tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83776208388015771962024-02-07T06:08:05.552+00:00Sew little timeDocumenting my trials, tribulations, successes and not-successes (failures? never!) as I get to grips with the craft of sewing.Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.comBlogger159125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-68263136012128986602016-05-15T12:00:00.000+01:002016-05-15T12:00:13.992+01:00Thoughts on sewing and having less stuff<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This isn't a post with a new project in it - it's for me to marshal my thoughts on having too much stuff and how that relates to sewing/crafting/ making (for me at least).</div>
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Like a lot of other bloggers (Katie blogged about it <a href="http://whatkatiesews.net/konmari-ing-my-me-made-wardrobe/" target="_blank">here</a>) I read and enjoyed the <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00I0C46BO/" target="_blank">Marie Kondo book</a> (not an affiliate link so click away!). I was inspired to start clearing out quite a lot of stuff, starting with my wardrobe as she suggests. She says this is a good place to start as you aren't so emotionally attached to your clothes. I'm not sure this is true of people who make most of their clothes but I actually didn't find it hard. </div>
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The pile of clothes that went to charity (and even prior to this I went through stuff fairly regularly - I wouldn't say that this was years worth of clutter that was purged):</div>
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A year on, my wardrobe still looks much like it did and my drawers have never been tidier! Its far easier to keep my clothes in order and see what i have.<br />
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Since then i have worked my way through books, CDs, fabric and notions, make up and toiletries and paperwork. My husband and daughter are both complete hoarders so i am still working on them although hubby is coming around to it, seeing how much tidier the house is! We have no junk drawers any more and have got rid of a couple of pieces of furniture we just don't need for storage anymore.<br />
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Doing this totally hit my sew-jo for a long time though. I don't want to be making 5 new garments a month so I have stuff to blog about and filling my wardrobe back up again. <br />
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So i have come up with a plan of how I reconcile my new "less stuff" outlook with the need to still make things.<br />
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Unselfish sewing - I have been making more for the small person - costumes, dresses and leggings. I am also planning a jacket for hubby (belated birthday present since he couldn't make his mind up on the colour!).<br />
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I am thinking more about what I wear day to day and what I need to fill in wardrobe gaps or to replace things that are wearing out. <br />
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I am shopping the stash rather than buying fabric. When I culled a lot of clutter I went through my stash. There wasn't much i got rid of but I love everything left in there and want to wear it rather than look at it on a shelf! <br />
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The same applies to patterns. Rather than jumping at every newly released pattern, I am trying to see if I could adapt something already in the stash to make something similar. <br />
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Following on from that, I want to remake more patterns. I have so many that I love and have done all of the tracing adjustments and muslining for but only ever made one version. It's a better use of my limited sewing time to spend less time on the preparation and fitting and more time on the fun sewing bit!<br />
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I have never been that keen on making underwear but its.a great way to open up new avenues for sewing, use up scraps and develop new skills!<br />
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Instead of rushing through to the end to have a new garment to wear, i will be doing a bit more thoughtful and slower sewing. This will he another way to improve my skills.<br />
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I don't normally adhere to the blogging commandment of asking a question at the end of a blog post to encourage comments but I am interested to know what you think! Is minimalism/decluttering just a current first world fad? Have you been inspired by it? Had it changed your outlook on sewing or sewing behaviour?<br />
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If you are interested to learn more here are some blogs i have added to my reader as well as the book linked to above:<br />
<a href="http://www.theminimalists.com/" target="_blank">The Minimalists</a><br />
<a href="http://www.becomingminimalist.com/" target="_blank">Becoming Minimalist</a><br />
<a href="http://www.missminimalist.com/" target="_blank">Miss Minimalist</a><br />
<a href="http://bemorewithless.com/" target="_blank">Be More With Less</a><br />
<a href="http://zenhabits.net/" target="_blank">Zen Habits </a></div>
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Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-20029332085284229532016-05-13T15:30:00.001+01:002016-05-13T15:30:14.730+01:00The Texan flower frock<div dir="ltr">
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So its been a while!</div>
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As part of my MeMadeMay pledge (to wear totally me made except underwear), I added that I wanted to make 4 new garments and write 4 blog posts. I always find that however much I enjoy doing something, sometimes I need a push to do it if I haven't done it in a while!</div>
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I have been getting into the whole decluttering/ minimalism thing recently (I have marshalled my thoughts into a separate post to come) but overall I want to use patterns and fabric I have already rather than buying more. So this uses a piece of fabric i bought from Joanns when I was in Dallas last year. I met up with Brooke from <a href="https://customstyle.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Custom Style</a> and she kindly took me shopping (and burrito eating), armed with loads of coupons so I could take full advantage of the cheap prices vs the UK.</div>
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This is a quilting cotton in a gorgeous dark floral print. The selvage says it is a Joanns exclusive. I don't have an issue with quilting cotton for dresses but I have generally used "designer" ones. This is definitely less good quality than those. It's much stiffer and I found a few flaws in it (after i had cut unfortunately!). So it needed a pattern that didn't need drape and I chose the Deer and Doe Belladone which i picked up in their Black Friday sale back in November. The a-line skirt works fine in the stiffer fabric.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I didn't realise the hands on waist was causing back wrinkles and hubby obv didn't notice (grr bad bloggerhusband)</td></tr>
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I may be the only blogger who has made this up with the plain back! I had intended to make the open back version but when I muslined I wasn't sure that it was very me. I might make another version for summer with the open back though.</div>
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I did my usual round of alternations - a small FBA, lengthening the bodice by 1.5", lowering the bust darts by 1" and lengthening the skirt by 2". After muslining I lowered the bust darts another 1". </div>
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In the final version, the bodice could probably be 1" longer and the skirt would hit slightly closer to the knee. However it is totally wearable as is and I'll make this change on future versions. </div>
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Sorry for the phone pics in this post. On the day we took these we went to Windsor, hubby brought his Go Pro and assured me the pics would be brilliant. However if you have ever seen your backside in a fisheye lens, you'll realise why people normally use them for landscapes! So back up phone photos it is!</div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-32637883492511392592015-09-24T20:41:00.000+01:002015-09-24T20:41:39.365+01:00It's been a while...<div dir="ltr">
Much longer than I intended but I am back trying to catch up with the huge backlog of things I have to share!</div>
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First of all I'm going to share my new season sewing plans.</div>
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We are in the process (almost there!) of turning our tiny utility room into a sewing space which is so exciting. Previously I sewed on the dining room table (our kitchen is off the dining room so there's no way to shut the door on any mess) with all my bits and pieces and fabric stuffed in a very full cupboard, so it will be great to be able to have them out. I'm sure it will double my productivity if I don't have to spend 30 minutes digging out a piece of interfacing or the right colour of zip! For this reason I haven't done much sewing for the past couple of months. All my stuff is packed away to keep the dust off it. But I have been planning! </div>
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I have had a lot of success in the past couple of years following along with the Fall Essentials Sewalong hosted by Sarah at Rhinestones and Telephones. It works well for me to plan my sewing for the season (actually why don't I do it when there's not a sewalong happening?). So I am working along with that again.</div>
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Here's what I am planning:</div>
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<b>Fashionable foundations for frosty weather</b></div>
