The quilt is finished... The big reveal!

So... It has finally been done...

And what a journey it has been...

Once all the panels were finished I stitched them all together to make the complete front of the quilt.

I then cleared my living room to make enough space to lay down the backing, wadding and front panel on the floor.

And then the grand pinning project began...

Once pinned it was on through the sewing machine...

The weather has been extremely hot in Yorkshire which, I have found, is not conducive to sewing quilts in a windowless room shared with a smelly tortoise... Endurance didn't cover it! There must be an easier way too to get a quilt through a machine like mine... Though I am surprised how well it coped. There is nothing worse than stuffing a half made quilt through a machine when most of it starts on your lap, you are pricked to death by pins and the weather is 30o outside!

Since I last wrote I have recieved the walking foot for my sewing machine. And what a god send it has been. As readers of my blog will know that when I did my last quilt I broke a stack load of needles while using a regular foot and it was a complete nightmare. My life has now been transformed with this foot. I haven't puckered the fabric once and it worked like a dream... The link for the one I bought is below!

I then carefully pinned the re-ironed bias binding to the outside edge (while trimming the excess fabric along the way!)

That was then sewn... I don't know about anyone else but I love this part as you know you are on the home stretch... And it seems to go a lot quicker than the quilting bit... But it is not as hot either!

And then it was a quick trim or two and TA-dah! The quilt was finished. I am pleased that it is finally done as it was a long time in the conception and the actual practice but all a labour of love. I will be travelling down to my parents at the weekend to give it to them and can't wait to see their faces when they see it...

Ladies and gentlemen... The anniversary quilt!

Taggie anyone?

My daughter is now nine months old and is now heavily into exploring the world around her. As a mother I hope to give her things that she can enjoy in her play time.

I came across this tutorial on how to make a Taggie which has different ribbons for a baby to explore. It also crackles - and my daughter LOVES things that crackle!

The project is easy to follow, simple to do and cheap to make...

It is the perfect project for using up small squares of fabric too (something I have in large quantities!)

The project did not take long at all to complete either which made it a good project to do of an evening when I just wanted to sew but not spend too long on it.

The website is: How to make a crinkle Taggie from cucicucicoo

My daughter simply loves it! She finds it fun to bury her face in it and laugh very loudly - oh how I wish how her brain works!

Quilting the memories - part ii

It's not often that I take on a project that seems to take ages to complete.

Ok, maybe I should scrap that statement.

I am over ambitious when it comes to my work and I love ideas that are big, brash and bold as I am an eternal optimist who thinks that nothing is impossible - you just need to look at things in another way!

After completing my first memory quilt, you may remember from many posts back, my husband asked me to make one for him out of old university t shirts and the like...

When I last posted about it I think I had done the planning, the cutting and was about to pin.

I sewed all the rows together and then ended up with the front panel complete and it only dawned on me then just how enormous this quilt would really be!

Instead of buying backing fabric I bought a flat bed sheet in my husbands desired colour (always blue!) and also bought some 2oz wadding as I knew my sewing machine would not cope with anything more bulky.

That was all then pinned together and then the long process of feeding it though my machine began... And it was quite an epic task ... My machine was not happy at all especially when, in the entire process, I broke no less than 6 sewing machine needles! Admittedly my machine is not the most expensive on the market but is also not the cheapest, but I had never envisaged ever quilting anything so it can't be to blame! Next time I actually look up the proper settings and the proper needles (to be fair, though, the needles did say 'quilting' on them!)

Once the main bulk was done my husband had picked out some lemon coloured ribbon to act as the edge... And what a pain that was to pin! It wasn't really thick enough for the job but I had nothing else so persevered....

And then it was fed through the machine again... With a few needle fatalities along the way!

I had to neaten up the edges where the material hadn't quite caught.

I am so pleased that I have finally managed to finish it!

Sleeping dragon in progress...

It is not often that I decide to take on a massive project. Especially when I am super busy with work.

But, with the easter holidays looming I thought it would not matter and I would find time to do it.

I have always wanted to make a model of a sleeping dragon - a name that has stuck from an early age - so when I got sent some fabric to make something with for a competition (I wasn't quick enough to enter, unfortunately!) I thought a sleeping dragon it would have to be!

First of all I made a paper version...



