Our garden project - before

At the end of last year we completed our fantastic orangery extension to the back of our house. We are so pleased with it, we spend so much time in there now and feel really fortunate that we were able to make such a lovely addition to our home. The only thing that isn't so lovely is our poor garden! It was never exciting to begin with, and after all the work it has been pretty much destroyed. 

We wanted to wait a few months before getting started, to make sure that we knew exactly what we wanted and also to get the finances in place. I know a lady who works as a garden designer, and so we commissioned her to come up with a design for our blank canvas garden. She has produced a beautiful design which really makes the most of the space, and I'm so excited to see how it looks when it's finished!

We are going to have a large patio at the back which will come out at the same level as indoors and uses matching tiles, so when the weather is warm we can open the bifold doors and it will feel like one space. There will a second paved area in the back corner for some seating, our fire pit, or hopefully a place to get our hot tub out again and a small lawn in the middle, surrounded by lots of plants and trees.

When it comes to planting I'm a bit hopeless, but I think if we can get a planting plan designed and set up then I'll be able to maintain it. We just need advice on what to plant and where to plant it!

The front garden has always been a bit of a mess. The grass doesn't get any sun, so it's mainly weeds, and the hedge is old and overgrown and looking very scruffy. I love my apple tree but it needs a bit of attention, and it's too tall now for me to easily prune it. We are going to use the same patio slabs to make more of a feature of the front entrance and to make a path leading around to the back, then use pebbles to make a beach themed planting area which should bring to mind our local pebbly beaches.

We are using the same landscaping company that we used to build our extension as we were so pleased with them. The work started with the first of several massive deliveries of building materials, I do feel sorry for our poor neighbours that have put up with all our disruption for a little while now. At least once this project is done we won't be doing any more work like this to the house for years - probably not ever!

Update on my ten craft projects to complete by the end of the year

At the beginning of September I set myself a crafting challenge - a list of ten craft projects to complete by the end of the year.

With the end of the year firmly in sight, I thought I'd do a little update!

Felt Autumn leaves - I was really pleased with my embroidered felt Autumn leaves. I displayed them in a small bowl by the fireplace and they looked really pretty. Next year I might string them up into some bunting for a bit of a change.

Felt sugar skulls - My embroidered felt sugar skulls were another great way to work through my felt stash. I loved making these, and coming up with all the different colour combinations for the felt and embellishments. Next year I'm planning to make some more, perhaps using different colours of felt for the skulls.

Cross stitch Christmas hanging - This project idea was always a bit vague, and it changed somewhat in the making! I had three mini Christmas cross stitch kits that I wanted to finish and find some way to display. I ended up framing each one in a mini Christmas embroidery hoop that I painted and added glitter. 

Three Christmas wooden shapes to decorate - I had bought a blank wooden sign, a sleigh and a gingerbread house from The Works.

My first craft was a Christmas wooden sign which is now proudly hanging in the hallway to welcome guests. I was very pleased with my attempt at brush lettering!

Then I decorated the wooden sleigh with red paint and embellished with metallic pen. I made a little sack from some festive hessian fabric and ribbon and wrapped up some pretend presents. I was originally going to make the wooden house into a gingerbread house but I changed my mind and made it into a sort of Scandi inspired house instead with red and dark yellow.

Stretch beaded bracelets - This was a new craft for me, and so I was delighted with my ocean themed stretch beaded bracelets. They were really easy to make and I love wearing them. I'm definitely going to be making some more bracelets using different colour schemes.

A sea themed fabric project - This was another project idea that was quite vague as I had some lovely fabric but didn't know what to do with it. I decided to make an ocean themed fabric tote bag and I was so pleased with the result that I went on to make several more to give as gifts. 

A Christmas mini cross stitch designs craft - I wanted to do some sort of craft using my free mini Christmas cross stitch motifs and so I decided to make some cross stitch gift tags. They were really quick and simple to make and a great way to use up some odds and ends of embroidery thread.

Finally, there is one craft on the list that I didn't get to, and that was the Wooden READ sign, a wooden sign spelling out the word 'read' which I wanted to display on my bookshelf. Not for lack of time or lack of ideas, I just decided that for the time being I quite like how it looks in its natural state! I may come back to this in the future but for now I'm happy with the way it is.

I found this way of listing out my craft projects really motivated me to get on with them. Next year I want to make an effort to work through some of my crafting stash, and making a list of the things that I want to complete is definitely going to be a big help.

Hama bead Christmas crafts for adults

This is an older post, you can find an updated list of Hama bead Christmas crafts here!

Hama beads might be marketed as a children's craft but I love crafting with them too! I've made lots of Hama bead projects over the years and so today I thought I'd bring together some of my favourite Hama bead crafts with a festive theme that make great crafts for adults as well as children. Click on the link in the title for a full tutorial along with tips and tricks for working with Hama beads.

Mini Hama bead snowflakes

I used mini Hama beads to make these tiny snowflake decorations, they measure less than 2cm in diameter and make lovely embellishments for cards or other craft projects. I used my own Hama bead snowflake designs which also work well for the larger beads. 

Mini Hama bead Christmas embellishments

I used the mini Hama beads again to make these tiny Christmas embellishments, again each one measures less than 2cm across. They are easy to make using just a square pegboard. For the designs I used my free mini Christmas themed pixel art designs.

Scandi inspired Hama bead baubles

I love red and white Scandi style themed decor at Christmas and these baubles look beautiful hung on the tree with some ribbon around the top. I have designed several different Scandi themed Hama bead craft projects.

