Fabric shopping on the Goldhawk Road

I made another trip to London last week - a training week with work, and we had a early finish one day which allowed me to sneak across London to the Goldhawk Road for a cheeky buzz around the fabric shops!

This was my first trip to the Goldhawk Road - although all the blog I read recommend it as a fantastic place to buy.  As soon as you exit the tube station there are seven or eight shops right outside the door.  I literally ran in and out of most of them for a quick nosey - it was around 5 so it was pretty quiet, and there were some fantastic bargains!

I got myself a little selection of fabrics - ranging from £1.50 per metre for this gorgeous striped jersey, to £3 per metre for these fabulous silky spots.

Lest you think all I've doing is buying fabric without actually doing anything with it, I'm already making a chevron maxi with the stripped jersey - and the spotty fabric is going to become a blouse.  I'd better stay away from any shops on my next trip - I need to get a few bits and pieces finished before I increase my stash any more!

New Look 6030: Sewing for someone else

As you might remember, I've slowly been working on my second make of New Look 6030. I made my own version, as a bit of a trial run, but the intention was always to make a version of this for my sister Esther.

In April I finally picked this skirt up again - my guilty conscience couldn't stand it anymore! At that stage, I decided that my aim would be to finish it by Esther's birthday - that's today, 20th of May. However, Easter holidays / my visit to London and general life got in the way. I was almost going to forget the whole idea and decide that maybe the summer would be a good time to finish it, when it turned out I had Saturday free. Spurred into action, I not only attached the back of the skirt, but cut out all the final pieces, hemmed it, completed the waistband including facing and belt loops, and inserted the zip...all on Saturday afternoon / evening! It was a bit of a sewing marathon!

Sewing for someone else is quite challenging - especially in this situation, when Esther wasn't actually around to try it on as I went! I had measured her up when she was over a few months ago, and had included marks for seam allowances etc on the skirt front and back pieces, but obviously that was a while ago, and so if something had changed in the interim, or my measurements were a little off, there wasn't much I could do about it.

Here's a few shots of the finished article, which arrived with the little sis today.  The good news is despite the worry re the fitting, it apparently fits perfectly.  Not only that, but it's exactly the length she wanted, so my attempt at lengthening the pattern was also a success! Esther has promised me a picture, but I've not received it yet, so we'll just have to do with Matilda modelling at the moment!

Front view

Back view

Side view

My belt loops almost match perfectly to the pockets!

I remembered to include my label...

Happy birthday little sis!

Annie Sloan chalk paint: transforming a nest of tables

Today's blog post is a little bit of a departure for me, with some furniture restoration!  We've had this old nest of tables sitting on our landing - they're really handy to have, but they really don't match the colour scheme of the landing and are just generally a bit old and grotty.

I've heard so much about Annie Sloan chalk paint - lots of friends have used it for furniture restoration and for a while I've thought this might be a great opportunity to do some experimentation.

The only stockists of Annie Sloan paint in Bristol are Juliet Seldon Interiors, up in Clifton.  I went up there a few Saturdays ago, and after a little dithering, got paint in 'Louis Blue', which is quite a pale blue.  Then I laid everything out on the kitchen floor and got to work!

I'm told the paint chips quite easily, so I think I'm going to wax them at some stage.  However, in the meantime (while I wait for another free Saturday so I can do the waxing!), here they are, back in position...

I think it's fair to say that this is a pretty major transformation!  I absolutely love them - the blue is perfect, and adds a great bit of colour to the neutrals in our hallway.  Plus I've got three quarters of a tin of paint left...what will I paint next!?

Happy blog-iversary!

I can't believe that 4 (and almost a half) months of the year have gone - that's already a third of 2014 done and dusted! Not only that, but today is actually the first birthday of my blog.  I posted my very first blog post on the 13th of May 2013.  Back in May 2013, all I had made were a few bags and brooches, and I'd had an attempt at my very first skirt.  Joining the blogging world encouraged me to have a look round for free patterns as well as tutorials, and I soon made my first top as well.

This picture is actually from my birthday in January but seems apt...!  Apologies for my rather cheesy grin!

In light of a year of blogging about sewing (and only just over a year of actually sewing!), it seemed like it might be a good time to review my sewing resolutions (made back in January), and generally see what I've done over the last year!

1. Sewing room - My sewing room is well into operation.  I really enjoy having somewhere to go where I can just get on with things, without worrying about leaving a bit of a mess or losing things.
2. Dresses - One down, one to go as far as dresses are concerned.  I've got the pattern cut out for my second dress, the lady skater dress, and I'm looking forward to starting that soon.
3. Craft classes - I was given two classes for Christmas, and I've started both of them - just!  I've bought my denim and the Andrea Wolff pattern for my making designer jeans class, and done one of the tutorials.  I've also done a few of the tutorials on lining and interfacing, to help me choose the lining for a work skirt I want to make.

