Jazz up Your Jars!

I'm sure many of you will have seen great ways to decorate jars, there are lots of patterns available online and in magazines. I crocheted these last year for Halloween but they can be done with any colour for any occasion. The tea lights inside them really bring out the colours but they can be used as desk tidies to hold pencils or anything else.

A great way to recycle jars and use up small amounts of yarn.

Peg Bag

How often do you find just the right fabric for the job?
It doesn't happen to me normally but I was very fortunate to discover this cute printed cotton, perfect for my new peg bag!

I made it reversible by cutting everything twice, one in each fabric. The laundry can now be a little more fun, I hope!

A Carry Bag for my Tablet

I bought some lovely seaside fabric and decided to make a bag for my tablet. A bit 'belt and braces' as it has a case already but it's much easier to pick up and carry when my arms are full.......

It was a quick make and I loved using the happy summery fabric which makes me think of seaside holidays even when it's raining and not very warm!

Handy Patchwork Bag

With so many projects on-the-go at once I always ended up with carrier bags everywhere and I forget what is in which and it's not a good way to work.
Work bags are a quick and fun way to get into patchwork or try new designs using up the ever expanding stash.
I made this bag which is perfect for any project but would be great for knitting as it's wide enough to take long needles. You can make the bag any size or shape you like.

I had several small pieces of cotton fabric in greens and blues so I just mixed them up randomly with white. When the size was big enough I quilted it with some thin batting and white cotton backing, then simply folded it in half and sewed up the sides, adding some piping to neaten the edge, some handles and a button.
 I use a sewing machine but if you don't have one or you enjoy hand stitching you can still make this.
The idea for the design came from this pretty quilt below which I found on Craftsy and gives the details of how to piece together small rectangles into this stunning heart design without any difficult piecing.

Sort your stash and if you've never tried before, have a go! If you have no stash, small packs of cotton fabrics can be bought on line or at local fabric or hobby shops, if you are lucky to have one nearby. You can cut up old cotton shirts and dresses too!