Dyeing success!

Upcycling this particular shirt is an ongoing saga. Aren't you riveted to your seat, waiting for the next installment?  Here it is!

After my bleaching misadventures, I thought I would have one last shot at getting the fabric to a colour that my kids would wear.

From khaki green to salmon orange, I contemplated what colour I could put over the top to get something that wouldn't be brown. Navy was a contender but I thought I would go for red and see what happened.

 

What happened was beyond my wildest dreams. I was expecting that I had completely ruined the fibres by bleaching first, but they came out a fantastic bright pink! In fact, this is the exact shade I have been looking for to match for a patterned fabric that I need to tone down. I was expecting to be looking for years for this shade and it came out of my own washing machine.

I haven't dyed anything before so seeing the insides of my machine turn a bright red was pretty fun (and scary!) I added a couple of other shirts that needed bringing back to life. One was a bright green, a shade that didn't really suit me. I thought it would come out brown and I was ok with that, but it came out as a deep grape purple, with green stitching left as a contrast. I love it!

I sense a new addiction forming. What can I get my hands on next?

Little French Jacket sewalong - supplies

I've got my pattern, fabric and extras all ready for the start of the Little French Jacket sewalong.

The pattern is Burda 8949 and I'll be making View B.

The fabric is a navy cotton twill with a white for the contrast trim. I got 3m of the navy and 1m of the white. 7m of the lime green bias binding ought to be enough for finishing all the inside seams. Add self-cover buttons and shoulder pads and I think I'm all set.

I've been giving some serious thought to Inna's comment on my last post. I realise that I am not making a true Chanel-style couture jacket. I was fine with that. Then I realised what an opportunity I was missing. If she is kind enough to come back and comment on my tiny post on my tiny blog, how great would it be to really take the chance to make a real couture jacket, with help from people who really know what they are doing?

So this is going to become my test jacket. A wearable muslin, if you must.

For the real thing, I have my eye on some black wool boucle. I think a trip to Liberty is needed for lining shopping, plus a market research foray into Chanel to see what's going on in their A/W collection for pockets, trims and buttons. C'mon Cathy, you live in London, one of the fashion capitals of the world! Time to make the most of it.

Eeek! I'm so excited to make a true Chanel-style jacket (because that's what we're really talking about, right?)  I'll be starting a bit behind, I want to get this test garment underway but I plan to finish with two cute jackets.  Thanks Inna!

Sunnyside Baby Cardigan

I love knitting baby gifts - yes, I have turned into "that lady"!  I tell myself I'm giving hip / cool / funky baby gifts because I am using strong colours and nice yarn. Hey, it works for me!

This yarn is Dream in Color, Smooshy, which I have really enjoyed working with. It felt a little scratchy when I was winding it off the skein (I'm not the only one who hangs it off her own neck, am I?) but it felt soft when I was working with it, and when it was knitted up. Fingers crossed, baby won't find it itchy.

My Ravelry notes are here.  The pattern is Sunnyside Baby Cardigan and it was great to work with. I really like how they have created a cable detail and then given a version to create out of lace. I chose the lace but I think I might make the cable if I make this again. I had not tried a picot edge before but it looked great. A little bit of work, but not difficult, and a lot of wow factor for the effort.

Little French Jacket Sewalong - Planning

Have you noticed my first button in my sidebar?


I'm joining Inna from Thewallinna and other creatures in her first sewalong: the Little French Jacket.

Ever since I picked up sewing again, I've been planning to make a jacket.  I even bought three patterns in my last pattern spending spree, just for the jackets.

I have made a jacket before, as part of my Textiles & Design class in Year 10, we had to make a tailored garment. Most of us chose jackets because they were oh-so-grown up when we were 15 (let's face it, they still are!). Mine actually worked out ok, it was a royal blue triumph of polyester, and I even wore it a few times.

Now that I'm a bona fide grown up, a jacket seems like a risky project. I want a nice jacket, a nice jacket means nice fabric. Nice fabric = expensive. Will I be able to do it justice? Inna's sewalong is just the kick-start I need to go ahead, bite the bullet and actually make a jacket. I am especially excited about the fitting part as I really need to develop my skills in this area. I am hoping to pick up some new tips and tricks, instead of just making the standard size of the pattern.

So, what am I making?

