Category Archives: Sewing

Mending First, Sewing Second

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In order to keep on top of the never-ending stream of mending I have set myself the rule that I have to do any outstanding mending before I work on my sewing projects.

Today there was mending to be done.

2012-04-29 01This is The Duke’s backpack that he takes to work.  The stitching had ripped where the shoulder strap is attached so I restitched it.  Nothing fancy but it works.

2012-04-29 02Next, a patch on a pair of trousers (inside view).

2012-04-29 03Here is the end result.  You can see they are his best gear!  The patch on the left is the new one.  Not sure how much longer these will last.

2012-04-29 04Then it was on to the socks.  I think I did 4 altogether.  This shows the mended toe.  You can’t even call it darning.  I just use the zigzag stitch on my sewing machine.  Once again, not pretty but effective.

I then went on and finished altering the waistband of a skirt before finally doing some sewing on a summer top for myself.  It is just as well that summer is 6 months away at the rate I am going.

I also did some more knitting on my dishcloths.  I have now finished my third one and am about halfway through the fourth.

This evening we have finalised the itinerary for the touring part of our US holiday and started booking accommodation.  The planning is lots of fun so I can barely begin to imagine how good it will be when we actually get there.  It is now less than 4 months till we leave.

Rescued & Re-homed

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Although we did get our dog from the Animal Welfare about 8 years ago, he is not the subject of this post.

It may seem strange to bring something into my home when I am constantly decluttering but I rescued this ring binder from the rubbish pile at my office yesterday.  However, it was brought home with a specific purpose in mind.

2012-04-18 01When I was sorting out things on my sewing table last weekend I was confronted by a number of loose pattern pieces that I had drafted from my Enid Gilchrist pattern books.  I put each pattern in a separate plastic sleeve (I have a box a spare sleeves in the stationery pile) and wished I had a spare ring binder.

My wish came true when I saw this brand-new folder containing obsolete training information destined for the rubbish.  I put the contents in the confidential recycling and brought the folder home.

2012-04-18 02Here it is with the pattern pieces in sleeves (on the left) and I have also placed the pattern books each in their own sleeve as they are rather fragile from age.  I still have some more to sort out but this will help to streamline the paperwork in the sewing room.  It is good to know that I will easily be able to find the pattern pieces when I need them.

2012-04-18 03Here are all of the patterns stored on top of the sewing cabinet.

What storage methods do you use for sewing/craft books and patterns?

Sunday Stuff

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Today I continued with my sewing and sorting our some more of the stuff that was on my sewing table.

I have all but finished the apron I am making.  Just a bit of handsewing on the waistband and buttons and buttonholes to attach the neck strap.

2012-04-15 01This is what the neck strap and buttons will look like.

2012-04-15 02Finally, the pocket detail of which I am rather proud.

2012-04-15 03I really hope my apron partner likes it.

The next things I am working on are 2 summer tops for myself.  I know I will not need them for several months but it will be nice to have them finished and hanging in my wardrobe, rather than cluttering up space on my work table.

Now that the space is cleared I can see exactly what else I have to sew.  There are several Christmas gift bags as well as fabric for a reusable shopping bag (I am going to copy an existing one for a pattern).  I have other fabric earmarked to make a skirt for my niece, summer pyjamas for my granddaughter, a dress for Belle and a couple of polo shirts for The Duke so there is plenty to keep me occupied.

My plan is to do some sewing at least one each week and gradually work my way through the ‘To Do’ list.

On other matters, I have done a menu plan for the week for both lunches and dinners.  I have been rather slack lately and although we have not resorted to takeaway or eating out, my planning has been a bit haphazard.  I am back on track and hopefully this will make the morning rush a bit less rushed.  Tomorrow we are having leftover lasagne and salad and this is all prepared and in the refrigerator ready to grab and go in the morning.

I like to spend some time on Sundays getting organised so that I can have a headstart on the coming week.

Are you prepared for the week ahead?

Sewing on Saturday

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As I promised to myself yesterday, I have been sewing today.  I started with the pile in the mending basket.  The socks and shorts were first – straightforward.  Then I progressed to the more challenging tasks.  My methods are far from orthodox but I usually get results that mean a garment can be worn for a bit longer.

This is a maxi-dress that belongs to Belle.

2012-04-14 01The tie at the back had pulled away from the seam so we decided on something a bit different.

2012-04-14 02I removed the tie and using some black satin from my collection I made a band and threaded it with wide elastic.  It is secured at both ends and has enough stretch for the dress to be slipped over head and shoulders.  This is much sturdier than the original flimsy ties but still in keeping with the rest of the dress and the black satin halter neck ties.

