Stealth quilting

When I took up sewing again, my other half was generally encouraging, but there was one proviso: "If you take up quilting, we're getting a divorce." Now, I've never had any interest in quilting, it generally seems to be a bit fuddy duddy and twee. When my new sewing machine came with a free quilting kit I wasn't that bothered other than by the appeal of the walking foot, which I could use for knits. Remembering my husband's words, I put the quilting kit somewhere out of view just in case he started divorce proceedings, but I had no intention of using it.... Until now.
Friends have just had a baby and I wanted to make them a gift. When my son was born, a friend gave me a lovely cot blanket, simply sewn with a lovely vintage print. 

It has been so useful and even 7 years later it sits at the bottom of The Boy's bed. I thought it would be simple enough to make one and then I started looking at pics on the internet and my idea sort of grew from a simple blanket to something a little more... Quilty. Uh-oh.
After much browsing, I ordered a pack of fat quarters from Plush Addict and picked up some fat eights at my local quilting shop in Warwick. This was unknown territory for me and it took me a week before I dared cut into the cloth. After much deliberation I cut the fabric into 23cm squares and arranged them in a 3 x 4 pattern. I stitched them together in rows than stitched the rows together and finally backed it with some purple fleece blanket from Ikea.

I'm really pleased with the result and hope the recipients like it too. 

And I've got enough fabric left for 2 more blankets. The walking foot and extension table are awesome and will definitely be getting more use. Just don't tell the husband...

Dolly Clackett sewalong - Car Fest Simplicity 2444 dress

I have to admit I have been Blog-stalking Dolly Clackett since I took up sewing.She lives nearby in Leamington, her blog style is very engaging and she is both prolific and talented in the dress-making stakes. I do envy her ability to rock a quirky looking retro dress, even though the style doesn't particularly suit me. And the shoes! Man, I love the shoes.

So I was excited to see the sewalong her friend has organised for her forthcoming wedding. The perfect opportunity to finish and showcase my CarFest dress! This is truly a Dolly-inspired dress, from the retro print fabric to the use of her old favourite, Simplicity 2444.

I have made this dress in preparation for CarFest, which is, oh, 6 months away! I'm so excited about it though, as The Boy is a total petrol head. The fabric is from Ditto Fabrics in Brighton and I also bought some other car-related fabrics from Fabricland to make The Boy some funky shirts for the festival. That's the next project.

 

So, with this dress, I lengthened the bodice and graded it between a couple of sizes for a better fit (although it's actually a bit looser than I planned - I've had a stomach bug and I think I've lost weight - better get back on the cakes!). I also scooped out the neckline at the front and back to make it a bit more summery. I lined the bodice as the fabric is quite sheer, but I haven't got round to lining the skirt as I ran out of lining! I'm even toying with a proper petticoat to give the skirt a bit of oomph. I managed to insert an invisible zip between the lining and the main fabric, using this tutorial. Overall I am pretty happy, although I will need to insert some bra strap holders as the neckline is a bit wide across my scrawny upper chest and my straps keep poking out.



I've said before that I don't feel quite right in this style of dress as it feels a bit too girly and young for me. But at festivals anything goes, so I'm looking forward to wearing this. I just hope the sun shines!

Car Fest Simplicity 2444 dress in progress

So I have made a start on the Car Fest dress. It currently looks a big of a shapeless sack, but I haven't inserted the zip or seen up the side seams yet. 

The eagle eyed among you will spot the coverless cushions on the dog behind. The Boy spent last night throwing up and then finished off with a quick barf on the sofa this morning. Not good as we are about to try to sell it before our new sofa arrives. Anyone fancy a slightly puked-on sofa ?

Back to the dress, which is Simplicity 2444, of course. It's been coming together okay, with a slight lengthening of the bodice. The fabric is quite thin, so I have lined the bodice. I haven't got enough of that lining to do the skirt as well so I will either have to get some more or maybe go for a petticoat to give the skirt a bit of volume. That would be a bit of a departure for me, so I will try the dress on once the zip is in and have a think. 

I realised that I'd bought a standard zip rather than an invisible one for some reason. And I was about to bung it in anyway as I'm so inpatient... but I decided to hang on until I can get an invisible one because I am trying to make a bit of an effort with this dress and not eff if up like I usually do! Fingers crossed...

Is it wrong to want a Mexican wrestler dress?

I'm a conservative dresser. I don't really do patterns or bright colours. Every Christmas my husband buys me another grey v-neck jumper for my collection.

But having bought some retro car fabric for the planned Car Fest dress I am finding myself drawn to increasingly outrageous fabric. Like this:

I bloody love this. But I think everyone who knows me would think I'd gone totally insane.

