From Gardening to Bag Making in one Day.

Today was such a lovely day for gardening. The weeds were thick and plentiful, but came out easily. As they were pulled out, lots of lovely little flowers that have been hiding away all winter revealed themselves. A nice way to spend the day.
And tonight I went to Nicole Mallalieu Design HQ for a fabulous workshop. Tonight's lesson was making straps for bags, belts etc. It was loads of fun and informative as well.
Here's what I made, in cheap and cheerful callico. Now that I'm off my L-Plates, I can try them in nice fabric on a bag.

The stitching is a little bit dodgey on this one, but you get the idea. Also the iron left a bit of a stain on the fabric, ah well, its only the test model.

All in all, I'm feeling a bit too clever by half. Can't wait to make some real ones up now.

The First Signs of Spring!

Aaaah the first signs of Spring! And look what has popped up.
That must be my cue to get out in the garden and tackle those weeds. Better tie a rope around my leg so I don't get lost.

Oh I do love to sit and sew.

This week has been a sewing week.... busy in my little cave, whipping up all manner of creations in fabric. Here's what I've been working on.

The first picture features the wrap skirt. This one was made earlier this year, and has been well loved. The pattern is from Nicole Mallaleiu's fabulous new book You Sew Girl!

The book takes you on a journey, with many fun and rewarding projects. Each project teaches new skills, and has you sewing like a pro in no time. I'm really loving the pattern free clothing section. Its like oragami meets sewing! Having fun experimenting with some cowl neck tops, photos to come.....

The wrap skirt is definitely the favourite so far. I've made it up in all manner of fabrics, as birthday presents for various girlfriends. I also made a shorter version for my leggy teenage daughter.
It is my all-time favourite item of clothing. (Well maybe I love the boots more, but the skirt comes close).
The fabric is the most divine hand printed organic linen, from Thea & Sami.
Thea's range of fabrics, homewares and clothing is to die for. Do check our her website.

So what have I made this week. Well there is the beret. The pattern is from Nicole Mallalieu's Quick and Easy range. It really is very quick and easy to make, and it looks amazing.

The fabric is another gorgeous piece of linen. An offcut I scored about seventeen years ago. I'd just dropped in to visit my sister in her studio with toddler and newborn in tow. The gloss of new motherhood took a backseat when I spied the scrap box of one of her neighbours. It was just overflowing with drool-worthy fabrics in reasonable sized pieces. All that could be seen of me were my feet, disappearing into the box. After rolling around in it for a while, and then remembering the kids, and then apologising to their aunt and all her studio mates, I collected quite a stash. And with little ones to sew for, it didn't matter that they were in small pieces.

I was pretty excited about the beret. It was looking fantastic, until it was finished and tried it on. Unfortunately, now that my hair has turned a lovely shade of silver, browns and tans don't really suit me any more. Luckily my gorgeous red-haired friend, Christine looked stunning in it. She didn't want to be photographed today, but will send some pics later.

And finaly, the Fedora. Another pattern from Nicole Mallalieu's fabulous range. This is the first attempt. Its a little bit wonky, but I'm pretty happy with it. As it also looked better on Christine, she got two hats today. The lemon tree was more willing to be photographed, so you'll have to wait to see how lovely my friend looks.

There are a few other projects bubbling away, stay tuned...............