Search Results

"The British Textile Biennial throws a spotlight on the nation’s creativity, innovation and expression in textiles against the backdrop of the impressive infrastructure of the cotton industry in Pennine Lancashire." We visited one of these brilliant exhibitions, it was the Cloth Cultures: Stories of Movement, Migration and Making and it was held in a former mill owner's house, Haworth Art Gallery in Accrington. This exhibition was curated by fashion historian Amber Butchart. This breathtaking portrait banner outside the gallery was created by Preston born artist, Azraa Motala. As a descendent of two generations of mill workers in Lancashire, Azraa invited other British South Asian women living in the North West to be painted wearing clothes of their choosing. The group of powerful portraits by Azraa are at The Harris in Preston. Wool The first material highlighted was wool as it played a crucial role in medieval English economy and was so important it became entangled in the politics of the day. Wool can teach us about empire and colonialism, from paisley India to Scottish tartans. Fine woven Kashmir wool shawls from India indicated a higher status symbol in 18th century Europe. Towns like Norwich, Edinburgh and Paisley became known for their mechanised shawl making. Through trade, migration and the Atlantic slave trade, tartan has travelled across the world becoming identified in different areas and ethnicities from Scotland to Paris, Kenya, South Africa and the Caribbean. This jacket, designed by French designer Christian Lacroix is a modernised tartan from the early 90s, with highly embellished pockets and buttons. Linen Linen cloth was produced throughout Lancashire and Manchester by weaving flax from the medieval era, and by the late 16th century it was a major centre of linen production. It was often worn close to the body for hygiene and practicality reasons - it was easy to clean unlike harder materials like wool or silk. The 'smock' began as rural workwear for men, but then developed into fashionable garments for women. Cotton From the 18th century, mills were built across the country as the process of spinning and weaving cotton was mechanised, first water powered, then steam fuelled by local coalfields. The impact of the cotton industry in Lancashire had global consequences, the cotton plantations of the American South, harvested by enslaved labours taken from Africa provided the raw materials that fuelled the industrial revolution in Britain. Adire cloths are dyed with indigo using resist techniques and are created throughout the Yoruba regions of Nigeria. Chintz fabric and William Morris. Silk Silk cloth, fashioned from silkworm cocoons has been a luxury product for millennia, desired by many cultures around the globe for its soft luscious nature. Silk yarn was produced around Lancashire from the mid 17th century lasting until the 19th. This Qing era robe with square sleeves cut in one with the body is a great example of the silhouette that became popular in European fashion at the end of the 19th century and into the 20th century. Robes from China and Japan has previously influenced men's informal clothing such as the banyan, a garment that many gentlemen close to wear in portraits. Overall the exhibition was really interesting and we would definitely recommend visiting, here is the website link for more information - https://britishtextilebiennial.co.uk/programme/amber-butchart-cloth-cultures-stories-of-movement-migration-and-making/

Project by Carrie Can Make It If you want to make a beautiful handmade decoration for your home this year then follow this tutorial. Also check out my YouTube channel to see me make one. What you will need · Fabric · Scissors · Triangle template -3 sizes if you want small medium and large · Fabric marker · Toy stuffing · Needle and thread · Sewing machine · Pins · Iron and mat · Glue gun and glue sticks · Twine/yarn · Doweling wood · Drill · Log slices Step 1 Make a triangle template from card/paper -play around with the size and shape. Make a small, medium and large one if you want a trio set. Step 2 Press your fabric Step 3 Fold fabric right sides together and trace round your template with a fabric marker and cut them out. You should have 2 triangle pieces Step 4 Pin the triangle together with a small seam allowance then sew the triangle together leaving the base of the tree open. Step 5 Trim the seams and snip of the point at the top of the tree. Step 6 Turn the tree right sides out and press- whilst pressing turn the raw edges of the base of the tree under by 1 cm. This is to not have any raw edges. Step 7 Fill with toy stuffing Step 8 Find the centre of the base of the tree make a mark where the doweling stick will go and sew up to the centre leaving a gap either side to insert the cinnamon stick Step 9 Cut a piece of doweling to the height of the tree that you want. Use a hot glue gun and squeeze some glue onto one end of the Dowling stick then insert the glue stick up into the gap at the base of the tree Step 10 Drill a hole into the log slice wide enough to insert the doweling wood. Step 11 Now insert the tree part into the log slice Congratulations you have now made a lovely fabric Christmas tree. Make sure you follow my Instagram page @carrie_can_make_it Check out my YouTube channel and give it a subscribe Don’t forget to tag me in your makes so I can see how lovely they are Happy Sewing Love Carrie x

