She Who Sews

As part of the Twig and Tale inspiration team, we are given the chance to sew up new patterns in time for their release. There is no pressure to sew up each new release and when I saw the initial pictures for the Pixie Pants, I actually decided not to take part. But then as testing was extended and a new option was added, a tester photo totally changed my mind on the pattern. My picky model saw the picture too and said she really, really liked it, but the trousers were too short (they were culotte length, just below the knee). I checked with Lisa to make sure I could make full length trousers and made a start.



I chose to make the culotte style wide leg, bib front, bar strap back. I then lengthened the leg to make it full length. I did this simply by measuring Layla's inside leg and extending the pattern the extra length, and a bit extra for luck (you can never have too much length for a child's trouser, they grow so quickly that an extra turn of the hem is really useful!). The pattern comes with lots of options, from plain shorts, to suspender culottes, to a knee length romper (to me and my daughter, we refer to this option as a set of dungarees over here in the UK).



I had the perfect fabric for the job, a pink chambray from Fabworks Mill Shop. It's got a tiny herringbone pattern to it, and is the most wonderful fabric to work with. It appears to have totally sold out now, and I'm glad I managed to buy it in the red colourway too, I just love it!



I stupidly didn't pay a lot of attention to the sizing chart, and nonchalantly ignored the measurement chart detailing chest and height measurements. Well, I didn't ignore it, but I didn't pick up that it should have said waist instead of chest (don't worry, this has been corrected!). So I inadvertently made the pants 3 sizes too wide for Layla using her chest measurement.



I was so pleased with the result, they were so smart and neatly constructed, and I spent a lot of time top-stitching them to make them look perfect. Only for her to put them on and be a bit drowned. She perfected the little fit pic with the grumpiest face ever, and the phrase 'I hate them, I never asked for dungarees. I'm not going to wear them, they're awful'.



Oh the joys of an opinionated five year old.



I turned them inside out and fought them back on her to try to pin out the back crotch seam to take in some of the excess. But I would have had to take in so much that the fall of the fabric and fit of the legs would have been totally off. So I had a little hissy fit of my own and took them apart, entirely. I spent a whole evening unpicking the overlocking, the seams and then the top-stitching. I ended up covered in threads and feeling a little demoralised. I left the project and got a nights sleep to start afresh the next day. In the light of morning, I took the decision to just cut new trouser legs in the correct width and felt pretty silly at the hours of unpicking I did.



On the plus side, constructing them a second time was extremely quick! The pattern is well drafted, the pieces all fit, the notches all fit, everything just fits. The pattern instructions are really clear and detailed. For the first time, little video tutorials are included too! For a beginner this is an amazing pattern, for a more advanced seamstress, this will be an easy and satisfying sew that you can add your own special touches to.



The new size was met with a much, much better reception by Layla. She was happy to try them on, and even happier once they were on and buttoned up. I think she must have got out of bed on the wrong side for the first try!



I didn't like the idea of fighting my two kids to go out somewhere picturesque for photos. That seemed like more hard work than I needed. Instead, I took advantage of my garden, more specifically, my greenhouse. The weather has suddenly warmed up here in Cornwall, and after a little care a couple of months ago, my strawberry plants are already producing this year. I hoped they'd make a nice backdrop for photos, unlike the bug killers, slug pellets, compost and assorted pots that are also kept in there. What you can't see in the photos, is all this other paraphernalia that I put out on the lawn behind me.



In the right mood, Layla is a lovely little model now. She is trying to pose, and is listening a bit more to my suggestions on how to stand. Life is getting easier now they're both getting older, which is fantastic.





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*I was given this pattern to sew up as part of the Inspiration Team for Twig and Tale, for photography purposes for re-release of the updated pattern. However, all views and opinions are my own.*

*Disclaimer: Some of the links in the post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission (the price stays the same for you) which will help me in the future to buy more patterns to share them with you!*

I have seen a lot of blog posts, and picture posts recently of some wonderful upcycles. I think this post has to be a favourite so far, First Upcycle of 2017



So I wanted to challenge myself and try my hand at upcycling too. I often have a look around charity shops here in the UK to see if I can find any bargains, but sadly, most of the stuff around here is of very poor quality. BUT on a recent outing I found a couple of items reduced down that I snapped up after having a vision of the fabric going to different uses!

