[Nicole]

I love the Music Class blouse in Liberty.

Tamara, you might just want to set a goal of one pair. They are a very detailed sew with lots of topstitching.

Your little baby will be here soon and you will have even less sewing time, I can vouch for that and I have lots of baby cuddlers.

Trixie was unsettled at 5 am so I took her in my sewing room and she happily had some no-nappy time while I worked on my Liesl+Co tunic.

I love sewing with hanky linen (ramie)

[mcholley1]

I agree….something like the after school pants can be knocked out quickly, but those field trips are a time suck! My girl’s favorite hikers are after school pants, and she also has a pair of art museums with patch pockets instead of welts and a waistband attached like the sketchbooks.

I got a liberty dress shirt finished for my 4year old today. I’m so sad there isn’t going to be an o+s blazer this year. 🙁 My girl needs a dressy-ish outfit next…I wish the fairytale had sleeves.

[mcholley1]

Oh, and I would make the picnic blouse in liberty for your two year old. Make it on the large size now (liberty has such a nice drape). Pair it with leggings first as a tunic and wear it later as a blouse.

[with love Heidi]

I’ve had a very productive sewing week this week, in part because it was a rather stressful week at work. I’ve finished the peppermint swirl skirt I was working on, made some badminton shorts with puppet Show pockets and have just finished a pink and purple Hopscotch tee to go with the grey skirt I made last week. I just hope that the hopscotch fits over baby’s head! https://www.flickr.com/photos/73669617@N07/15483703089/

[Tamara]

Wow you have had a productive week Heidi!

I made one pair of field trip cargos yesterday, just have a bit of finishing off to do but not bad for six hours at the machine, considering I had to alter the pattern. Because she needs collared long sleeved shirts aswell I have decided to just go to totally workwear and purchase them and the second pair of pants. They both need new farm boots anyway so it will save on the time – not that I couldn’t do it or anything! Once you have done a pattern a few times the amount of time it takes to sew the garment actually shortens.

So today I am back to baby gear – because the extra poppers I ordered turned up and I will need something to kill the time with while the kids are at the halloween party tonight. So teaparty playsuit and dress ala Amy Butler Love here we come! 7 weeks to go!

[Tamara]

Mcholley the Fairtale does have sleeves! Just short ones. Just use a different sleeve and lengthen it if you want them longer – they should be interchangeable.

[Tamara]

Up to the handstiching parts of the teaparty dress. The playsuit is next to be sewn bodice and pants together.

[Nicole]

I made trixie some new swaddle wraps from soft and snugly flannelette

[Tamara]

So she isn’t a houdini baby then? I had two of those so am now considering fitted wraps for this one – and I may be proven to be completely wrong!

I had Imogen going goo goo over the baby things in our only big chain store yesterday. She was ready to pick every item off the shelf and stick it in the basket – I reminded her of our system and that we were “just looking for inspriation”. So today I have to keep going with my own one of a kind “cutest clothes ever” range because I haven’t handstitched for a couple of days and the teaparty things are in need of completion. I relly want to try the popper applicator out!

I also have to sneak in a seam or two of other clothing items – for a funeral! It has to be ready to go basically and yes I will do a little set for baby also.

You know honestly, I wouldn’t know what to do to keep myself occupied with everything that is happening or about to happen in our lives right now. I just feel so thankful I can deviate the attention and the emotion and concentrate my energies into creating something beautiful. I may not be the best sewist in the world or a complete expert but I just feel very blessed right now to be able to have such a skill.

[Tamara]

Just finished the teaparty dress! Its sooo cute! Tomorrow I will work on the playsuit and the bloomers.

[Tamara]

Doing itty bitty finish-me-off sewing! One pair of puppet show shorts and one pair of teaparty bloomers both size 0-3 months. I need to do the popper facings for the “love” teaparty playsuit and this will be complete too (once the poppers and buttons go on – I am building a pile!

No actual sewing today with more appointments but hope to cut out the school days jacket tonight and get cracking to catch up!

