Dexterous & Deft Designs

following my muse

NatalieW — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 21:11:15 +0000

When I get a chance to make something I am usually initially panicked by having so little time and so much that I want to do, so the way I decide is to work out what I really really want to make next. Sometimes I am surprised by what it is.

Jigsaw pieces are one of the shapes that seem to endlessly fascinate me. I often doodle them when I’m bored (not often these days). For a while I’ve been thinking about making soft cushions and using pretty fabrics, but not sure why they came to the top of the pile today except that my daughter has nearly finished one of her drawing pads, and I had my eye on the cardboard back to make a template – it felt like just the right size. So today I tore off the last 2 pages and got to work.

Of course, as usual I plunged in without measuring, planning or thinking about anything so as I’m going along I realize I’ve already made some mistakes and try to rectify them without starting again! (I’m not going to point them out in case you think it’s perfect…)

But as the first one started taking shape I found myself feeling pleased with how it was going – just as I imagined it.

I’m worried it’s a bit small, but perhaps a few for a child? (You’ve got to have more than one surely – to make your own jigsaw???) Maybe I’ll make some bigger ones for adults another day, but I’ll probably have to wait until that particular muse strikes again.

p.s. I found this recently on the excellent blog by Christine Chitnis aka Lavender and Limes. It reminds me to trust my instincts and do what feels right. Check her out here: http://www.christinechitnis.com/

product development

NatalieW — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:35:42 +0000

When I get despondent about my work not being good enough my husband always tells me I’m still in my product development phase. He knows about these things so I try to listen.

I’d really like to make children’s toys, and top of my list is to make a pretty cat doll. But I’m having problems…

This is my third attempt.

The first one was much smaller and delicate, but I made the mistake of joining a seam at her neck, so her head won’t stay up! Also, as lovely as it is to have a little kitten the size of your hand, it was incredibly hard to make the arms and legs, especially turning them the right way round.

So the second one I scaled up and made her neck robust, but the shape of the head went wrong – was too narrow and made her look too stern. I’m also having problem with the embroidered face. I’d prefer to print the faces eventually, since when I draw the faces they look soft and friendly, but in the process of embroidering and stuffing them they seem to become stern and a bit scary!

So number three was an attempt to address these problems, and I also had some new fabric I wanted to use that I bought in a little shop in Brecon that we discovered by chance. It’s the flower one above.

Of course, I’m still not happy, despite unpicking and redoing the face at least 3 times. I think it’s the eyes. I may have to give up trying to make them so catlike, which is a shame but if I put my thumbs over her eyes I’m actually quite happy with the rest of the face so that’s where the problem is.

Luckily, my three year old daughter loves all of them, so she’s just getting a growing collection at the moment!

boro

NatalieW — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 11:59:58 +0000

I’m really interested in Japanese Boro texiles since my mum introduced me to them. I think they are beautiful to look at. Very simple and effective. (You may notice my flickr name, and constant touchstone – lessismore).

I think they have the same kind of appeal as things made by the Amish. Simple. No overt embellishment. Made for purpose. I like the idea that nothing is wasted, using up all your scraps for something productive and beautiful. Of course, trying it out for myself it soon became apparent that it’s not so easy to be this effortless.

So, I took my pile of scraps:

I wanted to use some natural colours, but this strand of red got in there somehow and got me thinking about using some red too but more about that below. I wanted to work freely without thinking about it too much and let the design emerge from the fabric. I didn’t plan anything, but just started to build up the design in a way that felt pleasing.

I think it would have been more traditional to hand stitch the pieces together but I was impatient to see some results. And so the piece grew…

and grew…

until I started thinking about that red, and about what tiny embellishments I could add to the simplicity of the patchwork taking shape.

This is possibly where i started to go wrong. I started to be too conscious of what I was doing and where I was placing the pieces.

But I loved the frayed edge of this red fabric scrap that I had in my pile, and wanted to find a way to incorporate it.

