One for all – Easy baby blankets

May 1, 2016 by nadel&gabel

Kids are born around us in a quite high frequency these days… of course, it’s the age. When it comes to newborn gifts I always turn back to a handmade blanket. Why? Usually young parents don’t lack of clothes for their baby. So, why giving the 101st romper which will be too small within weeks, anyway? Instead I like the (potential) durability and versatility of a blanket. It can warm the newborn in the house and outside in the buggy. It can […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, children • Tags: baby, blanket, blankie, children, dots, duvet, easy, frottee, gift, indigo, lap, newborn, patchwork, Purl Soho, sewing, toddler, towel, tutorial

Keep on turning – DIY rope bowl

January 18, 2016 by nadel&gabel

This project is in my blogging queque for a while now. It was one of my christmas gift projects, actually one of my favourite ones. Over years now I’ve bookmarked various tutorials for handmade baskets or bowls – but most of them are based on handsewing … aargh … I hate handsewing, I’m a impatient person. So, basically I remained bookmarking and thinking about how I would … someday … And then I saw Frau Gold`s admirable rope bowls, followed the link for […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, decoration, supplies • Tags: basket, black&white, bowl, coil, cord, cotton, decoration, design, easy, machine, minimal, present, rope, scandinavian, sew, storage, tutorial

Small things – Beeswax food wrap

December 13, 2015 by nadel&gabel

Alright, christmas is coming closer and I am busy getting all my presents ready. This year will be very much a DIY christmas. It wasn’t intended like this from the beginning, but then I stumbled upon interesting projects, one after another, and thought that not only I could like them but also my family and friends. The pillow spray is one of them, this beeswax food wrap is another, and some more to follow up. Let me also say, that there […]

Categories: accessories, craft & DIY, digital design, fabric, storage • Tags: alternative, bee, beeswax, biodegradable, cloth, cotton, design, ecological, fabric, food, kitchen, label, natural, packaging, plastic free, reusable, sandwich, snack, storage, sustainable, tutorial, waxed, wrap

Handy – Reversible knitters project bag

November 22, 2015 by nadel&gabel

Already yesterday there was this smell in the air. Yes, I insist on this: You can smell upcoming snow! And when I got up this morning, over night the surrounding had magically transformed. As a daily commuter by car, I am aware of all the discomforts snow and cold temperatures bring with them. But every year, when I see for the first time again rooftops and trees covered in white, when I recognize the silence that snow creates, I forget about […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, wallets & pouches • Tags: accesory, bag, carry, Craft, crafter, gift, knitter, knitting, lotta jansdotter, pattern, pouch, project, reversible, sewing, travel, tutorial, winter, wristlet, yarn

So practical – Carry-all pincushion from “Handmade Style”

July 31, 2015 by nadel&gabel

 When I first flipped through the pages of Anna Grahams sewing book “Handmade Style” I had a hard time to decide with which project I would like to start: A tunic for me, another bag or perhaps a quilting project after I’ve mastered my first steps? I’ve decided to start small … and practical! A pincushion that carries everything a sewer always needs at hand? – What a brilliant idea! I gathered a few scraps in black, grey and white […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, supplies • Tags: anna graham, black&white, easy, equipment, gift, graphic, Homemade Style, monochrome, noodlehead, pattern, pincushion, present, sewer, sewing, storage, stuffing

First steps – Quilted baby blanket

July 3, 2015 by nadel&gabel

Here we go – another baby blanket since this knitted one (which is well loved, as I hear with pride). And I am aunt again! And while the little boy makes his first steps in this world (figuratively, of course), I have already successfully absolved my first quilting project. For a long time I’ve had in my mind to attempt this unconquered bastion of sewing. After buying helpful equipment like a cutting mat, a rotary cutter and a quilting ruler, […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, children, decoration • Tags: baby, batting, bias tape, binding, blanket, cotton, fabric, geometric, green, patchwork, pattern, pinwheel, playing, quilt, quilting, sewing, stich in the ditch, toddler, triangle, tutorial

Temporary solution – Fabric storage buckets

June 3, 2015 by nadel&gabel

This sewing project evolved from necessity. As I have started to do some more sewing again, I also had to face the chaos that had gained the upper hand in my jam-packed drawer as well as in my sideboard filled with fabric. And I had just bought a stack of beautiful Japanese fabrics from here, that I can’t wait to sew with … but that also need space! Aargh, it’s a constant managment of space shortage! It was time to […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, bags & totes, craft & DIY, decoration, fabric • Tags: basket, bucket, crafter, decoration, design, desktop, easy, graphic, pattern, plant pot, print, sack, scraps, sew, sewing, stamp, stash, storage, style, toys, tutorial

Retro look – Embellished tea towels

January 11, 2015 by nadel&gabel

I hold this truth for self-evident: you can’t have enough tea towels in your kitchen. … No visit to IKEA without finding me carrying a set of tea towels in my blue bag back home. They’re a cheap and easy way to bring a bit of change to your kitchen, a light and easy alterable way to try new styles, to respond to moods or seasons. I am especially fond of those simple blue-white or red-white traditional patterned towels. You […]

Categories: accessories, At the sewing machine, decoration • Tags: accent, bind, border, customize, dish, easy, edge, embellish, kitchen, pimp, repurpose, retro, ribbon, sew, tea, towel, tutorial, vintage

Azulejo style – Handprinted napkins

November 29, 2013 by nadel&gabel

When I came across those beautiful handcrafted wooden stamps from Blockwallah (in Germany sold by Rayher) at one of my latest visits to my favourite craft shop, I just couldn’t pass. So many different patterns – and aren’t all of them just amazing? I really had a hard to decide which to take! After some first trials on paper (great handcrafted christmas wrapping paper!) I really wanted to use it on fabric and create this beautiful tiled look. Doesn’t the […]

Categories: accessories, Accessories, At the sewing machine, craft & DIY, decoration, fabric, interior • Tags: colour, easy, fabric, gift, ink, napkin, paper, pattern, present, print, sewing, stamp, textile, tile, tutorial, wooden