Retro Bobble Purse

Happy Valentines Day!

Bobble frame from U-Handbag and Kokka fabric from FabricRehab

This is the first time I've made a purse with a frame. It is a little bit crooked, but I don't think anyone will notice if I don't point it out to them. I am very happy with it. It's mine, all mine. No giving this one away (sorry, Sang).

Inside - internal pocket with decorative hand stitching. 

I saw the frame here about six months ago. And bought some fabric to go with it shortly after. And then, having assembled everything I needed to make the bag, I put it off, because I was, well, just a bit nervous of mucking it up.

There was no pattern to follow - with purse frames all being different shapes and sizes, you just have to make a pattern to fit the particular frame you have in front of you. This seemed like a big hurdle.

When I eventually looked into it and had a go, it wasn't that hard after all. Phew. The instructions here helped. And, having been frustrated at how quickly those cute little framed purses my girls get given break and come apart, I wasn't overly optimistic about making one myself. But decent fabric glue (I used Gutterman) makes a world of difference. I have tugged and pulled my new purse and it isn't budging from the frame. Whoop, whoop.

And, as I didn't have a clue just how little fabric this purse would take, there is enough of the gorgeous Japanese linen left to squeeze a summer skirt to match. Whoop, whoop. Watch this space.

Bag heaven

Bonus skirt (and a moan about the snow)

Cute little skirt made with leftover fabric from my dress

So, the family wedding I'd made a dress for was last weekend. It was a lovely day. Best moment had to be the church doors being flung open ready for the bride to walk down the aisle and the realisation that it had started snowing outside. Beautiful picture postcard wedding scene of Bath in the snow, with an bride looking wonderfully elegant in her long sleeved wintry dress, all perfectly framed by the stone archway of the entrance to the church.

Our young family even managed to pull off a resemblance of smart, too - the girls in matching skirts, clips and red shoes. I don't know what your opinion on matching kids' clothes is, but, for special occasions, I love it. And, well aware they won't love it for long, a wedding was too good an opportunity to pass up.

Anyhow, we managed collective smart until after the ceremony, when our youngest got her hands on a crunch cream during the car journey to the reception, and the middle one had fiddled about with her hair clip and came up with her own self styled look.

And the pictures of this lovely occasion? My camera died five minutes before it all kicked off, and still refuses to whirr into action a week later. So, for the time being, any pictures are being taken on my phone. Humph.

The playground yesterday

Whilst snow is all well and good to set a picturesque wedding scene, hanging around, turning to ice, and then adding a bit more snow to the mix is just a bit annoying.

And it isn't as though my children all love it, either. The eldest loves it, and has to kick her way through every fresh looking bit of snow - but it's all a bit too cold and slippery for the younger ones.

Having dropped the older two off at school yesterday, I thought I'd take the littlest one to the park. To the left of the scene above were lots of other kids having a great time mucking about in the white stuff. Not my little one. Refusing to budge from her buggy, she made it quite clear she'd rather go to a cafe. So that's what we did.

Pretty, huh?

I'd like to go for a run, but haven't been able to do so for a week now. This makes me a bit on the grumpy side. And, now I've finished my skirt out of off cuts of my dress, I'd like to wear it. With my new shoes. And tights. I have a whole rainbow of colours sitting in my drawer, waiting to be worn. But for now, its jeans and hiking boots everywhere I go. Boo to snow!

The Dress

I have finished my dress!

I deliberately kept to the colour brown, as I wanted it to be versatile. The pink accessories came together as a result of spotting the skinny belt in the January sales for the bargain price of £2, and it went from there. (Sang, please note the absence of bright pink tights - I took your advice).

I knew I wanted to use the pattern below, as it's one I tried before and I like the fit. Great fabric designers don't necessarily always make the greatest pattern designers (or, patterns with instructions that are clear to follow), but this one is a gem. I feel like I have learned something from the process, and that my making of the dress improves a bit each time.

The idea for the twisted roses  just kind of came as I was making the dress and thinking about how to embellish it.  I'd had an initial flick through the Boden catalogue and thought about nicking one of the embellishment ideas from there, and then, well, you know I love adding twisted roses to just about anything.