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I wear my Maria Denmark Paula pleat skirt all the time. It's in regular rotation in my wardrobe and so I am planning another 2. I have navy baby cord and wine coloured twill washed and ready to go.</div>
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I also want to make a pair of wide legged trousers so I'll be working on the Pauline Alice Sorell trousers. I hope I can nail the fit as these are pretty much my perfect trouser pattern! I have some grey flannel type stuff in the stash for these. </div>
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<b>Chic chemises for cool climates</b></div>
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I have had a breton top planned for ages and bought striped jersey in the Guthrie Ghani sale a while back. This will be massively useful in my wardrobe as my last one died last winter. I'll probably use the Renfrew pattern for this but modified to have more of a boat neck. </div>
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I am also planning another Jenna cardie (I know I haven't shown you the previous versions yet. Stay tuned!). This will be in teal double knit to replace a RTW one which has developed a huge mystery greasy mark on the sleeve which won't wash out.</div>
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<b>Fabulous frocks</b></div>
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My cousin is getting married in October in Scotland. I want to make a dress for it but haven't chosen a pattern yet. I have a few vintage patterns in mind. I'm looking for a red or burgundy fabric possibly polka dot, but until I find the pattern I won't be shopping for it yet.</div>
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<b>Underneath it all</b></div>
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Depending on time and how many knit scraps I find when I clear out the fabric pit... er... cupboard I may make vests or knickers but I don't massively need either so they aren't a huge priority.</div>
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<b>Tender tootsies</b> </div>
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No socks planned. My carpal tunnel is still playing up so knitting isn't really on the cards just now. </div>
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<b>Those cosy nights</b></div>
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Probably the most urgent clothing need - pyjama trousers. I have 2 pairs that are falling into holes. Planning to use the Maria Denmark Laura lounge pants pattern again but I think I'll extend the waist up to make a drawstring closure similar to my preferred RTW ones. I've never found ribbing of a quality that I like to make as per the pattern. I need to get fabric for these still.</div>
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<b>Baby it's cold outside</b></div>
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I don't need a coat as the one i made last year is still great. But a warmish jacket would be good. I have a lust for a cape but not found fabric or pattern for it as yet. To be honest this may not be finished by the end of the sewalong and I'm not going to stress myself out over getting it done to a deadline!</div>
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That's my plans. 8 items plus the cape, 2 sets of repeats and most from patterns I have made before and regularly wear so not much fitting required. Other than the potential cape, all are from patterns I already own and most of the fabric is from the stash (to be honest I am getting nervous about sorting out my stash and being able to see how much I actually have - more than I think I am sure!)</div>
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Really looking forward to getting into a sewing routine again after a couple of months off. And also getting back to blogging again and showing you all what I have been making. It's good to be back!</div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-90718400345303881772015-06-19T05:12:00.000+01:002015-06-19T05:12:14.047+01:00Pondering grief and sewing and blogging and probably some other things too<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.quotesdump.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Pondering-The-Meaning-Of-Life-Quotes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.quotesdump.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Pondering-The-Meaning-Of-Life-Quotes.jpg" height="400" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is one of the top google images for pondering - an awesome pondering baby!</td></tr>
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I'm writing this at 4am after having been awake thinking about it for an hour. Insomniacs unite! It's one of those things I have had half-formed ideas about for a while but never quite felt like putting them down in writing. I don't know if I will even hit "publish".<br />
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This feels like a weird post to write. Since the sewing category was added to Bloglovin my blog has got quite a number of new followers (welcome - and thank you for following! If you don't blog you may not realise how much that Bloglovin new follower email makes someone's day!) and this seems like an odd post for people to start with. It's not my usual way and normal sewing-related service will be resumed shortly!<br />
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As I have blogged about before, my dad died in November just over a year after his stage 4 cancer diagnosis. As he lived in the US and I am in the UK, my brother and I had several last minute dashes to hospital to see him. His death wasn't a surprise - in fact a year of relative health after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is pretty good as these things go.<br />
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I'm not sure I have had a typical grief reaction in that I have (and still do) feel a bit numb to the whole thing. According to Dr Google, this is fairly normal and part of the grief process but it doesn't feel like anyone else is grieving in the same way. I have a family who need things to carry on relatively as normal and a demanding job (where I was supposed to change teams in January but a recruitment issue has meant I am actually still doing 70% of my previous role, which trying to take on a new one which has been exhausting. For 6 months). This week was my dad's birthday on Wednesday and it's Father's Day here on Sunday so it's been a tough one.<br />
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And unlike other forms of blogging, blogging about dressmaking is tied up a lot in how we feel about how we look. Serious comfort eating since my dad's diagnosis has meant I have put back on most of the weight I was so happy and proud to lose. Isn't it annoying when you find yourself becoming a statistic for diet failure? And who wants to put pictures of themselves up on the internet when they don't feel good about how they look? This post is partly inspired by thoughtful posts from <a href="http://jo-sews-etc.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/dress-like-yourself.html" target="_blank">Jo Sews</a> and <a href="http://didyoumakethat.com/2015/05/31/a-state-of-bewilderment-brought-on-by-a-dress/" target="_blank">Karen from Didyoumakethat</a> about body and style changes and also posts from <a href="http://jo-sews-etc.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/2014-2015.html" target="_blank">Jo Sews</a> and <a href="http://missdemeanourisonthemake.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/making-and-mending-post-about-mental.html" target="_blank">Miss Demeanor</a> about mental health. The sewing blogging community is such a positive place and it seems like it is rare for people to admit that they are finding it hard. Maybe increasing use of Instagram perpetuates that - I read recently that IG is seems as a much more positive place than Twitter as it is full of pretty, carefully chosen images of a moment in time, whereas Twitter is a bit more ranty. The difference to my mind is that a thoughtful Twitter conversation is a lot more supportive than a lot of IG likes (although IG likes are lovely too, don't get me wrong). But it's hard to talk about feelings on IG when there's no pretty picture to accompany them.<br />
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In the aftermath of all of this, my sewing productivity has suffered. I have definitely been finding it hard to summon up the effort to sew after a day at work and long commute home. I only realised recently that this sort of lethargy is part of the grieving process. I have tried several ways to bust out of this - making quick and easy gratification projects - multiple makes of patterns I have already fitted, knit projects, quick to sew projects, all of which have resulted in some great and really useful wardrobe additions. I am currently wrangling with trouser fitting which has been a slow process, partly because trouser fitting is hard, and partly as I'm not happy with how I look and so I'm not sure I want to wear the trousers right now. However I am almost there and pretty proud of the end result!<br />
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All of which brings me to blogging. I have quite a backlog of things to show you, most of which need photos. I think I will have a big photo taking session with hubby and get as many of them photographed as possible to show you and then I can move onto new makes. I have some great summer dresses planned which I can't wait to sew up and wear, and I haven't felt like that about a project since my winter coat!<br />
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Sometimes I think we have to force ourselves to get back to the things we like doing and build back up that habit again. For me that goes for sewing and blogging. I used to be very good at sewing for a block of time each day (even if that was half an hour - it's amazing how quickly garments come together over several 30 minute sessions) but I haven't been doing that recently. I thought that one day I would just feel like doing it, but I guess it's kind of a habit that I have fallen out of the way of doing.<br />
