Advent Calendar

I have been thinking about Christmas. Is this the year of the advent calendar or can I put it off another year. I could not bother at all, but if I am honest, the one my mum used to do for me was better than the actual day itself so I feel mean denying her of the same pleasure. The other thing holding me back has been the absence of nicely designed Christmas fabric. I find it all really traditional and boring usually. Lots of dark green and red which is not really my thing.

I ummed and ahhed with making something without pockets like this great felt number from Purl Bee. It does have pockets, but what are you going to fit in them? It is really nice though. I worry Penelope will chew/eat/lose the bits though and it will get moth lying formant in the cellar. I am considering it though.


Then Katie posted this bundle from Elephant in my Handbag in her fabric roundup and I thought 'Yes! this could either be gross or great!'

The fabric arrived and I am pleased to report I think it might turn out great! It's really crisp and vivid which I like and the pink and green colour scheme is much more my thing. I hoiked out some offcuts for the pocket linings. The colour scheme from the giant hexagon quilt seems to match perfectly so it will be a good scrap buster.



As for the design, well I am going to just copy the great one that Jess made for Mabel. I have no idea what the real sizes are so I am just making it up based on my smallest pocket being 3". That's big enough for some small plastic trash right? I really like Jess'. I hope mine doesn't end up looking like a disco traincrash. I have drawn up a grand pattern. I wanted it to remain as faithful to Jess' as possible. Did I get it right? Who knows!

Ikea Teddy Bed

So I bought the Ikea Doll Bed. I had been thinking about it for some time. I thought that the pillow, mattress and blanket which come with it were pretty basic though. The pillow isn't even a pillow. It just wasn't cutting it. So I set about improving it. First I stained the pieces of wood with dark oak wood stain 3 times. Then I varnished them with matt varnish twice. All before construction. Then I set about making some new bedding with the stash of cheap fabric I bought from Birmingham at Fabrics Galore.


Firstly a new mattress
I just cut two layers of scrap wadding and covered it with grey stripe on one side and the grey dots on the other. It's not like a teddy is going to complain about it being hard. I bound it with some neon yellow ribbon I had so it matched the neon yellow thread I used to glam it up a bit. The Paul Smith grey stripe material worked really well but snapped my needle as the fabric was so fine.


Here is the other side. Simply flip it over and you have a new bed!

Secondly, a pillow
The pillow form itself I made using the white percale offcuts from Empress Mills which I got for £3.50. It's lovely soft fabric, a really great bargain. Now I want to go back and buy a whole load of it. The only purchase other than the bed that I had to make was the hollow fibre to fill the pillow form which was only £1.85 from my local craft shop. Then I made a matching removable pillowcase which I am pleased about.

Thirdly, a duvet
What can I say? I had all the stuffing and plenty of the percale left so I just went for it and even sewed it into sections like a proper duvet. Then I made a matching duvet cover. It's a little baggy but aren't they all?

Fourthly, a quilt!
I managed to finally finish off the jacob's coat quilt. I took it away on holiday and just went for it. It was really enjoyable. It used 100 petal shapes so I really needed two sets of Kim's precut petal shapes which I spoke about here. It was really nice to have such a variety of patterns. It made it look really antique. I had to make up the second lot myself which is a bit of a shame as it means there are some repeats in there, but I had all of mums dressmaking scraps and my own considerable stash.


I think Rachel's cat looks very cosy here.


I backed it with my precious fat quarter of Betsy fabric which I thought I was never going to use. So I am happy with myself for not hoarding fabric. It's really time to let go. I hate that I hang on to fabric, not wanting to use it as it's too nice. How silly is that?


If you look closely you can see that it's not very neat, but it does look very homemade. I didn't use a quilting frame and I did a lot of it in subdued lighting so it's not very crisp. You can also see how I quilted inbetween the shapes. It didn't take very long. And also I changed my original pattern by doing some blocks 1 1/2" and some 3 1/2, just to make it seem a bit more higgldypiggldy. It's all finished off with my cheap £1.65 bias binding. Done. I just wanted it to look old and a bit careworn which I think it does. Here is one last flat on view of the whole thing.

Catnap kitten dress contest

So I have entered the Catnap Kitten Dress Contest run by Lizzy House.

