LucyKate Crafts...

Ready for the next free pattern?

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 21:21:00 +0000

Here we go, this week, it's the turn of the Matriarch of the family,

You will need...

14 x 16 cm of felted wool for the body (although if you have no felted wool, just use fabric)

8 x 18 cm of felted wool for the base, eyes and wings

4 x 8 cm of craft felt for the beak

4 x 4 cm of craft felt for the flower

8 x 10 cm of fabric for the tummy patch

8 x 12 cm of fabric for the wings

2 small buttons for eyes & 1 extra for the flower

2 large buttons to attach the wings

Toy stuffing

Selection of embroidery thread (I used pearl cotton 8, but any will do)

Small pebble to weight the bottom

Small piece of card for the internal base

Plus the usual suspects, pins, needle, scissors etc…

Before you begin, print out the templates so the complete image is a finished size of 12 x 12 cm, that should make them the correct size to work with, any problems with that though, just send me an email (there's a link in the sidebar -->)

Step 1 : For the body, cut two shapes using the templates provided from the felted wool. Pin, right side together and stitch, roughly 0.5cm away from the edge leaving the turning gap open. Turn the body right side round, and fill with the stuffing. Keep going until you are happy with the shape, then make a well within the base of the stuffing for the pebble. Pack the pebble in place by adding a bit more stuffing and finish off by cutting a small oval shape from the card (cut this by eye as it’s hard to give an exact size due to the felted wool stretching when stuffed) and place it just inside the open end. Cut the base piece from the felted wool, place it over the open end to cover the hole and secure in place with random straight stitches.

Step 2 : Place the felted wool for the wings wrong side together with the fabric. Cut out one wing and join both layers together with blanket stitch around the edge. Attach to the side of the penguin with a large button. Flip the wing template, and repeat for the other wing.

Step 3 : Cut two circles for the eyes from the felted wool and stitch onto the face with one of the small buttons in the center of each eye. Cut out the beak, fold in half and attach along the folded edge with random straight stitches. From the fabric, cut out a tummy piece and sew into place again with random straight stitches. To finish off, cut out the flower, and attach to the head with a button in the center.

(templates, just drag & drop the image onto your desktop to print)

As is the rule of thumb with all my free patterns, YES ...you can sell what you make (as long as you don't go into mass production), just add a copyright mark to say ⓒ Lucykate Crafts... within any written description and also make sure you join the Lucykate Crafts... Pattern Pieces Flickr group to show off what you make. Tune in next week for the final free pattern in this series!

Penguin finale...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 22:00:00 +0000

Time for the final Penguin to add to the collection...

You will need :

10 x 12 cm of felted wool for the body (although if you have no felted wool, just use fabric)

10 x 10 cm of felted wool for the base, eyes and wings

4 x 4 cm of craft felt for the beak

6 x 6 cm of craft felt for the fish

6 x 5 cm of fabric for the tummy patch

5 x 8 cm of fabric for the wings

2 small buttons for the eyes

2 small buttons to attach the wings

Toy stuffing

Selection of embroidery thread (I used pearl cotton 8, but any will do)

Small pebble to weight the bottom

Small piece of card for the internal base

Tracing paper and a pencil to trace the templates

Plus the usual suspects, pins, needle, scissors etc…

Before you begin, print out the templates so the complete image is a finished size of 9 x 14 cm, that should make them the correct size to work with, any problems with that though, just send me an email (there's a link in the sidebar -->)

Step 1 : For the body cut two shapes ,using the template provided, from the felted wool. Pin, right sides together and stitch, roughly 0.5cm away from the edge leaving the turning gap open. Turn the body right side round, and fill with the stuffing. Keep going until you are happy with the shape. Make a well within the base of the stuffing for the pebble. Pack the pebble in place by adding a bit more stuffing and finish off by cutting a small oval shape from the card (cut this by eye as it’s hard to give an exact size due to the felted wool stretching when stuffed) and place it just inside the open end. Cut the base piece from the felted wool, place it over the open end to cover the hole and secure in place with random straight stitches.