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As for blogging, I'm not really someone who writes weekly or monthly round ups of what other people are doing/ sewing or shopping links just to have something to post on a particular day. My favourite blogs post when they have something to say or show, rather than posting on a schedule that it says you should have in some blogging guide or other. That's not really going to change around here - I'm not one of those bloggers like Karen or Gillian who has great ideas of topics that the whole community responds to and ends up writing their own blog posts about. So I'll get back to showing you my self-made garments and hopefully hearing your thoughts, feedback, ideas and comments on them.<br />
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Have you ever experienced a lack of desire to sew or take part in another favourite hobby even though you know you love it? Any tips for getting back into it you can share? Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-84244073815680208472015-06-05T16:52:00.002+01:002015-06-05T16:52:31.152+01:00Me Made Everyday!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I hope you all had fun in Me Made May. I didn't use the Flickr group this year as I have got into Instagram (you can find me on there @jolittletime), but I loved seeing everyone's self made garments being shown off on IG!<br />
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I did pretty well with my own pledge (just don't mention that I was meant to have made trousers - I'm working on it OK?). I wanted to see how far i would get without repeating a garment and did pretty well - my first repeat was on 23rd May. If the weather had improved and I could have rotated in a few of my more summery items I might have gone all the way to the end. Still, there's always next year!<br />
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I blogged about how much I like this aspect of sewing <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/me-made-everyday.html" target="_blank">last year</a> and on Twitter we discussed using the hashtag #memadeeveryday to share outfit photos on IG and Twitter. I noticed a few more people talking about carrying on photographing their me-mades in real life now that May is over so I thought I would revisit it. There's no rules, no need to do it 7 days a week, get any kind of fancy photos, or even photograph at all if you don't want to!<br />
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The lovely and very talented Katie of <a href="http://whatkatiesews.net/" target="_blank">What Katie Sews</a> made a blog badge you can grab below or from my sidebar. Feel free to share it on your blog or whatever social media floats your boat!</div>
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Hope to see your me-mades in the wild the rest of the year too!</div>
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PS Did you see that there's now a Sewing category on Bloglovin? See Oona's post about it <a href="http://www.oonaballoona.com/2015/06/jumping-ship.html" target="_blank">here</a> and add your blog in so that people can find you more easily!</form>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-89713711588548976262015-04-30T22:44:00.001+01:002015-04-30T22:44:08.841+01:00In for MeMadeMay<p dir="ltr">Almost missed signing up this year - April has gone by so fast!</p>
<p dir="ltr">I have struggled with pledging this year as I wear me mades most days anyway and since I wear a lot of dresses it tends to be a whole me made outfit. I do want it to be a challenge so I have decided to tackle my sewing nemesis - trousers!</p>
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<p dir="ltr">I, Joanne from Sew Little Time pledge to wear at least one me made item a day for the duration of May. I will also make a well fitted pair of trousers during the month.</p>
<p dir="ltr">I'll be posting outfit pics on Instagram daily (I do this anyway when I am wearing mades, under the #memadeeveryday hashtag). You can find me on IG as @jolittletime. There will be a round up post or two throughout the month but I'll be trying to catch up with the big backlog of items I have waiting to be blogged.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Are you joining in this year? I feel like I haven't seen as many pledges as usual on blogs. Good luck if you are! </p>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-22283366580244790432015-01-27T14:08:00.000+00:002015-01-27T14:08:11.691+00:00Don't look back...<div dir="ltr">
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Now that you've got that earworm, let's pretend you are reading this post in early January when I meant to write it rather than the end of January when I actually did. </div>
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I was going to write a nice post about top 5 hits and misses and so on, but then I realised - I don't want to look back at 2014 in great detail. It was a crappy year for me personally. My dad was diagnosed with cancer at the end of 2013 and died in late November. Hence the big blog gap and the lack of interest in reviewing the year.</div>
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So I'm looking forward at 2015 instead!</div>
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There were some good things about 2014 I am going to bring forward:</div>
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Wardrobe architect was great! It really helped me to define and refine my style and colour palette. But I struggled when it came to the final task of creating a capsule wardrobe. I think this is because I don't like the idea of a few mix and match pieces. I'm not someone who buys a couple of great quality investment pieces each season. So I'm enjoying the understanding of colours, prints and silhouettes that I gained without making a specific sewing plan out of it.</div>
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I loved Marie from A Stitching Odyssey's vintage sewing pledge (pics of my finished garments are at the top of the page). I managed 4 out of the 5 I pledged and the items I made are in pretty heavy rotation in my wardrobe. It's made me very keen to work with more vintage patterns and I have signed up again for this year to make 5 items. And a few new vintage patterns may have fallen into my Etsy cart!</div>
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This year WILL be the year I conquer trousers. The fear I have of fitting them is stupid and if I can make bound buttonholes and welt pockets, I can make trousers! I am starting with the Sew Over It Ultimate Trousers so I can get a steer on fitting without worrying about a fly front, and moving onto Colette Junipers. I also want to give jeans a go, so I have the Iconic Patterns Jess jeans and the Jalie pattern to try.</div>
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This year I am going to revisit some of my favourite patterns I have made in the past. I've done all the fitting and muslining work already so I can concentrate on the fun bit of sewing and wearing! In particular the Emery, Mortmain and Anna dresses really lend themselves to pairing with different skirts to make a new look with minimal fitting effort. The bodice from my Christmas dress was pretty awesome too.</div>
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I am planning to sew up fabrics from.my stash. This isn't a stash diet, but I have some really lovely fabrics that I want to use before I buy much else. The exception to this will be knits as I really don't have any stashed.</div>
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So no specific plans that I won't stick to beyond the next couple of garments. </div>
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Hope your new year has started well. Are you planning for 2015 or going with the flow?</div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-37111228698565524512014-12-31T20:37:00.000+00:002014-12-31T20:37:00.271+00:00Operation winter coat - fabric prep<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As I had some lovely (and more expensive than usual) fabrics for this coat, I wanted to treat them right. Since I asked for a lot of advice and googled a fair bit, I thought my findings might be useful to others.</div>
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Starting with the outer fabric which is a wool blend - 90% wool, 10% poly. This is a good combination for me as I am sensitive to 100% wool A lot of people can get away with wool in a coat as it doesn't sit against the skin but I particularly dislike it against my neck and this coat has a collar so wool blend it was. </div>
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After a lot of googling I found 3 main methods for pre shrinking wool. First is taking to the dry cleaners. Easy but pricy so not for me. Second is steaming with the iron (as Tasia did <a href="http://sewaholic.net/preparing-coat-fabric-prewashing-preshrinking-pre-steaming/" target="_blank">here</a>). Simple but time consuming. Thirdly is <a href="http://off-the-cuff-style.blogspot.co.uk/2009/08/how-to-pre-shrink-wool-fast-and-easy-at.html" target="_blank">this method</a> outlined by Pam from <a href="http://off-the-cuff-shirtmaking.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Off the Cuff</a> (this is a link to her new blog but her old one <a href="http://off-the-cuff-style.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">here</a> is a treasure trove of tips, especially for shirtmaking). To save you a click, you wet large towels with hot water and put in the tumble dryer with your dry yardage. That's it!</div>
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I was concerned about trying this with my whole yardage so I tumble dried a swatch first for the recommended 40 minutes. There was no obvious change to the look of the fabric so I put the whole yardage in the dryer with 2 damp (wrung out as much as possible) bath towels. It worked perfectly - but if you do this be careful taking it out of the machine as it was still boiling hot! A quick press later and my wool was ready to go.</div>
