How to create a plastic-free children’s room

Over the year we have slowly been renovating our boys shared bedroom creating a plastic free room for them to sleep and play.

In this blog I will list all the areas we sourced plastic free, natural material alternatives. The brands and methods we used and the budgets. Areas include;

Carpets

Bedding

Paint

Furniture and storage

Soft furnishings

Furniture and storage-

We kept all the boys old, second hand furniture that was solid wood. Apart from a large wardrobe which we sold as it wasnt effective storage for their toys.

Most budget friendly furniture is laminated wood which means it’s a prefab wood inside with plastic coating on the surface.

Laminated furniture does not have the longevity or flexibility as solid wood furniture and large parts are not naturally biodegradable.

We had a budget of £400 for a storage unit and baskets.

We couldn’t afford bespoke shelving but found a good alternative for our budget from Ikea IVAR shelving. It’s solid wood and you can move the shelves around which is great for growing kids with changing needs. For example we currently have a mini hanging rails for school shirts but as they age we will make this bigger.

I labelled all the boxes and catergorised all the toys…which aren’t plastic free sadly!!

I labelled them with paper tape so they can all be easily changed.

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Carpet

Most carpets contain: polyester which is plastic origins. We went with a wool carpet from a sole trader it costs around £550 for carpet, underlay and fit. We opted for a top quality thick underlay made from recycled waste.

A great example of appropriate use of recyced fibres, unlike clothes which can’t then be recycled!

By going with a sole trader we saved over £400- if anyone wants there number get in touch.

Wool despite its reputation is really forgiving, hard wearing and long lasting. We always go for a neutral colour with fleck. And remove marks with stiff bristle brush and washing up liquid.

Wool is thermal regulating, anti bacterial and anti fungal so a great children’s material!

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Paint-

Most paints contain plastic and solvents. We opted for completely plastic free paint by Edward Bulmer- the colour is called invisible green.

I was scared to paint this colour but it’s been so warm and cosy- so pleased we went with it!

This is one material that was more expensive than plastic containing counterparts. Around £150-200 on paint. So far it’s wearing well and was great to paint with so would use it again.

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Bedding!! I could talk about natural fibreed bedding till the cows come home!!

If there is one area we should be cautious of plastics on our children skin it’s when they sleep. Their pyjamas, bedding, duvets and pillows.

I haven’t made or brought any new for this room with soft furnishings, but there bedding covers are either all very old handmade cotton based covers, or off the peg cotton covers and sheets.

Their duvets I wasn’t so knowledgeable about fibre sourcing when I purchased them years ago and they are synthetic. But going forward I would save up and purchase any future duvets and pillows from woolroom.

I have used wool room cushion inners before, there not as plushy as feather filled but far more environmentally and animal friendly, made used British wool that may other wised be wasted. And more long lasting than synthetic plastic filled cushions that eventually become saggy and made entirely from plastic.

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Soft furnishings-

For now we are using some handy-me-down curtains that my BIL kindly pulled out of a skip that I soaked and cleaner and repaired. There great curtains but eventually I’ll make the boys some linen curtains with cotton interlining and cotton lining, that fit the window dimensions better.

So if anyone would the cream and navy curtains please let me know.

Here is some curtains I made in another room with the linen cotton combo.

Thanks for reading! Hope it’s helpful and if you have any ideas you want to add please do! Abigail x

Ps keep as many plants as you can in your children’s room as it’s another great way to elongate chemicals in their room as plants absorb harmful chemicals and purify the air.

The Ethical Atelier - why am I running it?

This week I have been doing lots of radio…

interviews and the presenters keep asking me 'Why are you running the Ethical Atelier?'

I suppose I thought that was obvious but now realise perhaps it isn't.

These are the 2 reasons why:

1-  I believe ferociously that the current fast fashion culture is causing an environmental crisis around the globe- The fashion industry is the 2nd most harmful industry to the climate after the energy industry, fashion is 4 times more harmful than aviation. And having worked in the industry I know first hand the high street is misleading customers with greenwashing claims.

2- I believe that dressing ethically and sustainably is easier than most people think! I will expand on this more during the event alongside a host of industry experts and makers.

My hope is that this event makes it easier for East Midland shoppers and makers to dress with a clear conscious. 

Having run Derby’s Ethical Christmas Market for the last two years with a footfall of over 1000 customers and 30+ pioneering businesses and social enterprises I know there is an appetite in Debry for ethical and sustianbel shopping but The Ethical Atelier is far more niche as it is solely about Fashion.

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My priorities for the event were to;

• showcase the best local ethical fashion brands I can

• teach hands on skills about maintaining a sustainable wardrobe.

• enable customers to utilise garments that are currently unworn through the seamstress or repair workshops

• to continue to build a community that is engaging in the sustainable fashion conversation and growing in knowledge

• to create a platform for human rights charities that are often neglected in the fashion conversation

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These are some of the brands I have secured for the event. Securing brands for a pilot event is challenging, but I am really pleased with our varied selection.

