Birthday Giveaway - And the NEW winner is.....

Laura Carrol!!

The original winner of my birthday giveaway did not come forward so I have selected a new winner at random. Please get in touch if it is you and I'll arrange for your treat to be sent to you.

Christmas is coming, must start making things!

This year I am having a handmade Christmas. I have lots of great ideas for presents for people which for the moment I shall keep under wraps, but I can't wait to share them with you at a later date!

Last year, when I was watching Kirstie's Homemade Christmas, I was inspired to make some stockings like she did but the programme was on too late to do them in time for Santa's visit. I bought the fabics to make one for me and my hubby ages ago but they are still languishing in the fabric box... It all stems from the fear of the sewing machine but if I am to get it done in time for this year, I'd better get my skates on!

If you fancy making your own, here's where to find the instructions: Stockings

Here are some pics of Christmas things that I have managed to finish and which are available in my Etsy shop:

Confronting the fear of needles...... (part 2)

You may remember my post from a week or two ago about starting to learn to knit, well needless to day, the novelty has worn off!

My "knitters' thumb" got better but my knitting technique has not! At the weekend, my auntie tried to help me but it was a lost cause really. And among the various hints and tips and fiddling about with the wool, the whole lot got unravelled and Barbie's scarf no longer exists. If you've no idea what I'm talking about read this post.

So, the knitting is out the window, so to speak. Glad I didn't buy decent needles...! I may pick it up again one day but for the time being I'm happy to leave the knitting to those who enjoy it! Does anyone else struggle to knit or is it just me?

Cushie number!

I made my first ever cushions last week and now that the recipient has received these (my auntie who does the knitting for me - it was her b'day), I can show you some pics!

I used a fabulous cotton fabric with lots of girlie pictures of shoes, bags, dresses and makeup. These pics don't do them justice really, they are a very girlie combination of pinks, blues, greens and purples.The cover is removable so you can wash it or change the cover altogether so I think that's pretty cool! I did sew on some cute pink buttons but you can't see them in this pic sadly. I was sad to part with them although will be excited to see how they look in their new home! I love seeing things that I've made for people when I visit their houses : )

I am a bit scared of the sewing machine so tend to shy away from these sorts of projects but I was surprised how straight forward it was to make! I used the instructions from Kirstie's Homemade Home that was on channel 4 last year. You can find them here if you want to have a go at making them. For those of you in the know about these things, they are envelope cushions. Probably the easiest cushion to make for a scaredy cat like me!

Is anyone else scared of the sewing machine?

Let them eat cake

Today is my birthday and I just had to show you a pic of the cake that my wonderful hubby made for me:

It was a Brooklyn Blackout Cake from the Humming Bird Bakery Cookbook and it was A-MAZ-ING! If you don't have this wonderful book, go and buy it right now! It is the best cake book ever and every single recipe that I've made so far is to die for!!

My hubby never bakes (I'm in charge of the cakes round here) but as I believe it is wrong to bake your own birthday cake, each year he rolls up his sleeves and makes a fabulous cake for me. It may not have a fancy icing design but it was so yummy, there's none left! (Please note that I did not eat it all myself).
 

On the subject of cakes, these Halloween cupcakes made by my sister's friend (aka The Bad Fairy) were equally delicious and absolutely gorgeous to look at. Check out the detail on the decorating!

Facebook Love

A very quick post to say thank you to everyone who 'likes' the Princess Crafts page on Facebook. On Friday night, I have 12 'likes' and at the time of writing this, I had 138 'likes'! That's a massive increase in such a short space of time and I'd like to say thanks to all of you who have been recommending me to your friends, I really appreciate it.

It makes me very happy to see people like my stuff :-)

The answer to your cuppa going cold

If you're like me, you prefer to sit down and put your feet up while you enjoy your cuppa tea/coffee/hot chocolate. But sometimes life gets in the way of enjoying the cuppa while it's hot - the phone rings/there's someone at the door/you pop out to hang the washing and then forget the cuppa is waiting for you...

Well, I may have the perfect answer to this problem!!

Introducing...

..The Cup Snug!

Knitted by my auntie and embellished with beads and sequins by my sister, this is our first prototype. Now, I can't guarantee that it will stop your cuppa going cold but it might help keep it warm for that little bit longer! And it will definitely liven up a boring paper cup from your fave coffee shop! We are also working on a mug snug which will accommodate mugs with handles.

Would you like to see this and more like it in my shop??