Deck the halls...

Christmas is a jolly time in our house. We love to have the place filled with decorations, twinkly lights, special treats, Christmas music, and laughter... We have immigrated to Australia 3 years ago and our families live in Europe. So Christmas is all about spending time with just our little family here. And making it as special and memorable as possible for these two - our gorgeous Alexander and Alice.

This year I decided to make some felt Christmas stockings. I came across these stocking kits by Bucilla on ebay - and I was hooked. They are very time consuming, everything is hand embroidered and hand sewn, but the result is well worth the effort. These two stockings took me 3 months to make, and they almost weren't ready in time (I literally put the last stich in at 11pm on Christmas Eve). Next year I will make two more for me and my husband, to complete the set. There are dozens of gorgeous designs to choose from, and they are not hard to make, all you need is some basic hand sewing skills and oodles of patience.

I also wanted to start a new tradition by making felt christmas tree ornaments for the kids every year, with their names and date embroidered on the ornament. I wanted to make them a 'baby' ornament each for their first Christmas. Alexander's first Christmas was last Christmas, but I made him one anyway. He also got a gingerbread house for this Christmas - it has 'Alex 2012' embroidered on the back. Both ornaments are my own design, I will put up patterns for them soon.

One more Christmas is over. This one was extra special for us as our little family is finally complete with Alice joining us in October. And Alexander is now old enough to appreciate the presents and the festive atmosphere. 2013 will be an exciting year for me - in order of priority I am planning to:
1. Survive (no mean feat with two under two!)
2. Get my etsy shop off the ground
3. Plow through my very long list of sewing projects, learn new techniques, and most importantly, have fun!

Hope you all had a wonderful time with your families this Christmas and see you all next year!

And they call it... fabric love

I am head over heels in love. I have just received a bundle of  The Simple Life by Tasha Noel, PERFECT for some of the projects I have on my list. I am so giddy with excitement about the possibilities!

The fabric comes in three different colourways - red, aqua, and pink. And look at those gorgeous flags and little girls and trees - perfect for a fussy cut centrepiece...

So many things I would like to make from these fabrics - I think I will start with a bib for a friend's daughter about to make her entrance into the world any time now! Just waiting to find out the name so I can personalise the bib for her. Then a quilt, or perhaps a patchwork cushion. I can't wait to get my scissors and start cutting, but it will have to wait until I finish the christmas projects I am still working on.

Tasha Noel's new fabric line Little Red is also coming out soon, I have already pre-ordered a bundle! Her blog A Little Sweetness is one of my favourite sewing sites, well worth a visit. If you like her fabrics, you will love her creations.

Bibs!

Christmas is approaching fast, and I have been thinking about presents I could make for my little girl and boy... Firstly, they are getting a felt christmas stocking each, which I will share with you soon. I also decided to make a couple of bibs for Alice, after seeing this tutorial at one of my favourite sewing sites, Nana Company. I would have made a couple of boyish bibs for Alexander too, but at 21 months old he is apparently too grown up for them and categorically refuses to wear one!

I found two gorgeous fabrics at my local Spotlight. Decided to make one with the ruffles, and embellish it with some cute vintagey looking buttons. The other one I decided to leave just with a plain front, as the fabric was so beautiful. They are backed with a beautifully soft ivory minky. 

I love making bibs, they will become a regular item in my Etsy shop once it is up and running. I have quite a few different designs planned, both for girls and boys. Watch this space!

Preparing the nursery

I mentioned that my sewing journey started after discovering that I was pregnant... with a girl this time! I may have gone slightly overboard shopping for girl clothes after we found out the sex of the baby... And I wanted her to have a sophisticated girly room - muted soft pinks, cream and a floral patchwork theme. I looked for suitable decorations but couldn't find what I had in mind - so I decided to make them.

This is what the nursery looked like at the beginning (well, after we painted the walls that gorgeously soft shade of pink). Such a lovely room, lots of morning light and a beautiful tree right outside her windows.

 I first made her a bunting for the wall - I love the scalloped shape and lace binding for a bit of that extra girly touch... And that Lecien floral fabric is just to die for (aren't they all?).

Then using the same fabrics and small pieces of lace I made a cushion for the nursing chair. Very pleased with the result and the chair is so comfortable! It's an Ikea armchair with a rocking base installed underneath it so it rocks (literally and figuratively!).

A felt and fabric mobile for her cot. I am very happy with the result and my girl loves the little twirling birdies.

And finally I made her a couple of soft toys - a little minky-backed teddy and a rag doll in coordinating fabrics. Unfortunately the little miss decided to make an early entrance into the world before I could finish the doll ... So she was 2 weeks old when it was completed.

Do you like the finished room? I love it. I spend a lot of time in there, it is such a happy and peaceful spot.

And here is the reason for all this effort - my little princess, and the most beautiful thing I have ever made. Her name is Alice Pearl. And her room suits her perfectly... Gorgeous and girly.

Welcome!

Hi, I am Sedef. Welcome to my first blog about sewing, and well, creating. I am so excited to be here.

A little background first. Undoubtedly I will share more as this blog evolves... My craftiness for the first 40 years of my life was pretty much limited to cross-stitching and tapestry. Then 9 months ago a friend showed me the quiet book she had made for her kid, and my love affair with sewing started. I decided to make a quiet book for my (now 21 month old) little boy, and chose felt as my medium, all hand sewn. Then I discovered I was pregnant again, with a girl this time, and bought my first ever sewing machine to make cushions and girly decorations for her nursery. And then I got sewing, and I was hooked. Actually I think I have an addiction problem - a massive fabric stash that is ever growing. I can't help it, I love fabric!

I live in a wine town in South Australia with my husband and our two children. We love it here. We are surrounded by some world class winery cellar doors and restaurants. It's a wine and food connoiseur's dream! We have grapevines starting at the end of our garden, hence the name for this blog.

I am a rookie in this blogging business... So I am still trying to figure out how to style this blog the way I want it to look. But I thought I will just take the plunge with some posts, and then figure the rest out along the way. I have so many ideas to share with you, and a project list as long as my arm!

So thanks for stopping by. I look forward to sharing my creations with you.