This is the first of two beading courses and is designed to take you from complete beginner to making your own beaded bags, using one of my favourite techniques: Right Angle Weave. Rather than teaching you how to make one specific bag, I wanted to create a beaded bag course that actually teaches you how the technique works. Once you understand it, you can use it again and again to experiment with different beads, colours, shapes and designs. I ‘ve spent almost a year developing a method for how to teach this technique, and I’m so happy with this course!

Here’s What You’ll Make

Instead of throwing you straight into making a whole bag, we start small, with each project teaching you one new skill at a time. We begin with a beaded keyring, where you’ll learn how to make your first unit and create tension. Then we move through a beaded belt, coffee holder and coaster, learning how to build length, knot off, join your beadwork, add handles and step up to create larger panels. And once you’ve practised all of those skills…

YOU’LL MAKE A BEADED BAG!

My beloved Baguette Bag, the one people chase me down the street to find out where it’s from. From there, we start playing with stripes, oval beads and other ideas so you can see just how much you can do with the same foundational technique. Here’s some pics of what you’ll learn.

What Do You Need to Make a Beaded Bag?

One of the things I love about this craft is that you really don’t need much. At its most basic, it’s just beads and clear fishing line. I go through all of my materials, recommendations and troubleshooting tips in much more detail inside the course.

And This Is Only Part One!

The Beaded Bags Course: Foundations is the first of two courses. Beaded Bags: Advanced is coming soon, where we’ll add Radial and Hexagon Weave into your skillset and make a whole new collection of projects.

Beaded Bags Course: Foundations is live now — prepare for your next craft obsession!

I hope you love it as much I have enjoyed creating it!! x Geneva

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Where it started

Adele’s path to painting wasn’t a straight line. She picked up a brush for the first time at eight, painting alongside her Nanna in Far North Queensland, and then nearly gave it up for good after a high school art teacher failed her in the subject. It took years, and some travel, before she found her way back. Studying fashion design at university put a pencil back in her hand. Then six months living in India during those studies changed everything: she fell for colour itself, and the way it seemed to carry joy through any circumstance. That’s the thread running through every piece she makes today.

A day that starts with washing brushes

Adele’s process has a ritual to it. “I’d start by washing all of my brushes, and then I’d kind of sit down and have a look at the piece I started the day before — what areas are jumping out at me as needing a bit of work, and what sections I want to leave.”

Only then does she start looking outward. “I’ll also look at other artists and look at colourways that I’m liking from other artists.” Then the painting itself takes over. “I’ll paint for a while and kind of just mix colours and see what’s working. Might do some little studies and that type of thing.”

Where the colour comes from

Ask Adele what shapes her palettes and the answer isn’t a single source. “There’s nature, obviously, around me, and then there’s other colourways that artists are using.” But the most interesting influence is the painting itself. “I think on the canvas I get inspired by different sections, and then I might use that colourway in a different part of the painting. The painting evolves itself as I’m going.”

She’s just as likely to be looking backward as sideways. “Not necessarily current artists either — artists from history and that type of thing. Referencing a lot of different things.”

A subconscious kind of balance

For all the intuition in Adele’s process, there’s a discipline underneath it, one she finds hard to put into words. “It’s definitely about balance. I think that’s probably one of the main things. It’s sometimes a subconscious balance. You don’t know why a piece isn’t working, but your eye knows, and it’s really hard to articulate.”

That instinct sharpens with time. “The more that you paint, the more your eye understands the composition of a painting and what makes it good. The balance might be in colours, it might be in texture, or it might be in brushstrokes. You kind of know when it’s done.”

How she knows it’s done

Every maker in this series answers this question differently, and Adele’s is one of patience. “Sometimes I’ll live with a piece and try to decide if it’s done over a period of a week or two. Sometimes you don’t know if it’s done, and you live with it, and you’re like, okay, it’s resolved. Nothing’s jumping out at me.”

But not always. “Sometimes a piece is like — I’ll walk away and be like, absolutely, yes.” And the more she paints, the faster that certainty arrives. “The more I paint, the more it comes to me quicker, knowing if it’s done or not.”

