Kids clothing is underway

The Kids Clothes Week Challenge has been a busy week. I'm really glad I signed up for this, because I know I wouldn't have been as motivated, and achieved as much as I have without it. It's really helped me to focus.

I warmed up with a couple of easy peasy additions to the dress-up box last weekend- a fake fur animal tail, and some bat wings (inspired by Melissa's beautiful butterfly wings in Small, but even simpler- just some black stretch fabric edged on the overlocker). Perhaps I'll be able to get a clear photo of them in action one day...

Then on I settled in for the real work.

Step 1: perusing the pattern stash and tracing off some new patterns. I had a few things I'd been wanting to try out, but some of them C has already grown too big for, so I'll have to save them for the next offspring. There was still plenty in my pattern collection try out though, in addition to a couple tried and tested patterns that were worth re-making for summer.


Step 2: perusing the fabric stash. Tempting as it would have been to dash off to Tessuti for some new fabrics, I wanted to work from the stash (having just received a large traffic fine in the mail... darn...).


Step 3:  cutting out. I thought it would be more productive if I could get a few things ready to go, so that when I sat down in the evening to sew I could just get on with the making side of things. I spent my one free afternoon of the week cutting out.



Step 4: get sewing. The stack of cut pieces is now starting to shrink. First cab off the ranks, a sunhat, same pattern as this one, from Nicole Mallalieu designs. More details here. Of course C wants to wear it with the lining side out, which is fine (although I had to add a few seams into in order to get it out of the fat quarter of cute animal fabric), and friends who saw it today have put in a request for one for their large headed lass. One of the benefits of home sewing- being able to make it in the size or fabric you want, not having to make do with what some manufacturer thinks will sell.

Do as I say, not as I do.

Quite some time ago I started mentally writing a blog post with my top sewing tips. Things I'd learned one way or another, that I'd found could make the difference between a sewing project being successful, or not. But then, as the project I was working progressively went pear shaped and turned from one into two projects, I realised I was ignoring the things I had learned, and reaping some bad luck from the sewing gods. The project was a pair of toddler pants (well, two pairs), so being as it is kids sewing challenge week (and much of what I've been up to so far relates to these very issues) I thought I'd throw it in here (at last).


Details: Brown stretch corduroy from a friend's de-stash
Pattern from Ottobre (borrowed from a friend. I'm not sure which edition)

So, at the risk of boring you with advice:

Tip 1: Read the pattern through before you start.
By that I mean, before you select your fabric, and before you buy all the notions. Certainly before you trace off the pattern and cut all the pieces out and then decide you don't like the way the pattern tells you to put the waistband together, meaning you need to re-draft and cut a few pieces.This would also mean that if you've photocopied the pattern from a library book or such, you would discover that you neglected to photocopy a useful part of the instructions.

Tip 2: Check the measurements of the pattern.
Check it against the measurements of a similar style existing garment to compare how it will fit (ease and all), and against the intended wearer's measurements so that you can tell if it will fit (at all). Useful things to check are length and girth, particularly any tight spots, like the waistband on a pair of pants for example. Then you can make any appropriate adjustments to the pattern before you cut it out, instead of having to try to fix it up later, or to accept the fact that the recipient may grow out of it before the end of the season.

Tip 3: Prewash your fabric.
Basically, treat it before you start cutting as you intend to treat it after you've made the item. If you intend to handwash it, then handwash it. If you intend to machine wash it, then machine wash it. (If you intend to dryclean it then I wouldn't bother, but I usually try to avoid dryclean only fabrics, or test a sample to see if I can get away with laundering it a different way) It means you can be pretty confident it won't shrink, or the dye run. You also discover the hand (drape, stiffness, and general feel) of the fabric as it will be after you've washed it, rather than getting a surprise when the production finishing treatment is washed off. (Actually, I did do this. I try to do this with all new fabrics as they enter the house, before they enter the stash pile. Then I can just get on with a project whenever the mood strikes).