Here are some highlights of what ethical practices they showcase

• 3rd Rock- sustainably sourced activewear based in Derbyshire

• REworked348 - Derby-based brand creating menswear from disused workwear and military wear

• RAF & GRACE Nottingham based designer selling pre loved and capsule collections made with dead stock designer fabrics

• Isabelle Pennington Mead a Fashion Graduate from Manchester passionate about creating colorful and environmentally friendly pieces.

• Erosa design another Manchester young designer creating a size-inclusive natural fiber-based range

• Sustainable bags for fashion- making leather accessories using deadstock leather scraps

• Atelier A0- Derbyshire fashion brand creating GOTS luxe wear

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Educate-

This was a crucial element to the event as I believe it is in education the power to change personal habits and encouraging everyone to only shop more wouldn’t provide a sustainable event. (albeit with it sustainable brands)

So I organised an industry expert panel:

• Richard Spencer- Chairman of British Wool Central Region Committee representing 17 counties. Passionate about UK and Derbyshire sheeps wool being fully utilised in the fashion industry. he also appeared on BBC series Victorian Farm. 

• Charlotte Instone- a social entrepreneur and founder of The Known the Origin, a sustainable brand that priortises ethical and transparent practices. She scaled the business to a 7 figures and worked with Fairtrade producers and was listed as Forbes 30 under 30.

• Lelsey Gladwell- Founder and CEO of Rebuild- Derbyshire charity that works directly with victims and survivors of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery empowering them to rebuild their futures after exploitation.

• Richard Maven- James Tailoring 1 stop shop owner for sustainable sewing haberdashery. Using innovative natural materials to replace popular plastic supplies in fashion. 

• Harriet Haiynes Young- Knitwear designer and Technical Developer currently working at Derbyshire brand Sunspel but has worked across sectors of the industry for licensers on behalf of key names on the high street; Topshop, Monsoon and Primark. 

• Erica Horne-Owner and Ceo of CAD for Fashion, a experienced designer who worked with both high street and independents Erica now teaches CAD courses in pioneering 3D technology.

• Emma Atherton- Owner of NW British brand Erosa, a size-inclusive diverse fashion brand. Emma has developed a range that disregards the conventional Western sizing system and has created a size-flexible collection to embrace a diverse range of body shapes.

• Abigail Wastie- Organiser of The Ethical Atelier, a passionate sustainable textile activist with industry experience in Luxury and Ethical fashion brands now teaching sustainable sewing courses in Derby. 

Plastic Free Easter

This year we had a go at having a plastic free Easter. These are the little steps we did and the brands we shopped with to make it possible.

We baked most our Easter treats and by baker I mean “melted chocolate in the microwave!”

With melted chocolate and sprinkles we already had we made:

• Easter crispy cakes (dark chocolate, butter, golden syrup and rice crispies)

• cute little chocolate animals (using a second hand silicone mould which we rubbed with oil before pouring the melted chocolate)

• Easter chocolate slabs (poured 500g of melted chocolate onto a piece of parchment paper and add extra treats like smarties, cadburys eggs and Tony’s chocolate)

  I think Tony’s is the best high street ethical chocolate available.

We kept all the packaging as paper, card and cotton string so all recyclable. Brought from these shops:

-Paper bags

-Paper tape from

-Cotton string from Airedale yarns

Used decorations we already had.

You can read how we make our decorated eggs here. Another super easy we to make decorations with kids is using air dried clay. These ones my children made at holiday club.

The branches are from our garden.

And my favourite a suspended wreath using foraged foliage, some eucalyptus and olive branches from my local florist and some rosemary from my garden.

I selected flowers and foliage that will look good even as it’s dries.

Here is my blog explaining how to make a Easter wreath.

Hope you have a wonderful Easter!

Sustainable wreath making workshop

We had such a lovely time making the Sustainable wreath workshop in December at Yeldersley Hall and the photos are so beautiful you all look so focused and made such stylish wreaths.

I thought I would put the photos up on a blog so if you want you can pull off and save photos of yourself with friends/family wreath making. Emma took so many amazing pictures.

If you share them on social media please tag Tara, Michelle and myself as we love seeing you share. x

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Our wreaths were made with a wire frame (not oasis as this is essentially polystyrene and completely non-biodegradable), locally sourced moss lots of fabulous foraged foliage and natural accessories.

If you still have your wreath you can use it again next year here is how:

1- remove the ribbon and store it for another year

2-unwind the wire around the wreath

3-remove and compost the foliage (except for ivy put that in the brown bin)

4- store the moss-covered wreath ring somewhere damp like by the side of the compost bin and reuse it next year!

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If you enjoyed the workshop please consider leaving a review here as it really helps spread the word about my little business. Or if there is anything you would liked differently please let me know here.

Thank you so much for coming,

Love Tara, Michelle, the team at Yeldersley and Abigail x

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A note on photography consent-

At all of Abigail’s events, she asks all participants if they are happy to have their images shared on social media and marketing. On this occasion no one raised an objection if anyone has changed their mind please let Abigail know so she can happily remove images of you. Please be considerate if you share an image that has someone else in it. Many thanks.