I already have one of the Burda patterns that Inna lists, 8949, so I am going to use that. Truth be told, I don't believe that this style of jacket truly suits my boxy frame but it is such a classic that I can't resist trying it out.

Of course, for a French jacket, I have to make view B with the contrast edges.

For the fabric, I have diverged from the recommended wool and chosen a cotton twill. Navy with white trim.  I couldn't bring myself to spend lots on an expensive wool fabric for my first effort at this sort of thing, particularly when I know, deep down, that this style is not my most flattering choice.

Cotton twill is very affordable, washable and should hold its shape nicely for a structured jacket.

I have also decided not to line it and will bind the seams instead with bias binding. (Inspiration from Sewaholic's beautiful Robson Coat.) I've not ordered it yet, pondering making my own, but I am quite drawn to a lime green spot for a bit of fun.  I think I will use self-covered buttons in the navy. I don't want to go over-the-top nautical with brass buttons.

I realise I am missing out on some of the great aspects of the sew-along: no lining, no quilting, no 3-piece sleeve, no chain hem, no trim and I will not have a truly Chanel-style jacket at the end of it, but I am ok with that. I'm going for fit with this project and I expect I will learn a lot without taking on more than my life will accommodate.

This can be a wearable muslin (toile) and I can plan on wool bouclé next time!

Cabled Cushion Cover

Now that Autumn is here, I could finally find it in myself to finish off this knitted cushion cover. I started in March but knit homewares did not seem right in summer so I put it aside and pursued other projects. Now that the evenings are drawing in, and the weather is chilly, this cushion looks so fat and cosy, it is just inviting me to join it on the sofa, knitting needles in hand...

I made a plan to cover our existing sofa cushions. We have had four of these really blah cushions forever. They are fine, they are neutral, they do the job, they blend in and are (mostly) inoffensive; but they are boring. So I decided to knit at least one new cover. Start with one and see how you go, right?

The yarn is Sirdar Denim Sport Aran which I got on sale. I was planning to make myself an Aran fisherman's jumper but I've not had great success with pieced garments for myself so I don't feel like I am really ready to do it justice. This seemed like the right project for showing off it's good qualities. I love having such a neutral shade in my stash and it is a great yarn too. It is soft enough to use for baby blankets and I really like the uneven texture: it gives stitch definition, but is kind to flaws. I can machine wash it and it's very inexpensive.

When I was searching for a pattern on Ravelry, I didn't see any with the sort of cabling that I wanted. So I used the cable design from a poncho instead. (The Ravelry pattern search really is phenomenal.) My notes on how I converted the pattern are here. If I make another one (and I hope I do), I think I'll go for a less elaborate cable and use a lot of rope twists instead, maybe with ribbing on the back. The back of this one is mostly stocking stitch, with a few bands of seed stitch breaking it up along the way.

Instead of attaching a fastening method, or sewing the cushion into the cover, I machine sewed the cover to the zip of the existing cushion cover. That way, I can take out the cushion pad if I need to launder the cover(s) and it is far neater than anything I could achieve.

Now, where's my glass of wine and my knitting?

What have I done?

An unwelcome side-effect from all my sewing: ironing!

I was brought up by a mother who doesn't believe in ironing.  (Hi Mum!)  My mother is an amazing housekeeper but the one thing she does not like is ironing. When I was at school, I remember that I told her I noticed the other children's school shirts had creases down the sleeves. So she started ironing the sleeves of my shirts. Not the body, just the sleeves!

Coming from a non-ironing household and moving to Britain was quite a shock.  Everyone here seems to be really into ironing: jeans, t-shirts, sometimes even underwear. I'm not about to get into all of that - if you shake it out before you hang it to dry, it's good enough.  But sewing with pure cotton fabric, and ironing as you go, gets you pretty used to the idea of perfectly smooth garments.  Then, when they come out of the wash, they look pretty awful.  Now, I iron all my makes, back to pretty.  Then, it becomes contagious, I look at all the other garments that would look so much better if they were nicely pressed.  What have I done?

Luckily, I find I don't mind ironing all that much, the heat, the smell, it's comforting on a chilly evening.  (Shh, don't tell my Mum!)

February Toddler Cardigan

More knitwear today!