Hi Beth, we are so excited about your new fabric collection, Enchanted Wings. Your Tropical Leopard designs were so popular! How did you get in to the world of craft? Hi Talia! I first discovered Printed Textile Design whilst I was studying, I was actually enrolled onto Graphic Design but I didn’t feel like it was very ‘me’ so I asked to change my course after discovering what Surface Pattern Design is! I was lucky enough to be able to switch courses to Printed Textiles and I am so pleased because I think it opened up a world I didn’t even know existed. It has led me onto amazing opportunities and I absolutely love being a designer, it is so exciting seeing my paintings evolve into designs and onto actual fabric! What inspired your second collection Enchanted Wings? After the wonderful success of the Tropical Leopard collection, I really wanted to continue with a theme of imagined creatures, the purple and pink Leopards were a colourful twist on real creatures – bringing a real and imagined world together, allowing me to use bold, bright colours to create eye-catching animals. I chose Beetles and Butterflies for the Enchanted Wings collection as I felt these could give me scope to create detailed, pretty designs and tell a story of a magical, enchanted land. Inspired by the vibrant, incredible species of Beetles and Butterflies found in nature I combined these with my own ideas of delicate floral, leafy patterns. I have always loved these types of insects, so creating a collection inspired by them was a great opportunity to bring my own style together with nature and create five designs full of imagined colour and wonder. Tell us a little about the process of first idea to finished fabric. Creating the five fabric designs always begins with an ideas board, full of theme imagery, a colour palette and an idea of the direction of design styles that I’d like to go forward with. The Craft Cotton Co team and I work together to decide on a finalised idea I then start working on. I always begin with getting my initial ideas down in a sketchbook using Gouache paints. I create individual motifs by hand as I feel this brings out my creativity in the best way, rather than sitting straight down to design digitally, once I have a few pages of ideas I will scan the paintings in and begin creating digital versions of each that I choose to use. Creating them digitally enables me to change colours easily and then I put them into a repeated fabric design, throughout the process I check in with the team and review the designs and carry out any colour changes to make sure the collection is working well as a whole. How do you see these fabrics made up? I would love to see these fabrics made up as a set of cushions, children’s clothing, shopping bags, plant pot holders/ fabric storage boxes! I’d really love to see the Beetle design made up as an adult size boilersuit! I think it would be a real statement outfit! What do you have planned next? I’m very lucky to have been asked to design a third pack of Fat Quarters which are currently being sampled! I’m really looking forward to seeing the third pack printed onto fabric and see the designs come to life. I would love to continue designing for the Craft Cotton Co as it’s such an enjoyable process and seeing the fabrics with my designs on them will never get old. salteria.com @salteriaprint

Project by Kimberley Hind Create a festive Christmas table runner with the "A Christmas Wish" fabric which is a celebration of the classic cards archive from the V&A museum, featuring playful Scottie dogs and Christmas baubles. Finished size: 55cm x 160cm Use ¼” seam allowance What you’ll need o 112cm x 70cm white Scottie fabric o 112cm x 50cm baubles fabric o 112cm x 50cm red trees fabric o 112cm x 50cm grey fence fabric o 440cm of 2.5cm wide bias binding o 160cm x 190cm wadding (you could use heat reflective if you wish) o Scottie dog template o Black fabric slightly bigger than Scottie dog template (approx. 28cm x 21cm) o Carbon paper to transfer the Scottie design o Tear-away stabiliser o Iron-on adhesive on transfer paper – I’ve used ‘Bondaweb’ Method 1. For the centre, 2 pieces of fabric measuring 25cm x 70cm. Trim off selvedges. Sew the top ends together, right sides together, with the pattern facing in opposite directions. Press the seam open. 2. Cut 5 strips of baubles, 5 red trees and 5 grey fence each, measuring 112cm x 8cm. Cut these into 23cm pieces. Stagger the strips to create 4cm ‘steps’ 3. Sew right sides together into a staggered strip. 20 for each side for each side of the runner. 4. Press the seams all to one side, then trim the sides to create a 13cm wide strip. Square off the ends. 5. Sew right sides together to the centre panel, trim the ends if necessary. 6. Sew 9 pieces together in the same staggered way for the top, and nine for the bottom. Sew right sides together to the runner. Again, trim the ends if necessary. 7. Cut two strips of white Scottie fabric each measuring 6cm x 70cm, sew the short ends right sides together with the print mirror images. Press the seams open. Sew right sides together to each side of the runner. Trim if necessary and press. 8. Cut two strips of white Scottie each measuring 6cm x 60cm, sew right sides together to the top and bottom of the runner and trim. 9. Fuse Bondaweb to the wrong sides of black fabric. Transfer the Scottie dog pattern onto the paper side of the Bondaweb using carbon paper, cut out two mirror-imaged shapes. 10. Peel away the paper backing and iron the applique shapes on to each end of the runner. Put tear-away stabilizer on the wrong side of the fabric, behind the applique. This will help stop the stitches from puckering when you sew. Free-motion sew around the edges. Tear away the stabilizer after you’ve finished sewing. To free motion sew, you’ll need a free motion/darning foot for your sewing machine. Alternatively, you could use a straight or satin stitch. 11. Cut your wadding 10cm larger all around than the runner. Place the runner over the wadding, use a basting spray or pins to secure. Place this over the wrong side of a piece of backing fabric slightly larger than the wadding. Quilt as you like, I simply stitched around the centre and border sections. 12. Trim the wadding and backing fabric to the size of the top piece. Apply bias binding all around, overlapping the ends to make neat and mitring the corners. That’s the table runner finished! You could make matching placemats or cushions using the Scottie dog template for extra details to you Christmas table décor. Happy sewing! To see more from Kim, visit her site whatkimberleymakes.com or Instagram @whatkimberleymakes Made by Kimberley Hind for The Craft Cotton Company 2021