Step 2 : Place the felted wool for the wings wrong side together with the fabric. Cut out one wing through both layers. Flip the template and cut the second wing. Sew around the edge of each wing using blanket stitch. Attach one wing to each side of the penguin with a small button, positioning them fabric side facing out, with the more curved edge towards the front of the penguin.

Step 4 : To make the fish, cut 2 fish shapes from the craft felt, join the 2 together by sewing blanket stitch round the edge. Add a small french knot to each side for an eye.

Your little penguin is now complete. You can make as many babies as you like! (sewing wise I mean, not literally!)

(templates, just drag & drop the image onto your desktop to print)

As always with my free patterns, YES ...you can sell what you make (as long as you don't go into mass production), just add a copyright mark to say ⓒ Lucykate Crafts... within any written description and also make sure you join the Lucykate Crafts... Pattern Pieces Flickr group to show off what you make. Happy stitching!

Onion,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 09:09:00 +0000

It's my friends birthday, and rather sadly her cat died.

So, I made her this...

Hope she likes it.

Close encounters...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 10:58:00 +0000

Apologies for the lack of posts lately, first our internet connection has been erratic due to a faulty (now replaced) router/modem, and second, it's the school holidays and life has been very busy!

I did, however, get the opportunity to spend some time with this beautiful little lady...

wish I could have taken her home!

Back,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Sat, 25 Aug 2012 14:07:00 +0000

Summer is almost over...

next week it's back to work!

See you soon

Hello,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 14:02:00 +0000

This blog has been so quiet lately, I feel the need to re-introduce myself. Hello, I'm Amy, and I craft... sometimes, oh, and I also wrote a book and I make stuff!

The summer has been very busy for us, visiting lots of family and also ripping our garden to pieces to begin a complete revamp that has been on the cards for the last 5 years.

(railway sleeper planters!)

There has been a little crafting, not much I have to admit, but just a little...

Luke has a cabin bed in his bedroom, and despite having what I think is quite a nice room, he continually makes a pain of himself (as most little brothers do) by hovering around his older sisters room far too much, so I decided to make the underneath of his bed into a den by adding curtains. I have lots of fabric, but most is in the form of fat quarters, so nothing large enough to make curtains. Obvious solution was to patchwork some together. I have to be honest and say the thought made me shudder a bit. Patchwork and Quilting has, so far, not really appealed to me, and I did begin to wonder why this might be?

I think it's because it involves precise measuring and cutting, whereas in my everyday crafting I tend to do things by eye and in a slap dash fashion. So, trying hard to remain undaunted, I pressed on and turned the upstairs landing into a great big cutting mat,

and patchworked this ~~totally exact and not cut in the slightest bit wonky~~ fabric jigsaw into...

a curtain! I hung them both in place, intending to take them down again and give them an iron, yet here we are, a month or so later, and they are both still there, still un-ironed. But at least there are 2 people and 1 animal happy with the den, Luke, because he has a den, Lucy, because he's slightly less of a pain, and the cat, because he hid in there and missed his vet's appointment for a blood test because I couldn't find him. Sneaky cat!

pdf patterns vs craft books

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 13:40:00 +0000

I'm sure this must be something that goes through most designers minds when they are working on a new pattern which they are intending to sell. What form do you go about selling it as?

In the past, my patterns have been made into craft kits, featured in collaborative craft pattern books and magazines, appeared as a free tutorial both here and on other blogs and websites, in addition to having been granted a book all of their very own. The avenue I am yet to personally embark on is into the world of PDF downloads. The issue here is this... in my book Countryside Softies, there are a total of 28 patterns for a retail cover price of $19.95 or £17.99 (obviously, there are outlets online, who shall remain nameless, which will be selling it at a discounted price). But split those 28 patterns and launch them separately as PDF's, you have got to wonder, from a designers point of view, which would bring in the most revenue?

So, what I'm asking is, what are your preferences when it comes to buying craft patterns? Here's a little questionaire...

