Time to thank the teachers

Last year I was commissioned to make some personalised pencil case as end of school gifts to teachers. They were quite a success so this year I am making some more - I use scrap fabrics, ribbons and other little pieces to make tiny landscapes, tied together with embroidery.

Shop news

October is here and there are some new coin purses in my shop - made from butter soft vegan leather, with free foot floral embroidery and lined with cheerful cotton prints. They close with a metallic zipper and have an interior slip pocket for a few cards or some coupons.

These purses are now available in my Etsy shop.

Thank you, teachers!

School year is almost over and for the last couple of months I have been very busy making personalised thank you presents for teachers - after I made a set of three pencil cases with applique and embroidery with a message "merci, maîtresse" (thank you, teacher) and the name of each pupil in the back, orders started coming in for more.

I enjoy going through my fabric scraps, ribbons and lace to make individual, unique fabric pictures - most are pencil cases and some smaller, card purses. Of course I have to make some for my children as well, I don't want their teachers to be left out...

After the next week I will put my Etsy shop on vacation mode over the summer - Loddelina will be back in September with new fabric and, of course, new back to school pencil cases.

I hope you have a great summer!

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Hvala, učiteljica

Šolsko leto je pri koncu in za mano sta dva meseca šivanja peresnic - daril za učiteljice ob koncu leta. Kmalu po tem, ko sem zašila prve tri peresnice, personalizirane z imenom učenca, sem dobila še nova naročila in tako je nastal cel kup tekstilnih slik iz koščkov blaga, trakcev in čipk, v izdelavi katerih sem zelo uživala.

Ko bo šola zaključena in darila predana, bom šla na počitnice in čez poletje saprla Etsy trgovino, v septembru se pa spet vidimo.

Lepo poletje želim vsem!

Christmas market

I am participating in a local Christmas creative market this Saturday and I will be offering most of my smaller purses, clutches and zipper pouches, plus some new pencil cases, house brooches and little stuffed animals I've made especially for this occasion.

I am spending my last evening making labels, preparing packaging material and my tiny stand
- I will let you know how it went in my next post...

Have a nice weekend!

Ready for Easter

I am trying to get into a spring mood inspite of constant snow showers we've been having (at least the weather keeps my snow shoveling muscles nicely toned).

Spring might be far away but the first buds are starting to show - tulips already left for a new home but the water lily shoulder bag is still available in my Etsy shop.

These three bunny plushies were made as a gift for three siblings who don't care much for cats, my usual stuffed animal of choice. So I redesigned my kitten plushie a bit and, what do you know, it's Easter!

October

I love autumn, so much inspiration in leaves turning gold, chestnuts on the ground, red berries on bare branches... I've recently added a few new coin purses to the shop and I want to make more autumn inspired items before Christmas takes over. Happy Autumn!

Živela jesen!

Back to school

Summer holidays are almost over, September is coming closer and Loddelina shop has reopened - with brand new pencil cases to start the new school year with.

They are one of a kind purses with handmade applique and freefoot embroidery, inspired by endless rows of trees by the north Italian highway on our way from France to Slovenia. The purses are 22 cm (8.5") long, 8 cm (3") tall and roomy enough to hold all your writing instruments. You can also use them as cosmetic pouches or small bridesmaid's clutches!

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Počitnice so skoraj pri koncu in septembra se začne novo šolsko leto, čas za novo peresnico! Peresnice so ročno povezene z motivi, ki so jih navdihnile neskončne ravne vrste dreves ob severno italijanski avtocesti na poti iz Francije v Slovenijo. Puščice so dolge 22 in visoke 8 cm, dovolj prostorne za pisala,  make up ali kot priročna večerna torbica.

And so it begins again

A new year, a fresh start, a tidy sewing desk, new supplies on the shelf - what more could one possibly want?

January began with a winter wedding of a dear friend and we drove to the nearby lake Geneva in Switzerland, to a beautiful little town of Vevey where we could take some great pictures of the lake and the couple just before the sun set in the afternoon.

My wedding gift were two soft but well stuffed 50 x 50 cm pillows in custom made decorative covers - I used all linen fabrics, cut out the initials F and J and decorated them with lace, ribbons and buttons.

December was a month of giving and what better thing to give than one's time and attention. Recently a couple of friends became the lucky parents of a baby boy and since they have a Christmas tradition of buying special ornaments that remind them of certain places and events, I decided to make them a "baby's first Christmas" ornament - a little bird for baby Gaspard.

And since I mentioned new supplies... I ordered some small embroidery hoops before Christmas, thinking I could engage my children in some needlework - they have been asking me to let them help me sew so I am always looking for ways to involve them in my craft in a fun, safe way. So far we haven't yet had time to try out embroidery but I couldn't just let those hoops sit on my shelf untested - so one night, while watching Agatha Christie's Poirot episodes on Youtube, I made this little floral arangement on a 5 inch (13 cm) hoop. 

But what about the children? We'll do needle work next time, for now I bought them some colour pencils for fabric and they drew some creatures on white linen which I then sewed together and stuffed into small plush toys.

While all this was going on, I hardly had any time to sew new Loddelina bags - they will have to wait for my next post.

Have a lovely week!

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In spet se začenja

Januar je čas za nov začetek, za pospravljeno šivalno mizo in nove potrebščine na polici. Mesec se je začel s poroko dveh prijateljev -  nekaj foto utrinkov iz mesteca Vevey ob Ženevskem jezeru. In moje darilo mladoporočencema: okrasni blazini 50 x 50 cm z začetnicama J in F na lanenih prevlekah. 

