Sew Lind

Jeans Back Patch Pocket Tutorial

2009-08-23T13:58:00.010+10:00

There was a question on my favourite sewing list about sewing on patch pockets. I'm making jeans for DD(16) at the moment and thought I'd take pictures and share my technique along the way. This is for a standard 5 straight sided jeans pocket as shown below.

Overlock the top raw edge of the pocket

Check the pattern for the placement of the fold line at the top of the pocket. Here the fold is 2.5 cm from the raw edge.

Fold the top edge of the pocket down 2.5 cm with right sides together.

Sew down the folded section at each side along the seam allowance (here I'm using 1cm)

and the other side (I like to see where the folded piece finishes)

Progress so far ...

Trim the threads and a little of the folded edge inside the seam allowance, just a little diagonal cut.

Turn the right way out and press, making sure the top corners are sharp and the centre of the fold is 2.5cm deep.

Using a long stitch mark the seam allowances around the edge of the pocket. I just sew 4 straight lines, so I don't have to worry about turning corners accurately with a long basting stitch.

Use these lines as a guide while pressing the seam allowances under

I like to stitch along the top hem at the edge of the overlock stitches, here I can see it is at the 2cm mark on my machine. Don't stitch yet!

Turn the pocket over so that the right side is facing up. I've changed the top thread to a contrasting orange for top stitching. I lengthen the stitch slightly from 2.5 to 3 on my machine. Sew a line 2cm from the top.

Here's the pocket ready to sew on to the back of the jeans.

I'll post more pictures next sewing/computer session
Happy to answer any questions :-).

Pants Modelled

2009-08-23T12:04:00.004+10:00

DS is wearing his new pants today and he's quite happy with them, thinks the details are cool and he wouldn't mind another pair of the same design in the olive canvas. He would prefer a longer crotch so I'll have to find out how to make that kind of alteration before making the next pair. They're very long but we think they'll be fine worn srunched up over shoes.

Here's a shot of the fit at the back with DS using the hip pockets.

New Ottobre Woman

2009-08-23T10:40:00.002+10:00

The new issue of Ottobre Woman is nearly here! You can also check out the Ottobre Blog for pictures. Some highlights for me are shown below :-)

A pretty frilly scarf

I'm a sucker for shirts!

there's some sensible looking underwear :-)

and a nice sporty outfit.

Stalking the postie!!

Black Cotton Drill Pants

2009-08-23T09:22:00.004+10:00

Happy to say that I've finished a pair of black cotton drill pants for DS(14) this week. I've got some delicious olive canvas waiting to make up so I thought I'd try this pattern out in a practice fabric. This is pattern #32 from Ottobre issue 3/2004, made in the largest size 170.

I particularly like the triple topstitching on the back yokes and the back pocket detail.

DS likes to be able to use his hip pockets so the diagonal design was appealing too, shown below. The front leg is split below the knee to add interest with some more triple topstitching detail. I had a cute soccer ball button which I suggested using but for some reason DS chose this boring black one ;-).

Here's another shot attempting to show the details. DS usually doesn't approve contrast topstitching but agreed to grey this time (he even nearly chose red on black!). So glad, it made all the effort worthwhile :-).

Hilarious Sewing Machine Ad

2009-08-17T20:14:00.003+10:00

I noticed this ad today in the classifieds at work, honest!! It cracked me up - hope it gives you a good giggle too!! LOL

This thing is a Janome Mystyle 16.

Comes with instructions ,spare plate, pedal, unpicker,screwdriver, needles, 3 spare bobbins & machine vinyl cover.

$100.00

I bought this for an old girlfriend to try to get her to do stuff. When we broke up a few years ago she used it to sew up the legs of all my jeans and sleeves of all my shirts.
It hadn't been used for a few years since but when but I plugged it in the other day it still runs perfectly.

Hardly used.

$100

Go Burda Style!

2009-08-15T08:54:00.005+10:00

I was very excited to read that Burda Style have embraced open source sewing. This means that they've removed the copyright from their patterns, sharing intellectual property. We can sew and sell our creations using Burda patterns!! For more details see the Burda Style blog.

Now I just have to resist the crazy urge to resign from my job and sew for a living, LOL ;-)!

Ugly Duckling?

2009-08-02T19:54:00.005+10:00

I finished one of my Ottobre SWAP 2009 garments today, Viscose Jersey Crossover Top design #17 in the Autumn/Winter 5/2008 issue of Ottobre Woman (size 44). I really thought it looked absolutely awful as I laid it out on the table for a photo. I thought it had been a total waste of time and fabric making this top :-(. See what I mean?

I was dreading the look of it on me but amazingly I was absolutely thrilled! The fabric feels gorgeous, a lovely soft stretchy viscose jersey, and the top looks alright after all (just standing a little awkardly I think, tired back after sewing and trying to keep my arm away from the side seam detail) :-). I think it'll look great with this skirt.

The side pleat detail is my favourite part of the top, 3 little inverted pleats giving the front a little 3D interest. It's also nice to have two layers of jersey fabric across the tummy, a little more forgiving of curves!

Alterations:

The pattern is able to be made with or without a collar and stand. I made it without the collar because I find jersey collars look a little limper than I like a collar to be and other members who have made this top commented on not liking the collar style. I may have tried using a woven for the collar if I had a suitable piece but couldn't come up with one!

