Some folks go shopping, others read prolifically, but I like to make things.
In fact, I realised long ago that I’m only happy when I have a project on the go. Over the years, my hobbies (just to name a few) have included papercrafts, kitemaking, counted cross stitch, a brief dabble in screen printing, a recurring obsession with jewellery making, and a lifelong love of sewing.
Pete and I made this one metre facet kite and the ten metre snake kite in the background for the Festival of the Winds over two decades ago…
I’m still making vintage Swarovski crystal angels to this day…
And then there’s sourdough baking, of course…
I’ve always enjoyed a fast project, like these little useful bags…
Last Saturday, my friend Les, who’s now 82, told me that he still uses the bag I gave him years ago to keep his sunglasses in. “It’s just so useful!” he said…
Over this past year though, I’ve learnt to love a slower paced project. Like this linen shawl I made from one of Pete’s old shirts…
The pieces were machined together and then hand embroidered with sashiko cotton using a basic running stitch..
My focus has also shifted to projects which utilise existing resources, like my upcycled denim aprons. This one was modeled by Monkey Girl under protest…
Placemats made from the seams and waistbands of old jeans cover our dining room table…
Occasionally I’ll sit and crochet dishcloths – it’s not a craft that I particularly enjoy, but my hands don’t like to be still…
My latest adventure into visible mending is still going strong – I’m enjoying it so much that Big Boy and Pete have started hiding their clothes from me.
Small Man though, my beloved eco-warrior, is happy to wear my repaired creations. His jeans had just a little life left in them – the denim was getting thin to the point of translucent – but they still fit, so I quickly hand mended them for him. The small holes were darned and the larger ones patched boro style.
He’s worn them out a few times since, so he must approve…
Ian’s old Wranglers came back for another repair – farmers are hard on their clothes! This time I added heavy duty patches sewn on by machine. They needed to be durable enough for shearing and moving rolls of barbed wire…
Last weekend, I turned a formal kimono into a lined poncho. This was actually my third attempt at upcycling this garment.
If you ever get your hands on one, please let me save you some grief now. Don’t wash it! It’s traditionally hand stitched and if it’s a vintage piece like mine was, the thread might be over 50 years old and very fragile. Also, the lining silk shrinks more than the black layer. The traditional method of cleaning is (are you sitting down?) unpicking the entire garment, washing each piece, and then restitching it.
Anyway, I did handwash it, because it was old and stained and a bit too grotty for me to wear. In the end, after much experimenting and unpicking, I ended up with a very wearable piece…
I sewed a sized-up shopping bag based on my recent Useful Bag pattern, complete with long shoulder strap. It’s made from an old Japanese banner that I picked up from Cash Palace Emporium a couple of years ago…
It carries a surprisingly large load…
Nearly twenty years ago, my wise friend Diana told me, “Celia, my father used to say that one of the most satisfying jobs has to be bricklaying, because at the end of the day, you can stand back and see the wall you’ve built with your own hands.”
In this fast moving digital age where things often seem less real, having a project on the go grounds me. It gives me an opportunity to create, and to enjoy the great satisfaction that comes from having created.
Are you a maker too? If so, thank you for understanding what I’m talking about, because not everyone does. I’d love to know more about the hobbies you enjoy, and what projects you’re working on the moment. ♥
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Love watching your projects!
Awesome stuff, Celia… I liken Ian’s patched jeans to the body on a cellular level, every 7 year interval each cell has been replace so that the person in the mirror is no longer the person of 7 years ago. Any more patches on those jeans and the original pair will no longer exist! :P
Yes! I’m a maker, We are all about the manias, whether it’s a good meal, clothes, furniture, pens, cheeseboards, embroidery, jewelry or paper toys. There is something so soothing and satisfying about creating something. It’s like the world is your Lego set. (Love the little bags. Must try)
We had company tonight and I baked two loaves that were devoured and I talked about you. Good times, Maz.
Mostly now I cook and sew, but I used to love pyrography. Sadly, I don’t have the fine hand control I need any longer (thank you, arthritis and chemotherapy), but I can still hand stitch and embroider. I’m slightly afraid of going bonkers when that goes too….
I had to look up pyrography, it looks fabulous! I’m sorry you can’t do it anymore!
It was a lot of fun… a small sample:
(https://talltalesfromchiconia.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/sany0054.jpg) Hopefully this just gives a link instead of inserting the whole picture. If it does, do please delete it, I don’t want to clutter up your blog.