Project by Katie at The Fabric Squirrel Welcome to my Christmas block along! This is the first time I have done anything like this so I would love to hear from you if you join along with me or use any of the blocks in other projects. I have used the beautiful new collection for 2021 named Colourful Christmas from Craft Cotton Company along with some plains. The finished quilt will be 130cm x 190cm. The amounts you need for the quilt are below but don't include backing fabric or binding. Grey Reindeer - 1 Metre Green - 1 Metre Blue - Half Metre Baubles - Fat Quarter Colourful Trees - Fat Quarter Plain Black - Fat Quarter (small amount needed) Plain Pink - Fat Quarter Plain White – 1.5 Metres The first day is my bauble block. You could use this same technique for different sized baubles and create a quilt, cushion, table runner or whatever really, with just these. The instructions are for one, but you will need two for the quilt. Here's a video to help: Seam Allowance: ¼” Unfinished size: 5" x 10" Finished size (when sewn into your quilt): 4½” x 9½” CUTTING Width x Height (cut one unless otherwise stated) White Background 2 - 2¼” x 2" 2 - 1½” Squares 2 - 2¾" Squares Pink 1½” x 2" White Baubles 5" x 8½” 1. Grab your two 2¼” x 2" background pieces and the pink. Sew the 2" edges together with the pink in the centre. 2. Add an easy triangle to the top two corners of the bauble fabric with your 1½” squares. Trim and press to open. 3. Do the same to the bottom two corners with your 2¾" squares. Trim and press open. 4. Now simply sew your two pieces together. 5. Give it a good press and trim if necessary. At this point it should be 5" x 10". Remember you need two of these. @thefabricsquirrel thefabricsquirrel.com