I used pale pink ribbing for the neckline binding rather than self-fabric. I thought the jersey was too stretchy to support itself as binding. It peeps out a little but I can live with it, I'll just have to try to be a galloping horse ;-).

Being of shortish stature, as usual I had to cut 1" off the sleeve edges and 2" off the top length before hemming.

There are some funny lines under my arm, when I lift my arms it looks a little like the sleeve opening is a little too big. Surely my chest is not big enough for a bust alteration! Any hints ideas would be welcome, but be kind ;-)!

Two More Plans and a Super New Deck

2009-07-31T22:43:00.012+10:00

Oops, I missed two more very important sewing plans yesterday!

- I have promised to sew some summer hats and belts for Crafters4Charity summer stalls.

- and (as blogged before) the really big project, sewing my niece's formal dress :-)

I actually got on the sewing machine tonight after days of tracing and cutting fabric, woohoo, feels good, LOL ;-)

Some very exciting non-sewing news is that our new deck is finished, yay :-)!

Here's the before shot of our old wooden deck, worse for wear and falling apart

And our amazing new bigger deck (4.8 x 7.5 metres), now roofed so we can sit outside to watch storms and stay dry, with metal frame and balustrades (so it doesn't rot away in the weather!). We also requested a wide top railing (great for leaning on and putting drinks down on) and the solution reached was to screw a length of hardwood on top, it looks absolutely perfect :-).

Great space for summer BBQs and family gatherings (and teenage parties with almost the same space available under the deck)

Hardwood plank steps, wide and gentle, perfect for easy access for all ages. I was very particular about the step design and love how they feel to use.

My favourite spot at home :-)

DH and I love to curl up here to relax and catch up with eachother

Sewing Plans

2009-07-30T22:02:00.003+10:00

I have lots of sewing plans, I'm not sure how I'm going to fit it all in!

I'm participating in a Sewing With a Plan activity with my Ottobre-English group. Here are the first and second completed steps, choosing designs and fabrics.

What else...
- I have a big bag full of penne crushed velvet to make capes for the school's Spring Fair in November.
- I have 3 more Rail Fence blocks to make in August/Sept for a swap with my Quilting For All group.
- I have Pay It Forward gifts to create for two lovely on-line friends, by March 2010, already moving along.
- My 3 kids need new pants to keep them warm this winter (hopefully before spring arrives!). I've traced one pattern for each of them and have the right fabric to make at least one each. J prefers track pants, O prefers canvas pants and E prefers jeans, variety the spice of life :-).
- the dogs still need more bedding.

Now if only work didn't get in the way I'd be set ;-)!

Cloud Appreciation

2009-07-29T22:55:00.005+10:00

Totally off topic tonight! I just found the most wonderful website run by the Cloud Appreciation Society. I love unusual cloud formations and this site is full of amazing cloud photos.

Have a look at the spookiest clouds I've ever seen, Asperatus (taken in Scotland) and to make you smile again a Fumulus Snail (taken in Wales).

Thought I'd share two of my own favourite cloud photos.

This was taken at home in Canberra in 2008. I think it is called a tabletop cloud.

I could not believe my eyes when I saw this cloud formation on a trip to Fraser Island in 2007. Now that I have looked through the Cloud Appreciation Society website I think it is called a 'Fallstreak Hole'. Awesome!

Hope you've enjoyed something a little different :-)

Catching Up

2009-07-28T17:36:00.005+10:00

I made a skirt for myself recently which I'd like to share with you. The main fabric was given to me by a generous work colleague, leftovers from a skirt she made for herself, a very pretty embroidered fabric. There were quite a few wedge shaped pieces which worked really well for a 10 gore skirt design from Ottobre Woman.

Do you like the fun little secret touch inside, lining remnants! Feels like my own secret carnivale skirt :-). Would you believe DD(16) saw it and asked if she could borrow it and wear it inside out, LOL!!!

I would really love to make this skirt again but without the contrasting hem band. I much preferred the drape of the skirt before the hem band was sewn on, it seems to hold the skirt out making the biggest part of my body look more voluminous!

Spoiling myself - Sewing baby clothes

2009-07-27T17:46:00.006+10:00

After spending some time with my mum over Christmas I was inspired to give patchworking a go for a year. I've finally realised 6 months in that I don't really enjoy it at all and I was found myself increasingly avoiding the sewing room (and blogging), sorry to all those fans who are addicted but I found it quite tedious!!

So I needed to get back in the saddle and spoil myself with some fun sewing, what better excuse than sewing for new babies :-)!!

Here's one for two work colleagues who knew they were expecting a baby boy, this one was made for the dad using cute 'Daddy's Little Boy' fabric :-). I made a 'Where's Wally' style baby outfit to make the mum smile, as we joked around about her clothing being in that style, LOL ;-). Unfortunately I completely forgot to take a photo of the finished outfit but he wore it when he came to visit us all at work :-).

I loved the design feature of an invisible zip in the front raglan shoulder seam, and the cute little patch.

I also made a sporty little outfit for my first nephew who is now just over 6 months old. I was lucky enough to see him wearing it yesterday at a family gathering :-). My husband and his twin brother are avid soccer fans so this fabric was just perfect for my DBILs little boy (who has 5 big sisters!).