My picture includes Penelope's snug: Meow. We have two. In case she loses one. There is no moment where Meow is not needed. I think if we went on holiday and left him behind we would have to come home and get him. Cats are important in our house. So a pocket for him seemed like a grand idea.

The pattern
The dress pattern I followed is Shannon's Sally Dress.I have made the no arms version.

About this pattern
It's really long! Which is great. You get this mega PDF with loads of diagrams and instructions so you are led all the way through. It makes it so much easier. The only problems I had were my own stupidity and inexperience which meant I ballsed up a few things and my brain trying to compute the inner/outer/wrong/right side of things. I had to really sit and go over some of the instructions over and over again. But I am not a dress maker. My mum is a dress maker. I have not made many items of clothing at all really.

I have made this dress once before. I think I have got slightly better at it this time round. I would definitely make it again as I love the pockets and I really enjoy making it. I'd even make another catnap version using the orangey fabric next time. I did alter the pattern this time round by adding the slit and button on the back as Penelope will not sit still or help with dressing so it needs to be easy.

The fabric
The fabric is from Backstitch (unless stated otherwise below. I used a few scraps for pocket lining to make it a bit more exciting), a great UK based fabric site. It's hard to get modern quilting fabric in the UK, let alone really good websites that sell it. This site is both AND it will soon be a shop in Cambridge at Burwash. You get to see the big pig, have tea and cake, hit the toy shop then cruise the fabric store. Family outing checkboxes all ticked.

So the main cat fabric is:Purrfectly Happy: Cloud
The bodice, right pocket and The appliqué cat nose are all Pearl Bracelets: Grape Jelly
The bodice inside and outer left appliqué pocket are a tiny purple spot from Fabrics Galore yonks a go
The left pocket grey stripe lining is from Little L's yonks a go. I love it so much I hardly ever use it!
The right pocket pink dot lining is a really old scrap, I have no idea where from.
The appliqué cat face is: Klona Cotton: Natural (Seeded)
The appliqué cat cheeks are:Klona Cotton: Pale Pink

Here is Penelope in the dress. It's too big for her right now which is how I wanted it. I really want her to be properly walking before I hamper her with too many dresses. At the moment we live in shorts and tights. In fact, my next project is going to be Bubble shorts. More on that later. We were going to go to The Science Museum this weekend and photograph her in the dress in some cool place or a stylish café but the trains weren't working and the wind was howling like a banshee. All the plastic sheeting blew off the house opposite and our wall is going to topple anyday. It is definitely staying indoors weather. Stickers instead.

Here are my bumbling project posts along the way
Stage 1: Choosing fabric
Stage 2: Doing dodgy appliqué
Stage 3: Sewing my schizzle together

Catnap dress update

Another Catnap dress contest update! I know you really need to know how I have been cobbling this together. Jeez, I am so hamfisted. The cutting has all been fine, especially with my new huge cutter. The pockets were easy. The skirt was pretty easy. I even managed to correct a mistake I made last time which made the whole thing a lot easier.

I even had time to put in a little label on my pocket and make the hem detail neon yellow. I do love a bit of neon.

Behold! I managed to sew double lines on the waistband and gathered them gently without snapping the thread this time. Much neater and much easier to achieve. Last time was a bit of a battle. The skirt came together very quickly.

Here I am whizzing over the gathering with my see through foot, very useful foot it is too.

The bodice was the first cock up. I cut the arm holes a bit longer as I was having difficulties getting Penelope's arms in the last one. She wriggles. She moves. She fights me. I needed help. So I made them bigger. Then I suddenly decided to make sleeves and cut the sleeves without adding the extra length. Okay, I thought, I can cobble this together. So the arm holes had weird pleats. Then I blind/invisible stitched them on like I had never held a needle in my life. I have hand bound so many quilts, how can I mess this up? I just couldn't work it out. I unpicked, I did it again. It was marginally better. The second arm better still. In hindsight I should have practiced, but, well, life is so short. Then I stood back, wiped the sweat off my brow and thought the whole thing looked like a patchwork gypsy dress. I have nothing against that, but it wasn't the modern sophisticated Top Cat look I was going for. She's not Rag-dolly Anne or Aunt Sally, she's... she's... Lordy, something else.

So I thought about it.

Then I asked Rachel.

Then I unpicked the arms. Sigh. I just HATE going backwards.

Don't look at it for too long! I can't change my mind now. They are gone.

