My Creative Space... Ottoman Cover

I inherited an Ottoman that matches my sofa from my folks a few months ago, it's really very handy (it opens so you can store things in there) but it is very, very ugly and tired looking. I usually have a couple of throws over it to disguise it, but they slip off all the time and drive me nuts — so being the crafty, frugal lady that I am, I made a cover!

I found this tutorial on-line on the ever-popular website, Design*Sponge and now my living room is looking a little smarter... My next project will be to sand, stain and re-cover the seat on that cute, vintage 2 seater couch I also recently acquired!

Kids Belt Tutorial...

I've been thinking about making some kids belts for a while now, I bought some little loop things at Geoffs Emproium years ago always intending to do something with them — and I finally found some motivation!

I found this tutorial for a double ring toddler belt on the Prudent Baby website (definitely a site worth looking at if you have a few spare hours! It's hard not to look away once you start...) which reminded me that I had the rings, now all I needed was some motivation!

My idea had always been for the belt to use velcro rather than the double rings, I find that it holds better and doesn't slip out and it 'grows' with your child just as easily.

All up this belt took about half an hour and just requires straight stitching.

How-to after the jump...

Pin Cushion Tutorial

I've been meaning to make a pin cushion for AGES but wasn't too sure how to go about it. After taking a looksie online, I have adapted a few tutorials I came across in my own way and came up with this method. You don't need a sewing machine at all and there is minimal hand stitching involved so it's a quick and easy thing to make — and makes a great gift!

How-to after the jump....

Welcome!

Hey there,

Thanks for stopping by. I thought that I had better pop up a little post about what this blog is going to be about and my high hopes for what it could be...

Money is pretty tight at the moment for most people, and if you're anything like me, you probably live week to week with nothing but the smell of an oily rag left over the day before pay day. Well, I've been practising at keeping as many pennies in my purse before the next pay day as I can. So far it has been going rather well, with the occasional skimming it really does add up and when my next warrant is due or my phone bill is a little scary-big, I don't cry and instead I'm a little better prepared.

Some of the things that I will be posting about are — sewing patterns, recipes, budget tips, ways to change spending habits without it being too painful, gardening, links to great tutorials, my own tutorials and my own experiences with all of these things.

A bit about me and my background — I am a solo Mum of one little girl who is now 4, she has a special lactose and gluten free diet thanks to some allergies, and the special foods I buy can be rather expensive. I am back studying full time after being made redundant earlier this year and I run 2 little craft businesses that aren't (yet) making me millions but are a lot of fun regardless.

I'm not a budget freak, I also sometimes slip up and overspend a bit (usually on my daughter though!), so just so you know, I'm pretty normal with my spending habits. I'm not here to give anyone a golden ticket or a 'get rich quick' remedy, just merely to share a little bit of advice from what I have learnt since having a few life changing financial situations over the years, and hopefully some people out there may find it helpful and use my tips and tricks in their own lives.

Chat soon!
Jess