Twilight in Paris

In January there was a stitch-a-long on Instagram based on Jenny Hart's Sublime Stitching patterns. I hadn't realised how prolific the craft movement is on Instagram until then so thought it would be a good time to join in. Also, I've wanted to stitch the Sad Valentine pattern for a while now. It reminds me of the Twilight in Paris music video from the 80s cartoon Jem & The Holograms.... Yes, yes I'm a bit Jem obsessed lately.... sue me :-)

So I altered the pattern a bit, pulled out some funky pink and neon threads and stitched along:

I decided to frame it with a fabric wrapped hoop in neon pink, a very Jem colour! It now has pride of place on my wall above my framed Jem posted (see...obsessed!!)

If you want to see everyone else's Stitch-A-Long look up #sublimestitchingsal on Instagram for some stitchy goodness!

Women of Influence

Goodness! It has been a while since I posted but I have had so many projects, crafty and otherwise, on the go that I've got a bit behind. I've been working on family tree research, which has taken up quite a bit of my time and is very interesting. At some point I will have to share some of the best bits here. I have also been doing a little bit of stitching, the first piece of which I will share with you now.

My Women of Influence quilt square will be part of my Feminist Statement quilt.... when I finish it! It's one of those WIPs that goes on forever.... but I digress. Looking back at my childhood I have noticed many things that had shaped who I am today. Two of these things are She-Ra and Jem from Jem and the Holograms. Though both of these women are only cartoon characters I think they influenced my a lot - strong women who know what they want. She-Ra helps those in need and Jem has a fabulous wardrobe haha! So they both had to feature on my quilt. I wanted them to be on the same square as they are from the same era and the same media.

I've had the image of this square in my head and sketched out in my sketchbook for a while but finally got the chance to realise it now. I used a simple back stitch so the colours and the image itself were the main focus.

I used only three strands of thread at the most for the main outlines then striped down to one or two strands for the details and features. I'm always concerned about how facial features come out in my stitching but I think these came out ok.

This was a pretty simple embroidery piece but I think it will be one of my favourites in the quilt when it is completed!

More Jem embroidery to come!!!

Cross Stitched Iphone Case

Do you remember a couple of months ago I said that I hadn't cross stitched in many a year? I was working on designs for an iPhone case and forgot to show you the finished piece - so here it is!

I hand painted the aida with acrylic paint mixed with fabric medium to get my own custom colour. I did this on 14 count and actually really enjoyed it. I didn't find it quite as freeing as hand embroidery though so I think I will stick to that :-)

Here it is finished and flat...

and here it is on the phone. Unfortunately the case I had it in broke and I can't find one that will shut properly around my phone with the embroidery in it :-( If you hear of one, let me know!

A Truly Outrageous Samhain!

Truly Outrageous!

Finally! Here are my halloween photos!

I made the Halloween costume I wore this year for last Halloween. Check out this post from last year to see what I ended up wearing and the story behind it.

Next year I might have to make a Jerrica costume...

It ended up being a good thing that I pushed back wearing this year's costume as I was able to get the PERFECT wig! It is from the California Costume Co. and it is called the Truly Outrageous wig... for Jem from Jem & The Holograms! I am all about the 80s costumes right now :-)

As Jem at the crew Halloween party

I made the dress and belt myself. The shoes are from Payless and were only $14. It took me a while to find just the right tights, but finally I found white glitter ones.

Jem make-up test

I searched online for a Jem make-up tutorial and found a great one that used tape to get the right shape. I then used a bright pink blusher from Make-up Forever to create the geometric shapes she has. I added blue eyeliner and eyelashes. I had big pink ones but they were too much so I kept my usual diamante corner lashes instead.

Jem Star earrings

The final touch was my Jem Star earrings. I made them myself from old Christmas badges with red flashing lights, red foam and glitter. I had them flashing for most of the night and they still work!

Jem and Lady Gaga having a rock star moment

I ♥ this costume! The wig really sets it off and I think I will be using it for years to come!

Jem likes a good beer after a hard day rocking out


With my Nickelodeon cast


Jem hanging out with the drag queens!

We have two Halloween parties when working on cruise ships - a crew party and a passenger party. I wore the Jem costume for the crew party and then went as a vampire for the passenger party. I was a judge for the costume contest for both parties - who is more qualified to judge a costume contest than the wardrobe supervisor?! All in all Halloween was pretty awesome this year - in fact it was Truly Outrageous!!

My vampire costume for the passenger party


Lady Gaga falls prey to my vampire!

Happy Samhain everyone!