neon dot cushion tutorial...

hello! I made this sunny neon dot cushion at the weekend and I've done a little tutorial if you fancy making one for yourself.

things you will need
cotton calico 1m should make a couple of these cushions
fabric paint in your chosen colours
paper plate for mixing paint
sponge brush (I used a circle but you could do any shape or use a potato stamp)
wool
pom pom maker medium size
sewing machine/thread
scissors
measuring tape
iron
pillow insert 40cm x 40cm

• Cut out a square of calico measuring 42cm x 42cm (front piece) and two rectangles measuring 42cm x 34cm (back pieces)

•  using the fabric paint and sponge brush begin stamping the front piece of fabric, allow to dry and then iron the dots to heat seal the paint.

• Hem one side of the wider edge on both of the back pieces. 
• Place the front piece right side facing up
• Place the back pieces right side facing down over the front piece with the hemmed edges
  towards the centre so that they overlap to make the envelope opening, pin together and sew a 1cm hem all the way around the four sides.

• trim away excess seam allowance and turn the cover the right way around, pushing the corners to a point. Press the cover
• make 4 pom poms using a pom pom maker or like this

• stitch the pom poms on to each corner, making sure they are well attached

that's it, a pretty quick DIY apart from having to wait for the paint to dry...I found that the trickiest part because I am very impatient.

have a lovely weekend folks x x

book winner..

just a flying visit to announce the winner of the book giveaway from last week, thank you for all your comments! the winner is Amy Astle!!Amy get in touch with your email address so I can get your details to send this copy over to you x 
I'll be back soon with another tutorial x

the book! Pretty, Organised...giveaway

it's finally time to share the tale about what kept me so busy for the first half of last year...
Early in 2014 a publishing company (Quintet) approached me and asked if I would be interested in authoring a book, of course I said Yes!!

tags

The publishers already had the idea for the book and the brief was to put together 30 practical projects to be used for organisation and storage but which would also look pretty and stylish. I put everything on hold and got to work, after a few months all the projects were in place and I moved on to the writing.

food covers

I tried to think of ideas that would be useful but also with different skill levels and using some recycled, vintage items mixed in with new. I was conscious of working closely to the publishers brief whilst trying to keep a look that sat with my own usual style.

wall pocket tidy

Most of the photos in the book were taken by Sussie Bell  who has a very lovely, pretty way of styling and taking the shots.

project selector

It is set out in chapters dedicated to rooms so you can just concentrate on one space or the whole house. There are step by step projects plus tips for organising your home. I think lots of the projects would also make nice handmade gifts like the bathroom wrap, storage tubs, garment bags or the ipad case.

this lovely crate came back home to live with us after the photo shoot, it now stores my spare cushions and quilts.

here's a few ideas for keeping your hallway tidy...those very high heels are not mine by the way in case any of my friends are thinking I have traded in my DM's for proper lady shoes ;)

meal/shopping planner

I loved working on this book :) and I was pretty overwhelmed when I finally got to hold a copy in my shaky and slightly over excited hands! 
and so to celebrate I have a signed copy to give away... if you would like to purchase a copy or see more info it is available from here uk  or international versions  here  or here 

to enter just leave a comment below - UK only I'm afraid due to it being quite heavy.
feel free to share and spread the word on facebook, twitter or instagram and if you let me know I will enter your name again :)
closing date is end of day 20th March
Good Luck and happy organising!!!!

new prints....

just a quick post today, hope you had a lovely weekend x
I have been busy listing some new prints and after lots of requests for smaller sizes I have had some made up in A4 sizes as well.
prints are available here for now but I'm hopefully moving them soon to a new site.

I will be back soon with book news!!

new things for spring...

it's been a while since I have had a proper shop update on here...so I thought I would share a few things I have been working on... there will be some new A3 and A4 posters coming back from the printers next week. These banners and prints are already listed. 

I used to make these years ago but with appliqued owls and flowers so I thought I would re do them with a more graphic look to match my prints.  

these are all available now over here and there is 15% off your order with code FABFIFTEEN
I am loving being back to designing prints again, it was always my favourite part of my proper job. I am working on some new designs for fabrics too and I will be back soon sharing all about the book that kept me very busy last year, thanks for reading! have a lovely week x x

day tripping....

family day trips can prove to be a bit of a challenge now the boys are a bit older...plus we have a dog who likes to come with us. Whatever we do someone is usually not too enthusiastic about being seen in public with their parents!! but me and the mr don't give up that easily (sorry lads)

but it turns out the YSP // Yorkshire sculpture park is a good day out for us. Based near Wakefield it's only a bit of a hike across the pennines and is set in acres of beautiful Yorkshire countryside it has loads of outdoor art so taking the dog (on a lead) is allowed. This time our visit was pretty short as the weather was Baltic so we didn't make it around all the sites. Last time we went it was scorching hot and we were nearly passing out with the heat, must make a note to go in a more suitable climate next time.

I'm not sure my photos do it any justice but I didn't want to spoil the visit for any of you who may go in the future. admission is free but there are parking charges that go towards funding the park, which i think is a pretty good deal, there is a place to eat or have coffee and designated picnic areas.

it also has the best gift shop I have ever been in, here are my little treats...I have been coveting that mug for a very long time! :)

I think we are pretty lucky to have cool places like this to visit :) I'd love to hear if you have any good places you go to as a family x x