Making The blOuse from fabric scraps

How to make a beautiful blouse using up your leftover fabric scraps.

I used the ANTHEA blouse pattern by Anna Allen I’m a size 10 and made no amendments other than to shorten the cuff band as I prefer a snug fit on the arm opening.

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I used fabrics that were all a similar weight, lighter/mid weight shirt fabrics. This helps the drape of the shirt remain consistent and prevents weaken the Seam strength by having two fabrics of different weight pulling against each other on the seams.

Lots of the fabrics were from the same organic cotton supplier and I know them and there fabric well plus some random remenants from other projects.

I cut out an A3 template and used this on all my scraps. When I started sewing my scraps together I tried to make sure some of the seams had joins that matched nicely and I also avoided putting two pieces of the same of similar fabric next to each other.

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I placed my pattern pieces carefully making sure on the front body any seams matched across the body.

I like the look this created. Being very precise about seam matching on the front body contrasted with clashing fabrics and patchwork sizes.

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I made handmade button holes with pre waxed cotton as Anna suggested in the pattern instructions and used buttons made from dairy waste from James tailoring and organic cotton thread from scanfill.

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Derby's Ethical Christmas Market 2023

Well, what a day yesterday was! 33 inspiring ethical and sustainable businesses and over 1000 ethical shoppers!

Thank you so much to all of you who came and supported these amazing businesses, thank you also to all our generous volunteers and our host St Werburghs.

Below is all our stall holders listed and if you click their business name it will take you to their website/social media.

If you wanted to be updated on any future ethical markets it’s best to subscribe to my mailing list and follow Jess and myself on Social Media.

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Hope Designed- Beautiful Christian-inspired prints, using UK printers and sustainably chosen materials, Jess is also one of our markets co-organisers and she is the reason the branding looks so good!

Just-Ice Ethical Ice cream - (also serving pizza at DECM) Just ice business model is based on having the capacity to train and recruit survivors of human trafficking whilst manufacturing delicious ice creams made with local, fair trade ingredients.

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Yada cold and hot bar - AF bar in Derby

So good Kombucha - healthy kombucha made in Derby, a business that recruit refugees

Thread of life- me! Sustainable sewing and textile events and education

Kate Slater- British nature-inspired illustrator using a mixture of media to create fun, colorful and charming work. Ranging from; cards, home ware, gift wrap, book illustration, art and prints.

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Little wonders- children’s second wear, donating garments to refugee derby charity

Future is flowery- locally sourced floral arrangements

Giles Davies - stunning collage artist

Harriets plants- peat free plants

Appletree and Avalon- eco home products

Vegans Way- vegan Caribbean food

Cariadabi - family support network including, slings, car seats and reusable nappies

Peak Distict Candles- derbyshire made candles

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DTE - nature-based revolution

Jubilee events- marquee hire recruiting adults struggling with entry to employment

Susannah J Brookes-hand made recycled metal jewelry

Ivy Rose- Hand-made Derbyshire Organic cotton children’s clothes

Wrap revolution- Reusable organic cotton fabric gift wrap

Studio Fox Vintage- production sample womenswear

Harriet Radley Neils yard organic body care

Sewk it up- reusable hand sewn products

Sympony ink arts- Derbyshire artists creating beautiful original art works with inks

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Westernsketch - sustainable cute UK made stationary and gift wrap

Malama - Derby made body products

VE Bakes - vegan handmade Derby Cakes

Flissie- female sustainable boxers

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Wrights Chocolate- fair trade chocolatier

Letter Box Lane- Derby made Eco fun stationary, prints and gifts

Kams Arthouse- eco made Derbyshire art prints, cards and bags

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Last but not least our venue St Werbs Derby, a church in the heart of the city working tirelessly to help businesses, charities, and SE’s that are supporting communities of Derby and beyond.

Here you can view the advent events calendar.

Easter wreath making

We are stuck at home this Easter with covid and I need something to lift my mood…this is my answer!

What do you need

-a willow ring (I got my from my local florist for £8) or make one with some bendy twigs like fresh willow

-florist wire

-wire cutters

-secetares (or if not old scissors )

-foliage I got some bits of blossom and rosemary from the garden and used shop brought carnations and gypsophila

-string

-moss (I scraped mine of my moss lawn 🤣)

-water sprayer

If you don’t have any of these bits don’t let it stop you!

Think creatively if you don’t have a willow wreath you could use a redundant christmas wreath from last year and give it a good soak, or you could forage some bendy twigs and make a rustic style ring.

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Let’s begin…

First I tied 4 pieces of strong string to each quarter of the wreath. The string was about 3mt long and a doubled it up to make it 1.5mt and stronger.

Eventually I will tie these four strands together and use that knot to tie to the hook in my ceiling.

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For arranging the foliage I used a method similar to my christmas wreath making which your can click to watch on IGTV.

Except I didn’t wrap my wreath with moss I just tied a little bit of moss around the base of each bunch of stems. I’m keen to make this wreath last the whole weekend so using pre soaked moss and spraying it daily hopefully it will!