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The lining is viscose acetate. I had planned to wash as normal but when the fabric arrived it had a dry clean only sticker on the tissue it was wrapped in. I considered not prewashing as I plan to dryclean the finished garment but advice from the lovely Claire Louise from the <a href="http://thethriftystitcher.co.uk/" target="_blank">Thrifty Stitcher</a> that it's really important to pre wash linings as even a bit of sweat can cause shrinkage. So I decided to put in in a delicate wash and it came out fine. Another great tip from Claire Louise was to iron it damp to get the creases out properly. This worked brilliantly and not sure why I haven't tried it before!</div>
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This just left the interfacing. I ordered <a href="http://www.gillarnold.co.uk/shop/interfacing/speed-tailoring-viscose-nylon-fusibles" target="_blank">Speed Tailoring from Gill Arnold</a> on the advice of Anne from <a href="https://bellemegan.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Mercury Handmade</a> and it came with really detailed instructions on how to pre shrink, which I have never done with fusible interfacing before. I soaked it in hand hot water for 20 minutes, rolled it up in a towel to take out excess water and hung up to dry. When applying, Gill recommends a steam shrink, where you place the interfacing on top of the fabric and steam from a couple of inches away, smooth out fabric and interfacing and then press using a press cloth to adhere. This method worked really well and the interfacing is really lovely stuff. It stabilises without stiffening and adhered perfectly and easily to the fabric.</div>
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Hopefully some of these tips might help if you are making a coat in future!</div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-61628679984392518792014-12-30T20:19:00.001+00:002014-12-31T11:33:09.026+00:00My Christmas dress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This is my last vintage pledge make of 2014 and number 4 of the original 5 I pledged.</div>
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Fittingly, the pattern came from Marie at Stitch Odyssey as she added it to the vintage pattern pyramid before it came to me. I fell in love with the gorgeous asymmetric neckline as soon as I saw it and snapped it up as my pick from the parcel.</div>
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I bought this John Kaldor fabric from the sale at Sew Essential a while ago and had it earmarked for this dress as soon as I nabbed the pattern. It was marked as a french crepe. It washes fine and pressed reasonably well with a medium iron. It's lovely to wear and barely creases. </div>
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The pattern was for a 40" bust and I thought I was going to have a bit of work to make it fit, but it was actually pretty good from the start. I lengthened the bodice and skirt by 2" each and lowered the bust darts by 1.5". Other than lowering the darts, the main adjustment was a square shoulder adjustment. I took it in at the sides once it was constructed which meant a bit of tinkering with skirt pleats to get them even. I'm never keen on that just above the elbow length of sleeve so I shortened by about 1.5" to make it easier to wear with a cardigan. </div>
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As usual I didn't quite think how the drape of the fabric would affect the neckline and the piece at the side. It meant this piece was a bit floppy and didn't quite sit properly. I fused an additional piece of interfacing to the facing and the bodice front which fixed the problem. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSa2QycBN8b214sEqjLvs1EZf0CjcPHt4LES5CCQhyphenhypheniNQL4qgt_a64h66wlOAPyKnVlqoq8edw5iw6zm50yUQIcQp8svCL6Yev7pkQ-17MOS2fB7r8T7yfTRTNfGC54LoH_YIVjRE4V6I/s1600/xmas+dress+close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSa2QycBN8b214sEqjLvs1EZf0CjcPHt4LES5CCQhyphenhypheniNQL4qgt_a64h66wlOAPyKnVlqoq8edw5iw6zm50yUQIcQp8svCL6Yev7pkQ-17MOS2fB7r8T7yfTRTNfGC54LoH_YIVjRE4V6I/s1600/xmas+dress+close.jpg" height="320" width="213"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Closer shot of the neckline (with bonus derp-face)</td></tr>
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I didn't add the bow at the neck in the end. I may make it and attach it with a pin - in my experience these details don't do well in the washing machine so making it removable seems sensible.</div><div dir="ltr"><br></div>
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I used Hug Snug to make a waist stay and also machine sewed it around the skirt and sleeve hems before catch stitching by hand. This was really time consuming on such a full skirt but it gives a lovely finish. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXw34Fav6n0_zDgEja8gjvJ2h6q5YAZXYgFQKtHN0TgefxLWIU_VaTzIHEgbzaMKfH6ge4G79ECQOFV3MJYPs7xrxhVtljVPLPPkJbLU1ryfC5jhPgvCw0LK7pgWxBtluUUVoegkw6eik/s1600/20141231_112954.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXw34Fav6n0_zDgEja8gjvJ2h6q5YAZXYgFQKtHN0TgefxLWIU_VaTzIHEgbzaMKfH6ge4G79ECQOFV3MJYPs7xrxhVtljVPLPPkJbLU1ryfC5jhPgvCw0LK7pgWxBtluUUVoegkw6eik/s640/20141231_112954.jpg"> </a> </div>Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-5122655655553045242014-12-30T20:11:00.005+00:002014-12-30T20:11:40.108+00:00Operation winter coat - the reveal!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcz19rWlTDvZIr3WycMLN5-csuPE1N_3jYU3vxeuxzzxb-RoAOYsREkvl-yaCO5sv4957Zv8eTtO-Som6TE59bIsrdh9v9FYpSeP1B-mZFNt0E9FbZsWhIQnDsqcrdD9Gx7syoFQ0Wkw/s1600/coat+front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcz19rWlTDvZIr3WycMLN5-csuPE1N_3jYU3vxeuxzzxb-RoAOYsREkvl-yaCO5sv4957Zv8eTtO-Som6TE59bIsrdh9v9FYpSeP1B-mZFNt0E9FbZsWhIQnDsqcrdD9Gx7syoFQ0Wkw/s1600/coat+front.jpg" height="400" width="267" /></a></div>
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So here is my final coat!</div>
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I am so happy with it and it's an absolute pleasure to put it on every day. Of course the cost/effort per wear on a coat comes out pretty well which is satisfying! </div>
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In this post, I'm showing off the final pics and will talk about fitting adjustments I made, and I'll show you details in another post. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8a8W7gnG6No_5B7DZISQP1XH_MA-M-vdIcPCltd0o7QK-rBn2QsCq7wH7E9VAvSKLh8i16IlHajnbtXv42QvBxEbxXUzprOfryZYsmLqd5e1p4YJR1_D0zOWFIbe9exC6uyLq5HFnsmE/s1600/coat+side.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8a8W7gnG6No_5B7DZISQP1XH_MA-M-vdIcPCltd0o7QK-rBn2QsCq7wH7E9VAvSKLh8i16IlHajnbtXv42QvBxEbxXUzprOfryZYsmLqd5e1p4YJR1_D0zOWFIbe9exC6uyLq5HFnsmE/s1600/coat+side.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a></div>
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On comparing my actual measurements to my pattern measurements, I found I needed an FBA (no surprise), a little extra room at the hips/ bum level (another non - surprise) and more ease in the arms (I appear to have weirdly big elbows!). I also added 1/2" shoulder width and did a small square shoulder adjustment.</div>
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The front pattern piece was tough to adjust as it looked like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAy7GzLJVygoSB5XcyZDHXv2yW4TioQT85oLAghrgP0EGNuQvP55YSZyBALMixCEp5k8uKhrJ5AVnmr3CdOR17jiJ8-Nwqy315AR1xspT7tq91ZEgp9F-H8vKqDpw2Q8AN8gLl30HP83A/s1600/IMG_20140919_221838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAy7GzLJVygoSB5XcyZDHXv2yW4TioQT85oLAghrgP0EGNuQvP55YSZyBALMixCEp5k8uKhrJ5AVnmr3CdOR17jiJ8-Nwqy315AR1xspT7tq91ZEgp9F-H8vKqDpw2Q8AN8gLl30HP83A/s640/IMG_20140919_221838.jpg" /> </a> </div>
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On the advice of lovely Brooke from <a href="https://customstyle.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Custom Style</a> I had planned to cut it apart at the waist, but as I needed extra room at the hips too I was able to slash the pattern piece all the way down and add in some extra in the right places.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXLe9o-D8CntpWe0JwK1NtNPoESbG4ZN2BYl8Jv7dEHo59oqFcOSr2IgcvqPdjp_Acl4CyQ35fPrVOTmIhemMJi1RYl7ioVHEhtHLL0DGKPVZ1hER1EnAi9t6aOfZEZYoG_9JCRNeKJnU/s1600/coat+back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXLe9o-D8CntpWe0JwK1NtNPoESbG4ZN2BYl8Jv7dEHo59oqFcOSr2IgcvqPdjp_Acl4CyQ35fPrVOTmIhemMJi1RYl7ioVHEhtHLL0DGKPVZ1hER1EnAi9t6aOfZEZYoG_9JCRNeKJnU/s1600/coat+back.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Should have taken my hands out of my pockets to photograph the back - that pulling isn't there without them!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: start;">The weirdest thing is that I did no length adjustments in the body at all! The waist was in the right place and the hem length was perfect. In hindsight, the pockets could stand to be perhaps 1.5" lower as it feels like I pull on them slightly when I put my hands in. But they are totally functional. I also lengthened the sleeves to full length from bracelet length and as a result had to taper them slightly.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcLon8O1pNxsQF74cOSXvgwKvuERuz5BgQipjMsdgdYpCWAL9P39XJmffrH8tEnxaEdn8ygEk_lWjpFSy5cROy0LTIblIgS-rbO8pjTC2V9bkP4Y_VcEqz1gllXyXXaWfQfd2Bd4GlJXE/s1600/coat+front+alt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcLon8O1pNxsQF74cOSXvgwKvuERuz5BgQipjMsdgdYpCWAL9P39XJmffrH8tEnxaEdn8ygEk_lWjpFSy5cROy0LTIblIgS-rbO8pjTC2V9bkP4Y_VcEqz1gllXyXXaWfQfd2Bd4GlJXE/s1600/coat+front+alt.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: start;">I muslined one sleeve and also the collar piece as I was concerned it looked a bit small in the picture (it's fine). However I decided to add darts to the back to take out some excess fabric at back waist. This was done by pinching out the right amount of fabric at waist level, splitting that between 2 darts and measuring where I wanted them to end top and bottom. I had a bit of trial and error in the dart positioning at first as I placed them too close to the side seams so I was glad I had just pinned them to begin with. Me and the seam ripper are too friendly as it is! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: start;">In the final fabric I ended up taking in the side seams more to narrow the bodice to the waist as the shape as drafted just wasn't working for me. Unfortunately I feel like I took a lot of the vintage flavour out of the coat, but it definitely works better for me this way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: start;">Details of the construction to follow! </span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcK-JK-e1rKYRzU9wXW9AUkI_S-CWqoI-gsxBbVwfm5Ol_GxwE8ZbjG5Ai9ecd21trRWRP39hmXTBgxEOoYCXNSC0rupjjtCDYJmniORKfHbEm0NEqQB4ql6PvAsdKpZIYZsWfPxvaTMo/s1600/coat+alt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcK-JK-e1rKYRzU9wXW9AUkI_S-CWqoI-gsxBbVwfm5Ol_GxwE8ZbjG5Ai9ecd21trRWRP39hmXTBgxEOoYCXNSC0rupjjtCDYJmniORKfHbEm0NEqQB4ql6PvAsdKpZIYZsWfPxvaTMo/s1600/coat+alt.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One last pic as it's a nice background!</td></tr>
