Lulu Carter

the longtime skirt

Last night I got four hours sleep and I cannot blame Charlie entirely. He and Harriet (resident feline)share equal sleep doom blame from five am but the fact that my head didnt hit the pillow before two is all mine.

I was making mysef a skirt. Megs online sewing party has got me going again and I don't dare put the machine away for fear it will get dusty  in that special place know as the sewing stuff dump zone. You know the one. We all have them.

So I borrowed this pattern from Suzy months ago and yesterday finally FINALLY whipped one up. I do not use that term loosly ladies-this is a quick sew. And I lined it. AND hand sewed part of the zipper. Quick. Sew.

Pattern- Simplicity 2226.

Fabric- Anna Maria Horner voile

Lining- nasty- as synthetic as they come yet light and soft grey.

No zipper foot? see here

Did I alter it? Can't help myself- Omitted the belt loops, dropped the waist, added length and fullness.

Am I happy? Pretty much though lining up my front and back did not go quite to plan and that 1 cm drop in print panel at the side seams will annoy me for ever. I do LOVE a skirt with pockets though.

Do I need new shoes to wear with it? Totally.

New bag? Could be pushing it but I see a french basket or a La Tropezienne in my future.....

Will I have spilt something on it by tomorrow morning and curse my choice of fabric? Without doubt but I endeavour to spill selectively.

Go make one!

xx

 

spring printing

I have not printed fabric for probably twenty years. The fact that I still had silk screens and a squeedgie stored in the roof was beyond a miracle and let me tell you when the woman at the prininting store told me they hadnt used wood for screen frames for decades, well, she gave me a look. The fact that mum bought my screens at a garage sale back then so they were already 'old' failed to turn into words.

Anyway I digress.....

I had a crazy amount of fun doing this. When a fabric printing swap was discussed among these lovely ladies I meet regularly with, I was so excited.  I immediately drew up my prints based on the theme "Spring" knowing it would be on linen tea towels and then I did nothing about it until this week. A little panic perhaps?

There was a spare for each person in cased you ballsed one up but I've managed to keep that one to try something else.

  

The paint- Ecotex. This will apparently last longer than the fabric its printed on as long as you heat set it properly. It washed really well-no difference in intensity so I guess all that time standing at the iron paid off.

Buy primary colours then you can mix whatever you fancy.

For the stencils I decided that tracing paper was ideal. Large enough to cover the area and using a craft blade to cut out your shapes works fine.

For stamping I used the sponge rolls from paint rollers. They have a hard plastic tube inside so you can actually push down and get a firmer print rather than all sponge which just squishes down on itself.

I have some grey linen Im going to print and make pants for Charlie. Its a little addictive! 

kcwc - final

Wow. I can honestly say that was great. I didn't sew nearly as much as some but I made things that have been on my list for weeks and weeks so I'm really happy. I wish it wasnt over!

Today was meant to also see another kurta in Heather Ross Far Far Away frogs and some Nani Iro spot but Charlie decided he could reach the cord hanging from the bench so I packed up. The cord that was attached to the hot iron. Scary.

Skater boy shorts for Henry. He loves his Boden shorts so I drafted a pattern from them but instead of a fly, just put belt loops on an elastic waistband. I put a patch pocket on the back and I think Ill add some cargo pockets to the sides for him too. He's really happy with them but I think they need the detail and pockets are handy. Such a quick sew! 

Take 2 on the Oliver & S bucket hat. I used the pattern I traced for the first one but added extra when cutting. This one might even fit next summer.

Do you see this baby playing with his Daddys phone? Wow. It was the only way to get him to keep the hat on for longer than half a second. Little monkey.

Thanks Meg! I will certainly be giving Kids Clothes Week Challenge another go next time. Any excuse to sit on my bottom and sew. 

xxxx

kcwc - my old romper

I love this.

Its a treasure kept by mum and I dare say one of the reasons I was often thought by strangers, to be a little boy. I dont remeber putting Henry in it and Oliver was too big for it by the time it was warm enough. Charlie wore it a handful of times and that was it. So Ive just drafted a larger size and made him another.

Not buttons at this stage but the straps are long enough that I can put some on when this becomes a little short but it is so cute! And fast. 

How many have you done this week? There are some seriously kids running around this week. Check out the flickr pool.

KCWC

Third project- a linen kurta.

I made a pattern based on one that used to be mine. It was quite paneled to get the sleeve/armhole shaping so I adjusted it to make regular armholes. Its quite easy making your own patterns even if you dont have any experience. Just remember seam allowances and align measurements. When you have a piece of clothing thats relatively simple and you love the shape, I really recomend giving it a go. So often I follow a pattern and it doesnt work. Things going wrong is a lot less frustrating when you havent spent money on a pattern and the postage.

