The end of a great weekend and the start of another week...

I can't believe it's Monday morning again! We've had a crazy, busy, amazing weekend (me & DH that is), it seems more like a week full of doing things, rather than just two days, so this is a bit of a departure from my usual Craft Britannia shop of the week (which will come after my usual, but longer than usual ramblings).

On to what we've been up to at the weekend... We drove to Wolverhampton (and back home) twice over the weekend, visited the in-laws and then there's the main reason for our trip to and from Wolverhampton, the Marston Sunbeam Club and Register's, Sunbeam motorcycle centenary event! So my Etsy shop and crafting had to be put on hold over the weekend, while we were busy with other things.

My DH is the club magazine editor, so I get the title of 'unofficial official club photographer', personal assistant and any other job title you'd like to give me! 
Saturday morning we set off for the centenary event and I volunteered for the job of manning the magazines stall (in other words standing behind the corner of a small table handing out the latest magazine and ticking off the members who came to collect it). This turned into helping out with selling club merchandise and trying to answer questions if I could, amongst other things. On Sunday, I went back to my 'usual job' of taking as many photos of the event as I could, my DH only picks a few for the magazine, but it's good to get as many shots as I can because he can always use a bike photo or two for an article in a later edition.

It was pretty amazing to see all the old Sunbeams meeting up outside Sunbeamland (which is in the background and now owned by Urban Splash). I wonder how long it's been, since this many 'Beams were at the factory?

Thankfully the rain kept off for most of the weekend, although quite a few members came back on Sunday, looking very very soggy after a planned ride out into the countryside.

Here's a small photo taster of the event...

A sample of the bikes that visited Sunbeamland in Wolverhampton.

Portrait of John Marston from the archives, with possibly one of the earliest Sunbeams

                                              

And now, onto this weeks Craft Britannia shop of the week!
Which this week is Fem of The Feminine Touch. Which, you'll probably be glad to read, has absolutely nothing to do with motorcycles or motorcycle events and clubs,

Fem, another of our Craft Britannia teamies on Etsy, makes and sells all manner of hand knitted and felted items, from sachets to tea cozies, hand warmers to scarfs and also cushions, some of which are made from recycled sweaters, like the ones below.

After the long weekend I've just had, I'd really love find a quiet corner and sink down on a couple of these cushions and have a nice nap, they look so soft and cuddly.

Recycled cushion throw.

When deciding which of Fem's items I'd feature, I was automatically drawn to the more earthy colours. I'm not sure how long our brief summer will last, and autumn seems like it's around the corner lurking somewhere, so the autumnal colours seemed a more natural choice for today.

Orange tea cozy.

                    How about a quirky hand knit cozy to keep your tea nice and hot?

Autumnal handwarmers.

And these handwarmers are just the thing for cozy hands, especially when the weather turns colder. Personally, I think a pair of these are an essential item of clothing, especially when it's nippy and you have to work on your computer or laptop!

I hope you've enjoyed today's featured Etsy team member? Please leave a comment below if you can, it's nice to see what people think of the items I feature (along with my ramblings!)

Oh and not forgetting, Fem's Craft Britannia blog interview can be found here and her handmade goodies are in her Etsy shop is here. Fem also has a blog if you'd like to keep up with what she's up to.

Well, that's all for today, I have so many things to catch up on after our crazy but fun weekend, so I'd better get started on my very large to-do list. 

Appreciate all the handmade love you're given.

This weeks Craft Britannia shop of the week has got me reminiscing, about how we don't always appreciate how much hard work and love goes into the handmade gifts and things we had made for us when we were younger (and when we're older too!)

My mom was an avid knitter, where she got the time to knit I have no idea, she always seemed to be 'on the go', working part time when I started school, keeping house, looking after me, my dad and brother. She must have squeezed in an hour or so each evening after we were in bed.

I still remember all the knitted jumpers, cardigans and toys she made me but it's only after I took up knitting myself that I realized how much hard work and love went into each stitch.

Which brings me onto this week's SOTW, which is Bebby Jumpers. 

I'm not usually one for oooh-iing and aaahhh-ing at babies or children, (well, OK I'm willing to admit I do coo over the occasional baby or child). So when I learned that this week I would be featuring a children's clothes shop, I thought, "well I'm not too sure where this post will end up". But on taking a closer look at Bebby's shop it made me think of my mom and all the lovely things she made me over the years. 

 

Bebby's babies and children's clothes look so beautifully made and her designs look like traditional vintage patterns that I remember from my childhood but they are still very much in fashion today, I think this is mainly because of her use of texture and colour. 

I especially like the designs I've featured here and wish I had nieces and nephews young enough to wear her beautiful handknits.

Beautiful yellow bunny cardigan.

 

Child's handknit aran sweater

 

Girl's handknit jacket with pixie hood.

A beautiful gift for a winter birthday or for Christmas.

Bebby Jumper's lovely shop can be found here on Etsy.

And to read more about Bebby and her beautiful handknit children's clothes and accessories, please visit the Craft Britannia blog  http://craftbritannia.com/2012/07/22/bebbyjumpers/

I hope you'll take the time to pay her a visit, especially if you have any little ones in the family and are looking for beautifully handknits for them.

Spinning in a world of yarn!

       This week's Craft Britannia Etsy team shop of the week is Spinning Streak.

 If you want hand knitted goodies, or some lovely hand dyed and destash yarn for your own stash, then Spinning Streak's Etsy shop is a good place to start.

Spinning also makes some gorgeous hand knitted items, like the tea cozy below, which I love for it's mix of colours and textures.

One of Spinning Streak's gorgeous chunky textured cozies.

Some of her beautiful hand spun and hand dyed yarn.

Spinning also knits some beautiful hats. I have my eye on a couple of her slouch

beanies, perfect for my countryside foraging sessions, or even bad hair days!

To read all about Spinning Streak and her work, please visit the Craft Britannia's SOTW blog post for her interview.

I'm not sure who's going to be the next SOTW as we've had a slight re-shuffle around, due to someone being on holiday when it was their turn. It was my last week, and if by any chance you'd like to read my interview and know more about me and my small world, please click here visit the Craft Britannia blog.

I'd just like to add a huge thank you, to everyone on the Craft Britannia team on Etsy. All their hard work made my turn at shop of the week really enjoyable and I felt very spoiled getting all the attention.

My name is Katie and I'm addicted to freehand machine embroidery!

Kirsty Allsopp was heard to say on one of her 'handmade' programs that freehand machine embroidery was the crack cocaine of the craft world and boy she wasn't wrong! Once I tried embroidering on felt I was hooked.
It's so relaxing and absorbing. An hour can go by like it's 10 minutes and as a result I've been late cooking our evening meal more than once this week (oops!)

Here are a few of the felt applique patches I've made this week, all were designed using my own sketches and traced onto quilters freezer paper (all except the bee, which I did without a sketch). I hope you like them.


Blythe doll inspired applique patch.

Skull applique patch and a couple of craft inspired ones.

Although I did the freehand embroidery on my new Silver 1040, the sewing machine patch was taken from a quick sketch I did of my faithful Toyota. I couldn't resist including a knitting theme patch too!

A camera design patch, taken from another of my quick sketches.

And finally, my skull and crossbones on silver grey felt. I also made a life sized English bee, which I didn't base on a sketch, I just had a bash at it with my machine and did one by memory - I think it came out OK.

All in all, I'm really pleased with how the freehand embroidery has turned out. When I get around to writing and posting my new machine review, I'll also put some hints and tips up for doing freehand machine embroidery.