Jumping on the bandwagon - Tilly and the Buttons Cleo Dungadress

Ta Daaaaa.

I finished my new Dungadress, and I think I am in love! The Cleo by Tilly and the Buttons is fabulous. It is the first time I have used dungaree clips, and the first time I have done any top stitching so I am still working my way through all my firsts.

I ordered a meter and a half of Denim fabric from Sew Crafty Online which was more than plenty! I still have quite a bit left and was thinking of projects to stash bust with some hard wearing denim. I already had some top stitching thread, which to be perfectly honest I had ordered a good while ago by accident as I needed some normal thread the same colour for my Daisy Dress and didn't realise there were different types of thread! This is how far I have come in the last year of so, yet this project taught me I probably needed a top stitching needle but I managed ok.

The denim was easy to work with which I was surprised about and it wasn't too thick so I used a normal need rather than a denim one. The hardest part I found was turning the straps the right way, so I got out my giant knitting needles and it did make it easier.

I only did one line of top stitching mostly because I ran out of thread, but also I think it makes it a bit more unique. I didn't even have enough thread to do the hem but actually I love the frayed look! I have done a line of zip zag in an inconspicuous black just above the hem so it won't fray too far.

Here is a picture of the whole dungadress with added Murphy dog the cockerpoo! He loves it too.

Winslow Culottes in crepe!

Two firsts for this project! First some kind of trousers, with a gusset and pockets and everything, also first type using a slippery material like crepe.

The beautiful Crepe was from Sew Crafty Online and the flow on it is lovely. There are so many beautiful colours on the fabric I had too many to choose from for my jacket! Please excuse hubby's stupid face! Doh!

I really enjoyed this pattern though as it has minimal pieces and I am beginning to love PDF patterns as I don't have to trace them out and they seem much easier to store than rolled up grease proof paper!

There are 4 pieces for the 'legs' and a waist band, two pockets and a zip. So a nice easy sew really. I've never really made trousers before that have looked suitable for wearing outside the house!

I struggled with the fabric really as I have never used crepe, it seemed to creep a bit whilst sewing as I think my tension was a bit too tight. After I had done a few seams I changed the tension and it seems to ease off a bit. I used my normal foot for this but I'm told a roller foot may have been a better option for me, so that's one to try next time!





I love these culottes as they were so comfy all day at the wedding, I could dance and move around not worrying about skirts exposure, and they still looked formal enough for the wedding.

I think I am going to make myself a long pair of these for the summer as the waist band hit me at a really nice 'high wasted' point perfect with baggy tops. Made in crepe they will lovely and floaty for the summer too. I think I may experiment in a thinker cotton too for some for work as the shape really suits the shape of my body.

I really do recommend trying out the Winslow culottes!

The Butterick Retro B6318

This was another project from the lovely people at Sew Crafty Online the fabric is absolutely beautiful and all my scraps have been carefully saved for future quilting and small projects as I couldn't bare to throw them out!

My Butterick Retro pattern has caused me a few headaches. Mostly in the boobage area! My first issue was my measurement didn't really fit the sizing. So I just made the on the was going to fit my top half with the hope the skirt would be floaty enough to survive.

As you can see even on the mannequin this appeared to be a strange shape but my hope was the waist band would pull it in a bit. Which it did beautifully on a real person, the mannequin doesn't do it justice.

I think if I were to make this again, I would take the top in slightly across the boobs as it doesn't have any dates to give the top any shape. I think they shape would be perfect for a the larger breasted lady though i'm afraid mine were a little lost!

Once the tie is around the middle you really can see the shape it is aiming for which is beautiful, though I think I have learnt to stay away from Kimono tops as they don't fit me properly. I found the tie quite hard to attache and the instructions weren't great but after some perseverance I think I cracked it.

But seriously whilst the fit isn't perfect on this dress it is absolutely beautiful because of the fabric. The flowers are so cheerful and wonderful it brightens up any day in the office! So all in all a successful escapade.

