All quiet on the sewing front...

I haven't posted for awhile and haven't got a lot of sewing to show, but thought I should catch you up on a few things happening at the moment.

I came 6th in the Pattern Review Activewear Contest!  Pretty happy with that.  No surprises in the winners - they were all ones I would have picked as winners. Results are here if you would like to check it out.

I recently attended a Craft Fair held here locally - Craft Alive.  It seems to be a new group bringing craft fairs to regional areas.  Yay!  It was pretty good, except for the queue for a coffee!  

Some great locally produced yarns and shops were there and I heard a great talk from Pauline of Pauline's Quilters World about quilt as you go and it had me really fired up as I have had some fabrics waiting to be made into a quilt for our bedroom for ages  I was baulking at how I was going to quilt such a large quilt and this seemed to be the answer to that quandary.  I did have to buy one more pack of batiks to boost my fabric for the quilt too.

So I started on the quilt using the handbook and basing the design on a quilt that is featured as an instructional piece in the handbook.  The design it is based on is called Rectangles Rock N Roll.  I am using some batiks I bought in NZ and adding some others.  This is a picture of my trial blocks.

And in non-sewing news.  Our house has been too quiet since Cosmo left us and so we have finally found ourselves a new dog.  

Champ is a rescue dog about 1 year 4 months old.  He is a Australian Stumpy tail cattledog x German Shephard (they think).  He was saved from a pound as a 4month old and then got parvovirus.  Amazingly the wee thing survived and has grown into a lovely natured young dog.  We had to drive 2 hours to pick him up from a neighboring town.

Champ on the drive home

We stopped for lunch in a park on the way home and bonded over ham scraps from our wraps.

And when we got him home we realised he was way too big for Cosmo's old bed (that the cat loves to sleep in) so we bought him a new bed.  However he had to check them all out for size.

... and this bed was too small....

Lulu is not impressed but after a week will sleep in her high bed in the same room.  The introduction is going as well as it can I think.

Ciao kittens... more quilting soon.

January Frock - Ottobre 2/2013 Fancy Flowers Dress

One of my goals for the year is a frock a month and so far I have one out of one as I present to you my January Frock.  It is from Ottobre 2/2013 pattern no. 7 Fancy flowers.  

They recommend lightweight viscose but I used a silk crepe de chine called New Orleans I had bought from Tessuti Fabrics a while back.  I had planned to make pants but since starting on this quest for a frock a month, this fabric started suggesting cool summer dress more and more.

I made my size according to bust size and the only alterations I made was to lengthen it by about 1cm  and trim a little excess fabric from the front of the armhole.

I was very happy with my front placket.  I had tried to place the pattern on the fabric so light colours were at the top and dark toward the bottom, but the placement of the pattern around the placket was pure serendipity.  It looks a bit like lace around the placket, don't you think?

This pattern has nice pattern details apart from the front placket.  A yoke, gathering falling from the yoke, shaped hemline, collar with stand and elastic gathering at the back waistband. 

Back view

I made the inner yoke piece from some white cotton-silk I had bought from The Fabric Collection a while back.  (A good thing to have in the stash.)  I did that so there would be no shadow of the print showing through the fabric.

I did the same for the armhole binding.

The trial wearing of the dress went well. 

A road trip to Brisbane with a sewing pal to see Future Beauty: 30 Years of Japanese Fashion at GOMA.   It coped beautifully with a warm Brisbane day and I really enjoyed the day out...

and the shopping on the way home...

Floral cotton for a blouse / stretch cotton for a shift dress / Rayon jersey for a wrap dress.

Ciao  kittens...

Crafty shopping... live, laugh, love

To take a break from clothes sewing exploits, I will show you the results of a lovely Sunday out.   Saturday was miserable... wet, windy cold so on Sunday when the sun came out we went for a drive out to Highfields (just outside of Toowoomba) to a little precinct called the Village Green.. 

First I shopped at the Quilters Angel and then we sat in the sunshine and had lunch at the Chocolate Cottage.  At the Quilters Angel I knew I would find what I need to make some gifts and I also picked up a magazine.

After lunch we strolled some of the other shops and I bought a few pieces to decorate my sewing studio.  Theses are the pieces hanging on the wall.

