Sew overdue!

It has been an awfully long time since I grabbed hold of the old blogging pen, but life and it's daily grind just got the better of me for a brief while. I'm trying to restore balance by making more time for making, and I feel like I've tried to make up for it this past week! I have made quite a few new bits to satisfy my appetite for dressing up every nook and cranny of our home, and I thought I'd share some of them with you.

It all started with THE dresser...For so long now I have hankered after a Welsh dresser for the living room, and the hinting, sighing and eBay trawling has finally paid off. Hubby treated me (although he says it's for me, I think he wanted and liked it just as much) to this beauty, a beautifully restored and painted piece of history.

Needless to say, I couldn't wait to deck it out with a few of my favourite things! I finally have a special place for my vintage tea sets, a place where I can admire them every day. Well, I thought that I possessed enough earthly treasures to grace the shelves of my newly acquired  friend, and I probably do, but, like a blushing bride,  I wanted to add something new to sit alongside the old, borrowed and blue...I might give the blue a miss as we don't want to mess with the colour scheme of red and cream too much!  I decided to reach for my fabric scraps box, and stitched a few bits together to pop into an embroidery loop, and I was quite pleased with how it turned out. It's no Sistine chapel of the quilting world, it's naive and simple, but I like it!

And well, what would a dresser be without a heart to inject some loving perspective? I just love hearts, and was inspired by one featured on Flickr by bailiewickdesigns. I had a go at making one using an old doilie and some linen, and hey presto!

I was on a bit of a roll, and decided that the monstrosity of two white radiators anchored to my living room and landing walls, were in desperate need of a make-over...well, it ended up more of a cover up, but then, isn't that what a make-over is in most cases, just a very clever cover up? I'm rambling now. Here is what I did.

I sewed two covers to hang over the radiators. This idea was born out of necessity more than a light-bulb moment. The paint on one radiator is peeling off, and I needed a quick way to hide it from curious little toddler fingers which are all too tempted to pick away at it like a baby baboon at it's fleas! Well, so far, so good. And, another paint job can sit on the shelf until I can be bothered to do it!

Talking about a cover-up, it didn't quite stop with the central heating bug bears! My sewing friend, the dear Elna that has brought me many happy hours of creative pleasure, also needed a little coat to hide under, as it rests in prime view in my living room. I decided to make a cover for it to blend it into the existing chaos of my craft corner....Ta-da!

Now, I'm somewhat taken aback by my own industrious endeavours this week, but I'm pleased that I have managed to complete some projects that have been left on the back burner for way too long. I had two matte black candlesticks which cried out for some shabby chicness. After some not-so-thorough sanding and a few licks of paint, they now have pride of place on THE dresser. I'm chuffed to bits!

A few jolly jazzed up jars sit happily alongside these, ready to cheer up a gloomy British evening with some cheerful candlelight  flickers.

So, a week and approximately two spools of  Gutermann cotton later, I'm a happy gal bitten by the bug of business, aiming to sew more, and to share more. Do check in and share your thoughts. Would love to hear from you!