Doorstops

Back in January, my friend Maria visited from Canada and we went to Stamford.  You can read about it here.  While we were there, we went to a very nice interiors/haberdashery shop and Maria saw some material printed with a London map, which she absolutely loved. I bought a metre of the material and rashly promised to make her a doorstop, for her birthday in July, which I would send to Canada.   I did some research in books and on the internet.  I was looking for a pattern which had velcro on the base, and a handle and I ended up feeling a bit like the Prince looking for his Princess in the story of 'The Princess and the Pea'...one was too small, one had a zip, one didn't have a handle, one was a pyramid shape...you get the idea.  Eventually, I found the perfect one for me!  If you'd like to have a go yourself, it's here.  I liked the jokey way the tutorial was written and can say that it was easy to follow and surprisingly easy to make.  I practised first by making a lining from calico, which was a separate cube placed inside the main one, for ease of filling.

Look, here it is!  I made this!  As you can tell, I am pretty pleased with myself. 

 I did have to think about which way up the pieces would have to go, but it worked out well.

 The fabric looks good too.

Not content with that, I also made a notebook cover, with a felt flower made from my felt.

It all arrived safely with Maria (only a few weeks after her birthday...oh well...) and I think she liked it.  It's a little reminder of her visit to England.