I am also hankering after this little number:

I have a longstanding obsession/phobia of sharks.

And finally:

Some intergalactic craziness. Is this a midlife crisis or should I just go for it and see what the reaction is? Fabrics are all by Fancy Moon (www.fancymoon.co.uk) who also have some very nice, tasteful fabrics too!).

In other news, I am knitting what seems to be the world's longest scarf. This is a commission from my brother and I'm hoping to have if finished before the summer!

Sew Over It sulk!

So I haven't blogged for ages. I did some sewing and this resulted in some serious sulking. Having invested in 2 patterns from Sew Over It, I spent ages sewing up the Ultimate Tea Dress. I had to recut the bodice as when I tried it on it was crazily tiny. That meant I had to fudge the skirt panels with really tiny seam allowances and leave out the dart in the back of the skirt. I finished all my seams properly (normally I'm way too lazy).and then when I went to hem it the skirt was really short, so I ended up with a 0.5cm hem.  The finished dress has some issues with the neckline gaping too. 

Anyway, just as I hemmed the dress an email popped into my inbo. Saying that the pattern pieces had been printed too small! Aaaaarrrrggghhhh! 

I have a lot of sympathy with small businesses but I was so cheesed off that I've been in a sewing sulk ever since!

Anyway, here's the finished item:

Next... A retro dress for me and some shirts for The Boy in a car print fabric in preparation for CarFest in the summer! I'm attempting to draft my own Frankenpattern along the lines of the Anna dress that is currently the blogosphere's favourite. It could be a mash-up too far...

Little monsters

It It's been a while since I blogged, but I have been busy making these little monsters for the Boy's classmates:

Each one is made from a single sheet of cheap Hobbycraft felt (50p) plus white and black felt for the features. 

I also made this:

It's a handbag organiser made out of 2 bits of felt and some interfacing. There are pockets for my purse, phone, diary, pens... And when I change bag I can just lift the whole thing out. It's made it so much easier to find my stuff in my capacious bag! If I make another one I will do a little tutorial.

Spend spend spend

Ah, the dangers of a glass of wine and internet access on a Saturday!

So far I have bought a book: 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1408170884

Recommended by a friend, apparently it is the answer to all my fitting  problems.

I have also been over to http://sewoverit.co.uk and purchased their wrap dress and the dress pattern. Reckless. And that's not mentioning the luxury holiday to Norway I also booked tonight. Yikes.

The tea dress pattern is for this fabric :

Which is actually slightly lighter blue than it looks in the picture. At £2.50 per metre from Tahim's in coventry, it doesn't matter too much if I mess it up! And I still have some Drape Drape patterns to attempt... Going to be busy. 

I made something that isn't crap!

I haven't blogged much lately because I've been busy turning 40. It's actually fine, although I find it utterly unbelievable that I'm that old. One surprise birthday party and a reunion with the Brighton girls later and I'm ready to just get on with it.

In sewing news, I've abandoned my wrap dress because it's a disaster. But I have made a skirt. I don't really own any skirts and I had a sudden hankering for a denim one. So on my trip to Brighton I picked up some slightly stretchy denim from Fabricland (£4.99/m). The selection was a bit disappointing because it was all getting a bit Halloween in there. But I got my denim and my friend picked up loads of co-ordinating cottons to make bags (I've really got to get my Christmas-present-making arse in gear!)

So, I dug out my Burda magazines and found a pencil skirt pattern. I added a vent at the back because, well, I wanted to be able to walk.

I'm chuffed with the result. The invisible zip went in fine, despite the lack of an invisible zip foot. The skirt is a little snug, but I shall wear my Spanx and wiggle my tush.

So, finally, a sewing non-disaster! I would like to finish the seams though as they are a bit fray-y. I may bind them in some way but I haven't thought how yet... But I'm back in the sewing saddle. Now to tackle Christmas presents!

Burda knotted dress with a fabric shortfall

So my current project is this Burda knotted dress

(I'll have what she's having... I never thought leaning on the tin man's head could result in such ecstasy). 

My problem is that it calls for 3 metres of fabric and I have ... 2 metres. The shortfall is due to the big ties at the end of the wrap. So I've ditched them and tried to turn it into a basic faux wrap dress.But I might stick the wraps back on because I'm having problems with getting the wrap to line up ok at the sides. It's bunching up all wrong because the original fronts wrap over in the middle, while I'm trying to attach them at the sides.

What has gone well is attaching tape to the seams to stabilise them, although my cheap jersey from Birmingham's rag market (£2.50 a metre) is fairly stable. 

So I still have to cut out the sleeves and figure out what to do with the wrap bit.  

When will I learn to just follow the bloody pattern?