My Project for the Refashioners 2016 challenge

What a great idea to reuse jeans in this way! I don't know about you but I had load's of jeans in my house desperate for re-use! I flitted around my ideas but finally decided on a bardot style off the shoulder top.

I looked around on pintrest and found Fabric Godmothers tutorial and thought this was a great starting point.

I started by making the darker jeans one big piece of fabric, mostly because at the beginning I was going to make a dress but I didn't have a big enough piece. This piece then became the top frill of my bardot top.

I then made sure I had enough of the lighter jeans. Now this pair of jeans were bought with 'designer' fraying already put in, which just got bigger and bigger of a hole! So I had to repair these holes before I could use it as the main bodice to my top and not expose myself too much! Once that was done I cut two rectangles one 40cm deep and one 20cm deep.

I used the jeans hem for the bottom of the bodice and I zigzagged in contracting cream thread for the frill which I think gives it a nice finish. One I had made two tubes of fabric, I attached them using the wonderful tutorial above.
I only had thick elastic in, and I'm impatient to wait to go to a shop, so I pushed that through the frill's tube opening I had made. Whilst we are on the subject of threading elastic through.. there HAS to be an easier way to do this?! this is what took me most of the time!tip and tricks most welcome please!

When I first put this top on my husband laughed at my soo much as I had tried it on over my t-shirt and put the frills on top of my shoulders like a vest top, once I rearranged it looked much better (shame about my tan lines though!)

There are so many great adaptations of using jeans to make something else so please check out the hashtag #therefashioners2016 and #jeanius and see what everyone has been making. I love how everyone has used it so different and I especially love the negative space removing the pocket gives you like on my shoulder details.

By Hand London Victoria Blazer, with extra sleeve space

My most recent make is quite possibly my favourite yet, and I haven't really stopped wearing it since it was hot of the sewing machine! This A-MAZ-ING fabric is from the lovely people as Sew Crafty Online as part of my design project working with them. It's a lovely fabric as it's quite light but sews easy like cotton, though it's a nightmare to get a matching thread colour!

I changed the fit of the sleeves in this jacket because I was worried they wouldn’t be wide enough for my arms, and then would leave the jacket looking a little odd and the style is so loose and relaxed. This is the first time I have altered the fit of anything I have sewn so with the help of the ‘Curvey sewing collective’ I managed to edit my pattern piece.

I found the pattern sizes on By Hand London’s website and I wrote my measurements in the book like it asks, which is quite a nice touch, so you can remember what sizes you have made. As usual I’m all a strange shape compared to the pattern but the only bit I was worried about was the sleeves so I made it in a straight size 20 (apart from the sleeves)

For the sleeve alternations what I did was trace the piece of pattern as you would normally, then I found the centre point, and cut all the way down the middle leaving about ½” at the top should seam. I then spread the gap out so it increased by 1.5” along the cuff. Then I taped a bit of scrap paper in the gap of the pattern piece making my newly shaped pattern piece. If you pattern has cuffs like mine does down forget the cuff pieces will need to be lengthened 1.5” as well so that there is enough cuff to go around the sleeve.  It is so much easier that it seems and a lot less scary!

I made a toile of the jacket shell just to check the sleeves were going to fit into the arm hole after my alterations. I made this out of left over duvet cover from my Simplicity 8085 so it’s super light and almost lineny. The toile worked great and the sleeve fitted perfectly. Rather than pinning all the way round as you need to pin regularly to get the sleeve to fit in I used the quilters clips as I often do to save me stabbing myself as I was sewing round the circle. Without the lining you do have to have the collar a little bit, I use French seams to attached the lapels and collar on so that the seams were hidden but on the final product it was much easier as the lining removed the need for French seams.

