DIY tile coasters

I have a bit of an obsession with tiles. Especially Islamic, Art Nouveau & Mexican tiles. A bit like my obsession with fabric I suppose: I would (and do) hang fabrics on my walls as if they were works of art. And since tiling most of my kitchen a la Mejicana, I thought it only fitting to put the leftover tiles to good use. It's like I always say - a beautiful dress should always have a matching cushion case. In this case, a tiled kitchen should have its matching coasters. Here's how:

Get some tiles. Get some felt. Get some glue (I like UHU).

Cut felt to match tile.

Stick felt to bottom of tile using glue.

Now make a dress and use leftover fabric to make a cushion cover.

Result: you're at my house.

Homemade air-freshener

We've all done it. Come home from a long weekend away only to be greeted by the stench of the garbage you forgot to take out before leaving (at least, I hope we've all done it... Otherwise shame on me!). So you chuck out the stinky bin, wash out the container but the kitchen still smells pretty revolting... I, for one, have always detested the sickly synthetic smell of shop bought air-fresheners, and when it comes to scented candles I'm afraid I have rather expensive taste... So in the interest of saving some pennies and avoiding nasty chemicals, I have chosen to make my own air-freshener using two basic ingredients I'm sure most of you will already have at home.

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You will need:

• bicarbonate of soda (aka baking soda) which absorbs and neutralises bad smells
• about 20 drops of an essential oil of your choice
• a shallow jar (clean & dry)
• a scrap of fabric cut into a circle 2 inches wider than your jar (open weave fabrics work best)
• a rubber band

Fill your jar about 1/3 of the way with the bicarbonate of soda. Add the oil and mix well (I went for Egyptian Jasmine this time). Have a little sniff - it should smell fairly strongly of the oil you mixed in. Position the fabric over the jar and secure with the rubber band. 

My personal favourite scents when making this powdery potion are Rose and Jasmine, but you could make up infinite blends according to your own tastes, and better yet, if you look into the properties of essential oils, you can mix specific blends to alter the mood of a particular room or even ward off unwanted insects. For example, lavender and chamomile have a calming effect - use in the bedroom of someone having trouble sleeping; rosemary has antibacterial qualities; citronella helps to repel mosquitoes; ylang ylang and patchouli up the, umm, romance... You get my drift!

Experiments with fabric paints - Part II: Celery roses

Did you know that printing with the butt of a bunch of celery produces a pretty perfect looking rose?

I can't take credit for this groundbreaking discovery... Like so many good ideas going around these days, I saw this on Pinterest. I did think it might be interesting though to compile a list of fun things to print with. Any suggestions? Off the top of my head... Snakeskin/chainmail effect printing with netting; geometric patterns by repeating a jar-rim print; okra flower stamps... Leave me your ideas in the comments below and if we get enough good ones I'll try them out and do a roundup post revealing the best results!

I used: Bamber Sew fabric paint in Opaque Red; American Apparel bandeau body; celery butt

DIY painted mason jars

If Summer won't come to me, then I'm just going to have to make it happen instead. It had crossed my mind to set up some kind of faux beach scene in the sitting room, complete with fake palm trees, hammock, sand stolen from the local sandpit and the sound of waves emanating from my iPod... Wouldn't that be amazing? But a bit over the top. So instead I just painted the inside of some mason jars, filled them with fake flowers and brought a dash of the sunshine into my house that way. Here's how:

You will need:

• Some empty jars (clean and dry)
• Glass paints
• Paintbrush

Step 1 - Start by deciding the colours for your jars. If you want to mix the colours (I added white to mine to make them lighter) do it directly in the jar. Pour a generous dollop of the paint into the jar and mix it up with a paintbrush.

Step 2 - Swish and swirl the paint around, completely coating the inside of the jar. Drain the jar of excess paint by leaving it upside down (tip: leaving the jar to drain over a ramekin will catch the excess paint ready to be used for something else). Any messy bits can be cleaned up with a damp sponge.

Step 3 - Leave your jars to dry overnight. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees. Bake for 40 mins (be sure to double check this with the instructions on your particular paints as different brands may vary) and leave to cool before filling with flowers, pens, whatever!

Tell me about it... Stud!

As well as all the pattern cutting and sample making going on in my studio, these days over at By Hand HQ we've been having a lot of fun with quick DIY projects. As much as I love the complete process of designing, cutting and making a dress from start to finish, it's so great to be able to break up the concentration with a bit of instant gratification. My little boy is now three and a half and very curious about what his Mama does. He'll often grab some yarn and needles and attempt to knit some socks, order me to make him superhero suits and dinosaur costumes or suggest I make a new dress to wear today, but is always frustrated by how long these things actually take! With all this quickie DIY stuff going on now however, he's found his niche. And my skull studs.

I am proud to say that this project was entirely his idea, he chose his studs and positioned them himself (obviously I did the anchoring of the spiky bits that hold them in place, and demolished my fingers in the process).

It seems the apple really doesn't fall far from the tree. I am overcome with pride. They are the coolest shoes I think I have ever seen. In fact I might have to copy him and make a matching pair for myself. Too much??

What he wore: raglan t-shirt; grey moleskin trousers; his studded plimsoles; 1984 Fisher Price roller skates