This was intended for a birthday present for my daughter, but I realised, about 3/4 of the way through, that it wasn't going to be large enough for a 4 year old.  I put it aside and cast on for the Ocean Waves Cardigan instead.

If I wanted it for my kiddo, I should rip this out and size up, but I went ahead and finished it and I think it is probably a 2 year size.  I just have to decide which toddler to give it to.  Since I don't have one handy, I can't photograph this on a model so the floor will have to do.

The yarn is Araucania Ranco Solid (Ravelry link) which I really enjoyed working with.  I love the colour and it has not felted or pilled while I was working with it.  I realise that it may not be the ideal yarn for a toddler, or a lace garment but, so far, it looks great.  Semi-solid yarns look fantastic with this lace pattern. (I think semi-solid yarns look fantastic, in general!)

The pattern is the Elizabeth Zimmerman, February Baby cardigan. Much loved by knitters, this is now my third iteration of this pattern, and it definitely won't be my last.  It is easy to master, knits fast, looks impressive, can be done with less than one skein and has almost no seams. It is my go-to pattern for baby gifts. I so want to make the matching bonnet, but I haven't seen a baby in a bonnet since the 1970s.

I made covered buttons using one particular shade of butterfly from the birthday dress. I am going to use covered buttons again, I think they look fantastic and are a great way to use a much loved fabric again, even if you only have the smallest scraps left over.

(The colour of the yarn is much prettier than this photo, I had to shade it to show off the buttons.)

Now I just have to decide which of my sisters or friends is most likely to hand wash their toddler garments...!

Bleaching (mis)adventures

I've had this shirt hanging around in my fabric box for quite some time.  It is really soft and in great condition but I knew the girls would never go for something in this colour.

So I had a go with a bucket of bleach to see what would happen. The greenish colour turned a surprising salmon-orange.

Truth be told, I don't like the new colour and I fear I have ruined the fabric by bleaching.  I am going to try some dye and see what happens but I fear I have made a boo-boo with this one.  It will be nice as a lining, especially for waistbands and things that sit against the skin.  If I can, by some miracle, get it to a lovely deep red, it is going to be a dress.

Here is the fabric in its entirety, the pocket is the original colour and I have laid it over the top for the photo.

Fairy Castle Cake

For a fairy party, what other cake should be made but a Fairy Castle?  (Thank goodness I didn't have to make a fairy!)

I had a few sources of inspiration for this.  I have two Woman's Weekly children's cake decorating books. One is a re-released vintage one and the other is modern.  It is amazing to see how much has changed. The biggest difference I notice is how the vintage one is all buttercream icing and the modern one is almost exclusively royal icing, which gives a much smoother, more professional looking result.

There's just one hitch: I hate kneading royal icing!  I have started going with a version of my own, also called Fluffy Frosting, using egg whites, a splash of lemon juice, the colouring and lots and lots of icing sugar.  My top tip for cake decorating is always make way more icing than you think you will need. Like, double. You will use it.

The other source of inspiration was a cake from my own childhood, made by my mother for my younger brother's birthday. I remember this vividly because my mother had made it and left it on the counter until the party. I was looking at it and decided that there was a bit of messy icing on the board, so I scooped it away with my finger and ate it.  I then proceeded to "neaten" almost all the icing around the edges of the cake! Once I'd finished the edges, the join between the turrets and the cake looked messy, so I neatened that too. Do you know the funniest part? I don't remember getting into enormous trouble! I am pretty sure I made the cake look awful but maybe my mother was too busy with the party to notice at the time.  Anyway, the episode has stuck in my mind. I must have been about 5 at the time.  Sorry Mum!

So the castle was going to be a cake with upturned ice cream cones. 4 years is the perfect age for this because the four turrets are great candle holders.  I knew I wanted height for the base cake but I wasn't catering for huge numbers of children so I didn't want to make a large slab cake for the base.  I don't have any square cake pans, and I didn't want to create extra crumbs by cutting and building up sections of cake, so I used a round cake tin for the base. I love to see the in-progress photos of other's cakes so here's mine of the cake and the cones without any icing:

You can see the decorating ingredients hanging around, waiting to be used.  I buy a cheap cake mix (yes, the cheapest, no-name cake mix in the store - it is actually really, really good), I used 4 in total, make my own icing and I do spend up on lots of decorations. I also always over-buy because I am never quite sure exactly what I am going to use on the day.  The smarties didn't get used in the end, but they are a great backup and will always be readily eaten at the party, if they don't make it on to the cake.