For facings you are  tracing off the main front and back pieces but curve them  to finish a couple of inches down from the edge. Then I turned them under and hemed them before attaching them to the neck edge. NOT the shoulder seams. When you open out the facings attached to each piece, you then sew across all four shoulder seams from facing/front to back/facing. Then you press and tuck your facings inside. Neat.

I clipped into the front slit before turning it through. In hind sight I think a propper placket would look nicer but I dont mind the look of this opening.

Next up-pj pants and some shorts for Henry. And I'll make another hat.

KCWC

Ive never joined Megs challenge before but this time I thought....meh....why not? So late sunday night I joined and then I thought....eek! whatamIgoingtosew?? As you do.

Monday night-

Oliver & S bucket hat. Unfortunately I made it when Charlie was asleep and in the morning I was annoyed to see that it didnt fit. I made the medium size too so I have no idea what happened there. It measures correctly.

 Well lets just say I had to yank it on. Which is possibly ideal given that its hard for him to toss it on the ground but I think we'll call it a fail.

There is a chance he has what is technically referred to as a 'boomba' of a head.

Tuesday -

Happy.  Remember these little harem style pants I whipped up? Time for a replacement so I traced them onto some stash (being very generous) and decided I would add a bum patch rather than another panel.

Come on in plate. I think those baby pants with the bum insert are so cute but I didnt have the time to play around making the pattern as while he naps, I must sew. You know how it goes! So I cheated the look with applique but placed the circle low enough that it would be caught in the crotch seem. 

When Charlies was sitting I measured him from the waistband and down to his seat and along to the ankles. That way I had the right length when sitting with a bit of growth length. I settled on 44 cm. Add two inches for elastic turnover and take the main fabric length back by 4cm as I added a panel at the hem.

I machined the edge down then two more rows for detail. 

I then french seamed the crotch/inside leg. I know-its a curve. But I hate edges more than I hate some puckered crotch seam and its the babies puckered crotch seam not mine. Seems justified.

He woke, got into everything and eventually I had to secure him. He looks so patient here. Not really. The delay on my camera simply caught this pose. Were you fooled?

There is a HUGE size difference! But funnily enough both fit him. Crazy. I dare say he is much more comfortable on the new ones even if his daddy thinks they look like pjs.

Its the customer that counts though isnt it. I think he's happy.

So now I'm off to finish the kurta I am making from some orange check linen based on an old top of mine.

How are you going with your sewing list this week? 

Lolas Park Frock

Known formally as Anna Maria Horners Paper Fan Dress. Mostly.

When I saw Suzy the other week, she was putting together the sweetest fabrics to make a dress for her Miss M. Despite having a moment when I wondered if I was too old to wear Amsterdam houses on my clothing, I didnt think that much about it. But then I walked in here yesterday and yelp. There. The sweet little houses and market stalls print. SWOON.

One metre. In case I didn't know what to do with it other than a pillow for myself. On my side . You know.

This morning I woke and I knew I had to make my God Daughter 'The Dress'. Ignoring the fact that I had already made something else for her birthday (which has since been bumped to Christmas as you do), I got busy.

Because I had seen Suzy's, I assumed wrongly that the bottom panel was part of the pattern and for a moment, when I was doing the maths for the skirt, I envisaged Lola in a whopping great nightie. 

After tracing the pattern pieces for the bodice straight of the computer screen onto tracing paper ( which is what I do whenever it is a printable pattern and I am in a hurry) I sewed like a demon today. In between baking yogurt cake ( completely addicted) and taking to one of the wheels from the pram with a hammer then nearly breaking my finger tips trying to install the new part that came in the mail ( the damn wheel sailed off into the bushes yesterday on the way to school) and feeding the baby and cruising instagram, twitter and checking emails...I sewed.

 It is definitely a sew between drop off and pick up frock to whip up.

Anyway I made a dress. Not completely correctly but then I never really do. 

My fudgery is as follows:

The bottom panel ( which I know you ) is 6inches deep.

I french seemed. I know-booooring but overlockers and I don't really get on. I think edges should not be seen or heard.

I did not cut a front skirt piece and left back/ right back pieces for the skirt. Its about 4 inches shy of the pattern measurements but I managed because there was no seem allowance and I ditched a pleat. See? Cheeky.

