I love handmade

Handmade things have that extra something special, that extra bit of imagination, effort and care which makes them so unique. Kev Connell of DigTheEarth celebrates these in his I Love Handmade blog which brings a daily dose of handmade loveliness. Today's post featured the work of the extremely talented Buri Boo, winner of Leeds Emerging Artist Award 2010, who was at yesterday's Folksy party - and last Friday's post was a myfuroshiki flexible furoshiki bag! Thank you, Kev, for including us in such great company!

Recycle, recycle

A special piece of recycling for today - a return visit to a previous post on how we recycle when making furoshiki and their accessories.

We try to recycle in various ways, using recycled fabric (such as ex-display curtains) for furoshiki bags and using fabric remnants for patchwork, ties and pom poms. My favourite though are Oli's card creations, made from left over fabric and old packaging. The cards are in themselves reusable - simply replace the paper insert - and come with their own message for the recipient:

"Please reuse me again & again. A gift for the planet, as well as a friend."

A selection of cards is available on Etsy - with free shipping!

See Jane go green

Very appropriately for Recycling Week, here's a blog I just came across which is well worth a read. Written by someone who describes herself as an 'average Jane', it covers a range of environmental issues and actions we can all take to go that little bit greener.

The author likes Kathy Reichs and furoshiki - and even mentions us - she should be good and she is!

Recycle week: 21 - 27 June

We try to recycle where we can and it's very easy to do with those items which crop up on a regular basis - paper, glass and tins in the recycling bin; vegetable stuff on the compost; plastic and card to the local recycling centre and, when it's available, fabric into furoshiki :)

Other things though tend to accumulate and so inspired by Recycle Week, I'm going to do what I've been meaning to do for ages (ever since the sun starting shining in on all those dark corners of clutter!) and start a big clear out! My son's outgrown bike is going to his cousin and I'm finally going to find out what best to do with various unused electrical goods. Unfortunately I'm not near a BHF Furniture & Electrical store but if you are (there are more than 90 across the UK), you can donate old electrical items in your home that are in good working order and help them raise money for their charity. To find your nearest BHF Furniture and Electrical store or for more information please visit www.bhf.org.uk/recycle

Find out about Folksy

I'm very excited to be going to my first ever Folksy party next Saturday. Organised by the Jo from Glassprimitif, this is part of the Shorn Keighley exhibition.

12 members of Folksy.com will be selling their craft and handmade items in the Keighley Arts Factory from 10am to 3pm. The gallery is open to all, so please come along to see some of the handcrafted loveliness of

Ruby Spirit Designs :: Mrs Sew and Sew :: Quernus Crafts :: Northfield Primitives :: Glassprimitif :: Angels & Butterflies :: Print for Love of Wood :: Dig The Earth :: Adeegan :: Pamdas :: My Furoshiki

Find out about Folksy
Keighley Arts Factory
North Street
Keighley, BD21 3DF

My flexible furoshiki two handled bag

And here are the links to the instructions for the other bags shown: grocery bag, loop handled bag, ring handled bag, summer purse and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!

My flexible furoshiki summer grocery bag

And here are the links to the instructions for the other bags shown: two handled bag, loop handled bag, ring handled bag, summer purse and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!

My flexible furoshiki loop handled bag

And here are the links to the instructions for the other bags shown: two handled bag, grocery bag, ring handled bag, summer purse and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!

My flexible furoshiki ring handled bag

Made for smart sauntering!

And here are the links to the instructions for the other bags shown: two handled bag, grocery bag, loop handled bag, summer purse and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!

My flexible furoshiki bag fabrics

One of the (many) great things about making furoshiki bags is that there are so many beautiful fabrics to choose from and each one gives a slightly different effect. Here are some that we've tried:

2 lightweight cotton fabrics - in this case, one hand screenprinted with one of our own designs - form a reversible furoshiki for a super versatile bag, with twice as many looks. There are more examples of Olivia's creations in our Etsy store.

A single layer of slightly firmer cotton creates a soft summery bag. I love these tied in the style with two loop handles, which can be adjusted to open and close the bag.


Lightweight calico, for an everyday, hardwearing bag. These have been handstamped with our logo.

I'm also planning some calico furoshiki with designs screenprinted in opposite quadrants. This gives a very quick and easy way of changing the look of a furoshiki bag, particularly a drop or purse style one - by just changing the diagonal on which it's folded, a different element of the design becomes visible.

Lightweight furnishing fabrics are also ideal for the metre square furoshiki (as in our Folksy shop) and the ones with larger scale designs are very effective. They also make great picnic tablecloths.


Really any square of fabric can be used as long as it's not too bulky to knot and not so slippery that the knots work themselves loose; a silk scarf or, as suggested by Audrey's Cat, a piece of kimono fabric could make a stunning evening bag.

And here are the links to some bag tying instructions: two handled bag, grocery bag, loop handled bag, ring handled bag, summer purse and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!

My flexible furoshiki summer purse bag

And here are the links to the instructions for the other bags shown: two handled bag, grocery bag, loop handled bag, ring handled bag and the drop bag, plus some ideas on different fabrics to use. Happy wrapping!