BobbinLacePillow -tutorial

Do you remember my bobbin lace base? It is made of Finnfoam frost insulation sheet. I have found it a bit too hard and thin in the use. Also, the white cover has turn out to be an bit too bright and white. That's why I have made some improvements to it.

I used an old YogaMat to create some more height to it. I used hot glue to fasten the YogaMat sheets under the Finnfoam. Just a little bit around the edges.

On the top I placed 1 cm foam mattress to create a bit softness. This was my only left over piece so I needed some jig saw puzzle method to complete it. But that is just ok be cause it comes so close the edge that it doesn't actually matter. I used again hot glue to fasten the foam. I pinned the edges to make sure the foam stays on until the glue dries up.

Then I cut much bigger round piece out of jersey. I sew the single fold and left it open for 2 cm to be able to take the elastic band in and trough it. Then I just tighten it all up and made a knot to the elastic band.

Ta-dah. Now I have self-made updated bobbin lace pillow and a cover for it. I saved about 120€. But I saved also the nature resources because all the other materials except the jersey fabric were recycled. This is FashionNOW.

FeltedSoap1

One of my very special and great 50th birthday gifts was felted soap bar. I've seen ones few times but never tested it. Now I have used the one I received as a gift and had great experiences with it. It was a surprise that the felt cover shrunk with the soap. My expectation was it gets loose little by little when the soap shrunk. But only at the end the felt was loose! Wow!

Because it was such a great experience I decided to have a new one. I  made my 1st ever felted soap bar. This soap bar is first wet felted. Then I continued the process with needle felting. You can't push the needle straight down because the soap bar is inside. But you can use the needle "sideways". Just testing how it works best. Felted soap bar is an excellent for full body wash and scrub. I used Marseille soap and Finnsheep wool. Usually they use merino wool for the felted soap bars. I do have a lot of Finnsheep wool so I use it. Its more rough and harsh but perfect also for this body scrub soap!

TheBooks1

This year I decided to challenge myself to show you what on earth I read. In this blog post I show you which books I've read in January and February 2025. This Finnish needlebinding book has been in a hard use. I have a one day course coming up in May 2025. I do have learnt the method but I have needed this book and been reading it a lot because of educational issues. I know many people have bought this excellent book of Mervi Pasanen but still have not been able to learn needlebinding. I have made notes on the book on the parts I find the pedagogical approach needs a bit extra. This books includes also designs so it is a very good shop but it is available only in Finnish. This copy is mine but available also at the libraries in Finland. It is published on 2015 but you can't get it second hand. It is so popular that every new small edition is sold out quite soon so keep your eyes open.

This book is Finnish version of German Kerstin Balk's SoxxBook Family & Friends by Stine & Stitch. It was published on 2019 so I found it on sale. I need books for my professional library so I regularly browse through the sale items. This book turn out a great item with its several new and fresh designs and proper illustrated step by step pictures to complete the heels. Also this books needs some pedagogical notes but it really is something I can use at work. I have The socks and heels -course coming up on the next autumn! This item is mine and in Finnish but available at least in German too.

This book is one of my very special 50yrs birthday gifts on 2025. I was quite thrilled when it arrived up to the north via snail mail and I had no idea about it. It is published in 2024 and was so fresh that I didn't even know it to exist despite I just love Gilmore girls. This is a great gift to every knitwear lovers even if they would not knit. It is a very beautiful book (in English) with full of the same spirit the famous series bring. This book really proves I do R-E-A-D craft books. I have read also this one for several times. I just don't see the pics, I read it all. Crazy? Might be. But on the other hand I bet people read also recipe and fitness books even they would not cook or exercise on that very specific moment. Tanis Gray has been able to create a very special book for all Gilmore girls. I must tell few pre-orders for the Christmas 2025 have arrived already and marked on the pages by someone else than me! 

