Hopefully Creative

Dress

Last week I went to the fabric market with my father, we were on the hunt for some nice fabrics (of course). Eventually I came home with a bit of black with white pinstripe cloth with a strange but very nice feel, some white fabric I plan to use as a lining for a jackety type thing, and some blue stiff stuff with flowers on. I was quite pleased. Popped the black stuff in the washing machine and set out not long after to make it into a dress. I really liked working with it, and the dress is nice too. It’s Simplicity 2473, and I adore the collar. I did however, cut it at least 1 size to big, so now additional fabric on the insides by the zipper measures 3 cm. I did however, serge every edge, so it even looks clean on the inside, which is something I’ve really never achieved before. I did take it out for a trial run last week and it behaved nicely. I’ll just have to make sure I don’t wear it with that particular pair of leggings because it sort of stuck, which looked a bit odd. This dress took about 4 days to make, on and off. The instructions are very clear. Anyways, here is the finished product (inside and out).

Insides:

Inside back

Outsides:

(disregard the nice blue socks, I need to do laundry)

And the collar:

Knitting

Remember I once told you about a sweater I was knitting? There has actually been some progress in the last weeks. I’ve been going to school by train, as usual, and normally I read a book. When we were on holiday in France, my brother had the Harry Potter books on his mp3-player read aloud by Stephen Fry (!!!). When I came back, I figured that would be a brilliant idea, so I found them and put them on mine too. However, when listening to a book, it is difficult to do something else… except knitting! It’s so repetitive and simple that I can listen and knit at the same time! So now I’ve not only finished the back of the cardigan, also the left front bit is finished and I’m partly through the ribbing on the bottom on the right bit. It going very slow, but relatively steady, and maybe I can wear my cardigan in 2012!

I have had people look at me funny whilst I was knitting in the train. One old man was staring at me and saying to another man: woah, you don’t see that often anymore. And generally people look a bit confused when I pull out my needles and start knitting. This might also be due to my very strange technique of holding the needles, but I’ll just ignore that for now. I still really like the dark blue colour.

PJ’s again

I’ve been having a slight problem with my PJ pants in that there is an unmendable tear in them. I tend to have this with PJ pants after about a year. I used to always get pajamas for Sinterklaas and then I’d need new ones by next years Sinterklaas. However, I didn’t feel like buying any this year, as I could only find ones with Snoopy or Betty Boop (and I do not like those characters at all). So when I was snooping around in a fabric closet, I found a yellow bed sheet, the same kind I used to make my short PJ pants. The pattern for that also provided a long-legged version, and since it is winter (or so the calendar says, the weather has not been very cooperative) I decided that those would be nice.

So I sorted through the stack of pattern magazines and found the one I needed and made the long legs and attached them to my previous patterns, I figured out a cutting scheme (this took some time) and cut the bits. I always seem to feel (note, feel. I don’t think it’s the case) that cutting fabric and copying patterns takes the longest. Especially marking darts and stuff, dislike that. However, after a couple of episodes of Glee, my easter PJ pants are done.

I know, I will not be the hottest babe at any sleep over party in these, but to be frank: I don’t aim to be, so all is good. Now to further fight the dress.

Productivity!

Friday at quarter past eleven, my vacation started. And so did a productive streak that continued until a couple of hours ago. The second semester of university finished on Friday after handing in the last assignment. I decided I wanted to make something. I found a free t shirt pattern on ‘3 Hours Past the Edge of the World’ and decided I wanted to sew a knit for the first time. There was this piece of light be knitted stuff (very see through) in my stash, and since I did not care much for it, I figured I could use it to test the pattern.

Here is the result:

Changes for next time? Yes, add length, find a less see through fabric, tighten it a bunch and cut the neckband in one piece (this is recommended, but I has scrap pieces that just fit the front and the back). I felt the sleeves were also to wide, but I also had a wrong fabric for the pattern I think. Ah well, it was good practice, and I enjoyed myself. Although I doubt I’ll wear it often as it is so short.