[with love Heidi]

I’ve had a busy week and haven’t sewn since last Sunday! I’m looking forward to getting back to the Explorer Vest I started then. This is the first one I’ve made since I made like 7 of them at a time 🙂

[vothgirl]

I just finished Ben’s Thread Theory Finlayson pullover. I’m very happy with how it turned out and that he likes it, but I don’t plan to sew with sweater knit again anytime soon. It’s just difficult to work with particularly since my fingertips are so dry and rough that they kept snagging on the fabric. But I definitely plan to sew one up for myself at some point, possibly out of sweatshirt fleece or french terry.

I’m currently gluing the Late Lunch Tunic pattern together; I plan to sew one each for my mum and myself (mine will be the test run as we’re the same size, to make sure I don’t make them too baggy) out of some lovely AMH interlock knit (the navy with black thistle silhouette for me and the dark fuschia with charcoal thistle silhouette for my mum). Getting on with the Christmas sewing!

And it’s not *technically* sewing as I won’t sew it til early next year, but I got some lovely wool swatches from Mood today for Ben’s Thread Theory peacoat and immediately went to the computer to order enough of my favorite one to sew up for him! I got 5 free swatches with my order so I chose a variety of possible lining options. I’m so excited and looking forward (albeit a tad nervous) to sewing with such lovely materials. He’ll be unwrapping a box of wool fabric and the paper pattern as his Christmas gift this year. So, one gift down, a great many to go!

[Tamara]

I have been granted some extra sewing hours today so I am going to really make the best of it.

I have to do some pleating of corduroy. I want to attach poppers on the many items that need poppers. I also want to get on with the three bodysuits and see if I can’t make some headway with them.

The aim is to this weekend trace and alter some patterns for an upcoming occasion of which the date is not set. I have to get approval on the Fairytale dress but I am thinking the sketchbook pattern will most certainly be used. I don’t know what to use for myself but I am leaning towards using stretch fabric for comfort. I would dearly love to make Murray a new shirt but realistically I am not sure if I have the time up my sleeve to sew it just now. I will aim for a happier occasion like Easter or something and will shop around for some perfect fabric.

I haven’t even thought about Christmas sewing just yet. I just know that baby probably won’t need anything as she may still come after Christmas yet. If I do sew for Christmas they will be little stocking stuffer type things.

Today though it is the list of the above which all will take time but I hope to get through the list of three items.

[cybele727]

I finally finished my jumprope dress. It is awesome and she loves it. I made it out of this cozy brushed cotton from Nashville Cottons or Fabric Finders. A lovely houndstooth of brown and a light pink. I got it all done but the button holes and my machine chewed the placket in the button hole attempts.

I am NOT thrilled with my machine and this keeps happening despite many “remedial lessons” by the dealer to make sure it isn’t “user error.” (It isn’t.– I think the computer sensor is too sensitive and it gets whacked if there is a seam anywhere near, which when you are considering button plackets, it is totally all seamy. I am beginning to resent the phrase “user error”.)

I pulled out my old mechanical Kenmore. Did a test run of the layers of fabric-6x. 6 Perfect Button Holes. Then 3 perfect ones on the placket. Considering the buttonholers and steps are exactly the same, it isn’t the user.

In any event, I NEEDED to finish it up so I could move onto the 3 pairs of afterschool that await my attention, some pillow covers and a few Christmas gifts waiting in the wings. My WeeGee only wears afterschool with a slight alteration. We no longer tolerate RTW because they don’t fit properly.

Pillow Covers: this june while in NYC, I stayed with my cousin. I bought some Liberty, which she loved and said, ooh can you recover that one pillow in that fabric. Me: yes- just send me the fabric and the cover. To cover the front, since the back matches, you can get a half yard and that will be enough. (The colors were close enough that it was ok if there was some transparency to the Liberty.)

Mid October my aunt delivers 5 pillow covers with various fabrics that don’t blend, and that aren’t thick enough to hide the color. (Eg: a white and pink ticking to cover a dark sage and orange velvet pillow). So I need to figure out what to do.

Lesson to self (remedial style) don’t offer to sew for another person. They don’t get it.