Once I had made my toile I made the real thing! I cut my fabric outside as it was a beautiful day, if a bit windy for fabric but by that point I was outside! The pattern shows you the pockets on both sets of layout pictures, lining and shell, you don’t need both sets of these which it does say in the instructions but I was clearly too excited to get started and didn’t read that bit! Also if you want a contrasting cuff like I did, don’t forget to cut that out in the contrasting colour while you are cutting the lining fabric. I cut one of each because I couldn’t decide which to use!

The instructions are quite basic on this pattern but the’ sew along’ on By Hand London’s website is fantastic and very easy to follow. I got a bit lost when attaching the lapels and collar and the website saved me with the multitude of pictures for me to follow.

The darts are really easy on the pattern too as you don’t end up having to make out the lines etc the darts are cut out and you just match the pieces up and sew it along the edge to create the carts. I like how few pieces it took as well as it only took me an hour and a half to sew everything together (in between stopping for a cuppa!) and then I was out wearing it for my dog walk that evening!

It’s a perfect jacket for this time of year as made in cottons it is quite cool but gives you that extra layer in the cooler evening. I have even road tested it at the day job and it’s a perfect level of just smart enough but made out of some very me fabric! I think I’m going to make one in a light wool fabric for the autumn and maybe lengthen the sleeves but who knows what will entice me to sew by then!

All in all a very good pattern with lots of help and support around on the internet so don’t get put off by the intermediate skill rating! If you fancy checking out my Timelapse video of me making this have a look on my instagram @roodles_runique

Childrens Shirt, with left over superhero fabric

I can't bear to waste fabric... its probably not the best way to make a garment but I made this kiddys shirts out of scraps.

I used a free pattern I found on pintrest you can find the pattern here. I chose this one with the cute contrast in colours.

This is the first time I have done a collar and a yolk on a shirt so it was a definite learning curve for me.

I made sure whilst I was doing the contrasting colours on the back that I pinned really regularly so that the fabric couldn't move whilst I was sewing it.
The collar was easy to make but inserting it was a bit confusing. I think the instructions on the pattern tutorial are really good so check them out, but once I had worked out it needed sewing on the inside of the shirt sides.

It definitely wasn't perfect but the little boy it was for loved his superheroes shirt so it didn't matter !

Simplicity 8065 another duvet cover dress!

 

I love a good 50's style dress. The tea dress style really suits my shape as it flares out at my waistline and hiding any lumps and bumps.

When I saw this pattern on the simplicity instagram I had to try it! It uses so much fabric though so I had to did out the other duvet cover I  bought from dunelm on the sale. It was a perfect colour for the summer wedding I was making this for.

The pattern was easy again because it is a wrap around dress. It is a full circle skirt so I didn't have enough table to cut it out so I had to cut it out the floor and so the dogs were desperate to help me... they aren't very good at helping!

Once I managed to cut it all out sewing it together was so quick! I was being a bit optimistic starting only the week before the wedding but I managed to finish it!

I got my beautiful flowery bias binding out again and it goes all the way around the back and the neck giving it a lovely finish. The back is a lovely crossover which is very low so I needed to get some kind of bra that wasn't so revealing.


Once I was wearing the dress it kept popping un done when I sat down. This is not ideal as its a wrap over I exposed my bum! I think I will upgrade the poppers I used to some cam snaps I have bought this week or some hook and eyes to help secure it a bit more.

I wore it with my fluffy underskirt and I felt fabulous! Perfect for dancing and making an entrance! It was lovely and plain but still made a statement, and it was talked about by the whole wedding party!

The wedding gift continues!!! Basting

So I have it all stuck together with minimal glue (remember use lots!) and it has been moved upstairs ready for me to sew it all together in some the hottest days of the year! yay!
I decided to use a swirly random patterns as it was supposed to look random so it wouldn't show any mistakes I made along the way.

I watched a few videos which said if you have spray glued your 'sandwich' you can start basting anywhere in the quilt so off I set in the top right hand corner. I wouldn't recommend this as because I hadn't used enough glue I ended up with some squiggly bits with extra fabric in the middle like this.