So I printed and taped the pattern together, cut the fabric and sewed the left shoulder seam on Friday, and finished the shirt on Saturday, which I was pretty excited about. The productivity streak continued. I designed a pouch for my mp3-player to replace the enormous not fitting one I made before the holiday in France. Then I put it together using scraps from a coat project. It looks a bit weird but I think it should do the trick.

Here it is:

Lastly I decided to tackle my box of UFPs, I have this long black almost floor length dress (because I didn’t have enough fabric it’s about a cm of the floor without shoes), with a grey bust bit, that has never been finished. I ripped out the zipper, because it was too small, and am trying to get it to fit me better, which is difficult with the zipper being on my back and me not actually being able to see it. So I’ve left that be for now. It will be tackled soon (I hope). (I tried to take a picture, but it was just wrinkles:)

The weird white looking bit on the right is the attachment of the grey fabric. I’m debating attaching long grey ties to make a bow in the back.. once I figure out how to get it to zip up nicely of course. The quest continues for the perfect back.

Washing Machine

It is customary in the Netherlands to celebrate a thing called Sinterklaas. It’s basically a different version of Saint Nicholas or Santa. However, we celebrate it on the 5th of December, we tell kids it’s his birthday, but the real Sinterklaas died that day. You buy gifts for people and sing songs. Some people celebrate it by making ‘surprises’. All the names are put into a hat and everyone gets one that is not his name, they buy presents for this person and make their ‘surprise’. The surprise is related to the person you buy the presents for and also has a poem with it.
So.. for the 2011 celebration of Sinterklaas (which we celebrated the 18th of December) I had my mother’s name. She has been complaining that she hates sorting our black socks, because they are all different but all black. I made a washing machine, I put some coloured socks in with instructions on them and she had to match socks and follow the instructions. She seemed to like it.

It was all made of cardboard and covered with white paper. I used a picture of our washing machine to make the label in the top right corner. Here are some pictures:

I really enjoyed myself making it. It was fun to see that it did work and that she liked it. All in all my Sinterklaas was a lot of fun.

Long Time No See

Yes I know, I’ve not been here for a while. I have no excuses. Well one, my sewing machine broke in December (which is quite the problem), so no sewing related things. I have made some things since the last time I’ve posted. A mp3-player pouch, it’s awful, ugly and crude but I needed one soon and my machine had just broke, and it works, so that’s fine. I’ll update it when I’ve gotten my machine fixed.

I’ve started a skirt that just needs hemming and buttonholes, (it’s almost all done by hand since my machine broke..), however, this was the beginning of January, and I’ve since done nothing to the skirt.

I did make a present for a friend, which was a pouch, this time with a flame embroidery. The pouch from all sides:

The last picture might look weird to you.. white things with dots and stripes on them? They are a couple of pebbles I got from our front garden. I painted dots and stripes on them and put them in the pouch with an instruction leaflet. When playing you can use them as runes or play games with them like Pigs. It is not very useful, but I thought it was fun. He seemed to like it, so I’m happy. I’m going to attempt to write more here, to make me do other things than watch television.

Presents

I have a birthday party tomorrow. However, I was faced with a problem. What could I possibly give as a present? I had no ideas, so eventually I decided to make something. Next question: what would I make? Something easy but nice looking, the answer was, so I decided to make another ear bud pouch (previous one). I found a nice blue fabric in my stash that I’d used for a pencil skirt (and still had 3 meters left after that). Which looked quite nice, and I had a zipper which was quite close. So I used those, here it is:

One adjustment I made compared to the previous one was that I added a ‘pocket’ on the back of the pouch, so you can put a coin in there for a shopping cart or something like that.

So the other bit of the gift has 2 parts. If I show them to you, can you guess what they make together?

