Sunday

I spent a few hours on Saturday sorting through fabrics and patterns and generally tidying my sewing room.  It’s taken a while but I feel ready to sew again.

This dress was a ’speed sewing’ project, taking a little under an hour to complete.  (although I did buy the bodice already gathered from a warehouse sale many years ago)

Amelia (with swimming hair) has grown out of most of her summer pyjamas.  Last night at dinner time I whipped up these pants from my stash and an easy Ottobre pattern, and trimmed a t-shirt to match.  At our house it’s officially Hammertime!

 

A lazy Sunday at home thanks to some much needed rain.  More sewing, sorting through old patterns, and tracing an Otto pattern onto my new pattern card (thanks girls, I went to Harvey’s !) for some 50s style bathers for Lachlan.

 

 

 

 

best laid plans

 

Great fabric (Armani from Astratex).  Pattern downloaded and painstakingly stuck together.  Opportunity to test out the new rolled hem function on my overlocker - amazing!

I like the shot above as it features the good parts of this shirt, and with my arm raised, hides the fact that it’s such a poor fit.

 

 

Really awful photography, but here you can see it truly fits like a maternity shirt

 

 

Despite fitting well at the shoulders, and having princess seams front and back, it fits like a sack through the back, bust and hips.

I just can’t face doing the alterations right now.  At least I haven’t hemmed it yet.

Pattern was free from here .  Possibly I’ve made it a size too big.  Having been pregnant or feeding for the best part of 6 years I’ve always been conscious of pulling across the front in shirts, but this is just enormous.

 

 

It looks pretty slim fitting here (Burdastyle)…. 

I’ll toss it aside till I’ve made something else and have my confidence back.  I was really looking forward to wearing this with my white pants, now I’m just grumpy.

 

 

 

 

a question

http://www.justsewbrighton.co.uk/userimages/pattern_making.jpg

 

I need some pattern card.

I don’t know how I’ve been doing without it for nearly 10 years since returning from the UK, but now I’m using patterns like Ottobre, and making more of my own

I NEED PATTERN CARD!

I know I can get it from M.Recht, I’m just not ready for commercial quantities at this stage.  I’ve been trawling the net, and found nothing.

Do you use pattern card?

Have you found a reasonable substitute?

Do you know where I can buy some?  Do you know someone who might know?

help.  please!

(some pattern paper would be nice too, especially the dot marked version like in the pic above.  Even my local Spotlight has stopped carrying pattern paper, trying to fob off lightweight fusing to do the job.)

 

 

 

No words

 

 

 

 

I heart green

 

Our pool has demanded some pretty major maintenance.  We tried the easy fix (read cheap fix) and when water started coming into other parts of the house, we were left with no choice but to restore the pool (ouch!).

I’ve taken this as an opportunity to make this area into something I’d like.  The kids like anything with water, my other half thinks ist’s fine, but I haven’t liked anything about this part of our house since we moved in a few years ago.  I’m going for a conservatory look, something lush and tranquil year round, especially for the 8 months or more of the year that we’re not actually swimming, but just looking into the room.

 

 

Inspired by these pics in Martha Stewart Living back in 2004, I’ve been wanting to use a colour like this for a long time.  My colour is called Umbrella Green (Dulux) and not wanting to sound like an advert for happy drugs, every time I look at it I smile, I feel uplifted, and I’ve never been moved by colour like this before.  (well not of the house painting kind)

So over the past few weeks, while I haven’t been blogging or crafting, I HAVE BEEN BUSY!!  I’ve been cleaning terracotta tiles and I’ve even rendered cement sheeting before getting into my painting.  Painting render is hard work.  It’s physical, time consuming, uses a hideous amount of  paint, but I’m loving the result and can actually see myself sitting out in my Christmas present chairs a-la sunroom, watching the kids play in the backyard. (I’m thinking Friday afternoon drinks, Saturday nap time reading, Sunday morning papers…)

I’m looking to decorate with anything white.  Possibly some old iron gates, some old louvre doors, I’ll just keep me eyes open and see what comes my way.  I’ll be looking for some outdoor fabric in a botanical print to make cushions for my new chairs and anything else to give it that slightly Martha/Hamptons/Cape Cod sort of feel. 

