Do you know Nova from A Cuppa and a Catch Up? She has a really lovely blog. If you are like me, you read many good blogs, but there are a few special ones - the ones that make you feel excited and happy when a new post pops up in your reader. A Cuppa and a Catch up is one of those blogs for me. I used her great quillow tutorial to make Tim and Holly's quillow, her Nesting Fabric Bowls pattern has become my "go to gift" and this year Nova's Liberty Scrap Challenge is helping me to learn to sew with Liberty rather than just pat it!

So, I was so excited when I was drawn out of the hat to be the June Giveaway Guest Challenger. And when the package of scraps arrived in the mail I squealed with delight! (Think about it... you go to the letter box knowing that the most likely thing to spring from it is your latest credit card bill and instead you find Liberty Fabric. That is definitely squeal worthy)

I've come up with two ideas.

Today, I will show you a little Liberty head band - more of an idea than a tutorial. I made two last night (in a rush as usual) for Pippa to give as gifts at a birthday party she went to today. They were very quick to make and I'm pleased with how they turned out.

Have you ever made a Suffolk puff?

They're funny little things. I think they are also called yo-yos. I have to admit - I think they are quite old fashioned, but I have been playing with them a bit lately. I have seen some very sweet necklaces and some great embellished t shirts that use Suffolk puffs. And one day... if Caroline and I can ever get the motivation we will finish our Project Run and Play Signature Look which uses... you guessed it... Suffolk puffs.

Suffolk puffs are very simple to make.

You can cut yourself out a circle of fabric and turn a small edge under. Do a running stitch right around the edge and pull it up tight. That's it - your done

Even easier - you can buy yourself a Yo Yo maker. I used a Clover one. You only need a scrap of fabric about 7cm in diameter to make a puff that is 3 cm wide. If you are desperate and working with really small scraps you can actually piece scraps together to make the 7 cm circle. I did it a couple of times and the puffs worked out just fine.
I won't give you detailed instructions on how to use it, because the yo yo maker comes with those. But this will give you an idea:

When I was making these, I got to the stage where you start to draw up the gathers and decided this must be how fairies make shower caps!! I can't imagine any thing more perfect than fairies wearing Liberty shower caps.

I had bought the head bands for another project that was not successful(!) involving hot glue. The satin ribbon that originally covered the band ended up ruined by the glue so I ripped that off and was left with a thin black plastic headband. I found some gros grain ribbon in my stash that was a little wider than the band and stitched a channel in the ribbon so the band fitted in snuggly. If you are going to cover your own head band don't forget to turn the raw edges of the ribbon in before you sew it on both ends. Once you have put the band in your ribbon cover, you can hand stitch the ends closed to create a nice neat finish.

I hand stitched the puffs onto some felt leaves and then stitched them onto the ribbon band. I am now scared of the hot glue gun!!

Here is Pippa modelling a band for us:

Let me interpret this look for you:
"Mum, why are we on the front foot path taking photos? Can't we just wrap this head band up and go to the birthday party? I'm late!!!!"

I'll be back soon with Liberty Scrap Challenge 2.

Madeleine turns 7 on Thursday and preparations are  in full swing - dinner on Thursday with our family and a party with 5 of her friends on Saturday. It is all going to be lovely, but I have to admit this year I am feeling a little confused when it comes to presents...

A take along art satchel made by me, filled with beautiful art supplies and a watercolour nature journal or some Littlest Pet Shop?

All my instincts about parenting would instantly tell me the Art satchel is perfect. It is a gift that I have made for her and making for me is a way to show my family that I love them. It is full of quality art materials that I hope will nurture her creativity, her interest in the environment and  an appreciation for the beauty in the world around her.

And well Littlest Pet Shop is... Littlest  Pet Shop - a huge collection of plastic stuff sitting on toyshop shelves waiting to be purchased and collected. Stuff that I would usually dismiss as rubbish, stuff that would annoy me if anyone else gave it to my children. But this stuff has another role that I am only just learning about. It is something that helps Madeleine connect with her peers. The two littlest Pet Shop characters Madeleine already has are highly treasured possessions. Madeleine would say that it's because they are cute, but I think it's got a lot more to do with her feeling like she belongs - she has something that her friends have and that makes her feel good. This  is probably the first lesson they teach in Marketing 101, but I haven't really thought about it like this before!!!

So what do you think...

Should birthday gifts be virtuous or should you put your parenting philosophies aside and let your children have what they would truly love but you don't really approve of?

I'm going to sit on the fence this year...
On Thursday morning Madeleine will be unwrapping the Art satchel and a Littlest Pet Shop character to add to her collection.

If you're feeling virtuous or you're a fence sitter like me, I'll have a tutorial for the Art satchel later this week. It's quite nifty!! I'll show you how to measure up your art supplies and make a take anywhere satchel in any size you want.

On Saturday evening I experienced a major dose of mother guilt as I wrapped Will's birthday presents ready for his birthday on Sunday. You see, the only wrapping I could find in the house was of the Christmas variety and so, that is how they were wrapped. I find it so easy to get caught up in "perfect" - perfect hand made gifts wrapped perfectly, and a perfect birthday party completed by a perfectly decorated cake. I know I can never achieve perfect, I just pretend to aspire!!

In all the fun and rush of Project Run and Play, Will's 2nd birthday crept up on me. Rob and my Dad were very organised and made Will a fantastic gadget board full of locks and clips and black boards and mirrors. It justifies its own blog post - so watch this space!

My birthday crafting started on Saturday afternoon. Will has a new Teddy in a Tin which he loves. "Teddy sleeping" is heard often around here now! The squares in the quilt are 3/4 inches - a perfect contrast to the big picture of Project Run and Play.

I was inspired by this.

Our party was very much last minute as well - our family, grandparents, the cousins who were in town and our most wonderful friend and nanny, Romy. Although last minute, the party really felt perfect.

There was a cake decorated by big sisters:

For those wondering, it's a dog!!!

And most importantly lots of family with lots of love:

Who needs mother guilt when all your little 2 year old needs for a perfect birthday is a cake and lots of love?