 I made sure my feed dogs were down and just swirled the fabric around trying desperately to keep it taught and at an even stitch rate. I had real issues holding on the fabric whilst keeping it taught so my lovely husband whilst on a trip to Wickes bought me some building gloves with gripped palms. This made life sooo much easier as I could push it through with very little effort. Good job hubby!

I managed to sew right through my free motion foot though which bent my needle and got it stuck into the foot. This was because I was going too fast with the material I think and pulled it whilst the needle was on it's way out.

 It's quite hard getting a big quilt through the 'throat' of a home sewing machine. So I started rolling up the bits that needed to go through. As you can see. This left me spare to work on the square I was working on at the time whilst everything else was rolled up. I worked on a panel at a time in a patterened fashion, so I started with the top right, then I did one down and one across working my way diagonally across the quilt ending in the bottom left corner.

Hopefully you can see the difference in this picture between the bits that are basted and the bits yet to be done. It just shows you what a lovely texture it gives the finished product.


 Whilst doing this I caught the backing in my stitching a few times which left it rucked. I would recommend that once you have used plenty of glue to stop it moving always check your edge spares are hanging over the edges or they may get caught in the mix. I then cut all around the edges leaving the topper, wadding and backing all the same size.

Baby car seat blankets - How to!

My next adventure was spurred on by my very special pretend cousin being preggers! By pretend cousin I mean the kind of person you grow up with, who you call their parents Aunt and Uncle but when you turn about 7 and realise your not actually related it doesn't matter! When this lovely lady is 'Our Von' and whilst planning a wedding she has a lovely baby girl 'Our Syd'.

Von had found this car blanket on pintrest which looked really useful for keeping bub warm and toasty but not so easy to slip off in the car of pram. so I set about making it for this beautiful baby!

We didn't know what baby flavour Sydney was going to be so I was looking for neutral kind of fabrics. I found these in Krafty Kats in Huntingdon, If you have never been it's worth a journey, it a treasure trove of cake baking, sewing, knitting and papercrafts and you always find just what you need, and often a lot of what you don't need! I'm always there last on a Monday before guides trying to make a plan of what we can do that evening so I find them a saviour!

So I purchased
1m of animal fabric
1m of yellow gingham
1m of wadding (I used the expensive cotton kind because at the time I wasn't sure what I was looking for and I was worried since it was for a baby)

Below are the instructions I used though it won't matter if you deviate slightly.

• Put the two pieces of fabric spread of patterns facing each other. Fold them into quarters and cut around them to round the corners as below:

• Lay out the batting again on the floor in my case, and lay the rounded corner sandwich on to of the batting, keep the two patterns facing each other at the moment.
• put the sandwich to the batting and the cut the batting to match the shape of the other fabric.
• Keep everything pinned together and sew all the edges together, leaving one corner open.
• Turn the blanket right side in, so you have patterned fabric of both sides.
• Fold the blanket in half , then draw a straight line across the corner you haven't sewn up yet. Cut this line off then sew it up with a large zigzag stitch creating  a hood.
• You can zigzag all the way round the edge it you want to, to give it a nice finish though when I did I wished I hadn't as I made such a mess of it not keeping it straight! As you can see..
 
• Now you need to cut the gaps for the safety straps to go in. What I did was got Von to measure the distance between each strap and put the measurement roughly in the middle, what you could do if place it in the care seat and mark out where each strap needs to go. Then you need to sew a large rectangle around where you are going to make a hole so that it doesn't fray or run into being a huge hole! I then laid it on my cutting mat and made 3 straight lines within the squares I have made with my rotary cutter like below.

There you have it! NICE AND EASY

 

Hopefully you'll end up with a super cutie to be 'swaddled' in it like this!

I had to ask what swaddleing was... apparently its like wrapping the baby up in all the layers, like it the picture! ha ha.

As you can see this one is a little big just yet, but I'm fairly certain she'll grow into it!

 

Update - it's even good in a bouncy seat too, and it stops mummy getting annoyed at the blanket always slipping off or being kicked off!