And to give you perspective on how it looks from the doorway of my sewing studio.

Ciao kittens - some Sewing Workshop tops and (obviously) some crafty goodness soon...

New pants - Burdastyle 02-2011-123

I have made a new pair of pants.  I bought this stretch cotton fabric from The Fabric Collection two years ago and I wish I had made them sooner.  I love this fabric and the colour is the perfect new basic colour for my wardrobe!

The pattern is Burdastyle 02-2011-123.  I did not make the front pockets but did make the back welt pocket with the addition of a button.  I used the instructions from 'Pants for Real People' for the welt pocket, but otherwise used Burda's instructions.

I actually really like their fly instructions!

The pattern adjustments I made (when I was making it) were to add 1/2" to the front inner leg (1/2" at crotch tapering to 0 at hem).  This alteration is Ala Sandra Betzina.  I make this adjustment  for my full front thigh, but I think it also helps with the pants sitting better over a belly.

After the pants were almost finished I realised I needed to take in the waistband about 1/2" each side and tapered to the hips.  A bit of a pain but the construction order of these pants made it hard to check this sizing.  I really should have made a muslin first!

After I made the pants and took these photos it became obvious that I had a jodphur-look going on at the sides.

The side seams however hang pretty straight.

So I decided it needed to be taken in at the sides at the 'jodphur' area from the back seam only. This did help.

This is to show the waistband detail...

I still have not perfected the fit but am happy that these pants are comfortable and very wearable still.  In fact I am quite thrilled with them.  Super happy with the fly and the welt pocket and the fit is getting closer to how I think pants should fit.

I love how this colour makes my wardrobe work really well and so in that interest I may have bought another similar colour from the Fabric Collection to make a skirt (most likely Burda 06/2013 121).

Along with some dark brown cotton/elastane blend for another V1247 skirt and an ivory silk/cotton blend for a floaty sleeveless shirt.

Op shopping fun...

I have some sewing to show you but have not had a photographer so that will have to wait until another post.  In the meantime I have to show off some op shop finds... 

This McCall's pattern was bought for the little vest-top - cute!  Uncut pattern in factory folds 50c! The zip and the buckle cost me another 70c.  I will use the buckle for the Jalie scarf tops I have made.  The zip will be used for a little makeup bag.

This cardigan cost $4 and is heavy rayon/poly blend.  It is in excellent condition except for the beads.  I plan to remove the beads and if it needs it, I will put some other trim over that section.

Happy, happy, happy shopping!  

Next post will include some sewing photos... HP Marrakesh pants and Stylearc Demi-drape top... and some crochet... Ciao!

Big day out

Friday week ago (the 25th of March) I travelled to Brisbane to visit the Craft Expo with some great sewing buddies. We had a brilliant day out!

The expo itself was OK (not great) with only one real display which was the Qld Quilters Challenge Quilts. Other than that it was mainly stalls but at least some of the good ones you want to see were there.

This is part of my bounty. A kit to crochet a rug from the most gorgeous alpaca wool and some pretty roses trim.


This is the rug pattern by Prudence Mapstone for those crocheters reading this:


A point of interest was that there was not much parking available as a lot of the carparks are still out of action since the Brisbane River flooded. The Exhibition centre is located at Southbank a precinct just next to the river. This must have impacted on the number of visitors to the Expo.

After the morning at the Expo we had lunch at West End at a great Greek Restaraunt and really enjoyed the dips, pita bread and meze plate... yum!

These are my companions for the day... Anna, Lynn and Ros. Sadly Lynn has left to return to the USA and then onto new adventures. I hope we get the chance to get together again sometime.



On our way home we stopped at the Fabric Collection at Sumner Park, where we got a very warm welcome and some great buys!

L to R. denim (for another little skirt - I wear my denim skirt all the time), top-weight linen in green and tangerine (already washed, but not ironed yet), Cotton sateen (with some stretch for pants probably the Jalie classic trouser) and a beautiful olive jersey which I am going to make into the No 1 pattern as voted in the top 10 on pattern Review for 2010...


