Felt Barn Owl Mask Tutorial

The next free project for my pattern newsletter subscribers? A tutorial for making a fun felt barn owl mask!

 

This mask is really easy to sew and would be great for summer festivals, costume parties, Halloween or just dressing up like an owl because you feel like it. (And why not, right? Owls are awesome!)

 

I've been working hard to catch up on my monthly newsletter projects, sharing a felt barn owl brooch tutorial (March) and a felt raincloud brooch tutorial (April) earlier this month. I should have May's barn owl mask sent out this week (if the weather co-operates for photo-taking) or early next week, and I've already started work on June's project... so hopefully I can get that sent out actually in June and be all caught up. Hurrah!

I'll be including the links to the raincloud and barn owl tutorials when I send out the barn owl mask in the next few days, so now is a great time to subscribe if you've not yet done so! 

Click here to read more about my newsletter and subscribe! As well as the free monthly(ish) pattern email, you can choose to sign up for weekly(ish) crafty updates from me or less frequent notifications about new patterns and special offers.

Click here to visit my tutorial archive for lots more free patterns and project ideas... including a step-by-step tutorial for sewing this embroidered owl mask!

Felt Barn Owl Brooch Tutorial

The next free project for my pattern newsletter subscribers is gonna be...

... a little felt barn owl!

I made this fella a couple of years ago as part of my (rapidly abandoned) 100 Day Project. I thought it was high time I turned him into a pattern and I'm really looking forward to sharing it with you guys.

I'm still running a bit behind with my "monthly" patterns but I'll hopefully catch up soon. The emails might land in your inbox at slightly unexpected times but you'll still get a free project for each month this year.

Click here for more information about my newsletters and to subscribe!

Click here to visit my tutorial archive for lots more free patterns and project ideas.

Behind the Scenes: Working on New Bird Patterns

I'm slooooowly working on turning my old felt bird designs into printable sewing patterns for my shop...

... transforming them from things I've made (with my own weird methods of doing things) into things other people can easily make (with sensible processes, clear instructions, updated pattern pieces, etc).

I added the first bird pattern to my shop this autumn: the robin!

Each of the felt bird patterns will come with a matching embroidery pattern, so I'm busy designing and stitching those, too. Here's the robin embroidery:

Progress is being slowed by all the DIY projects I've got in progress (which are both time-consuming and distracting!) and by the truly terrible quantity and quality of the daylight we've had lately (which makes photographing project steps very tricky!).

Hopefully I'll have some more birds in my shop soon (I will, of course, announce all the new patterns here on my blog and in my newsletter), but in the meantime here are some sneak peeks of the work going on behind the scenes.

I've been sketching embroidery patterns (choosing flora to accompany each bird and making all the patterns work well together as a set = a fun challenge!)...

... cutting out lots of felt pieces and sewing lots of birds as I work out the best way to describe each step...

... and getting stuck into lots of embroidery!

This is the greeenfinch, half-finished. I'm so pleased with how those fir tree branches have turned out.

Here's a slightly blurry snap of my bullfinch embroidery, from a day I was stitching while surrounded by workmen making a lot of mess and noise!

I think I might need to re-stitch this one as I'm not 100% happy with the flowers but We Shall See. Sometimes these magically things turn out how you picture them in your head, and other times they need a bit of tweaking and prototyping to get things just right.

I definitely need to buy some more embroidery hoops so I can get all of the embroideries framed up as I finish them! I've got lots more to stitch but I'm really pleased with these so far, both individually and how they look as a set.

Can't wait to get them finished so you guys can stitch them too! Watch this space...

Make a Felt Bird Mask

This month's free pattern for my newsletter subscribers is... a felt bird mask!

 

I used to sell these bird masks in my shop, they're really fun to make and even more fun to wear.

This year I'm sending out an email newsletter about once a week, with an update of what I've been making and doing lately, plus links to my latest blog posts and tutorials and lots of creative and colourful things to inspire you.

It's free to sign up, and each month this year you'll get access to a free crafty pattern that I won't be sharing here on my blog.

I had to take some time off in February due to illness and took a little break from sending my weekly newsletter, but I don't want people to have missed out on February's mallard duck pattern. So if you sign up this month (March 2018) you'll get access to February's duck AND March's bird mask... then if you stay subscribed, you'll get a new free pattern each month as the year progresses.

 

 

Sounds good? Click here to subscribe to my newsletter!

UPDATE: My newsletter has moved! Click here to sign up and see this month's free pattern.

Free Spring Craft Ideas: Butterflies, Flowers, Bunnies and More!

If you're in the mood for some spring-themed crafting, here are lots of free tutorials to keep you busy...

