Review- My new clover tools

I have just purchased two new clover tools and added them to my ever growing collection. 

Where have these tools been all my life........WOW they have made many projects easier 

So what are they you ask....drum roll please............

Clover- Easy Loop Turner

This has made turning fabric tubes right side out a whole lot easier no more using chopsticks safety pins 

and no more screaming......... 

This is great for making bag straps and small piping you can even turn fabric right side out and 

add cording or elastic at the same time 

Clover- Chacopen Pink With Eraser

I'm in love with this pen you can draw on fabric 

it comes out pink and in a few days

it has disappeared........ 

Or if you want it to go away instantly you can change ends and 

use the eraser..... 

This is much easier than using chalk pencils that need sharpening all the time...... 

I have found it to be great for marking out embroidery and to mark the spot to sew button holes........

The instructions say that it can stain some fabrics but I haven't come across this yet and if it does you can wash the fabric and it will come out.......

I recommend this pen a fantastic investment for any crafter....

Zakka Craft Bill Pocket File

This is one of my latest creations......a bill file pocket for my pantry door.....

The top pocket is for bills to be paid and a little pen and holder....the bottom pocket is for bills that have been paid and a little hanger with pegs to stick things like stamps and other items

 It is made from scrap fabric and Japanese handkerchief linen

What did I buy today ?

Today I went to a nearby town to some thrift shops and antique shops and managed to find a few things I couldn't resist........

I love this blue Ric-rac and its cardboard holder I don't think I could ever have enough Ric-rac...
and as for the puppy and the squirrel well I saw them and had to have them soooo cute.......they have a nice new home on my crafting desk......

My Latest Magazine Collection

Yay....... My package came from Japan and I have some great new books and magazines.

Soooo excited when it came, a new Cotton Time and Cotton Friend ... Also got two other zakka books one on making bags and bento box  lunch bags......the other is a book by the makers of Cotton Time and has loads of zakka crafts: bags, tissue holders, purses, hair ties, head bands, baby's bibs, key chains, stationary items and heaps more so happy with this purchase a must for any collector.....

I have also just acquired  these two magazines from the UK Mollie Makes........ I was able to purchase these at my local newsagent. These are great...... full of craft ideas for the home and very cute things to make like felt mascots....

What Have I been Making

I've been  very busy making brooches and taking photos of them for a product catalog I'm putting together....

I have finally put together my pop up light box to take photos. 

Ponyo and Suki  (my cats) think its a really cool new cat play house and they are starting to put little claw pin holes in the fabric arrrrgggghhhh......

Make It- Sew On Labels

I have been wanting to post this for awhile now and finally can. I changed the design of my label and thought i would do a tutorial as I made them. Why pay to get your labels made when you can easily make them yourself....

Items Needed

* Linen Tape ( I used 2cm Tape)

* Printer transfer T-shirt Paper ( I used Epsom brand)

* Scissors

* Iron

* Computer program like publisher or photo-shop

I used publisher to create my label.

I went into page setup and changed the page layout size to custom and made the dimensions 2cm X 5cm.

I also change the copies per sheet so I ended up with 45 labels on a A4 size paper.

I used word art to make my text ....This is so you can flip your text horizontal 

*Remember text must be in a mirror image*

To flip text go select text and go to arrange in the menu bar go down to flip or rotate and then click flip horizontal now your text should be a mirror image.

Make any design you like then you can print it.  I changed my printer settings to best photo to get the greatest result....

Once it has printed out give it time to dry... then you can start ironing...

Cut out the label from the transfer paper and cut linen tape to size make sure the tape is fluff free and clean you don't want fluff pressed under your transfer.....

Set you iron on a low setting and have the steam function off... Start to iron the transfer onto the tape make sure you go right to the edges keep moving the iron around so you don't burn the transfer paper...

Let the label cool then you can peel the paper back off and WOW you have just made you own designed label......

......Happy making....

Make It- Felt Pine Cones

  I love making fabric pine cones I have been using this fantastic tutorial from
http://knittygrittythoughts.typepad.com/knitty_gritty_thoughts/2009/11/my-entry.html

to make them

I decided to experiment and do a little variation. I had heaps of felt circles from my sizzix cutter and thought these would be great to use.

Using the same technique as the fabric pine cones I arranged the felt circles the same way on the Styrofoam ball.

These are fun to make and look good as a display..........

I recommend buying a sizzix cutter they come in very handy. I was able to get a hello kitty big shot sizzix a couple of years ago and I just adore it.

I purchased mine from this website http://store.scrapbook.com/brand/sizzix.html

..........Happy crafting......