I have made 5 out of the top 10 patterns and own 3 more of the patterns. I am considering purchasing the other two patterns and setting myself the challenge of having an item out of all top 10 patterns in my wardrobe!

Plenty of sewing has been happening, if not much blogging! When I get photos I will start a round of posts to catch up with the things I have made (including swimmers!)

Happy sewing...

Sewing fun, shopping and Vogue 8597

Busy week but lots of sewing fun!

First up a day trip with the girls to the Ipswich Art Gallery to see the exhibition called 'The fabric of Society': Australia's Quilt Heritage from colonial times to 1960'.

It was fabulous and I highly recommend it to anyone within a reasonable drive to go and see it.

After the Art Gallery, we shopped at Bargain Box at Ipswich also and got some absolute bargains! After a lunch break we went to Sumner Park to the Fabric Collection (I think it used to be called the Fabric Barn??) and also got some lovely fabrics. Here is the obligatory photo of my haul...

L to R: 100% wool in black for a jacket, gorgeous stretch in a terracotta, snakeskin in a polyester jersey, a lovely sweater knit and a nice denim style fabric in gorgeous brown self-stripe.

I was most flattered when we got to the Fabric Collection to be recognised by the girls in the shop as they read my blog. Hi Vanessa!

I have worked a lot this week but shopping has been arriving at my door. First up I finally got some labels done.

These are an eBay purchase from a seller in Hong Kong. I paid $54 Aud for 200 woven labels - much cheaper than anything I could find locally. They took about two weeks to make and then I received them about a week after I was notified that they were sent. I am very happy with the quality of them and may order some more in a lighter colour.

Here is my first label sewn into a garment...

I also received books from Amazon. They all look great...

And even though I worked a lot this week, I scored a Friday off (rare for me) so I got to finish a top I started last week-end, using the fabric I purchased at the Textile Arts Festival. The fabric is gorgeous, soft and the most delicious colour called 'Warm Blackberry'.

I made Vogue 8597 View A.

You can see it is long and this is the shorter length it comes in. I am going to leave it for the time being though and see how it goes. The hem looks a little stretched out but this is hot off the sewing machine and I think it will settle down when I press it.

I did want long sleeves but did not have enough fabric, so 3/4 they are...

The review is here.

All up a great week full of sewing related stuff! I am still on a high as I got the day off and as well as catching up on a mountain of laundry, grocery shopping and tidying up, I sewed!!!

I am off to the gym soon to try a new PT group session called MMA and strangely I am looking forward to that too!

Big day out

I had a lovely day out today - road trip!

With a couple of sewing buddies, a big day out to Brisbane to see a few things..

First up the Knitwit roadshow, where we saw some lovely fabrics and patterns (and to be honest, some granny fabrics and patterns!) but I did get enough out of it that I would go again.

Then with a couple of other sewing buddies Lynn and her friend Carol joined us to go to the Art Gallery and see this hat exhibition. After this we also decided to see the Ron Mueck display which was absolutely fascinating and quite confronting. My sewing buddies (Ros & Anna) in front of one of the sculptures...


as promised here is a picture of me wearing my new Jalie Scarf neck top...


and my huge shopping splurge for the day, two new buckles to alternate on my scarf top (or for some new ones)...

Fabric & more fabric...

This weekend on Saturday I made up Vogue 8138 and wore the dress on Sunday on a trip up the coast. The reason for the trip is that my MIL is unwell and we were going to visit her in hospital - a 3 hour drive.

To break the trip up we stopped for a swim at Mooloolaba (not me however as it was overcast and cool-ish and I am still shaking off my cold) and lunch at a yummy Italian restaurant, then as my treat we found Kerryn's Fabric World, which I haven't visited before but heard many good things. Aussie stitchers would probably be very familiar with Kerryn as she appears regularly in the Stitches magazine, doing colour make-overs. The shop is well-stocked with a wide range of fabrics but unfortunately we arrived 5 minutes before it shut, as we hadn't checked it's opening hours.

However in that 5 minutes I was able to buy two pieces of fabric. First up I bought a piece of jersey to make a second V8138 dress in a rusty orange colour. As I was preparing to pay for this I turned around and saw the very fabric I had been thinking about the night before!