Lonny offered some great advice,

 

Back to crafting soon!

Lx

 

Lonny

 

There’s something about New York style that speaks to me, whether it’s an apartment in New York City, a beach house in the Hamptons or a house in upstate New York, these people never seem to get it wrong!

So you can imagine how thrilled I was to come across an amazing online magazine this morning that is all of the above and more…

 

Check it out for yourself.  It’s called Lonny and best of all, it’s free.

and it even started out as a blog.

Nice job Lonny!

Inspired, I’m off to plan my next project.

Lx

 

No Owls

 

Here is a sneak peak at my finally finished jumper.  Inspired by an antarctic cold snap last weekend, I postponed all non-essential activity (cleaning included) to knit.

It’s so warm and cosy so even though I planned to block it (wash it and shape it to dry) I’ll wear it as is until the weather warms up. 

Here are details of the pattern.  I decided to just go for cables rather than owls.  Chickened out, I know!

 

Yesterday was supposed to be tonsil day for Lachlan, but he wasn’t well enough.  New date TBA.

Lx

 

 

 

Handmade gifts

My niece turned two recently and I made her this skirt.

 

 

Apologies for the photography.  I’m actually in two minds as to whether there is something wrong with the camera.  My old faithful of 6 odd years could take a great shot on auto, and this one doesn’t focus and hasn’t taken anything with the flash that hasn’t overexposed. 

 

 

Amelia was most disappointed this wasn’t for her.  I have enough fabric to make both of my girls a skirt and will work on some minor variations to make each one different.

 

handmade v homemade

This is something that I give a bit of thought to from time to time.  I know my sister-in-law loved this skirt and the effort that went into making it.  If you’re reading this blog, making things by hand, and receiving gifts that have been handmade probably means a lot to you, but have you ever experienced an uncomfortable feeling that your gift recipient may not feel the same?  Maybe they think it’s a bit of a cheap way out and you’re always making gifts at home.  Maybe they don’t value the time you put into making something and just see the materials.  Maybe it’s because it doesn’t have a brand, or can’t be returned if they don’t like it.  I think stores like Target have a lot to answer for in creating a culture of return and exchange just because you don’t like something.  I know people who are too scared to buy gifts (let alone make them) in case they get it wrong and so have resorted to giving giftcards. 

Making a gift is giving a little of yourself.   I’ll keep making my gifts.  They will be made at home, but handmade with love.

 

 

mend and make do

I was out shopping a few weeks back when I saw a gorgeous cropped trench coat

then I remembered

 

 

I have a trench – that I used to love and wear ALL the time, until an unfortunate accident with Matilda’s play gym when a button got caught

 

 

and did this.

It’s been sitting in my mending pile for OVER 1 YEAR! waiting for inspiration to strike.

 

 

The hole is under the flower with the button. 

It looked a bit silly with just one, unbalanced with two, so there are three.

 

 

I feel a big wardrobe clearout coming on, who knows what else I’ll find!

 

It’s a big secret

I’ve been working hard this past week but need to do a whole lot more before I can show you just what I’ve been up to.

 

I’ve been pattern making, sample sewing, wear testing and re-drafting my pattern.

I’ve worn the top a few times and even from strangers it’s been soliciting just the response I was hoping for.

Everything is looking positive, so watch this space!

In the meantime, I’ll beaver away in my sewing room, putting the new overlocker through its paces.  My old overlocker has gone via our primary school, and another family who offered to pay to have it serviced, to a Somalian refugee sewing group.  We have a single mother with 3 young children at our school who loves to sew and has set up the group.  They have very little in the way of materials and machinery, so I hope this helps.

 

 

I know it’s easy to find gorgeous fabrics when you’re in the Liberty section of a store, but I was particularly taken with this one.

 

 

Unlike the skip savvy finds over at pottymouthmama, my find from the hard rubbish collection was more a matter of timing than having an eye to find treasure in the trash.

It was on Malvern Road (pretty busy road in Melbourne) at about 1.30pm, and I’m guessing I was the first car that drove past after the owner walked back inside.  Other than needing a good clean, and removing a broken white plastic petrol cap, it’s perfect.

Matilda is in heaven.  These cars are always her first choice at playgroup or a playcentre, and she squealed when she saw it!