Kate, it’s gorgeous!! I can see why it would take some high end fine motor skills though!
I CAN still do it, but only in 5 minute increments, so a single spoon can take days…
So creative Celia, love all of your “projects” Amazing😊
You create such fabulous things. I sew and quilt and cook from scratch, but nothing as creative as you…..not to mention how prolific you are! ❤️❤️❤️
Hi Mo, utube is your friend. …anything you want to know how to do, there is a talented instructor ready and will show you over and over and never gets impatient ….give it a try ☺
I am more a baker than a maker but occasionally I find a good craft project. (painting a mural on our back fence and painting a dolls house were great fun). I have just signed my daughter up to make easter egg pinatas. Nothing terribly useful but I have been stitcing the occasional patches lately! And more are needed. I love your recent projects with the jeans table mats, the beautiful red bag and the kimino shawl
I taught Woodwork in high schools but soon was put off by troublesome students now I’m retired I decided to get back into it. I just completed a 4.5m rowing skiff. It was great to have her in the Wooden Boat Festival this weekend and watch people run their hands over the timber. Now I’m finished I’m at a loose end may have to build another. At least your projects are smaller. I do get into baking your sour dough recipes though.
That sounds like a HUGE project! I’m a bit too impatient to take on anything so large – good for you! :)
Holy cats! You are a wonder, that’s what you are. So very impressive. Not only do you keep your nimble fingers busy, but you also make useful things that are beautiful as well..
That was very gratifying to see what you have accomplished and the kimono/poncho was THE best! Or maybe it was this one or that one :) All are just super. Thank you.
Yes … I must always have busy hands! I have a small project bag that fits in my purse so I have something on the go, usually when I’m the passenger. Most often this is just a knitted dishcloth, but friends and family enjoy getting them. I love your recycled/upcycled projects and that’s where my heart and hands are headed at this moment.
I love your post Celia. I’m very curious and I ‘m always trying new crafts.
Nowadays I’m baking, sewing, embroidering. I would love to take carpentry classes, too.
I love gardening.
As you see, it’s very difficult for me to be still!
Love your little pouches.
Ale
I’m a maker too and like to have something on the go, even though I may not get to it every day. I crochet, quilt and bake. I love the thought of creating something new that didn’t exist before it passed through my hands. I even feel that way about my blog and the best part is that I get to share my creations.
I never stop sewing. Now I do a Pop Up shop every Saturday in a friend’s shop. There is only so much I can make for myself.
I’m in awe of everything you make, you do know that, right? The D&G tote you posted recently was just divine!
Yes, love sewing clothes using old items to create patterns for fabric offcuts, Also cushion covers from remnant bin fabric – I find curtain material with thermal back works well and is very durable. Must try some of your useful bags. I make some of my own for handbags where there aren’t suitable pockets.
I am in awe of you Celia … love all of these projects … and every one of them is useful! xo
You are such an inspiration. My making skills are fudge and excuses. Pat
Pat, let me share my easiest project ever with you! :)
Get a pair of old jeans and a sharp pair of scissors. Carefully cut around the back pockets. Voila! Instant coasters! (I stitch the pocket opening closed, but that’s optional) :)
I love to visit here and see what you’ve been making! There’s always something to inspire me. I’m a compulsive maker, too. My family have just put all our worldly possessions into storage and moved halfway round the world for a year. One of the hardest parts has been coming into a new home without my making things, especially as I’m not currently employed and an especially cold winter has had us virtually house bound since we arrived. I’m getting a loaned sewing machine this week and will be visiting a friend to go through her fabric stash to get me started again. After seeing your place mats I might even ask around for donations of old jeans! And who knows, now that I have more time on my hands I might give sourdough another whirl ;)
I often have trouble going on holidays because I can’t make things while I’m away! So I can relate!
I love all your projects! Making stuff is so satisfying!! I’m a knitter and spinner but my newest make is soap and shampoo bars. I would love to say the bar soap cuts down on plastic but all the supplies come in plastic too so I’m not sure that’s the case. The soap is lovely though…
My friend Glenda is a passionate soap maker – you might enjoy her blog! https://passionfruitgarden.com/
Love all your sewing projects…I used to cross stitch every night years ago however my eyes are no good for that close up work now. I still have a crochet lap quilt on the go started about 5 years ago.
