Category Archives: Reviews

Advent Calendar – Day Nine

It might be Day Nine on the Advent Calendar, but it’s also Sunday so I think we’re allowed a bit of a break. Feet up with the Sunday papers, and a magazine or two. I have a new favourite magazine which I have to say saved me from a bit of a downer a couple of weeks ago. I was having one of those anti commercialised Christmas moments. You know, when you go into the supermarket at the beginning of November and they have the ‘Seasonal’ isle all stacked up with tins of chocolates, bumper bags of nuts and crisps and Christmas puddings as far as the eye can see. And Father Christmas hats, and Elf suits, and illuminated antlers. Oh, and mince pies with a sell by date a good month before Christmas. And it all seems too much, there’s just too much STUFF!

But then my Christmas Issue of ‘The Simple Things‘ landed on my doormat…

and it made me stop and think of what Christmas really means, and what it means to me as a celebration.

My fantasy Christmas would involve a log cabin in the woods and lots of snow, a reindeer drawn sleigh to take me visit Santa (I expect my grandsons would like to come too!) and a Carol Service (with a choir) A log fire, a big Christmas tree filled with my eclectic collection of ornaments gathered over the years. A traditional Christmas dinner with all my dearest family and friends and Higgins and Henry of course (and lots of help in the kitchen!) Dr Who, ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’and ‘White Christmas on the TV’, and someone who can sing and play ( guitar, piano? I don’t mind) for the musical entertainment.

Well, it’s not going to happen quite like that for me or anyone else for that matter, but it does make you think that actually, whatever the TV ads tell you, Christmas isn’t about cut price tins of Quality Street and Roses chocolates or the latest electronic gadget.

We can find our own magic if we look in the right places…

Do you have a fantasy Christmas? Do share it if you do…

The other magazine in the reading pile is a new Crochet magazine which was sent to me to review. Have you seen it yet? I spotted it for the first time on the High Street yesterday and you can also find it here.

Ideal for beginners as it has a comprehensive ‘How-to’ section at the back, and lots of different project for different skill levels. Some pretty baby blankets, this neck warmer which is on my to do list..

(and the dog’s cute too!)

And these pretty mats which would be a great project for honing newly learnt crochet skills.

I love these subtle natural shades, but these patterns would work well in the Planet Penny Cotton yarn, especially using either the warm part of the spectrum…

or the cool one…

Hope you’ve had (or are having) a peaceful Sunday, I’ll be back tomorrow!

Don’t forget to call over to Handmade Monday to find lots of other Christmas makes, and if you haven’t entered the Prize Draw you can find out all about it, and the fab prizes on this post…

Sew Over It – Book Review

This is the second of the books I was sent to review a few weeks ago, and it’s timely to do so now as Lisa Comfort has recently appeared in Kirstie Allsop’s new Channel 4 Show, Kirstie’s Vintage Home. I grew up in the era when home skills were taught in school, Domestic Science, we learnt to sew, dress-make and cook. I do have to admit to being hopeless whilst at school, but as a young married mum without a lot of cash it soon made sense to have the skills to repair and alter clothes, recycle dresses into baby clothes and run up a pair of curtains. Most women’s magazines had knitting patterns, some gave away paper patterns for dress making and amazing part work series were published teaching all sorts of skills from embroidery to macrame! (Such a useful skill – macrame plant pot holder anyone?)

All that seemed to get swept away in a great feminist rage against being hemmed in by domesticity to the point where you had to hide any desire to occupy yourself with a little light embroidery, and ‘homemade’ was considered an insult. Schools did away with cookery classes and sewing lessons and a whole generation were left without useful life skills such as sewing on a button or cooking.

That’s why I’m loving this whole re-emergence of making and upcycling, creating and recycling which is movement of the moment and Lisa Comfort’s book fits right in as an ideal starting point for anyone wanting to dip their toe in the creativity pool. Lisa charts her beginnings from stitching with her child-minder through the London College of Fashion to her sewing café and shop in Clapham, South London where she teaches the skills to be found in this book. If you’ve never threaded a needle let alone sewn on a button, never fear. Lisa starts you off at the very beginning introducing you to the needle and thread, the mysteries of the sewing machine, customising and altering your clothes, making accessories and finally measuring yourself and making a skirt from scratch.

This is not a book for a seasoned dressmaker but I would definitely recommend this to a complete sewing novice needing a virtual hand to hold and guidance starting out on their sewing journey. Probably it would be helpful to have a hands on lesson if you’ve never used a sewing machine but I believe shops like John Lewis offer this when you buy a machine from them. Apart from that, all that is needed is a little imagination and Lisa’s know how and tips. The projects are clearly illustrated and explained, and the book as a whole is colourful and appealing, the photography is inspiring, a great Christmas present idea for a aspiring stitcher !

The ‘Sew Over It’ book is published by Ebury Press and available to buy from Lisa’s on-line shop of the same name, (which is a rather dangerous place to visit if you happen to like fabrics, and buttons, and haberdashery….)

Material World – Book Review

A material world is a pretty good description of the planet I inhabit right here! But it’s also the title of a new book I have been sent to review described as ‘The Modern Craft Bible’,which is due to be published on 1st November.

I try not to do ‘gloom’ on the blog, but to be honest after the past few days of foul weather coupled with a work overload, I’ve been creating quite few dark clouds of my own. The antidote seemed to be a sit down by the fire with a cuppa and to award myself some time off with Perri Lewis‘s ‘Material World’.

The first thing which stands out is the clean, crisp design and layout, which immediately lifts the book into a different genre to the plethora of fluffy, folksy craft books which are about at the moment. If you are a fashionista you probably won’t want a hand knitted tea cosy, but you may very well need these shoes…

(I’d love them!) and there are clear instructions which will have you digging around in the back of the wardrobe on in your local charity shop to find a pair of shoes to upcycle.

Perri talks to the big names in the craft world, exciting and interesting people such as Amy Butler, Tatty Devine, Grayson Perry who pass on their wisdom and advice. She talks to Philip Treacy on how to make a hat, Topshop on customising your clothes, and Lara Bohinc on how to make statement jewellery.

Projects in the book include…

In all there are 15 different techniques from stitching to screen printing, jewellery making to leather work, which enable you to create your own projects rather than having to follow a set pattern. While it will inspire beginners and give them the tricks of the trade, seasoned crafters will find new ways of applying old techniques.

And finally, there are some really inspiring interviews and articles from people who have ‘been there’ and ‘done that’. Find out who first coined the phrase ‘Craftivism’, who inspires Kaffe Fassett, (its’s Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell) So then who inspires Amy Butler… Kaffe Fassett! There are also tips on how to start a craft group, building your own business and where to find inspiration when your brains switches into hibernation mode.

At £18.99 it’s expensive compared with many other craft books available, but the content is invaluable. If I’d had a copy of Material World 10 years ago I wouldn’t have needed to buy a whole shelf full of other books! It’s published on 1st November, you can find it here.

And now as it’s raining, hailing, blowing, everything outside, I heading back to the fireside to read some more…

See you soon…x