasion. I'm a very sentimental being so I'm thrilled with it!

Anyway I hope everyone had a lovely Easter - I'm off to find a sketch pad and a pair of scissors. See where the inspiration takes me!

I love it when a plan comes together

So earlier this week I finally got an idea for a brooch that I thought was plausible, and after several hours of snipping and stitching the transformation is complete!

From these:

to these:

to the finished article:

So what do you think? I like the way they turned out. I didn't even have to change anything from my original doodling. Now all I need is to get some packaging sorted out and they'll be ready for selling. Happy Days!

Tell me why I don't like mondays...

Well actually I know why I don't like this particular monday - I woke up sick and sore for the umpteenth time this year, it's miserable and dreary outside and the snow is once more on its way.

Today so far has been one of those days where all you want to do is jump into a big bag of roving,

Or wrap yourself up in yards of yummy fabric.

But I'm resigned to needing to take a pair of scissors to a giant stack of felt,


and cutting out countless flowers ready to be sewn into brooches.


Maybe if I close the blinds and make enough flowers I can pretend that it's a beautiful sunny spring day after all!

Smile!

I thought I'd quickly share with you two things that have made me smile today:

Firstly my crocheted brooch that I left at home over Christmas and recently got back. It is now safely pinned to my coat. I made and sold a few of these late last year but this one was my favourite so I kept it! And of course I forgot to write the pattern down so I need to work it out all over again to make more.


And secondly my lovely spotty tea pot! I could spend all day looking at tea pots - my mum and Nanny used to collect all those strangely shaped ones, so I'm proud to have restrained myself to owning only one. I'm afraid that this one was not hand-decorated by a fellow creative type, but rather I bought it in the Woolworths closing down sale. However my childhood weekends were spent browsing the CD isles and eyeing up the pick and mix in Woolies, so I got this as a bit of nostalgia from my once favourite, now non-existent, shop.

My lovely tea pot usually resides on the kitchen windowsill, but today he was filled to the brim with lovely steaming tea. He is unfortunately now empty but I am full to the brim with caffeine!
He was complaining about being a bit cold so I've promised to make him a nice cozy to keep him snug and warm. I asked him whether he would like a crocheted, knitted, or sewn cozy but he says he has no preference - what do you guys think?