For all the process and technique behind it, what Adele is actually chasing is simple.

“I love creating beautiful paintings that make people feel at home.”

This is what The Makers is about: not the finished painting on a gallery wall, but the washing of brushes, the week spent living with a piece, the eye that knows before the mind can explain why. Adele’s work looks resolved because she never lets it go until it actually is.

You can follow Adele’s work at @adelebevacquaart or see more on her website, adelebevacqua.com. And keep an eye out: more Makers are coming.

Adele is wearing the Charlie Overalls in Natural throughout the shoot. Shop the Charlie Overalls.

The Makers is a joint series between Geneva Vanderzeil and Collective Gen, celebrating the women who make for a living.

The post The Makers: Meet Adele Bevacqua appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

I created the dress using the pattern-free techniques I teach in my Sewing 101 course, where I show you how to use your own measurements, clothing and simple shapes to create clothes that fit you. Once you understand the basics, it opens up so many possibilities for designing and making your own pieces – including this one!

If you’d like to make your own version, you can learn the techniques and follow along inside Geneva’s DIY School Sewing 101 course.

The post How to Make A Sheer Dress appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

Ochre didn’t start out this way. It began as a ceramic jewellery label. As Lauren’s relationship with clay deepened, so did the range: ceramic beads first, then homewares, then lighting. The business has grown the way she has, gradually and led by her own evolving skill and interests. But everything she touches is imprinted with her unique eye for shape, colour and texture,  making her brand so beautiful and recognisable.

An average day for Lauren doesn’t look like one thing. It could be unpacking the kiln, glazing, packing pieces back up. It could be making stock for the online shop or for stockists, in pottery or in jewellery. And if there’s a workshop on, it’s tidying the studio, picking flowers, setting up the cheese platter, and welcoming people in for a clay, wine and cheese session. 

Lauren introduced me to her slab roller, and indeed the concept of slab-laid pottery. This was my first experience with this type of ceramics and it blew me away! Lauren found this handmade slab roller being sold on Facebook Marketplace and immediately knew it was what her process was lacking. She uses it to roll out large pieces of speckled clay, onto which she places pattern pieces and then cuts out. Using these pattern pieces, she builds her ceramics on top of moulds to create beautifully balanced shapes of mugs, bowls, vases and lamps.

Because alongside the making, Lauren teaches. She runs pottery and jewellery-making workshops from the Mullumbimby studio, along with pop up events all around Australia, and when I asked her what she loves most about the business she’s built, she didn’t hesitate.

‘Teaching,’ she told me. She’s a mum to a toddler, and she’s honest about the juggle. But teaching, she said, is where it all comes together. ‘Even if it’s just two hours for somebody, and they got out of their head and came away with something they love, that’s enough.’

I asked her, too, how she knows when a piece is finished – a question I’ve been putting to every maker in this series.

‘The girls who work with me would laugh at this,’ she said, ‘because I’m always the one saying, enough, stop faffing, enough.’ A lot of her making falls into production, so part of it is simply knowing when a piece is done and it’s time to move on. But when she’s building a collection, she doesn’t overthink it. ‘I’m such a gut feeling person. I go with my gut.’

Lauren is also mindful of what Ochre leaves behind. Every sale contributes to tree planting through One Tree Planted — over 3,000 trees since she started in October 2020.

You can find Lauren’s work, and book into one of her workshops, at ochreceramics.com, or follow along on Instagram @ochre.thelabel. 

Shop the Charlie Overalls →

The post The Makers: Meet Lauren Siemonsma, Ochre Ceramics appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

Behind that softness is a working day that starts before most of us are asleep.

A day that starts at 3am

A wedding, Maddie told me, is a few-day process. “Today, for example, I’ve been to the flower market, I’ve spent a few hours conditioning blooms and getting everything ready, and now I’m creating the arrangements.”

The flower market part is the bit people underestimate. Maddie’s market days start at 3am.