2012-04-14 03Here is Belle’s pink cardigan with a hole in the sleeve.  There was no matching thread when the item was bought and the hole was too big to darn successfully.  Since it is not suitable to be worn as is I decided that any repair would be better than the alternative fate – the bin.

I found a bit of material with some flowers the same colour as the cardigan so cut out a bit and fused it on using double-sided iron-on interfacing.

2012-04-14 04I fused some fabric on the wrong side.

2012-04-14 05The final step was to zig-zag around the patch.

2012-04-14 06Whilst it is definitely not invisible it does make the cardigan wearable.

I have finished all of the mending apart from some hand-sewing on Missy’s skirt and I will finish that this evening.

2012-04-14 07I then turned my attention to the bag I am re-fashioning.  I showed you the patchwork strap the other day and here it is all finished and ready for use.

I am also making an apron for my buddy in the apron swap that I am participating in.  This was from Rhonda’s blog, Down to Earth.  I should have it finished tomorrow and then will be posting it later in the week.

The weather here has been cool and showery all day so it was perfect for a day of sewing.  Maybe I will do some more tomorrow.

The Mending Basket

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One of the advantages of Project 333 is knowing exactly what clothes you have available to wear.  When you have a limited selection it is important that everything is in wearable condition.

If something is worn out or simply unable to be repaired it is time to turn it into a rag or otherwise dispose of it.  This then frees up a space for a replacement item.  I tend to remove anything that might be useful, such as buttons.  The fabric may be able to be salvaged for re-fashioning purposes.  On the other hand, often all that is required is simple maintenance.

The mending pile quickly builds up and so this will be one of my jobs for the weekend.

This time there is very little of my own clothes.  I have The Duke’s socks, Belle’s dress, Missy’s skirt and Si’s (Belle’s partner) shorts.  I do have a shirt of my own to deconstruct to create a pattern.

There are numerous other sewing projects – either half done or still in the pipeline so I think a weekend with the machine is in order.

Watch this space for my progress.

Crafting in Progress

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Tonight I wanted to show you 2 craft projects I am working on.

First, the patchwork strap for the bag I am refashioning.

2012-04-09 01I have chosen colours that will complement the existing bag.  These fabrics are all scraps from my stash of bits of fabric.  I have fused the lining to the patchwork using double-sided iron-on interfacing.  I am going to make my own bias binding from some black fabric and bind the edges of the strap before attaching it to the bag.

Next is some knitting.  I am not the world’s best knitter but this simple dishcloth can be finished in a day or two.

2012-04-09 02I am using a pattern in the book, ‘Down to Earth’.  I plan to make several of these so that I always one on hand.

My handcraft projects are generally of a practical nature.  Craft evolved as a part of homemaking and this is the way I view it rather than some of the expensive and impractical pursuits which are currently promoted by retailers desperate to sell more materials.

Do you have a favourite craft?  What do you create with your craft skills?

Seedlings & Sewing

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As promised, here are some photos of my vegetable seedlings.

2012-04-04 01These are (from left to right) cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower.  The celery on the extreme right have yet to put in an appearance.

2012-04-04 02These are the first few beetroot seedlings.

I am hoping for great things from these humble beginnings.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

As part of my participation in Project 333, I emptied out my wardrobe a couple of weeks ago and looked critically at everything in there.  I have said several times before that I do not have heaps of clothes and accessories but I have been forced to consider every single thing in the cupboard.

One particular item which was carefully stored on the shelf was this carry-bag.

2012-04-04 03It was a hand-made gift and is a really useful size but the handles were not really practical for me, so I had only used it once or twice.  So I took another look at it and found that the wooden handles are easily detachable so that the bag can be washed.

2012-04-04 04I have taken the handles off and my plan is to remove the press-studs and make a patchwork handle/shoulder strap.  Once this alteration is made, I know I will use the bag all the time.

I searched through my stash of scraps and found these pieces which I think will work with the existing colours and patterns in the bag.

2012-04-04 05Project 333 Update

I have mostly been at home today so wearing an old pair of paint-spattered shorts and t-shirt.  When I went to the shops I grabbed my 3/4 black trousers, red/white 3/4 sleeve top and my trusty sandals – easy!  I can definitely see the benefits of a basic selection of clothes.  I am finding it relatively easy as most of my clothes are mix and match colours and styles.

Please let me know how you are going or your thoughts and ideas, even if you are not participating directly.

Project 333 – Ready, Set, Go….

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Well, it is almost April 1st so I spent some time today getting ready for my first involvement with Project 333.  See this post to find out what it is all about.