And then it was taking the model to pieces...
and lying them on the fabric and tracing around them.

Cutting out and labelling then commenced...

And this is where I am up to now...

So much still to do...

Getting shirty with the Stuarts...

The play I am currently doing the costumes for is certainly creating many challenges for me and I am certainly relishing them.

The problem of budget is still looming especially when I realised that we needed some very specific shirts for some of the male actors.

In 1665 in England, male shirts were very tailored and had big lacy collars. But because I was making these for non fault characters I needed to come up with a 'junior' version of this.

I bought a couple of cheap white shirts and cut off the collars and unpicked the pocket from the front.

I then set about pinning the shirt into the shape that I required. The trickiest bit was the sleeves but it got easier with each one that I did.

I found some off cuts from some previous costumes and made a simple collar that was similar to some of those I had seen in John Peacocks book 'Costume from 1066 to the present' and then pinned it in place.

It was then to the sewing machine and sewing everywhere that I had pinned - quite a feat with the mere quantity of them!

I dressed the mannequin again and added the black sash which helped with the sculpting.

I was so so pleased with the result and now can't wait to see it on the actor who will certainly bring the costume to life!

Maid in the nick of time...

The last couple of weeks have been focused on my schools production and after finishing a couple of maid's caps I then needed to finish the dress.

The dress started off with loads of black lace around it and buttons down the front. They were the first thing to go so I had a basic black dress.

I then cut the pieces of the apron from an old white flat bed sheet (boiled at 90o first in the washing machine!) and then sewed them together.

I then pinned on the white lace and then sewed it  on.

I then pinned the apron to the dress.

I used invisible thread to then stitch the apron to the dress.

Voila!

P.s. The picture of the dress is on an awful metal mannequin... I am begging the school to buy a proper one for the department as it would make life so much easier!

Pillow talk...

On the back of the successful make of the maids cap for the school production I was working on I got to try my skills at another type of servants cap from a different era...

After looking at some pictures from John Peacock's wonderful volume  '1066 to present day - a complete guide the English costume design and history' I got an idea of what the hat shape would have been like.

I drew out three pieces from my pillowcase... Two to make up the flat front part and the third to make the back.

The front section was sewn together right sides facing and then turned inside out.

I used my polystrene head (fondly called Twiggy Kaput - long story!) to shape the back and stuck a load of pins in it until I was satisfied that there were not going to be any holes when I got round to sewing it and that it vaguely looked historically correct!

I then sewed it together and then neatened it up... Simple as!

Maid from pillowcases...

After starting back at the school I work at after 6 months maternity leave I was thrown back into the craziness that is a school production.

With my sewing skills I usually end up on costume which gives me the excuse to sew during the work day which is never a bad thing in my book.

One of the many challenges of this production was the fact that we had zero budget to work with. And no materials to speak of...

I discovered in the drama props cupboard (known fondly as 'The Cupboard of Doom') a couple of white pillow cases and a couple of aprons I had thrown together for a previous production so thought that those would make a good base for whatever I needed to come up with.

The play itself moves through many time periods so the costume needed to reflect that. In a couple of scenes there was the requirement for some servant costumes so that is where I started.

In 1880 the maids cap was quite small and perched on the persons head... Using part of the pillow case I had found earlier I started fashioning together some sort of head piece - sewing the fabric carefully on an ancient and clunky sewing machine!

And this was the finished result... I am currently finishing another maids headdress but for a different era ... I will post that one too when I get it done... Who would have thought that a pillowcase would make excellent headwear?
P.s I had to buy a polystrene head for this project but found it quite difficult. I recommend Amazon for this as they are certainly the cheapest by a long way...

Quilting the memories... Part I

After completing my first t shirt quilt my husband produced a box of t shirts of his own which we had carted from house to house for the last five years. They were all of his t shirts from his various university clubs and also a few football shirts he couldn't bear to throw away. He also wanted them to be made into a quilt. So this time I had to do it properly!

Because a lot of the t shirts had quite big logos on them I needed to find a size of square which would be universal.

I then pressed all the t shirts.

Some of the shirts had emblems on the front as well as the back so, using a quilting template, I traced it around the front design and then painstakingly appliquéd the design to the main panel. The photos below show the process used for the logos ...



This is a work in progress and I'm trying to chip away at it little by little... I will update again soon!

