#SherlockLives (on a pillow)

I have big news, lovely people who spare my blog a glance.

I made something!

For those of you who know this blog well, this remark will probably be met with the theory that I am developing amnesia and have forgotten that I have been a long-time maker of things. And so let me elaborate: I made something using material and a sewing machine and that had absolutely nothing to do with knitting needles or yarn. In short, I stepped out of my comfort zone.

What choice did I have? Because when I saw this Sherlock Holmes pillow on Etsy, I knew I had to have one and I knew that I could make it myself for cheaper than $30. (Though, $30 is really a fantastic price for a hand-sewn appliqué pillow, so if you're in the market for a Sherlock pillow and don't have the talent to make one yourself, I would advise you to add the aforementioned one to your Etsy cart.)

If you looked at the Sherlock pillow that inspired mine, you'll notice that I made a few changes in my design, mostly to the coat and scarf. Possibly my favorite change was the addition of the red buttonhole on the coat's lapel, which is one of the things I love about the actual Sherlock's coat. It's a tiny detail, but I love it nonetheless.

Out of respect for Heart Felt Design, I won't publish any instructions on how to make your own Sherlock pillow. But I will say that it was fun and easy to make, and I may well be taking inspiration from some of her other pillows…

DIY Braided Bracelet Tutorial

As promised, here is the tutorial for the braided bracelet I posted about yesterday.

FO Friday: DIY Braided Bracelet

I spent the most part of this evening working on this little braided bracelet. It started out being a never ending magical braid, but in the end I had to admit that I wasn't making any magical infinity bracelet, and settled on a little stockinette bit thing at the back. But I did graft the ends together, so it's completely seamless. 

Tomorrow I'm going to make another one and take some in progress pictures so I can get together a pattern for it. But tonight, you'll have to do with the story of its inspiration. 

I got my first watch (actually it was my second, but let's just say it was my first so I don't have to tell the story behind my actual first watch) when I was into Lord of the Rings a couple of years ago. I searched the jewelry section of Target for the perfect watch that had a Middle Earth-esque band. I finally found one that was made of braided leather. I loved it, and wore it until the band snapped in two. 

If I'm perfectly honest with you, the connection  between that braided band and this braided bracelet didn't occur to me until after I'd finished the bracelet. But I had to fill this post with something, didn't I?