Make a butterfly mobile from felt + felt beads, or brightly coloured card:

Use card to make butterfly napkin rings and other pretty accessories for a spring tea party:

Make a statement with big butterfly brooches, embellished with embroidery, sequins or mini buttons...

Or use felt and pairs of matching buttons to make these simple butterfly brooches:

Decorate with doilies and butterfly shapes cut from sugar paper - make a big butterfly curtain like mine, or a smaller spring mobile. Doilies and butterflies are also a great combo for spring gift wrapping.

Sew a folk-inspired floral brooch from felt and fabric:

 

 Use felt, pretty washi tape and a mini button to make a sweet and simple flower card:

 Stitch a flower in bright spring colours using this flower embroidery pattern:

Make a leafy felt brooch to pin to your jacket or spring sweater:

Wish someone luck with a felt four-leaf clover:

Or send a spring "hello!" with this simple leaf card:

Sew a whole set of bunnies from pastel felt...

... and use them to decorate a happy spring wreath:

You could also make bunnies from card, with this bunny gift box tutorial I designed for Tesco Living.

If you're stuck indoors because of spring showers, why not make a cute raincloud mobile? Or a cloud brooch!

If you've got a friend who's feeling under the weather thanks to a spring cold, make them a card to say "get well soon"...

... and if you really want to cheer them up, make them a rainbow box filled with sunshine!

And last but by no means least, sew Mr & Mrs blackbird from felt - these would make cute brooches or little ornaments:

Follow the links to find each tutorial.You'll find lots more free step by step projects and crafty ideas in my tutorial archive. Happy crafting! :)

P.S. For even more projects, try my books!  Super-Cute Felt includes lots of spring designs to make from felt, including pansy hair clips, a bird on a branch necklace, a bunny brooch and a butterfly cushion:

And in Super-Cute Felt Animals you'll find Boris the beautiful butterfly, Richard the colourful rabbit, Sheelagh the shy sheep, and a whole family of chickens:

A Visit to Boulters Lock & Ray Mill Island

Earlier this week I took an extended lunch break and headed down to the river to see the Swan Uppers pass by. Even though I live walking distance from the Thames, do I ever go for a stroll along the riverside? No, I do not. Going to see the Swan Upping was a great opportunity to (re)discover just what I've been missing.

I reached the river at Maidenhead Bridge (built 1772-77, apparently!) and headed towards Boulters Lock where the Swan Uppers were scheduled to arrive at about 1pm.

Maidenhead was a fashionable resort in the late 19th and early 20th Century, with people boating along the Thames and taking tea at the riverside hotels. The Thames at Maidenhead pops up in a W.H. Auden poem about love and the area appears in one of my favourite films, Kind Hearts and Coronets, as the place where Ascoyne D'Ascoyne takes his mistress for their (fateful) weekend away.

Just next to the bridge is the now derelict Skindles Hotel which used to be notorious as a place visited by people having affairs!

It was a gorgeous sunny day, perfect for a walk along the river - though it was a bit breezy so I had to keep a firm hold on my hat to stop it blowing in the water.

I love that Three Men in a Boat -themed weather vane. Jerome K. Jerome was not a fan of Maidenhead, judging from the mention it gets in the book!

Boulters Lock was immortalised in this painting by Edward John Gregory. When I was a kid, there was a big re-enactment of the painting for the 100th anniversary (so much fun!). I was rather sad that the painting wasn't on display when I visited the Lady Lever Art Gallery this spring (the gallery was undergoing renovations at the time, boo).

Next to the lock is a very unusual telephone box - a green one! This type of kiosk was the first standard type introduced by the Post Office. The box was installed by the lock in 1926, then restored and moved to its current location in 1979. Apparently there are now fewer than 50 green kiosks left and very few as old as this one.

I arrived at Boulters Lock with plenty of time to spare, so I went for a wander around Ray Mill Island. This part of the Thames has lots of small islands on it, and Ray Mill Island (formerly the site of a flour mill - as you might have guessed from the name) is now a public park.

I have fuzzy memories of feeding the ducks here when I was little and there were lots of families out enjoying the park when I visited - including one kid who loudly announced that this was "the best day ever!"(so cute).

The park is a lovely place to explore and you get a great view of Boulters Weir from the island.

There's also an aviary!

 

And lots of cute guinea pigs! 

After a good look round the island, it was nearly time for the Swan Uppers to arrive so I headed back to the lock to buy an icecream and wait for them to arrive.

You'll have to wait until my next post to see photos of that... so be sure to pop back on Monday! :)

UPDATE: Click here to read about the Swan Uppers.