The Sewphist

Martinborough Fair – this thing is happening!

Elisabeth — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:43:03 +0000

If you live in the Wellington region, you may have heard of the Martinborough Fair, held on the first Saturday of Feb and March every year. Well, until this year, when a weatherbomb headed our way, and they had to postpone the March event. It’s now been set for Saturday 5 May, and I’m going to be there, stall sharing with my most awesome friend Nini from Things Unseen. Nini’s jewellery is beautiful, and I’m really excited about travelling up there with her. It’s going to be an awesome day!

I need to make more stock. Lots more stock. Eek!

Psssst… remember me?

Elisabeth — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 03:18:43 +0000

Wow, it’s been such a long time, that I nearly don’t remember me. I’ve been doing so many exciting things since I last posted (the biggest of which was still secret at the time of my last post, but is well and truly public now) and I promise I’ll be back soon to update you on them.

But in the meantime, I have a problem. I haven’t seen my second-best pair of shears for at least a month. And my second-best pair of shears also happen to be my first-best pair of shears when it comes to turning corners, which I do rather a lot of. So, I’m enlisting your help… Tell me where you think my shears are, and the person who comes closest will win a prize pack. I haven’t decided exactly what will be in it, but it will consist of goodies made by me, and be worth around the $50 mark.

To give you a start, here is a picture of my work space on a good day…

I also have a cutting table, sewing table, and shelving beside my machines. And I’ve done some sewing outside the house in the last couple of months too, so it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that they are off having a holiday somewhere. So really, you should feel free to be as oddly-specific as you like in your suggestions. It is not beyond the realms of possibility to say “under the turquoise fabric that is sitting 10 inches to the right of the iron” or “under the ironing pile at a house of a friend whose name begins with Q” (although I don’t actually think I have any friends whose name begins with Q…). Oh, and I have done some sewing at the shop as well, so that opens up your possibilities (there goes a hint as to what my next update might contain).

I’ll let the competition run until I find my scissors, or until the end of the month. Whichever comes first. If I don’t actually find them, the suggestion that amuses me the most will win. And while that is highly subjective, no discussion will be entered into .

You can enter here, or on my FB page (and judging by my email notifications in the last few minutes, I’ve got a few over there already!)

ETA – Wow, it turns out that FB managed to find them even before I finished writing this. So… I’m going to alter this slightly, and give away a second prize pack to the person who manages to regale me with the most amusing story of where they once found a missing item.

I

Elisabeth — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 12:23:58 +0000

Opps, look at the date! How did July roll around so quickly?

I’ve always thought of July as treat month. Not just because so many people I know have birthdays around now, but also because I think we all need the odd little treat in July just to remind us that Winter isn’t really that unbearable. So I’ve put together a few little treats that I found on Felt, little luxuries to make life a little easier as we wait for spring to roll around (and I’m ever adament that spring starts in August!)

Honey and Spice make delicious sounding lip balms, for a very reasonable price, and given what winter does to my lips, little luxuries like this are pretty much a necessity. As is a good hand cream, to stop the cold air taking its toll. I’m on my second lot of Sabine’s No Snag – it really is such a nice moisturiser, I thoroughly recommend it.

I’ve picked a cuff by Fireworks, a local Wellington jeweller. I love looking at her work, as the shapes are so intricate and beautiful. I think I would feel incredibly elegant wearing any of her pieces. Speaking of feeling elegant, one mustn’t forget beautiful lingerie. By Nature Bamboo Lingerie did a photoshoot recently, and I love the old-worldy feeling they created with their bush boudoir setting.

I tend to spend much of winter feeling sorry for myself because it’s so cold. Until I remember my mum telling me that you lose 50% of your body heat through your head. At which point if I’m lucky I also remember to put a hat on. Isn’t this one by poppy&bee snuggly looking!

Which leaves Little Ladies’ Vogue Ladies. I would love to one day add one of Anmea’s originals to my collection of tiles that I’ve bought from her. One day.

And oops, look at the date. Apparently we’re one day further into July than we were when I started this post.

Night all!

$5.00

$225.00

$16.00

$85.00

$450.00

$75.80

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Elisabeth — Wed, 25 May 2011 10:02:05 +0000

I have a new way of doing things in my wardrobe – dresses! I’ve especially been loving the versatility of knit dresses. If I ever manage to actually make it to the gym before work, they’re a lot less hassle when it comes to getting dressed. Or on the odd occasion that I bike the 18 km to work, they pack down nicely in my panier.

I’ve also been trying to be much more conscientious in my fashion choices, buying predominantly NZ or Australian made clothes. And now it’s time to take it one step closer, and start buying handmade (when I’m not making something for myself, of course).