Project by Alex Holt Like most people, I am a massive fan of William Morris Prints. The designs have a timeless appeal which is a rare quality in such a fast-paced design world. I took the opportunity to push myself with this project by making a bowler shirt. I expected some challenges during the sewing process, as this was my first time making something this complicated, but I did not anticipate how tricky collars and facings are to construct. Before this particular shirt, I had attempted this pattern 4 times, 3 of which turned out to be failures. I purchased the pattern from monopatterns on Etsy which can be found here: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/848373543/bowling-shirt-sewing-pattern-pdf-sizes?ref=shop_home_active_2&crt=1 . The loose style and cropped hem make this pattern flattering on everyone, but if you prefer a longer length shirt, there is nothing stopping you from lengthening the sides of the bodice pattern pieces. I began by cutting out all the pattern pieces on my fabric which was folded in half lengthwise. I prefer to apply weights to the pattern piece and then trace around the pattern with a rotary cutter, as I am too impatient to draw around it and then cut it. I took the time to overedge all the pattern pieces which took longer than constructing the shirt. I never used to overedge when I was a beginner, but now I am at the stage where my final garments look more polished, it is definitely worth the extra time so the items I make last much longer. Constructing the bodice and attaching the sleeves was so quick and easy, I was naive in thinking I would have a finished shirt on my first attempt. I went back and forth to Youtube and the instructions to try and figure out how all the layers fit together. I eventually worked out that the bagged-out collar is pinned to the neckline first at the notched points on the shoulder seams. I decided to tac the collar using the largest stitch length on my sewing machine so that it made laying down the next pieces easier. I then attached the front facings and the neck facing together to create a full facing piece, this was placed on top of the shirt and collar, right sides together. It was then time for the tricky part. I lined up and pinned the front facings to the shirt starting from one side. Once I got to the inner corner of the neckline, I had to pivot the facing so I could continue pinning along the rest of the neckline. This stage required a lot of manoeuvring and repining, to make all the layers lie flat and line up at the correct notch points. I then sewed the facing, shirt, and collar together with a 1cm seam allowance, making sure the pivot point lay as flat as possible to avoid puckering. I also ensured the edge of the collar was caught in the seam allowance, so the facing and collar were united correctly. I was not completely successful in avoiding the puckering at the pivot point, as it was very tricky to get the layers to lie flat, but as I make more shirts my technique will improve. Also, once the collar is folded down at the end, you cannot even tell the collar is not perfect. I love this bowling shirt pattern so much I have already made 3 shirts! If you are new to constructing shirts, the collar and facings are difficult to work out, but this particular seller was incredibly helpful and sent me a video demonstrating how the pieces are attached. There are also lots of Youtube tutorials on Bowling and Cuban shirts you can refer to. @aholttextiles By Alex Holt for The Craft Cotton Company 2021

Project by Kimberley Hind Don’t waste any of your scrap fabric this Christmas! These quick and easy cards use small pieces of fabric and wadding to create unique cards for your special ones. Add ribbon, decals or calligraphy on the front of the cards to personalise or leave blank for a minimalist look. You can make these cards in any sizes; I’ve listed below what sizes I’ve used. This fabric is a celebration of the classic cards archive from the V&A museum, featuring playful Scottie dogs and Christmas baubles. Quilted lines card – What you’ll need o Strips of fabric 4cm wide o Wadding (80/20) measuring no bigger than the card o Strong double-sided tape o Spray glue (I’ve used odif 505) o Erasable marker o 5.5” square aperture card Method 1. Sew together strips of 4cm wide fabric until it is slightly larger than the aperture. 2. Cut a piece of wadding slightly larger than the fabric, place the fabric over the wadding and quilt by stitching along the seams. 3. Place the fabric behind the aperture at an angle to create the diagonal lines. Draw the shape of the aperture onto the fabric. 4. Cut the fabric slightly larger than the aperture marks. Adhere to the inside of the card with double-sided tape. Quilted Present card – What you’ll need o Fabric and wadding (80/20) measuring slightly bigger than aperture shape o A ruler and erasable marker for quilting o Ribbon o Wet glue (I’ve used Gutermann HT2) o Spray glue (I’ve used Odif 505) o Strong double-sided tape o 5.5” square aperture card Method 1. Cut the fabric of choice slightly bigger than the aperture. 2. Cut a piece of wadding to the same size. 3. Use a spray glue (505) to adhere the wadding to the back of the fabric. Place behind the aperture and draw around the shape. 4. Draw diagonal 1” lines across the square using an erasable marker and ruler. Sew over these lines to quilt. 5. Cut 2 pieces of ribbon slightly bigger than the quilted square. Use a wet glue (HT2) to adhere the ribbon to the square. Glue one piece lengthways and the other widthways to create a wrapped present look. Cut a third piece of ribbon. Tie a bow with the ribbon and glue to the crossover point of the ribbon on the square. Trim the tales if needed. 6. Use double sided tape to stick the quilted square to the inside of the card. Bauble card – What you’ll need o A piece of fabric for the background of the card measuring slightly bigger than the shape of the aperture. I’ve used a light grey cotton. o Bauble print fabric o Iron-on adhesive on transfer paper – I’ve used ‘Bondaweb’ o Ribbon o Strong double-sided tape o Erasable marker o Marker pen for sentiment (optional) o A5 oval aperture card. Method 1. Cut a small piece of fabric that features the baubles you’d like to use for the card. Adhere your fabric to the Bondaweb following the instructions on the packet. 2. Cut out the bauble shapes. These are now your applique pieces. 3. Draw the shape of aperture onto the background fabric. 4. Cut 3 strips of ribbon at different lengths. 5. Iron the baubles in place inside of the aperture shape with ribbon tucked slightly behind to look as though they are hanging. 6. Free motion stitch around the baubles and along the ribbon. To free motion sew, you’ll need a free motion/darning foot for your sewing machine. Alternatively, you could use a straight or satin stitch. 7. Use double sided tape to stick the bauble panel inside the card. Add any sentiments you wish. TIP – if you’d like to use calligraphy, download templates online to practise! To see more from Kim, visit her site whatkimberleymakes.com and Instagram @whatkimberleymakes Made by Kimberley Hind for The Craft Cotton Company 2021

