Done!

Two 'Dr Who' episodes and the final 'Call the midwife', and the binding was done!
A fight to rest it on the sewing machine at home but I went to bed feeling  pleased that it is completed,.
Unpicking tacking, a warm wash and tumble dry and its done!
Yay!

So.....which one do you prefer?


...excuse the lighting - my tablet doesn't like low interior light, and the camera is still at school...

The 'pinky bow ties' side

...a bit of pulling  in some spots, but I can live with that

The other side....

Autumn tones from the Moda jelly roll...

Things progress photos never capture...

Ouch!

*(#*$&*@*!#&()~(expletive deleted)

Grrr!

WHY DIDN'T I DO IT AS I WENT?

*&(@#$*&!(*#@&(

WHOOSH!  (Steam coming out of ears as I get frustrated with thread breakage)

...all rolled up and ready to go....

fighting with fabric and three tables to support it!

This quilt was becoming a UFO, sitting tacked on the table at home, taking up space I don't have and annoying me every time I had to walk past it!  (As it was in the kitchen, every cup of coffee meant a scowl from me)

It was time to bite the bullet and just DO IT!

Three tables at school.  An extension cord to get the machine in a position and then a few hours in the afternoon and after school to get the quilting done!.  I decided to go with machining - stitch length 4, straight stitch  - and alternated between two  parallel rows each side of the seam and a serpentine row in  between.

Now to begin the binding!

......sigh....

test for video

just trying to see if a video I shot works here...if it doesn't, please ignore it and I will try via YouTube... :)

Give it a bit of time to buffer.....
It does work!  I shot it while I was sewing the TARDIS softie. I wanted to be able to show the kids how I appliquéd the pieces on.  The beep is the reverse button on the Janome, and the background noise is the  computer and iTunes - House of Cards series I think -  at the time!

A night at the Opera...

creating a mood board to show ideas.....

Year 10's are working on their Wool4Skools entries.  This year they're designing an outfit for a member of a Royal family, so an example on the pinup board was in order.

...a few vintage images from the Graphics Fairy, some vintage notions and bits of bling and a quick sketch of a glamour gown.

...no pressure Kate, this gown should allow for post baby gorgeousness....:)

TARDIS

A softie in development for Whovian Year 9 students....just a couple of quick progress snaps....will upload pattern if you need one very soon!

tacking and running stitched on signs

chalk on some door details

Cheats applique - rough edged fabrics and straight stitching with reversing over and over every few centimetres
....I'm thinking of not very experienced sewists at this point

...right sides together, raw edges together...well, pretty much and pinned into position

1.5cm seam allowance, straight stitch

clipping corners and reducing bulk before turning through the opening in the middle of the lowest seam line

a light press after the corners have been gently pushed out

one completed TARDIS softie, 50cm high x 25cm

...I wonder if the kids will like it?

It's a hold up!

Hold Up 1....we finally got to make Mum's little storage shed ( ...well she calls it little but its a good 2.8 metre square)  A very big thanks to Jamie for riveting and drilling and Mel for holding up the sides with me on her Mothers Day...

Hold Up 2....I made two more wallets this arvo and evening (...OK so my reference to a hold up and wallets is a bit dodgy...)  while watching a lovely movie "South Solitary" on iTunes.

Soft and stable interfacing for main body, floral linen and upholstery denim outers

Love that Spoonflower fabric !

...oops, the label and zip should have been on the 'flap' side, oh well....bit distracted by movie! :)

....all in all a lovely weekend....how was yours?

Things we're making Thursday.....

Still finishing off the last few....and all time favourite patterns!

Year 9 'Hoot"

...and another!  

Year 10 success using my New Holiday bag pattern ( see RH buttons for download)

...and a beginning student's fabulous first effort!  padded and lined with a zip and tab ends!  Wow!

Another Pocket Pillow with sneaky feature patch to turn a problem into a positive! Year 9

What was happening in your neck of the woods? 

On my desk today....

..new look Australian Homespun!  Lovely!  Matt paper, new categories, lots of online links!
..cutting out another wallet, using soft and stable interfacing and a shiny catch with some Spoonflower fabrics,
..and helping my yr 12 girls get their heads around hems, seam finishes and notions!

Oh, and guess what?!  My pattern testing of the Lilium bag for Sew Sweetness has been included in her post today to celebrate the release of the pattern!  How exciting!  How cool too, to see everyone's fabric choices!  Pop by and have a look!

Phew! Back to school and playing with notions

It's been the usual busy 'getting back into it'! 
Two days intensive teacher professional development - literacy and thinking tools. 
Threee days trying to get students to back into working at school mode....turn it off, take them out, put it away, do that at lunchtime....yes, the electronic gadgetry that is so everyday over the holidays has to be restricted at school....grumble grumble whine from the kids,....

So, limited sewing this week, although I did play with some large grommets and double sided tape for zip insertion...both terrific to experiment with. 

Had seen it used on a couple of youtube demos...had to try it.  Got mine here

See the adhesive?  Peel back the paper...held the zip and fabric togther really well...and also came in handy for a new student in class trying a zip for the first time!

Go the grommet!  These eyelets are 14mm and I added a panel of
 contrast fabric behind them.  From same online store as the tape.

Quick shot, a lined, padded and zippered pouch
about 25cm square...ish  :)

 

Another day, another purse...

