Hobbies and Activies Suggestions

[TwoBlueLines]

Hi.

I was wondering if anyone could suggest things I could do which can be done on an adhoc basis I.e when the lo is asleep but could be left for a few days or more.

I would probably do this in the late evening for an hour or two at a time but equally could be for 15mins depending on the activity.

I have very little storage space to hide the components from little curious hands.

Obviously a bonus would be if I could earn some money (not a priority) but equally a small start up cost would be helpful.

Thanks

Quilting? Although sstorage might be an issue. I love cutting up thousands of tiny little squares of fabric and then slowly, whenever I get the time, piecing them all together to make a quilt.

Also, what about (simple) jewellery-making? You could make a lovely leather wrap bracelet quite easily by just working on it for 15 minutes at a time, and it doesn't take up much space. I order all the stuff to make my jewellery from this online shop and they are really good. Have a browse and see if anything takes your fancy...

Other sewing would also work if you have a sewing machine? There are loads of free tutorials and patterns on other people's blogs if you do a search, and you can buy cheap fabric on ebay or from this online shop, where I get a lot of my fabric.

Have fun!

Crochet or sewing?

I've started both in the last year. Crochet is cheap to start and completely addictive, all you need is a hook and some yarn, which can cost less than £2. It's also quiet if you are worried about disturbing dc's in the evening. You tube is great for learning and you'd get plenty of support on here

Sewing is a bit more of an outlay if you want a machine but it's very satisfying, I've made a few bags and skirts which I am very proud of.

Thanks.
Might try those.
Any other ideas?

Crochet its awesome once you get the hang of it. I taught myself using a mixture of "the happy hooker" by Debbie Stoller and online tutorials (youtube etc) when i needed to see something to figure it out.

You can make such fab things - i love granny squares for blankets and its great for making toys (amingurumi).

Also, hand embroidery is really enjoyable. Sites such as sublime stitching and urban threads have really good pattern ideas (basically any simple line drawing can be made into an embroidery pattern). Sublime stitching also do "Starter kits" too which are really great - although all you really need are threads, needles and an embroidery hoop. I taught myself using the sublime stitching book and can happily sit and embroider for hours watching telly (I'm currently working on an embroidered wedding photo that i turned into a line drawing using a free website ).

If you like the hand sewing option, tapestry is also a lovely thing to do which can be picked up and put down easily (very time consuming but you can make some lovely things).

I could go on all day as I am a total craft-a-holic but i'd say those are the ones that spring to mind as something easy to get started with and easy to pick up/put down.

If you're still wanting ideas one of my favourite sites is craftster. The community area has forums for pretty much every craft going and you can see finished items and get a feel for the kind of things you might want to make.

Also pinterest is amazing for getting ideas.

Here are some links to the boards I have in case you want an idea of the kind of things you could make:

crochet

embroidery

tapestry

Good luck and let us know how you get on!

Either knitting or crochet. I can do both but I personally prefer knitting. It is much more versatile imo and there are a lot more patterns around for things I want to make - mainly knitwear for adults and children. Crochet is great for blankets and cushions but I don't have much need for a lot of crocheted stuff. If I want blankets and cushions I tend to make them out of patchwork.

Much as I love patchwork and quilting (I've done several courses and made quite a bit) I think I have to disagree with the idea that it doesn't take up much space. If you want to do it to selling standard you are going to need a sewing machine. Plus all the bits and pieces start taking over. I have stuff everywhere. I suppose if you were starting small, doing hand pieced hexagons or something you could keep it contained but if you enjoy it, it you will start finding that what you 'need' grows and with it your requirement for storage. That is without factoring the fabric stash which will inevitably come with it.

The big advantage of knitting and crochet for me is that you just need needles for knitting or a hook for crocheting plus space to hide the yarn away which doesn't need much space at all. You can do some for a few minutes too but I don't find that with patchwork and quilting.

Other ideas would be

cardmaking - since most of the bits are fairly flat you can keep it all in a box file unless you get really serious about it.

jewellery making - again a small box of bits can be enough.

embroidery/cross stitch/tapestry - get a kit and keep it simple and it will hardly take up any space. Unless you are really good or you incorporate the work into something useful, I think they have limited scope for selling though.

Dressmaking and other sewing - a bit like patchwork and quilting. Unless you are an excellent hand sewer you are going to need a machine which makes storage an issue.

Drawing/painting - could take up very little space but another thing that could grow and painting can take a while to set up.