1
A Bustle & Sew Publication Copyright Š Bustle & Sew Limited 2016 The right of Helen Dickson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the prior written permission of the author, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. Every effort has been made to ensure that all the information in this book is accurate. However, due to differing conditions, tools and individual skills, the publisher cannot be responsible for any injuries, losses and other damages that may result from the use of the information in this book.
First published 2016 by: Bustle & Sew The Cottage Oakhill Radstock BA3 5HT UK www.bustleandsew.com
2
Welcome to the August Issue August is the month when many of us set off on our annual holidays - so this month you’ll discover some lovely easily portable hand embroidery projects - our Festival Mandala and Easy Fox - as well as a pretty device sleeve decorated with late summer wildflowers perfect to keep your tablet safe on your travels. We’re also delighted to feature “Made on Holiday” where Mari and Dave offer amazing holidays for stitchers and crafters - and a 10% discount for magazine readers too! Or if you’re staying at home this month, then why not try some of Debbie’s delicious ideas for a picnic in the garden? I can particularly recommend her Brownies! I do hope you’ll enjoy this issue. The September Magazine will be published on Thursday 25 August so please do look out for it then. Meanwhile I hope you have a very happy month with lots of time for stitching! Best wishes
Helen xx
3
Tips for Stitchers When you’re working a series of stitches close to one another, it’s best to begin each stitch by bringing your needle up in an empty space - that is to say one where there isn’t an existing stitch. If you do this then you’re much less likely to split any existing stitches. It’s easier to push your needle back down through your fabric (from front to back) when there are existing stitches (eg if you’re stitching radiating straight stitches for a flower) without any problems.
4
Between the Covers … Tips for Stitchers
Page 4
August Almanac
Page 6
Festival Mandala
Page 8
All Buttoned Up
Page 11
Allison Dey Malacaria
Meet the Maker: Tory McNider
Page 13
Lovely Idea: Mason Jar Vases
Page 16
Stripey Fish Cushion
Page 17
In the Kitchen with Debbie: Summer Picnic
Page 20
Moving from softies to stitching - and generously sharing her skills through her free online embroidery school
Blast from the Past: Coastguard’s Cottages
Page 25
Time and Tide
Page 26
William: A Very Good Dog
Page 27
The Magic of Muslin
Page 30
Lovely Idea: Paper Pin Wheels
Page 31
Dream it, Do it: Made on Holiday
Page 32
Nature Table: The Common Teasel
Page 36
Wildflower Device Sleeve
Page 37
Late Summer Colour in the Garden
Page 41
Lovely Idea: Sparkling Ice Bowls
Page 43
Poetry Corner: Summer Sun
Page 44
Some Bunny Loves You
Page 45
Embroidery School: Travelling with your Work
Page 48
It’s Aestival Season
Page 51
Salt Dough Crafting with Kids
Page 52
Lovely Idea: Celebration Mice
Page 54
Easy Fox Embroidery
Page 55
A Day on the Beach
Page 57
Home Comforts
Page 59
August Calendar
Page 60
In the Kitchen: Conversion Tables
Page 66
Templates
Page 67
5
Contributors
Tory McNider Multi-talented crafter with a unique business idea - the Barmy Fox!
Debbie Thomson Keeps us very well organised, as well as researching some lovely features and creating our new “In the Kitchen” series
August There’s a certain wistfulness about August - at least I think so - as it brings the last weeks of summer before the year turns once more and autumn arrives. But there’s still plenty of time to enjoy ourselves, especially if we’re off on holiday - paddling in rock pools, late evening al fresco meals in the long summer twilights and the chance to enjoy long country walks with canine companions without having to wrap up against wind and rain (haha!). The city streets are quieter now in the early mornings and evenings as thousands of busy commuters take their annual break, to be replaced during the daytime by tourists eager to see the sights and sample a taste of big city life.
wildflowers such as scarlet pimpernel and willowherb to colonise the stubble and provide at least a little new protection. These small field dwellers need it - birds of prey have amazingly good eyesight, and it’s been estimated that, if we had the same powerful vision as, say a kestrel, we’d be able to read a newspaper 25 yards away! The first of the month brings one of the great old pagan festivals of Britain, the others being on the firsts of November, February and May. The festival of the Gule of August, as it was called, probably celebrated the beginning of the harvest. After the introduction of Christianity, the day continued to be observed as a festival, and, as a loaf was the usual offering at church, the day came to be called Hlaf-mass, subsequently shortened to Lammas. This was also the time when hay meadows were reopened for common grazing, marked by country fairs, especially sheep fairs and other festivities. One of the customs associated with these fairs was that of “handfasting” - whereby a couple could embark on a trial marriage for a year, at the end of which they could choose whether to remain together or apart for the rest of their lives.
In the estuaries around the British coast, wading birds are beginning to arrive to for a stopover on their annual migration to spend the winter months in the warmth of Africa, the earliest harbingers of the great autumn migrations that will shortly stir into life. Inland the harvest is well underway, fields of golden wheat and barley are replaced with fields of stubble, above which kestrels hover, looking for small prey such as field voles and mice that have lost their safe concealment amongst the tall stalks of grain. But it doesn’t take long for
6
All Buttoned Up! 7
“Creative …. Adventurous …. Wanderlust!”
Meet the Maker
Tory McNider talks to us about her love of all kinds of crafting and the story behind her unique online enterprise The Barmy Fox Tory, the owner and creator of The Barmy Fox, has had lots of exciting adventures in her life (and is sure there’s loads more to come!) She’s lived and worked in Shanghai, China, got sidetracked in Toledo, Ohio for a year, and finally moved to England with her super-supportive husband David. We chatted to Tory to find out a little more about her business and wonderful monthly boxes!