Sewing with Cath...

Another of my greatest loves is Cath Kidston. I love the fabric, the designs and the homemade element of her things.

I particularly love her craft books: 'sew', 'stitch', 'patch' and 'make'. Free with her 'sew' book is the fabric and pattern for a bag. And I thought I would give it a go.

The instructions were easy to follow but I was grateful that the pieces were pre cut for this first project as I felt that this project was not for the beginner although the book does come with a massive pattern sheet which is, again, very clear.

It got me used to using my sewing machine (which was very new at that point) which was very useful but as the material was quite thick it made me test the tension on the machine too (another skill I had to learn!)

The project took me a couple of evenings to complete. However, I did tweak the instructions a little and did not make a loop for the button but instead sewed Velcro on the inside of the bag for a fastening.

All in all a great project for Cath Kidston fans... I'm certainly hooked!

Taking it down a size...

After the success of making normal size bunting I had some very nice material come with a magazine and immediately thought of my sister (who needed cheering up) and made her some bunting.

There was rather a lot of fabric scraps left over from the bunting and it seemed a pity to throw it away. So I decided to make some mini bunting.

I did what I usually do for the big stuff and just scaled everything down and used bias binding yet again to bind all the triangles in a line. The triangles themselves were quite a fiddle and I had to be carful not to trap my fingers in the machine or burn my fingers while pressing!

This bunting is still in the box I put it in - where projects that have no special place go until I find a use for them. I think I may need to make a small bunting just to prove it can be done ... Do dolls houses need bunting?

Medieval fayre...

My sister in law is attending a sca event in the USA in March and asked me whether I wanted to make her a dress for it from a pattern she had liked on the Internet.

I am always up for a challenge so said yes and that I would have a go.

A couple of days later the pattern landed on my doormat in the form of a cd with PDF pattern. So many printed pages (and a new printer) later I had the pattern and needed to painstakingly tape the sheets together in the correct order. I was thankful that the pattern designer had made this easy for me by printing the number clearly on each page.

Once my sitting room floor was covered (I was grateful that there was nobody around to see just how big this pattern truly was!) I traced out the correct size on some test fabric I was using to make a toile. Generally I don't make toiles but as this was a dress for someone else I thought I'd better get this right on a draft first before cutting the proper fabric!

After the toile was made my sister in law came for a fitting and I breathed a sigh of relief that it did fit and I could continue with the real thing.

As my sister in law was going to be packing this dress in a suitcase I bought velveteen rather than anything heavier in deep purple and in gold. She had told me to think regal and I thought purple and gold are about as regal as it gets!

Helpfully the pattern designer had also included a cutting pattern to help me get the most out of my fabric so it was easy to just lay it out and cut.

The pattern also came with a step by step guide which was clear, simple and easy to follow.

After pinning, basting, learning how to make french loops, making petal sleeves for the first time, hemming and endless hours at my sewing machine I finally finished it. I tried to add up the hours spent doing this project but found it impossible due to a small baby hampering my attempts a couple of times!

However, I have really enjoyed the challenge. I am proud of the work I have done and the hours I have put in. And most of all I have loved the look on my sister in laws face when she tried it on for the first time. Priceless!

Pattern used: http://www.lauramarshdesigns.co.uk

A quilt down memory lane...

I am amazingly sentimental person. This, unfortunately, has many, many draw backs. The main of these is the fact that I do have a tendency to hoard anything that has anything and everything as I cannot bear to throw anything away. Over the years I have got better as my husband is the complete opposite and with the arrival of our little girl it has made room a little restricted.

The biggest thing I found difficult throwing away was a box of old t shirts. I haven't worn t shirt properly since I was about 11 it over many, many years I seemed to have accumulated loads of them from productions I've worked on and west end shows I had been to see plus my London marathon shirt (a feat I still can't quite believe I completed) and a few other random ones from my university years. It seemed a pity to throw so many memories away so I came up with the idea of making a quilt out of them.

I had never made a quilt before so I tried to base it on first principles. I cut out the bits of the t shirt I wanted and then lay it on my living room floor ... It took up most of it. I pinned together the pieces roughly and then measured how much material I would need for the backing... And I needed quite a bit!