Well here they are anyways:

Left is a ribbon (oh, what a surprise ; )) and right is a set of tiny clothes pins that I’ve glued a funky bit of ribbon too.
Did you guess?

The answer is: A Christmas Card Hanging Line! (Or birthday cards, Easter cards, whatever cards you may get). Tadaa!

With two cards, I really like the left card. In the Netherlands children come around each year selling so called kinderpostzegels, or children’s stamps. The proceeds go to a charity to help children. One year they had kinderpostzegels that were designed by Dick Bruna, the writer of Miffy (or Nijntje, in Dutch). They also sell cards that are designed by the same person, and the left is a walrus of Dick Bruna, I still have a soft spot for Nijntje related things, that’s why I like it so much.

Well off to bed soon, so I can be cheerful and happy at the party tomorrow! I hope she likes them!

Ear bud pouch

I found this tutorial not very long ago via Ucreate. It is for making a little ‘Circle zip ear bud pouch’ (link). I figured, I have some scraps left over from my purple and black dress, why not make me one of those.. (Apart from the fact that I don’t own a mp3-player or thing that needs ear buds, but that’s.. not important, right?)

So I did, cut out the fabric last night, which was about 5 minutes of work. And just put the pouch under the machine. It was literally half an hour worth of work. The tutorial is so easy to follow, and the steps are clear and easy. It’s pretty much perfect.

I had a blue zipper and some purple leftovers and decided that using yellow would be even more colourful, since the body of the pouch was going to black. Here it is:

I gave it to my mother, since she has ear buds, and she quite liked it, so that was nice. Now when I ever come around to buying something that plays music for me, I’m make myself another one, since they can be whipped during lunch basically! I’d suggest this for an easy little project. Also, if you make it bigger you can put more stuff in it, a little purse of some kind. Whoo, can’t wait to try that one out.

Mending

I did it, I mended stuff. 2,5 things. A 5 cm seam, a 5 cm gather and a bit in my coat. Results! I also finished by black & purple dress but I don’t have nice pictures yet so that’ll come later. My little bolero had a seam that was sort of coming apart, not yet a rip but not fully secure anymore. Half a second later, finished. Proof (left is always before, right after):

Same with the gathering:

And half of my jacket, I didn’t do the pocket yet, but I did do the sleeve. Too bad I couldn’t find the right colour, but I was eager to get something done so I didn’t really care, still don’t.

Proud.

Finally

Yes! I finally finished something. After all this time, I’ve managed to do something creative again. Whoopy!

I made a needle-case for my friend on Friday (hot pink, dark blue, lime green, yellow thread and a grey ribbon), which I forgot/neglected to take a picture of (since I was finishing it on the train ride there). However, I did ask her if she could make a picture of it, so I’ll possibly upload that somewhere in the future.

And today, a glorious free day (which I will have for the rest of the week: go holiday!) I finally finished clearing up my sewing room/my parents storage room. I had decided I wanted to sort the books in the bookcase, which turned out to be an enormous, hideously huge task. But I have finished it and created: 3 more empty shelves! Hip hip Hooray!

And consequently decided to finish my mice bag. So I finally attached the straps and the buttons, and added some button elastic for easy closing (and a nice different color pop). And it is finished! Mice mice mice, the text reads “Als de kat van huis is dansen de muizen op tafel”, loosely translated as: when the cat is away the mice will play.

I hope this free week will let me start (and finish) some other projects, like:

The black & purple dress (only hemming and attaching shoulder bands).
Redoing the red pants (complete ehm, upper area needs redoing).
Starting a 3/4 circle skirt with pockets.
Repairing the bolero thing (stitching 5 cm)
Gathering the black & white houndstooth shirt (only 10 cm gathering)

As you can see… I am quite lazy and tend to postpone even the smallest of tasks. But now I have the illusive free time to play in. I’ll see what I’ll actually get done, but I hope to do at least the above mentioned things. So hopefully I have more to share.