1. When purchasing craft patterns, do you prefer to buy in the form of a book, magazine or PDF download?

2. Are you more likely to buy a PDF pattern if it allows you to sell the items you make?

3. If you buy a PDF pattern, does the fact you could potentially buy a whole craft book for a similar price affect your purchase?

I have been squirreling away with some new patterns, one of which, that stemmed from our visits to the Natural History Museum in London during the summer, there is a sneaky peek of in this post. This one is most likely heading down the PDF route once the kids have finished playing with it to see how well it stands up to a bit of rough and tumble!

Beanie sewing pattern...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 20:13:00 +0000

Whatever the weather, I mostly walk the school run as parking can be problematic. In wind and rain, hoods blow down, so a hat can be the best option for keeping dry. My winter coat is probably best described as being mushroom in colour, and I've been on the look out for a matching hat for ages but not found anything quite right. Simple solution I suppose, knit one. But I don't knit, so simpler solution... sew one!

After rooting through my collection of old jumpers, it took about five minutes (that's after I'd drafted the pattern) to cut it out and sew. What could be easier?

This is what you'll need...

a body panel (front or back will do) from an old woollen jumper

(one panel is roughly big enough to make one Beanie and include the ribbed bottom edge in your measurements)

piece of paper - 20" (horizontally) x 11 1/2" (vertically)

plus a pencil, scissors, pins and your sewing machine (you can sew it by hand but it's much quicker on a machine)

Step 1, Fold the piece of paper in half, and then half again so it's now in quarters. Follow the pattern below for the measurements and shape to cut, cutting through all four layers of paper simultaneously.

Open out your paper pattern to double check it's cut correctly, it should look like this...

Step 2, Fold the paper pattern back in half, and place it on top of the folded (right sides together) jumper panel, lining up both the folded edges and pin to secure. Stretch the jumper out while pinning if need be. Next, cut out the Beanie shape from the jumper, cutting through both layers of fabric. Remove the pattern and re pin just the jumper panel in half.

Step 3, Stitch along edge 1, and then edge 2, but while you are sewing edge 2, stop at the marker, turn the beanie inside out (so it is now actually right sides round), and complete stitching edge 2. This is so when you fold over the ribbed edge, the seam won't show on the outside of the hat.

Step 4, Turn it back so it's inside out again, and re-fold the Beanie so the 2 seams you have just sewn are now central. Pin and sew the last curved seam around the top.

Step 5, Turn the hat right side round, fold over the ribbed edge section and give it a quick press with an iron, and it's all done!

A few tips which may help...

wear the hat with the long seam at the back, shorter seam to the front as it'll look neater
by all means, adjust the pattern to fit your head by making it wider or narrower if it's for a child
you may need to stretch out your jumper panel to fit the pattern, but don't worry about doing this, as knitted fabrics do have a lot of give in them
you can add decoration, a pom pom or a flower and some buttons

I now have one in mushroom, one in blue, brown next I think...

Embroidery hoop embroideries!

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 14:06:00 +0000

I have a couple of new items going onto Etsy today...

a Fox...

and a Kingfisher. Both are applique pictures mounted in an embroidery hoop.

And, as it's nearly christmas, I also have 4 3 2 1 0 signed copies of 'Countryside Softies' on offer at the special price of $12.50 (that's about £8, cheaper than Amazon!). This offer will run until Saturday 15th December, once they are gone, they are gone!

It's that time of year again,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 23:25:00 +0000

...when everybody should have an Elf hat to wear while watching tv!

As is the case every christmas (according to my blog stats) it's my most visited free pattern, link here.

clickerty clack

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 11:35:00 +0000

In the age of Ipads, the noise of a typewriter isn't heard very often these days. There we were, on the way to school, when at the side of the road appeared a collection of objects and a sign 'please take, free to a good home'.

There was an exercise bike (I left that well alone, obviously!) and this...

amazingly, it still works! Could do with a new ribbon and the roller needs a clean, but the kids are fascinated by it.

Not to be left out though, Luke took a shine to, of all things, the empty box the typewriter had been propped up by, which he insisted on bringing home too...!