Project by Debbie Shore Create some festive Christmas gift bags with Debbie's Christmas Critters fabric panel. 1. Cut out your pattern shapes, use the bag piece as a template to cut out lining piece. 2. Sew the top and bottom of the lining to the top and bottom of the bag. 3. Sew the sides together, leaving the cut out corners unsewn and a turning gap on one side of the lining. 4. Open out the corners and sew straight across. 5. Turn the right side out and sew the opening closed. 6. Push the lining inside the bag. Fold the short ends of the drawstring channel over by 6mm and sew. Fold the long edges over by 6mm and press. 7. Pin, then sew the channel 2.5cm from the top of the bag, with the ends at the centre front. 8. Thread ribbon through the channel, a safety pin can help! 9. Pull the ribbon and tie to close. 10. Repeat with the second bag. 11. Although the circles are meant for gift tags, they look quite sweet when placed in 8cm embroidery hoops! Made by Debbie Shore for The Craft Cotton Company 2021 @debbieshore debbieshoresewing.com

Project by Nicola Hills I was sent these fabrics to create a tutorial for Autumn. The glittery ones are just so pretty and I struggled to get a photo to do them justice. They feel very soft to the touch and are as easy to work with as any cotton fabric with the added bonus of shimmer. You will need: Fat Quarter Autumn Foil Pack Fat Quarter Essential Trend Pack Light Stiffening/Interfacing Wadding/Bosal Foam Fabric for backing Binding Buttons Tools: Basic sewing kit Free Motion Sewing Foot Paper for template Sewing Machine Method I started by creating the template for appliqué pumpkin. Transferred the shape onto a very light interfacing/stiffening fabric which was then ironed onto the top fabric. Using 3 different fabrics from the Essential Trends pack I cut out each section of the pumpkin separately, then carefully pinned along the curves and sewed to join. Once sewn I pressed the seams out and zig zag stitched over them for effect. Using the black shimmer fabric as the background, pin the wadding onto the back of it. Appliqué the pumpkin on. The leaves and stalk will be added afterwards. Next is the FUN part. If you are not confident in Free Motion Sewing the leaves can be sewn on in the normal way or even Hand Stitched. Free motion sewing is sewing on your sewing machine, but instead of just sewing in a forward direction, you can sew in any direction. The swirly vines, Pumpkin Lines and AUTUMN were also Free Motioned on. For the binding I used a 2’’ strip of contrasting fabric onto the front piece/Wadding and Backing Fabric (See previous Quilt Binding Tutorial) For the binding I used a 2’’ strip of contrasting fabric onto the front piece/Wadding and Backing Fabric (See previous Quilt Binding Tutorial) Add some buttons for decoration and there you have a great Table Centre Piece for Autumn. To see more from Nicola, tag her on Instagram @bobbincottagebodkin Made by Nicola Hills for The Craft Cotton Company 2021

Kerrie from Living in Loveliness I’m really looking forward to our events at The Creative Craft Shows in Exeter (23rd-26th September). I will teaching 5 classes a day and we have lots of fabulous kits, fabric and notions on our stand F30. To book to attend the event visit: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021 I’d love to welcome you to sew with me! The works are running daily: 9:45am - The Ruby tote bag - visit the link below to book onto the workshop: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/workshop-creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021-9-45am-living-in-loveliness 11am - Accessory Roll - visit the link below to book onto the workshop: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/workshop-creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021-11-00am-living-in-loveliness-accessories-roll 12:30pm - Linda Lotus Bag - visit the link below to book onto the workshop: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/workshop-creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021-12-30pm-living-in-loveliness-linda-lotus-bag 1:45pm - Storage basket - visit the link below to book onto the workshop: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/copy-of-workshop-creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021-13-45pm-living-in-loveliness-storage-basket 3pm - Hexagon Bowl - visit the link below to book onto the workshop: https://ticketsales.ichf.co.uk/products/workshop-creative-craft-show-exeter-autumn-2021-15-00pm-living-in-loveliness-hexagon-bowl Looking forward to seeing you there! Lots of love, Kerrie livinginloveliness.com

