returned
I’m back from Sewjourn! As always, it was wonderful. And as always, it takes me quite a few days to unpack and get organised once I return. So here are a few photos to give you an idea of what the weekend was like. I’ll be back with details on what I finished – two quilt tops, a Renfrew top, a vest, two ruffled skirts, a “where’s wally” top, two nighties, a cape, three dresses – later on!
My husband’s advice on the phone to me during the weekend was “don’t drink too much and don’t go to bed too late”. Maybe he should have added “don’t eat too much chocolate”. Maybe we should have taken his advice. Maybe we did?
packed
Now, do I have everything? Patterns, check. Box of fabric, check. Box of thread and notions, check. Scrap box, check. Box of cut-out projects, check. Assorted crochet projects, check. Bag full of overlocker threads, check. Mending/alterations, check. Sheets & towels, check. Is there anything I’ve forgotten?
Oh wait – food to share, check. Clothes to wear, check. Husband “working from home” today so that I can dash out the door at midday while youngest child is watching TV and/or playing computer games and there will be someone to collect the eldest child from school, check. Petrol and a visit to Dan Murphy’s – shall do on the way.
I’m off to Sewjourn! See you when I emerge out the other side!
what I wore – week 19
And there goes another week! I love that jacket I’m wearing in the bottom photos – I made it years ago (the seams are zig-zagged and not overlocked so that makes it more than five years old, and I suspect it was sewn pre-Clare, not just pre-Stella) and still enjoy wearing it. It’s loud, it’s bold, it’s got lime green in it – what more could I want?
sunday best
Lucky me! I was one of the final testers of Nicole Mallalieu‘s Best Dress pattern. And it definitely is one of the Best Dress patterns I’ve used! I inserted my best invisible zips EVER. On both dresses! And that is saying something! Check this out!
And look at the finish on the inside:
To prove it’s not a fluke, here it is on Stella’s dress – from the outside:
And showing the inside:
This is a divine little pattern. It is for sizes 5 to 10. I made size 5 for Stella and size 8 for Clare. Both my girls are slim, but because of the bow tied at the back (there is also a half-belt option) it still fits them perfectly. It would fit girls of pretty much any level of slimness or chubbiness. And there are plenty of options that you can mix and match. There is a flat set in cap sleeve – which I used on Clare’s dress – and there is a little ruffled cap sleeve, which I used on Stella’s.
The skirt can be gathered – as with Stella’s dress above – or flared and eased in, as with Clare’s (below). Once you get to the larger sizes in the flared skirt, you need to divide the skirt to fit it onto 115cm wide fabric. The pattern goes through everything that you need to do to accommodate this, and the extra seam lines are a brilliant place to add top-stitching, piping, or as I did, ric-rac!
Both skirt options have the required amount of twirl. There are also bodice variations. V-neck with pin-tucks (used on Clare’s dress) or round neck with a flat front (used on Stella’s).
I decided that since we were heading into winter, I would make the dresses in pinwale corduroy (from Spotlight a season or two ago) so that they could be worn as pinafores. They worked beautifully and the girls loved wearing them today. Clare wants me to make her one for next summer too. I’m sure that I can accommodate that request!
As with all of Nikki‘s patterns, these are like a class in a packet. Lots of instructions and photographs. Advanced beginners could definitely give this a go. It’s not super quick to make, but it’s not hard to make and the instructions really do guide you through it beautifully. As always, I picked up new tips and techniques (oh, those invisible zips!) that make my sewing look that little bit better. The time and effort that Nikki puts into her patterns really is apparent in the finished product.
There is some more information about the pattern here, and it’s available for sale online at the CurlyPops Shop and at other retailers (check out Nikki’s stockists page to find out who is near you). I highly recommend it – and not just because Nikki is my friend! I recommend this pattern because it is great – and my girls love it.
mother’s day
Happy Mother’s Day to all of you for whom this is a wonderful day, and my thoughts and prayers for all of you for whom this is a difficult day. For me, it’s a wonderful day – I am lucky enough to have a beautiful mother who has given me a great example about how to love your kids – and I have two beautiful daughters who I absolutely treasure.
My precious girls gave me lots of hand-made gifts (thank you after-school carers, guide leaders, child carers and classroom teachers) and very special cards. I had lots of cuddles and kisses, and spent the afternoon overseeing the big girl making her first quilt and the little girl having her first try at using the sewing machine.
which patterns to take?
When I head off to Sewjourn I usually take a box full of pre-cut garments with me, just waiting to be assembled. This time I decided to take the pressure off a little and just take fabric and patterns. These are some of the patterns I’m considering.
I adore the look of this dress. It is designed for drapey knits or soft wovens. Check out the line drawings.
Nice details with the shirring across the bust, and it is fitted enough in the upper body to be flattering. Love the draped pockets too! Actually, I have high hopes for this pattern. Because the weather is rapidly cooling down here, I’m only planning on sewing garments with sleeves or ones that can be layered over sleeves. Other dresses under consideration are these:
and these:
and these:
I’ve had these two Hot Patterns in the stash for a while – they have to be traced before use, and you know how much I hate tracing patterns! Hence them still being in the stash unused. Take note for future reference!
How about some Jalie tops and cardigans?
And because it is getting pretty cold, I should consider a cape or a jacket.