“You can go later, but early bird gets the worm, as they say. I try to go as early as possible so my clients get the good stuff. I don’t want anybody to miss out.” She laughs about it now. “Thankfully I’m pretty used to the early mornings at this point. It’s the long days that are harder.”

The reward is the part that comes after: hours in the studio with the blooms. “It can be a really lovely day of creating, getting my hands dirty and just playing with the flowers, seeing how I feel while I’m making them.”

A style she never had to find

Ask Maddie where her eye comes from and she’ll take you back to childhood. “I’ve always had a love of particular cutie-pie aesthetics — think My Little Pony, Lady Lovely Locks, ’80s cartoons, Sailor Moon. Everything pastel, everything cute. As a little kid I was that little girl decked out in pink.”

What’s unusual is that it never changed. “I’ve never had a phase with my personal taste. It’s always been the same. So my style really just developed from that, which I feel really lucky for. Some florists have to find a style. For me, it’s purely an extension of myself.”

Clients can feel that. “Some clients are like, ‘You just have this pretty pastel vibe that I’m really seeking.’ And I’m like, great — I’m happy to provide that.”

The element of surprise

Maddie’s favourite part of the process is the making itself — and within it, something most people wouldn’t expect from floristry: no two pieces can ever be alike.

“Even though things can look quite similar, no two bouquets are ever the same, because no stems are ever exactly the same. It’s always slightly different, which I think is really fun. I really enjoy that element of surprise in floristry that I think a lot of people don’t expect.”

The other favourite moment comes later, on the wedding day itself, when a client sees the finished work. The creating, as she puts it, and then seeing the result of the creation.

How she knows when it’s done

Every maker I talk to answers this question differently, and Maddie’s answer might be my favourite so far: a bouquet is done when it feels good in her hand.

“If I’m holding a bouquet and it’s uncomfortable, it’s not done.” There’s a visual science to it too — she works to the rule of thirds, scanning for groups of three. “I know I need another daffodil, so it’s not done yet. I need another tulip down here — not done yet. I want another point of delphinium — not done yet.” And then there’s the restraint: “You have to know when it’s done, otherwise it just looks over the top.”

But the physical part is real, and it’s practical. “If it’s too weighty in the hand, that’s something I pay a lot of attention to, because someone’s carrying this down the aisle.” She’s seen the alternative. “You’ll sometimes see brides with these enormous bouquets and I’m like, how are they getting down the aisle with that thing?”

And if she’s not in love with a bouquet? She doesn’t redo it in the moment. “I’ll put it down, even do the ribbons and everything, go away for a few hours and then come back.”

This is what The Makers is about. Not the soft-focus version of floristry — the 3am market runs, the hours of conditioning stems, the physical weight of a bouquet in the hand. Maddie’s work looks effortless precisely because none of it is.

You can follow Maddie’s work at @maddiejaydee. And keep an eye out — more Makers are coming.

Maddie is wearing the Charlie Overalls in Rose throughout the shoot. Shop the Charlie Overalls.

The Makers is a joint series between Geneva Vanderzeil and Collective Gen, celebrating the women who make for a living.

The post The Makers: Meet Maddie Jayde appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

I finally decided it was time to give it a refresh, and this time I used the Bosch PAS30-240PRS vacuum cleaner connected straight to my sander with the universal adapter. It made the whole process so much easier (and less messy!), and after a fresh stain, the table looks completely different. Nothing beats a good before and after!

What I used

• An old timber dining table
• Bosch sander
• Bosch PAS30-240PRS vacuum cleaner
• Universal power tool adapter
• Timber stain
• Paint brush
• Clean cloths

How I refinished the table

The table itself was still in great condition, so rather than replacing it, I wanted to strip back the old finish and give the timber a fresh new look.

1. I started by giving the table a clean and removing any dirt or residue from the surface before sanding.
2. Next, I connected my Bosch PAS30-240PRS vacuum cleaner to the sander using the universal adapter. This collects the dust as you work, which meant there was barely anything left to clean up afterwards!
3. I sanded the entire table, working evenly across the tabletop, legs and edges to remove the existing finish and bring it back to the natural timber.
4. I applied the timber stain evenly, following the direction of the grain and wiping away any excess as I went. I then left it to dry.