And now for something completely different

A rather natty little leopard print number, as requested by The Boy. I made this about a year ago and tonight he suddenly decided he wanted to wear it as pyjamas. Pattern was a major Burda hack from various fancy dress costume patterns. Not my finest work but it has a certain je ne sais quoi.

Oops. Drape Drape disaster.

It was my fault really. 

Disaster 1: trying to cut a pattern that calls for 1m 20 of fabric from a 96cm piece. 

Problem solved by cutting the front and back as 2 separate pieces and adding a seam allowance then stitching them together.

Disaster 2: choosing the slipperiest, stretchiest lurex fabric ever. Like juggling eels. Fabric sliding about in the sewing machine; wonky, puckered seams...

Problem solved with my wonderful walking foot. More about that in a later post. More even seams, fabric behaving itself a bit better.

Disaster 3: ahem... Forgetting to include the waistband when I traced the pattern. (See also Disaster1). I thought the top was looking a bit short so I tried it on for size before attempting to sew the binding to the neckline. Spot the difference:

I didnt have enough fabric left to cut the waistband out so I had cobble  together the scraps into Frankenstein's waistband.

With the waistband attached, I have now hand-sewn the neckline binding and I just need to hem it and finish the sleeves. I'm hoping it will be wearable and I think the pattern itself will be great in an easier-to-sew fabric and with the pattern actually cut out properly. Oh we'll: you live, you sew, you learn...

Drape Drape 2... Winners and losers

ISo I was super-excited to get my copy of Drape Drape 2 in the post. It's a smaller book than I thought. So far the favourite pattern is an asymmetric top :

Sorry about the sideways pic. New iPod touch. I think this is going to be a really versatile pattern for making comfy tops to lounge about in and maybe something in a more luxurious fabric for going out. (Ha! My fabulous social life consists of a monthly trip to Wetherspoons with similarly knackered mums). 

Other possibles include a best top/dress that could look good:

Cowl neck dress (obviously need to wear something underneath this).

Batwing dress. Could look a bit dodgy round the hips...

I rather like this petal skirt too:

But I think this could be a drape too far:

Errrr... No. Just no:

The book cost £13 so I figure if I get 2 good patterns out of it, it's paid it's keep. So, off to the fabric shop in Birmingham on Saturday to try to find some suitably lux jersey to get started with... Wonder what I'll come back with...

Claiming my blog

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/10863905/?claim=xkqd2mtwgtu">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Haven't yet got the hang of this blogging lark but I hereby claim my blog. Apparently. Not sure what it's all about quite frankly.

Bye bye to the original phantom foot pedal

Well I have donated the Phantom Foot Pedal machine to a lovely schoolgirl who is starting to make her own clothes. I'm worried that it's a bit of a poisoned chalice due to the machine's - ahem - idiosyncracies. But she's been fully warned.
It's great to see people taking up sewing (she says in the slightly patronising way of an expert who's been sewing for ooh a year).  I used to sew when I was a hideously square teenager and then I didn't sew for about 20 years. I work as an Occupational Therapist and that has led me to understand the importance of the process of creating as much as the finished product. I'm not artistic but I can follow instructions, and the joy of sewing is that you get to wear the product at the end.
I hope the recipient of the machine goes on to sew for years to come and to share the joys with her friends and family.
and I hope she doesn't curse me when the machine takes off with its crazy mind of its own...

Doing some groundwork

I've had fitting issues with most of the stuff I've made so I've decided to do some groundwork before I plug the sewing machine back in.

My excellent local library furnished me with this book:

Fast Fit: Easy Pattern Alterations for Every Figure by Sandra Betzina. It might look a bit dated but this book is a bible for fitting issues and how to adjust patterns. I've started doing my measurements... Just need to rope the hubby in for the hard-to-reach bits. This is such a good book that I may well invest in a copy. I can't recommend libraries enough. There are so many sewing books out there that it's easy to purchase a dud. Libraries may not have every sewing book but mine certainly has a good selection, particularly of reference books for techniques. 

I so picked up this one:

Which is a bit groovier and has all sorts of quick projects. Some of which look a bit bonkers.

New shoes and thinking about the avant grade

I haven't done any sewing this week. Too busy at work, plus the students have moved back in next door and have been partying till half 6, which is when I get up for work. Bless 'em.

So I've been very tired. So tired. 

Anyhow, we dragged ourselves out of bed on Saturday and drove down to Rushdensimplicity to a factory sale of Grenson shoes. I've never owned proper handmade shoes and these were all 40 and 50 quid instead of about 200. 

