Life Update May

We were so jam packed with Makers last month that we had no space to fit in a cheeky life update. But we are back with it this month, so let's catch up with what went on behind the scenes with us whilst our makers take over was gong on. 

Life Update April

Catch-up time again!  I swear these are getting closer together. So a month of fun treats, rain and cross stitching was what March had to offer, lets get you up to speed...

H - I had a bit of time off this month and so it started as normal days off do, with rain!  But at least it gave me a great excuse to actually stay in the house and relax.  Well needed after the last few months.  I also got out and about though and enjoyed some spring-time like sun, so not all bad.  Lots of behind the scenes work got done on the blog too as it has been on my list for ages and so Hot Cross buns were my fuel of choice, well I did find some which are cows milk free, so it was meant to be.  I did however succumb to something very not dairy free when I spent the day with my Mum this month.  We pottered about and ran some errands and then had lunch at a garden centre and so this lemon meringue pie had to be mine!

Sammy- March is my Birthday month, so it kicked off in the right way, my lovely friend Verity made me (my favourite) red velvet birthday cake which was so yummy and the rest of my friends and family spoilt me rotten as usual, I am a very lucky girl. I managed to get my hands working on some projects, some for work and some for pleasure, as usual.  I can't show you them all right now but there are some exciting new products coming to Sew Crafty very soon!! We have had loads of deliveries of new stock at work too, so I was making up some samples to show off the new additions. Personal projects included the gem embroidery from last months Homemaker mag, which was fun to do and a bit of watercolour painting made the rainy days more bearable. I have also been tidying my craft room like a demon and coming across alot of stuff I forgot I had, so look out for some fun tutorials over the next few months!

We hope you had a good month, what have you been getting up to? We would love to know.
Sammy and H, xxx


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Life update March

Hello March! Before we get into birthday's, Mothers Day and Easter Eggs, lets catch up on our shenanigans through the month that was February.

H - This month has all been about work for me, but as I love my job, that's not all bad.  I went to a conference in London and had the Southbank view through the window in the room, it was so hard to concentrate.  Any excuse for a London view though, something that is so calming about it.
I visited the Watts Gallery for a teachers evening and got to have a look around their new renovated studios.  I loved this set-up of a room 'that had just been left' by the artist.  All the paints and brushes made it feel very like you had just missed the artist going out the door.
A new exhibition of Constable's work opened at the day job this month, so that always means new interactive ideas.  I made these cool cloud finders, so you can find out what all the clouds are called in Constable's work.  Makes the exhibition accessible for all ages and adds a bit of fun into the paintings.
We got to check out the Kikki K store in Covent Garden recently and it's a whole load of pretty.  If only I could make as many notes as there are notebooks!

Sammy - Like H it is good that I love my job because this month was all about work for me. I am settling into working from home really well, but I managed to get out of 'the office' this month to visit Stitches in Birmingham. My selection of jewellery for the weekend was greatly admired by a lot of my industry friends, especially my Terrarium necklace from Finest Imaginary.
I have been trying to up my water intake and limit my sugar, more on that in a minute, I have also been loving Innocent Coconut water. It is the nicest tasting brand I have tried and apparently it is really good for hydration.
I also signed up for a new subscription box this month. It is more of a cards and gift wrap box than any of my other subscriptions and I am enjoying it so far. Check out the Noisemakers club if you are up for a monthly dose of British gift wrap goodness.
Last but not least something which has fascinated and scared the hell out of me at the same time, Sarah Wilson's I quit Sugar, and I quit Sugar for Life books have been all I can think about. I am planning on taking the plunge in the next week or so, wish me luck.


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Who's Your Solemate? with Wynsors Shoes

It is not often in life that you get moments that so heavily effect your future in such an amazing way, you can't imagine your life if it didn't happen. I feel like that about the moment H and I met. If you have been reading our blog for a while you will know that we met over 15 years ago at college, we sat next to each other on our first day and have never looked back. We have been through make ups,  break ups, weddings, divorces, living round the corner from each other and living hundreds of miles apart, but one thing that has never changed is the passions that we share and our soul-mate status.

