Monday in the making

I have finally finished a couple of projects that have been on my list...

I have spent a bit of time lately designing and stitching up a very special, cuddly toy. Introducing 'Betsy'...

'Betsy' is very special as she is going to be the item that I am entering into a Showcase by 'Becky's Bits' to raise money for hearing impaired children. I tried making her apparel as 'loud' as possible as the fundraising day is called 'Loud Shirt Day'. 'Betsy' is made out of milky brown polar fleece. 'Betsy' herself is handstitched, however, her pink/purple floral and spearmint dress is a mixture of handsewn/machine sewn. I wanted to add some detail to her outfit so I stitched on a fuscia pink 'belt' and added a gather at her neckline. A fuscia pink bow tops off her look. All her clothing is stitched on and is not removable.

'Betsy' is teamed up with a matching headband that her new owner can wear...

Using the same floral and spearmint fabric, I made a shabby chic flower base, embellished with a fuscia pink yo-yo and spearmint button. This item is handstitched onto a purple, stretch lace band.

I also needed to make a '50th birthday' card for a male friend of ours. I ended up making a set, giving one to the lucky boy and the rest I will take to market...

I often find masculine cards tricky, however, since experimenting with using photos in my Fathers Day cards, I have enjoyed altering photos and using them in my cards. With these cards, I used a river holiday photo, put it through a 'soft' filter and highlighted the blue hues in order to tie the photos in with the blue papers I used.

Thanks for looking :)

Monday in the making

I had a rather busy Saturday night (I always seem to leave things to the last minute), sewing up these little bags...

 

  I had to hand stitch the top as the bags were too skinny to fit around my sewing machine arm (always the way ). So, in the end I made three bags for boys and four bags for girls, ready to house pencils and pens.

Why you ask? For this great project called 'Operation Christmas Child' by Samaritan's Purse. The aim is to pack a box, the size of a shoe box, with lots of little goodies: something to love, something to play with, something of personal hygiene, something for school, something special and something to wear. These boxes are distributed throughout the world and given to children whose situation prevents them from receiving a gift at Christmas. For more information, click here.

My Bible study group ended up making up seven boxes. It was great fun pooling all the little goodies that we have collected over the past few weeks/months and organising them into boxes. We had the thought that all the pencils that these children receive could get lost, unless they have a pencil case, hence my sewing spree. The haste, was due to the fact that they were due at church on Sunday.

I also spent some time on the weekend sewing and stuffing my little bear. She is beginning to look very adorable and cuddly. I ended up hand stitching her body as I found that the polar fleece slipped a bit when I tried machine sewing. I think I like the control of hand stitching (although it does take more time). I also find hand stitching very therapeutic and relaxing. My little bear is now in bodily form and now I am creating a dress for her, with the aim to have her completed by the next 'Monday in the making'.

Thanks for stopping by :)