This got me thinking about my wardrobe and I decided I need to branch out from the big pattern companies and try something more adventurous than an endless series of shift dresses. (I think this may be part of my turning 40 crisis. Which has coincided with a Fleetwood Mac reunion. This could all get a bit Stevie Nicks....). So I have ordered a copy of Drape Drape 2, a Japanese sewing book that I've been reading about on the blogosphere. Apparently some of the patterns are fairly mindblowing, but there are some knit patterns that look wearable. There are 3 books in the series, but I thought I'd start with this one and see how I got on. 

I've persuaded a friend to come to Barry's fabric store in Birmingham in a couple of weeks, which gives me time to work out what patterns to make and how much fabric I need! I can't wait to get started. 

I've also been envying Dolly Clackett's new Anna dress/ Charlotte skirt mash-up.... Maybe next time....

More thoughts on Simplicity 1913

So, I finished my dress just in time for the wedding do. I mean literally, grabbed it out of the sewing machine and then out the door.

The problem was... Bulges and Bags. I had bulgy bits below the waistline and saggy bits at the back. I blame this partly on the pattern's marrying of a princess-seamed bodice with a pencil skirt that is gathered at the waistline. Why? Why would you put a fitted top with a gathered pencil skirt? Darts, yes. Even a gathered full skirt. Anyway, the combo was weird and unflattering, so ten minutes before I was due to leave, I unpicked a couple of bits of waistline and eyeballed some darts. They don't marry up with the princess seams but fortunately the lace is quite forgiving.

I had problems with the whole fit of the dress. The pattern was a freebie that came in what it said was US sizes 12 to something, EUR 38 to something. The smallest measurements married up quite well with mine, but I ended up taking loads out of the side seams and the centre back seam. I really don't know anything about fitting but I thought a fairly structured dress like this wouldn't have too much ease. I think in future I probably need to make a sway back adjustment and something around the upper back and chest as I always end up with a baggy lower back, excess fabric at the top back and a gaping neckline. Maybe I need to cut a smaller bodice size, with a full bust adjustment? Hell, I don't know.

My next project is going to be something loose to lounge around the house in so hopefully the fitting issues won't be too much of a problem.

Still, the dress was a success... A friend asked me if it was Phase Eight.

Almost done

I bloody love my new sewing machine. I've been sewing this pattern ready for an evening wedding do tomorrow:

It's Simplicity 1913, which was free with Sew Easy magazine recently. I'm not mad on the buttons and stuff but I wanted to do something with Princess Seams. Well, after a couple of evenings of hand stitching, it's almost done. Just a hook and eye to sew on at the top of the zip.

Here's a sneak preview: 

Full reveal and details of my numerous adjustments to follow. And have I mentioned I bloody love my new sewing machine?

Time for an upgrade?

I received a rather unexpected cheque in the post at the weekend and, as a result, I am contemplating upgrading The Phantom Foot Pedal machine for one that actually works. (Shhhh... Don't tell her!). The PFP was a generous gift from a friend when she was gifted a better machine. She did warn me that it would randomly start sewing without you touching the foot pedal but I've kind of got used to that little quirk. It certainly makes sewing more exciting. Like driving an F1 race with no control over your speed. She's been a great machine for starting me off in sewing but now I think it's time to move on and move up.

I've been scouring the Internet for recommendations but I think I am going to visit my local independent sewing store for advice. They even do. Free "getting to know your machine" class when you buy from them. Which I think I'm going to need. Exciting times! I'm off work today with a stinking cold, which is giving me time to think about the purchase and all the fancy things I might sew. I've also ordered some fat quarters from Frumble Fabrics for an as yet unknown project. This is why it's important that I work full time if I do t I end up buying stuff...

Meet the twins

Here are two I made earlier. In fact the first two dresses I finished - ooh about a year ago now.

These are McCall's 2401 - an Easy shift dress pattern with six variations. I made view E, with a boat neck and elbow length sleeves.
The material is Ponte Roma - I can't remember where I bought it from now, but it was less than £5 a metre, and each dress took less than 2 metres. I still have some left over, maybe enough for a top or a pencil skirt.
As the material had some stretch, I left out the centre back zip and cut the back as a single piece. I didn't make a very good job of the front darts on the red version - they aren't sharp enough and have ended up more like pin tucks. And my hem is a bit goofy because I trimmed the hem allowance too much and just did a narrow, machine stitched hem.
What I love about these dresses is that I can chuck them on and immediately look smart without making any effort (low maintenance, me?). And they are soooo comfy - basically a big sweatshirt. Just today my son's schoolteacher asked me where the dress I was wearing at parents' evening was from - yay, I made it!
I would definitely recommend this pattern for beginners, and a Ponte is great because you can do away with the zip. My main issue was with the facings, which tend to have a life of their own. I ended up top stitching close to the seam to try to get them to lie flat.