To get the candles to sit on the turrets, I poked a hole in the bottom of each cone with a knitting needle. Then I iced each cone and sprinkled glitter sprinkles all over it.  I wedged the candle in the top and added more icing if needed.  Then I left them to dry.  I transported them to the party separately and put them on top of the cake just before serving. They are not iced into place.

I used lots of icing around the sides of the main cake, the cakes rose a lot in the oven and I cut them down a little, but there were still lots of gaps to fill.  I didn't want to fill the bottom gap with icing and I was about to cover the space with a ribbon when I realised that the marshmallows would make perfect foundation stones for the castle. So I stuffed the underside gaps with marshmallows and added more to the plate before serving.

I used Toblerone pieces for the castellations, Cadbury Dream Fingers for the door/drawbridge and added sugar flowers and wafer butterflies around the sides. 

Sewing salve

Definition, courtesy or Merriam-Webster:
1. An unctuous or adhesive substance for application to wounds or sores;
2. A remedial or soothing influence or agency

I've been struck by recent blog posts on stressful situations sapping those bloggers creativity and desire to sew.  While I can certainly see how this could be true, for me, it is the opposite.  I have found sewing and stitching to be such a comfort / salvation / salve etc, whenever stress strikes.

First, knitting: I find this almost meditative, it is a fantastic stress relief.  I have noticed myself thinking, "I need to calm down, I need to go and knit.  Immediately."  After a few rows, or a few hours, I have always felt better.  It is slow and steady, you have to keep the tension even, it is repetitive, meditative and, ultimately, productive.  I turn to knitting to keep my hands busy and let my mind wander.  (A complicated lace pattern would also work well if you wanted to keep your mind occupied and off any unwelcome thoughts.)

Then, sewing: During a recent stressful situation, I found sewing to be the most marvellous displacement activity.  No matter how many late nights I was working through, how many times the printer jammed, I could walk away, head over to my sewing table and carry on with my project.  It was absorbing and the output was tangibly coming together before my very eyes.  Would I have been better off pushing on and just finishing the job at hand?  Maybe, but I could keep the unpleasant job in perspective when I had another, pleasant, job to flit back to.

Finally, embroidery: I love emboidery!  I'm doing counted cross stitch and I think of it as colouring in for grown-ups! I don't have to do anything but count properly and put the stitches in, one at a time.  It is really, really slow but it is lovely to see something pretty growing from out of the mesh fabric.  Again, absorbing for the hands, and the eyes, but your mind is mostly free to think about what it wants.

I also love how the knitting and embroidery is portable, and sociable.

I do agree that there are times when life gets very busy and finding a way to stitch is not easy or desirable.  I usually find this happens at times when there are other stimulating (as opposed to stressful) experiences happening.  They might be stressful too, but I think it is the stimulation that is keeping me from stitching, not the stress.  ie: I am finding other outlets for energy and creativity at that time.

I'm very grateful that I have these hobbies that provide me with so much comfort and satisfaction, I would venture to say that I do something with a needle and string every single day. 

Starburst Fabric roundup

Here's what I got from this 2 meters of quilting cotton:
 2 dresses
 2 hats
 2 teddy bear carriers

The cost per garment ended up at an incredible £1.91 per item! Including shipping.

Additional items:
 Fabric: 2x fat quarters for dress yokes @ £2.00 ea
 Patterns: self-drafted or free
 Thread: stash
 Interfacing: stash
 Buttons: stash
 New tools: not required

Total
 Dresses: £3.91 each
 Hats: £1.91 each
 Teddy carriers: £1.91 each

I guess, sometimes, sewing does cost less than buying!

Birthday present wrap-up

I got quite a few handmade things ready in time for the August birthday.  I resisted the urge to give, and photograph, them immediately, and instead put them away for the special day.  Now that we have celebrated the birthday, I can finally take photographs of all the gifts in action.

First, the Butterfly Dress.  It fitted great and looked so adorable.  She wore it for her birthday tea party.

It also looked fab with the Ocean Waves Cardigan.  The two were perfect together, especially with the collar of the dress over the top.

Then finally, the long-awaited Scooter Basket.  The two girls look so cute scooting together with their bright baskets stuffed full of furry animals.