Which meant changing my technique but this time I think the variation was more successful. I like the fact that you can see the stitching:

and then I ran out of scraps. So this is where I’m at:

not exactly what I was hoping for, and probably nothing to do with Boro, but lots learnt and some pleasing results. Now I just want to make more things so that I can have lots of scraps left over for more experiments.

lavender harvesting

NatalieW — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 10:08:36 +0000

In Wales at the weekend and after enjoying the beautiful scenery on a walk in Brecon, my mother in law generously offered me her lavender crop from her garden. Having never harvested lavender before we were kind of making it up as we went along.

When we got home, my lovely husband looked up on line how to dry out the lavender and even tied it in bunches for me and hung it up.

It’s usually in the dark but I keep having a little peek to see how it’s getting along.

Even the little bits that have fallen off are smelling delicious. Can’t wait to use them to make something.

saturday

NatalieW — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 22:49:21 +0000

I decided that the best compensation for not having a chance to sell anything today would be a chance to get on with my own designs, which is what I really want to be doing.

I’ve been thinking for sometime about making tableware – you know, napkins, runners, that sort of thing. I’m always attracted to it when other people are selling it. Maybe it’s fond memories of my childhood and having my own silver napkin ring with my name on at dinner times? Or maybe it’s just my love of entertaining, even though we don’t get so much opportunity to do that at the moment with 2 small children.

Anyway, whatever the reason, I’ve been thinking that this IKEA linen is perfect for napkins, and I have lots of ideas of what to put on them, but the one that stood out most for me tonight was allium, which I think I have a little obsession with at the moment, well, since spring.

Such a beautiful, simple shape, and yet such delicate complexities within it.

And since I don’t currently have a screen, I’m still hand painting with fabric paint and fabric medium.

Quite pleased with the result though.

Might try one with 2 next time.

moving forward

NatalieW — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:40:11 +0000

Decided to pick myself up off the floor and finish the lavender sachets despite not needing them for Saturday any more. Perhaps they will go into my Etsy store which I’m hoping to open soon. Gave me a chance to practice photographing them in a manner that looks vaguely professional! I’m quite pleased with the results, although possibly not light enough?

I’m not sure whether these are something anyone would seek out in an online store, even Etsy. But I was surprised how well they sold on their debut, so hopefully I’ll be surprised again. It’s a good way to get some lovely fabrics into your house at least.

disappointment

NatalieW — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 08:06:07 +0000

Just found out yesterday that the Designers Makers market is no more. Completely gutted. There are plans for it to return, perhaps in a different form or a different venue, and hopefully I can still be a part of it then.

preparations

NatalieW — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 22:35:07 +0000

I’ve been lucky enough to get one of the free pitches awarded by the Designers Makers Market in Hackney this July . Rapidly trying to replenish stock sold at my first ever stall at the Royal Ballet School Open Day as well as trying to make new stuff to test out (see little house doorstop on banner above!).

Spent Sunday afternoon stuffing lavender sachets and pinning them ready for topstitching and ribbon-tying as soon as I get another moment.

I like the way the fabric combinations are coming together. Its the IKEA linen that’s making it all work. Lots of plans to use that in other projects.

These were my best seller last time. Wonder if Hackney will be a different market and I’ll end up bringing all these little lovelies home again?

Oh The Places You’ll Go!

NatalieW — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 10:43:57 +0000

Tonight at bedtime my daughter picked out a book that neither of us had ever read before (my husband bought it for his first daughter – what a good father he is, you’ll see). An extraordinary thing. This book is already in my top ten books ever, if not straight in at No.1. It’s by the fantastic Dr. Seuss, but one that I’ve somehow managed to avoid so far in my life: Oh The Places You’ll Go. It went straight over my daughter’s head (she’s 3) but I was choking back the tears. It seemed that fate was trying to speak directly to me, as I weigh up my options post babies and one redundancy, one employment tribunal later. It reminded me that the world is a big and exciting place full of opportunity and fun, and although the road is not always easy, it’s important to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I am one of those waiting for Another Chance. But this book has kicked started my blog. And given me a name. Go buy this book today. Read it to your kids. Read it to your inner child, who needs to be reminded not to be so afraid. “Today is your day. Your mountain is waiting. So…get on your way“;