Project by Katie Done at The Fabric Squirrel George was recently invited to a birthday party. It was his first one in over 18 months, like with most things. The last time I was buying birthday gifts he was three, I had no idea what to get a five year old little girl. Thankfully I noticed her mum post on a Facebook comment that she likes colouring, so I picked up a colouring / sticker book, some pencils and smelly pens (loved those as a kid!). To make it a bit more fun I thought I would make a little carry case to keep it all together. I have been meaning to make something like this for ages, I just think it will be handy to pack and take with you if you are going away. I plan on making a smaller handbag size one for us too. I made it the night before in around an hour using just some fun Craft Cotton fat quarters and bits I have laying around. YOU WILL NEED Colouring Book and Pencils Bosal Foam Assorted Fat Quarters (around 4) Bondaweb Zip Sewing Machine Zipper Foot Rotary Cutter and Mat (or scissors) Iron and Ironing Board Ruler Fabric Pen CUTTING I have given the measurements for the fabric I have used, you can use any fabrics you like. Measurements are given width x height. White Floral - 55cm x 38cm Pink Stripes - 55cm x 38cm Iron-in Bosal Interlining Foam - 55cm x 38cm (this adds strength and structure. You could use regular interfacing and wadding if you don't have any.) Ballerina's - 38cm x 19cm Purple Hearts - 38cm x 19cm Blue Stripes - 20cm x 20cm (x2) Colourful Flowers - 38cm x 22cm (x2) METHOD 1. Iron the fusible foam onto the reverse of the white floral or front piece of fabric. 2. This case was made for an Isabelle, so I used a small piece of glitter fabric I had to make an I for the front. Draw your letter on some Bondaweb (remember it will need to be back to front when drawn on the paper side). Iron on to the reverse of the glitter fabric or fabric of choice, cut it out and peel off the paper. Fold the front piece in half and position your letter in the centre front. Iron into place. I didn't want to use the iron directly on the glitter fabric so used another piece of fabric on top to protect it. 3. Next we will create the zip pocket. This may not look quite right but bear with me. I used a 20cm long zip (it was just what I had). Attach your zipper foot to your machine and sew it to one edge of the ballerina and purple heart fabric. 4. Get your striped blue fabric, this is the lining of your zip pocket, sandwich it between each side of the zip. The fabric needs to be right sides together with the zip and edge of the fabrics lined up. Sew into place and repeat on each side. When you open it up it will look like this. 5. Now line the blue stripes so they are right sides together and sew up the inside seam. Cut a diagonal on the corner so it is not too bulky. 6. Fold the ballerina fabric over to the right way and give it a good press. 7. With your two floral pieces, place them right sides together and sew the top long edge. If you had a larger piece of fabric you could just double the height and fold it in half. Fold it to the right way and press. Top stitch 1/4" from the edge. 8. Line up the floral pocket and the zip pocket that you have created on opposite sides of the pink stripe fabric. I have done the zip on the same side as the front (behind the letter I), in hindsight I would have done it on the back so the bulkiness of the pencils don't show on the front. Pin and baste around the edges. 9. Use a ruler and mark lines that are wide enough to fit your pencils in. Use a pen that disappears with water or heat. 10. Sew down the lines you have made to create the little pencil pockets, backstitch at the start and end. 11. On the righthand side, place a piece of slightly shorter elastic towards the edge and pin in place. 12. Put the front piece on top of the pocket piece with right sides together and sew around all four edges, leave a 3" gap to turn it out. Clip the corners, turn it out, press and top stitch around all 4 sides. That is your pencil carry case done. I hope you enjoy making it and using up some fun fabrics in your stash. I would love to hear from you if you give it a go. If you would like more free tutorials, special offers and new fabric arrivals. Here is a little video of my finished case. To see more from Katie, visit her site thefabricsquirrel.com and Instagram @thefabricsquirrel

Project by Sophia Palmer for Hobbycraft "Transform your garden parties and more by crafting these six unique garlands! They’ll brighten up a dull space in no time, and they’ll provide you with an afternoon of crafting fun. Learn how to make your own garlands with papercrafts, pom poms and more – all using craft scraps." Click here to see the full project