I'm really happy with the finished result. It fits really well, and I felt good in it the instant I put it on. Believe me, this doesn't always happen with the things I make, so I make no apologies for having a little moment of gleefulness. Perhaps like the ridiculous throwing back of the head laughter the woman pictured below is experiencing? Maybe I am not quite so gleeful after all. But it feels like the effort of a few evenings was worth it - and I am definitely riding high on a freshly finished project wave where I feel the need to bore everyone I encounter about how much I enjoy sewing. So watch out.

Ready for the awkwardly posed moment? Go on then...

LOVING my dress :)

Scraps!

Today is officially the last day of the January Rule (my self imposed ban on buying anything sewing related). 

It has proved to be a fun challenge to go through - lots of finished projects to show for it, and I'm not done yet, either. I finished off The Dress last night. Very happy with it. Very happy indeed. Maybe a bit too happy. It is only a dress, after all. 

No pictures of The Dress yet. I often look at other blogs, and in my head think I'll pull off a stylish photo shoot of me looking effortlessly cool or glamorous (either would do) in something I've made. Chances of this happening? Very slim at best. Even slimmer under current conditions, as our house has been hit by the latest virus doing the rounds, and so my daytimes are pretty much occupied with looking after poorly ones, leaving no time for Mummy to fart around trying to take pictures of her latest sewing work of art. 

What I have got are a couple of snaps of a couple of little things I've made over the last week or so. And, in keeping with the January Rule, I didn't need to go out and buy anything to make them with, as they were teeny tiny scrap friendly projects.

I love scraps. I can't bear throwing away leftover fabric, and hold firm to the mantra of "They'll come in handy one day" - and they usually do, either as something to practise on, or, for a project of some sort. I always bundle up my scraps at the end of each project, and, as far as possible, try and keep them in colour themed bundles. (I know, I should get out more.)

The beginnings of some hair clips to go with these skirts and this dress

Pretty flowers for three little girls to wear in their hair for a wedding!

Just the right amount of fabric left for the zippy wallets. Love it when that happens.

Zippy wallet using Cath Kidston scraps from this project

Next thing up to sew/butcher might be making a shrug out of an old jumper of Mark's I accidentally resized a while back...

Flower bag to match a new dress

Samples of the flower embellishments we'll be making during
tonight's session of the handbag and purse course

In the last week my sewing attention has turned to making myself a dress. I bought the materials for it well before Christmas, after spotting the main fabric in my local Singer shop at a bargain price of £7.50 a metre. It doesn't seem to photograph well, but is a nice chocolatey brown pin stripe wool mix.   

Change out of £30.
And so far it looks like I will get a dress, a skirt, and three bags for my money.

Whilst making clothes for myself is probably right up there for me as my favourite type of sewing, it is also the kind I struggle most to get started on. Probably because I know it takes a bit more effort and precision, and, unlike the quick gratification of bags that can be finished in an evening or two, clothes take a good few nights to make. 

That said, I'd encourage anyone to try it sometime. Especially if, like me, you're a bit on the short side and don't always easily find things that fit nicely. With a few basic sewing skills under your belt, and a decent pattern at your side, you'd be surprised what you can achieve. There is no big secret to sewing - it's just about having a go, practising, and not worrying too much about the odd mishap along the way.

Anyhow, with a family wedding coming up, I now have a deadline to be motivated by. 

I'd say I'm about half way there. It is a fully lined, panelled dress. I've made it once before and loved the results. Although, I have boldly assumed my shape has not changed since I made a spring version last year, and not remeasured myself. Let's hope I'm right. Otherwise, there'll be a few extra runs and a bit less cake happening in the next fortnight...

Noodle-head's Gathered Clutch is the perfect project for scraps

Having got a dress, and a bonus skirt cut out of my two metres of fabric (it was 150 cm wide, to be fair), I took the remains with me to a sewing night a friend was hosting last week. Having left the house in a bit of a rush, I forgot to take some fusible fleece for the lining, so left the evening with some half finished bags. I had a lovely evening though - and managed to munch through a decent amount of Rocky Road (thanks, Imogen).

Here they are now - with some flowers I added on to them at the weekend.

I'm thinking of keeping the one with the three roses on it, as I might embellish the dress in the same way. 

Domestic Goddess

I am not a domestic goddess. I would like to be. I'd say I am more of a domestic goddess in training.