I bought this women's UK size 22 skirt seeing it being re-made into a child's gilet, or vest. It cost me £2.46.



It had a very loose weave blend fabric outer, and poly lining. It was cut on the cross, presumably to make a more flattering adult skirt.



So I cut the elastic waistband out, cut up a side seam, and then laid the fabric diagonally to lay my pattern pieces out with the grainline the correct way round.



It was a bit of a fiddle to sew with, the fabric wanted to stretch and shift all the time. I got round some of that by overlocking all the edges to add a touch of stability, but it was still a fiddle. I used the skirt lining, again, turned diagonally to make the lining for the vest.

Eventually, I ended up with a complete Pathfinder Vest by Twig + Tale. There are many different options for this pattern. For this upcycle I used flutter sleeves, collar, yoked and pleated back with added drop back to boot!







I used 4 buttons from my odd button box, so there are two of each colour. I think they look fine being a bit odd!



Layla surprised me by actually liking it, and wanting to wear it. I say that's a win win situation!



Oh, and did you know that she is a secret ninja in training?!



I have since gone on to make another two pathfinder vest's, one for my son with a hood, and another for my daughter in the same style. I'll write up a blog post about those in the future, but I'm sure you'll see pictures of them on my instagram feed!

*Disclaimer: Some of the links in the post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission (the price stays the same for you) which will help me in the future to buy more patterns to share them with you!*

When I made my daughter her Latona dress I got an overwhelming response and had many messages asking if I could make it in adult's sizing. I loved the idea of making the dress bigger, but there were challenges, not least being it wasn't my design!



So I sent Steph at the Eli Monster a message asking if there would be any chance of the Latona pattern being released for adults.



And so, after months of behind the scenes work from Steph, the time came to test out the pattern and as I helped out with the child version, I was also asked to help out with the adult version. You can find the newly released pattern here.



I honestly thought this was a fabulous idea, and that it would be easy.

How wrong was I?! Not only are grown up girls lumpy and curvy, but me especially, I'm awkward. I am taller than average, and seemingly have a long body, small boobs and no waist. Oh, and then there was the little problem of having my photo taken, which I had conveniently forgotten that I hate.



I won't go too much into the details, but it took me two weeks of working most evenings, and asking questions on various online groups to help get the bodice to fit me. But I got there in the end (mostly). I had to use my high bust measurement instead of my full bust measurement to get the bodice to properly fit me across the neck, shoulders and back. But this then caused lots of wrinkling under the bust, which it turned out was because I needed a full bust adjustment. For anyone that knows me, this is the most laughable thing in the world as my bust has never been called full, ever! BUT, doing the adjustment stopped all the pulling and still allowed me to use the smaller bodice size! I also graded the waist out to 3 sizes bigger because, like I mentioned above, I have no waist.



I added length (and a bit more fullness) to the skirt to accommodate my extra height.



The result is an almost perfectly fitted dress to me. It even has pockets! My daughter is over the moon that I now have the same dress as her.



I borrowed my friends pettiskirt to go under the dress for photos. I admit, I quite like the swishy feeling, and as I rarely wear dresses, it felt quite refreshing to be dressed up for no particular reason other than to match my daughter.



I used a fabric that I bought over a year ago from an independent seller online. It was sold to me as vintage Liberty, in a cotton and viscose blend. I have no idea if it really is Liberty, it certainly didn't say it was on the selvedge, but it's very pretty, and I had enough of it to make this dress. I have some left over which I may use for a top or tunic for Layla.



Unlike the child's pattern, this adult dress has an invisible side zip and the buttons on the back are faux. I blind hem stitched the centre back button piece down to each side back piece. The buttonholes are real, but I didn't open them, simply sewed the buttons on top.