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Sorry awkward photo! But your can see to economise I just arranged foliage around the side of the wreath. I didn’t wrap the foliage around both sides of the wreath like you would a door wreath as this wreath is being hung you won’t see it from the top.

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Next I suspend my wreath temporarily so I can add all the flowers that suspend from the wreath.

I have chosen flowers and foliage that won’t wilt as the pieces hanging down don’t have damp moss around them. I went for gypsophila and carnations as they can handle get slightly dry unlike blossom which would wilt and look unattractive.

I wrapped florist wire around a piece of foliage (using the same method you used for attaching pine cones on the IGTV tutorial mentioned above) then attached the foliage to either the inside or outside of the wreath.

Attach hanging branches all the way along the wreath and the viola it’s complete!

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I’ll add an image tomorrow of the wreath in situ!

To keep it as fresh as possible I’ll spritz every evening.

Derbys ethical christmas market 2021

Wow! What a Christmas market!
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Yesterdays market was absolutley phenomenal…so many amazing stall holders…so many generous volunteers and so many supportive customers thank you!
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We had over 30 stall holders all promoting their ethical and sustainable brands with over 800 customers shopping!!!

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I shall list here every stall holder in order that was at the market in case you want their details to shop and support them again. (Click their photo and it will take you to their web/social media page)

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Special mentions to our photographer Matt Ball, Derby. Any professional looking photos from the market were taken by him!

Ethical coffee by sacred bean

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So good Kombucha

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Little wonders second hand childrens seasonal wear

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Well me…Abigail Wastie and your on my web page already :)

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Harriet at neals yard

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Giles Davis- local paper collage artist. This piece was made for refugee charity upbeat communities.

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Peat free house plants by Harriet’s Plants

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Fawn creative- eco homeware

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Hope Designed- eco art prints, cards and home wear

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My phone is struggling to upload all these wonderful images of all the brands so if there are any brands you want more details please contact me off the hello page.

Abigail's six week sewing course

A big thank you to Roxy a student who came to my childrens wear sewing workshop and asked me to run this course! Without you Roxy I would never have had the confidence!

I had some sewers on the course who were experienced and some who had NEVER used a sewing machine and by the end of the six weeks EVERYONE had made; fabric weights, pin cushion, lined zipped purse and wrap top!!

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Scroll down below to see what we make in each session

If you are interested in coming to my next sewing course in October 2021 please hit the button below to join my mailing list as this is where I advertise workshop tickets first.

Last time the spaces sold within the first day.

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Week 1- fabric weights and pin cushion

These are the fabric weights we make. Students first draft the paper pattern for the fabric weights and then we machine sew and hand sew them. A great simple project to get everyone use to the pattern vocal and foundational principles! And we use these fabric weights the following weeks.

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Week 2- bespoke hair bands/scrunchies

First student chose what style head band they wish to make then we measure your head and create a hair band pattern based on your own measurements.

During this session we learn how to sew elastic, use a bodkin, sew a curve and draft your own mini pattern.

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Week 3- lined zipped purse with a ruffle

A clutch purse pattern and the fabric pieces of the clutch purse, lining and zipper cut out ready to sew.

This was a favourite with the students…it’s a meaty class with lots to get through but worth it as by the end of the evening you will have a beautiful lined zip clutch purse with a ruffle on the front.

During this session we will repeat the following skills: pattern drafting, fabric cutting, machine sewing and hand sewing.

…and we learn these new skills; how to insert a zip, top stitching, lining

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Week 4 - drafting your own wrap top pattern

You learn how to draft your own bespoke pattern based on your measurements.

During this session we will repeat the following skills: pattern drafting, fabric cutting and understanding the grain line.

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Week 5 and 6- cutting your pattern pieces and starting the big sew!

During this session we cut out all the pattern pieces with care and understanding. Then we start to sew them together.

We check the fit as we go to ensure it will suit your shape. We discuss different seam and hem finishes and how to insert a label.

By the end of the course you will have a finished wrap top!

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Every student gets their own tool kit to use and keep after they course.

Kit contents; pattern master, tailors chalk, pins, needles, tape measured embroidery scissors. This is yours to keep after the course as I want the students to have not just the knowledge but the correct tools to go home and continue sewing!

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All equipment provided just bring yourselves.

Drinks and refreshments will be provided.

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All materials are supplied to make the items around 2-3 metres of organic cotton fabrics and all trims supplied as part of the course.

Abigail will explain and discuss to students the best places to by ethically sourced and produced fabrics and trims.

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If you are interested in attending future sewing courses please join my mailing list

Mcall’s m8036 ruffle Dress

This my first dressmaking blog post. In this blog I shall describe the construction process and any modifications I made.

View fullsize

#m8036 version A

Fabric choice; I used a thrifted double gauze cotton woven fabric. I was really short on fabric and made all the smaller pattern pieces from scraps patched together.

The original pattern was to long on the shoulder for me

Pattern amendments:

(I made a UK size 14)

I shortened the body length by 4cm at the waist

I omitted the second ruffle due to fabric shortage

I took 1.5cm off the shoulder seam length from the shoulder point by the sleeve head

I used a internal tie instead of a hook and eye to enable maximum fit flexibility with my post partum figure.