There are certain aspects of my perceived notion of what it is to be a domestic goddess that I enjoy. Like baking. And, being an unashamed show off, I can fake other aspects of the title, too. Although, only for short periods of time. Such as pulling off a tidy house. When given plenty of warning that visitors are coming.

As for having a smoothly run household where it all hangs together in an organised, kind of way, and attention given to the bits of domesticity I don't like, definitely still in training. Just as well I have good friends I am happy to see when they pop by unannounced and catch my house as it usually is. A bit lived in, that is.

My old oven gloves were looking slightly sorry for themselves, having been a bit burnt and generally used. And the peg bag had been neglected in the rain a few times too many. Time for some new ones.

The vigilant reader will spot I have most definitely stuck to the January Rule here, recognising the fabrics used as leftovers from this and this. And, not having a big stash of bias binding, time to make some. I quite like the garish clash going on here. I am re-branding it as cheerful.

Now for some ironing?

For Pleats Sake

I bought the materials for this bag, at the same time as buying the ones for this one, back in the autumn. Yes, the autumn. When the mustard colour would have been perfect for the time of year.

Echo, by Lotta Jansdotter, Blockprint Blossom by Joel Dewberry,
and chocolate brown leather handles from U-Handbag

It is another version of Lisa Lam's free tutorial - I love `em. The style is great for showing off a lovely print, and the size is big enough to be a Mummy bag. And I am already a little bit too smitten with the way this fabric combination looks, along with the nice puffiness the fusible fleece stuck to the lining gives the finished bag.

I strayed from the pattern slightly, by using two fabrics for the inside - only because I didn't have enough of the Joel Dewberry print for the whole lot! (Proof that I am sticking to my January Rule of not buying any sewing stuff all month)

Another minor adjustment - I like to add a snappy strap on the inside for keeping  keys nice and safe.

And now the familiar dilemma... to give away or to keep?

Milo the Monkey

I like running. 

For the last five years since children have come along, a lot of the running I have done has been with a buggy in front of me and a bunch of other mums alongside me. The bandstand in the middle of the park where we meet was looking beautiful in the winter sunshine this morning. It was a good day for a run.

A good friend of mine, who also ran with me this morning, has a little boy called Milo. Whilst we ran, Milo and my youngest sat alongside each other, both eating bananas, talking their scribble talk, and waving at squirrels.

And along came the inspiration for the name of my latest finished project.

The January Rule is working out well. Still not been to a sewing shop, or bought any fabric - aside from some for my bunting workshops next month, but that doesn't count, right? I haven't bought myself anything sewing related, and, in case you were wondering, in no way am I living out my fabric addiction vicariously through the guise of it being for my classes. Honest. (I will post some pictures of the bunting workshop fabric soon, so that any fellow addicts out there can enjoy too - it is lovely...)

Anyhow, moving on. As I was hoping, a nice thing about the January Rule, is that I am feeling spurred on to finish up some projects, that have until now been sat forgotten about in the bottom of a big plastic box. 

Milo the Monkey, as I have called him, was fun and quick to finish. Why had he been neglected for so long? Who knows. I'm sure there must have been a good reason at the time.

If you've never made a sock monkey, make one. I think you'll smile. And, if you don't smile, I guarantee a little baby will if you give it to them. They make great baby gifts - the ones I have made in the past have been well and truly loved and giggled at. And the stitching attaching the arms, legs and tail to the body has certainly been tested!

Ready for his new owner, with love. X

The bandstand in Bedford Park

Cath Kidston Bunting

Last night was the first Kitchen Table Sewing Night of 2012.

These are pretty similar to any other sewing night I might mention here - different people take a turn to host, there's the start stop of sewing machines, gossip, cups of tea and, in the case of last night, biscuits and funky blue iced fairy cakes (thanks, Helen) - but a regular monthly meet up for those who've come along to one of my courses and want to feed their new habit, and, get a spot of help if they need it.

I had earmarked the evening as the time to finish off making a couple of sets of bunting I had started making as gifts. 

Carrying on with my self-imposed rule to not buy anything sewing related throughout January - or, until I've reduced my stash of sewing stuff taking up space (notice the subtle shift in boundary, here?), this bunting had to be entirely made of of things I already had in the house. 

