Monday 8 December 2014

Christmas gift ideas for stitchers

Need a present for a stitchy pal? Or just want a few ideas to put on your own Christmas list? Then look no further as I've put together a small selection of my favourites to kick start your present buying. They mostly focus on sewing, with a couple of wild cards thrown in for good measure.

My first choice is rather unusual - two illustrations by artist Anneke CaraminAnneke created several designs as part of her Masters degree project, but the two below are the ones that really captured my imagination. They tell the story of Josephine, a seamstress, and have a wonderful, old fashioned feel to them - l love the simple style. the muted colours and even the clothes Josephine wears!




The illustrations are reproduced onto postcards and I think they would look beautiful framed and hung in a sewing room, which is exactly what I'm going to do with the two I've just ordered. The rest of the designs in the collection can be found on this post and you can email Anneke here to order them.

On with the list… Well designed dressmaking tools often go down a treat and I'm always on the hunt for good scissors. These steel scissors from Italy definitely look the business AND they have red handles! The 20cm Soft Touch Shears are particularly appealing because they seem light to use - good if you've got rubbishy weak wrists like me!



I was introduced to this little Pattern Notcher tool on my Pattern Cutting Course and it went straight onto my Christmas list. No more fiddling about snipping or marking notches.



What could be more impressive than making your own leather bag??!! Not much, quite frankly, apart from maybe cobbling your own shoes! These special leather bag making kits are from Fabric Godmother and are perfect either as a gift for yourself or to make up and give to a friend. You don't need to be an accomplished seamstress to make one, or even own a machine, as the kit comes with the pieces ready cut out, full instructions and a special needle and thread. There are a few different sizes and colours of kit to choose from, but my personal favourite is the navy satchel with lipstick trim (soooo stylish!) 



Whilst we're on the subject of sewing kits, the Tie Making Kit from Sew Over It could come in useful for whipping up presents for the men in your life. I tried one out recently and it worked! You'll need to do a mixture of machine sewing and hand sewing to make the tie and the result is seriously impressive - look out for a blog post on it soon!
Or if you just want a satisfying fabric fix, nothing beats Liberty fabric in my opinion, especially Tana Lawn. How wonderful would a dress made from this Queue for the Zoo fabric look?!




And finally, nothing to do with sewing but I had to put it on this list because I love mine so much - a super-fancy umbrella from Love Umbrellas. I won my red one with black flowers in a very generous giveaway by Vicki Kate Makes (thank you again Vicki!) As well as looking divine, it's actually the best performing umbrella I've ever had. Janene from ooobop has the same one, so I'm using her photos to illustrate it as they're much better than the ones on the website! 




I hope you find something to inspire you amongst this little lot. If you have anything special on your own present list that I should know about, please do share in the comments! Happy shopping!


24 comments:

  1. I may have just bought the leather satchel kit for myself for Christmas. No wonder I'm so hard to shop for. ;)

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    1. Haha, I'm exactly the same, I'm always buying myself presents! x

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  2. What lovely different ideas, ...stitchy pals you say? I think my own wishlist may have got longer!

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    1. Yes, I was just being polite when I said stitchy pals! x

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  3. Love all your ideas, but may I throw in another? I just opened a shop on Society6 with sewing-inspired prints. I've given out many this holiday season and I'm thrilled to see how other sewers have decorated their sewing spaces with them!

    http://society6.com/madalynne

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    1. What beautiful prints! As you say, they're perfect for decorating sewing spaces. Thanks so much for the link Maddie. x

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  4. Those prints are so lovely! Some wonderful Christmas sewist ideas, I just need to find a subtle way of pointing my husband over here!!!

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  5. That notchy tool! What a wonderful idea. Thanks for this.

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    1. Oh it's fab, I really want one! When the teacher showed it to us on my sewing weekend, everyone said "oooooh,", we were all smitten! x

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  6. Great ideas, a fair few more to add to my list... Particularly liking the pattern notches, never seen these before :-)

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    1. See my reply to the comment above! It was like we'd seen the holy grail! x

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  7. I can completely recommend the pattern notcher. I got one last Christmas and it is invaluable, especially with thicker fabrics. I love those postcards! ;-)

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    1. The postcards are lovely aren't they? That's good to hear about the pattern notcher, can't wait to get my hands on one! x

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  8. Im just going to leave my computer open on this page for a few weeks, see if anything sinks in!! All lovely ideas!

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  9. I like your ideas. The umbrella is great:) But I have to search somewhere for Pattern Notcher first. I never used it.

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    1. I think they're worth tracking down, they're so handy. Amazon stocks a few different types as well I think. x

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  10. Wow the umbrella idea is fabulous, I went and ordered one as a present :)

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    1. Ah fab! Lucky recipient! They really are lovely and so well made, I'm sure she'll be delighted. x

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  11. Fab idea Jane. I make some silver jewellery suitable for stitchers - I had a sewing blog for a short while called Sycamore Stitches, then I discovered blow torches and now live in filthy jeans in my shed, casting silver buttons and making silver cotton reels and the like! My Facebook page is Sycamore Silver, if you'd like a look. No imagination - I live in Sycamore House! Happy Christmas, Chris:)

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  12. Some gorgeous ideas! Those umbrellas are amazing, aren't they! Glad you still love yours!

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  13. Some great gifts....and I love the umbrella!

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  14. I made a queue for the zoo shirt!
    http://aebgledhill.com/2014/12/02/a-queue-for-the-zoo-shirt-update/
    It was great to sew with!

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