Sadly, I can’t do counted cross anymore either – I used to love it, but my eyes can’t cope anymore!
You inspire me with each blog post, its just amazing what you create Celia. If you can, I’d love to read more about your vintage kimono and how you repurposed it as I visited Asia Gallery in Auckland (discovered via another creative blogger) last year and came home with a roll of kimono silk and a vintage kimono. I was going to hang it on the wall on a rod but it never happened as I worried it would fade badly. Who would unpick an entire garment to wash it then reassemble it, that’s incredible.
Oh Carolyn, it was *such* a palaver. 😆 I took a deep breath and cut the bottom of the kimono off in one piece – mine only had the design on the bottom. It’s probably best to tack the pieces together before cutting them. I then folded the cut edges in and toostitched them together to form a shawl.
I started off making just that piece into a poncho but it was too short, so I then cut out a section from the back and pieced it to the end of the bit with the design. I actually finished the second piece completely and then joined the two by butting the finished hems together and sewing with a zig zag joining stitch that I have on my machine.
By this stage I had a long piece of fabric which I turned into a poncho. This is the technique I used for that – this was the easy bit.
Click to access One-seam_poncho.pdf
Again, butted edges and zigzagged together.
It’s really REALLY slippery sewing, please be warned. We actually have a kimono hanging on a rod and it’s absolutely gorgeous. It might well fade, but we get to enjoy it every day until it does, right? 😉
I completely understand how you feel. Even in a quiet moment, it’s good to keep your hands busy in a task the brain doesn’t need to engage in…very restful and satisfying!
You’re a kindred spirit, T.. xxx
I’m incredibly impressed by your industry. All of your makes are clearly useful and being used too. I’m knitting socks again – always useful and a very portable project. I’m beginning to feel the need to sew again after a very long break. Maybe I’ll have something to show soon 😉
Kim, if you don’t sew again, how are you ever going to persuade The Management that you need your neighbour’s industrial machines? :D :D
Oh don’t Celia! I’m trying a reduce the machines not go industrial!!!
I love seeing all your projects… enthusiasms, I believe you once called them. And you have been the inspiration behind many of mine. I call it everyday art or the art of the everyday… my current project is a sketchbook, around the same topic, destined for the Brooklyn Art Library collection, so I am in a sea of coloured pencils :)
Yes, my “enthusiams”, as Pete calls them. Your sketchbook has been amazing! xx
Funny you should say that about not being able to sit with no project handy for avoiding idleness – I definitely relate to that! I’ve been a knitter since age 5 when my Nan taught me to knit dishcloths, a crocheter, potter, spinner and weaver (a dawn-to-dusk gardener and non-commercial pilot!) over many decades. I’ll be 80 in about six weeks and don’t want to buy new yarns and fabrics as I have plenty on hand and I also think one of the cruellest things one can do to one’s children is leave them with tons of stuff to sort through when you’ve gone. So I’m using my stashes to create interesting items my grand-daughter and I have dreamed up between us that make it possible for my hands to be busy till the very end and for her to have mementos that were the last things Nana ever made for her. She’ll be off to university in a few years and I know the comforts of home are important then. If she has Nana pillows, blankets, wall-hangings etc., to take with her, she’ll be able to step out into the big, wide world with greater confidence knowing the love that goes with her.
If I keep going much longer, I may have to buy yarn after all!
Lots of inspirations here – thank you so much for sharing, Celia.
No, thank YOU! How wonderful and inspiring to still be doing so much after 75 years of nonstop projects! Happy 80th for six weeks’ time! x
What a lovely post to read. I love the idea of having something you can see at the end of the project but don’t love the things, so I’ve been writing more letters and starting to attempt a puzzle. I use all of the things that you sent us often, I have multiple useful bags in my handbag and love the produce bags. What a joy it is to see your lovely projects.
I’m so happy you’re finding them all useful! It’s probably time to make some more, I’ve finally given most of them away!
I am definitely a maker so completely relate to that sense of feeling grounded. My project this year is to work through all my Works-In-Progress and also make most of my own clothes from the stash of dressmaking fabric I have. I want to use the resources I’ve already purchased, which is very satisfying because it simultaneously makes more space in my craft area. Pieces of fabric I know I’ll never use I have been selling on Facebook, in destash groups, to those who will appreciate and use them as they deserve. ☺️