And now me and the ace wonderclips have a date. I had trimmed the seams so there is not a lot of fabric to play with so I am carefully clipping and pinching and folding and blind/invisible hemming them together very neatly and slowly. I need to get a wriggle on if I am to meet the deadline. This endless cold is not helping, nor is watching Scandanavian dramas with subtitles as I can not look away from the screen.

Appliqué cat

After a particularly noisy, trchnicolour visit to the local soft play centre, I put Penelope to bed and sat on the sofa in silence and happily appliquéd away for her entire naptime. It made me remember why I love appliqué so much. It's so relaxing.


The best thing is that it didn't cost me a penny! Well almost. The thread was some mum gave me. I hadn't really examined it before, but it was the perfect colour and really nice to sew with. I haven't used Perlé much, but it was just the right thickness for the job in hand.


The cat face fabric is Klona Cotton: Natural (Seeded) from Backstitch. It's really lovely to work with and I am looking forward to visiting the new shop and taking a look at all the Klona fabric. It was lovely and thick and really had the nice linen look I was after. I didn't want it to actually be linen though as I just don't need something else that needs drastic ironing. Life is too short to be endlessly ironing baby clothes. In fact, to be ironing any clothes. The pink cheeks are Klona Cotton: Pale Pink. I probably had some pink somewhere but I couldn't find it and solids are always useful.

I found this really easy. I didn't want perfectly round circles or a smooth cat face, weird I know, but it didn't feel right. I find smooth edges a real pain to achieve so the fact that the cat lends itself to a wonkier approach meant that my rather basic appliqué skills were perfect for the job! I wish there was a bit more to do really. I might have to think up another appliqué quilt to do where the same style could be applied. Another project in the making I don't have time for! But tonight I am making sleeves. I have never made sleeves before.


I have altered the Sally dress pattern slightly because I find the dress a bit hard to dress the wrigglebag. So I have added a slit to the back of the dress. I fear I have done it very badly. If I did it over I wouldn't cut a slit in the back piece. I would make it out of two separate bits and then once made, I would cut out the back shape. My back back shape is now a bit smaller than the front which has been a pain and the material is not lying flat on the inside. Luckily no one will see that, but I think it looks messy.

I did get a chance to use my new blindstitch foot mum bought be from Christmas. I followed this tutorial and it worked! I have learnt something new! I feel very proud of myself. So I am now going to blind/invisible hem everything. Next I want to learn zippers and buttonholes. There is no stopping me!

Catnap dress contest

I don't know, I seem incapable of just doing one project at a time. The sawtooth star is overwhelming that I have put it to one side. I have been working on the MapleO which is going great... But...

Then I saw Lizzy House was doing a dressmaking contest using her Catnap fabric. What a perfect idea! I had been about to buy some of the line anyway as I just love it. I am annoyed that nowhere in the UK sells the entire range, but then I shouldn't really be buying all of it anyway. In the end I bought some from Backstitch which is fast becoming a favourite online retailer for me. It is so quick! You can see the Catnap range she stocks here.

I was really torn between two of the fabrics. I just couldn't make up my mind. So I bought both! Shocking. I am so poor! What is wrong with me? But I knew that it was strong love I felt and that this range was going to be like Denyse Schmidt's Flea Market Fancy where I kicked myself for months and months after it had all gone out of stock so quickly. These days I have a stern talk with myself and try and only buy fabric I really, reaaaally like. I have quite enough in my stash that I really am not that keen on. Yet there are some fabrics I return to again and again. These latter ones are the only ones I want to buy these days. Anyhow, Catnap is a keeper!

I have decided to make Penelope another Sally dress as I really like the pattern and the one she is in now won't fit her that much longer. I can barely get her into it. So I thought I could make her a size 3 bodice with a size two bottom bit. I am not that great at choosing fabrics that match or combining colour unless it is really obvious. I ended up with two choices.

I have decided to go with the beige and purple group as I just love the big cat faces. I cut out the fabric today and didn't have enough of the purple bracelet fabric so I decided to make the pockets odd colours with odd linings. A test really to see what goes. Plus it will look quirky I hope. Or a mess. Yes it could just look like a mess.