Life Update February

One minute and we were all complaining January would never end then all of a sudden here we are almost one week into February! One thing is for sure we managed to cram a whole lot into last month, so lets catch up.

Sammy:  I have been busier than a busy person in Busyville so far this year, and it doesn't look like it will be slowing down any time soon, but that is just how I like it. Working from home and the new Sew Crafty HQ is the best thing, I feel very productive and motivated. I love the Pantone colours of the year this time around and I have been using them to promote some of our gorgeous products at work. We have also been getting in some new products like these patterns from Colette. I was really excited as soon as I heard that they were selling some of their patterns in plus sizes, I just had to get them in.

I had been lusting after a pair of Charlotte Olympia cat shoes for years and although I love them, I just cant justify the price tag so I got around to making a pair. Now I can't stop wearing them. The other thing I forced myself to do last month was tidy my craft room. I had to get it presentable enough to take some photos that I had been putting off for months, but it is all clean and tidy now and I came across loads of stuff I had forgotten all about so it really was worth it.

H: This month has been a bit quiet for me, as work has been so busy, but I have bought a few treats to keep my flat in new items! Of course.  These Studio Matryoshka animals have been on my list for a while and when I didn't get them for Christmas, the perfect sale opportunity meant they got snapped up!  They look so good with my gallery wall too!  Another cheeky purchase was this jumper from rad, again another sale bargain.  It's become my blogging jumper! Just give me more tea.

I have been getting on with my pottery course this month and this is some of what I have made.  Can't wait to get glazing in our last week next week.  Le pain quotidian is fast becoming one of my favourite places to go as it has a great selection of items that are dairy free! I do love going to more independent restaurants, but sometimes when you just want to eat somewhere you don't have to think about, this is a good stop. You can't beat a bit of brunch for dinner either.

Also this month we had one of our projects put into Mollie Makes in Slovakia!  This little project was a subscription bonus project for the UK Mollie Makes last year, but great to see it in print in another language.  We were also in the UK Mollie Makes again this month, with these cute mug cosies. Then last but not least the pattern that Sammy with her Sew Crafty hat designed for Simply Sewing Magazine was released with the latest copy of the mag ( issue 13) Excited does not even cover it!

So that was our January, let us know in the comments what you got up to this month.
Sammy and H xxx


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Life Update January

Remember those new things we were talking about, this is one of those.  We wanted to think up a cool fun way to let you know what we had been up to, however we are not really that cool so here is just a little life update for you. 

We both loved the Macrame workshop we did at the Bust Craftacular in back in November, then it was time to buy a plant and find a place for it in my flat.  Having bought my own place last year, I am still trying to figure out where I want things to go.  This beauty is fitting in very well in my 70's inspired living area though, now just to get it hung up! 

I managed to get on our Gingerbread house workshop at my work - The Lightbox, which was very cool.  I love learning new skills and having a go at something a little different to paper and fabric.  I took this beauty to a family meal and it was demolished... very quickly.

This is the view from my studio at work and with all the rain we have been having, just about sums up the festive period.  No snow for us.  I love looking out of my studio window at work, I find it strangely therapeutic to see all the traffic going past and the world go by.

All the pretty colours, this was a Christmas present to myself and I am sure they will come in very handy with projects for 2016. I just love looking at them! Please tell me I am not alone!

H

My December started with a lot of organising as we finished up emptying the shop unit that my business Sew Crafty had been in for ten years. It was a bitter sweet ending as we moved all our stock to our new storage space and all our office equipment to my new office at my parents. I am so excited to get stuck into our new way of working.

The other awesome thing that happened was that the collaboration I did with Simply Sewing Magazine was published. I created twenty sewing projects that used fat quarters, it was a massive project for me but it was so amazing seeing so much of my work in print.

The material of choice for the blog last month was definitely copper! H made an awesome candle stick and iPad stand with B&Q and I made this modern Christmas wreath with Turtle Mat. Not gonna lie, it felt a little weird spray painting that robin, even though it was a fake one.