Now it’s ready for plenty more backyard lunches and dinners – proof that old furniture can still have so much life left in it.

The post Refreshing Our Outdoor Table appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

This was such a simple little project to make using my Bosch DIY tools, and I love that it’s both cute and useful. We popped it out near the street and the kids collected a whole bundle of sticks to fill it up.

What I used

For this project I used:

• Timber for the base, sides and back
• Timber dowel (I used an old coat rack cut in half)
• Exterior screws
• Exterior timber paint
• Bosch drill/driver
• Bosch circular saw
• Bosch sander
• Paint brush or mini roller
• Lettering or a stencil for the ‘Stick Library’ sign

Making the stick library

I wanted the design to be really simple: essentially an open timber box with some hooks to hold the sticks.

1. I started by cutting the timber pieces to size using my Bosch saw.
2. Once everything was cut, I gave the edges and surfaces a quick sand so they were nice and smooth.
3. Next, I assembled the base, back and sides using my Bosch drill/driver and exterior screws. I then screwed in the coat rack hooks.
4. Once the structure was finished, I painted the whole thing with exterior paint and added a stick library hanging sign.

Turns out my daughters use this as much as Ollie does!

The post How to Make a Dog Stick Library appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

When the opportunity came up to bring Heidi Caillier’s collection with Lulu and Georgia to life as a dollhouse, it felt like one of those rare pinch me moments! Anddddd I can’t even begin to tell you the rollercoaster ride of recreating a well known designer’s collection in miniature form. From the stone exterior and vines to the living spaces inside, every room was designed to feel warm and collected. The living room, dining room, bedroom, bathroom and reading nook are all filled with tiny handmade furniture, lighting, textiles and details inspired by Heidi’s signature style just on a much smaller scale.

I mean, I have to admit that every detail was obsessed over down to the books, vases, linens and florals, I may have gone a little overboard. But the goal wasn’t just to replicate the spaces but to capture the feeling of Heidi’s interiors: warm, eclectic and lived in anddddd at 1:12 scale.

I found so many new amazing processes as I was doing this, like scaling and printing these fabrics to make mini replicas. Little reminder, if you want to make your own dollhouse or miniatures make sure you check out my course! There’s 50+ video lessons, 7 dollhouses, dollhouse plans for this dollhouse if you want to make it front scratch, a private community and full detailed shopping edit!

Join My Dollhouse Course

The post My Lulu and Georgia Dollhouse appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

Laura is a contemporary figurative painter working from her home studio in Mitchelton, Brisbane. Her work is bold and unmistakably hers — strong colour, simplified forms, expressive brushwork, drawn from modernist minimalism and fauvism. But the way that work actually happens is less about discipline and more about theft: stealing pockets of time wherever they appear.

“A day in the life is me chasing my toddlers,” she told me. “There’s not a lot of studio time right now.”

Where the ideas come from

Laura is drawn to nostalgia — specifically, the kind that pulls from her own childhood in the ’90s. A photograph found on Pinterest or Instagram will sit with her for weeks before it turns into anything.

“I’ll save it and then mull over it for a couple of weeks,” she says. “And then all of a sudden I’m like, all right, I’m painting ten paintings. It just kind of evolves from there.”

Colour works the same way — one shade takes hold and moves through an entire body of work. Right now, it’s Australian blue gum. “I’m using it throughout the whole collection, in lots of different pieces, lots of different ways.”

Once a colour has her attention, the real satisfaction is in what comes next. “I love the problem-solving element of it,” she says. “What kind of colour is going to complement that? This orangey red, for instance — I love it. I really enjoy when a colour palette comes together. It’s like a fun maths problem, in a way, even though I hated maths. That’s probably my favourite part.”

Knowing herself through the work

Ask Laura what she’s learned about herself through painting, and she doesn’t hesitate: she’s impulsive.

