The British Homemaker - One day at a time

Day 2:  Tell us all about your favourite craft gadget and why it’s just the bees knees OR Craft something that has a summer theme This one is a tough one to decided between, in short my favourite craft gadget is my sewing machine, Kitty. She is easy, fast, modern and just never lets me down! Once Kitty and I get started we are lost in our own lushness for hours on end :) I decided to hike with the summer theme though, simply because I don't have photos of Kitty but I do of the one corner of my garden right now... Just in case you missed it, I love colour! Having such a long winter meant I had to enjoy the British weather as much as I could while I could...so out came the spray paint! Nothing was spared left out :) The old wrought iron parasol stand got the green... bright green! A metre of lush fabric from Nortex Mill and the table looks happy! Since I took these photos the rotary washing line is now a bright purple and I've decided to paint the p...

  If you are a TbH fan over on Facebook then this is nothing new to you...if you aren’t then this recycled idea may be handy for almost any room in your home. Its cheap, easy and quick as well as ideal for the kids to do too.                                              A regular cup holder....  ...

Working on some projects a couple of weeks ago I wanted something for the head of Charley’s bed…but with little income and lots of ideas I came up with something that he now loves! From this: With just a can of blue spray paint it became this: Added 3 hooks down the side, a couple of certificates and one happy little boy loves his new bed head! Cost: £0

I can’t remember {or find} any post that shows this idea from when we were living in temporary accommodation last year…so I figured I’d share them {again probably!} ...

Definitely not a good picture but it’ll do for now! I want some input….this lovely pine welsh dresser has been given to me by a lovely lady and I’m spinning over it. Ok so I have one in storage but that's for another project…this, however is just the right size to stay in my kitchen. So far I’ve just added some oil cloth buntings I’ve made {the top one actually has The British Homemaker inked on the ribbon} but I want to paint it….and I’m totally and utterly confuddled on what colour to use. I live in a brand new house that is naturally very contemporary yet my style has evolved over recent years and I’m definitely into the retro/vintage thing { see here for the wall art } I’m not using any particular colours but I am loving the pastels right now. Yet again I love the bright turquoise too. No, scrap that I’m saving the turquoise for the living room accents! ...

Don’t throw out any old video cases, they are ideal for recycling into secret boxes: With the plastic cover left on, pretty paper or card inserted  you can change whatever else you show. In Kirsten’s room she has a quote I found for her, a small wordart I made and a photo of my granddaughter. At any time she can swap for other photos or whatever. Inside, I’m sure she’ll find something to hide, such as chocolate! This is one I made for valentine. Inside are 14 red cards with a range of sayings, quotes and word arts. This was an ideal gift for someone. The sides can be covered too… I do recommend a stronger adhesive than double sided tape though. I ended up using my glue gun {it was not going to beat me!} Debs

A couple of weeks ago I was helping to make some bunting for our local hospice. With some extra triangles left over I decided swap them with some others I’d made that fit in with the theme of the one I was finishing up on. This one is for Charley’s room, he loves bright colours, fun things and these colours fit with his room perfectly. I didn’t use a tape to connect them to, I just continued all across with the zig-zag stitch all the way across and fixed it to the wall with some fun bright thumb pins. Charley loves his new bunting and is still harping on about the top half of the wall not complete….he wants his favourite characters painted on to make a large scene, ‘’like a movie of them all’’ as he says. Three boxes covered in cardstock and pipe cleaner handles is perfect for his lil wallet, ‘’secrets’’ and his little journal and pen. All are hooked up above his bed for easy access. Total cost: £0 Total time to make: 1 hour collectively. Debs