Small fixes

While I am in the mood for mending I decided to finally sort this pocket on my outdoor jacket.

The pockets are meant to velcro together to keep pocket contents dry and safe from falling out. Part of this is that the back of the coat pocket edge comes over the front of the coat pocket edge.

The dark blue is the front of the coat.

However, things like gloves catch on the velcro. and backs of cold hands get roughed up because the front bit turns under so that the rough part of the velcro scrapes skin as you reach in for a hanky or just to keep hands warm.

Rough section turning under when putting hand inside.

So, at last...how many years have I had this coat?...I have unpicked the rough part of the velcro! I never close them anyway.
I have been meaning to do this for years! But you come home and hang up the coat, forgetting til the next time.

Not now!

More sorting - learning new things.

Now that the exhibition is hung, I can get the studio back in a bit of order from the upheaval of last week.

I changed 2 different drawer units about. One used to be at the back of the table with the overlocker and one used to be next to the computer desk.
The first one is a bit higher and slightly longer, but works. It means I might get to those drawers easier.
The second one fits under the table with the overlocker. Next to it, there is room for a few of the boxes that used to live under the bead station where the Thoughtful Man was clearing last week so as to get to the radiator.
One of the benefits of the small boxes living there is that they can be pushed to the back of the table and there is room now to fit my knees and the pedal in that space. Thus overlocking will be more ergonomic. (My physio will thank me.)

You can see the difference in the drawer units. The one I moved to be near the computer
 is like the permanent one on the right under the bead station desk.

I sorted one of the rolling crates that used to live under the overlocker table. It was full of things I might possibly mend. So, I narrowed it down to one or two (or three) that I will mend.

One of those things was a tablecloth I like. But it has been living in the mending box for years. The overlocked edge had got quite tatty.

I have some thread just right for mending it - only to be used for the overlocker. But I haven't used that kind before. I thought it might be a bit tricky...thus the reason the tablecloth was still there.

My friend loaned me some similar threads to try on the overlocker. This was before Christmas, but I hadn't tried it. The lemon colour worked for underneath the peach.

I couldn't find the little plastic bits that go inside of large cones so you can work with them. They are in the right place, but I couldn't remember where that was!

So, I searched in my thread drawer til I found a reel that fitted just right.

I set the overlocker up as suggested in the book. And voila! The test piece went well with no tweaks.  The large cone worked happily with it's small thread filler.

And, here is a glimpse of the new edge as the old edge gets cut off.

If you look at the top photo again, you will also notice I have taped a little bag under the overlocker just where the trimming comes out. All these years I have been doing overlocking with the rubbish bin perched on a stool or clutched between my knees to catch the trimmings. Yes. I got this in about 2005ish? So, I am really chuffed with myself to have mended the tablecloth, learned how to use the wooly nylon and made a way to catch trims that was more user friendly!

Next job is to sort the other rolling crate. But for now it is out of the way of working.

Experimenting with a new idea

I have the next project at the front of my mind now. There is one idea I haven't figured out which technique would say what I have in mind. I am thinking of some sort of gaps.

So, whilst looking online for some other technique, I came across some videos of making net - as in survival net for fish or other reasons.
It seemed pretty straight forward, so I thought I would give it a go. I will save you the full step by step thing and just show progress in stages.

So, a string going across* and then the twine tied on to begin the net.

The cardboard standing all around is so you don't see all the clutter you can see the string. The jars have stones to keep them firm and stay in one place as I was using them to stretch the string across between 2 points.**

Knots made at regular intervals - rows 1+2

Then I got the bright idea of containing the string in these big plastic bobbins I got for something.

and then just as I started to do the knotting for the next row, I realised it was not a bright idea after all, so I took them all off again.

More knots made at regular intervals - rows 5+6
and more stones added to the jars to make them heavier.

Even more knots made at regular intervals - rows 9+10

Many more knots made at regular intervals - rows 13+14
hanging on the cupboard because I couldn't bend down that low any more....and then because I tried to raise the jars up,
also because of ** below.


Verdict: Go in the garage and find something that will stay in one place to string between.
Do this again in a nicer string.
This might just be the solution and it doesn't take too long.



*Always stretch between 2 things which will
1- stay in one place
2- not break when they stop staying in one place.

** now I only have one jar.

In the meanwhile, I am mending and taking in dresses that I haven't worn yet because they are already too big.

another finish - Bridesmaid gown

The pink bridesmaid gown was finished and delivered on Monday. I put in bra strap stays at the edge of the bodice to keep it in place over the bra.