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Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-63715624875346706082014-10-21T23:19:00.002+01:002014-10-21T23:19:25.862+01:00Topstitching help please<div dir="ltr">
I mentioned on the post about my Peggy skirt that I had some issues with the topstitching.</div>
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It looks ok from the right side (bar a few skipped stitches on the sections where there are a lot of layers):</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqgSyIqJEGre7e1gGc9M_QkfkLX6xXUl_IX68s3KYQ5nvfUCl9Tevci6_8X8VPprmpuDz79TdVrAVSbkXPMFm4Sw-PgZeNj8LqaiEwZhAwjIj-nGxLI8k2yaDv1-anrIyC1ed6nexER-U/s1600/20140924_180155.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqgSyIqJEGre7e1gGc9M_QkfkLX6xXUl_IX68s3KYQ5nvfUCl9Tevci6_8X8VPprmpuDz79TdVrAVSbkXPMFm4Sw-PgZeNj8LqaiEwZhAwjIj-nGxLI8k2yaDv1-anrIyC1ed6nexER-U/s640/20140924_180155.jpg" /> </a> </div>
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But pretty awful from the wrong side as you can see below:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4nQ5OfpS9EW-zTZI0HrpFoft33V1PlZOu9FZMPNOpluNe0O6xcyATx2XKXF38AuyTGYdmA-xbSc_IDdLDx9ecdn6gW6seaLqSCUknPUowM0n8B0IDEmWaeKxkjxistWK3m08r_1OL1Sg/s1600/20140924_180216.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4nQ5OfpS9EW-zTZI0HrpFoft33V1PlZOu9FZMPNOpluNe0O6xcyATx2XKXF38AuyTGYdmA-xbSc_IDdLDx9ecdn6gW6seaLqSCUknPUowM0n8B0IDEmWaeKxkjxistWK3m08r_1OL1Sg/s640/20140924_180216.jpg" /> </a> </div>
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Believe it or not, this is a distinct improvement on how it looked originally. </div>
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Based on advice from Twitter and Instagram, I switched from a denim needle to a topstitching one and used normal thread in the bobbin with topstitching thread on top only. I fiddled with the tension on the top thread.</div>
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These lessened the problem considerably but it's still not great. My machine didn't seem to have any issues with sewing the layers with normal thread, just with topstitching thread.</div>
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The only thing I could find online was that Gutermann topstitching thread (which I used) is apparently much thicker than other brands.</div>
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Can anyone shed any light on my problem? Any great topstitching tips to share? Have you found that the brand of thread made a difference? All suggestions gratefully received as I want to make jeans at some point and that's a lot of topstitching! </div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-13764804145681563732014-10-16T14:31:00.000+01:002014-10-16T14:31:19.598+01:00Grease Inspiration<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYFOEOmw-YOa0R2e1rzUXuGmgpZxbyRCyDeCd_VPoIwfk-3UnD3zFl33JouF35D0RyWTHcJ5G6F9FjOQOK1uEDFZr2vWnN5XKv-RRYWmR7ZW7n7joxEUjqW8HiTvzLaEdUn_3eBJZQw7A/s1600/Grease_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYFOEOmw-YOa0R2e1rzUXuGmgpZxbyRCyDeCd_VPoIwfk-3UnD3zFl33JouF35D0RyWTHcJ5G6F9FjOQOK1uEDFZr2vWnN5XKv-RRYWmR7ZW7n7joxEUjqW8HiTvzLaEdUn_3eBJZQw7A/s1600/Grease_logo.jpg" height="147" width="320" /></a></div>
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I've just put up my bad girl inspiration post for the Grease sewalong on the Sewcialists blog - head on over a have a read <a href="http://sewcialists.wordpress.com/2014/10/16/grease-is-the-word-inspiration-the-bad-girls/" target="_blank">here</a>!<br />
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<br />Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-235505806978690322014-10-03T14:28:00.000+01:002014-10-03T14:28:26.915+01:00The Grease Sewalong!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipgbNdmhJwIpFzzsk0N_KOmUvvFbKlIkuobVzo_4lunhmoL-5k7oNBlf50xWjkiZ9QbFWQ0Xd2ycwwgz7lDo9yC1rBtvG-E7tKPiWgcf03CNvH5hdGesicBljrbQtvVdO1U6gT52nu0hg/s1600/Grease_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipgbNdmhJwIpFzzsk0N_KOmUvvFbKlIkuobVzo_4lunhmoL-5k7oNBlf50xWjkiZ9QbFWQ0Xd2ycwwgz7lDo9yC1rBtvG-E7tKPiWgcf03CNvH5hdGesicBljrbQtvVdO1U6gT52nu0hg/s1600/Grease_logo.jpg" height="147" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'm co-hosting this month's sewalong on the Sewcialists blog, and it's a theme very close to my heart - Grease!<br />
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<a href="http://sewcialists.wordpress.com/2014/10/03/theme-for-october-grease-is-the-word/" target="_blank">Click here</a> to read the post - and there's a competition too!<br />
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Will you be joining in?Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-14358662998402455702014-10-01T19:24:00.001+01:002014-10-08T08:22:54.084+01:00Operation winter coat is go!<p dir="ltr">I may not have been blogging too much due to work and general life busy-ness, but I have been sewing and planning quite a bit!</p>
<p dir="ltr">The big project I am working on is a winter coat.</p>
<p dir="ltr">I was looking for a fairly simple shape with a collar and some waist shaping and I picked up this great 1960s pattern on Etsy:</p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0yW9rCUH5b2V3VY1rWEBZaj0bGLCMAa8ZJzHuZ_gETvnoyY7smtdAITJdcGb1_7ymPnFJr3otlpESSAW0wtHoOiwCA6ZBqLT1LiOwPyonj5EB-ureyMYD12s83VaPTaOLigOtr7BxH1A/s1600/il_570xN.409576995_6573.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: center; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0yW9rCUH5b2V3VY1rWEBZaj0bGLCMAa8ZJzHuZ_gETvnoyY7smtdAITJdcGb1_7ymPnFJr3otlpESSAW0wtHoOiwCA6ZBqLT1LiOwPyonj5EB-ureyMYD12s83VaPTaOLigOtr7BxH1A/s640/il_570xN.409576995_6573.jpg"></a><br></p>
<p dir="ltr">It has lovely princess seams running to the waist with welt pockets at the bottom, bound buttonholes and is fully lined.</p>
<p dir="ltr">I knew I was going to have to buy fabric online for it as my local fabric shop just doesn't stock great quality coating. The fabric I used for my Anise really hasn't held up well which is frustrating when you think of all the work that goes into a coat (especially one with welt pockets and bound buttonholes!). After much perusing of online fabric shops (it's a dirty job...) I ordered a stack of swatches from Stone Fabrics. They have a great selection of coatings and I have read good things about their quality. You have to call up and order but they were very helpful and got my order out really quickly - they're not paying me to recommend them BTW, I just like to give praise where it's due!</p>
<p dir="ltr">I ordered this wool mix coating (90% wool but not scratchy - 100% wool rarely works on my skin). A good tip I found was to keep rubbing the swatches together over a few days to see how they might hold up to wear. I actually rejected my original choice after it went a bit fluffy when I did this so hopefully I have chosen one that will wear well!</p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-7O9uDh-ZBi6Zf3satj_bJX2fWyutnFC3fDoD944fF5ZLLPPJA2MgHkJN95xFSQwrPfW1dsrHLHpuICiNXXyOc0yemW7YDZOnNJIpOo5AOB48VFBvh5TODL5rVq5boD3klF1Ju1_p4E/s1600/20141002_082109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: center; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid-7O9uDh-ZBi6Zf3satj_bJX2fWyutnFC3fDoD944fF5ZLLPPJA2MgHkJN95xFSQwrPfW1dsrHLHpuICiNXXyOc0yemW7YDZOnNJIpOo5AOB48VFBvh5TODL5rVq5boD3klF1Ju1_p4E/s640/20141002_082109.jpg"></a><br></p>
<p dir="ltr">The lining is also from Stone Fabrics and it's viscose acetate in a beautiful peacock blue - the picture really does not do the colour justice. <br><br></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsO1Ahf-qZ_-Mkdru6WG13D_igyXJK4sk9RosGUIh6lrpwYYOmBrsIEY2ALFDB1OtgoK4M8h3XfmGnhW4-sUjwEJ_Tr0yTtXDQRJoV2d7Syd_mdb7p4z0I402mTiQQJpMgpASDzn91Z8/s1600/20141002_082149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: center; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsO1Ahf-qZ_-Mkdru6WG13D_igyXJK4sk9RosGUIh6lrpwYYOmBrsIEY2ALFDB1OtgoK4M8h3XfmGnhW4-sUjwEJ_Tr0yTtXDQRJoV2d7Syd_mdb7p4z0I402mTiQQJpMgpASDzn91Z8/s640/20141002_082149.jpg"></a>As ever, I asked for advice on twitter for interfacing and the ever helpful Anne from Mercury Handmade recommended Speed Tailoring from Gill Arnold as she uses it in all her coats. This stuff is ideal for stabilising an open weave and is beautifully soft.<br></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSCiwLg2OkzGE2uOrzwY8ymaYvH_YBYisY1BlT_FLlXSXqOdvbyTkPPPb_DC6f6yOJlhyMedBHXfayMXfLHCF9Q4vilbEJdWJqpXdCit1EM8eLvgTZNDASAz9K5yIkQ7Zw4MRjHuDxJ0E/s1600/20141002_082221.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: sans-serif; text-align: center; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSCiwLg2OkzGE2uOrzwY8ymaYvH_YBYisY1BlT_FLlXSXqOdvbyTkPPPb_DC6f6yOJlhyMedBHXfayMXfLHCF9Q4vilbEJdWJqpXdCit1EM8eLvgTZNDASAz9K5yIkQ7Zw4MRjHuDxJ0E/s640/20141002_082221.jpg"></a>For buttons, I bought huge 1960s style ones from John Lewis. I hope they don't look stupidly big on as I'll have to do the bound buttonholes first!<br></p>
<p dir="ltr">I think you'll be getting quite a lot of in progress posts on this as coats take such a long time. Wish me luck!</p>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL84HNSaFNg4IgZ3vDUe6yZK9jgZIOzE2SCjaQ7_Clapr3pe8nQbAlIF7aMH-i3_tkV2-DNLmRTZRuG1gWw7QMesb8EUuvkvfBjfkU4vLuXLAdsDxImDrIcvFPoMKAh_QerIc23jHpGX4/s1600/DSC_2141.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL84HNSaFNg4IgZ3vDUe6yZK9jgZIOzE2SCjaQ7_Clapr3pe8nQbAlIF7aMH-i3_tkV2-DNLmRTZRuG1gWw7QMesb8EUuvkvfBjfkU4vLuXLAdsDxImDrIcvFPoMKAh_QerIc23jHpGX4/s1600/DSC_2141.JPG" height="267" width="400" /></a></div>
