New Year plans

I have spent the past few days lounging on  the sofa – but not in a good way.  I followed the fantastically swollen mouth (due to the abscess) with an equally annoying cough and cold. It has meant that I have not been able to sleep so anyone checking their comments and thinking the time of my comments was wrong – no, I really was online at stupid o’clock.

The benefit of not being able to do anything noisy through the night for fear of disturbing The Management is that I have finished the back of the cardigan I am knitting. I always like knitting in winter. I am making ‘Harriet’ from Kim Hargreaves ‘Quirky’ book which hadn’t been going too well but is accelerating away now. The yarn is an all wool Rowan Felted tweed in a colour I think was called Avocado. It very nearly matches my sofa.

Kim Hargreaves ‘Harriet’

As I have been so tired I have barely been keeping up with the sewing I have been obliged to do for clients so I haven’t started any more sewing for myself. However, after looking at my output last year and comparing it to the wardrobes produced by some of the bloggers I follow I am determined to make more – but only things I am pretty sure will fit into my now meager wardrobe (after my October clear out!) and more importantly life style. In common with an awful lot of people I seem to like sewing for the life I would like to have rather than the one I do. Boo hoo. I also want to do things that although they will fit my needs will also challenge me a bit.

The collar with two distinct expressions

Step up Pattern Magic 1 , the collar with two distinct expressions. You might remember I attended Morley College late last year to attend their Pattern Magic course. I came back all enthused, determined to make something I could actually wear, and then life took over. Well, I now have the Bunka block drawn out in my own unique (!) size rather than the standard ‘person in miniature’ sizes provided in the book so all I have to do is complete the pattern and start sewing. Easy! I am slightly ashamed to say that I have been stroking and admiring the garments in this book since December 2010. Definitely time to make something.

Victorian underwear pattern and DVD!

I must also take the opportunity to thank Anne from Tulle and Tweed who sent me the wonderful Laughing Moon Ladies Victorian Underwear pattern and DVD. I feel so lucky! If you haven’t been to Anne’s blog go and look now. You wont fail to be impressed I’m sure. Whilst the patterns as pictured are not likely to be needed very often I am quite certain that elements from this will be very useful. Thanks again Anne!

Oh yes, the pirate shirts. Only one person stuck their neck out and declared which shirt she thought Molly had made – and she was right! Good guess Sheila C. It was probably a bit unfair of me to have even put the question out there as I was both surprised and delighted at how well a sewing machine with so few ‘bells and whistles’ compared with my computerised machine. I think the whole exercise showed me how little we really need to turn out really good garments. Much better than the mass produced cheap clothing so many people have to cope with. Aren’t we lucky we can sew.