A mended hand...

My hand has returned! woohoo! 
Well of course, it never left, but rather the use of it. And jeezy peeps....that old adage about not knowing what you have til it's gone.....Yep, I felt that full force.
I've vowed to make more of an effort and not over do the sewing. Easier said than done! Sewing and embroidery may be my 'job' but it's also my go-to place for pleasure. 
However 5 weeks of not sewing did lend itself to finding out other pursuits that I enjoy... I went for a world record breaking amount of walks, re-found pinterest, and re-aquainted myself with a paintbrush again. Oh and my bathroom got new wallpaper! :)
This time also provided the space for a few ideas to marinate...

I've been navigating the waters for safety testing and getting my woodland toy designs CE approved... it'll take some time. However mini soft sculptures are not toys, and as soon as my hand would allow , the marinated ideas began to take form...... 

Part of my 2016 plans/hopes are to add some soft sculpture sewing kits to the mix..... this may just be one of them. I'm a big bit smitten. Is this something you would enjoy stitching together? 

Poor deer though, she did have to go through some major abdominal surgery before making a full recovery..... it was touch and go for a while. eek!

I made a unicorn too....

No matter what I do, I always seem to make unicorn hair look like it belongs to the 90's and those mullet days..... I'm going with it! Bon Jovi rocked it, so can this little dudette!

A few other lovely things have also happened while my hand was laid up.

I did an interview over on My Giant Strawberry. Anne asks the most thoughtful and insightful questions and it was a real pleasure to do....you may want to grab a cuppa before heading over.

My stitchbook also got a feature in the latest edition of Uppercase magazine. This is a really highly regarded , independent publication with the mission to 'spark the imagination and inspire creativity'. It's a total honour to have something of mine included! You can view the full issue over here...it's a low res version but may be enough of a nudge to buy the real thing! My little half page is on Page 63! Yipee :)

xx

A little touch of magic .....

I just wanted to pop in and tell you about something funny and wonderful that happened just the other day. It's a little self indulgent, but I'm hoping you'll excuse it for the story of sweet synchronicity that lies behind it! :)

Many months ago a lady sent me an email enquiring about my embroidery kits, mentioning she "had seen them in Mollie Makes....or another magazine". The lady couldn't remember.

Since that email the thought has briefly crossed my mind once or twice, wondering if my kits really had been featured in Mollie Makes, and thinking that if they had I would probably never know.
I must add at this point, the idea of having anything of mine featured in Mollie Makes would tickle me pink. I LOVE this magazine (and finally got a subscription for my crimbo!). I submitted some images of my kits to the deputy editor a while back,  hoping they may make an appearance but never heard anything to indicate they had.

So fast forward to 2 days ago, when I am sitting watching a short video from a Mini Series created by Rachel Taylor, about creating your signature style. In the second video, Rachel was talking about where to find inspiration, and started to show some items beginning with  a pantone book, paint chips, jar of buttons then a magazine....Mollie Makes Magazine. She then proceeded to stop "to find a relevant page"  and held up the open magazine....
Cue immediate double take, jaw hit floor, scramble to pause the video and then laugh like a hyena!
2 of my embroidery kits were there on the very page Rachel had stopped to show ...making their debut appearance in Mollie makes!!
Heeheeee!

 Rachel Taylor in Video 2 from Mini Series over on Make it in Design

Of all the pages, in all the magazines on all the videos......or something like that!

It's an older edition, (Edition 42 whereas the current one is Issue 48)......but I'm so jumping with joy.....and bought a digital copy of it so I could see it with my own eyes (as shown below!).

Mollie Makes Magazine Ed 42

Just to make sure you can see too!;) 

I'm delighting at the sweetness of life and it's lovely little surprises, at the twists and turns and VERY unexpected treasures. Thankyou Rachel, Thankyou Mollie Makes, and thankyou lovely lady for emailing!

xx