My January Rule is forcing me to be creative with what I have, and it has been fun so far. I'd had scraps of a few different Cath Kidston prints that were too small for clothing or any big projects, but perfect for bunting. I can appreciate Cath Kidston isn't to everyone's taste - but I think making something out of her bold, bright, pretty prints in January somehow seems like the perfect antidote to the rubbish weather that is often going on outside while you do it. 

So, having already cut, sewn and pressed up a huge pile of triangles earlier in the week, I took those, along with about half a metre of red linen to turn into bias binding to join them together, plus a couple of other projects I optimistically thought I might want to move onto once I'd finished the bunting. 

It would be fair to say I underestimated how long it would take me to make so much bias binding (or maybe I was doing a bit too much talking and not enough sewing - he he). Either way, another case in point that, whilst I love making hand made gifts with specific people I care about in mind (as was the case for the bunting), I would need a team of little elves, willing to be paid in biscuits, if I wanted to make it for profit.

Any how, after a lovely evening, eating a few too many biscuits, here are the two piles of bunting I left with. 

Shoe box bed and quilt

New Year's Day is extra special in our house, as it is Elizabeth's birthday. And this year, she was two.

Christmas decorations make way for birthday bunting to go up on New Year's Day

She loves playing with her Dolly. Dolly gets carried around, usually naked (why do they love undressing them so much?!), and then, when its time, she gets taken to bed with her, too.

As Elizabeth's second birthday was the point we'd earmarked for putting her into a proper bed, I thought I'd mark the occasion by making a bed for her Dolly to go in as well.

For the quilt, I took inspiration from a tutorial I'd spotted about a year ago. I liked the prettiness of it, and thought it would gently introduce me to a spot of quilting (something on my mental list of things to try), and, perhaps best of all, uses lots of scraps (giving a satisfying "I knew they'd come in handy" moment). Oh, and scraps mean no need to spend money (always good, but especially so in January, right?). Perfect birthday project.

Okay, so time to come clean and share the New Year's Resolution I've set myself for January. Having had a bit of a clear out over the Christmas period, I'd decided in a bid to free up some space, I am going to ban myself from buying anything sewing related for the month.

(So, I most definitely will not be taking a look at this sale when it starts on Friday. I have deliberately stayed away from Milton Keynes, for obvious reasons. And I am going to try and avoid `just popping into Singers' on my way home from town.)

And so, instead, in January, concentrate any sewing efforts on finishing unfinished projects, and being creative and making things with what I already have. One month. That's all. (You didn't think I meant the full year, did you? Why, that would just be setting myself up for a fall.)

So, after much talk talk talk, here is the bed, quilt, and pillow. Made from stuff I had in the house - with the exception of a shoe box I shamelessly begged from the local shoe shop. Actually, I lie - I got my husband to beg it for me.

The bed came together very easily - ten minutes or so of cutting out felt and gluing it in place. I love fabric glue!

Quilt, made by the combined efforts of myself, Caitlin (aged 12), Ketan (aged 11) and Sophie (aged 5).

This toy was particularly fun to make. Not least because, as my nieces and nephew were staying with us at the time, they helped make it. It turns out children like playing with small bits of material as much as I do. They sat quite happily, choosing scraps and cutting them into squares and rectangles. And then, when the time came to get the machine out and sew them onto the quilt, it seemed a natural progression to let them each take a turn at using the sewing machine. A bit nervous at first, but with the foot pedal propped up higher for them, they soon got the hang of it. And, even better still, my eldest, Sophie, decided she wanted to have a go, too. Hooray!

Pillow, made by Caitlin (aged 12).

The birthday girl was very happy with her present. And in days to come, I'll be able to tell her how some of her favourite people in the world helped make it for her. She takes the shoebox bed up to bed with her, carefully tucks Dolly up in it, and then keeps it next to her pillow. Cute.

More birthday bunting. Time for the tree to come down, I suppose.

And, as for her own sleeping in a bed efforts - so far so good. Three nights on and no escape attempts. Yet.

All that's left for me to say is a very happy new year to everyone out there. A year ago, I wouldn't have predicted I'd be sitting here writing this, or, in fact teaching people to sew in my spare time. Here's to the year ahead - and may it be filled with more nice, unexpected things for you all. Thanks for reading!