Welcome Blog Tourists!

Hello everyone and a very warm welcome to my blog. I hope you are all enjoying the Blog Tour and picking up loads of ideas, freebies and discounts along the way. My blog is all about my creative passions of cooking, baking and sewing. So for today's tour stop, I'm giving you a little bit of everything, a 10% discount for any purchases from my website and the chance to win a little something!



Make of the week
Inspired by the hot weather I've been making picnic accessories this week...

My cutlery roll has space enough for 12 pieces of cutlery. Perfect to pop into your cool bag or hamper. I've used Designers Guild Miami fabric here. It's a thick loose weave cotton in crisp white with a vibrant geometric print in blue, red, orange and green. I'm busy working on a matching bag, which would be finished if my pesky daughter would return my toolbox...

You'll find my cutlery roll in Homewares on my website.

Today's recipe

Just in case the weather isn't holding up, here's a lovely summery recipe to enjoy at home indoors!

This fresh fruit tart is delicious and so easy to make. You can use whichever soft fruit you like - strawberries, raspberries and blueberries would be brilliant here.

Nectarine Tart

• 1 x 18cm sweet shortcrust pastry case - either make your own or buy ready baked
• 1 large egg
• 25g sugar
• 200ml whole milk
• 25g plain flour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or paste
• 2 ripe nectarines sliced, or whichever soft fruit you like (you can leave small fruits and berries whole)

1. Begin with the pastry case. If you're using ready made then you're done! If you're making your own, use a sweetened shortcrust recipe and bake blind until golden and crisp. Leave to cool.
2. Next make the pastry cream. Put the milk in a small saucepan and heat gently. Meanwhile, whisk the egg and sugar until thick and creamy. Add the flour and whisk thoroughly. When the milk comes up to boil, pour it into the egg mixture and whisk together. Return the mixture to the pan and heat gently whisking vigorously until it becomes very thick. Remove from the heat and place in a clean bowl. Whisk in the vanilla, then cover with cling film to prevent a skin forming. Leave to cool a little then place in the fridge until completely cold.
3. Assemble the tart by spreading the pastry cream over the pastry case and top with your chosen fruit. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving.

Don't forget to make time for Creative Crafting magazine where you'll find more of my recipes

Grab some goodies!
As a special thank you for visiting my blog, leave a comment and share my blog for a chance to win this rosebud cushion cover with fabric covered buttons.

And if you'd like to buy anything from my site or place a bespoke order click here to email and quote "Blog Tour" to get 10% off your order. Visit my website Personal Space Interiors for details of my ready to buy items and bespoke services.

Thanks for visiting everyone, it's been lovely having you. Please call again soon :)

A new venture for the weekend - dressmaking...

What do you do on a rainy Saturday when you haven't made any plans, you don't need to be anywhere and you've got the day to yourself? Well I thought I'd give myself a challenge this weekend and try my hand at dressmaking.

This is a brand new venture for me. I've made all sorts of home furnishings and artwork but I've never tried my hand at making clothes, apart from knitting. So with my birthday gift voucher in hand, off I went to John Lewis to buy a pattern. I decided on a 1960s vintage dress pattern (well I would, wouldn't I?) as I had some of my gorgeous vintage linen rose fabric left over.And I must say, I'm really pleased with the results.

 

The best thing is knowing I have created something unique. I fiddled with the pattern to change the neckline so it really is my own. And it fits perfectly, unlike anything off the peg. I think I may have found a new obesession...

So to all of you potential crafters out there, follow my lead and try something new. You might just surprise yourself!

Spring CRAFTfest closes...and back to work I go

Another week over and another CRAFTfest draws to a close. It's been another brilliant week with festers pooling resources to promote each other in all manner of social networking ways to make our event successful. Over the course of the week we had 3,899 brand new visitors viewing 31,315 pages of fantastic handcrafted goods by our stall holders. As always it's been hard work but a great buzz and most definitely worth it. Read more about CRAFTfest here

So back to the real world for while. What am I up to this week? I've been working on an order for a customer in the US who I have a sneaking suspicion is a bit of a fabric addict. She has provided me with some stunning prints to work with and I've loved working on this order for her as she's given me pretty much free rein to design and make pieces for her that compliment the fabric choices. I particularly love the rucksacks I've been making. Here's one hanging around waiting for the eyelets to finish the drawstring closure.