For the skirt, I still used two width of fabric pieces, but my fabric was 142cm wide (56") instead of the normal 112cm width (44"). This gave it a much fuller look and required gathering it tightly to fit the bodice pieces.



One final adjustment I made to the dress which you can't see from the outside is adding a strip of homemade bias to bind the centre back waist seam. Where the centre panel attaches to the skirt, an exposed section of seam allowance is visible. I overlocked it, but I still wasn't happy, so I bound the edge to leave a clean section between the bodice pieces. I was much happier with this result as it fulfilled my need for a clean look to both the inside, and outside of a garment!



And finally, this little picture. My husband was the photographer for this shoot, and he caught this picture right before my daughter had enough and wanted to go and play in the park.



This pattern and most others are currently on sale over on the Eli Monster website. The adult Latona and the child Latona pattern are both on offer at just $5 for this week.

I would love to know your thoughts on the dress. Let me know in the comments!

*Disclaimer: Some of the links in the post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission (the price stays the same for you) which will help me in the future to buy more patterns to share them with you!*

There are loads of indie pattern designers around, and I am discovering more and more of them as each week passes. I discovered Sew Straight & Gather last summer at the release of their Cafe Romper, which I fell in love with the looks of, and bought as soon as it was released. I was super excited to sew the pattern up, and printed the whole thing off and got my daughter measured straight away.

Then for a number of reasons I simply didn't get it sewn. The pattern is still sitting now in my pattern files, nearly 9 months later. And it's such a waste, as I'll have to re-print it now to several bigger sizes to fit Layla!

So when a few sneak peek pictures of the new Avenue Collection popped up in my newsfeed from the Sew Straight and Gather pattern group, I was intrigued and wanted to have a go at sewing them up. Especially as my pink, girly, dress loving daughter had recently started to want to wear trousers and t-shirts!



I was chosen as a tester mostly due to giving my Sewing Portfolios link in the tester application. If you haven't registered, it's a brilliant little website for people who sew. You get to build an online portfolio of your work (for free), showcasing your best sewing, whether that's clothing, or accessories or dolls. I have been building my profile since the site was launched earlier this year. Once a designer registers too, they can then see my profile from my link, and voila, all my work is in one spot, ready and easy for them to see if I would be a good match for them!



I chose to test the Flares and the Top. I really wanted to give the Duster cardigan a go too, but felt that testing 3 items was going to be a big stretch in a short space of time for me. I think I made the right decision really as this test actually started before two others (that had run over) were finished.



The patterns came together easily, everything matched, although admittedly I was only printing off one size for my Little Miss. There were a few teething issues with the fit of the bands on the back of the top, which were ironed out in testing (that's what it is for right?!) and also with the fit of the waist on the fitted version of the flares (who knew that generally children have a big sway back from the way that they stand!). Because of these few bits that needing ironing out, the testing actually took a couple of weeks longer than originally planned. This was absolutely fine by me. I often find that testing is rushed and that 5 or 7 days isn't enough to test out a pattern and get nice modelled shots edited.



Once these few pattern issues were fixed, the top and trousers were a lovely little fit. I added length to both the legs of the flares, and the arms of the top as I had to use chest & waist measurement for width fit for Layla, but she was too tall for those smaller sizes.



The fitted flares feature two functional (but small) welt pockets to the rear.



And a side zip to close them at the waistband. It's such a grown-up and smart look!



We sneakily used a trip to see my Mum for Mother's Day to take photos! It turned out to be a gloriously sunny day, and the walk next to the trainline along the beach was a perfect setting for photos. I wish I lived closer as it would be a regular spot for photoshoots!



My little Miss has already got a lot of use out of these two items. In fact, she has pretty much ruined the trousers by playing hard in them (a testament to their fit and ease of wear perhaps) and covering them in mud and grime from adventure playgrounds on several occasions.