Fabric interfacing

The pattern specified iron on interfacing but due to eco reasons I prefer to use fabric to act as interfacing. Here I used some light weight cotton curtain lining to cut on the opposite grain line to act as interfacing.

Loving the pleated sleeve head

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I added a KATM mini label above the sash tie.

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I finished all the seams with French seams except the arm holes and ruffles. I did this for a clean smart finish and because the gauze fabric is unstable and frays easily.

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Overall verdict;

It is a great dress to wear for post partum and breast feeding! I love the sleeves and the roomy cuff it makes it very comfortable

I love the gentle drop on the ruffle in the cotton gauze.

When I put it on for the first I felt a little bit like boo peep! I’m pleased with all the alts I made except for removing the 2nd ruffle as that would have made the dress less revealing.

Transforming a room for under a £700

How to renovate and furnish a room from top to bottom for £700!

Our bedroom needed a lot of work on it; fixing dangerous electrics, repairing poor plaster work, replacing original 1930’s features, carpeting, furniture, soft furnishings and decor. So we need to be creative with our £700 budget and this is how we did it.

See the before and afters below

Budget:

Electrics- £0

Flooring- £370

Paint - £8

Furniture- £60

Headboard - £77

Fireplace- £79

Roman blind- £90

Picture rail- £0

Lighting - £0

Artwork, tapestry and plants- £0

I will expand more on this below!

Decorating is like sewing…PREPARATION IS KEY!

Boring as it is preparing the walls and surfaces makes all the difference. First we stripped all the walls and uncovered some very dangerous horizontal live wires running across the walls which we immediately took out safely.

The plaster was a real mix match of original 1930s plaster and more recent skimming over the old plaster but some of the 1930s paper border was not skimmed over. To avoid to cost of the a plasterer we spent days sanding and filling the walls.

We wanted to replace and original original features so we knocked out the fireplace blocking and replaced the damaged 1930s picture rail.

Antique Fireplace £79

We searched several reclamation yards to find a fireplace that was similar in dimensions to the original 1930s fireplace. I was really pleased with what we found the art nouveau style felt in keeping with a 1930s vibe, it needs work. We need to carry on stripping on the old paint and restore the black into the iron, we need to add a shelf and find something to act like a basket for the base.

Totally worth shopping around as the fireplace only cost £70 and the polish is around £10.

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Flooring £370

Good quality materials is a real priority for us so we opted for a 100% wool berber carpet from a British carpet manufacturer. Often we re use carpet underlay where we can but in this room the carpet and underlay were so worn sadly we had to dispose of them.

We used a underlay made from a recycled waste product.

Our carpet fitter is great but old school so I cant give you a link to him or his carpets here!

Paint - £8

We were very kindly donated paint from Crown paints. Crown is our go to paint manufacturer so I was more than happy to be sponsored by them.

We love their scrubbable paint.

We tried over 6 different yellow paints! And finally decided on the Mustard field yellow by Elle decor Crown range. We absolutely love it! We were wary of using yellow in a bedroom as traditionally yellow has been considered a poor bedroom choice colour as it can be unrestful and hinder sleep. We have not found this at all, in our East facing bedroom it makes the room feel really warm, cosy and restful.

For the ceiling we used up some budget white emulsion paint…the ceiling took 4 coats of paint!!

For the woodwork we used up some old white matt eggshell.

The only paint we need to buy was for the radiator and large wardrobe, which we use wikos £8 tin of black satin. I love the black radiator against the yellow.

Blind - £90

I love Orla Kiely upholstery fabric which I brought at a greatly discounted price from my local fabric market Curtain Corner. It was more than a 3rd cheaper than other websites so totally worth shopping around!

I brought loads of it so I also made a head board and will also make some large fabric canvas storage boxes with the leftovers.

To find out how I managed to construct such a heavy working blind head to my instagram.

Furniture- £60

We needed a new bed and found a really affordable clean looking bed here for just £60.

We found a free wardrobe that a friend was kindly giving away on Facebook , which we sanded down and painted black.

We made a simple padded headboard with some of the left over fabric from the blind, you can read about how we made it here.

Artwork and plants £0

We used up all things we already had and then I made the white tapestry from some yarns in my stash!

If your curious about tapestry check out my tapestry workshops on my events page or shop for my tapestry kits.

How to make a head board

We recently renovated our bedroom on a really tight budget so we decided to have a go at making our own head board. It was a really simple project, doesn’t necessarily need to involve sewing (depending on your fabric choice) and took an afternoon to construct and install.

Here are the instructions for how to make a simple padded foam fabric headboard:

Here is the headboard finished and in situ…to find out how we transformed the rest of the room head here

What you need

Fabric - we used Orla Kiely upholstery fabric which I brought at a greatly discounted price from my local fabric market Curtain Corner.

Foam - 5cm deep with our stocking net from E-foam

Thread- to sew the seams of panels together

Wood- we used OBS sheet 1cm deep x 195cm wide x 90cm long from wickes.