The only oops in this top is that the zipper is not a separating one, LOL. It was a black chunky zipper in my stash of the perfect length. I only realised it didn't separate after I'd finished sewing!! DSIL thought it was a great idea, so much easier to manage than trying to join the bottom of a zipper up on a wriggling baby. I'll have to remember this mistake, could be the start of a whole new trend :-).

Happy to be back in the sewing room :-)

Inspired to blog again

2009-07-20T21:20:00.005+10:00

Look what arrived in the mail today, an awesome Pay It Forward package from Marina!!! We both love Curly's and sew, couldn't find a more perfect friend ;-). First the pretty package.

Look at this beautiful soap sculpture, which came in a cute paw print bag!

and a magnet, what a regal head our dogs have :-)

and beautifully sewn bags in divine fabric, wow!!!

Thank you Marina, you're package makes me feel very special :-)

I owe you one.

Eurovision Family Fun

2009-05-18T20:06:00.005+10:00

We've been watching Eurovision as a family together since 2004, it's great fun!! We prepare comment and scoring sheets which we fill in as we view the performances. There are many disagreements regarding scores and comments which can get somewhat heated but it's all in fun ;-). Aggregating our scores these were our top 5:

Norway

Ukraine

Finland

Iceland

Azerbaijan

My favourite songs were
Estonia - beautiful combination of voice and cello
Norway - cheeky lad, cute song with character
Albania - catchy tune and I enjoy songs in the lower range.
Please ctrl click on the links to listen :-)

Seeing as I love to sew clothes I thought it might be fun to award some unofficial Eurovision 2009 Costume Prizes!!

My Favourite and the Most Co-ordinated Ensemble
Estonia - the beautiful blue fabric looked great as a feature fabric in each outfit, all different styles

The one I'd most like to study close-up
Armenia - with it's layers of velvet and silver detail

Most Beautiful Fabric
Cyprus - white with delicate gold detail

Prettiest Feathers and Frills
Iceland - tastefully frilly

Most Leg Flattering
Albania - pretty prom feel to this one

Best Corsetry
Germany - I'm sure I've only ever seen that shape in cartoons before!

Most Scantily Clad
Ukraine's Roman Gladiators - couldn't get any shorter could it!

Easiest Costume To Make
Russia - rectangle of fabric gathered with elastic, what the ... !!

Put On Your Sunnies!
Netherlands - wow, glitter suits

Wardrobe Malfunction
Greece - looked ridiculous with his hairy belly popping out as he gyrated ;-)

Wooden Spoon
Czech Republic - I just don't get the caped crusader look

On Stage Costume Changes
Hungary - from suits to barely anything ;-)

Feel free to share your favourite songs and costume prizes :-)

Canine Appreciation!

2009-05-16T22:22:00.006+10:00

Spotlight is having an end of bolt fabric sale for 4 days, and although I'm not a big fan I made it in this morning to look for some new bedding material for the dogs. Kaeli still chews it up and I've run out of old sheets to use ;-)! I found some thick chocolate brown polar fleece (non pill) and some pretty green and pink striped flannelette and bought both bolts, 15m of one and 17m of the other.

I was a bit worried that the dogs wouldn't like sleeping on polar fleece until while cutting it up I returned to find this, LOL! It did go down well after all, what a hoot :-D

New Blocks and Some Cooking Fun

2009-05-12T22:52:00.003+10:00

I love the greens in these blocks I received today. Thank You!

Just had to share tonight's cooking story :-). DS (11 yo) decided to cook a cake tonight. I offered a basic cake recipe as a guide but he was adamant he wanted to create the best cake ever by making up his own recipe! He came up with the following combination:

Chocolate Banana Cake
3 cups plain flour
1 cup sugar
8 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa
2 bananas
Mix all the ingredients together. Bake in oven until cooked.

Well I did eat one whole piece but after a couple of nibbles DS crumbled his piece and fed it to the dogs ;-)

This is his cooking motto as written by him tonight (think Star Trek!)

Food the final frontier
These are the voyages of the star cook J
His continuing mission
To explore strange new foods
To seek out new ingredients and new ways of cooking
To boldly go where no man has eaten before

He's such a character, LOL! He even assured me on Sunday that it couldn't possibly be Mother's Day because they hadn't made anything at school for mums!!!

Final Round of Voting for Spring Top

2009-05-08T19:46:00.003+10:00

The Top Ten Spring Tops have been chosen at MadeByRae. You can vote for your favourite until Friday 11pm (eastern time), whatever time that is for you ;-) I know which one is my favourite!

Spring Blocks

2009-05-06T08:01:00.007+10:00

Some more beautifully sewn blocks arrived today from Canada and USA.

Thank You!

Wardrobe Refashion

2009-05-02T11:36:00.003+10:00

I've been quite inspired by the Wardrobe Refashion blog and would like to try it out myself. I'm hoping to experiment with a little more clothing creativity from preloved items. I'll make the pledge for May and June, not very good timing as DH is talking about taking me out shopping for a new winter jacket, LOL ;-)

The Pledge
I pledge that I shall abstain from the purchase of "new" manufactured items of clothing, for the period of 2 months. I pledge that i shall refashion, renovate, recycle preloved items for myself with my own hands in fabric, yarn or other medium for the term of my contract. I pledge that I will share the love and post a photo of my refashioned, renovoted, recycled, crafted or created item of clothing on the Wardrobe Refashion blog, so that others may share the joy that thy thriftiness brings!
Signed Sew Lind.