Something I love it to is go around charity shops. As part of my day job I usually have to have a good root around for props and stuff for productions so charity shops are one of my favourite places - and you are giving something back which is always nice to do too.

I found a beige flat sheet in a charity shop and thought it would make a good back panel for my quilt. I also bought a couple of metres of bias binding to neaten the edges at the end. (As you have probably gathered from my previous posts I have discovered that bias binding helps with so much ... Give it a go!)

After pinning the pieces together I sewed together a row followed by another row until I had roughly five rows of t shirt pieces. The biggest challenge though was that I hadn't kept the pieces uniform which made keeping the rows together quite difficult! If I attempted this again I would keep the pieces uniform in size and length!

When I had the rows I started sewing the rows together until I had the whole thing.

What I hadn't planned for was the fact that t shirt material is quite stretchy so left a few gaps in the finished panel so I found some off cuts of some fabric I liked and filled the gaps with it.

I then pinned the back panel to the front panel and then pinned bias binding around the edge. I then sewed two lines of stitching around the edge to bind the panels together.
Simple as that!
This was an ambitious project. I think next time I will do something a little more simple!

Pull yourself together...

Most people when they go through the 'nesting' stage of pregnancy start cleaning out cupboards, painting skirting boards or just generally blitz their homes.
I made curtains.

 In the weeks leading up to my daughters birth I set about making two lots of curtains - one set for my baby-to-be and the second for our dining room. (I am going to add that our dining room leads to a conservatory so doesn't really need curtains... But as my husband learnt - never argue with a pregnant woman!) As these were replacing existing curtains which were already up when we moved in three years ago I used them as a pattern for the new ones. I pinned the material to the existing curtains to get the length and hung them up to make sure I was hanging it straight. The same was then done with the lining which was blackout material for the baby's room and just a cheap cotton lining for the dining room. In the baby's room the blackout material was quite easy to work with (although I needed to adjust the setting on my sewing machine so that the extra thickness didn't jam it).

 For the hanging loops I unpicked one of the existing ones to check for size. I cut out the desired amount (remembering a seam allowance), pressed and then sewed. The loops were attached to the top of the curtains between the main fabric and the blackout material to make it look a bit neater.

 In the dining room it was not quite as straightforward. The material that I had bought was not quite long enough for the proposed windows so I decided to lengthen them with a strip of black material attached to the bottom and use the same black material to make the curtain loops. The bottom piece was measured umpteen times as I wanted it to be straight and to look good. It was a tense moment after sewing everything on and hang inning the curtains for a final time ... But ultimately it was a success. As I had some of the main fabric left so made a couple of curtain ties using an existing one as a template and used bias binding to tidy up the edges plus a curtain ring as the finishing touch.

 Thankfully the curtains were finished in plenty of time for my daughters arrival - I doubt I would have had the patience after she had been born!

Family matters...

I live a good 200 miles from my sister and parents but I would like to say that I have a good relationship with them.

The whole 'I enjoy sewing' thing has certainly got its advantages from my family's stand point it means that I will quite willingly adjust and hem various items of clothing.

My sister embraces most fashion trends and had bought a onesie during the January sales. The problem was that it had feet and whenever she wore it (and ignored the constant ribbing from her now fiancé) the feet flopped around like a pair of flippers. So she asked whether I could remove the feet and put in some elastic at the bottom.

This seemed like a straight forward request until I realised that the seam at the bottom of the leg was not straight. A lot of puffing and sighing then ensued as I painstakingly unpicked the legs and the feet.

My sister helpfully sent me her ankle measurement so I could tailor the bottom of the leg properly. I pinned it to the desired length, trimmed any excess fabric and then used a contrasting thread to sew it in place (she had requested this!) leaving a gap to feed the elastic through.

I then fed the elastic through the tube using a safety pin. I have found that a big safety pin is the easiest thing to use as I find this quite a fiddly job and it usually takes me a couple of goes to get it right!

Once the ends meet sew them together and close up the gap.

Easy peasy!

Note: no photos of the onesie ... My sister says she would throttle me ... Sisterly love, eh!

Making the apron strings...

I sometimes find when I am out shopping that there is some amazing fabric out there but it comes with a hefty price tag. But on the other side of it there are some beautiful tee towels out there tat are crying out for a new use other than drying the dishes!

