Category Crafting

Sabuda, pop-ups and some mysterious cases!

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Hi everybody!

A little bit of an unusual post from me today as I won’t be discussing sewing at all! I thought I’d like to add a little bit about another great craft-related love, which has been around a LOT longer than making clothes: papercraft and, in particular, pop-ups.

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A scene from “The Wizard of Oz” by Robert Sabuda. This 3D hot air balloon turns in the breeze! Can you see the little basket attached to it?

What motivated me to write this post I hear you ask? (Maybe). Well, I saw something on Indiegogo that got me so excited I ran through to my husband squealing. And I don’t squeal. Ever. Okay, so if you’re the sort of person who likes any or all of: puzzles, adventure games/board games, escape rooms, pop-ups you’ll probably like this. If you like Sherlock Holmes or know who Robert Sabuda is, you’ll definitely like this. If you don’t like any of the above, probably best move on. 🙂 Continue reading “Sabuda, pop-ups and some mysterious cases!” →

Giveaway: duplicate patterns and Shape Shape 2

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A short but hopefully sweet post from me today. For a variety of reasons (mostly related to my terrible memory) I recently realised I have a few duplicate patterns and a duplicate pattern book (all unopened) in my collection. I can’t say they are very similar to each other, but I thought it might be a nice little giveaway to anyone who is interested.

They comprise:

1. Shape Shape 2 book: a Japanese pattern book for women

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The Great British Sewing Bee: From Stitch to Style review

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Not exactly the most succinct of book titles, eh? And I’m not sure the “From Stitch to Style” subtitle really tells you anything very much, but at least the first part tells you from whence the book originates. I haven’t really written a book review for this blog before, although I may start, since I have such a multitude, but I wanted to jump in on this one right away, because – it’s ACE. I picked it up on a whim really, from WH Smith (I can’t think of a similar US store, but it’s basically a bit bookstore/bit newsagent/bit stationery shop) for about £8 and I see it’s the same on amazon.co.uk. This is a STEAL! Honestly. Continue reading “The Great British Sewing Bee: From Stitch to Style review” →

New make: Linden sweatshirt

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I’m back from Scotland and, boy, do I have a lot of blogging to catch up on. I’m happy to say that the nuptials went swimmingly and I’ll put a little post up in a couple of days, since there were a couple of crafty type things going on for the wedding – but mostly because of the occasion. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to catch up on blog posts on my reader and there have been so many fantastic makes while I’ve been gone. I’m loving the new patterns from Seamwork, out today I think? and also managed to add to my burgeoning sewing book collection with a few new books and mags.

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New make: Luna pants

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I’ll be honest – this style of trousers/pants are not really my thing and I had kind of disregarded the Luna pants pattern when it came out. That was until I made the Beatrix top, also by Made by Rae and very much enjoyed it; and then saw this pair, which made me pause a little. There’s also no denying that these kinds of trousers are very practical, particularly when you’re running around after small children. I saw Rae was doing a sewalong, so I thought, well, why not? I did skip ahead of the sewalong since after I got to the sewing part I just decided to finish up. I’m sure that’s pretty normal.

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New make: Sorbetto top in plaid

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Hello hello! I almost didn’t post this make since it seems that everyone in the whole wide world has made a Sorbetto top at some point. But obviously not everyone has, and maybe there are even some people yet to discover that its a free pattern from Colette Patterns that you can download any time you like! Plus, of course, this ended up with its own little complications. Bias binding: I’m talking about you.

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New make: Shark shorts! Yikes!

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One of my goals for the next 6 months is to make some clothes for my one year old, Joseph. I found the free Sunny Day Shorts pattern by Oliver+s online and, since we have indeed been having quite a few sunny days recently, decided to whip a pair up. Continue reading “New make: Shark shorts! Yikes!” →

New make: Fen Dress

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Pulling a “Jeez, it’s damp” face

Happy Thursday good people! Today I’m posting a few pictures of the Fancy Tiger Crafts’ Fen dress that I finished last week. Please excuse the light on the fabric- you can get a better idea of the fabric close-up in pics further down. I’m afraid there aren’t really any construction pictures, and that’s because I made most of the dress as part of a class, at Drygoods Design, here in Seattle. I did the class as one of three in the “Learn to Sew Apparel Trilogy” series they do, in which you choose between a couple of options for three different projects. This is the 2nd class I chose (I am posting out of order) and the others were the Linden sweatshirt and Sailor Top. As a general note, I thought the classes were fantastic – the small class size means plenty of individual help and attention – and the teacher, Julienne, couldn’t have been nicer, funnier or more encouraging. Nice one, Drygoods! 🙂 PS. They give you wine. Win. Continue reading “New make: Fen Dress” →

6 months in sewing – what have I done?

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I don’t mean that in a “Lawks, what have I done to him??” kind of a way, more in a “What have I actually done“, as in sewn, way. I wrote my first blog post 6 months ago and time has gone FAST. I thought it might be a good idea to take stock of what I’ve achieved so far in the world of sewing as it will no doubt point me in a few specific directions going forwards. Therefore, this post will probably be of interest mainly to… well, ME, but hey, feel free to peruse my summing uppery. Continue reading “6 months in sewing – what have I done?” →

New make: Butterick B6207

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When I was younger, I had this two piece outfit from French Connection that my Mum persuaded me to buy (being 13 or so, I had other ideas). It was a lemon and mint striped cotton top and skirt/culottes outfit that was a lot nicer than it sounds in writing. I still rather like the look of matching tops and bottom outfits and I’ve been thinking about making one for a while. As well as the whole outfit for a more put-together occasion, you’ve also got the option to wear them separately – three outfits in one really! I had been, and am still planning, some sort of cotton circle skirt and vest top affair, but in the meantime, I’ve made up this outfit in a knit. And can I just say…. DRUM ROLL… this is my first Big Four pattern!! Woohoo!

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