“I might have an idea and that night I need to create it,” she says. “If I slept on it for a week, I’d probably be bored of that idea.” It’s not always a comfortable thing to notice about yourself, she admits — but it’s true, and it’s part of how the work gets made. New ideas arrive constantly, and the wanting to create doesn’t let up. As she puts it, the idea is the fuel for the fire.

Even colour choice isn’t purely instinct. “I’ve got a funny answer and a real answer,” she laughs. “Often it’s what’s on sale, so that becomes the colour I paint in. But it’s also wise to look at what’s on trend.” To build a career from art, she says, following some of those trends is part of the deal — using or being inspired by what’s resonating, and building a palette around it.

The reality behind the studio

Most nights, once Laura’s two young daughters are asleep, she paints. Sometimes that’s in a makeshift studio set up in the laundry. When she can get there, it’s a loft-style space with better light. Neither is the romantic version of a studio you might picture. Both are where the work gets made.

“It’s kind of like, oh great, they’re having a snack — quickly, let’s go prep a canvas,” she says. “I’ll paint the background while they’re distracted, and then I can go back to it. It’s the juggle.”

The part that makes it worth it

For all the problem-solving and colour theory, Laura’s favourite part of the process has nothing to do with paint.

“It’s been a journey to create a piece exactly how I had it in my mind,” she says. “Maybe fifty per cent of the time I can execute it how I wanted.” But when a finished piece sells, and the person who bought it comes to collect it — genuinely obsessed with it, already picturing where it’ll hang, maybe because it reminded them of a childhood memory or a holiday — that’s the moment. “Favourite feeling ever. It’s so nice. Makes everything worth it.”

And how does she know when a piece is actually finished? “When I’ve gone too far, and I’ve been like, oh, I shouldn’t have done that. Then I know it’s finished.”

This is exactly why I wanted to start The Makers. Not the polished, curated version of what it looks like to be a working artist — the real one. Laundry-room studios. Stolen pockets of time between snacks and bedtime. Chasing a colour because you’re a little obsessed with it. That’s the version that felt worth telling.

You can follow Laura’s work at @laura.jessie.lois. And keep an eye out — more Makers are coming.

Laura is wearing the Charlie Overalls in Natural and Slate throughout the shoot. Shop the Charlie Overalls.

The Makers is a joint series between Geneva Vanderzeil and Collective Gen, celebrating the women who make for a living.

The post The Makers: Meet Laura Lois appeared first on Geneva Vanderzeil.

Could I make it even better? The original design was focused on being as easy as possible to make, so I opted for a simple gathered skirt attached to the trampoline using velcro and a round cushion without a zipper. But over the past few months, I’ve been experimenting with new construction methods to improve the shape and fit. Naturally, that has meant a slightly more complicated Proust but it’s been so worth it! I also got so many questions and ideas from you guys in the last six months, and I wanted to add in your feedback too! So, without further ado, I introduce my (NEWISH) trampoline ottoman project!

Learn how to make this trampoline ottoman here

The biggest change is the new trampoline cover design. Instead of an elastic and a gathered ‘skirt’ technique, this version uses a doughnut-shaped top piece, so you don’t need any velcro to keep the skirt attached. I also made the cushion with a ziupper this time so you can wash the cushion whenever you need to!I’m so happy with how it turned out. It has all the fun of the original project, but with some simple tweaks to make it even better. Which one is best for you? It’s really up to you. If you’re just starting out and feel nervous, the original design is seriously simple, but if you have a few more skills or feel up to adding a zipper and doing a hand gather, the new version is amazing! Both can be found in my sewing course.

The best part? I‘ve added this brand-new tutorial to my Sewing Course! If you’re already a Sewing Course student, there’s nothing you need to do—it’s been added to your course library automatically as a free update.

And if you’ve been thinking about joining, there’s never been a better time. Along with this new trampoline ottoman, you’ll learn practical sewing skills through a collection of projects designed to help you create beautiful things for your home and wardrobe. I can’t wait to see the fabric combinations you choose for this one. Happy sewing!

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