I wonder if I should have made the flares in dark denim? What would you make them in?

In the new year I decided that I would set myself the task of stretching my sewing skills into different areas. One of the things I wanted to test myself with was by making a jointed, and weighted baby doll. I haven't quite got there, but I did make a start with this traditional style Waldorf doll!



I came across a baby doll pattern around Christmas time, which was just the sweetest, cutest thing ever, and it scared me silly at the thought of making it! But I bought the pattern and stored it, along with all my clothing patterns, in a folder on my PC. And there it stayed.

But at the beginning of February, Cathy, the pattern designer was going to host a sew along in her Facebook group for a traditional style doll. A much simpler version than the pattern I bought. It didn't have jointed limbs, nor did it have weighting, and it was only 12" tall. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to dip my toe into doll making, with a relaxed and detailed sew along with many others who had not sewn a doll before. Internet groups are great at making you feel part of a team, even if that team is spread over the whole world.

So I found a UK supplier of most of the necessary materials and I ordered up enough to make the sew along doll as well as the more complex baby doll. I also found a UK wool supplier, who sold many different types of British wool from different breeds of sheep (who knew that wool went that deep!! I just assumed that wool was wool and it kind of got mixed with all the different breeds. How naive of me!). I had no idea which one to pick, so I just went with the cheapest British carded wool batting they did. It arrived a week later and smelt of sheep. Yes, this may sound silly, but a wool jumper doesn't smell of farm animals does it? Well this stuff did!

And then, well, life happened, and the sew along started, and I hadn't ordered my materials in time for the first day (or even the first week). So I sort of forgot about it again. Then Facebook decided to throw in a post from the Brambles and Blossoms pattern love group into my newsfeed that the deadline for the sew along was March 16th. Excellent news for the world's most unorganised person and perfect timing as it was the first week of March.

Once I'd made the decision to join in, I watched all the amazingly helpful videos that Cathy had uploaded to the group, I read through her detailed blog posts and I made a start on the head of the doll. That first evening I made the brains of the head, and formed a little nose and mouth on the inner head. I traced out the body pieces on the skin fabric and called it a night. It took me maybe an hour or two to form the head and I was tired as it was late evening by then.



The next morning, I was eager to get started, and as it was a Sunday, my husband was at home to look after the kids, so I didn't need to worry about them. I sewed up the body parts and got them cut out before having my breakfast. Then I sat, and went on a sewing mission. After my breakfast I stopped for the odd cup of tea, but worked solidly through until 2.30pm when the doll was finally finished. It was naked, but totally complete apart from a wardrobe! I would say that this first doll took me around 9 hours in total to complete. There is an awful lot of detailed hand sewing involved to get the doll looking just right, but none of it is difficult, just fiddly.




My doll is made of premium materials as I wanted it to last and be as natural as possible for the children to play with. It is stuffed with real sheep's wool instead of polyester stuffing. I splashed out and bought a premium doll knit fabric for the skin. It is jersey/interlock from De Witte Engel. A 100% cotton, double-knitted fabric which is coloured according to the EN71, art. 1, 2 en 3 guidelines. I used a linen tying string to form the head. I bought premium embroidery floss for the eyes, and used Gutermann thread for hand and machine sewing. The arms and head are sewn to the body using doubled thread, which are then sewn three times around for durability. The main body is machine stitched using a triple stitch for extra strength. I used two different coloured Wild Large Loop Mohair yarns for the hair, which are then hand stitched onto the head.

This doll is super cute. He has a belly button and even a little bottom. His hair is crazy!



I didn't really know how to attach the hair, so this is stitched on along the centre parting in long lengths. I secured some of these lengths around the hairline and to the nape of the neck. Then I added some shorter strands on top to create the crazy sticky-up surfer hair.



I now have every intention of sewing up the Sweet Cecily Baby Doll pattern. My daughter is pestering me almost daily for a baby of her own. I'll be sure to share it here when I get the opportunity to make it up. What would you most like to learn in the sewing world?