Hardware needed- staples, screws and brackets

Tools- staple gun, hammer, sewing machine, iron and drill for installation.

Total material costs £77

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How to calculate you head board finished size:

WIDTH - measure the width of your bed (x) add 10cm for the head board

HEIGHT- measure the length from the top of the mattress to the top of the head of the tallest person using your bed sitting upright against the head board then add 10cm

DEPTH- I opted for 5cm deep foam depth

How to calculate you head board wood size:

These measurements will be the same as those above except the depth only needs to be 1cm. For our super king mattress we went with the measurements 195cm x 90cm x 1 cm

How to calculate your fabric size:

Use the measurements from above and add the following to allow for fabric stretching abound the head board

WIDTH +5cm + 5cm (to cover foam side depth) +10cm +10cm to allow for stretching

LENGTH +5cm + 5cm (to cover foam side depth) +10cm +10cm to allow for stretching

STEP 1

If like me you are using a directional printed fabric and the head board width is greater than the fabric width then you will need to carefully pattern match these pieces together for which you will need to allow 1-2cm for seam allowance.

STEP 2- cut and sand your wood to size

STEP 3- place the fabric on a large clean surface face down, place the foam onto making sure the centre of the foam matches the centre point on the fabric. Then place the wood onto.

STEP 4- Pull the fabric gently around the foam and staple in place. Start with the top of the headboard and keep checking the line of the print is straight along the front. Then staple the bottom, then the sides.

STEP 5- how I folded the corners

STEP 6- check the fabric tension is even across the headboard, not pulling to much or too slack. If you want to redo any any of the staples pull them out with a flat head screwdriver, adjust the tension and re-staple. Once you are happy with the tension every where hammer in the staples to secure them.

STEP 7- attach brackets to secure it to the wall. We attached one bracket to the top centre and two brackets to the base.

STEP 8- install your head board! Definitely a two person job, use a spirit level to check its straight. I placed ours slightly above the top pf our mattress so it doens’t get in the way of changing the linen.

Well done! If you use this blog to make a head board please share/tag me in images I love seeing your creations!

Workshop Covid prevention measures

Abigail runs workshop from her home, her home doubles as verified business venue. Being a combination of businesses and home raises certain questions so please see the Q+A below.

There are lots of measures taken to eliminate as much risk as possible. Please scroll down below to see what these measures are.

Things are changing all the time with the governments response to how businesses should operate during the pandemic. These responses are facilitated with relevant research and to the best of my knowledge at the time. I am really happy to answer any further questions via email.

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Can I attend the workshop if I live in a tier 2 area?

Yes as Abigail’s studio whilst in her home operates as a viable insured operating business. The workshop is hosted in the front room which Is dedicated to the business and not used nay her family.

Can I attend the workshop if I live in a tier 3 sector?

No sadly not, in this case Abigail can offer the same workshop online with all th materials posted to you or you can keep your workshop credit and postpone to a later date once the restrictions are eased.

Refunds cannot be offered as once your place is booked Abigail purchase stock and equipment specifically for you.

What happens if my workshop is postponed due to Derby Allestree going into tier 3 restrictions?

Then your workshop will be postponed and delivered at a later date once restrictions have eased. Abigail is pregnant so will take a break from workshops in March so majority of workshops will be offered in February, she will keep communicating with you so you know whats happening.

What happens if Abigail is unwell or is isolation?

Abigail will follow the government guidelines and keep you will informed. Your workshop will be postponed and re-arranged at a date that best accommodates all.

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1. Each student will be invited to join the traffic light bracelet system- more details below

2. Each student will be asked to wash/sanitie their hands upon arrival

3. Each student will be asked to sign a document explaining they have no covid symptoms- more details below

4. Workshops will be smaller limited to 4 students all students workspaces are 2m apart

5. The studio and equipment will be cleaned before and after the workshop

6. Each student will receive a bag with all the materials and equipment they require for the workshop so there will be no sharing of materials, equipment of tools

7. All drinks and food will be served in compostable paper crockery and cutlery

8. If the weather is fair workshop will be held in Abigail’s back garden under canvas

9. Abigail will be wearing a face visor and students are welcome to wear one if they wish or a face mask but due to everyone being spaced apart you do not have to wear one.

Traffic light bracelet system

In your confirmation email Abigail will ask you which color bracelet you would like to wear for the workshop. This is what the bracelet symbolises:

Red- I am feeling nervous please keep as much space between me and you as possible, please avoid being face to face to me. I will be wearing a face mask or visor.

Amber- I am being cautious but slightly relaxed so I will be keep my distance from you please try to keep 1-2metre distance to me

Green- I am feeling relaxed. I will respect others needs but for myself I am not concerned with others being near me

Traffic light bracelets

Risk assessment and corona virus symptoms:

If you do have corona virus symptoms and cant attend please let Abigail know as soon as you feel unwell in case she can try and refill your spot. Abigail is unable to offer refunds but she will always honour your workshop space and ensure that when you are well and able that you can attend a future workshop.

The document you will be asked to sign is a risk assessment form which includes Corona symptoms precaution.

