Its A Girl Thing ~ Little Miss Handbags

I am one of those peculiar ladies who don't enjoy carrying a handbag around... 

I find it tiresome - as if somebody is placing an extra burden on me as I step out the front door and make for the delights of town... 

Perhaps I owe this dislike of carrying handbags to the fact that I am not able to properly hold onto a sweet little person's hand (and I would much rather grasp a chubby hand than a bag...).
Or because it is quite awkward to compare two rolls of lovely fabric and decide which one to purchase whilst clutching a bulky object containing my sadly empty purse (I always spend too much on sewing supplies, I confess...).

And how does one carry a camera and lenses as well as a bag...?

However, many ladies simply love their handbags and I am constantly amazed at some of the objects they withdraw from the interiors... 
But often things get lost within the numurous contents of the bag - I have on occasion observed ladies shaking, emptying and scratching among the bits and pieces inside with a look of desperation on their faces...  Usually it is car keys they are after...

But I personally feel tiny handbags are simply gorgeous for little ladies who love to look just like their Mommies, yet are too small and inclined to play a running game at a moment's notice to carry the ones you sling over your shoulder and have to hold in place with your hand...

...Let me introduce you to....

The Little Miss Handbag!

 

 Yes indeed - these handbags are the perfect size and style for any wee lady who longs to carry a beautiful bag just like her mommy, yet still needs to be free to be a little girl at the same time!

This handbag is small and just the right size for keeping a few treasures in...  It can be put over the neck or slung over the shoulder, depending on the wishes of its owner....

And it has a piece of Velcro to keep the bag closed so that no precious item should fall out during play.

And to make this handbag even more desirable, it is made in beautiful, 100% cotton fabrics!  

The outside and inside fabrics are beautifully coordinated, and the front of the bag boasts a felt motif - either a flower, heart or butterfly, or whatever takes my fancy.  

The motif is stitched onto the fabric with my lovely sewing machine, and I sew the matching button(s) on by hand to ensure it never comes off:)

Oh, I would dearly love a little bag like this - my sisters who have one look so comfortable wearing them...

But I still have my patchwork one which I must admit, I do quite like...  I can pop in all the bits of ribbons, buttons and fabrics I collect during my shopping trip and keep them safe:)

Hope you are having a fantastic week thus far!

Happily Sewing with New Fabris

Oh!  Such excitement I experienced when I discovered my favourite quilt shop had new fabrics on their shelves!

But...just how does one choose...?

After some careful thought and consideration, I purchased a piece of these lovelies to add to my growing collection of quilting fabrics...

 Now I can start creating...

~

I will be back sometime this week with photographs of the completed projects!

Hoping your day is both crafty and lovely!

Kelly-Anne

In my craft room today...

Today I enjoyed a few pleasurable hours spent in my craft room working with beautiful papers, pearls, distress inks, buttons and ribbons...

~

Card making is still my first love, and I always take great delight in planning the design and creating a unique card to bless some dear person, with various bits and pieces from my collection...

Living in a place where I don't have access to as many craft shops with a large selection of supplies as I would like, has its disadvantages, but it also helps me to use what I have creatively and carefully in order to still be left with a lovely finished product...

When I last went to the lovely scrapbook shop - one of my favourite places in the world - I fell in love with a gorgeous vintage baby paper pack.  Of course I just had to purchase it, and these are a few of the cards I came up with during my crafty morning...

For this card, I decided to tear a small piece of light pink cardstock to mount the vintage roses on...  I then distressed the edges to give it even more of a vintage appeal...

The ribbon is perhaps not quite vintage, but it certainly does add a charming aspect to the overall design...

I carefully handcut a piece of patterned paper into a pretty shape and printed the sentiment 'Precious Angel...' onto it.

The buttons and pearls complete the card, as well as a piece of dusty pink Baker's twine, which I formed into a bow and adhered to the sentiment...

I used a very simple design for this baby boy card...  These papers I actually bought many years ago in Cape Town and just never used them...  

I accented the card with a piece of lovely blue ribbon as well as three buttons in different shades of blue.  I also added the simple sentiment 'Welcome Baby!'...