TheMagazines1

This year I decided to challenge myself to show you what on earth I read. In this blog post I show you the magazines I read. I read Kodin Pellervo. It is a Finnish lifestyle publication. Some people -who obviously have not read any issue- classify it as a political publication but it doesn't include the politics at all. I like it because it includes articles that interests me. It also includes a lot of recipes and craft instructions but only a little bit of commercial advertisement. It's more full of the real topic than advertisement. I share this magazine always with my mother. At the end I keep the craft instructions because of my work as a craft teacher and she keeps the rest. This is 100 % Finnish magazine, not international concept.

I read Taito magazine. It is published by Taito Organization which is The Finnish Crafts Organization. I read it because it includes all the fresh news on crafts field in Finland. It interests me because of my work and personal reasons. This magazine I don't share with anyone but keep myself and use at work. This is 100 % Finnish magazine, not international concept.

Daphne's Diary magazine is my personal environmental crime. For my defense I must tell I buy it only seldom and only then when I am visiting Turku because this magazine is not available in my home town Kemi. In nine years I have bought 6 issues and they are my treasures in my library. I like this lifestyle magazine because of its articles and craft instruction but also because a lot of the material it includes which I can't get locally.

Dutch Heel No3 (var.)

I have designed and knit one more pair of socks. This is a variation of traditional Dutch Heel No1 (trad.) woollen sock. I use this style especially for the hard use woollen socks. The difference is the sole part. The stronger knitting continues from the heel to the toes. It makes the sole warmer and more durable. I used different shades of Novita 7 veljestä yarn (75 % wool, 25% polyamide) (100g = 200m) also for this pair.

ValmarinniemiTabletWeavingBand

I just realized I have not shown you the picture of the finished tablet weaving band reconstructed from Valmarinniemi excavation. It is a very beautiful and special tablet weaving design.

It really is not a design for the beginners. But believe me, it is a worth of weaving! I really love this historical design. 

HardangerPillowCase

Decades ago -yes, it's really decades ago- I received this beautiful Hardanger pillow as a gift from my childhood friend. I like it a lot and so does my grand daughter. It is her pillow now at granny's. That's why in the past 12 months the pillow has faced life more than it did during the past decades as a home decoration item. And that's why it needed proper washing and updating the back side. 

The original design had not the opening for the case. Also, the back side fabric was worn out. That's why I unravel the edges to get off the back side fabric. I made the easy opening by using velcro. So, in the future it will be much easier for me to wash this pillow case. I assume it will face a lot of life because it is the exact size for the toddler.

This is FashionNOW at its best. The squared fabric is from an old dress of mine. I received this hand made dress over a decade ago from a student of mine. It belonged to her daughter who died in cancer before the middle age. In this way the memory of her keeps going on while we also save the planet earth.

Fabrics and crafts can hold so much emotions. We don't even understand it until it hits at our face. For my student it was very important to share the beautiful pieces of her daughter's clothes after her passing away. She donated many to me because I was as small as she was during her past years. I have used her shoes and clothes. This is the final piece left. I didn't fit in so well anymore but had kept the dress because the fabric is still prefect. It just waited for the moment to be needed again. And here is the moment. Here we need the memory of her. And in this way it will keep on bringing the joy to the life as a part of the pillow case of a small child who loves it. With a gift from my childhood friend.

NB Mittens No1

I made traditional style needlebinding mittens with a traditional style round start. I used Finnish stitch (2+2 F2). I used our old ethic produced dog wool OOW yarn (25% arctic dog wool and 75% Finnsheep wool). 

This are for Him and custom made for His hands. I really enjoyed making them and practicing this new skill I've learnt in the past 12 months.

These mittens go with the needlebinding hat I finished a month ago. In these pics the mittens and hat look rather gray than brown. The real actual shade is something between.

Like the hat, these mittens are made with FashionNOW ideology. Also the mittens include an ancient method needlebinding. They are made of locally produced ethic wool. Manufacturing the mittens has not needed electricity.