Sewing for Pleasure Treasure

I'm still without a trusty small camera, so my photo taking is somewhat lacking, I do have my large and heavy DSLR but it's not always practical taking it around, especially indoor events as the flash is pants!

So when I journeyed off to the NEC last month to the Sewing for Pleasure event I was sadly cameraless and it did feel weird, not being able to snap away at things I wanted to remember, or ideas. I'm hoping that I'll join the 21st Century soon and get an iPhone (used) as I hope the camera on that would do for these sort of occasions, especially when stealthy snapping is required.

So no photos of the event but I can verbally report back that I had a good day out with my Mum and succeeded in nearly all of my shopping list, which was my main reason for going, as locally it's hard to get good pieces of cheap/reasonable dressmaking fabric.

So what did I get....

2 metres of cotton lawn @ £10pm, I hoping for a top out of this, I'm not sure whether it'll need a lining though?

1 Liberty FQ

3 metres of blue jersey @ £6pm from Fabrics Galore, I've got a Prima tunic pattern in mind for this and I'm wondering if I'll have any left over for toddler leggings

1 FQ, just because I couldn't resist!

My mum treated me to the fantastic dress/tunic pattern from Sew Me Something, I really liked their stall and they'd had all the patterns made up in various fabrics, which was really helpful. We got this near the end so I didn't get any fabric for it but I know I won't make it yet, not until I've used all this other fabric!

1 metres of cotton lawn @ £10pm, I'm thinking of adding this to my blue Liberty stash and finally starting an EPP project

2 metres of jersey, which I'm hoping to use with last months Prima pattern, it's a bit garish but I think I'll use it for my first attempt at the pattern and then if it doesn't look right or if anything goes wrong I won't be too upset!

1 FQ, probably for EPP

They only thing I couldn't find was a good grey linen/chambray which I wanted for the hexies in my last post so I may have to source that online, it's a pity as I was in the mood to get going with that project.

That's left me with that uneasy feeling of what to start first.....and also it means I need to tidy up the dining table if I want to cut out large bits of fabric...it's the starting that's always the worst!

But as I've now posted, I hope that might shame me into getting on with something instead of procrastinating ;)

I'll let you know....

Sewtastic!

My knitting mojo has been lacking but my sewing one has resurfaced. 

I've been itching to do some more EPP and cracked open my new glue pen to use on my Liberty hexies and was very surprised to find how easy it was, with no mess. The glue was harder than I thought, it looks more like an eraser but that meant it wasn't wet and didn't seep through the fabric. I then decided that I needed a neutral linen to go with these though, I thought they were too busy to sew straight together, unfortunately that means they'll have to wait, I hope to find some at the NEC when we go to Sewing with Pleasure later this month.

I've also started cutting out for the next quilt, I saw this on display at last years Festival of Quilts and now I've got the extra fat quarter I needed, I'm back in business!

I ordered some solids for this and another charm pack I've got from Simply Solids, I was interested in the difference between the 'whites' as different suppliers have slightly different shades as their base colour in their charm packs.

The top is Kona White, which is very white and then the middle one is Kona Snow, which is off-white.

The bottom is what I bought from the NEC last year and I didn't label what it was but I bought it as an off-white but actually against the others it looks more cream! 

It shows how important it is to get it right if you're trying to match!

A quick project I rustled up last month was hand-warmers. My fingers are always cold and I'm usually wearing gloves all year round! So after seeing an easy tute on Pinterest, I whipped these up in a couple of hours. Quick and easy gratification :)

To finish, is a girls dress for the 3yo, using fabric I've had for ages and a new pattern in the new Simply Sewing mag, which I really enjoyed.

I've gone off pattern a bit, with the choice of fabric (the original is wool), I've removed the sleeves, done french seams on the skirt and tried to line the bodice, so it's taking a bit longer. I also got into a pickle as in small writing it mentions on the cutting diagram to add 2" to the back pieces - why this isn't just included in the pattern piece I don't know! I just sewed on the extra as I didn't want to cut out another, as it's a button band it doesn't look too weird. Oh and you also have to add the seam allowance.

Now I just need to catch up with The Great British Sewing Bee and it'll all be sewtastic!

Finished Quilt!

I can't quite believe it, but I have finished my second quilt, it's only taken about two years but it's such a good feeling to have finished something.

As with any project, there were learning curves and problems..