I have also decided to do a little appliqué! Ooooh. I want a big cat face on the pocket. Why not? I was going to sew it on as felt but I thought appliqué would be more special. Penelope will probably just pick it off. It gives me a chance to use my black gold appliqué sharps which mum bought me for Christmas two years a go. So far so good. They really mega sharp so they glide through the layers. I like how the black metal has a Matt finish - for no particular reason - they just look cool. 

My cat is going to bleed off the side of my pocket. I don't want him to appear too symetrical as I don't feel that is in keeping with the fabric. Sorry the pictures are so gloomy. Project time is almost always in the evenings these days. 

So I roughly drew a cat face from the fabric. But now I have period pains so no sewing it tonight. I need to get into bed and watch some Swedish/Danish thriller. Tak!

Join me on Instagram and see the catnapdresscontest hashtag thingamajig. I am so down with the kids.

Cat Clothes

My Neighbour petitioned me to make her daughter's cat some 'all seasons' clothing. I am not really a seamstress but I have tried my best. We went to the cheap fabric shop and she picked out some really bright fabric. As a result taste fell by the wayside a bit. It's more of a mismatch of things, but I think that makes it more exciting. I have really enjoyed this project!

Spring

A stripy pink dress with tutu and stripy scarf. This is a bit of a cheat, as the dress is one of Penelope's which I have just taken in at the sides and the bottom hem. The tutu was from a babygrow. I also included some baby booties to give it a hi top 80's look. This is a Pretty in Pink alternative prom outfit I reckon. The only thing I really made was the scarf and even that was half hearted. I wanted to make a long Doctor Who type scarf and it was all going brilliantly but I ran out of time to sew in all the ends so I had to just back it with some fluro fleece scraps I had. I'm a bit sad really as I had wanted it to have tassles and be an ace scarf, whereas I feel it's a bit lumpy now. Oh well. Time waits for no man.


The bow on the tutu is a nice element though, I am sure a six year old will like that. The elastic is a bit baggy as I didn't do it very well. It was a learning curve.

Summer

A red gingham dress. This is a bit of a cheat again. This is one of Penelope's first dresses she was given which is still brand new with tags on. It was just too cold when she was that little. Plus we didn't get out of babygrows until she was 6 months really. Anyway I took in the sides, the top and the bottom and hey presto, cat has a summery dress.


It ended up looking quite fitted in the end which I was pleased with. I left it long because it looks like a Red Riding Hood outfit. Something to wade through sticky buds and damp ferns with. The cloak I did make! Horrah. I am pleased with the gold trim. I have never done that before.


I am quite pleased with the drape here. Very regal. br />
It has a nice big button to do it up which also worked out well.

Autumn
Gold lamé waistcoat and bow tie, gold flecked jersey trousers with gold lamé turnups.


As for the trousers. They were supposed to be baggy, MC Hammer style trousers but my measurements were all off. I'd quite like to make them again to the right size without the turnups. There is something a bit Shawoddywoddy about the turnups.

The waistcoat it really badly made. I could have done the seams so much better if I had thought more about it. I was following this great pattern, but I failed to do the last bit right by being in a rush and not reading it through properly. I like the pocket though. I couldn't do her posh pockets. One day I will read up how to do them properly. I will also learn how to do button holes so it can be done up nicely. I might have also made a chain and pocketwatch or pair of wire spectacles. One day...

Winter
A red felt coat and hat. The coat is my favourite thing. I made it from an enlarged version of this pattern.



I really like the detailing on the back and the pocket on the front.

I have to slightly change the neckline and the collar but otherwise it's pretty much as the pattern. I feel if I were to do it again I could tailor it slightly better over the shoulders. Although I have no idea how you do this. The hat is made from the sleeve of my old flatmate's jumper he gave me years a go when he accidentally felted it. I have had it in a box for yonks! I made the red bobble and sewed some ear holes into it. A perfect fit.

Sylvanian baby quilt

My neighbours are 6. Twins. Twins who love Sylvanian families. So I have bought them each a baby animal for Christmas and thought they each needed a baby quilt. Time to crack open the thangles mini pack! Mum's scraps of Liberty fabric were perfect. They're slightly too big, but I just went with the smallest thangles I had and hoped for the best. Completed whilst watching Gardener's World and feeling guilty I haven't touched it since the summer!



The bottom corner of one of them is wet where Penelope decided to chew it. It was her seal of approval. I think the one on the left is my favourite, although the join on the binding is neater on the second.