I then cut a little sheep from the same paper as the background and used pop-ups to give it a little dimension.

The baby blue ribbon bow was added at the end to complete the card.

This sweet baby girl card is probably my favourite of the three - I love the straight edges which to me add a simplistic grace to the overall appearrance...

I used distress ink called Malted Mauve from VersaMagic to ink the edges of all the paper, which softened the hard edges beautifully and again, brought more of a vintage charm to the card...

I used the same butterfly ribbon as with the first card and also added two lengths of Baker's twine to the centre...

I added different buttons in each corner and a teeny wooden clothes peg with the sentiment 'BABY' to the Baker's twine - this represents all the washing that goes along with the joys of having a sweet little one!

And once I had finished creating baby cards, I decided to make a friendship card in lovely shades of blue with various scraps from my box...

 

   The sentiment, printed onto a beautiful distressed handcut shape, is simply 'Sweet Friend'... 

I used rectangular pieces of patterned papers to give the card a layered look and added white lace to the one side to soften the straight edges... 

Ribbon, buttons and pearls were used to finish off the card and I used plenty of distress in Aegan Blue by VersaMagic to soften the design even more and blend the layers into each other...

For interests sake, each card measures 6.1" x 4".  I use strong brown kraft paper for each of my cards and package them with a brown envelope in clear plastic to protect it.  

I also like to add a small decorative touch to the envelope so that it matches the card...

~

Thus ended a very pleasant session of card making...  

I am quite delighted with the outcome and look forward to packaging each sweet card in clear plastic to add to my stall this coming Saturday...

My hope is to sometime begin an Etsy shop to begin selling online, but for now I am enjoying creating and sharing my creative pursuits with you in the hopes of inspiring you to enjoy some lovely crafting time...

And as this is my first post for this month, let me wish all my dear readers a very happy and blessed March!  Thank you kindly for joining me on this creative journey - it truly warms my heart to hear from each of you!

Until next time, sweet friends!

Crafty greetings,

Kelly-Anne

Vintage Style Collector’s Bunny ~ Miss Lettice

I just had to introduce you to sweet Miss Lettice, one of my latest sewing projects… 

Recently I shared photographs of these darling rabbits on my personal blog, Beautiful Girlhood, but since then I’ve made a few minor changes and improvements to my pattern and to the clothing...

This rabbit has a certain vintage charm which is quite striking and her clothes are perfectly suited to her as well.
I had such a lovely time designing and creating on my sewing machine and I am so happy with how she turned out!

Of course I must also say a thank you to my very dear mother, who not only encouraged me to make Miss Lettice her adorable pantaloons, but also assisted me with making changes to patterns, etc. 

And to my kind younger sisters who were more than willing to share their opinions and ideas for improvements with me…they have each requested one, but I’m not so sure I can have five made in time for Easter to gift all of them with!

But now, let me tell you a few more details about Miss Lettice and show you why she is so special…

Miss Lettice has an unbleached calico body and ears made from patterned quilting cotton… 

She is 100% handmade with love and created with the utmost attention to detail.

I embroidered her simple face with tiny stitches and gave her claws on her dear little paws…  Of course I just had to give her pink cheeks with a touch of blush, too!

Her frock is made in coordinating fabrics, and the skirt is gathered and trimmed with lace for added vintage charm…

 

I added a teeny little pocket to the front bodice piece and adorable blue buttons to keep the straps in place…Did I ever mention how much I love buttons…?

 

The sweet pantaloons have a ruffle near the hem and I also added a little bow for more of a three dimensional effect…

 

 I love these delightful blue fabrics - they are so soft and beautiful to look at!

I can just picture sweet Miss Lettice sitting among precious sewing books or on a new baby’s bed, bringing joy to the heart of each person who stops by to pay her some small attention or give her a cuddle… 

And I hope she will bless many - just as she has blessed me…

I think Miss Lettice will become a very special part of Heartmade and the work that I am indeed privileged to do in the future…

With love,
 Kelly-Anne