Second attempt at machine quilting, so I tried to stick with straight lines on the cream sections, which are ok but then I got cocky and thought I'd try some meandering around the border flowers. It just looks messy and I didn't read the instructions about not quilting up to the edge, as when I came to put on the prairie points, I didn't have enough seam allowance to slot them into!

So I improvised and attached them along with some binding, which I slip-stitched to the back as normal.

For the backing I used fabric from the same line which was intended to be made into a cloth book and joined it together with some cream sashing and pieced a border out of all the leftover scraps to be frugal.

I also appliquéd on some paper pieced hexagons, which in hindsight I wish I just done onto a plain one piece backing as it looks too busy.

I also basted it on wonky and when I trimmed the front down to size, I noticed that the back border panels are uneven!

Still every project teaches us something new right?

I have loved being able to use it to warm up on the sofa on chilly nights though and I love the colours.

Well, on to the next one….

Knit & Sew & Finish

I've finally finished a couple of projects! 

First up is this pair of wrist warmers.Looking at my Ravelry notebook, it's taken me 12mths to finish them! The yarn is Rowan Pure Wool Aran, which was very thick, but with no ease, so working on DPN's I tried to be a bit looser than normal.

I'd quite like a cowl to match but I don't think I'd like this yarn next to my neck, it's not soft enough for me.

Next up on the finishing pile was this pair of cord trousers for the littlest. It's a free pattern from MADE

in a 2-3 size, which fit my just turned 3 year old perfectly but they probably won't last long, so I may have to have a go at up-sizing the pattern.

They fit really nicely and were really easy to put together, I especially like the flat front, as it makes them look much less homemade.  If I had a serger, the seams would be even neater!

I did slim down the legs at the bottom a bit, by about an inch so they'd look a bit more girl skinny!

Apologies for the rubbish pics!

Next up is a Prima tunic dress I've been trying to adjust for months.....shall I accept bets on how long that takes?!

Quilting

 I'm desperately trying to keep the momentum going to finish my second quilt, it's now all pieced and I'm at the actual quilting stage and that is why it's stalled.

For my first quilt - The Hungry Caterpillar, I did mostly stitch in the ditch using the walking foot, I tried to have a go at free motion but it was terrible and I realised it's not as easy as it looks and takes lots of practice!

So for this one I really didn't want to ruin it at the quilting stage but as it has a lot of background fabric I knew it would look boring without any, so I'm trying mostly straight lines, to accent the patchwork shapes and I may have a go at hand quilting.

 This is the back that took longer than I wanted as instead of using a large piece of backing I (stupidly!) decided on piecing the back using scraps and a fabric panel that was intended to be put together as a fabric baby book. It took a lot of maths, adding seam allowances to calculate what size pieces I needed.

With the smaller scraps I hand stitched some hexies and appliquéd them on.

 I also found basting tricky, not having a large table I had to do it on the floor and on carpet, it was really hard getting the layers smooth. I'm thinking of getting a large piece of MDF and mocking up a cutting table and using that to baste in sections.

Just need to finish off the quilting and get the prairie points on and it'll be done and we can use it on the sofa in winter. Then I can get on with the next one I've already started planning!

Hand sewing

After finishing my first pair of socks and reaching a pause in my quilt I wanted to craft but wasn't sure what.

I was going to get out some hexies but couldn't decide on fabric and then as sometimes happens, I stumbled upon something by chance and my decision was made for me.
I found my Dandelion Designs wristwatch pin cushion that I'd ordered ages ago through Create and Craft.

I like to browse and see what's on Create and Craft on the telly box when it's quiet, I like when they do quilting on a Sunday morning at 8am and I follow Mandy Shaw on Twitter so I know when she's likely to do a show, as I love some of her stuff. She's usually at Festival of Quilts and I'm always tempted by her books, so when I saw that you could get the kit of the wrist pin cushion that she wears, I had to order it, even though I very rarely get sucked in by the TV selling.

The kit has all the fabric and notions you need, and more, and I found the instructions easy to follow.  I'm not the neatest stitcher but I do find it relaxing, so I got absorbed and finished it in a weekend. I'm really happy with it and hope to complete the matching tape measure that was included in the kit.

I also hope to start this baby ball kit from Makeve, that I've had for even longer, as it was intended for my youngest who has now out-grown such things! But as a simple hand sew, it shouldn't take much to finish it.

I won't be adding the face as I think it will be more of a decoration rather than a toy, I'll let you 
know how I get on. Would love to hear if you've been doing some hand sewing too!

