Pencil pots

A week ago I was having what I call a 'bad mama day' This is another way of saying I was grumpy and fed up.  Normally when I am feeling like this, the girls become very demanding and they  wind each other up. With my man away there is no one else to defuse the situation. When this happens I need a focus and I told the girls that they had to stay in their room and play with every puzzle they own and just make a mess, I tried not to think about the consequence of that until later. 
My focus was to channel my frustration into something creative.    So, I got my sewing machine out and got busy.  I decided to make some pencil pots to put all the loose pencils and pens in.  This is how I made them.  

First I cut out a circle from the felt and then a strip as long as the circumference of the circle. I then pined the two bits together and sewed them up.  














I did the same with some cotton fabric and placed the felt pot into the cotton one. I then folded down the top, sewed around the edge and the pot was finished. 

They can be all different shapes and sizes in order to fit different pens and pencils.  

After the first one I got very excited and wanted to make more.   


These little pots make it much easier for the girls to see all their different coloured pencils and crayons.  

A Peg Bag

The other day I finely had a bit of creative inspiration, so I  dusted off the sowing machine and got busy.  The last few weeks have been warm and sunny, the perfect weather for drying the washing outside. But after the winter I found that most of my pegs were lost or broken because I always leave them on the washing line.  So I have bought myself some nice new pegs and I made made myself and nice new peg bag. 

I bought some oil cloth fabric so that if I leave it out in the rain (which I am sure I will) it will still keep its shape and hopefully the pegs dry. 
I used a child's size coat hanger and cut around it to get the shape of the bag.  



I then cut a whole and hemmed the edge of it.  Then I sewed the bag together turned it the right way around and put my coat hanger in. And then most importantly, I hung the washing out.  ;-)  

Computer Pocket

 Living in a yurt does not offer the luxury of space, this only means we need to be more creative with storage and spacing.  For a long time now my computer didn't have a home and when I am not using it I always put it in or on the book shelf.  But this has resulted in one too many fatalities and the death of my old computer. So I have been determent to find a solution, and it came to me one day.  I always sit on the sofa when I am using my computer and so I thought why not make a little pocket that somehow fixes to the sofa for my computer to live in. 

This is what I made; It has 6 straps, 3 attached at the top and 3 at the back so that it ties under the arm of the sofa.   

 It can also be used for putting books and newspapers in. So all in all its is a very useful little pocket.   

iPhone Case

 I just got an iPhone and I am very scared of braking it. My last phone is completely broken from all the times I have dropped it on the floor.  So, I have made a little case for my new phone to live in. I have lined it with felt for a bit more protection, I hope new it will be safe. 

A Pencil and A Crayon Case

I needed to make a crayon case for my big girl who has just started school.  I wanted to make it with some really fun fabric, I found one with flowers and birds and lots of bright colours all in one piece.  

My girls really love drawing but they always fight over their pencils, so I have also made a pencil case for my little girl to keep her new pencils in with the left over fabric.  Now they have there own pencils and pencil cases, drawing time is a little more peaceful.