My parcel of By Annie's Soft and Stable arrived in the post so I had to play with it....and then I realised the postie had dropped off two parcels!  The purse hardware had arrived.  Like a woman possessed I cut and sewed and the result is another purse that closes a little tightly but looks great!  I love it!  A test drive at the supermarket immediately got a reaction from the lady behind me in the queue!  That's always nice to have!

adding the bling of a lovely twist catch...ooooh...the fabric is from Hetties Patch

origami folds to the sides!

So what did I learn from this one?
The next one will see the catch not so far down the front...and the piece of Soft and Stable will be trimmed back in the centre a bit more, but I liked working with it, and love the light weight with stability!

Sew Serendipity skirt's adaptation

...I really like these!  How cute are they?  I am unable to model these but the little hip skimming, mid thigh length shorts adapted from the pattern we will be using are a bit of a winner....

told you they are hip skimming...as the girls like them...at the moment

I used the selvedge for a frilled/pleated trim, and long carriers for a scarf belt

Photo How-to...

original skirt centre panel, and a traced crotch seam from a pants pattern

after determining the depth of seat required -(see cheat sheet)- overlay patterns ,
lining up centre fronts

overlay tracing paper and trace new front seam and crotch  and skirt

the pattern now looks like this - this version maintains the flare of the gores
 - but you could try it on and play with it in a mock up first

Don't forget to repeat for centre back panel, and lengthen  or shorten all pieces to required length.

Playing with picmonkey...

After reading a fabulous how-to from Abbie at while she naps, I felt it was time to have a play!  Here are the two quick results using my 'handcrafted and collaged' header photo for background and lettering infill....what do you think?

....worth playing with a bit more I think.....

Skater Skirt - an adaptation of our pattern for Year 10

...to satisfy the varying and changing demands needs of our Year 10 students - all girls this semester - the skirt pattern we are using has been modified...with a quick 'cheat sheet' how-to.

I know a dark fabric on a light fabric doesn't photograph the best - but it is still the 6 gores
rather than a circular skirt...uses much less fabric! :)

I had a remnant of silk linen blend - absolutely lovely to wear as the pants I made years ago - and was able to cut out the adapted pattern in the smaller sizes.  The hem has dropped a bit over night - this will be a thing we will have to stress to the girls...hang first then hem!

Same skill as the other, but no pocket so a task with that involved in it somewhere may be in order! 

Quick post - Mum's bag

A combination of  a couple of ideas from the last three bags made into one....Mum is happy, although she did comment a couple of more zippered pockets inside would be helpful!  ....she has four already including a secret hidden one (and I wont tell you where or it wouldn't be a secret! :) )  A lovely tapestry fabric from the upholstery dept at Spotlight many years ago, and a chunky zippered top opening were used.

The design evolved from a couple of pieces
 Mum had put together a long time ago...flap, strap and an inner pocket

fussy cutting to get the ladies on the front back and flap

...thought I'd pop in a fussy cutting side shot,
with the little 'yellow fibro' in the background!

Late night experiments...

A crazy thought to use the thin rubbery table protector 'fabric' as an interfacing...offers suppleness and stability and a good degree of firmness..yes, that should be good for the 'taller' Blossom Bag - version 2.  I wanted to comfortably pop the tablet into the bag and the much admired and loved first version was just a bit short to secure the flap...

I had to use two IKEA fabrics for this version - completely different
but they add to the overall effect!

The thickness issue  - I had to add  a trim over the join of flap to back...lots of trimming back
and careful placement but it was still too much for the machine.....and signalled it was
definitely time to go to bed!  ... a VERY late night/morning sewing!

you can see the thread issue at the back
 - hand cranking didn't help...but a few bar tacks has secured it now

So did it work?  What did I learn?

• for a thicker tote style bag it would be great
• despite enormous trimming and build r eduction I didn't get the crisper edges I was hoping for - despite extreme steam pressing of course the rubbery thickness would not 'hold' the crease.
• my machine could not cope with the thickness of the flap and bag layers - you can see the thread issues in the 'inner photo' - I decided to show you because it was an issue I thought you needed to know about...
• The tablet is cocooned safely within the layers - I like that! The extra depth - I added 5cm to the overall height is a winner.  I don't think it detracts from the overall original design do you?
• Next time - yes there is always a next time with me and sewing bags you should know that by now - I will use a heavy weight fusible under the thin batting and Shapeflex.  The batting helps to reduce the look of interfacing creasing from use and wear.

I will use this one for everyday wear now...

                                         

                                                                               ...until the next favourite comes along!

Following the links in Mollie Makes....

One of the great things about digital magazines is the ability to click on a linked site or source and 'zing', you are there!
I love clicking on all the links in Mollie Makes magazine, as it gives you a whole new range of related sites and products and ideas!  Excellent!

One such link took me to Twisted Twee. Enter the little shop and you will see this is one really cool place!  I had to support them, but of course, and purchased a few fabulous tea towels destined for framing!  I got three from the 'Child Labour' section of Kids Things and  mystery parcel - it was one the the 'your side my side pillow cases'!  A real laugh!

Please go and check Suzi's gear out...absolutely fantastic and great fun!.

New phone purse

No matter what bag I am using I always seem to be struggling to grab my phone...on the few times it rings!  (I'm more of a text girl!)

I store my phone and earphones in a small purse. It makes it easier to feel for and grab in a big bag with everything in it! Well, I have made a new one.  Cute! I even got to use pre-interfaced scraps of bag fabrics!

I added a magnetic snap

A left over suffolk puff and a cute button finish off the project

Pattern from here. I made size 4. I love the 'secret' pocket!