Purple is my favourite colour so when I picked up a pack of tee towels a couple of years ago with different hues of purple I knew that I simply had to make a half apron out of them.

The only extras that I needed for this project was a length of bias binding and something to make the ties. These particular ties are off a bridesmaid dress that was adapted for my wedding a couple of years. I kept the off cuts for a rainy day. A thick length of ribbon would also suffice.

I cut the tee towel in half. I put the half I wanted to keep to one side. With the other half I cut it into half again. This would act as the pocket of the apron.

Around the sides of the pocket and the main part of the apron sew around the bias binding. The bias binding works better if it is pressed in half first as it feeds through the sewing machine better. This can also be done by hand if you prefer!

Then sew the pocket with whip stitch to the main apron.

The attach the apron strings to the back. I used a simple running stitch but it might be better to sew it with your machine. (I didn't as my machine was having an off day and refused to take the fabric!)

And there you have it!

This pattern can be adapted and changed to purpose. I use the apron when I am crafting and need a lot

of little things at the same time. I have also used it at school during school productions for the normal paraphernalia that is needed there too.


This project does not cost a fortune ... Give it a go!

A bunting we will go!

When I first got my sewing machine I was desperate to make something that was quick, easy and simple ... Plus it needed to be something that I could not muck up in any way. So I decided I needed to make some bunting.

As I have previously mentioned I am a massive bookworm and I feel that books solve most problems so I bought a book on how to make bunting.

In hindsight I realise that I possibly didn't need a book but it seemed a great idea at the time. Some of the more complicated ones look great though!

I had a fat quarter of some cake fabric which I bought from ebay, a metre of bias binding (readily available from hobbycraft or any other haberdashery) and a triangle template.

I made the template slightly bigger than the bunting I wanted to finish up with (allowing for seams). I drew out 12 triangles and cut them out. I sewed around the two longest edges. I then turned them inside out. I then pressed them.

It has only been since I started sewing that I have realised how useful having a small travel iron to hand. There always seem to be seams to press and you don't want to be getting out your massive laundry one every time as pressing can take seconds. The one I use is linked at the bottom.  If I had my own way and had a craft room I would have an ironing board and iron always out -I will have to continue dreaming!

After pressing lay out the triangles in the order you want them. Take your bias binding. Press it in
half (which can be tricky so watch your fingers!) the place the triangles between the two folds if the binding and pin in place.

Then run the bunting through your sewing machine making sure the triangles are square inside the binding.

And viola! Your bunting!

I want to experiment with some other types soon so I'll let you know how it goes!

Travel iron: http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/4103336.htm
Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/177390311/cupcake-bunting

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/177390311/cupcake-bunting

Just to start... A secret from Loch Ness

I love sewing...

If I could find a way to sew and earn a good living and also get to do my drama teaching and have time to read and spend a bit of time with my family and friends I would.

Unfortunately the boring bits of life get in the way and my ideas box is overflowing with pages torn out of various craft magazines - many of which will lay dormant for many years to come.

When I first bought my sewing machine (with money from my 27th birthday) it was exciting and a moment of epiphany for me. I could create clothes and homewares all by myself. I felt enlightened.

My mother was possibly the most surprised by my revelation as she had always claimed that sewing was not something she did other than the odd button or name tag when I was young. My great grandfather designed and sewed costumes for the Atila girls appreantly. One day I will follow up this fact as it would certainly mean that sewing and being creative is truly in my blood.

My mother gave me a set of patterns that her Nanny had given to her before she died. They are called 'Silver Needles' and were published in the 1970s. The collection includes children's, men's and women's clothes, home sewing projects and a stack of crochet and knitting projects too. If anyone can give me any more information I would be very grateful.

The first project I tried was a felt Loch Ness Monster. As a kid I loved tales of the unexplained and it seemed a quick project that could while away a couple of hours of an evening. As it was made of felt the fabric was not going to fray. I also didn't have any proper stuffing so used polystrene balls instead to stuff him.

Here is the finished result:

I was pleased. So pleased that I put him on sale on etsy www.etsy.com but as to this day no one has bought him so he spends his day in our bedroom on another bookcase! 

If you are interested in buying one please check out my etsy shop... I will custom make one for you as I don't think I could bare to part with the original. If you want the pattern or want me to post it just let me know. 

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/justcallmeh?ref=si_shop