I had been re-reading Vol17 No 9 of the Stitches magazine the night before. In this issue they feature a modification of McCalls 5512 View A using a cute ruffled knit in black. I had decided if I could find that same fabric in brown that I would love to make the dress... guess what I spied!.... so I had to get that as well!

Here is a photo of the two fabrics - the orange isn't true to colour in this shot.

In this shot, however, with Lulubelle's help, you can see the colour better...

I will provide more detail of the plan for the ruffle dress later....

Bits and bobs...

I haven't got any sewing done, as life has been very busy, but I will try and catch you up with some of the stuff going on. Of course, even though I am not sewing, I still have managed to increase the meters of fabric in my house. These are my latest buys...


The first two are the most divine, melt-in-your-mouth silks for tops and the third is a raw silk I plan to make into a lovely simple sheath dress. These fabrics were on sale (does that make it better?) and were bought on a day when Caity & I went to meet Lynn down in Brisbane. Lynn showed us this great little shop. Lynn is visiting from the States and this is the second time we have met up. She is a fantastic lady with a passion for sewing (and travelling).

This is Caity, Lynn and I in front of the fabrics.

This is the shop we visited. For those who can make it into Brisbane, you can find this shop upstairs in the Brisbane Arcade, behind the tea house.
All the fabrics are bought from Europe and are used to make the most beautiful couture clothing, including Chanel-style jackets with beautiful trims. You can find the clothes in a boutique on the ground floor. The rest of the fabric is then sold in this store. (Note - Australian Sewing Guild members can now get a discount in the store!) All the fabrics are high quality and range from silks to boucles, wools, etc.

This is the front of the store. I love this old arcade as it has the most beautiful shop fronts (as well as shops - if you are visiting, check out the milliners also located upstairs.)

We had a fabulous day that day but also managed to catch up with Lynn this week at the Stitches & Craft Show in Brisbane on Thursday. We travelled down on a little bus with other local members of the Australian Sewing Guild. So some more shopping and these are some trims I bought for my Chanel jacket (if it ever comes to fruition).

The petersham I actually bought on-line from America but the other trims were from the show. I also bought a piece of chain for the hem. No more excuses to make this jacket except the weather is now so warm I have no interest so I am leaving this for next year when the weather starts to cool. At least I think I have everything I need for it now!

My husband & I also celebrated our 21st Wedding Anniversary. Here we are before attending a local race day last Saturday. We had a great time with some friends I have made through our local gym. The next night we went to Brisbane (again!) and saw Elvis Costello in concert. Had a great week-end all up.

Now a gratuitous photo of Lulubelle, who is starting to take over our household...

Shop, shop, shopping in Melbourne

Not much more has happened on the Chanel jacket front as last week was busy and this week I am in Melbourne for a short holiday.

Since I was in Melbourne, I decided to check out two city fabric stores -Tessuti's and Cleg's.

This is the fabric I bought at Tessuti's. Not real exciting I suppose in colour, etc but great basics in beautiful quality fabrics. The first is a silk (like a silk Georgette? - lightweight with a crinkle). It is a print and colour I just had to have to make a tunic-style top for this Spring. The next is a beautiful khaki-brown jersey from the remnant bin and then another jersey (a viscose jersey, I think) in a colour called 'aubergine' but like a really dark brown. Destined to be a frock. The last one in 'winter white' is a wool jersey which I haven't been able to obtain locally. I am interested to see how this one goes.

Next to Clegs - silk again! This time a lining and suit-weight silk to make my second Chanel jacket. I was lucky enough that the suiting was on sale (50% off).

Other than fabric shopping, we have been to see the Dali exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria and A Day in Pompeii at the Melbourne Museum. Then apart from more shopping we have basically been eating and drinking our way through the restaurants in Lygon St and around town. Great food everywhere!
Tomorrow we pick up a hire car and are heading to have two days in the Dandenongs at a cute cottage b&b.

Other exciting news ... I have become involved in a new neighbourhood group in the Australian Sewing Guild. I attended an Industry Day on Saturday and we will have our first meeting next month. I am looking forward to meeting with a bunch of other sewing-obsessed ladies!

More sewing hopefully next week, when I will be raring to see my machine again!