Star Trek Uniform and More Retreat Blocks!

2009-04-30T21:22:00.005+10:00

Three more blocks arrived today from the USA :-) Beautiful floral fabric.

Thank you!

Now I'm off to continue sewing a Star Trek uniform for my 11 yo son who wants to look like Captain Archer on Enterprise. We found some blue velour in my stash and have chosen a jacket and leggings pattern from Ottobre. I've sewn two zipped patch pockets on the front and some yellow grosgrain ribbon over one shoulder and sleeve, I will have to get some more tomorrow for the other shoulder, I knew I should have bought extra! Here's a sneak preview :-)

We found a Space Shuttle badge and J used my machine's alphabet function to embroider "ENTERPRISE" on the badge, which is now sewn onto the left sleeve.

More Retreat Blocks!

2009-04-29T20:50:00.003+10:00

More retreat blocks arrived in the mail today from two ladies in the USA! Such a lovely surprise :-) I think these will look great trimmed with some spring themed sashing.

Thank You !

Brilliant Mail Day!

2009-04-28T23:11:00.003+10:00

Three packages arrived in the mail today!

My Ottobre Design magazine arrived from Finland, see my excited waiting with anticipation post here!

My first delivery of April Retreat blocks from the UK and the USA. Don't they look great together, I love the contrast :-)

and I'm lucky enough to have an early Rail Fence swap block in my requested colours of yellow orange and red. Such sweet fabrics :-)

Thank You

Formal dress for niece

2009-04-27T08:50:00.008+10:00

I've always sewn for my little nieces and last night one of my older nieces asked me to sew her Year 10 formal dress, is she really 15 already!!! Her initial design thoughts are a knee length one shoulder dress in silk. I've been searching the net for ideas/patterns and fell in love with this gorgeous evening dress from Vogue. The all in one flounce and gathered shoulder strip are divine. Even the shorter length dress looks lovely.

Unfortunately I am trying to avoid making a fitted boned bodice which is required for this dress.

Well, I continued searching and found an easier design, also at Vogue, which includes silk in the list of recommended fabrics. I like the flared hem and I hope that having the princess seams will help resolve any fitting issues. This design looks younger and more appropriate for her age :-).

Both of these patterns are out of print so I may have to order direct from Vogue if they have the right size in the warehouse. Please leave me one if you rush out to buy the pattern ;-)!

Oh, just one more outstanding design to share from Smitten By Me, absolutely beautiful shoulder strap and fabric!

Any other pattern suggestions would be most welcome :-)

We Will Remember Them

2009-04-25T11:46:00.006+10:00

Today is ANZAC Day when we remember the fallen.

The Ode of Remembrance
They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Lest We Forget

We're off to have a traditional ANZAC Day lunch with family, DFIL served in Vietnam. DH is marching in a nearby country town and will join us later this afternoon. I've cooked batches of ANZAC biscuits to take with us to share as always at the request of my DMIL :-).

Ottobre Waterfall Blouse

2009-04-22T16:20:00.003+10:00

My Ottobre Woman 'Waterfall' blouse is finished, pattern #5 in issue 2/2009. Many thanks to Pam for her tutorial on sewing the draped cowl neck, I highly recommend following Pam's instructions for a lovely finish! This top will be worn with my new Ottobre 'Swing' skirt sewn earlier in the same fabric, although it looks quite nice with jeans and I think it'll be beautiful with my grey, navy and turquoise Ottobre skirts. Very versatile :-)

Surprisingly the sleeves are a little shorter than usual on me, you may like to add a bit of length before cutting to ensure that the sleeve finishes past the wrist after hemming!

I'm sorry there's no modelled shot, my photographer is away on a three day practice hike for the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme (Gold) :-).

Foundation Piecing pack

2009-04-22T09:19:00.004+10:00

I wanted to learn more about foundation piecing and at Micki's recommendation I ordered a little starter pack from Carol Doak. Well, it has arrived :-), I took the book away to a two day work conference with me to read when alone in my room. Now I need to hog the TV and watch the DVD, then practice with the ruler and paper (and fabric).

I'll be starting the Surfing Sue quilt with miniature blocks once I get the hang of the technique. This is one of the projects I'm participating in at International Friendship Quilters

I won the block lottery!

2009-04-22T09:08:00.005+10:00

I've been away for two days and came home to a lovely surprise. Wow, my name was drawn as the winner of the April Retreat lottery, with my QuiltingForAll Yahoo group. There are 53 framed four patch blocks on their way to me! Janice has shared photos of her completed blocks on her blog. The rest will be a surprise. Can't wait!

Thank you for organising the lottery Bev :-)

New Issue of Ottobre - Summer 2009

2009-04-22T08:32:00.003+10:00

The new issue of Ottobre is on-line and the magazine was posted out to subscribers on 20th April 09 (see comments on the Ottobre blog)!!! Time to stalk the postie for the big white envelope ;-)

Look at these beautiful shots, Ottobre do a lovely job presenting the new patterns. Here are just 4 of my favourites :-)

A beautiful baby dress with 3 inverted pleats at the neckline,

there are also patterns for a hat and pants to complete the outfit.

