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So, the time I covered the couch...

So years ago I bought a second hand couch. It was quite new but I think the woman that owned it had dyed her hair and leaned back and it left a bleached spot on the back. I covered it with a throw but I really hated the colour and the spot. East Coast Fabrics had a half price sale for upholstery fabric in March and I decided I would cover the couch.

Now the couch is an Ikea one that you can buy covers from a company that is in Hong Kong (Comfort something or other) and I looked them up years ago to buy new covers but it was about $1000 and as an stay at home single parent I couldn't afford them even if I wanted to spend that much money. Anyway, the couch has a frame on the base which has he legs attached and has velcro around the base where the cover attaches, then the frame holds it in place. So it was quite easy to get off and then I unpicked it all to get the pattern pieces.  

I had a plan. I would take off one cover and have the other one for reference. The other rule I had w…
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The orange jumper (cardi) - NL6315

I've used this New Look pattern again. I have a pair of the pants nearly finished for me but the star of this show is the orange merino waterfall cardi I made my friend.  My first one was for me, made from some lovely linen knit. This one was for a special friend who lives most of the year overseas. Her favourite colour is orange so when I saw orange merino last year at the Fabric Store for $10 per metre, I knew I was getting some for her. I made her a merino Kwik Sew 3977 (as I did for my Mum and sister) and she loved it but it was a little big but perfect as her onboard jumper in a lovely royal blue merino with a tiny stripe through it at wide intervals. (I know a jumper is different in other places - we call a cardi a jumper).

So when I went to the Gold Coast where she and her husband live when at home, she saw my linen one, tried it on and loved the style. It was a quick sew and the trickiest part is the band that runs around the hem and waterfall front. I used the coverstitc…
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McCall's 7608 for Brisbane Spoolette's High Tea

Well it's that time of year again. Brisbane Spoolette's High Tea - it is usually on around my birthday date so it's a great double excuse for a nice outfit and a cocktail.  I chose to make McCall's 7608. Originally it was View D but with the shorter legs, but I forgot and cut out the long legs so I stuck with it as I figured if I don't like them I'll chop them again. As it was I cut off about 10cm from the bottom and that was just enough. Now this pattern was one of the ones that my friend brought back from the States for me when she was living there (they are living in Europe now). So I would give her a list of wannabe patterns and she would get what she could in the $1 and $2 sales. When I saw this one, I was "huh? what was I thinking". Plus it takes a lot of fabric and I usually buy fabric I love and then match it, so it's usually 2-3 metres only so when I found this fabulous hot pink fabric at the Maroochydore 2nd hand shop and it was 4 metre…
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More new PJs

You may wonder why, after making a set of pjs recently (at the end of the post) I am making another set so quickly. I usually only have one set on the go... we have sunshine year round and it can sometimes take only minutes for them to dry and with so many things I want to sew, I usually make them out of need.  Anyway, if you notice on the other set, I had made them out of a remnant of a dress I had made years ago. I had enough fabric because I cut the top on the cross grain. Now I learned at TAFE for Fashion Design and Apparel Production that I did vocationally in the '90's that natural fibres possibly only woven, will shrink up... meaning in the length, not the width. I had pre-washed this fabric years ago, but when I made these last pjs, after a few washed, the fabric shrunk but being cut on the cross, they shrunk width wise. They still fit well, but being SO hot at night, they are just too close to my body. Plus they were a  shirting cotton weight and I usually like somet…
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Belated welcome to 2019

Happy 2019... I hope it has started well for all of you. I had a great start with a get together  bringing the new year in at my friend's apartment right on the beach at Broadbeach where there was fireworks all along the beach. Such a fun evening even if I had to drive down to the coast after work.  The morning before I started, I made a sparkly skirt and wanted to make a top the day before but didn't gt time so I wore my black top I made for my Dad's funeral. Unfortunately the only photo I have my skirt doesn't feature but we got a nice photo together!
A better photo is from our recent (got back yesterday) holiday to New Zealand. We went to the south island to Christchurch, then to Franz Joseph and Fox glaciers, the Marlborough Sound and Wellington. Sounds like it was short, but it was 10 days with lots of driving on some amazing roads. I've been a fan of Nick Cave since the early 80's and my first time was when he was part of The Birthday Party at The Roundh…
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