Busy busy busy

Hello everyone!!

Well, this is strange. Two posts within a few days! I'm a machine!  So there's lots of exciting new stuff going on in my crazy sweatshop of a living room (minus exploited workers). I have been busy making a few comissioned handbags (can't quite believe it myself) and trying to get thinking about the possibility of a festival and hippy market kind of stall, all whilst spending most of my wages on funky materials and threads and trims! With all this chaos, plus working in the school and private classes, my flat is, as I'm sure you can imagine, a complete pigsty about 95% of the time.  My little worskshop corner of the living room is starting to spill over into every other section of the flat, and my life come to think! Lots of work and organising to be done. UGHHHH! But if I know one thing I know myself, and that means I know that I'm a rather lazy bitch. Let's see how long it is before I can get my ass into gear and this crazy show on the road....

So this first little bag was for a Juan's sister's friend, Agueda. She sent me a few ideas for the type of bag she had in mind. Its safe to say the picture and final product are only similar in shape and size! But hey, you just have to go with the flow. I really enjoyed making this wee bag, it's so colourful and perfect for summer! It took about 2 afternoons to make and then straight to the post office. The Spanish postal system can only be described as dodgey at the best of times so I'm glad it arrived safely.

 

p.s. a big thank you to Agueda for being a great first customer :)


This next bag is one I'm just finishing off for Juan's aunty (this boy is good for business). She and her boyfriend were visiting Madrid this weekend and she asked if I could make her a bag. We sat and looked through all the materials and she chose everything, bar one or two wee details. I'm loving it at the minute despite thinking the colours were a bit dark for this time of year. A cool kinda casual wee bag that would look great with just white T, jeans and trainers (in my opinion).

 This is a wee detachable flower that can be used as a broach or hairclip.

OOOOO-AHHHH! I loveee this next one. I'm making it for myself.  And please dont pass judgement untill I have a picture of the final product as this is only the bare bones. But just to give you an idea it's going to be a peacock clutch bag similar to the purse I made for Nicole but on a bigger scale with amazing silver embroidery and lots of jewell embellishment. I can't wait to get working on this properly and show it off in the summer!

 And last but not least, and stepping away from the needle and thread I made this wee bracelet out of some scrap stuff I didn't know what to do with. Turquoise ribbon, gold chain, turtle charm. Silly and simple... just like me, some might say!

 Anyway Peeps, those are all the updates I have at the moment. I know it's Tuesday and there's alot more week until the weekend so to help ease the pain, I'll leave you with a song....!

 Everything's better when it's sunny  :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1fzJ_AYajA

Quick update

Hi peeps!! 

Sorry this entry isn't really a proper entry. That's not because I don't have loads of exciting updates and banter to entertain you with, but just because it's too sunny outside to even contemplate sitting down to write a longer entry. So, until I can once again contemplate the aforementioned task, here are just a few pictures of some recent things I've been making. 

enjoy :)

To good health and sobriety 

xxx

 purple and blue clutch bag... simply DIVINE!

SUFTSKC (stand up for the summery kindle covers)

handmade condom pouch- all the rage, get your's quick!

Easter at home

After what seemed like a week that would never end I am back at home, at last, visiting for easter. And despite the blizzardy weather conditions ( I didn't think we would make it home from Dublin) which are hardly suitable for the beginning of Spring, I am loving being back in my mum and dad's house. It's been snowing like mad and I've just been chilling by the fire, drinking tea and playing with my cats <3 chillin like a villain or what?!

So since I've got a bit of free time and dare not set foot outside I though that I'd make my mum a wee cover for her kindle.......

Yes my mum's kindle will be safe, It's a sturdy wee thing. I had a stroke of genius and  cut up a frosted shreddies box to reinforce it. You can't really see very well in this picture but the flowers on the front are my favourite bit, they all have a different vintage button sewn on and some bead embellishment... amazing!!

Also, I'm heading to Leeds on Monday to visit my bestie, Nicole! I can't wait. Living so far away from eachother and with budget airlines being a total rip-off it's hard to par-tay as much as we'd like so I cant wait to get to Leeds and have a little bottle of Tanqueray and go on amazing and terrifying Youtube journeys. So anyway, Nicole had asked me to make her a purse, so here it is. It's nothing like the one she asked me for but I went a bit mad and just did whatever I felt like. I hope she likes it.

So that's all Ive been making at the minute. I've finally got my sewing machine back so I'm thinking of making some crazy applique aprons or something.

In other news, I am very much looking forward to the gin-fest that will be Lindsay Anderson's hen do in torremolinos. Updates on hen antics to follow...

Keep it real folks and Happy Easter to all!

What's Occuring?