I love the bow and pleated detail on the bodice of this dress.

Isn't this the cutest sailor you've ever seen!

There is a little sailor dress too.

Here's one for my son, t-shirt and shorts with an elephant feature.
I enjoy the little extras Ottobre comes up with to make an outfit look less 'homemade'

Thank you Ottobre !

Costumer's Eye Candy

2009-04-18T23:35:00.005+10:00

Before heading off bed just had to share photos from an auction site I found while surfing the net today. These are my favourite 3 items going up for auction later this month (links are provided below) If only...

Lavender Brocade Reception Gown, c.1870 The rich fabric and beautiful details on this dress blow me away!

White Afternoon Dress, c.1860 I love the purple on white and the pretty bows, looks like an old fashioned picnic dress :-)

Rose Silk Sack-Back Open Robe, 1770-1785

Looks like the flowers have been painted onto the fabric in the style commonly used on wood crafts these days! Look at the lace and the ruched curves, wow!

April Retreat Lottery

2009-04-18T23:01:00.003+10:00

I'm participating in a weekend sewing retreat with QuiltingForAll. These are my completed lottery blocks as blogged here earlier, actually I only committed to 5 blocks (i.e. 5 entries in the block lottery) so I could increase my entry to 9 blocks and hopefully increase my chances of winning the block lottery, now that would be exciting!!! I was making ten blocks tonight but had a mishap with my cutting, shouldn't have been talking to DH ;-), so one fell by the wayside!

Looks like spring has sprung!

Ottobre Swing Skirt

2009-04-18T16:16:00.002+10:00

I've sewn up the Ottobre Woman "Swing" jersey skirt, design 11 issue 2/2009, in a beautiful polyviscose fabric from Knitwit (Autumn 2009 portfolio no. 24 Chelsea Printed Knit Teal).

There is only one pattern piece for the 10 gore skirt, but to make cutting out easier I traced two pattern pieces. The skirt is hemmed with a twin needle using teal coloured thread. I've also used a twin needle to encase the elastic waist. I cut a length of 25mm wide elastic about 2 cm shorter than my waist measurement and overlapped the ends about 1cm to join.

The fabric was tricky to sew, being quite slippery, curly and fine so I basted most of the seams first and then sewed the real seams, unpicking the basting stitches afterwards. You certainly realise how long around the hem of a 10 gore skirt is after sewing around it a couple of times ;-)

I also have the "Waterfall" top cut out in this fabric, ready to sew! Hopefully it'll be a little easier to sew.

Spring Top Week - in Autumn ;-)

2009-04-18T10:59:00.005+10:00

I'm going to join in the Spring Top Week challenge on the MadeByRae blog, what a wonderful initiative. I found out about it via Astrid's blog, another sewing blog I love to follow :-). I know it's autumn here but it's my favourite season and provides lots of inspiration for me to sew. Click on the button below to find out more :-) 27th May is a public holiday here so I know I can sew for at least one day, yay! Will blog more about my fabric and pattern choices in up coming days.

Costume Maker's online magazine

2009-04-15T22:16:00.004+10:00

I gasped with delight when I found this amazing historical costume while surfing online today!!! See More pictures here. I was revisiting a Canberra Costume Maker's website, Earthly Delights as I had noticed an ad in the National Folk Festival program. I actually donated my beloved old Janome sewing machine to Aylwen G through freecyclecanberra and love to think of it enjoying it's retirement sewing historical costumes :-). She had a link to an on-line magazine called Your Wardrobe Unlock'd, the Costume Maker's companion, an online magazine for everyone who's passionate about historical clothing. There is a single pattern project readers can participate in and this is the pattern chosen. I'm in !!! Wow deep inside there's a definitely frustrated costume maker trying to get out ;-)

Long Tall with borders

2009-04-15T13:20:00.003+10:00

Gosh it's hard to photograph finished quilt tops, looks more crooked than it is!! I found some cream fabric to use as the inner border (didn't quite have enough glitter accent fabric)which frames the darker areas effectively. I used the leftover background fabric for the outer border but had to halve the width from 6 1/2" to 3 1/4" to make enough strips to go all the way around :-). My daughter prefers this one to the Rock Star quilt top, more elegant and easy on the eye ;-).

Long Tall throw without borders

2009-04-13T22:47:00.004+10:00

I've finished sewing the strips together for the Long Tall quilt top!! This is the throw size which is about 40"x60" at the moment. I'll be adding two borders, an inner border (1 1/2") and an outer border (6 1/2"). If I have enough fabric I thought I'd use the silver/black glitter accent fabric for the inner border and the background fabric for the outer border. Anyway I'll work that out during my next sewing session, time for a break .

The strips really had to be trimmed accurately to construct this top neatly, boy oh boy, spent a bit of time unpicking bits and pieces for this one and re-cutting some of the uneven strips (I bought the class kit!). It was an interesting logistics puzzle working out how to combine the strips to make the blocks and then to arrange the blocks so that the colours worked well. Relieved I've made it through to this stage, phew :-).

