Personalised Gifts For Handmade Monday

Happy New Year folks! I hope you all had a wonderful time over Christmas and a well deserved rest after all that frantic crafting on the run up!

There's been a lot of flooding in these parts... i took this picture of a local carpark on Christmas Eve on the way to visit family near by...

Luckily we live up on a hill with little danger of flooding but my heart goes out to those who had a wet Christmas. Anyone else in the same boat as these poor people? (pardon the pun...! :/)

I had a lovely time with family and it was nice to finally be able to give them the gifts i'd made (some quite a while ago!) Happily, i've also had some positive feedback from customers too, especially from those who bought personalised and custom gifts.

Today i've picked a couple of my favourites to share with you :)

Custom Squirrel Mug for a Lovely Mum

My dear friend Sandhya (creator of gorgeous handmade bath products) asked me to design a mug to give to her mum as a Christmas pressie featuring squirrels and some wording too, a quote on one side and 'lovely mum' on the other.

The nature theme was right up my street and i loved the whole process of design through to painting the finished mug. The best bit is that Sandhya and her Mum are really pleased with it - yay!

Here are some pics...

I hope you like it too!

Coffee Lover's Cushion

The other make i want to show you today is this cushion cover i made as a Christmas pressie for a coffee lover in my family.

I used gold fabric paint, frayed edged applique and a pretty lace trim to decorate the front which is made from some lovely faded linen which i've upcyled.

The reverse is made from a lovely cashmere jumper which was ready for a new life, and a hand sewn patch as a finishing touch.

I'm really pleased with how the 'cosy coffee house' look came together and the soft cashmere makes is super hugable too :)

In Other News...

2013 was a great year for Free Spirit Designs. I had lots of fun with new creative avenues like fabric design, printable craft papers and greetings cards and have learnt so much along the way. Sales were a lot better than in 2012 too (yay!) and i'm hoping to take another step in the right direction this year - i've got lots of ideas for new collections and directions which i'm looking forward to sharing with you very soon.

This seems like a good time to say a huge thank you to all those who have supported my little business over the last 12 months - customers, blog readers and of course my lovely friends and family too - i wish you al the very happiest of New Years and hope that 2014 has wonderful things in store for us all!

Now, i can't wait to hear about how all the crafters over at Handmade Monday have faired over the last few busy weeks...were they, like me, queing in the post office on the last posting day layden with last minute orders? Did they get 'everything done' in time for the big day? I'm off to find out :)

Thanks for stopping by! x

Flowers Make Me Smile

Now that Spring is well underway little splashes of delightful floral colour are appearing everywhere!

Snowdrops, crocuses, daffodils, primroses to name but a few - Spring flowers are the most cheering of blooms, appearing, as they do, after the barren stillness of winter.

It is said that the earth laughs in flowers..

...and they certainly make me smile!

These wonders of nature have got my creative juices flowing... The first of my flower inspired creations came about as my mind raced ahead with the first burst of bright weather to the joys of walking through wildflower meadows at the height of Summer - there was the most wonderful array of flowers in one i walked through last year - a memory i treasure, and i thought a fitting image to paint on a keepsake box to keep special treasures in (click here for more info and images)

"I Went For A Walk In The Meadow Today"

Then came my 'Flowers Make Me Smile' cushion... I have cut flowers in the house sometimes and they certainly brighten things up but one of my favourite things is when a potted house plant finally breaks into bloom. Here is one of ours which produced these beautiful pink flowers in mid-winter - a very cheery surprise!

And here is my cushion - a celebration of flowering house plants in applique and embroidery! (you can find more images and details here )

Last but not least in my trio of flowery delights is my very first string of bunting :) which i've made using three floral fabrics - more details and images here. If you fancy making some bunting yourself there is a fab tutorial here at Handmade Harbour.

I've also had a wonderful time browsing other people's flower inspired creations - here are some of my favourites from etsy - i hope you enjoy them too!

Home is...

Home is a special word that encapsulates both a profound sense of meaningful belonging and the promise of comfort and nurture. The protective embrace of home can also be stifling and restrictive, yet it seems to have a magnetic pull that draws us to re-create if not re-visit our experiences of it time and time again.

Home is something very close to my heart - even as a child my Mum used to call me a 'nest maker'!  I love things that make me feel 'at home', i love being in my home and i love making other people feel at home.

All of my crafty creations are intended to create a warm and loving 'homely' atmosphere, but my latest collection of cushions is particularly inspired by the idea of what home means - i am quite fascinated by this and would love to hear about what home means to you!

Here's what i came up with:

Good old GB...

I have to say that i have not historically been the most patriotic person (yearning more often for sunnier climes!) but these days there is quite a large place in my heart for my country of origin - perhaps its that 'magnetic pull' having more effect as i get older!! This cushion is very sensually pleasing as i have used luxurious red velvet, and a gorgeous deep piled blue corduroy as well as pretty rose patterned cotton - you can visit the listing in my shop for a closer look!

Whimsical country cottage...

Wherever i roam the ocean calls me home...  

Having completed my little trio of homey cushions my fascination with what home means compelled me to delve into the wonderful world of etsy - here is the treasure i found!



I was especially taken by Jackie Huang's 'Castle in the Sky' pop up card - just beautiful!

I also came upon this delightful treasury compiled by Yastikizi:




Such pretty nests!  I could quite happily move in :)

My final thought on this subject is a little somber... for not everyone has a lovely nest to snuggle up in. The homeless pull at a primal fear in us all, of having no-where to go, of not being wanted or fitting in - so we tend to reject them, block then out and walk by as if they don't exist - i'm not pretending i've never done this (even though i also donate to charities that help them). From now on though i will make sure to, at the very least, acknowledge those with nowhere to go when i pass them on the street - its a small gesture but it just might help them feel a bit more at home in the world.