I am normally 'that' crazy Christmas lady, but I just found it hard to get my festive mojo going this year. That didn't stop me from powering through and decorating the house as I usually do though. I had lots of time off over the holidays for the first time in years. I always took it for granted how hard we used to work up to and over Christmas in the past. Taking time to spend with family and friends this year was such a joy.

Sammy xxx

So that's it, all caught up! What did you get up to over the holidays?


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Live it: Our Bath Adventure

You should all know by now how much H and I love an adventure and if you caught our post last year about the Bath Christmas market you will be aware of how much we wanted to take a second look at this beautiful city. A few weeks ago we got the chance to spend a weekend there and despite the April showers, we spent the whole time exploring all of Bath's best bits. Here are some of our highlights. 

Live it: Christmas 2014

Wow, So Christmas is over and it's 2014 already! As you read on Wednesday we have some great goals for this year, but just before we brush 2013 under the carpet we thought we would share some of our festive photos with you.

H and I both had a lovely chilled couple of weeks with our family and friends, we were very lucky and got some great gifts. We ate lots of food and I watched lots of TV. How cool is American Horror Story!? Steve and I had a marathon and are just starting season 3. H and I's Craft day turned into a Glee marathon and blog chat day, but friend time is just as cool as crafting and there are many more craft days booked in for 2014.

I am so excited to get stuck into this year, I have so many plans for Sew Crafty and we have some plans for our blog too. We are attending some blog conferences and talks to hopefully meet some more lovely bloggers and grow our little community. 2013 was such an amazing year, what will 2014 hold... I cant wait to find out!

Sammy xxx

Live it: H and Sammy 40 Random Facts

H's 20 random facts

1.  My favourite movie of all time is Forrest Gump.
2.  My feet are ALWAYS cold - even in the heat of summer.
3.  I don't like Bacon or Wine.  Apparently this makes me very weird.
4.  I can't walk in heels - seriously I am like Bambi!  1 inch heels is all I can cope with.
5.  I have never downloaded a film in my life - I like a DVD to watch.
6.  I very rarely take my make-up off at night.  I don't wear that much so that helps.
7.  My favourite building in London is Battersea Power Station.
8.  I have never seen The Sound of Music all the way through.
9.  My Ideal car is a Morris Minor.
10.  I could not live without my Jeans and trainers.  I literally would not know what to wear!
11.  I collect paper bags from shops and places I have visited.  My favourite bag is from the Sweater shop - remember them!
12.  In 11 years I have been to 27 weddings!  Not all as a bridesmaid I should add.
13.  My signature scent is Daisy by Marc Jacobs.
14.  I hate it when people put nuts in Carrot Cake or Brownies, as I don't eat nuts but love the cakes.
15.  I love music and don't really have a particular sound I like, I like all sorts of music.
16.  I only stopped biting my nails 4 years ago.
17.  I once interviewed Ross Noble and had my first starstruck moment.
18.  I hate the sound of the Violin or Bag pipes.
19.  I grew up in a small Village but everyone thinks I am a town person.
20. One day I want to live by the sea.

Sammy's 20 Random Facts

1. I feekin' Love Popcorn.
2. I'm really bad at being organised.
3. I'm a total TV addict.
4. I don't like dark chocolate.
5. my favourite thing to wear is Pyjamas.
6. I once owned a pair of dalmatian print trousers (and wore them in public)
7. I don't drink alcohol any more (unless its a cheeky Mojito on holiday)
8. My favourite fashion designer is Vivianne Westwood.
9. The most expensive pair of shoes I ever bought was a pair of £80 buffalo boots (spice girls style in the 90's) 
10. I can't spell to save my life, thank goodness for spell check! 
11. My most precious possessions are my wedding and engagement rings.
12. I own more orange and coral nail polish than any other colour.
13. My Lucky number is 3.
14. I have 3 tattoos all on my back.
15. I love anything with stars.
16. I have a ridiculous button collection.
17. My favourite camera lens is my 50mm, it is very rarely apart from my camera.
18. If I could win a medal for anything it would be for shopping.
19. I hate baked beans.
20. I passed my driving test 8 years ago, but I have never owned my own car.