Happy Birthday J

2009-04-12T15:56:00.006+10:00

My youngest was born on Easter Sunday and this year is the first time his birthday has fallen on Easter Sunday again. He says this is the 'best year of his life' which is just lovely to hear! He was really looking forward to being able to eat chocolate easter eggs for breakfast this morning on his birthday, LOL! He enjoys his soccer and was over the moon about being picked for the Under 11 Div 1 Gold team for his club this season, yahoo!

J is a very creative little fellow, thought I'd share a few of his designs.

Here is a lego bag he designed and helped sew, it includes a pocket for the instruction book and another for the lego pieces plus a handle.

Here's his gun shoulder holster

Here's his quidditch cape, he loved these two fabrics and definitely wanted a hood and a button. Not sure why the rocket badge ended up there but it had to go on, LOL.

Here's his ninja outfit, I was sure it was going to be too hard to make but he took me through step by step and got what he wanted ;-)

Some of his friends like AFL, so he wanted a roos top. He has number 29 on the back, can't remember which player that is. We had fun deciding where to place the blue vertical stripes, white background with paint splashes was acceptable for the white part of the shirt ;-).

Being a fan of Star Trek he just had to have a uniform (this is Capt Picard)!

Happy Birthday J

with love and hugs from Mum!!!

National Folk Festival 2009

2009-04-11T21:51:00.003+10:00

I just spent a wonderful day at the National Folk Festival here in Canberra. Aren't these Welsh folk dance costumes divine! This group came up from the Hunter Valley to dance for us and taught two dances as well, lots of fun. I especially loved the coloured 'jackets with tails' that the ladies wore. Features included generous pleats at the back topped with large matching buttons, large black buttons down the shaped front which was cut right back almost to the side seams to flow when dancing, and dark ribbon around the base of the short sleeves. They were all wearing dark skirts, stockings and shoes, with white aprons, blouses, lace shawls and caps, and different coloured jackets. Beautiful.

Giveaway

2009-04-10T16:27:00.003+10:00

Micki (from http://thedote.blogspot.com) passed on the news that there is a FQ giveaway at PigTales & Quilts in celebration of her daughter's 30th birthday

http://www.pigtalesandquilts.com/2009/04/give-away-time.html

Certainly worth taking a look for a chance to win 30 FQs :-)

The deadline for signing up is 20 April 09

Best of luck!!!

Ottobre Elegance Pants

2009-04-09T20:35:00.004+10:00

I couldn't wait to try this pattern out when the new Ottobre Woman (issue 2/2009) arrived! Ottobre now gives their patterns names, this one is called "Elegance" pants. I had some orange striped denim in my stash ready for a nice pair of elegant jeans, and this was the pattern that spoke to me :-)

I find that a shaped leg is more flattering on me than straight legged jeans and I love the wide hem at the bottom of the pants.

Darts (at the back) and a shaped waistband give a nice shape to the top. The best feature of all is that there is no chunky jeans zip at the front!

The front hip pockets are really interesting, like a bound button hole, it'll be interesting to see how they cope with wear and tear and how they sit during everyday movement. There is an invisible zip in the side seam of the pants. I followed the directions and put the zip on the left side but being a right hander I think I'd put the zip on the right hand side next time, I'm finding it a bit awkward to manage!

The inner waistband is bound with bias binding, made with a pretty yellow print in my scrap box. The wrong side of the fabric is a bit bright isn't it, LOL!

I only made a couple of modifications; I cut 8cm off the length of the pants (being petite) and had to fit the back of the pants by bringing it in 3cm at the centre back to cater for my sway back (or should that be my big butt ;-)) grading it gradually back to the centre back seam. I didn't sew on the back pockets, I thought the back would look better without them and I couldn't face trying to match the stripes :-P.

The front could be a bit more fitted, perhaps I should bring in the centre front seam a bit too. Sorry, not the best shot . Any suggestions?

Next time I'll choose better placement for the belt loops, I was trying to follow the design sketch but I'm not entirely happy, they're too close together at the side seams and not close enough at the front of the pants.

Despite these negative comments, I'm absolutely thrilled to have a new pair of more dressy jeans :-).

Our Brittany

2009-04-08T21:38:00.003+10:00

Kaeli is one of our dogs, she's a Brittany and is now 18 months old, how time flies. Her nicknames include Krazy Kaeli, Looney Lovegood, Jemima Puddleduck (when she wee'd with excitement as a youngster!) and Dogmatix (for the clouds of dust she leaves in her wake!). Mustn't forget Sweetie and Gorgeous Girl too, LOL. The Brittany is a very active gundog that needs to be busy!!! I must admit the laid back nature of the Curly Coated Retriever is more my style, but don't tell Kaeli ;-)

Here she is at 9 weeks coming home with us from Euroa in Victoria, what a cutey!

Mungo

2009-04-07T22:44:00.004+10:00

Introducing my new little nephew, born in December 2008. He has 5 big sisters so is a welcome addition for his Dad ;-) Everyone adores him and he obviously feels the same!

I've started a Jacob's Ladder quilt for him using transport themed fat quarters (a more masculine theme for the house), will have to name the quilt 'Mungo's Ladder' ;-). Here are the first 4 blocks. I might have to make a little outfit for him this long weekend, I've sewn many outfits for his big sisters over the years. Baby clothes are so quick to make (and use very little fabric)!

