By popular demand

I saw a bag similar to this one a few months ago being carried by a woman at Kings Cross Station in London. It really stood out, and I jotted down the Duttons For Buttons logo. When I looked it up on the internet, I discovered that Duttons is a much loved and enduring button shop in the North of England (the parent company was established in Leeds in 1906). One of the girls who works there had this great idea - to print a picture of buttons onto a re-usable hessian bag so that customers could then sew their own favourite buttons onto the bag. I just had to have one! What an imaginative way to display your button stash! I stitched on some buttons found at my favourite market, and had fun hunting down a few special ones from other places too. I've had SO many lovely comments from people about this bag. If you get one, you will find you make new friends wherever you go! The new IT bag! Just click here to to order your own.

....Just another ordinary day....

1.mwah!

2. my button bag catches attention wherever i go - especially caught the lovely bright eyes of a little girl in a wheelchair on the tube. i willed her to look at it to give her some sparkle and hope

3. me and news are in the process of a long and difficult divorce

4. scrambled egg and smoked salmon is just the best

5. lemon or lime? i don't mind if it's lime or lemon

6. i am love with a flat in Montrose that I wish I could buy

7. why is all my love unrequited?

8. i now know alot about may day around the world

9. my neighbour's borrowed cat has not been round for days

10. i love sitting in my bed looking out of my window at the trees dripping with rain

11. i wish i could just make things all day long

12. i have a new hair rat which is just going to be so fab(see forthcoming styles) if you don't know what a hair rat is....then watch this space!

13. hands up if you'd like to come to a boutique crafting weekend in my imaginery flat in Montrose!

14. should one really eat a whole bag of M&S salt and pepper cashew nuts all in one go for tea?

15. washed down with three glasses of wine?

A make your way hat

I found these great vintage guide and scout badges on e-bay recently and plan to use them in all sorts of ways. I think they'd make a great trim for a hat. The cloche hat on the left is one I made from scratch and then trimmed with various badges dyed in tea to give them that vintage look. Very "grand tour" don't you think?

Sew and save

Some great tips in this reproduction of Joanna Chase's book from the days of rationing. When I have time, I'm going to try out some of the patterns.

My pad - just because home is so important

A simple corsage for some summer style

Ok - I know that as soon as I mention the weather it will turn miserable and start raining, but I'm going to have to take the risk because - WOW - isn't the weather amazing?! This is an easy-to-make ribbon corsage that you should be able to knock up in 30 minutes or so. It will add a kick of delectable kookie style to your summer wardrobe. Think of it as the slice, to your vodka and ice. Take some beautiful short lengths of ribbon, sew them together then stitch an emblem or button to the middle. When you're done, stick on a brooch back and pin your corsage onto a jacket or T-shirt for an instant hit of colour. Have fun!

Paris trends

I've been reading about this fantastic new place in Paris called Sweat Shop which has just opened near the canal St Martin. It's based around the concept of a cyber cafe, essentially, you can rent out space by the hour at one of ten Singer sewing machines which are available for whatever creative project you're currently involved with. You can come and go as you please, but best of all there's a communal table where you can sit and enjoy tea and organic cake! It sounds like a great place for meeting other like-minded people, and there are all sort of workshops too so you can learn new stuff. I'm really looking forward to making a stop there next time I'm in Paris. As the owners say "Sweat Shop is the place where your dreams and projects come alive. And it's here for those wanting to learn, create, transform, practice or recycle in a stress free and well equipped environment."