New to Me in December

Welcome to our final New to Me link party of 2015. I hope wherever you are that you are enjoying a happy and peaceful Christmas Day!

My New to Me projects this December have been a varied bunch.

First up my handmade Door Wreath.

A friend and I booked a half-day workshop to make our own Door Wreaths at a local college. It was a fun morning, although I was not the fastest so ended up frantically wiring up the dried lime slices and holly at the very last minute :) Ideally I would have added a bit more decoration to the wreath but I just ran out of time. Next year I will be much more focused :)

Next up my very first printed fabric designed by me and printed by Spoonflower!

The Embroiderers Guild are hosting a series of exhibitions next year to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the birth of Capability Brown. The photos I used as the basis of the fabric were taken at Wallington, a historic estate nearby which boasts a lake designed by Capability Brown. My local EG branch will be participating in an exhibition of stitched pieces designed to reflect the work of Capability Brown at Wallington as part of the national celebration. This fabric will be the inspiration for my contribution to the exhibition!

My final New to Me this month is my first attempt at a hidden zipper cushion back using this tutorial from made by Chrissie D.

I have a feeling that you will be seeing more of this closure method in the future, it was so straightforward to do and will also come in very handy if I don't have the perfect colour of zip to hand  :)

So that's my New to Me's this month, now it is your turn.

As ever please help to spread the word by linking back to this post in your post and/or adding the blog button to your sidebar.

Check out the other links too and, maybe, leave an encouraging comment along the way. The emphasis of this link party is to celebrate the trying of something new, whether it works out exactly as planned or not, so a little encouragement here and there would not go amiss! 

The link will remain open until 23.59GMT on December 31st, so you have some time yet to try something new and link up and join the party :)

An InLinkz Link-up

Of course, if your New to Me activity this month involves a Christmas or Holiday make then be sure to link it up to this month's Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew Link Party over at Mud Pies and Pins

One lucky linker will be the winner of this sweet kit courtesy of Sew Hot!

Wishing you all the best for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Nearly ready!

Are you nearly ready for Christmas yet? As ever the number of things that I would like to make and the time that I have available to make them do not in any way coincide :)

Still, at least one gift has been sent and received in time.

The Christmas Hamper with a homemade Christmas cake, Christmas pudding, jar of mincemeat and brandy butter is in the hands of my eldest son ready for him to produce them to impress the in-laws!

The basket and all the wrapping was from a local discount store and was the perfect size for the gifts I had in mind. It looked really well with the fancy pull-up bow, so I will be keeping an eye out for similar packs next year.

I found this delightful reindeer fabric on sale at Sew Hot and couldn't resist adding it to my recent order. If I somehow find a spare couple of hours in the next 24 hours it will become a boxy pouch, but I am not holding my breath on that one :)

The turkey and trimmings were collected this morning so it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here, hope it is where you are too.

Introducing Sew Hot

This month's sponsor for the Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew Link Party giveaway is the generous mother and daughter team of Pam and Rebecca at Sew Hot

 They did not hesitate when I approached them for a giveaway prize for the Link Party, and have donated the kit and pattern for this lovely mini quilt, which will certainly brighten one lucky linker's day!

As some of you may not have come across Sew Hot before, I thought you might like an introduction to this great business. Having purchased from them several times I can personally vouch for their great selection of products and excellent customer service.

These applique scissors were my first purchase from Sew Hot and they have been invaluable, gripping the fabric like no other scissors. They are just one example of the great range of products that Rebecca and Pam stock.

For an insight into how Sew Hot came to be read on - 

"Sew Hot was created by a mum and daughter team in order to validate to other family members the obvious compulsion they have for purchasing top-of-the-line and cutting edge fabric collections, unusual and trendy patterns, and high-quality notions.  With the thought that if they loved to sew using these quality materials, then, by golly, others might like to sew with them, too! Knowing little of what it REALLY took to run a website, these two jumped in feet first, hunted down the best products at the best prices, and as they say "the rest is history!" They built a website, and the sewists came. It was obvious they were on to something, the sewing community loved having the best resources all in one place, and Sew Hot has grown to be a reliable and personable resource for the sewing and crafting community.

 

 

 

Sew Hot has one passion: to bring the newest and hottest trends and products to sewists and quilters in the UK and the EU.  With a modern sense for design and colour, Rebecca and Pam have searched far and wide to gather their unique and eclectic assortment of products that you are sure to enjoy! 

 

 

Pam has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art and loves painting and designing quilts. She has experimented in the past with spinning, weaving, hand dyeing wool and fabric, embroidery, and a variety of other crafts before settling on quilting as her passion. Rebecca has been quilting for 20 years after being taught initially by her mother, and then taught the more modern techniques by a friend at university. She has taught many people to quilt herself over the years and enjoys helping people discover the joy of working with fabric.

 

Please drop by our website and enjoy the variety of products we offer!  We hope you love them as much as we do!"

 

Well I think we can all empathise with that compulsion :)

 

Do check out  Sew Hot  I can guarantee that you will find lots of wonderful things to take your fancy, and if you sign up for the Sew Hot newsletter then you can take advantage of the weekly special which is valid for that day only. Today's offer is 20% of all green fabric! 

If you would like to be in with a chance to win that lovely mini quilt kit then head on over to Mud Pies and Pins to link up your Christmas and Holiday makes.