I thought it would be best to stick another wee entry on for you. Its been a while! What a mad few weeks in school, about three different holidays and 'special days' seem to have smashed into eachother over the space of these two weeks and obviously we have to celebrate them all, and play games and laminate stuff and colour in and photocopy until our hands (and souls) bleed. BUT think of the children!!! so much so that I regret to say that I've been neglecting my blog as of late.  However don't fret! I've still been making some funky things so here I am once again to fill you in.......

So I've made my first  sale (if you can call it that) I swapped this wee bag for a bottle of vino tinto. Probably better like this. If I got paid in money I would probably spend it on rubbish like sweets.

 

I was a bit sad to see it go. I only made it as a wee test but I really liked it. It is, I'm glad to say, going to a good home, but still, let's hope that at the very least the wine I receive in return is a good year.

So moving on from small purses I thought I would give myself a wee challenge, learn how to make other things. Also, In anticipation (premature anticipation) of Spring I bought a navy dress with a red rope around the waist. Red and navy don't really feature in my leopard print and kahki coloured wardrobe so it was really the time to make a colourful bag to match. Challenge accepted. Here's my attempt at a nautical style shoulder bag...

I got a bit fed up making it because, as I said, nautical is not usually my style. But despite this small set-back the bag really started growing on me. I love the mad red paisley and blue stripe clash and the buttons are so lovely. 

*(During a product test of this bag I used the TV remote which I then forgot about and couldn't find, leaving me stricken of The Fresh Prince re-runs for an entire day )

 And last but not least, here is a wee sneak of a purse I'm making. You know what they say, "Gem stones are like blue eyeshadow, you can never have enough." -anon.

Stay tuned babes! x

It's the weekend

Good Afternoon all,

It's the weekend yeah-yeah!! I had planned to go to Cartagena because Juannii had a concert last night down there. I was so excited but in the end all the road were blocked by the snow, for god's sake, so instead of being down there Ive been making AMAZING playlists on spotify - something to encapsulate my ideal weekend vibe, lots of B52'S, some Patti Smith, and lets not forget the offerings of wee Jimmy Somerville. So ive been dancing about and singing quite alot (practising just incase the jazz band next door want to invite me round for a jam sesh- how great would that be?!) drinking shite coffee and of course Ive been stitching up some more fab purses bags etc! ahhhh bliss!!

Here's some pictures if you want to have a nosey, then I highly suggest you click the link and enjoy the musical stylings of big DP! 

It's Saturday, party like it's 1999

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAQ2SiSAt-A

Personalised Tobacco pouches

Last Sunday I went to a workshop to learn how to do applique and patchwork! It was class! I have a horribly calloused ring finger from the constant sewing! and a disgustingly stained index finger from smoking rollies but I can live with that. So I thought it would be a good idea to replace the tobacco pouch I bought for Juan at Crimbo (which I then lost) with a lovely handmade and personalised one. I think it looks dead on.

Then I made one for myself which accidently turned out about 10 times better than Juan's one. Sorry Juan!! but I love it and it makes a welcome change from hoking old dry tobacco out of my coat pockets. 'ewww' I hear you cry!!  I'm so gross, I know. But with my beautiful wee pouch I'm sure I've turned a corner!

Onwards and Upwards

Monster finger puppets

Here are some Felt finger puppets I made with the kids. The troll from the Three Billy Groats Gruff. We had loads of fun making them :)

And that's how it all started...

So, Ive been living in Madrid since September with my lovely man, a lovely man who is also very creative and talented. The list of his talents is endless. I was jealous. I wanted to be cool and ingenious and wondeful and broaden my interests and learn new things, and above all, be a cool mtherfucker like him. Up until this point my interests were as follows; Gin, smoking, and Dolly Parton. Despite my deep love for all three, I really needed a hobby. So I began by making crap macrame friendship bracelets, the type of thing eight year old girls make for eachother, very childish. They were horrible but hey, at least I was making something.

Soon after I started working in a cool little shop doing a parent and baby english workshop. About once a month I also did a story and craft class. Having to come up with fun and original activities for the youngsters was a bit of a chore at the start but we ended up making some amazing stuff, and Irene, the owner of the shop really helped me with ideas by constatly sending me links and websites. I sort of became addicted to craft blogs and started to jot down all the things that I wanted to make. It's a very long list. So here we are, months later I'm finally making a blog so people can see the kind of things I've been making. Unfortunately I still can't call myself a cool motherfucker but I think some of the stuff I've made is pretty motherfucking cool. I hope you think so too.

Keep it real

Sian

First ever entry

If you find yourself reading this then Hello and welcome to my little blog. First and foremost I hope you enjoy it and the things I put on here. I wanted to make this blog primarily as a space to showcase some of my crafts and artwork, and as somewhere I can write down my thoughts about ... everything! Music, travelling, friends, life, and all the wee random bits inbetween. Hopefully it will make for good reading and give you a laugh or two (once I figure out how exactly it works... AGHH technology-fobe... and get it up and running)

 

Cheers

 

Sian