Get on your knees.

There are a couple of things from recent days to blog about, but I'll space them out, so it doesn't look like I just have creative phases ... (Not that they're particularly 'creative' as such, as they both followed instructions. Creating, yes, creative, not really!)
The first one is something I've been meaning to make for ages (years?). I only finally got around to going and getting the wood for it last week. It's a prayer stool :)
If you're wondering why it's on the bed, it's because, being pine, it didn't show up very well against the beige carpet!

Ingredients: (enough to serve 1 person at a time)
Plank of wood (smooth planed, unless you want splinters in your bum) 6 inches wide, about 32 long.  Choose a thickness of plank that you think will bear your weight...
Batten (square, 1/2 inch, about 12 inches long)
8 screws (I used reasonably lightweight 1inch ones - obviously if they're much longer they'll stick out the other side)
4 nails.
Wood glue.
Saw
Sandpaper
Hammer
Screwdriver (I confess I used the power tool rather than my fair hands)
Three-year-old son to help (optional)

Cut an 18 inch length off the wood. (This will be the 'seat' bit)
For the legs, I cut them 7 1/4 at the back and 6 1/2 at the front. (I'm sure you can work it out for yourself, but measure 6 1/2 inches then 7 1/4 on one edge of the face, and on the other edge measure 7 1/4 then 6 1/2. You'll have a sloping cut that creates two identical bits of wood) The precise lengths you'll want depends a bit on your shape - shorter/taller people may wish to vary, but I would have thought this would work for most. Mum's prayer stool, from which I stole the measurements (it's ok, I helped her make it years ago) is 6 1/2 and 7 inches.
At this point, my three-year-old helper (a.k.a 'Big Boy') went inside to watch telly. I sanded down some of the corners, so it's got a smoother finish, but that's pretty optional. I actually went in to sit with Big Boy whilst sanding, but got a very clear, "I can't hear the telly properly", so I left again.
You then need to construct it - I nailed the top into the legs before screwing, and applied wood glue at this point - I didn't use any in the battens.. (It's probably obvious, but make sure you have the legs the right way up (If it's not obvious, you want the right-angled edge to be on the floor, and the sloping edge to be at the top!!))
I then cut the batten at a slight angle, so that it follows the line of the legs, rather than sticking out at a jaunty angle).
Screw the battens into the top and legs.

If you want to, you could of course paint/varnish it. (Or carve your name and postcode in it, so if it's nicked it can find its way home). I think I'd do this to all the bits of wood before putting it together.

One last thing...

USE IT!

One to amuse you.

Thought you might like this one.

Ingredients:
Leftover fabric (that's leftover from the leftover fabric used for the last project)
A heart to cut around (suggest wooden one rather than real one - much less messy)
A dead pillow that can be butchered.
Sewing machine etc., as in previous post.

Cut two hearts out of the fabric.
Worry about the fact that they seem to be different, despite the fact that you used the same 'template' for them both. Also worry about whether the fabric should have been a certain way up before you started.
Figure it doesn't really matter and pin around the edge. (Note, if you're using a fabric with a right side and a wrong side, make sure the right side is on the inside - don't worry, you'll see it again in a second)
Sew almost all the way around the edge, leaving about a 1 1/2 inch gap.
Turn the empty heart (?!) inside out (or inside in, actually) so that the seam is on the inside not the outside. (Though I guess there might be something vaguely 'trendy' about having the seam on the outside - seems to be all the range with t-shirts these days)
Rip bits out of the innards of your dead pillow (should probably have mentioned that a polyester one's perhaps easiest and least messy, but I'm sure others would do)
Jam as much stuffing into the heart as you can.
Hand sew (unless you're better with a sewing machine than me) the last 1 1/2 inches up, making sure that you've not got any guts spilling out through your seam.
Wrap the heart up and give it to a loved one. (Or, I suppose, anyone ... if you're into freaking people out)

In no particular order...

Thought I'd start with this, as there's already a photo of it here.
Basically, at the request of mum, I made this (she asked for one, but didn't specifically ask me to make one). It required:
A sewing machine (or needle and thread, if you're not the machine type). For the record, mine is a singer sewing machine. Class no. 201K. It was a present to my granny on the occasion of her 21st birthday, which makes it an impressive 73 years old this year. And yes, it's electric.
Some fabric (slightly smaller than a tea towel)
Some elastic (I butchered a pair of boxer shorts, (sorry mum!) but I gather that the more conventional method is to buy the stuff). Two bits of elastic, to be precise.
Some pins (you can decide for yourself how many you need)
A bit of ribbon to hang it up with

Basically, you want the elastic to be about 1/2 to 2/3 as long as your fabric is wide (make sense?) e.g., if your fabric is 30cm/12in, you want the elastic to be about 15-20cm/6-8in. You need it to create a hole that is the right size to allow plastic bags to pass through, without being so big as to let them all drop out!
Pin your elastic to the top and bottom (the shorter sides, that is) of your bit of fabric. You probably want a pin at each end and one in the middle.
Sew the elastic to the fabric using the machine. To be honest, this was a bit of a faff, but I found that the 'grip' (sure there's a technical term for it) on the sewing machine was good enough for me to put the foot down on one end of the elastic and fabric, and then pull the elastic taut from the other end whilst sewing along the length. Do this for both bits of elastic!
Hem the ends (also tricky because of the elastic) by folding the fabric over the elastic and then fold again so both the elastic and then end of the fabric are hidden, and then sew along.
Sew the two sides together with a straight stitch, making sure that you have the fabric inside out, so the seam ends up on the inside.
Turn the whole thing the right way around.
Sew the ribbon into the inside of the top (the top is whichever end you want it to be...) I think I did this by hand, as I thought if would be easier than a machine.
Hang it up and marvel at your creation. (Trying to avoid looking at bits that don't quite match up, and wondering why you used yellow thread on a green and white fabric)

Good fun to make, satisfying too. And 'made to order'. Must ask mum for a report on its progress and functionality...

Simples.