Workshops limited to 4 students:

All workshops are now limited to 4 students to ensure everyone can be 2meters apart. This has meant that I have had to increase the price of the Beeswax workshops by £5 so that it can be finically viable.

For tapestry and sewing workshops students will be 2 per table, with one student either end of the table therefore the student you are face to face to will be 1.5-2m away from you.

Each students own bag of equipment:

Every student will have a paper bag on their table place which will contain each time that they will need to use for their workshop. For tapestry there is no need for any equipment to be shared as nearly everything you need will be provided in you tapestry kit that you can take home with you.

The sewing workshops may involve sharing machines in which case before use they will be wiped down.

Catering:

Any lunches and cakes provided are made with care and hygiene at the forefront. I normally avoid disposable items at all costs but sadly I will need to use them to avoid handling crockery that has been handled. Cups and plates will be paper and plant based, cutlery will be wooden. Water will be in recyclable plastic bottles. Abigail will be making tea and coffee during the workshop but if you prefer you are welcome to bring your own drinks in flasks. Hand towels will be paper and single use.

This is all new territory for us all so if you have any suggestions you would like to be included please let me know! Even with these changes I am very confident the workshops will still maintain there relaxed, friendly and creative buzz!

How to shop sustainably - groceries

You guys have been asking for it and finally I am sat at my laptop and doing it!

Here is the first of 4 blog posts on how to shop sustainably. The ones to follow will cover; body care and make up, cleaning products and your wardrobe.

In this blog I will talk about tips for planning, sourcing and storing your groceries!

A simple weekly meal planner is a great starting point, from here you can plan where you need to shop and reduce wastage, this planner cost £2.75 from wilkos.

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I also think its worth pointing out we have a budget of £90 per week for a family of 4 for all our food and household items that is £15 over the UK national average of £75- however being eco does not always mean more expensive simply storing your food efficentley you can reduce waste

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my personal favs for ethical FOOD AND DRINK

1- Clipper teas one stop fair trade tea shop There earl grey is the best! And I love their red fruits tea. You can bulk buy from their website. You cant get more sustainable than these guys

2- Divinechocolate the delicious Chocolatiers and coco growers…Divine were one of the first fair trade brands to hit UK shelves in the 1990’s they always stay true to their orginal core brand values

3- Nespresso if coffee machines are your thing check out Nespresso recycling pod scheme, I cant personally vouch for the manufacturing and their reputation isn’t note worthy but Nespresso have been recycling their customers coffee pods for over 10years they are waves ahead of their competitors

4- Sacred bean a social entrepreneurship ran by a passionate Derby coffee roaster who trains and employs people coming out of the Criminal Justice System or breaking free from substance abuse issues

5- Green and blacks fair trade, delicious, luxurious and organic chocolate makers

6- Montezumas super creative, experimental, beautiful, fairly traded chocolate treats and gifts

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The biggest issue an our house is plastic food packaging and this is majorly affected by where we shop.

Where to shop to reduce plastic waste

• Duffield Diary delicious locally made milk, they have a small delivery catchment area but if your in catchment USE THESE GUYS! they are cheaper than most and the milk is packed with flavour

• Just-ice not only is the ice cream fair trade, scummy and imaginative flavour combos but the small Derby ice cream making team are dedicated to growing their business so they can train and recruit ex-victims of human trafficking

• Martins green grocers- eagle markets these are a fantastic fresh fruit and veg suppliers all packaging is paper (They are currently doing home delivery of fruit and veg boxes for C19)

• Greedy pig butchers- they don’t specifically do plastic free but you can take your own containers- they are soooo friendly, super knowledgeable and support so many charities

• Croots offer a great range of meat, dairy, fruit, veg, cafe and kids play area (They are currently doing a order and collection service for all customers during C19) although it is the most expensive

• R3fill Derby come to your door and refill your glass bottles with detergent, hand wash, cleaning products and body products

A couple of UK national

• Pipers farm a farmer with a passion for producing sustainably sourced meat that is farmed in harmony with nature. We are new to using these guys but cant wait to try more of their boxes…there really affordable and plastic free packaging and we love the sound of their innovative farming methods

• Milk and More - a wonderful milk and grocery delivery service, the milk is twice the price of normal milk so we go back and forth with this but it is so good not to have the unesscary milk plastic bottles and the product is far superior. We also like their salad boxes, bamboo toilet roll and paper sandwich bags. They pack there fruit in cotton netting which I love and we reuse all the paper packaging for art and crafts and food storage

• Abel and Cole- these guys are revolutionary when it comes to sustainable farming and I think there packaging is ingenious. You pay a premium but if your extremely careful about not wasting any produce and enjoy a wide variety of seasonal produce check them out! They also deliver dairy, dairy free, household, bakery well basically everything!

• Riverford- a slightly more affordable version of able and Cole, a great service and massive promoters of organic farming

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Keep your broccoli fresher for longer by placing it in a glass of water!