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I sewed this forever ago, but as you have probably noticed, finding time to blog things recently has been difficult!</div>
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I made this Moneta from Colette Patterns for our holiday to Sicily back in August, and it's great to look back on the beautiful scenery and lovely weather! The pictures are on the island of Stromboli (an active volcano) where we went on a boat trip.</div>
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There seemed to be a lot of relatively similar knit dress patterns released by the indies this summer, and although I probably could have hacked this myself, I decided to go the convenience route. I also love this neckline - it's perfect for me, and the downloadable collar options sealed the deal! Annoyingly I don't have a pic of the cute crossover collar at the back so you'll need to imagine.<br />
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It's a simple knit bodice with no darts and a gathered skirt. I lengthened both the bodice and skirt by 2" based on measuring the pattern pieces - this is a standard adjustment for me, The only fitting issue I had was some gaping under the arms. To get rid of it, I pinched it out at the side seam - it's not perfect but it worked OK.</div>
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I'm not sure about the gathering method used on the skirt - it calls for clear elastic to be stretched and sewn to the skirt which gathered it up when the stretch is released. It really wasn't that easy to do. I'll probably give it another go on another version I have planned, but I suspect that other gathering methods may be just as easy.</div>
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This pattern is a total fabric hog for such a simple knit dress! I had bought 2.5 metres of this cotton jersey from Goldhawk Road without checking the fabric requirements, but as it's a self lined bodice, the pattern calls for close to 3 yards. With my length adjustments, I wouldn't have had enough to line, so I overlocked the armhole edges and turned inside. I finished with a double needle.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4vRfbSaZNH92UE-Hh26ZzeJx0-0EcSK3F5_OJhlOtcUXMGQCUvtpDaD22yjQ-3DgiMn7XS9KEOGJ8AjZ7my2AfU_5jq81ym7fmlEQoxyLs4Szs_wO4KXvZ-3Iccdw7zuAqBwxZ9b2ZM/s1600/DSC_2227.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm4vRfbSaZNH92UE-Hh26ZzeJx0-0EcSK3F5_OJhlOtcUXMGQCUvtpDaD22yjQ-3DgiMn7XS9KEOGJ8AjZ7my2AfU_5jq81ym7fmlEQoxyLs4Szs_wO4KXvZ-3Iccdw7zuAqBwxZ9b2ZM/s1600/DSC_2227.JPG" height="400" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An arty shot from my husband - he loved that the writing on the wall matched the dress!</td></tr>
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I love this dress - the fabric is quite weighty and the skirt swishes really nicely,. It's quick and easy to make, and I have a winter version in the works now that the weather is getting colder. I had plans for a striped version too but didn't manage to find the right fabric. Maybe for next summer!</div>
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<br />Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-48586639475858133662014-09-22T13:51:00.000+01:002014-09-22T13:51:31.906+01:00Minerva Blogger Network - the Staple Skirt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZWDrBq3UjI43ZWGHZCfDlhViqndENsgcPayu16CO8tL8DT0-73fRuhLh3MFPgL6vdFMI-rfEFgzDyfXDiV6Kw8PgmfOXh80-bZduThTpniFu_Wsgf-R6tMu6tzcyZVRTllsXgKdA7QMw/s1600/peggy+front.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZWDrBq3UjI43ZWGHZCfDlhViqndENsgcPayu16CO8tL8DT0-73fRuhLh3MFPgL6vdFMI-rfEFgzDyfXDiV6Kw8PgmfOXh80-bZduThTpniFu_Wsgf-R6tMu6tzcyZVRTllsXgKdA7QMw/s400/peggy+front.JPG" /></a></div>
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I've been thinking a lot about what items I need to make for winter to fill some wardrobe gaps and I realised I really needed a dark denim skirt.<br />
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I ordered this dark denim from Minerva with the intention of making (another) Kelly skirt, but I spotted the Blue Ginger Doll Peggy skirt pattern in my stash (which I won from the lovely <a href="http://roobeedoo.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Roobeedoo</a> in a giveaway). The denim is quite weighty so it definitely good for something that needs a bit of structure.<br />
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I decided to make view A with a straight waistband and tabs, as I had ordered some silver jeans buttons as part of my kit.<br />
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I must admit this was not the most straightforward project I have ever made. The pattern was pretty hard to trace as the lines for each size were the same (although this has apparently been changed due to feedback so if you like the pattern, don’t let that stop you ordering it!). The fitting was very easy – it’s an a-line skirt, so using my waist measurement worked perfectly. I shaved a tiny amount out of the hips once it was completed but that was all. It’s really long – 27” from waist to hem, so I didn't even need to lengthen it!<br />
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The rest of the problems I had were machine related. I struggled to get my topstitching looking neat. I used topstitching thread in a pale grey (also included in the kit) with a topstitching needle, and played with the tension a lot on the advice of the ever helpful twitter and instagrammers. The inside doesn’t look pretty but I decided to call it good and move on – from the outside it looks fine.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidcpZrpokyTK47tLF9x1e2L6twVhmmxP4R2ccHge0clmG-CgHkCHnL04N8Ds-zzbZuqQTCz-imFW7CGCHe5LYSQV9ThwU4r9kb2O0ucfYDylTjw9ycX0c3q8NisulV3ls14JSxGpWLMtw/s1600/peggy+close.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidcpZrpokyTK47tLF9x1e2L6twVhmmxP4R2ccHge0clmG-CgHkCHnL04N8Ds-zzbZuqQTCz-imFW7CGCHe5LYSQV9ThwU4r9kb2O0ucfYDylTjw9ycX0c3q8NisulV3ls14JSxGpWLMtw/s1600/peggy+close.JPG" height="400" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">'Scuse creases - I had just got out of the car after a morning of rushing around!</td></tr>
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For the lapped zip, I used a silver metal zip from John Lewis as I didn't have one in my stash and wanted to match with the buttons and topstitching.<br />
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My machine did not want to play ball when it came to making buttonholes. It took many many tries to produce the 5 I needed for the tabs and waistband. But I got there in the end. In contrast, the jeans buttons were really easy to attach – I used the tool provided in the pack, made a hole in the fabric with an awl (a slim skewer would work just as well) and bashed it a few times with a hammer.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmxwpGzYbxbvywax_5mYCyAIml5x6ryzD5tSDO5rZFEOpWsJJB3BopGK37pw3JoSxJn8pHDPhufil6k17ErijVmqOeC-3N3fYU_-Xjq5bmgf7T3dArN6yWA9DdTVUU9uJyy-p2ZWp_eM/s1600/peggy+back.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmxwpGzYbxbvywax_5mYCyAIml5x6ryzD5tSDO5rZFEOpWsJJB3BopGK37pw3JoSxJn8pHDPhufil6k17ErijVmqOeC-3N3fYU_-Xjq5bmgf7T3dArN6yWA9DdTVUU9uJyy-p2ZWp_eM/s1600/peggy+back.JPG" height="400" width="267" /></a></div>
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It wasn't the easiest project but I am happy with the end result – I know I’ll wear it a lot all year round, with flats in the summer and tights and boots in winter.<br />
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If you want to make your own Peggy (or the kit would work for a Kelly too) you can buy a kit which includes 2m of dark denim, a pack of 8 silver jeans buttons and a spool of pale grey topstitching thread from Minerva here:<br />
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http://www.minervacrafts.com/es018denim-60-wide-100-cotton-7.5oz-denim-dress-fabric-black-or-indigo-blue.html<br />
http://www.minervacrafts.com/622251-prym-non-sew-jeans-buttons-silver-matt-laurel-wreath-17mm-8-pieces.html<br />
http://www.minervacrafts.com/2t308-gutermann-(sewing-thread)-top-stitch-30m-8.htmlSew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-67273246325250238312014-08-20T12:30:00.000+01:002014-08-20T12:30:00.220+01:00Minerva Blogger Network - The Polkadot Frock<div class="MsoNormal">
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I love polkadots but realised recently I have hardly any
polkadot items that are in regular rotation!
When I saw this lovely navy polkadot stretch cotton on the Minerva site,
I decided to rectify the situation.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The fabric is a really lovely weight – not too stiff but not
especially drapey. It’s not as smooth as
sateen but has a lovely feel to it. Of
course, the stretch makes it really easy to get a good fit and it’s lovely to
sew with.<o:p></o:p><br />
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I’ve been meaning to make another Anna dress for ages – no
idea why I haven’t got around to it before now!
Probably just distracted by newer, shinier patterns! The boat neck is my favourite neckline and I
love the fit of the bodice and the kimono sleeves. It’s also super quick to sew with no sleeves
to set in.. I wanted to change up the
skirt, and while on holiday, I realised that the full skirt from my Mad Men
vintage dress pattern is pretty much my perfect skirt style so I used that.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I had already fitted the Anna bodice, lengthening by 2”,
doing a ½” FBA and adding a couple of inches to the waist. I measured the waist, subtracted the seam
allowances and adjusted the skirt pattern to ensure that it was the same size
so that the side seams would match up.
In a fit of paranoia, I added an extra 2” at the waist which I later
ended up removing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I had added the pockets from the Emery pattern as I really
like the way they are joined into the waist seam and so don’t flap around like
some side seam pockets can do.
