Flip Vest

With this pattern I'm attempting two things I've never done...lining and button holes. This should be interesting! I'm making the Flip Vest off this site Made. Starting with possibly most perfect fabric for my little girl...purple sparkly sweatshirting. First of all I cut the pattern (with some help from George the cat).

I found it a little too small and way too short so I made it longer to sit on the floor if she's sitting up. First step is to sew the two vests down the sides and across the shoulders.

Next sew in the neckband and then sandwich the two together. You leave a hole for the vest to be turned inside out and voila! Lining is done. Not too tricky really.

Now I don't know about anyone else but I get very impatient as I'm nearing the end of a project. This is when things go wrong! Because I'm not being careful and watching what I'm doing and yes, I'm rushing! Case in point below.

Quick unpick (several times I might add) and lots of swearing and it's finally complete. Now for the buttons. Again after several bad attempts and more swearing I opted for faux buttons and domes. You can see why!

So bad! Anyway the final thing looks pretty cute and the model is even cuter. You win this time buttonholes but I will get you.

New sewing machine

The time had come to retire my original Elna Lotus. I learnt to sew in my mum's one so I was a little sad to see her go. 

However I scored this new (by new I mean 20 years old rather than 35!) Elna Club second hand. It's even got digital display. Runs like a dream and best of all I can see all the stitches I need without fiddling with any knobs. Here's what I've whipped up so far...

Merino booties

Flutter sleeve tunic

Harem pants

Flutter sleeve

I bought this adorable pattern from the Brindille and Twig website for a flutter sleeve dress/tshirt. In my mind I thought it would be great in fine merino so off I went to The Fabric Store (love love love that place). They just so happened to be having a sale so I got two colours. The shape of the tshirt isn't too tricky but the flutters were a bit fiddly. I love the end result though...so pretty! I've already got ideas for the next time I make it. Watch this space!

This is the one from the website.

Sweatshirt dress

I finally got to make the little sweatshirt dress. I used some lovely merino sweatshirt fabric for the main part of the dress with some printed sweatshirt fabric for the faux pockets. True to form I did have a few quick unpick emergencies however I got there in the end! It took me about 5 goes to get the little bird the right way around but I think that's my favourite part of the top. Moral of the story is that even with a pattern and step by step instructions I still get it wrong a lot of the time! Haha.

Violet helped me cut out the fabric.

I cannot be without my quick unpick and my newly sharpened scissors.

Finished product!

Violet approves! Nice and long to keep her warm. Things seem to get very short on her very quickly!

PDF patterns

So I have always avoided using paterns because a) I'm really bad at following instructions and b) they always use sewing jargon that I don't understand. But since my last pattern attempt things have changed...welcome to the world of digital patterns! You pay, download and print. Even more exciting is that they have step by step instructions with colour photos. As I said I'm seriously bad at following instructions because I'm super impatient and prefer to figure things out myself. Consequently things don't always go right the first time, which is why my darling partner printed 2 copies, knowing I would inevitably stuff the first one up. So here goes...

Cute pattern right! First step cut out pieces.

No wait...go back and read instructions. Join bits together by overlapping the numbers. Lucky I got two!

Tape bits together. Now cut out the size pattern you need (6-9 months for miss long body).

Lay out on fabric and cut. Again follow instructions about where the grain line should go (this is news to me). Just need to use my newly sharpened scissors to cut it all out. So much easier than folding out all the little thin paper bits like the old patterns. Also you can save the file and print again when you need the next size! Genius. Unfortunately I have to wait until my machine gets serviced before I can whip this little beauty up. Up to 2 weeks wait! Sigh.

Proper Girly

I had this gorgeous floral fabric for a week trying to figure out what kind of dress to make. Luckily good old mum gave me the idea to make a little yoke and attach the gathered skirt. I cut the basic shape off the lovely spotty dress Violet already had (thanks Pumpkin Patch). Because the fabric had some give the arm and neck holes are able to stretch. I finished it off with some running around the edges, purple of course! Amazingly it fits pretty well, although my cutting skills are very dodgy. Couldn't resist making a wee headband to match, super cute. I think it's time to get some basic patterns...hopefully they come with pictures because I'm no good at following instructions! As I'm sure my partner would agree 😉

Trackies

I found some lovely stretch sweatshirting so decided to make Violet some little trackies. Just used the same pattern again but added some love heart patches in the knees and the bum. Perfect for a frosty weekend away in the Tron. I'm becoming a sewing night owl. Also how cute do they look with the woollies Grandma knitted!

Actual Sewing

After quite some time roaming around in Spotlight I came home with bundles of fabric to create some playmats for my little one to laze about on looking gorgeous (still pre-baby so I wasn't to know just how little she would actually stay still). I wanted to make an edging in one fabric, kind of like a picture frame, and thr centre in another. I had no idea now do do this so I do what I always do and 'guess ti mate' how I thought it should go. If you squint your eyes it looks awesome...just don't look too closely at the uneven seems and ribbon stichting on to,cover up the gaps. Anyway I'm glad I made two because they go in the wash on a regular basis after being goobed on, spewed on, pooed and weed on etc etc. As you can see Violet spends a lot of time on both...from when she was a teeny baby to a now giant baby! Success.

Violet Rose

My beautiful baby girl arrived on the 21st Feb. So perfect, we couldn't stop staring at her! Then the next 3 months are pretty much a blur. My brain was completely occupied with all things baby! But as I got used to being a mum and things got easier, little ideas started to creep back in...spurred on by the fact that my teeny tiny baby was no longer, she was in fact growing at a rapid rate! Time to get sewing girly things.

Slouchies

I ❤️ the brightly coloured Bonds leggings and Violet rocked them non stop for the first 3 months. They were so comfy and cool that I decided to use that horseshoe shape for my first pair of baby pants. During nap time I got out the old newspaper and scissors and cut a rough pattern, allowing an extra 5cms to allow for a little bit of extra slouch. I chose soft cotton Jersey with ribbing for the waistband and leg cuffs. Once Violet was asleep I madly sewed and pinned until a pair of pants were born. I couldn't resist a matching headband to complete the look. After adjusting the band to fit Violet around the middle with a bit of wiggle room they were ready for their road test. End result- super comfy, super cool and only $10 to make!

It's a girl!

Imagine my delight when we were to told in a few months time a precious little girl would be entering our lives. Imagine even more delight when I thought about all the gorgeous tiny outfits I could buy her! As the months dragged by and my due date was approaching, I decided to dust off the old sewing machine and start making things. As is always the case with me things don't seem to turn out how I picture them in my head. I can't find the right coloured fabric or ribbon, or my skills aren't as good as my imaginary sewing skills! Anyway I started with a mobile...spent hours hand stitching felt birds and wrangling ribbons, only to ditch it in favour of a far cooler version from Country Road. However in a fit of stubbornness (it took me bloody ages!) I tied it to the bassinet thinking it would look pretty, little did I know those birds would give Violet hours of entertainment as she lay in her little bed talking to them as they dangled above her. My first attempt at handmade lovelies wasn't what I first pictured but turned out ok in the end.