It's beginning to look a lot like...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 00:26:00 +0000

Well, it's that time of year again. Christmas Eve, husband's birthday...

and homes to find for this little batch of Robins.

Merry Christmas!

Handwriting...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 22:41:00 +0000

Link is here.

FORMula...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 23:31:00 +0000

Introducing 'FORMula'...

(this will be the back page)

My upcoming range of PDF sewing patterns!

I've finally done it, learned to use Adobe Illustrator, which didn't come easily I have to admit, and am almost ready to upload the first pattern. They will be on sale initially via both Etsy and Craftsy.

Layout is all pretty much sorted and the instructions are all typed up. I just need to scan in the pattern templates, some decent light for photography, then to test out the document by emailing it to a few friends and family as a dummy run and we're good to go!

Love Quilting & Patchwork...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 23:08:00 +0000

There is a new magazine on the way this Spring, from the publisher behind Mollie Makes, called 'Love Quilting & Patchwork'

It even comes with a free quilting book.

But, most exciting of all, there's a patchwork Owl pattern (see, there on the front cover) in there designed by little old me!

So, if you fancy bagging yourself a copy, hop on over here, it's on sale from the 14th February.

this weeks wip...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 12:57:00 +0000

can you guess what they are?

Super,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 23:19:00 +0000

It must be noticeable to blog readers that I haven't been blogging with any regularity of late. I think it's something most bloggers in any subject hit at sometime or another, a bit of writers block along with a dose of self doubt, why do I blog and do I want to continue? I do want to carry on, I know that much at least. Baby steps, baby steps...

First place to start is a run down of what's been going on here...

An online friend featured some Marvel comic fabric in a project she made on Facebook, which caught my eye. I got some from Ebay (UK link) and have tracked it's origins as being from Camelot Fabrics who seem to have the license for Marvel. Have to admit though, the comic book cover fabric (USA link) is definitely my favorite.

Of course, as soon as it arrived, my son's eye's flashed wider with a 'ooooh, is that for me?' expression. I'm sure some will make it's way into his room eventually (and join the scraps he is currently squirreling away in his bed/nest), but for now, it is intended for a few Superhero type Softies.

Fantastic Mr Fox/Dame Edna

Apologies for the out of focus image, it's from Instagram, but how do you make Superhero eye masks, look like eye masks and not glasses?? It's a real problem. And Luke tells me Mr Fox needs a cape as all Superheros should have a cape. I am drawing a line at red underpants though!

Etsy update,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 16:27:00 +0000

I've added a few new items to the Etsy shop, they are...

SOLD

Fantastic Mr Fox, using that lovely Marvel comic print I talked about last time,

some cotton reel pincushions, using the same fabric,

and three more pincushions using a sewing pattern print as I'm always getting a steady trickle of emails enquiring about these so thought it would be a good idea to sew a little batch.

All are on Etsy now.

Fabric & felt...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 08:36:00 +0000

When I started designing patterns for the Countryside Softies book, there were decisions to be made regarding materials. I tend to work mainly using a base of felted wool, and for a number of reasons chose to stick with this as it's easy to work with, very forgiving for those who are a bit nervous about their stitching, and also I do love the way it looks for the finished piece.

But, I was also aware that Softie design is already a fairly smallish market, and one which was reduced further by the use of felted wool. I've had quite a few emails from crafters struggling to find wool clothing suitable to use. My own stash has not been added to as often as I would like. I will still be using felted wool for items I make myself, but it's what they call a 'no brainer' for any PDF patterns I release to use fabrics as their base. Which means I'm now working on choosing which fabrics to use for which designs, which is actually amazingly hard, as from a business perspective, the fabrics can't overpower the design as the images of the finished pieces are what will potentially sell the patterns.

Also, as a way of giving my patterns a bit of kerb appeal, it's all about the added extras. This is why I'm aiming for the patterns to include other bits and pieces, like the cat pattern will be a large cat design alongside the kitten, mouse and a miniature ball of wool. I'm also waiting till I've got 3 patterns complete, as if I launch three instead of just one initially, again from a business perspective it gives more opportunities to run launch offers, 2 for 1 that kind of thing.