April Retreat

2009-04-06T21:37:00.005+10:00

I'm getting ready for an April weekend retreat (17-19 April) with my QuiltingForAll yahoo group. We're sewing up Framed Four Patch blocks from the quilterscache site. The four patch section is to be white or white on white with any floral and the "frame" is to be light to medium green.

Just have to share the retreat organiser's reasons for choosing this fabric combination ... "I chose these colours because it's been a long winter here and I'm so starved for greenery and flowers." It'll be a pleasure to help out ;-).

Seeing as the four patch needs to be in 3" x 6" pieces I thought I'd buy a couple of 40 piece 7" charm packs. I bought a white on white pack and an Ivana's Garden pack and some lovely spring green fabric for the frame from my local patchwork shop, shown below.

Long Tall and Rail Fence Swap

2009-04-05T17:59:00.010+10:00

Quilt class on Friday night was fun, we were walked through the construction of a strip quilt pattern from Cozy Quilts called Long Tall, then we got to go shopping :-) The fabrics in the class strip pack were lovely so I only needed to choose background and accent fabric. I opted for a dark rather than light background because I love the combination of rainbow colours and black. The colours pop! I tend to like fabrics with images from nature so chose an ivy leaf pattern, it also softened the blackness a little. I thought a glitter accent fabric would be a striking contrast between the black background and the bright coloured strips, and it looks like ripples in a pond.

There were enough strips in the class pack to make a twin size quilt but I've decided to make the throw instead, I'm more likely to finish a smaller quilt ;-) So I had fun selecting the fabrics to use and grouping them into low, medium and high contrast, as shown below.

I'm participating in a Rail Fence swap on my QuiltingForAll yahoo group, and was able to select suitable strips from the rest of the class strip pack to use in the Rail Fence blocks due this month. There are 11 members participating and each has requested a personal colour combination for the blocks and will receive 10 blocks in the month they are drawn (2 members drawn per month). I made a cream, rust and charcoal block for a member in the UK and a cream, lavender and pink block for a member in the US. Oops I'm sorry I forgot to take photos before sending them!

Socceroos

2009-04-02T20:46:00.007+11:00

Woooo hoooo!!! The Socceroos won 2-0 against Uzbekistan in Sydney last night (1 April 09) in a World Cup Qualifying match. Australia is now top of the group with 13 points, only one more point required (in the next three matches) in order to qualify for the finals of the FIFA World Cup!!!

We were there, to cheer on our heroes :-), at the Sydney Olympic Stadium in Homebush with a Horde of 12 family members; one from Sydney, one from Melbourne and ten from Canberra. Awesome to see all the big names like Lucas Neill, Harry Kewell, Mark Schwarzer, Bresciano, Scott McDonald, Wilkshire, Cullina and Josh Kennedy.

It was a very loooong day. I left work at 2:30pm, picked the kids up from school and DH from work and we headed out of Canberra at about 3:30pm. We only just made it to our seats for the national anthems at 8:00pm, it took the whole of the last hour to get off the M4 and into a booked carpark, traffic congestion!! After the game we had a picnic and disco at the car ;-) waiting for the traffic to subside and headed back to Canberra, arriving home at 2:00am. Believe it or not we all made it to school and work today, albeit a little worse for wear. Time to crawl back to bed, good night...zzz

Rock Star

2009-03-31T21:26:00.003+11:00

In Feb 09 I attended my first Friday night strip club with Barry (sounds a bit seedy doesn't it, LOL!) at my local patchwork shop. The next one is this Friday April 3 (they're only held once every two months) so I thought I'd share my progress on the first pattern, Rock Star from Cozy Quilts.

A class pack of strips was supplied and we were able to choose our own light and dark background fabrics, mine are pumpkin and dark green. The construction was really clever, not as complicated as it looks! This pattern has shown me how to put together blocks 'on point' too.

The top is finished with a narrow inner border and a wider outer border, I thought the green Dancing Bugs fabric was perfect for the outer border.

With the left overs I've made up a diamond of mixed stars and pieced a border in alternating pumpkin and green. I've purchased some orange Dancing Bugs fabric for the outer border but have yet to add it.

I was thinking of using this on the back of the quilt but I think it would make a cute smaller quilt and I could just put some plain quilt backing on both and get more value for money, perhaps even donate one to charity.

Looking forward to Friday :-) Sneak preview of the next strip club pattern.

Pay It Forward

2009-03-30T22:45:00.005+11:00

I have joined up to Pay It Forward from Khris' blog. What a great idea!

This concept is like the movie called Pay It Forward with Kevin Spacey and Haley Joel Osment in it. The 12 year old boy has a school assignment and he comes up with the PIF concept.

PIF is where acts of kindness are done without expecting anything in return, just passing it on, hoping that the recipients will do the same and pay it forward, like a never ending chain of kindness. How to proceed? I will make and send a handmade gift for the first 3 friends who post a comment to this post, requesting to join this exchange, and promising to pay it forward to 3 other persons, etc.... I don't know what my 3 gifts will be, but I can promise I will send them within the next 365 days. What YOU have to do in return then, is "Pay It Forward" by making the same announcement and promise on YOUR blog.