They took longer than the hems!4 bra strap stays with one part of a popper on either end and the other part on the gown. So, basically 16 times sewing the bits!

I had just enough of the transparent poppers...they were in a load of things from someone's mother's sewing supplies when they went into a home.
I think I will look for more, just in case.

Back to the blog

In the meanwhile, I have been 2 days at Festival of Quilts. At the wedding. Getting over the headache which was part of all that and watching Olympics.
Starting on the bridesmaid dress -sister of the 1st wedding dress I did.

Interesting comparison for lacing up the back.

Lacing on the wedding dress from last weekend made of interlined satin.

Lacing on the bridesmaid dress made of chiffon - not interlined.

Yes. Hmm.

So, I adjusted the folds onto the loops for the lower part of the lacing, found out she could still get in and out wit the lace loosened from this above this point

...and then as part of the other adjustments, I tacked the lace to the loops for the last few. Oh, and stitched up the gap below the lacing as it looked like an unfortunate ripped seam when she had it on.
No, I didn't have to, but I was watching Olympics anyway. What the rest will look like will depend on who is lacing it up. But I won't be at that wedding.

More lovely photos of the dress (well, Bride and Groom) from the wedding last week.
front

back

She was beautiful.

Chopping and Changing

Before I get tucked into this next project, I have taken a few days to sort out changes with some of my summer things.

This blouse fits, but with the horizontal pleats, it is far too snug on my arm. The pleats didn't actually show much because they lined up so well with the plaid.

So, I unpicked the top pleat and cut it off just below the folds. I was concerned it would still be a bit snug, so I had a good think.

chopped off bit to the left - mini godet on the sleeve above right.

I made a little godet just at the centre of the hem on the outside of the arm using a section of one of the chopped off bits. So, still a little detail, but easier to move my arms!

Another problem:

This dress never seemed to be the right thing for the current weather. Too hot in summer with the long sleeves and too cool in the spring because it is rayon/linen mix and very light weight. I never ended up choosing it, or if I did, I regretted it!

So, I chopped off the sleeves. Already better.

As I thought, I can fit my cap sleeve pattern on the length!

And so here we are.

The difference in the way the grain lies is not a problem because it is cap sleeve anyway, so is only required to cover the top of the arm.

So, guess what else is getting that treatment?

I have never actually worn this yet!


Other things I have been sorting include taking shaping darts out of some of my summer blouses.

Including recutting sleeves for this. As for the other blouse, the decorative bit has meant the sleeves are now too snug.

But instead of doing changes like the blouse sleeves above, I have leftover fabric, so I can recut a cap sleeve.
I do hate that I have gained weight with this health thing, but I may as well do something to get some clothes I am not ashamed to wear again!

Who knows, maybe next year I will have to do this all again because I am back to the original weight for when I made it? But at least when it comes summer again, I won't have to try to find clothes to fit.

making it last

The start of this week involved some distracting things, so instead of carrying on with the Works in Progress, I am doing a bit of mindless mending.
Well, mindless in a way, but also creative. I have a few pairs of jeans that have worn some holes. Partially because I have been wearing leggings or long johns under them during the winter so that my legs don't hurt so much. and so added to the circumference making the fabric rub together more.

I worked out how to use the darning stitch on my machine. Not rocket science - I could do the same thing by going back and forth manually or with free machine embroidery. But for this, you stitch forward the amount you want, and then press reverse. From there it goes back and forth that same length (or near enough)about 9 times. Then you move position and stitch again and it remembers the length. As I said, a bit of mindless mending.

So, here is a photo of one area I worked on.

I am sure if you looked closely you could tell the difference, but because the denim has a bit of a stripe thing going on already, it made it easier. I put a scrap underneath from some jeans I already chopped for something else. Then got busy with the darning stitch. Sometimes changing the length and blending it together in a similar way to embroidery shading stitch. With the other fabric beneath, it meant I could just darn up and down with the grain of the fabric, and not worry about side to side.

In case it isn't obvious, the part of the jeans above the horizontal seam is the area where I did the darning. Actually it is interesting to see it in the photo because I realise that the worn places developed along the faded lines which was already a feature of the jeans.

So, now I can get more use from these. Probably only at home, but I won't be ashamed to go down to the shops. I find it hard to get jeans that fit. I bought these when visiting family about 5 years ago. We hope to go again this summer for a family celebration, so hopefully I can get a new pair like them at that time.