Hama bead Christmas wreath ornaments

These simple Christmas wreath ornaments are made using a circular pegboard. You can use coloured thread to make hanging decorations or you can also attach a magnet to the back. For these ornaments I used a small picture from an old Christmas card but you can also personalise them with a photograph of a child or pet.

Hama bead and ribbon bauble ornaments

These Hama bead Christmas baubles are similar to the Scandi themed baubles above but using a wider range of colours. The Christmas ribbon really makes them stand out.

Scandi style Hama bead Christmas mat

This Christmas Hama bead mat is made on the square pegboard using simple stripes then the holes are used for cross stitch designs on top. I love combining two of my favourite crafts!

If you are new to crafting with Hama beads then you might find this post useful - Ironing tips for Hama beads.

If you enjoyed these Hama bead projects then you might also like this post - Ten Hama bead projects for adults - which contains lots of Hama bead crafts that adults will enjoy working on as well as children.

Happy festive crafting!

Ideas for a year long or long term craft project

As the end of the year approaches, like many people I start to think about the things that I want to accomplish over the following year, and my crafting plans form a big part of that. I love to do lists and I enjoy seeing how doing one simple thing daily can achieve great results in the long term.

I few years ago I completed my Sky Blanket. Every day I crocheted a simple row based on the colour of the sky that day. It was a very satisfying project and I remain very proud of the result. Although to be fair it is enormous and used a lot of yarn - next time I would scale the project down a bit and perhaps make a scarf!

I got to thinking of different crafty projects that can be achieved with just a small amount of work each day. Not only that, they also serve as a reminder of the year, acting as a visual diary and reminding you all all the things that you've seen, done and experienced. 

So here is a big list of ideas for craft projects which will last a whole year and leave you with a satisfying result which will serve as the reminder of the year just gone. At the bottom of the post you can find a link to my Ideas for a year long craft project Pinterest board which is packed with inspiration, ideas and tips.

Visual diary blankets and scarves

* Sky blanket or scarf - Knit or crochet a row or square each day to represent the colour of the sky.

* Temperature blanket or scarf - Base your row or square on the temperature for the day.

* Weather blanket or scarf - Use the weather for that day to choose your row or square.

* Mood blanket or scarf - Track how you are feeling each day by choosing a colour to represent your emotion that day.

More random blankets and scarves

* Roll of the die blanket - roll a die each day to choose the colour of your row.

* Granny square blanket - make a different granny square each day and sew them together to make a blanket. You can find some fantastic inspiration in this 365 Days of Granny squares blog post.

* Activity themed blanket - choose something else to theme your blanket on each day, for example a colour that represents something that you've done, something that you've watched on television, a book that you've read and so on.

Photography and video

* Daily photograph - take a photo each day and at the end of the year you can turn them into a video or print them out as a collage or album. Many people share their daily photos on social media.

* A year in seconds video - I did this in 2017 and although it was a bit of a faff I was really pleased with the result. I put mine together in my video editing software, but now there are apps that make the whole process much easier.

Sewing and embroidery

* Daily stitch challenge - learn a new embroidery stitch everyday and display them in a sampler. 

* Embroidery hoop daily stitch challenge - each day add a small piece of embroidery to an embroidery hoop. You could sew small pictures to represent something that you've done that day, or add in buttons and sequins.

Other daily craft challenges

By spending a few minutes every day working on a craft or technique you can easily chart your improvement over time. Last year I completed the 100 Day Project where I drew or painted each day for 100 days. It wasn't always easy to fit it in but I managed it and I had a great time learning how to use watercolours and improving my skills. 

There are all sorts of craft challenges about if you have a search online, and plenty of supportive communities too which you can get involved with.

Finally a great crafty plan for the year is to list all your unfinished craft projects and aim to complete one each month (or each week if you are feeling keen!). I did this last year and you can read about all the things I was able to accomplish here - A year of completing my unfinished craft projects.

My current cross stitch project - Olde World Map by Janlynn

This post contains Amazon affiliate links

I thought I'd share a little bit about my current cross stitch project! I'm working on the Olde World Map by Janlynn (affiliate link) which was purchased as a kit a year or two back. It's a full kit containing everything that you need, with a completed size of 18" by 15".

I started the kit in December 2020. Sometimes when I start a long term craft project like this I set myself a vague deadline, thinking about when I'd like to see it finished, but there's no rush with this one, I just want to enjoy the process. I can see it taking several years to complete.

So far I've almost finished the left hand circular part of the map and I've started working on the background in the lower left of the design going into the wide border. I always start my cross stitch in the middle to make sure that the design is centred on the cloth, then I like get the borders in place so that I can see how the design is going to take shape.

I spent more time than I usually would sorting out this kit before I got started. I wound all the different coloured threads onto individual cardboard bobbins and then sorted them into small plastic bags based on their colour. I normally just leave the threads on the cardboard holed sorter that they come on and end up with a huge tangled mess, so this has made a big difference. 

Also for the first time I made myself a copy of the pattern to work from, in case I lose the original. It also means that I can mark the pattern if I need to. In some places it's not the easiest pattern to follow, and in particular some of the backstitch is quite difficult to work out. There are also lots of half stitches, and sometimes it's difficult to see which thread you should be using, so you have to guess a little bit.

It's an interesting design to stitch, with a variety of different types of stitching. There are full coverage areas, parts with lots of similar colours where need to pay close attention to the pattern while you stitch, and repetitive outlines and backstitching that you can work on while there are other distractions around you.  

I really love the design and I'm enjoying working on it. I think it's going to look really good when it's finished, and I've already lined up a spot for it on the wall of our dining room!