I also need to thank my eldest for the main photo at the top, she's getting so good that she's set up her own blog: tallgreengiraffe.blogspot.com
She'd love to find some other kid bloggers, so do let her know if you know any!

New hat

Summer is here and it's time for a hat.

There are lots really to choose from when you have older sisters cast-offs but I was determined to make little R her own again, not least because I bought this elephant fabric at last years Festival of Quilts!

It's the reversible bucket hat from Oliver and S again, it's still the only pattern I've made from 'Little Things to Sew', but it's a simple make, I even remembered to sew a name tag into the seam!

I think she likes it!

Sewing Sunday

With two friends having babies recently I thought while I was in the sewing mood I could knock up another pair of trousers but this time in 0-3mths size.

I got the chambray fabric from The Village Haberdashery:

Interweave Chambray - Slate

Which had quick delivery and wasn't too heavy for lined trousers, the lining fabric is a Japanese 1/2 metre I picked up from The Eternal Maker at a previous show, it's very soft, a bit like a muslin/flannel mix- ah on the website, it says it's a double gauze fabric After sewing, I worried that it was too delicate for trousers as any heavy tugging at the seams may rip it but hopefully for a small baby it should be ok?!

I was quite pleased with these and I now need to do another pair but this time with different lining for a little boy.

Sewing sunday continued with me starting a fabric brooch kit I'd purchased last year from Makeve, I struggled a bit with the folding of the fabric petals at the end but have now finished so I'll have to update with a picture soon.

 

To round off I remembered all those pins on Pinterest about cleaning your sewing machine!

I got the screwdriver out and you really wouldn't believe the amount of fluff that was hiding at the back under the throat plate and under the bobbin race! I used a small art paint brush to gentle tease it all out.

It felt so nice to have time to myself while the children entertained themselves, may it happen more often!

Trousers

The weather must be turning as I've put down my knitting this week and cranked up the sewing machine.

Maybe it's the Great British Sewing Bee influence, or maybe it's necessity as small people will keep on growing, won't they!

Again I've turned to the fabulous quick change trouser pattern from Anna-Maria Horner. It's so easy, you can make them as jazzy or plain as you like, they can be reversible and the fit is great for cloth bums or disposable wearers.

The only sad point is that I'm making the last size - 24mths :(

And although I can slightly alter them to make them bigger it does lead me onto another problem I'm finding - patterns for older children.

I'm struggling to find anything nice for about 5 upwards, if you have any brands/shops you can recommend I'd love it if you left a comment.  I'm not even looking for anything fancy but there seems to be a real lack in this department, plenty for babies and toddlers but not much for the older kids, that isn't dated or party dresses.

The ones above were made out of some old men's black cord trousers and the lining is a thin cotton from Ikea.

I've already cut out another pair, this time in 0-3mths, which will hopefully be a gift if they turn out ok!

More lessons in patchwork

It's funny how the urge to do something specific hits, isn't it?

Not long after the visit to the NEC to look at quilts, I remembered the kit I bought from the Olympia Knitting and Stitching Show, which had just sat in a pile since March!

Then suddenly I have the urge to do it NOW!

I got the kit from Puddleducks, which contains a lovely charm pack from Moda: ABC-123 and has all the fabric for the front and instructions for £55.

They had a sample made up on their stall and I fell in love with it's reproduction style 1930's prints and bright colours and so duly treated myself!

The main technique for the quilt is half-square triangles - this was a new technique for me, basically you sew together two squares with two rows of stitching perpendicular to the diagonal line and then cut on the diagonal line!

Sounds easy and it was, sort of! 

As with all my patchwork, it's getting things to line up! 

I don't know if it's my cutting, I didn't think it could be my sewing this time as I have invested in a 1/4" foot to help guide me.
But I obviously need more practice!

So as you can see, things are a little out! It's only when you do these new techniques that you really appreciate the work you've seen exhibited!

But, I'm not too bothered, I did unpick and try again on several seams so that it's not as bad but I'm really enjoying putting it together.

Once the nine patch blocks are assembled you need to add the cream sashing strips and then my next job is the outer border and then another new technique of prairie points.

I hope to finish that quite soon, I also need to hunt for my sample blocks of batting as I'd like something new, something warm and soft as I'm hoping this will sit on the back of the sofa and be handy for curling up with. 

If you have any recommendations I'd love to hear them.