the other weeks tie-dying adventure yielded some very bright and colourful results. have a look:

that last singlet is my favourite - it reminds me of the icy-poles i used to eat in summer when when i was little.

i will definitely be doing tie dyeing again. it was so much fun. i think next time i will try some different colours - maybe more woodsy browns and greens - just to see the difference.

essie xoxo

my baby-related crafting mojo has been somewhat lacking since i got knocked up, so i’ve decided to work my way up to bigger things in stages, only attempting small projects to begin with.

this evening i made two quilted bibs, which i hope will come in very useful. i am reliably informed that you can’t have too many of the things.

i like bibs that tie with thin string-like ties, rather than the kind that wrap around the neck and do up with a press stud or velcro. i feel like they’d be more comfortable to wear, and they are more adjustable size-wise.

these were very quick to make, and i’ll definitely be doing more. i might even write a pattern to share, if i get myself organised!

essie xox

it’s weird. since i’ve been pregnant, i have COMPLETELY lost my sewing mojo. i just haven’t wanted to sew. and on the few times i’ve sat down to do something, i have been seriously underwhelmed by the results.

this has struck me as very unfair, because i love making baby things, and i held off on doing so before getting pregnant because i didn’t want to tempt fate. if i’d know this was going to happen i would have stared on the baby quilts and booties years ago!

today, however, my friend siobhan (also up the duff, though as you can see, much further along than me) and i had a go at a different kind of crafty activity - tie-dyeing!

we are both of the hippie-mama persuasion, and love brightly coloured kids clothes, so we thought we’d have a go at making some of our own. we got a whole bunch of plain onesies, muslin wraps, and singlets, and let loose with the colours!

we’re yet to discover whether they’ve worked yet, but i’ll be sure to take some pictures after we’ve rinsed them all out and hung them up to dry.

i think they’ll be ready well before i get the colour off my hands - the gloves annoyed me so i took them off, and now i think i will be mulberry coloured for the next week.

it was a lot of fun to learn a new craft, and particularly one that is so different from the kind i normally do. i can highly recommend having a go at it if you’re ever looking to try something different!

essie xoxox

what could be inside a package a delightful as this? could the contents possibly live up to the exterior?

yes, actually, they could!

i had an appalling haircut recently (no, really, it’s horrible), so to console myself i visited one of my favourite etsy shops, the faerie market and bought that lovely leaf headband. it is so pretty that it might make me feel a little bit better about being seen like this… a very little bit…

essie xxx

i have just GOT to show you all what i received from a wonderful craftster swapper today…

it is a fox scarf! the cruelty free kind! i am going to wear it around and pretend i am constance trentham in gosford park.
brilliant.

essie xoxox

you can never have too many accessories, right? especially when they’re hand made.

i’ve been making bobby pins with cloth covered buttons, and matching them with little embroideries. some of them with back stitch…

and others with cross stitch…

i’m having fun coming up with different ideas for these. there are some in the shop, and i’ll be updating it with more as i make them.
i hope you like my newest offerings!
essie xoxox

i’ve been working on the idea of some embroidered hair clips for a while and i think i’m ready to show you…

i got some dublin linen (so lovely to work with!) and started stitching up a few itty-bitty designs. then i put them onto snap clips, and paired them another cloth covered snap clip in complementary colours.

there are three motifs so far: bunny, birdie, and heart. they will be VERY limited edition in this form (more on that in a couple of weeks), and i’ll be selling them at my stall at the sisters’ market on the 9th of october. if i have any left after the market, i’ll put them up in the shop.

i think they’re pretty cute - what do you think?
essie xoxox

one of my friends had a birthday this week. she’s a crafty chick, who likes apples and red. for christmas i used the minny muu “wee apples” fabric…

…to make her a little bag, and as i had a bit left i thought i would use it to make her a brooch for her birthday.

i was inspired by this tutorial by allison of cluck, cluck, sew, and it was super easy. want to see? here it is:

*
*thanks to pieces for taking this photo for me, since i forgot to do it myself before wrapping it up and giving it away!

i particularly like the way the edges of the fabric are left ‘raw’ so that they will fray a little with use and get a shabby look.

so, next time you have some fabric that is just right for a certain friend and you’re not sure how to use it, i can highly recommend that tutorial as an easy and fun solution!

love,
essie xxx