Unfortunately when I had to take out the extra at the waist, I had to
remove the pockets to make the skirt sit correctly over the hips. But I’ll definitely use them against next
time.<o:p></o:p><br />
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I must remember next time that the skirt on this pattern Is
really long – I took 5” in length off, leaving
2.5” hem and I’m 5’9”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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All the seams are finished with overlocking.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I had planned to do a blind hem by machine. I spent some time working out how to do it
and then decided to sew in by hand using a catch stitch. The end result is lovely but this is a
seriously long hem to sew by hand!<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m really happy with this dress – I can wear it now with
bare legs and later in the year with tights and boots so it’s going to be really
useful.<o:p></o:p></div>
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If you want to make a dress like this, the kit from Minerva
includes 3m of polkadot stretch cotton and an invisible zip (links to the individual items rather than the kit link while the new website is under construction):<o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/50.c-4138-b-navy-bluewhite-polka-dot-print-stretch-cotton-designer-dress-fabric-per-metre.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>50.c-4138-b-navy-bluewhite-<wbr></wbr>polka-dot-print-stretch-<wbr></wbr>cotton-designer-dress-fabric-<wbr></wbr>per-metre.html</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/3cc56-560-22-56cm-concealed-invisible-closed-end-zips-navy-blue-per-single-zip.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>3cc56-560-22-56cm-concealed-<wbr></wbr>invisible-closed-end-zips-<wbr></wbr>navy-blue-per-single-zip.html</a></div>
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Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-9850168686401045512014-07-19T23:48:00.002+01:002014-07-22T17:55:33.785+01:00Minerva Blogger Network - Vintage shirt dressHot on the heels of finally posting my reveal of my party dress, it's time for my July make.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohojkoiNC1jPoSCkmjKCLjrxEfcukBzt2lpjz1u6lD9t5zHC7hw2cz7wCN0TWtXtM-RZhIJC4h4iVBTC_e3cNiIf9ayc6uMdzx7GlnBMPMt7dGi2hwlI9Dd8YFiC97d54_wpT4yxtBkk/s1600/july+dress+front.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohojkoiNC1jPoSCkmjKCLjrxEfcukBzt2lpjz1u6lD9t5zHC7hw2cz7wCN0TWtXtM-RZhIJC4h4iVBTC_e3cNiIf9ayc6uMdzx7GlnBMPMt7dGi2hwlI9Dd8YFiC97d54_wpT4yxtBkk/s1600/july+dress+front.jpg" height="400" width="270" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cat photobomb!</td></tr>
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I've had this vintage pattern in my stash for about 6 months and just fell in love with the notched yoke and cute collar so it wasn't going to languish unused for long!<br />
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I ordered some linen look cotton that Kathryn used for this dress, and it's really lovely. It's lightweight but with a lovely textured linen finish (and it doesn't crease as much as linen does either!). I wore this on a pretty hot day and it was lovely and cool. For the £4.99 a metre price tag it's great and comes in a huge range of colours. I went for red, and it's just the colour of red I like - not too orangey.<br />
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As I was running out of time on this make, I tissue fitted the tracing and found that my usual adjustments were fine, so I did a small FBA and lengthened the bodice by 2".<br />
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Although there are a huge number of pattern pieces for the bodice - the front and back both have bodices, yokes, bodice facings and neck facings, this came together really quickly and easily. The construction method to get the lovely notches involved attaching a bodice facing piece to the bodice piece which is turned and pressed and then topstitched to the yoke piece. I couldn't quite understand it reading the instructions until I actually tried and it was pretty easy and gave a great finish.<br />
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I decided not to use the pleated skirt pieces that came with the pattern as the bottom hem would have measured 83" which seemed crazy! The skirt pattern had 3 pieces - 2 side pieces and a back piece. I went for a simpler gathered rectangle using the Emery pattern pieces as a guide to size and length, and positioned the seams at centre front and centre back to allow for the front opening. I used the same method of finishing the skirt edges as the patterns uses - the top edges under the notches (which I transferred from the vintage pattern pieces) are finished using bias tape and turned under, and then the gap is left open. I stitched on a couple of hooks and eyes in the hope of holding this closed but as this hasn't been all that successful, I think I will add another couple of buttons on to avoid knicker flashing (and contrast bias tape flashing - this cherry print bias is adorable but I probably would go for matching stuff with hindsight!).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFr41jU-1FsESpEcgG6glXfhuLVIO4ZuEDKCjYsYfL18YTC-jXR5gHdHmJhYuT_u9Pz5J5-3GCVKATUW2gsc-Q2UmVT_GWGX8MpNpoFJhPVq19JDef_KGaU4Z0xrFNggwNDZ7gkWZ-y4/s1600/july+dress+side.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFr41jU-1FsESpEcgG6glXfhuLVIO4ZuEDKCjYsYfL18YTC-jXR5gHdHmJhYuT_u9Pz5J5-3GCVKATUW2gsc-Q2UmVT_GWGX8MpNpoFJhPVq19JDef_KGaU4Z0xrFNggwNDZ7gkWZ-y4/s1600/july+dress+side.jpg" height="400" width="270" /></a></div>
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The pattern calls for covered buttons, which I ordered as part of my kit from Minerva. However I had a total fail with these! The teeth didn't seem to want to grab the little circle of fabric and when I finally got it all tucked in, the back wouldn't stay on - anyone got any tips on how to use these? I went with some buttons from the stash instead. The front of these buttons felt a bit fancy for the style, so I flipped them over and used the other side. <br />
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The only other change I made was to move the button placement a bit as it was more flattering to have them starting lower down.<br />
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I'm really happy with this dress - it's lovely and cool and easy to wear, and it feels like a vintage dress on. Perfect for the warm weather we've been having (long may it continue!). And this is item number 2 for my Vintage Pledge!<br />
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Minerva are working on their website currently so rather than one link to my kit, here are the links to the individual components of it if you want to make a similar dress for yourself!<br />
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/2vh200wht-vilene-iron-on-interlining-softline-light-90cm-wide-white-per-metre.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>2vh200wht-vilene-iron-on-<wbr></wbr>interlining-softline-light-<wbr></wbr>90cm-wide-white-per-metre.html</a><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/2t100-365-gutermann-(sewing-thread)-sew-all-thread-100m-365.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>2t100-365-gutermann-(sewing-<wbr></wbr>thread)-sew-all-thread-100m-<wbr></wbr>365.html</a><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/h473.11-hemline-metal-selfcover-buttons-11mm-(6pk).html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>h473.11-hemline-metal-<wbr></wbr>selfcover-buttons-11mm-(6pk).<wbr></wbr>html</a><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.minervacrafts.com/bbf25cherry-25mm-wide-cherry-patterned-cotton-bias-binding-full-range-of-colours.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://www.minervacrafts.com/<wbr></wbr>bbf25cherry-25mm-wide-cherry-<wbr></wbr>patterned-cotton-bias-binding-<wbr></wbr>full-range-of-colours.html</a></span></div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-68632950246649758442014-07-18T12:00:00.000+01:002014-07-18T12:00:00.437+01:00Reveal - the Disco Apocalypse dress<div dir="ltr">
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Somewhat belatedly, here's my Minerva Crafts make for June (I thought I had already posted this, so it's even later than expected!)<br />
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As you might remember we had to make a party dress to celebrate Minerva's win at the British Sewing Awards and to wear to the meet up at the Crafts Centre. Due to unforeseen circumstances I couldn't make the meet up and a bit late in photographing and blogging my final dress!</div>
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As per my preview post, I used pewter sequinned lace to fulfil my hankering after a lace dress, and lined it with navy lining to make the lace pattern really stand out. This worked well and I much preferred it to matching or nude lining.</div>
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I had initially planned to make a straight By Hand London Flora with the wrap bodice but when the lace arrived I realised it had a scalloped edge which I wanted to show off. So I looked for a pattern with a full skirt that was cut straight across the hem and settled on Gather Mortmain. I love how the pleats look on the skirt! <br />
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I underlined the bodice with the navy lining and basted them together. I also marked the darts with basting stitches so that the two layers didn't separate and make the darts wonky. I also spent a lot of time unpicking sequins from the seam lines. I'm not sure whether this was totally necessary or whether I could have sewn over them. But this gave rise to the name of the dress - by the time I had cut the lace and unpicked sequins my house was covered in glitter and it really did look like the Disco Apocalypse had arrived! We are still finding sequins now!</div>
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I also lined the bodice as per the pattern instructions. Due to the contrast, understitching was really needed with this dress to stop the lining peeking out. </div>
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I decided not to line and underline the skirt as I had intended, and just went for underlining. I cut my pattern pieces in lining and hemmed them by machine. I then lined them up with the point on the fabric where I wanted the hem to fall so that I could have the scallops extending out at the bottom. I used french seams to finish the side seams.</div>
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I sewed it with my walking foot throughout and I was really happy with the results as it definitely stopped the layers from shifting! The only issue was on the side seams of the skirt where it doesn't sit perfectly - you can see this in the side view above. I suspect this is to do with attaching the lining to the skirt as underlining and the heavy lace wanting to pull down more than the lighter lining. Anyone able to shed more light on this?</div>
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The bodice is a bit wrinkly but again I think this it mainly due to the lace pulling down slightly more than the lining. I could probably have fixed it by taking out a lot of the ease but I wanted a slightly looser fit for eating and dancing!<br />
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The name is based on the state of my living room floor after cutting this fabric - it looked like a glitter ball had exploded! We are still finding sequins now (yes, I do clean - sometimes!). <br />
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Sorry I missed the party Vicki and all at Minerva - I hear it was a good one!</div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-40483587160751037392014-07-07T12:00:00.000+01:002014-07-07T12:00:01.528+01:00Spring Sewing Swap<br />