Over the year I've gained a lot of confidence in my sewing.  From simple online tutorials, I've now graduated to patterns, and every week I'm wearing or using at least one handmade item - not very much compared to some bloggers who are doing Made Me May, but for someone who could barely even hold a needle, times have really changed!  I would really encourage any of you who think you wouldn't be able to do it - you can!

I've also accumulated the start of a little sewing library - plenty of patterns, as well as a nice little collection of books and magazines to help me on my way.  There are so many resources out there - it can be hard to resist all the lovely books and magazines on offer!

On a completely different crafting note, crocheting has also entered my repertoire.  I learnt to crochet while I was in London last July.  It's a completely different sort of craft, and what I like about it is that it can be done just about anywhere...in the car (although not while driving!!), on the train, while watching TV...you can take it anywhere!

Thanks so much for all your support and encouragement over the last year.  I always loved writing, and combining it with my new hobby is such great fun.  It's great to know that people are interested and enjoying what I'm doing!  Please feel free to subscribe using the links on the right - if you don't fancy joining Google plus or Friend Connect, you can subscribe by email.

Here's to the next year of sewing and blogging...!

Holiday fabric shopping

For the first May bank holiday, we decided we needed a bit of a break.  We were in Northern Ireland a few weeks ago, and had a brilliant time, but I'd struggle to describe it as relaxing - more like whistle-stop!  So we booked a B&B in Devon to have a properly relaxing break this last weekend.

The B&B, Hay Meadow Farm, was absolutely gorgeous - a 12th Century thatched manor house.  Our room was really big, with a comfy bed and lots of quirkly little features - and the food was amazing.  Couldn't recommend it enough.  And the scenery generally was just gorgeous...

On the Saturday afternoon we went into Bude, on the North Cornwall coast.  The plan was to eat chips for tea on the beach - perfect holiday behaviour.  But as we were driving into the town, my eagle-eyes spotted - surprise surprise - a fabric shop!

My husband was quickly convinced to take a quick pitstop here at The Remnant House for me to get my fabric fix.  This shop is amazing!  It's jam packed full of fabric rolls, remnants on hangers, fat quarters...everything you could possibly wish for!  Not only that, but it just seemed to go on forever.  There were four rooms of fabric, fabric and more fabric.

I just couldn't resist picking up a few bargains, so here's the latest additions to my stash...

Tartan - this is a gorgeous fabric.  There wasn't a description on the little card that came with the remnant, but it certainly feels like a wool blend of some sort.  My plan for this is to make an infinity scarf - there was a pattern in the first issue of Love Sewing magazine which I'm going to use.  The remnant was 1m x 1.5m, so I'll have plenty left over - enough for another scarf as a gift or maybe a cushion or bag.

Pink vintage - This is a bit different from the usual florals I buy.  It's still a bit creased in the picture, sorry! It's a soft fabric with a lovely drape, and I can imagine it being a great maxi skirt.  Simplicity 2655 has a longer version which I think would be perfect.

Floral fat quarter - I just noticed this as I was waiting by the till - a bit of an impulse buy, but it's just such a lovely cotton fabric.  I don't know what I'll do with it - just store it up until something takes my fancy, probably!

Signing off with a selfie by the sea...

Inside Crochet - my monthly read

You might remember that for Christmas my hubby was very proactive and got me a subscription to 'Inside Crochet' magazine.  I had already been a (short term) subscriber to Simply Crochet, but I sadly didn't feel that I did enough crocheting to merit two subscriptions, so it was cancelled and I looked forward to my new magazine.

Inside Crochet is such a lovely magazine.  There's usually more than 20 patterns included, of lots of different types of crochet - from sweaters to cushion covers.  As well as that, there are interviews with people, such as designers of patterns, people who make yarn, and those who have their own crochet businesses.  There are also instructions on different crochet stitches and each month there's a basic section for those who might be picking up crochet for the first time.

I've not made much from the magazine patterns yet, as life has been so hectic and when I've had free time I've been sewing, rather than crocheting. However, last month I picked up the chevron scarf, to crochet during our trip to Belfast.  It's just a simple pattern, with basic treble crochets (double crochets in the US), but it looks really effective.  I'm using Rico Creative micro print DK yarn. It's 100% microfibre, which means it is really soft and has a really nice drape when it is crocheted up. The yarn is quite fine, and I'm using a 4mm hook, so it's taking a while, but it really allows the lovely detailing of the chevron pattern to shine through.

I'm about half way there at the moment - it's very effectively keeping me occupied on long car journeys.  Hopefully I'll have some results to show soon...!

My next project is from issue 49, a few months ago - I really want to make the Loren Jumper, from Drops Verdi.  It only requires one ball, and is a basic cosy jumper.  Perhaps not perfect timing to crochet a jumper as the weather is finally getting warmer...!  I should probably finish my cardigan first though - I'm so nearly there, but have been so distracted with sewing and work that I've just not had time.

If you're interested in subscribing to a crochet magazine, this is another one I can really recommend!