A little more hams and sausages?

Whhooooooo I really am on a roll this week with blog posts hey? I have just parked my behind down on our very comfortable sofa (I do love our sofa, its one of those ones where when you sit on it you never want to get up again lol!!), with a very large cup of coffee and I'm trying to tie up all the loose ends so that Mr.B and I can spend the whole weekend relaxing together.

So while I was also on a roll of fun making, I decided to sew together some of the Tailors Ham and Sausage pressing sets that I made myself a few weeks ago. This kinda happened by accident, well I say this, I'm blaming it on you, the lovely people who asked would I be making any more....well here they are :D

I've made two sets and although I do enjoy making them, I don't think I will be making anymore, due to being focused on other things. So if you want to get your hands on a set be quick!! 

Obviously I had to make a sewing themed set!! And I have to admit I am a little bit in love with these ones!! One side there are vintage sewing items and on the other a gorgeous yellow letter set print.

The measurements are : 

HAM : 24cm x 18cm x 10cm

SAUSAGE : 29cm x 8cm x 6.5cm

They are made from cotton and are filled with sawdust....the good old fashioned way!!!

This is the second set, a gorgeous lime and teal floral pattern with a teal abstract floral print on the otherside.

I think they would make a fantastic gift for a sewing enthusiast or if you just really love ironing and want some fun and colour in your life, you totally need these!!!!

The sets are £20 plus £3.40 postage.

They are listed on my website, facebook and instagram but if you're interested just leave me a comment below :D

Have a great weekend my lovelies, I will be back on Monday with the next instalment of my dressmaking adventures!!!! 

.......

Emma xxx

Tailors Ham and sausage - make your own

Hello again my lovelies, ooops looks like I've gone over a week without popping by to write a post. This time I can actually say its because I have been so busy enjoying myself that I just didn't realise that its Friday already!! But I did promise myself that I would write more about where my new adventures were taking me so here I am with 'what I did next' :D

So with all this garment making I fully intend to carry out, I have been looking for sewing gadgets/tools that I would need (well not need but want of course) to complete my projects. The first thing on my list was a Tailors Ham and Sausage (tee hee! that still makes me laugh every time I say it, it just sounds so ridiculous but so fitting). After doing the usual and Googling them, I found two types. The first, totally practical, would do the job no doubt....but they were boring black and red tartan (not my thing) round about £6-9. The second, right up my street made out of funky fabrics, bright colourful, interesting, fun....problem - most sets were about £50+!!! 

Really!!!!! Now I know better than most that you should never undermine someones work...EVER....and I know what blood, sweat and floods of tears can go into a handmade item, I've been there and bare the scars. However.......now dont judge me on this! Please....

I just could not justify (not only that I do not have £50+ to be spending on them for starters) paying this amount for something that looked relatively simple. I am in no way putting anyone's craftman/womanship down, I couldn't sell a bloody complex, detailed handbag for that so I know that pain very well! 

My mind was made up, I decided I was going to make my own

So I found a free pattern on Craftsy, downloaded it, had it printed out and I was on my way. I chose this gorgeous sheep patterned fabric that I have had lying around in my stash for ages. It wasn't quite big enough for most projects but I couldn't bare to part with it. I'm glad I didn't now as it was a perfect size for this pattern. I also found this co-ordinating polka dot fabric too, there wasn't quite enough for the back of the sausage but I added a 1cm seam allowance and used two pieces.

Luckily at Christmas my Dad brought me two ginormous bags of sawdust, we were originally going to use it for kindling for the fire but we just haven't gotten round to pressing some blocks yet.

I just have to add that my Dad is so talented and can pretty much make anything with his hands (must be where I get it from). He has made his own kitchen units and doors from scratch and even his bedroom furniture and a tv cabinet, oh yeah and he can also carve rocking horses too!!!! So this is how I came about the sawdust.

So after patiently stuffing both the ham and sausage this was the finished result!! I'm so pleased with them. You do have to pack them really tight with the sawdust but when you've finished you realise why, They need to be sturdy/solid enough like an ironing board if they were saggy then you would get creases in your garments that you dont want.

I love the fact they are very practical but so much fun at the same time....and of course they co-ordinate with the colour scheme of my sewing room, naturally :D

So if you fancy having a go at these yourself this is the link to the pattern:

Craftsy pattern link

And this is the link to Elewa's instructions on how to make them:

Elewa's instructions

I hope you enjoy making and using them :D

Have a great Fri-yay!

.....Emma xxx