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I was so excited to participate in the Spring Sewing Swap this year organised by the lovely Kerry from Kestrel Makes. It's one of the things I really loved when I first got into the world of sewing blogs.<br />
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I was paired up with <a href="http://clippedcurves.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Emma Jayne from Clipped Curves</a>. if you don't already follow her blog, you should as she makes excellently fitted garments (check her sailor trousers!) with a nautical flair. Basically I want to be her when I grow up!<br />
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She also lives quite close to me so we are hoping for a meet up for coffee and sewing chat some time soon!<br />
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Here's the lovely bundle she sent me:<br />
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Navy twill<br />
a lightweight bird print cotton<br />
navy twill tape<br />
cute stripy buttons<br />
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plus this excellent vintage A-line skirt/ culottes pattern (with pockets! I love pockets!)<br />
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Hop over to Emma Jayne's blog to see what was in the parcel I sent her (being much more organised than me, she has already blogged about it <a href="http://clippedcurves.wordpress.com/2014/07/03/spring-sewing-swap-success/" target="_blank">here</a>!).<br />
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Thanks for organising Kerry - roll on next year!Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-52837598213944760152014-06-26T11:29:00.000+01:002014-06-26T11:29:34.399+01:00Capital Chic patterns launches!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today is an exciting day for one of our lovely Spoolettes! Sally who you will know as the genius refashioner Charity Shop Chic is launching her pattern line Capital Chic!</div>
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Sally is known for her modern and catwalk inspired makes which have a different aesthetic to a lot of other more vintage inspired pattern companies, and this really comes through in her first collection.</div>
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As the name suggests, it's a really chic and sleek collection of work and evening wear. If you saw the photos from the Minerva Crafts evening party, you'll recognise the Martini dress that Sally was wearing, and I know you're going to see some of her patterns popping up on your favourite blogs soon.</div>
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My favourite pattern is the <a href="http://www.capitalchicpatterns.com/products/bellini" target="_blank">Bellini blouse</a> which has options for a cutaway and a scalloped collar and has french seams and bound armholes. I've had a sneak peak at the pattern and the instructions are really clear and show you how to construct the french seams if you haven't done them before. You'll see it on the blog soon!</div>
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Wishing Sally all the luck in the world with this one and hope you all love the patterns! You can read about the line <a href="http://charityshopchic.net/2014/06/26/special-announcement-capital-chic-patterns/" target="_blank">here</a>, see the full range of patterns <a href="http://www.capitalchicpatterns.com/" target="_blank">here</a> and purchase either print at home or print at copy shop pdfs from her site <a href="http://www.capitalchicpatterns.com/collections/all" target="_blank">here</a>. Which is your favourite? </div>
Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-60363322788911091872014-06-11T13:00:00.000+01:002014-06-11T13:00:00.187+01:00Minerva Blogger Network project - Sneak Preview!Unless you've been living under a rock, you'll have heard about the Minerva meet up on Saturday. If not, details can be found here - it's going to be a great day!<div>
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To celebrate, all of us bloggers on the network are making a party dress, which we will be revealing on the night (so watch out for pics on Twitter and Instagram) as well as on the Minerva site.</div>
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Here's a sneak preview of mine.</div>
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It's a Flora/ Mortmain mash-up - Flormain? Mortra? (sounds like a Thundercats villain!)</div>
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After hankering for a lace dress for ages, I chose a beautiful pewter sequinned lace with a navy underlining. You can see in this pic how they actually look together - I love how the pattern of the lace really stands out with the dark lining!</div>
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Looking forward to showing you my final dress!</div>
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Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-27279371627934777332014-06-09T12:10:00.001+01:002014-06-09T12:10:26.557+01:00Me Made Everyday!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After a conversation on Twitter (isn't that always how these things start?), a few of us were missing the community aspect of Me Made May and decided to start Me Made Everyday!<br />
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I always find that having a record of what you wore most and what looked good together really helps spot wardrobe gaps, see what you actually wear most and plan future sewing, and from reading other blogs lots of others do too.<br />
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There's no pledging, no pressure and no need for fancy pics - a cameraphone and mirror will do! No need to wear something everyday or photograph everything (unless you want to of course!). Just show off your lovely handmade garments how you actually wore them. You decide whether to include bags, jewellery and accessories.<br />
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Opinions were divided on the best way to do this so I have set up a group on Flickr that you can find <a href="https://www.flickr.com/groups/memadeeveryday/" target="_blank">here</a> or you can use the hashtag #memadeeveryday on Twitter or Instagram (oh, and I have finally started using my Instagram account - follow me - I'm JoLittleTime, or let me have your name below and I'll find you!). You'll need to request to join the Flickr group as with Me Made May (to keep the worst of the Flickr pervs out!) but I'll approve people as soon as possible.<br />
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What do you think? Are you in? The lovely Katie from <a href="http://whatkatiesews.net/" target="_blank">What Katie Sews</a> is going to make a much prettier logo that the one above which you can grab for your blog if you so desire!<br />
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Spread the word about it as it would be great to have a regular me made community going!<br />
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<br />Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-23369501141756828482014-06-05T16:24:00.000+01:002014-06-05T16:24:45.601+01:00Me Made May wrap upSo it's all over!<br />
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Here are my final few days of outfits. Picmonkey isn't playing ball today so no pretty collage I'm afraid!<br />
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29th May - <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/the-bowling-dress.html" target="_blank">the Bowling dress</a></div>
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30th May - <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/more-burda-less-burden.html" target="_blank">Burda cowl neck tee</a></div>
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31st May - Rose print Maria Denmark kimono tee (unblogged).<br />
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So I did it! I didn't wear a few of my most summery dresses that I love since the weather didn't really play ball - it was definitely tights weather for most of the month. I was hoping to wear them the last few days but we went camping for the weekend and pretty dresses + campsite really don't go!<br />
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I'm pretty happy with how I did. I didn't feel like I wore things I wasn't keen on just because they were me made. Yes, there were days I would have put on something different (or a vintage dress rather than a me made one) but generally it went well. I think having a definite colour palette worked as I have lots of things that match and work well together. Like everyone else, I need some me made trousers and jeans, so I'll be joining in with <a href="http://sewbusylizzy.com/2014/06/02/bellatrix-jeans-in-june/" target="_blank">Lizzy on Jeans in June</a> (thankfully she's extended it into July!). I'd also like a couple more me made tees, including another couple of Renfrews.<br />
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I also pledged to get through my mending/ alterations pile. I mended split seams on 2 dresses, replaced a zip on hubby's jacket, fixed the zip on my Flora which was coming away and shortened the sleeves on my Blackberry dress:<br />
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I loved the sleeves but i wasn't happy with the way they were finished and it made the dress harder to wear with a cardigan - as you can probably tell from my month of pics I am a die-hard cardie wearer!<br />
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I also pledged to make some knickers and managed to make up a muslin of the Measure Twice Cut Once Jane knickers.<br />
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Eek, weird colours, but they are actually pale blue not green. I adjusted the pattern following these but didn't get a chance to make up any more. It's on my list for this weekend!<br />
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If you are missing Me Made May, come back tomorrow for news on something we have been plotting on Twitter!Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8377620838801577196.post-59074514345416719412014-05-30T12:00:00.000+01:002014-05-30T12:00:02.070+01:00Me Made May week 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We're nearly there!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcne7q-Pzo3TJg_geMVbkuXYyyYWmHho27wDnwnhyphenhyphenzpkNB7rOJf0yWJKacemJDX4EorFUeqmECOqa0-Pa59FnbjWL9pqOsHe_XeexS92-N-wFG1DVAYSC80ZxQi_h_INA3i3kn3CBmqbM/s1600/MMM+collage+wc+22+may+14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcne7q-Pzo3TJg_geMVbkuXYyyYWmHho27wDnwnhyphenhyphenzpkNB7rOJf0yWJKacemJDX4EorFUeqmECOqa0-Pa59FnbjWL9pqOsHe_XeexS92-N-wFG1DVAYSC80ZxQi_h_INA3i3kn3CBmqbM/s1600/MMM+collage+wc+22+may+14.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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22nd May - another outing for the <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/minerva-blogger-network-swirly-smoke.html" target="_blank">Swirly Smoke Mortmain</a><br />
23rd May - Polkadot theme and one of my first makes, the <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/spotty-skirt.html" target="_blank">Gertie gathered skirt</a><br />
24th May - <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/fo-gertie-portrait-blouse.html" target="_blank">Gertie Portrait blouse</a> and <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/the-finishing-finishes-me-off.html" target="_blank">Kate Davies Deco cardigan</a><br />
25th May - not yet blogged Deer & Doe Sureau (will be blogging next week but couldn't wait to wear it!)<br />
26th May - boat print top which is a rub off from RTW (unblogged)<br />
27th May - teal and black Red Velvet (unblogged)<br />
28th May - <a href="http://somanypatternssewlittletime.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/tira-two.html" target="_blank">purple Tiramisu</a><br />
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Just a few more days to go. How are you doing?Sew little timehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04027164681383524032noreply@blogger.com3