So there you are 40 VERY random facts about Me and H. Let us know a random fact about you in the comments below.

Sammy and H xxx

Link for the Week: Modcloth

Live it. Love it. Make it. by samantha-claridge featuring a mint green dress

This week, we were asked by one of our favourite brands ModCloth to put together an outfit for their weekly Polyvore outfit challenge.

ModCloth is an amazing US fashion company that sells Indie, Vintage and Retro inspired clothing and accessories. Sammy is happy as they also do Plus size and they now ship to the UK, yey.  They have even now branched into selling things for your home - or apartment if you are in the US.  So now you get to look amazing and have your house look amazing too.

You can check out all their goodies at: http://www.modcloth.com/

Then there is Polyvore - which is now a new obsession for Sammy I think!  It is a website where you can put looks together from all kinds of different clothing companies, so that you can see what it all looks like together, get outfit inspiration and shop the looks too.  I guess it's a bit like Pinterest but just with clothes and you can add bits together to see a complete look.  Once you have made a look though you can share it on the site and on your blog/Facebook so that others can see it and see what you have come up with.

I advise that you have a spare hour or so, but do go have a look at: http://www.polyvore.com

You can follow Sammy there too and check out her looks http://samantha-claridge.polyvore.com/

Back to the Polyvore outfit challenge.  We were given the ModCloth Mint Cute Dress to build an outfit around using up to seven other ModCloth pieces.  So of course we decided to make it very appropriate for the transitional Autumn time of year here in the UK.  We do both have similar clothes tastes, but it was fun trying to find a balance that both of us liked.

We went with a Chunky knit cardigan and brogues to make the look a bit more relaxed.  The chunky belt and necklace tie the dress together with the cardigan and we would throw on a pair of  grey tights too (Modcloth have a fab selection) as it is usually a little chilly.  The bag is a really nice version of a satchel bag and of course everyone in the UK needs an umbrella at some point and so why not go for a Rainbow! We are always trying to get the most from our summer dresses by working them up for Autumn/Winter.

What do you think to the look?  How would you style the dress?  Would you keep it casual like ours, rock it up or make it very wedding appropriate?

Love it

H

These are a few of our favourite things...

Song...

H: 'Don't Stop' by Fleetwood Mac

Sammy: 'Nothing Else Matters' By Metallica

Colour...

H: errrrm, Blue!

Sammy: Purple

Band or Artist...

H: Stereophonics

Sammy: Christina Aguilera

Food...

H: Thai or Indian

Sammy: Thai or American

Magazine...

H: Company

Sammy:  Mollie Makes

Book...

H: 'Veronika decides to die' by Paulo Coelho

Sammy: 'Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins

Movie...

H: Forrest Gump

Sammy: Inception

drink...

H: Vodka and Lemonade

Sammy: Southern Comfort and Coke

Decade...

H: 1950's, 1960's and 1970's

Sammy: 1920's and the 1950's

Style Icon...

H: Zooey Deschanel

Sammy: Marilyn Monroe

Happy Place...

H: a museum or art gallery

Sammy: My Craft room

 Item of clothing...

H: my Jeans

Sammy: My Pyjama's

Day of the week...

H: Thursday

Sammy: Sunday

time of day...

H: 11am

Sammy: about 8pm

Fabric...

H: Velvet

Sammy: Cotton Jersey

Craft...

H: little creature making

Sammy: Papercrafts

Shop...

H: Joy

Sammy: New look (after Sew Crafty of course)

We are away on holiday at the moment, we will read and reply to all of you comments when we get back

Love it: Our Childhood Storybooks

This week is National Storytelling week and as the website tells us: Storytelling can be found enriching lives everywhere: from nurseries to schools, from bereavement aids in hospitals to strengthening communication in the business sphere, from reminiscence centres to support groups for those with special needs, and in theatrical performances.  The sharing between teller and listener empowers, feeding the imagination from one generation to the next.

Live it: Our Craft Spaces

By now you must know that we have very different styles to our crafting and lives and so we thought to kick start a new feature on the blog we would show you our craft spaces.