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How best to store your fresh groceries:

Broccoli, asparagus and herbs- remove any packaging, trim the base and store in a glass of water in the fridge

Leaves such as lettuce and spinach- separate and wipe with slightly damp kitchen roll (thanks Delia ;) ) and store in the a container or fridge draw inside a tea towel so the leaves don’t crush each other

Bananas- keep away from all other fruit as the release ethene which rapidly speeds up the ripening process…unless of course you want to let your avocados ripen fast in which case cosy them up

Tomatoes- keep on the workshop until ripe then store in the fridge but serve at room temperature

Avocado- store at room temperature, avoid putting in the fridge, if you have made guacamole or have half an avocado left over always keep the stone inside the avocado or bowl of guacaomole because this will slow down it browning

Carrots- take them out of any plastic packaging where they will get all sweaty and place them loose at the bottom draw of your fridge

Mushrooms- keep in a paper bag not in plastic in the fridge

Garlic- store at room temperature in a jar with no lid to allow full ventilation otherwise it will go mouldy

Eggs- keep in a cool dark place not the fridge

Yogurt- the liquid on the top of your yogurt is full of amazing bacteria make sure you don’t throw it away but eat it up!

Cheese- keep wrapped in a beeswax cloth and store in the fridge

Eggs! Well for that one if you know me I am a passionate keeper of chickens! We have kept chickens in all sorts of gardens some tiny some huge and we LOVE the chickens and their eggs.

There is no comparison to a freshly poached egg!

I could write for days about keeping chickens in home gardens…but I won’t bore you. If you want any tips message me.

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Always take a pack-up! Whenever you go out try and grab a pack up to avoid plastic wrapped food. These are my favourite and super affordable items we use for our pack ups.

Wilkos water bottle with metal base £3.00

Waxed paper sandwich bags £3.99 for 50

Kids metal water bottle £10.00

Wilkos bamboo lid and metal base lunch box £6.00

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Don’t use cling film!!! Such an easy first step…there are loads of alternates…

1- Put your left overs in a bowl and then put a plate on top of it!

2- use Tupperware…I love ikeas new glass containers. Did you know that food can last twice as long in a glass or ceramic container?! This is why companies like the yummy pots and co use ceramic containers.

3- Keep your plastic bread bags and reuse it on something like raw meat.

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4 - And of course you can make your own beeswax wraps! I offer online workshops and kits for this. Since making our own beeswax wraps I haven’t purchased a single roll of cling film!

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Kitchen roll and throw away surface wipes can be easily replaced with reusable fabric cloths and fabric napkins. I have friends that are weaning young children and keep a tub or water and essential oils by there sink with small pieces towelling inside to wipe there little ones faces.

Or if you really love kitchen roll this brand Cheeky panda offer a really affordable and sustainable option

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And then lastly HOME COMPOSTING!

To finish off the cycle if you can build a compost bin in your garden or have one in your kitchen- there are loads of space saving composts these are my two favourites; indoor wormeries and outdoor heated compost bin. We have always made our garden compost bins from old pallets.

If you shopping with the above food suppliers you can cut up all the food packaging and compost them!

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We recently purchased the 6L Brabantia sort and go bins for our home composting and brown bins.

There fantastic, easy to clean, can be mounted to the wall and the perfect size.

Mens sewing workshop- organic tee-shirts

Last year I taught my first men’s sewing workshop where four beginner students come to my home studio and learn how to make there own self drafted organic cotton tee-shirt.

I was curious what motivated these men to want to learn how to sew? They all had similar answers they were all “looking for an alternate shop for clothes that didnt involve participating in fast fashion where explotation and eco damage are rife”

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I felt so humbled by their motivations and honored that they choose me a newbie to having a sewing workshop business to start their sewing and sustainable wardrobe journey.

Scroll down to see the process for tee-shirt making. I have included links to sustainable suppliers.

First we talk through how to take accurate measurements and use those to choose the best fitting base pattern to work from and what amendments to make to produce a good fit across the shoulder/body length and any alterations they wanted to make.

Each student uses on of my cardboard base patterns to trace out their own tee-shirt pattern. Once their pattern is finished they carefully lay the organic cotton fabric and cut out all four pieces.

None of the students had used an over locker before and two hadn’t used a sewing machine before so I advised all the students to first sew the seams on the sewing machine before the over locker. Particularly with the collar it can be tricky to ensure all layers of the jersey are caught in the over-locker and this helps.

All the guys did a fantastic job of sewing! I was so impressed by them. It was ambitious to teach four beginners to draft and sew a t-shirt from scratch. I learnt quite a lot during this workshop and these are the changes I will make for the next one:

• more lighting!

• increase the workshop length to 6hrs

• to have two workshop tables in the same room so I don’t repeat the teaching in two different rooms

• make t-shirts up for students to try on and feel which size fits them best

• purchase another overlocker

This workshop journey is a rich one but I am always learning!

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And we finished off their organic t-shirts with beers and crisps!

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I have been so surprised by the interest in men’s sewing….its been more popular than women’s sewing! So here is a link to the next tee-shirt workshop in April, there are two spaces left.

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All these beautiful photos have been taken by Kim Gribbon you can see more of his delightful work here.