Tip 4: Pay attention to the fabric when you lay out your pattern.
Take a good look at the fabric.Which direction does your stretch fabric stretch in, and which direction do you want the pattern piece to stretch in? If it has a pattern, think about how the pattern is sitting on the pattern pieces. Do you want the stripes to line up? (use the pattern markings as reference points) If it has big motifs, where do they sit? and do you want them to sit in the same spots on the right and left sides? Does it have a one way pattern or nap? Nap is when it looks different viewed along the grainline in opposite directions. Like velvet or coating fabric, and apparently corduroy too. If it does, best to fold the fabric selvedge to selvedge, and make sure you cut all the pieces oriented in the same direction (ie, with all the tops towards one end). Otherwise you may find it's going to look a little odd (unless you have enough fabric left to re-cut a few pieces. I had enough to cut a second set of pieces to mix and match into two fairly cohesive pants).


Tip 5: Embrace the wonk.
Handmade things aren't supposed to be perfect. Hands and people are not machines. If things aren't perfect, don't dwell on it. Embrace it. Find the charm in it. (That can be translated as "Don't bother unpicking the carefully topstitched pockets so that they run in the same direction as the body pieces") Learn from it. Get on and sew something else.

*edited to add: There is also a great round up of sewing tip links here on Whip up. The internet is full of advice on a wide range of sewing issues it seems!

Just the boot I needed

I was chatting today with a friend who became a mum about 6 months ago. Years ago we used to shop for fabrics and share our sewing experiences together, but it has been quite a few years since she plugged her machine in, and indulged in sewing. But she is experiencing an urge to get back into it. She feels that sewing baby clothes would be a manageable and rewarding undertaking. I urged her on, with tips for where to get fabric from, and lending her a couple of my Japanese baby clothes books.

Then this afternoon (having bought a good quality and very cute T-shirt, that I know will go down well with the youngster, this morning) I spotted a button about the imminent Kids Clothes Week Challenge. Sign me up. Spring is upon us and I need some kind of boot to spur me into action. The lad will soon be needing shorts and some short sleeved tops.

Elsie Marley

Lately...

Creative apathy has set in again.

It's taken me several weeks to complete one seam down the middle of the progressing baby blanket, so that I can finish the edging on the fourth side.

It's taken me several months to repair the hole in the pocket of the coat that I've been wearing every day. Actually- it took me about a month to repair it the first time. But that only lasted for about a week before it fell apart again. Clearly complete pocket lining replacement was called for. Several months later when I finally sat down and got on with it it only took half an hour. I was so pleased with the result I went on to do the same thing to the other (just started falling apart) pocket, a similar patching effort to the ripped underarm lining, and finished it off with a once over by the de-pilling gizmo. May take me another year to deal with the rip in the lining hem line (though I did trim off the dangly bits) and it really does need a dry clean, but I felt a bit less disheveled wearing it to work today.



Instead of creating I have been enjoying exploring the wonderful virtual inspiration pinboard that is Pinterest. It's still in Beta, but there are some people with wonderful taste pinning things that make me swoon. I could spend hours browsing and following links to find more.

Actually, I have. Hours and hours.

6 years old. Amazing.

If you've been reading religiously for a while you may know that I'm a bit bah humbug about birthdays. I regularly miss them and struggle with thinking of (and then finding or making) presents that I feel are appropriate. I've always blamed it on my birthday coinciding with Christmas, and being totally overshadowed by other festivities.

But somehow, this year, I have managed to remember in advance, and on the day, today, that the 2nd of September is my blog's birthday. Yes, this day 6 years ago (my time has flown) I started a blog (Please don't feel any pressure to scour the archives to read some of the early *cringe* stuff!!).  I'd read and commented on a few blogs and craft sites for a while, and I wanted to make more of a contribution to the amazing and inspiring on-line craft community. With a bit of prompting, I got going, struggling with the terminology and systems, but gradually carving out a little net space of my own.

Six years on, I am still here, although I have noticed the time and urge to blog have reduced a little this year. My life (from single bachelorette to wife and mother) has changed, as has my place in the craft community. Now I find that I don't feel the need to keep up with everything that everyone is up to on line, but I relish dipping into the inspiration pot whenever I please. It's such a huge pot. There is plenty to go around. When I feel I have something to offer, I enjoy sharing ideas and information back in return. Some of the virtual friendships that have developed, have flourished and been enhanced by snail mail swaps and real life encounters, while others have gradually drifted away. I feel lucky to have a network of friends who are only a click or two away.

So please forgive me for not offering a special blog give away to honor the event. Please just accept my thanks for reading, for commenting, and for sharing back in return.