Sew Darn Tired

This is my Mum. She's recently turned 83. She has also recently (last 6 months) moved into aged care. The first one was terrible but when a new one very close to my and her old home opened (delayed due to covid) she moved into there. It's a lovely place and other than being in your own home, she's pretty happy there and made lots of friends. There is a group of women who have joined their dining tables together so they can sit together and due to Mum putting olive oil and lemon juice or vinegar on her food, and everyone asking for the same, they have now taken to leaving these on the table!  She's wearing a top made from a remnant from a fabric sale which was fill a bag with scraps for $20 .. my friend and I shared the bag and I've made a few things from them. This is a silk chiffon which is a very vibrant floral. I was testing this Cynthia Rowley pattern and it fit pretty well, but a bit short so it has a extra piece on the bottom to lengthen. I was thrilled when I...

I use togs every week; mostly 3 times a week. My last togs were ones I got in Target for end of season sale for $5. They were a really lovely cut and I liked the way the racer back was too. I'll try to deconstruct them. Well you know how togs just are good one day and next they are stretched out and baggy.  I do aqua aerobics on Sunday mornings and when I was getting my stuff ready 2 Saturday evenings ago, I noticed the lycra had stretched out as it does. I had some Jalie togs cut out maybe 12 months but because I found this pair for $5 and my others were still ok, I didn't make them up. Well I needed them for the next day so cut out lining in power mesh and watched Victoria on tv and what ever was on after and made up these togs. I wasn't sure I'd like them - not sure why - I love the colours and the lilys but I do like them made up.     I made the back band and the straps shorter - luckily I remembered that from last time I made them which was probably a couple of ...

I made a little cowl top a little while ago and wore it today with my purple gingham wrap skirt. I know it's a simple Butterick 4132 pattern just with little cowl top with or without sleeves. It'a ages old but really quick and making it a size 8 in the shoulders and down to a 12 from the bust down.  It is the best fabric... a remnant from a designer sale (not the usual one I go to) a couple of years ago where I and my friend didn't buy anything off any rolls, but filled a shopping bag with these remnants. The rose fabric is a very strong firm crepe knit fabric that is a fibre mix. It is very good quality and there was just a scrap big enough for my friend to make her granddaughter a pair of leggings.  These two fabrics above are from the same grab bag. Top one with the purple colour way is a Cynthia Rowley Simplicity 1366 pattern (the one with the cami and that amazing skirt - everyone made it). It was just enough to make it as a test. It's a beautiful silk crepe chiffo...

  This is the tech drawing. It's such a simple pattern to cut and sew up. I have made a merino wool fleece one in apple/kelly green.  You just see it under my jacket, scarf and backpack above... and here in the pub... both photos in Ireland. It is ridiculous how much I love that green one. The merino fleece has like a sheen on the right side, and nice and fleecy on the inside. It's not terribly thick but boy it is so warm. I bought it a few years ago at The Fabric Store for $10 per metre. I wish I had bought more. If you ever see any, get some it's great. I made two more! A few posts ago I said I'd made one for my friend for her birthday in June and was going to make me one. She and her family came for dinner the other night and I took the opportunity to take some photos, but I forgot to get some of us wearing them. They don't look like much up there do they.  Close up of the fabric - a French terry I bought at Spotlight on side. I bought it online and it was only a...

Hi, I hope everyone is doing well. I have finally done some sewing, but interestingly it is a quick fabric turnaround. I work in the city and there is a Lincraft in the shopping complex opposite. I don't go in very often as I don't really need the temptation and I find I don't like a lot of the stuff they have but for emergency supplies it's convenient. I found some fluffy pink stuff on sale ($8 pm) and bought about 2.8 metres (I only wanted 2 but it was the end of the roll and they discounted the .8 to half price). So I bought this one week and a week later I used it up... in and out.. no stash friends! I wanted to make another of these: I made view A with the kangaroo pocket, but I shortened it by about 8 cm in the middle. I think I may still cut the curved hem as I don't really like it on me. I've used this pattern  here,  and  here , and I made this one  (which I love but is a dirty work one now) with ordinary fleece.  That rolled collar is great up or down....

My son picked up a chair on the street that looked like this chair. It's an Ikea chair and he liked how it fit his back. Hmmm... I couldn't stand to look at that worn out vinyl. I offered to pull it apart and make a cover. It was really easy to pull apart; 4 screws holds the arms to both back and seat, and the seat is screwed onto the roller feet. I pulled the covers off.. the seat was stapled down and the back was zipped on.  The cover on the inside. There are the toggles... they are only about 2 cm long. You can see how the cover is pieced together. See the toggles are sewn onto the cover separately so I unpicked them too and saw it had some elastic underneath it. The toggles get pulled through from the front of the seat back to the back or underside of the seat.  Pieces all separated and as you see it was worse than the one advertised on marketplace. I decided there was no point making all that seaming so I just lay it on the fabric and made it one piece for the seat and on...