Pa še eno darilo, božični okrasek za dojenčkov prvi božič, moji prvi poskusi vezenja (pred novim letom sem nabavila nekaj manjših okvirjev, da bom mogoče otroka navdušila za delo z iglo) in živalice, ki sta jih na blago narisala s flomastri za tkanino, jaz pa obrezala, zašila in natlačila v mehke igračke. 

Tudi za Loddelino bo čas, več v naslednji objavi!

April news

We are in the second week of Easter holidays here in eastern France - the weather hasn't been too great for spending time outdoors so I am charged with entertainment, craft projects and other indoor activities for the children, saving a little time for sewing as well.

Some of this month's new listings to the shop; larger, extended versions of coin purse that I first made after a dear customer requested a purse in which she could store all her credit and various fidelity cards (we all have tons of those!). The card purse has two interior slip pocket for organizing cards, card payment slips, tickets and passes, which leaves enough room for coins and other smaller items.

A custom made iPhone pouch was another challenge for me, I haven't sewn a curved zipper in a long time but it was the only way to make taking the phone in and out of the purse easier - I am very happy with the result and the padded lining gives the phone enough protection without making the pouch too bulky.

Tomorrow is May 1st, international worker's day, a day off for some but a busy, perhaps sewing day for others :-)

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Aprilske novosti

V trgovini sem dodala nekaj večjih denarnic, v katerih je prostira za kartice, drobiž in ostale malenkosti, poseben izziv pa je bila tudi izdelava ovitka za iPhone po naročilu - še zlasti zadrga okrog ovinka, ki omogoča enostavno jemanje telefona ven in spravjanja noter.

Lep praznik dela želim in uživajte v majskih oblakih!

Faux leather messenger

As I promised in my last post, I tried something new and made a messenger bag from a piece of high quality upholstery faux leather I had bought recently. Sewing was smooth as butter and I was surprised at how naturally the pleather looks and feels - definitely worth trying!

I decided to make this messenger a bit taller than my usual cross body bags (3 cm) but otherwise the same, with extra metallic zipper pocket in the back. Soft grey strap complemented the metalware and I decided to add a simple freefoot embroidery in front - with a bit of silver metallic thread for additional shine.

The messenger bag has four interior slip pockets for phone, tissues, pens and paper notebook (yes, I still use one of those for quick sketches or for entertaining children while we wait at the restaurants and such) plus one zippered pocket for smaller items. A swivel hook and another D-ring on the side of the lining hold my keys and a foldable shopping bag.

The leather is lovely dark brown shade, one that goes equally well with brown, grey or black accessories. I needed a bag that was a bit more neutral than my lively red velvet with turquoise starfish I have been wearing for this past year - I never even posted that bag on blogger so here it is:

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

October news

So much to tell, so little time! Between sewing, taking pictures and editing them there is hardly enought time left to blog about it...

The nature is changing into red, orange and yellow and such is the latest messenger bag in my shop - I added a large dragonfly metallic charm in front and the soft adjustable strap in chocolate brown was chosen over the yellow one thanks to the input from my Facebook followers :-)

The second purse is a Pippa handbag, elegant and petite bag for special occasions - I chose dove grey and dark brown upholstery fabrics with beautiful structure, silver thread for embroidery and some purple and olive green ribbons to add a bit of colour. Handmade kanzashi flower brooch is detachable and can be worn on a bag or on your top to coplete the look.

A new home, anyone? Here are the latest house brooches, don't forget the Christmas tree...

And for all of you who don't have a PayPal account,  Loddelina Etsy shop is now accepting direct credit card payments. You can also purchase a shipping upgrade if you want your package to have a tracking number and insurance.

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Oktobrske novičke

Ko si utrgam čas za šivanje, fotografiranje izdelkov in friziranje fotk v računalniku, komaj ostane kaj časa še za blog! Tukaj je nekaj novosti, dodanih v zadnjih tednih: nova jesenska torba s kačjim pastirjem, elegantna torbica v umirjenih, zimskih tonih s snemljivo broško ter tri hiške broške, ki se že veselijo Dedka Mraza... Po novem lahko v moji trgovini plačujete direktno s kartico, tudi če nimate računa PayPal, zraven pa lahko zahtevate pošiljko s sledenjem in zavarovanjem.

New in the shop

I just listed a new bag in my shop, a medium to large messenger shoulder bag in dark chocolate corduroy, decorated with tulip applique and embroidery in pink, red and purple. Bag is fully lined with red canvas and has a large pocket in the back that closes with a magnetic snap.

Adjustable shoulder strap is made from cherry red canvas and a patch of striped canvas and the bag has five interior pockets for all your essentials, like phone, pencils, sunglasses and tissues + a swivel hook for your keys.

I made another bag very similar to this one for myself and have been happily carrying it around for a few days - I use my swivel hook to attach a reusable canvas shopping bag and I slip my keys in the back pocket which can also hold a newspaper or a small package I need to take to the post office. Other pockets hold my mobile phone, my iPod, a bag of paper tissues, my wallet and pens. Plus there is plenty of room for a small sketch book, sunglasses, a small scarf for sudden chilly wind (very common on this high altitude) and a makeup pouch. What else does a girl need?

A real challenge

I finished another custom work yesterday, a fabric compendium that can hold a standard A4 note pad, two BlackBerry devices, some pens and business cards.
To even make this stiff structured item that would hold all the contents safely inside, I had to purchase some super strong double sided fusible that Lisa, the amazing writer of U-handbag blog suggested to me.

The colours, materials and embroidery followed this Loddelina zippered pouch, the only thing I had to figure out was the right dimensions for all the pockets and how to sew everything together including the strong interfacing and magnetic clasps closing the folded compendium.

Making this item was quite a challenge for my handbag oriented mind, but like any challenge it gave me new ideas for future projects and, hopefully, taught me new skills to bring them to life.

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