Teddy Bear Carriers

I had just enough time to sew these to take on our summer holiday.  They were also handy bed time bribery: a Special Surprise, if nobody called Mummy back after bedtime.

I used this pattern and tutorial from Little Punkin Pie.  I changed it only slightly by making the fold for the seat shorter, so that the leg holes came out larger.  I also skipped buttons, and just tied the straps through the buttonholes.  I found that the straps, at 50", were not long enough.  These would be fine for a toddler, but older children need more length. Then I realised that it is easier for them to slip it on and off by themselves if it is not crossed over, so they can use it without my help.

I skipped the front pocket, mainly for reasons of time.  It wouldn't be impossible to go back and add it later, if I feel like it. One of the first things Big Sis said (after, "Thank you Mummy!" of course) was, "It needs a pocket!" 

I was able to use up the last of the starburst fabric, which was perfect for this project, due to its weight and lack of drape.  For the linings, I used the same shirts that I used for the linings of their hats, darker for the Little One and lighter for Big Sis.  I also did different colour topstitching, but they don't look much different.

The carriers have been a hit - E is crazy about teddy bears, and her special bear in particular.  Teddy went for lots of walks while we were on holiday, and we didn't have to carry him once!

Ocean Waves Cardigan

If you had asked me a month ago, I would have told you I am a knitter first and foremost.  I've only recently returned to sewing, and it was a distant second hobby.  But now?  I can't decide.  Luckily, I don't have to, I can love them both and they are both available to me at different times, in different ways and offering different kinds of satisfaction.

That said, it is lovely to post my first knitting project on this blog.  Ravelry has done such a first rate job of providing a way for knitters to catalogue their work that if there had been a sewing equivalent (that is up to the job), I would not have started a blog at all.

This cardigan is part of the birthday gift / outfit that I have been working on through August for Little One.  I had started a whole different knitting project for her that was working up way too small.  I put that aside, found a different yarn in my (extensive) stash and searched Ravelry for a girls, sleeveless, lace, cotton, cardigan.

What I found was this Drops Design design.  It worked out great, really great.  The yarn, pattern, sizing, stitches, lack of mistakes, everything, all came together to make this one of my best ever knits.

When I first browsed the project gallery on Ravelry, I wasn't wild about all the ridges in the pattern.  I eliminated half of them in the lower half of the garment and I think it makes the lace eyelets show up better.  I could have played around with an ever-decreasing number of ridges to get even more of a wave effect but, in knitting, I never know quite how many rows I'll be doing (or even quite where I am at any given point), so unless I were to make this exact cardigan again (unlikely to impossible), it's not going to happen.

I have never made a scalloped edge before and it actually was really easy - isn't it great when an easy technique looks so much more impressive than it is?  (Better than the other way around!)

My Ravelry notes, including the pattern and yarn, are here.  The yarn is Debbie Bliss Prima, a bamboo/merino blend which is now discontinued.  I got it on sale, loved the colour and was going to make a top for myself.  But I didn't have enough and I am so glad I decided to put it to better use.

I ended up doing a single button fastening, because, you guessed it, I have hardly any matching buttons in my jar and this mother of pearl button was too perfect not to use.

Fittingly, I was knitting these ocean waves while we were on holiday at the seaside.  I am not a fast knitter and I knew I had to devote all my spare holiday time to getting this finished.  I did not read one book, magazine or blog post and I was that lady you saw on the beach / in the car / on the ferry / in the cafe, knitting, knitting, knitting.  I cast off on the journey home and sewed the button on that evening, just in time for the birthday the next day.  Thank goodness I rarely knit to a deadline.

Little One liked her birthday cardigan and it should grow with her for a year or two.

Finally, I had to share this behind the scenes shot, taken by my assistant photographer!

(One day, I'll have to write more about how guilty I feel about my children thinking that the reason anyone takes photos is "for the website" and the fact I have more photos of the stuff I've made than I do of them.)

Red Velvet Cupcakes

 

Some Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing for Little One's birthday tea.

I'm afraid that these are far from perfectly home made.  I used a cake mix and bought the sugar flowers.  But I did pipe the icing (special occasions only).

The "real" birthday cake is coming later this week.  The cake request for her party is a Fairy Castle Cake.  I start tomorrow, wish me luck!