So well named this fabric "Happy Valley" with its cheerful colouyrway of greens and pinks and scenic print with nods to toile and willow pattern. I'll be finishing these off this week along with a throw, tote bags, cushions and some purses made with lovely vintage brass frames. Phew, such a lot to do!

If you would like to have something special made with your favourite fabric email gill@personal-space-interiors.co.uk with the details.

I do like a happy customer...

A lovely pic today from my customer Kate. I made a super soft duck feather boxed cushion and two lovely covers for Kate's gorgeous solid wood settle. She very kindly sent me a photo today of her striped cover in situ.

 

There was a little strip of this fabric left over when I made this cover. And someone appears to have found a very comfortable resting place on it...

 

 

Naughty Lawrence!

 

 

Made to measure bespoke cushion pads, cushion covers and lavender frogs made and dispatched within three working days. Email enquiries@personal-space-interiors.co.uk for details.

 

Click here if you would like to take Lawrence home. I think he's feeling lonely, and he would make a lovely Christmas gift...

 



 

Time for a new make do you think?...

I love to try my hand at a new project. And this one was certainly something I'd never made before. I had a commission from Joan who was about to go on holiday. Her trusty favourite travelling companion was looking more than a little worse for wear, and she'd scoured the shops looking for a similar replacement with no luck. What is this faithful companion I'm talking about? A sturdy yet flexible rucksack style bag; soft enough to roll up and squeeze into the corner of a suitcase and strong enough to cope with the rigours of the beach and poolside.

Joan had kept her bag and passed it on to me for inspection to see if I was up to the challenge of deconstructing, creating a working pattern and making a new and improved version. Always looking for ways to upcycle, I managed to remove all of the metal fixings and rings from the bag to reuse but I knew that eyelets for the drawstring closure would be a new skill I would have to master.

I chose a medium weight denim in black with an off-white thread in the weave. This would give a stylish and practical finish to the bag. I used strong black polycotton for the carry handle and for the D-ring fixings as I wanted to provide a contrast fabric for the look but also add strength to the finished product. It certainly proved to be strong - managing to bend and break my machine needle twice in the process!

I'm really pleased with the results, and more importantly Joan was thrilled. I haven't heard back from her since her holiday, but I'm hoping her new bag lived up to it's high expectations.

If you would like a similar bag made, prices start from £20.00 plus fabric and fixings. Email enquiries@personal-space-interiors.co.uk

Vintage or ultra modern style statement - it's a matter of personal taste...

Today I wanted to share some of my bespoke work with you; two commissions in stark contrast to one another.

First, a vintage style super soft cushion pad made to fit a settle. A settle is a bench seat with a high back, usually made for two people, and often known as a monk's bench.

My customer Kate had been lucky enough to be given a fabric stash, and I was just able to squeeze enough from her favourite fabric piece to make this cushion cover. It is a gorgeous ivory with woven stain thread floral posies in bronze. We talked about how Kate wanted the finished cushion to look and decided on a duck feather inner as this would sag softly with use, giving the lived in "Bagpuss" effect over time. I made both the inner and cover using a welted style to give the cushion structure and definition. Cambric was used to make the duck feather inner along with 3kg of duck feathers. Cambric is a special waxed cotton which helps to prevent the feathers poking through making a cushion with a longer life span. I made an extra cover using a gorgeous candy striped cotton canvas in pistachio and pale apricot. And when Kate feels like a change, we'll get to see the new cover!

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Next, we have Laura's ultra modern designer fabric statement pieces.

Laura chose this Designers Guild Leopold fabric for her covered headboard, and had some pieces left over for pillows. It is a bold statement in a striking oversized geometric design in vivid chartreuse with black and metallic accents. The masculine print design is softened using pompom edging on the pillows, which also adds texture and frames the pillows perfectly. The use of black and white in the walls, soft furnishings and accessories creates a sophisticated yet witty and playful scheme.

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I don't think you could get two examples further apart in terms of the colour palette, design and finished effect. It just goes to show how widely individual tastes can vary and when it comes to interior design, your home really is your very own personal space.

*Thank you to Kate and Laura for providing the images used in this post*