As an aside, do you think there is a market for scrap bags of felted wools? It's something I'm going to give a try, but one factor coming up against the idea is our UK postal system and the recent increased charges! Not good for small businesses at all and it's leaving many to have to re-think their product range entirely, which is a real shame.

dalmatian...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 12:54:00 +0000

I don't know if it's my internet or blogger itself that is to blame, but it's just taken me over an hour to just load up this one image! So, to play it safe for now, all I'm going to say is...

Dalmatian Softie (spelt it right first time for once!) ...is on Etsy now.

sewing bee...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:16:00 +0000

Here in the UK, everyone in the crafting world is currently going Great British Sewing Bee crazy (for what it's worth, I am Team Lauren), although I suspect the rather easy on the eye ~~Patrick~~ Judge may have a little something to do with it's popularity!

Anyway, in celebration of all the sewing machines which will no doubt now be being purchased, here is my contribution to get people sewing. In the Sewing Bee, they are making clothes. In my humble opinion, sewing clothes can be quite complicated, so if you are new to the craft, here's a simple little project to try which encompasses a handful of techniques, a sewing bee softie...

You will need :

selection of fabric : black & yellow (I used fabrics with sewing related prints!)

selection of craft felt

toy stuffing

2 small buttons or beads

sewing thread

embroidery thread (I used Pearl Cotton 8)

paper, pencil & scissors

pins & a needle

Step 1 : First create 2 squares of fabric, (8x8cm) by patch-working together 3 strips for each.

Step 2 : Draft yourself a pattern for the Bees body by drawing an oval shape onto the paper that is roughly 6.5cm tall and 5cm across. Cut out and pin the template to the first of the fabric squares and trim to size. Repeat for the other piece.

Step 3 : Pin the 2 fabric ovals, right sides together, sew round the edge to join (either by hand using backstitch or on a sewing machine), leaving a small gap for turning it back right side round.

Step 4 : Through the gap, stuff the bee, tuck in the fabric edges and then stitch the gap closed.

Step 5 : Switch to the embroidery thread and add eyes by attaching 2 small circles of craft felt with a tiny button or bead in the center.

Step 6 : Make yourself another template, this time a wing shape (mine is kind of like a flower petal) and cut 2 from the craft felt. Stitch into position with the embroidery thread.

Step 7 : To finish off, after the wings are attached, take the needle up through the middle of the bee and tie a loop in this thread so you can hang your bee up.

And that's it, all done. A quick bit of sewing and you've practiced pattern drafting, patchwork, sewing, applique and embroidery! You could make lots and create a mobile, and even nip over to Whip Up for the Ladybird project I posted there, both insects are about the same size so will work great as a pair.

tricks of the trade #1...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Thu, 02 May 2013 18:15:00 +0000

A while ago I made two short films which are uploaded to You Tube, one of those films, the free motion embroidery one has had over 160,000 views. I keep meaning to make another, this time showing how I stuff a softie. The reasoning for this is that I am quite brutal when it comes to getting that stuffing in, there's lots of banging and bashing it on a table top involved to shape it, and poking with a stick, which is what brings me to the point of this post, tricks of the trade #1...

STICKS

I find that all artists and designers always have certain tools they love, and I do love my stuffer sticks. Except this one is not really a stuffer stick, it's a chop stick!

Now, you can buy proper bona fide stuffer sticks,

(my Harry Potter wand)

and I do have one, except mine wasn't bought, I pinched it.

When I worked for Coats Crafts UK (I can tell this story now as I haven't worked there for a good few years now!), one thing that did bug me was their reluctance to try anything new. Ideas would be put forward at the product development meetings only to be met with a negative reaction, that was until one of our competitors came out with something similar. Imagine the scene : an idea that had been pitched for a while : Rag Doll kits, 'Oh no, couldn't possibly do that, too complicated/expensive'. That was until a company called the Little Experience came out with a range, then the reaction was 'We should be doing these, why aren't we doing these?'. Err, well we could have been doing them if you'd listened to your design team!