Clearly, I have absolutely no intention of trying to sew all of these patterns while I am away! They are a nice selection to take with me so that I can sew as the mood strikes. And despite my theory of not cutting out in advance, I noticed this afternoon that I have almost filled my cut-out-awaiting-to-be-sewn box. Which I suppose I will also take with me! Now that I’ve got the patterns sorted, I’d better move on to the fabrics…
family resemblance
People often comment about how much my daughters look like me. For a while there I couldn’t really see it. Maybe I needed my eyes checked, because now I agree, it is pretty obvious. But I also think that there is actually quite a bit of their dad in there too. Their colouring is mine, but the shape of their features takes quite a lot from him as well. I’ve been looking at our recent passport photos (yes! we’re about to go on a short overseas family holiday!) and looking at the similarities and differences.
There really is nothing quite like a non-glasses, non-smiling, taken-slightly-from-below-to-emphasis-your-double-chin passport photo to induce a crisis of confidence in your appearance, is there? I’ve rarely seen a worse photo of me. But other than that, I can really see my husband in these photos of my girls. The shape of their faces, especially that little chin. That little nose. The shape of their lips and the determined line of their mouth. The width of their eyes (mine are very narrow). And check them out when compared to their father’s school photo at the age of five:
I think that they look a lot more like their father than we often realise! Or am I deluding myself on that account as well? People often comment on how much my mother and I are alike. But if you actually stop and take a proper look, our features are completely different. Our colouring is different, and so is the size and shape of our eyes, nose and mouth. I am much more like my Dad’s family in looks (particularly the German heritage from a few generations back). However, Mum and I are a similar height and have similar body types – but even more so, we have similar gestures, expressions, and intonation. And therefore we resemble one another. My brother, who looks nothing like me, is actually the one with the most physical resemblance to my mother (who also looks like her father, and so it goes on).
“They” also say that we often pick our life partners based on their similarity in looks to ourselves. I suppose that my husband, with his Dutch heritage, and me with my Scottish/English/German heritage, do have some similarities. Which would explain why our daughters look a bit like both of us. Which also makes sense – after all, genetically they are half from each of us! Ah, genetics, it’s interesting stuff! And as for the personality similarities….that’s a whole other thing to think about!
ruffles
Last week Karen inspired me to stop thinking about making the girls some ruffly skirts and just get sewing.
Armed with a copy of Ottobre, some denim and a stash full of colourful quilting cottons, I made each of the girls an elastic waist ruffly skirt trimmed in bias binding. The Ottobre pattern started at Clare’s size, so I winged the measurements for Stella’s skirt by just cutting each layer a little shorter. The top layer is possibly a bit too short on Stella’s skirt – almost more like a peplum! The bias binding was made using one of Anna Maria Horner’s Bohemian fabrics.
Clare’s skirt became three layers rather than two. She chose a striped fabric for the bias binding, and I used the leftovers to make a little bow.
This is such an easy pattern. A rectangle for the waistband/yoke, about five inches larger than the hip measurement, with an elasticised casing in the top. Then another two (or three) rectangles all cut across the width of the fabric (or less, depending on the width of your fabric and the size of the child you’re making it for) that vary in depth. Starting with the shortest layer, bind one edge, gather the other, then sew it to the yoke. Repeat with the next layer. Done!
Clare’s only complaint? That the skirt is too long – she wanted something just above the knee. So I have another one cut out in corduroy ready to go.
what I wore – week 18
And there goes another one. Another week, that is. They are flying by faster and faster and faster. We had a lovely weekend with a visit to the Made’n'Thornbury market, which was quite the social event, then to the Kellybrook Winery Cider Festival. Despite the drizzle, the girls had a ball watching the Morris dancers (and yes, Stella joined in) and eating toffee apples. Sunday was church and then catching up with a friend I don’t see as often as I’d like. There was also some sewing done too. Yesterday was a work day, and today I’ve been to swimming lessons, taken part in Clare’s gymnastic class, and completed domestic chores. And – whoosh! – there goes another day. But back to the point of this blog post – what I wore over the past week.
I know I’ve said it before, but taking daily photos is causing me to reassess my wardrobe, both in terms of the clothes I have bought and made already and those I “need” for the future. I have plenty of clothes, and I’ve been trying out new combinations and permutations. I’ve had lots of these clothes for a long time. It’s time for another wardrobe purge, I think. Especially if I’m planning on sewing for myself at Sewjourn soon. And especially if I manage to maintain my current weight – maybe I should actually get rid of my larger clothes!
New Look 6018
What do you do with enough left over ponte to make a girl’s tunic dress? This is what you do!
The pattern is New Look 6018, view B. I eliminated the centre back zip and cut the back with the seamline on the fold. It just goes over her head – which is all that it needs to do! This time I remembered to use the reverse side of the fabric as a contrast, which I used for the dropped waistband. I also added a bow on the side (made free form; it is just a rectangle of fabric folded in half right sides together, sewn around the open edges leaving a gap for turning, turned around the right way, then wrapped around the centre with some ribbon).
Super easy, super fast, super effective. There was enough fabric left to make a simple headband to match – just a tube of fabric with elastic threaded through the centre, then the ends stitched together. Although it did take me three tries to get the elastic the right length to be comfortable.
I used a twin needle to topstitch around the neckline, the hem, and along the waistband edges. I also used it to hem the armholes. The instructions suggested using bias binding to finish the armholes. I was lazy and just turned the edge to the inside and twin needled it down. The ponte is so pliable and easy to manipulate that it worked beautifully.
I made this dress in size 8, with no alterations. Coincidentally, Clare’s new shoes match her dress perfectly! Now we need to make sure that we don’t wear out matching dresses on the same day. I highly recommend this pattern (although I think that it may be out of print). There is also a lovely option with short sleeves and a-line skirt….maybe if the next ponte dress I make myself has some fabric leftover….