Sudoku Skirt

2009-03-29T10:07:00.003+11:00

sugar snap 112
Originally uploaded by gock's frocks

Not only can you incorporate a Sudoku puzzle theme into a quilt but it also works well in clothing :-). Isn't this outfit divine!!! Handcrafted by Gock's Frocks using the sudoku skirt and orvokki jersey blouse patterns from Ottobre Design issue 1/2009.

For more kaleidoscope of colour visit Gock's Frocks' blog, she's celebrating 200 posts with a 'Great Give Away'.

Convergence Quilt

2009-03-28T10:32:00.003+11:00

I completed this quilt top in a Convergence Quilt (Ricky Tims' style) course at my local patchwork shop on 21 Feb 09. First I found a feature fabric I liked (the leaves in the border) and then had assistance finding 3 other co-ordinating fabrics! I bought 1m of the main fabric and 1 fat quarter of each of the other 3 fabrics, plus an inner border. I really enjoyed finding out how to create this amazing effect!!!

This is how I'd like to use the fabric bought in Berrima on the occasion of our 20th wedding anniversary.

First Quilt Top - A Sudoku Puzzle

2009-03-27T20:46:00.007+11:00

Here's the top of my first ever quilt!!! The pattern is 'It's Puzzling' from the Australian Patchwork and Quilting magazine (Vol 17, No 2), based on a Sudoku puzzle. We all enjoy Sudoku in my family and I thought I could handle sewing strips and sqaures together :-). This took 2 weeks to sew up in January 2009. Now to find some batting, backing and binding and finish it !!

Here's the centre block of the Sudoku quilt. I picked a feature floral and then chose 8 co-ordinating fabrics (all fat quarter size, cut into 6 inch squares) The sashing is black in 1 inch and 2 inch widths.

Bird Shorts

2009-03-26T17:14:00.010+11:00

I had some fun frayed stretch denim in my stash that I thought would be great made up into the stretch capris from Ottobre Woman issue 2/2007, #14.

The pattern included a pretty little bird pattern for the back pocket which was really easy to machine embroider with a straight triple stitch along one continuous line, plus a separate curved line underneath to finish the branch.

The triple topstitching on the back yoke and around the front hip pockets is a nice design feature. The topstitching was done in a medium tone grey for a more subtle effect than white, which is what I was initially contemplating.

The pattern has a leg cuff included but by the time I got to the stage of sewing them on, the capris were already much too long and would have been ankle length by the time I added the cuffs! I decided to leave off the cuffs and shorten the length by 10cm and keep a little slit in the side seams. I already had a matching set of buttons for the waistband and cuffs so I decorated the top of the slits with the little buttons.

I love these shorts, very comfortable and they feel fun!

I have sewn for myself this year

2009-03-25T22:53:00.004+11:00

My all time favourite jumper was a white cowl neck jumper, fashionable in the eighties :-). I fell in love with this cowl neck sweater Ottobre pattern when it came out late last year, Ottobre Woman issue 5/08, #18. I had a lovely wool knit in my stash which was just waiting for this pattern, absolutely perfect :-)

I don't normally wear tops with raglan sleeves but the shoulder pleats provide beautiful shaping. This was a brilliantly quick pattern to sew up, cut one day and sewn up the next, even though I sewed the inverted pleat AND the cowl neck on the wrong way out the first time, LOL!!

Chocolate Mug Cake

2009-03-24T22:34:00.005+11:00

This amazing recipe was shared at work today, absolutely wicked!! Not sure I could fit all the ingredients into one of my mugs ;-)

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
a small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again.

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts (high). The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.

Time to Walk

2009-03-24T08:56:00.005+11:00

My Christmas present from mum for the past two years has been a subscription to the Healthy Food Guide magazine which comes monthly. I plan most of my weekly menus using the recipes in the magazine and find many of the articles really interesting reading.

This month there is an HFG 10 week walking plan to help us get fit. I'm going to make the effort as I've been quite sedentary for the past 6 months while recovering from a shoulder injury after an awkward fall and my body is starting to wobble ;-). The first day is 3 10 minute walks. Well I walked for 10 minutes at lunchtime yesterday, not quite enough. This morning I walked the dog for 10 minutes and I plan to walk for 10 minutes at lunchtime again and then after work tonight. It seems funny to have to work myself up to 3 10 minute walks in one day!!!

Here's a picture of Gus, our gorgeous Curly Coated Retriever who thoroughly enjoyed his brisk walk this morning.

20th Wedding Anniversary

2009-03-22T21:26:00.000+11:00

To celebrate our 20th Wedding Anniversary we treated ourselves to a weekend away in Kangaroo Valley at Cedars Cottages, staying in the Yurt. Here's a photo of the view we enjoyed from our deck whilst we drank home brewed apple cider.

On the way home we stopped at the Berrima Patchwork shop to select a few fabrics for a wall hanging to remember our experiences there. The red and black of the magnificent cliff faces, the laughing kookaburra family which laughed night and day making us laugh too, the Fresian and Hereford cattle grazing on the lush green grass nearby - especially the new calves bouncing around playing together at dusk (mooo!), and our walk to the beautiful river where we watched the fun of the water bugs whizzing around like mini speedboats.