The story rolls on, as happens in most in-house design studios, we then have to go and purchase one of the competitor products for manufacturing analysis. Inside said kit, was exhibit A, the stuffer stick, which eventually fell into my bag and made it's way home. While this particular stuffer stick is very nice, has been extremely useful over the years, and also doubles as a wand occasionally, I do tend to revert back to my trusty old chop stick (which was also 'acquired', this time from a chinese restaurant), and this is why...

Stuffer sticks are used to get the stuffing into all the little nooks and crannies of a softie. I use the end to push small chunks of stuffing in one at a time. The chop stick is thinner than the stuffer stick, but despite that, it seems to retain it's strength, which is good as even when I'm being really rough with it, it doesn't feel like it's going to break.

I also find the little square end it has very useful. Quite often when I'm stuffing softies, I'll get issues like the one above, a stubborn crease which will just not go. The most effective way to rectify this,

is to take a small piece of stuffing,

and gently push it into place, over the existing stuffing, to fill out the crease with the square end. The chop stick works better for me in this instance, as the pointed end of the stuffer stick is too fine and pokes straight through the stuffing I'm trying to get in, and the flat end is too wide as it tends to move not only the extra stuffing, but also what is already inside, which is exactly what I don't want it to do having already spent time shaping it.

So, that's it, a post all about sticks! Just to finish off, here's oops of the week...

I made two right ears, ...oops!

Stitch Zakka,

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Sun, 05 May 2013 21:21:00 +0000

I am in a new book which is coming out soon,

trying not to give too much away, the projects involve a bit of this,

and a little bit if that.

The book is out in June.

from Pinterest to the garden...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Tue, 07 May 2013 22:14:00 +0000

I am taking part in a scheme called 'Pin-it-Forward' later this month to celebrate the official UK launch of Pinterest, (yes, I know here in the UK we can already use Pinterest, all will be explained in my official post on the 23rd), and as I was deciding which of my boards I was going to post about, realised I have over 1,600 images pinned. It would be an interesting exercise to see how many of those images I actually refer to and made use of.

Only a few weeks ago, I came across this on Pinterest, someone I follow had pinned it so it featured in my feed, I followed the link to it's original source (which is where you can read up on how they were made), and decided to have a go myself.

Mine are a bit smaller than the originals (although I love the idea of making a really big one with a wok!), I used enamel camping bowls at £1.50 each, red spray paint was £3.50, white enamel paint was £1.50 and the tree branches came from the garden. I sprayed the bowls red (they were blue), and the kids did the white spots for me.

(the bunting and the bamboo wind chime both came from Ebay)

Al thinks they look a bit daft, but he's out voted as both me and the kids think they're rather cute!

tricks of the trade #2...

noreply@blogger.com (Lucykate Crafts...) — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:20:00 +0000

Following on from my previous post around this subject, this time I'm going to show you what I do with my ends of embroidery thread while I'm sewing a Softie.

When I'm sewing, I often have a few different colours on the go, which rather then tying off, I'll thread through to the back in case I need that colour again.

But obviously, these thread are not going to be where I want them to be, when I come to use them again. So how do I get from one place to another? I simply use the needle to literally, snake the thread around the inside of the Softie.

Begin by waggling the thread to make the hole in the fabric slightly larger, then pull the thread hard in one direction to create a gap right next to it, feed the needle carefully though this same hole.

Take the needle back out where you want it next to go, and gently pull on the thread.

Once the thread is pulled through completely the hole kind of magically disappears, it has now moved to the new position ready to continue the applique or repeat this process to move it further.

A simple process, but this is something I get asked a lot, so I hope that explains how I go about it when I'm sewing.

Something else I must mention is, hop on over to Cut Out & Keep which is a FAB resource for project tutorials, I am a Crafty Superstar this week, yay! There is an interview and a project a day too.