Hi Tory! Could you tell us a little bit about yourself and the Barmy Fox? I would love to! I'm Tory and I'm from Ohio. I got my degree in Art Education and them moved to China for five years. I met my husband whist there teaching Art and we decided to move back to his home country in England. The Barmy Fox is a handmade small business where I make anything from bags and bunting to embroidery hoops and hand stitched necklaces. Because I enjoy making so many different types of things, each month I combine items based on a theme
8
and it becomes my handmade monthly subscription box.
I love your business name - it's wonderful! How did you think of it? Funny enough, I was in the bathtub (where I do my best thinking) and thought that I needed something that was a little bit crazy but also fun and playful. I knew I would be moving to England so asked my husband what kind of British slang word meant a good kind of crazy fun, and he said barmy. Foxes are all over England, and they're cheeky little things (like me)! When you put it together The Barmy Fox describes someone who is trying out lots of new things, crazy enough to go with it but curious to see what happens. It really sums me up as a person so I thought, this is it!
What made you start your business? Visa troubles made me start my business. I was stuck in the states after some visa troubles and didn't really have a job or anything to do. I got a job three days a week as a nanny but still wanted to DO
In the Kitchen with Debbie: A Summer’s Day Picnic
9
Chocolate Cinnamon Brownies Apart from my husband, we are a family of chocoholics! I developed this particular recipe because my children also love cinnamon flavoured foods. These are great for a picnic as everyone gets their chocolate hit, without the chocolate melting in the sun.
Ingredients ● 185 g butter ● 185 g 75% or more dark chocolate, broken into pieces ● 85 g Plain flour ● 40 g Cocoa powder ● 50 g White chocolate, chopped into small chunks ● 50 g Milk chocolate, chopped into small chunks ● 3 Large eggs ● 275 g Caster sugar
Method ● Preheat your oven to 160 degrees centigrade, gas mark 4. ● Line a 20 cm square shallow tin with baking parchment. ● Put the butter and dark chocolate into a bowl and either melt over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave, leave to cool a little. ● Sieve the flour, cocoa powder and cinnamon into a bowl. ● Whisk the eggs and sugar together until really thick and creamy, you'll know when it's ready when a trail stays on the surface for a few seconds. ● Gently fold in the chocolate mixture, followed by the flour and lastly the chopped chocolate. ● Tip into the tin and bake for 35-45 minutes, when ready the top will be slightly cracked and the mixture set when you shake the tin.
● Leave in the tin for 15 minutes then turn onto a wire rack and cool. Serve cut into squares.
10
“Relax, be creative and make friends� We spoke to Mari and David about beginning a new enterprise, their life in Devon and the inspiration behind Made on Holiday “My strong passion for craft and the handmade world, together with my background, led me to create a space where people can meet and create something new by hand and using their time on holiday to relax, be creative and make friends." This is a quote from Mari, one half of the Made on Holiday team. Lovely Mari was born and brought up in the beautiful Italian city of Milan, where, amongst the galleries and museums, her passion for arts and crafts was first ignited. After college, where she qualified in social anthropology and communications, Mari spent several years working in the journalism and publishing world. In 1997 she relocated to London and here she spent a good deal of her time at markets and events relating to all kinds of
11
arts and crafts. She also became a yoga student and went on many yoga retreat style holidays, which proved to be the foundation idea for Made on Holiday as Mari found that she loved the idea of a break away, meeting new people, experiencing new places with the added bonus of creating things too While Mari was experiencing all these things, the other half of The Made on Holiday team was also developing skills that would prove invaluable when they set up their new enterprise. David has had various jobs, including counselling, working as a coach and having gained his TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language), has also taught abroad in various countries, including The Netherlands and Italy. All of this was great preparation for his current role developing and overseeing the growth of
over that. I often do this and find it’s a really good way of getting the colours just right. Otherwise please just refer to the two images for guidance and use the full size templates provided
Stitching Notes: I have included the original watercolour drawing for this design on the following page, as well as the embroidered version above as I thought you might find this useful when stitching your design. If you are using Sulky Sticky Fabri Solvy you might like to experiment by printing the watercolour version onto your fabri solvy (it’s the right size) and then stitching
(1) The Knapweed is a little like a small thistle. The leaves and stem are worked in stem stitch in 906 and 987. The base of the flower is worked in tiny single twist French knots using the same two colours,
12
concentrating the darker green on the right hand side. The petals are stem stitch worked in 718 and 814. (2) The Vetch stems and leaves are worked in stem stitch in 4045. The curly tendrils are detached chain stitch linked by straight stitches. The flowers are 552 ad 791 satin stitch.
13
Late Summer Colour in the Garden
14
We featured Allison Malacaria of Sweaterdoll in our June issue and now I’m delighted to say that she’s returned to our pages once again - this time with lots of helpful (and timely) hints and tips on travelling with your embroidery - perfect for those heading off on their hols - or even just down to the end of the garden! If you’d like to discover Allison’s Free Online Embroidery School for yourself , then please do visit her website: SweaterDoll: Embroidery School
15
A Day at the Beach…
16
Home Comforts Light up the dusk at evening events with pretty little hanging lights. Use recycled glass jars and make handles for the from pliable galvanised wire. First cut a length of wire a little longer than the circumference of your jar. Then cut a length for the handle and twist each end into a nice firm loop. Thread the first length through these loops and then wrap it around your jar just below the rim. Twist the ends together until the wire is nice and tight, sitting snugly against the glass, then bend back the twisted ends neatly against the jar. Magical!
17
18
19