H has a little area in her room (the perils of renting) which is small and very organised - I am very organised in general and so like a bit of order and things in piles, as you can see from the piles of fabric below.

It's always a bit of contention in my head though as a creative person you are expected to be chaotic and un-organised and yet I am not!  Does this mean I am not as creative as I think or god forbid not as organised as I think!  It's something I definitely pride myself on but that occasionally I like to kick back and not be that person that people expect!

As you can see though, I have my sewing machine and some boxes on my desk which are filled with glues, pens and those odd bits that never go anywhere else.  Under the desk you get bags and boxes full of fabric, felt and printing equipment; along with patterns, clothes to alter and a collection of tote bags I believe!

Also, above the desk I have a noticeboard and hanging area for all those invites and photos I get sent that I want on display and of course my radio which keeps me going when I am getting my craft on.  As the space takes up part of my room I thought that I should just show this part.  I do also have beads, buttons and ribbons in my wardrobe - well you gotta fit it in somewhere!

So, yes my craft space is small, but its packed to the rafters with fabric, printing blocks, paints, beads, ribbons and buttons.  I do have an added bonus though of having lots of craft goodies at work too, so anything I don't have can be usually found there or at Sammy's place of course!

Sam is very lucky to have a whole room to work in - although you might not think that!

So here goes, very few people have been in my Craft room, and I have tidied up for you, yes this is it when it's tidy. I wish I could show one of those craft spaces you see on other blogs and in magazines, that are all white and clean.... but seriously how do people work in those spaces, I have to have everything where I can see it otherwise I forget what I've got, believe me it may look like chaos but I know where everything is... mostly...

If you stand at my door this is the view you get, This is my desk and my dressing table. When we moved in to our house Steve worked nights at his old job so I put my dressing table in here so that I could get ready for work whilst he was sleeping. It seemed to make sense it being here though as all my jewellery is in here to inspire me when I'm making my own. 

My necklace displays {on the wall to the right} are made from cork boards with push pins in to hold the necklaces, it makes it really easy to find the right one to go with an outfit when I'm in a hurry.

These are two of my pin boards. I bought two of the biggest ones I could find, and spray painted them white, not that you can tell now that they are covered in magazine clippings, drawings, photos and cute trinkets. Under them is a shelving unit which holds some boxes of fabric, baskets of wool, vintage threads but mostly my dress and craft patterns.

If you turn to the right you see my fabric cupboard, my wrapping paper collection and my small shelves. I don't think I have ever been able to close those cupboard doors, lol . I have sketch books and craft resource books, felt, sewing supplies, and photo props all stored here.

If we carry on round you will get to my craft shelves arranged mostly by colour. the top shelf is home to quite a few My Little Ponies, I used to custom make them to sell, I have kept a few of my very favourite ones that I made up here {I have a whole glass case in the kitchen of ones I have collected from other designers, more about that another time} then moving down to boxes of supplies like Fimo and glitter, as well as paper and card, jars of buttons, boxes of ribbon and baskets of lace.

My most used supplies are on and around my desk, Pens, and pencils, paint brushes, glues and stamps, all within easy reach.My new thing is my purple cutting mat, a gift from one of my reps.

Kudos to those who can tell which film I was watching whist taking these photos <3

 We hope you enjoyed seeing our spaces, we cant wait to see some of yours!

H & Sammy

Live it: Happy 30th Birthday Sammy

It's Sammy's birthday today and it's a biggy, the big 3-0!

Last night we had a slumber party at her house where we had lots of party treats and cake, which I am sure there will be a post about soon. I just don't do it justice enough with that sentence!

We met 14 years ago and pretty much been best friends ever since!

We first met at college where we studied 3D Design together. I had the fortune to sit next to 3 girls called Sam and I'm proud to say I have 2 of them still in my life!

We have been through some good, very good and some dark times together and without getting too mushy, if it wasn't for her I would't be who I am today!

So, I want you all to help me wish her a very happy 30th! And look out for the pictures! My sugar coma is starting to wear off now and so I think I need some more cake!

Live it!
H