We've Moved!

You can now find our Blog directly on our website www.ministryofcraft.co.uk

Hope to see you there!

Pom Pom Wreath DIY

To celebrate our NEW wreath making workshop we've got a super easy DIY for you. The nights are drawing in and you need a bit of colour around the house to distract from the grey outside your window. Our Pom Pom Wreath is perfect, an all year round decoration all you need is a spare hour and some left over yarn!

We used pom pom makers to make our pom poms but if you don't have them then Mr Printables has great Pom Pom tutorials as well as how to make your own Pom Pom maker with cardboard and bulldog clips. So, let's make a pom pom wreath!

You will need:

Pom Pom maker
Yarn for pom poms (this is a great way to use up old bits of leftover yarn)
1 metre of 1mm wire
Ribbon
Scissors

What to do:

First of all make your Pom Poms - follow the instructions of your pom pom maker to do this. You can make them all one size or different sizes as I have.

 Lay them out as you go along to get an idea of the shape.

When you are happy with your pom pom arrangement cut 1 metre of wire.

Thread the pom poms on to the wire, you need to be careful doing this as it may push some of the yarn out of the centre of the pom pom - don't worry if it does!

Another thing to look out for is where you push the wire into the pom pom, you want to be as close to the centre as possible, they may look a little higgley piggledy if the wire goes in slightly off centre, just re-thread if you are unhappy with the placement of the pom pom.

When all the pom poms are threaded and you're happy with them cross the wires over each over and pull them until the wreath forms a circle. Twist the wire around itself to secure in place and cut off any remaining length.

 Cut a length of ribbon (up to you how long you want it) and tie it around the wire. Push the pom pom's up towards it to cover any gaps.

Now test hang it to make sure you're happy with it and don't be afraid to give it a bit of a faff if the shape isn't what you want!

You've done it! How easy was that!

#Ministrymakes Winner - October

 

We had a record number of entries for this months  #ministrymakes and it was tough picking a winner. In the end we were won over by this cute little girls dress by Kim;

'I attended the "Sew a little girls dress" class a couple of months back, and managed to make another dress for my friends daughter, Maisie - she loves it!'

 

We can see why, we love it too! 

How great is it to be able to hand make your own presents for friends and family, well done Kim! 

Book Review & Giveaway: Crochet Dress Up by Emma Friedlander-Collins

Halloween is fast approaching and if you're stuck for costume ideas we've got the book for you! Crochet Dress-Up by Emma Friedlander Collins has loads of great ideas for dressing up the kiddywinks. 

I had already decided on my own costume this year (you'll have to wait for the big reveal on that!) but by lucky coincidence the book had a little inspiration on how to make it a reality. I followed the pattern for the cobweb necklace and adapted it to make it a little bit bigger. The pattern was easy to follow and my cobweb was suitably spooky!

Cobweb necklace in the book

My spooky adaptation

And that's really the test of a good crochet book - easy to follow patterns and great ideas! This book has both and it also has a bonus beard pattern! What more could you want?

Beards!

Well why not have a go at one of the patterns for FREE! Click here for the excellent witches hat pattern.

*GIVEAWAY* Head over to Facebook TODAY (14 October) for our giveaway of this fantastic book! 


©CICO Books, taken from Crochet Dress-Up by Emma Friedlander-Collins, photography by Terry Benson, published by CICO Books

Knit the Rainbow!

 We've been going a bit Decoupage mad recently at HQ. Between Minecraft necklaces and glittered baubles nothing's safe from out glue and paper!

And since nothing is safe it led us to use the brilliant art of decoupage to brighten up our knitting needles. It always baffles me that it's so hard to get hold of colourful knitting needles.

I didn't attempt this with any of my plastic or metal needles as I'm not sure they would look as good as the wooden ones but I think you'll agree that it's a nice little touch to a bamboo needle.

Have a go yourself and if you need a bit of direct, don't forget about our fantastic Decoupage workshop.

#Ministrymakes Winner - September

This months winner is the lovely Sandra, who was so motivated by attending our Made to Measure: Skirt Pattern workshop that she went home and made the skirt the very next day!

We love this fabric, it makes a really lovely skirt that seems to match the season, bringing a bit of brightness to the darkening days.

Well done Sandra!

If you fancy making your own A-Line Skirt then why not join us for our Sew an A-line or pencil skirt in a day workshop 10th October.

Guest Blog Post: Learn to Long Arm Quilt at Breightmet Quilting Studio

This week our friends over at Breightmet Long Arm Quilting Studio tell us about their special machines that takes your quilting to another level!

So, what is a long arm quilting machine?  It is basically a “fancy” sewing machine that is mounted on a quilt frame.   Our studio uses a semi-industrial sewing machine and a super-king size frame, which holds the layers in place while you sew.  It's amazing!

 You can finish a large quilt with ease or explore free motion embroidery on a large scale.

Despite the growing popularity of sewing and quilting, these machines are relatively few and far between.  Part of our vision is to provide access to a machine that is out of most people’s budget and is too large to store in one’s home or studio space. 
 

We offer classes on using the machine as well as regular quilt clubs:  First Friday of the month 1-3pm and third Wednesday of the month 6:30-8:30.  We also offer a quilt finishing service and allow people to rent our machine.

Just mention Ministry of Craft and you will receive 15% off.

Get in contact with the Quilting Studio below:

Facebook:      Breightmet Long Arm Quilting Studio
Email:              breightmetquiltingstudio@yahoo.co.uk
Twitter:                      Alongarmquilter
Mobile:                       07872 342 718         (Jennifer Gilmour)
                                    01204 329710           (Linda Jones)

Continue building on the skills you’ve learned on Ministry of Craft’s Patchwork Workshops.