I took a look on felt to see what is available in the way of dresses, and this is what I found. As you can see, I’m torn between sleek merino dresses and pretty feminine dresses. Merino won out this time (it being winter and all) and I’m having one custom-made by harpie-girl!

$70.00

$84.00

$178.00

$80.00

$95.00

$120.00

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Elisabeth — Wed, 18 May 2011 08:50:53 +0000

It’s mid-May, and it’s getting a bit chilly around here. According to @HuttWeather on twitter, it’s somewhere between 7 – 10 degrees tonight just a couple of suburbs along the hill from me. Brrrr!

So tonight’s I <3 Felt Wednesday Showcase is bought to you by the word “WARM”. Something that my heater is struggling with tonight…

I especially love the eiderdown. It reminds me of something I would have snuggled into as a kid, with associations of my Granny.

$55.00

$475.00

$30.00

$85.00

$26.00

$45.00

And sometime I must really get around to checking out those Energywise subsidies.

Craft2.0 is having a Birthday!

Elisabeth — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 10:44:54 +0000

I haven’t been very good recently about talking about my upcoming markets, but I really must tell you about what’s happening next Saturday. I am a huge fan of Craft2.0, both as a shopper, and as a seller. And this Saturday is Craft2.0′s 5th Birthday.

Craft2.0 is a an amazing day, all due to the fantastic work put in by Sue and the wonderful volunteers who help her put it all together and keep it running on the day. It is also held in a great venue, at the Dowse in Lower Hutt (if by any chance you actually manage to get around and see all the wonderful craft, cupcakes and other goodies on offer, you can take some time out to look at the exhibitions that are happening too).

Head on over to www.Craft2.org to find out more, and while you’re there, why don’t you check out my Meet the Creatives profile. And tell you what, as a birthday treat, if you come up to me on the day and tell me what my favourite flower is, I’ll give you a special 10% discount on your purchase from my stall.

I

Elisabeth — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 07:48:55 +0000

So, we have a new guilty pleasure in our household. We’ve found one show on new channel U that has us glued to the set each week. It’s called Junk Raiders: 2 freecyclers have been teamed up with 4 traditional construction and design professionals. There’s a demanding client, who wants a barren warehouse turned into a sleek modern luxury loft appartment, on a budget of $5000. Reality tv melt-downs guaranteed.

It is possible that this is the epitome of trashy tv!

However, freecycling is a laudable pursuit, as are upcycling and recycling. So this week’s I <3 Felt Showcase features items made from upcycled or recycled materials. Remember, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

$395.00

$42.00

$48.00

$22.00

$23.00

$29.00

Craft Country Shop

Elisabeth — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 10:07:21 +0000

There is a new shop that has just opened in Featherston, up in the Wairarapa. It stocks goods made by crafters aound the lower North Island, including myself. My friend Shell and I took a trip up there on Saturday for the opening.

Shell’s camera actually had batteries in it, which is a good thing, because she took these pictures, showing a selection of what is on offer. For a full list of who is stocked instore, check out Craft Country’s website.

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Elisabeth — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 09:35:47 +0000

Browsing the front page of Felt today something under Fresh on Felt caught my eye. It was a clock. A magic, enchanted clock. It’s by a new seller, snowfawn, and it is totally adorable.

So then of course I had to look for more clocks. Below, ladies and gentlemen, is my pick of what I found. Lasercut clocks, clocks made out of plates, clocks that look like they are straight out of Dr Suess, and even clocks made out of record players!!! (And there are also clocks made out of records, but I don’t think you could play them on the record player clocks…)

And to mark the passage of time, take a closer look at that record clock. Would I be giving away too much if I mentioned that I happened to once have the album that single came from on cassette? Apparently memorabilia from my 3rd form year is now vintage. How quickly time doth pass. *Le sigh*.

$95.00

$210.00

$120.00

$42.50

$65.00

$12.00

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Elisabeth — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 09:28:01 +0000

It’s Wednesday, and time for me to browse through the awesome goodness that is Felt.co.nz. This evening’s selection was inspired by the Back Benches Summer Tour on Channel 7 – tonight they were in Kaikoura, so I went looking for sea, whale and beach related items. Here’s what I found!

(I am very tempted to buy myself new togs…)

Lino-cut ‘humpback W…

grow-ink

$25.00

Literally Put Your …

dearcolleen

$18.50

Hand Carved Stamp – …

sandrawaine

$9.00

Paua Shell Peacock G…

artisanjouel

$40.00

Candyretro Originals…

candyretro

$6.50

Fifties Fresh

swanwear

$140.00