Here is my cupboard with most of what I have chosen for my project.

???????????????????????????????There are 2 pairs of trousers missing as they are currently in the laundry basket.  This makes a total of 32 items so I thought I would keep a spare space, in case I thought of something else.

Here they are listed.

Floral skirt
Black skirt

Grey trousers
Black 3/4 trousers
Jeans
Narrow-leg jeans
Charcoal travel pants

Pink suede jacket
Black cord jacket
Pink quilted vest

Turquoise cardigan
Black cardigan
Grey/cream polo-neck jumper

Turquoise striped shirt
Blue/white pinstriped shirt
Black/white striped shirt
Black/cream patterned shirt

Black/pink striped top
Black/pink squares top
Pink top
Red/white striped top
Black/white striped top
Black/white striped top

Navy rugby top
Navy/striped rugby top

Bronze/pink scarf

Black handbag (not shown)

Black knee-high boots
Black ankle boots
Black shoes
Red lace-up shoes
Sandals

I will be putting other clothes back in the wardrobe as I don’t want to move them to another room.

I have put aside 5 pairs of shoes to go – I will try to sell them on Gumtree but otherwise they will go via Freecycle.

I have not culled many clothes as I do not have a huge collection.  However, a few things will be re-homed.

2012-03-30 02This is a black polar fleece vest which I re-modelled from a hand-me-down and it is really too big so out it goes.  The shirt is a cotton sleeveless one but the colour is not particularly flattering now that my hair colour has changed significantly.

2012-03-30 03This pile are a bit too tight so I have decided to put them in a bag and if they are still too tight in 12 months they will go.  There is a skirt, pair of trousers and 2 jackets.

2012-03-30 04This shirt has been well-worn but has lost its sharpness of black and white – looking decidedly grey.  I love the style so I plan to de-construct it to make a pattern.  Off to the sewing room for this one.

I will endeavour to update my progress each day.  Hopefully there will be more successes than failures.

If you are joining the Project 333 challenge please feel free to post a link to your blog in the comments.

Press Play

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I feel as though I have had the ‘Pause’ button on as everything has been on hold while the bathroom was being done.  Now I can see the things that I want to do.  These include:

2012-03-20 01

  • Dust and polish the furniture in the front entry
  • Replace the ornaments and china from the sideboard (these have been residing on my sewing table)
  • Sort out the other clutter that has also accumulated on the table
  • Get back to doing some sewing (including more gift bags which I have cut out)
  • Sweep and wash the verandah – this has some sawdust remnants from the building work

2012-03-20 02Mention of the gift bags reminds me that I did not do an update post for Lazy Brownie Day in February (25th).  I hope to have lots to post for March and get back on track to have a planned, organised Christmas.

Yesterday I picked up some crochet cotton that a friend bought for me in a sale.  I am going to use this to knit some dishcloths.  There are lots of patterns available but I think I will start with the one that Rhonda has in her book, ‘Down to Earth’.

2012-03-20 03I am also pleased to report that almost everything that I listed on Freecycle under the generic heading of ‘Handyman Materials’ has been collected.  I love the fact that someone is going to be able to use these things and it has freed up some space in the workshop.

I am busy at work this week (working off-site for the next 3 days) so it will be the weekend before I make much progress.  Tonight I have finished folding the washing that dried on the indoor airer over the past few days and now it is time to catch up on some ironing.

Remember Lazy Brownie?

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Early in January, I wrote a post about my Christmas plans for 2012.  It is here.

As I suspected I did not get everything done on 25th January as planned but I am making progress.  Here is what I had on the list.

January

  • Sort and file Christmas cards and letters – DONE
  • Make sure any contact details are updated in address book – DONE
  • Update Christmas card list – DONE
  • Set up complete contact list for 2012 e-cards – NEEDS A BIT MORE WORK

In conjunction with updating the contact details in my address book I embarked on another project which took me a couple of weeks.  I have made sure that I have current contact details for all of my friends and relatives in my physical address book as well as my email contacts address book and my mobile phone address book.  The Duke checked that he had the relevant ones in his mobile phone and we also have some that we need at our fingertips in the home phone speed dial.  Now all I have to do is make sure that I update all locations when I am given new contact details for anyone.  I really hope that I keep on top of this issue as I do not want to have to do the sorting and cross-referencing of the past couple of weeks.  The memory of that should be enough to keep me on track.

2012-02-09 01I have also been doing some sewing today and have finished making the first 2 of my Christmas gift bags.  They are not for anything or anyone in particular but my aim is to have a collection in a variety of sizes so that I will have one suitable for whatever the gift happens to be.

2012-02-09 02