I also didn't do the foldover skirt top attached to the bodice. Didn't really like it. Instead I inserted the skirt top and sewed it to the right side of the bodice, then pressed the lining side under and stitched it down much like you would if you machined your binding on quilts. This was scary for me as I hate a wonky on/off the line machined line too, and if Id had the time I would have whip stitched it but that damn clock was sweeping around by then.

Tick Tock.

The final act is the two buttons and this is where my machine and I had a bloody great fight. I'm sure if I'd bothered to change my blunting needle and sewed button holes more often therefore remebering which order I have to turn the dials.... Well it would have gone better.

There is a huge risk that I may match Miss Lola. You see I couldnt resist holding the skirt piece up to my waist and woo it would make a pretty skirt.

God Daughter is on a blue/green/ yellow kick at the moment so her necklace went a little like this.

 

The Monster Quilt

Now a sensible person would have shot this before it was strung up too high to get a good angle. This is not what happened as, after months and months of quilt work/angst/co-ordinating and tossing in the corner in spectacular denial, I was so eager to get it out of our house that I tucked in that last thread, rolled over it with the defluff sticker roll and popped its head on a stick. So to speak.

The corners are our music banner broken up. The applique and embroidery on these pieces are some of my favourites. Probably because I was starting to think it looked like a giant school uniform.

This is the back although its more of a second front. There is a large cedar tree that is as old as the school and I felt that was a beautiful way to represent the growth and nurturing that lives within the school. Back in the day, our school was known in the community as 'The Friendly School'. How lovely.

I asked the younger children to do some drawings for me which I then embroidered onto this side. I do love the giant pigeon!

I then hung books from the tree and popped a friendly face on.

Everyone is so happy with the finished piece which is such a relief. I had started to get really anxious about the design.Some wonderful helpers worked on this at the beginning and helped me bring my design to life. Lots of sore fingers! Aside from the actual piecing together, the entire quilt is hand sewn. A very slow process but worth it!

Time to get back to the Swoon!

xxx

 

Swooning bigtime

Having never made from a quilting pattern before this was an excercise in following instructions. Not my strong suit. Even with a clothing pattern I tend to , shall we say, venture off the beaten track? Cant help it-its my background.

I have been diligently measuring, cutting, lining up and sewing these enormous blocks and they are making me so happy. Really. Its ridiculous. They're also making me terribly happy because making these means I am not working on the school sesqui quilt.

Thats called denial.

Denial can be a beautiful thing.

You get swoon blocks.

The background is Robert Kaufman quilters linen in grey. Can not tell you how much I love this. Its gorgeous. I knew I wanted grey rather than white but I also didnt want a flat grey. This linen look is perfect.

The fabrics are a mish mash as commitment gives me the heaby jeabies. I cannot be faithful to a range. 

I have mixed Anna Maria Horner with Kaffe Fasset and Sarah Fielke, then there is Amy Butler, Heather Bailey and some randoms picked up from Calico and Ivy in the pile waiting.

 

 

Charlie's Bonnet Tutorial

I love a baby in a bonnet and was all set to knit another for this boy but he gets itchy. I have deep seated paranoia that he will have eczema like Olie but thats another story.

So with some leftover flannel from Henrys dressing robe, I fashioned a simple bonnet.

Start by measuring your baby/ child from the hairline ( or where you want the bonnet to finish) to the nape of the neck.

Then take a measurement from just below the jawline up around the face and down to just below the jawline on the other side.

Using some scrap fabric ( I had some slubby linen) you will make a toile.

You need a centre piece, wider at the front (I find the width from the outside edge of each eye is good) and then narrowing as it finishes at the nape of the neck.

You then need two side pieces. This is where the toile is vital because when you try it on the little person you will be able to pin and adjust as necessary.

Once the toile fits, take to it with a pair of scissors. Cut along the stitching lines that were the final fit.

Press your pieces flat and there you have your pattern pieces. You will add seam allowance when you cut out the real fabric.

I chose a contrasting flannel for the lining and also because I thought it would be sweet to make this reversable.

Cut out two centre panels ( one in main and one in lining) then four side pieces (two in main and two in lining).

Pin the seams together and sew together making sure to ease them around the curve. Clip.

Now turn the main fabric the right way around and leave the lining inside out.

Position the lining bonnet inside the main bonnet.

Now measure the bottom edge of the bonnet. Cut a piece of binding 4cm wide to the length of the edge.

Pin it into place with right sides together on the main fabric. Machine into position.

Now turn it under 1/4 of an inch and fold it over onto the lining side. Pin into place and whip stitch into position just like you would a quilt binding.

Now measure from corner to corner along the front of the bonnet. Add 20cm at each end for ties. Cut out your binding to this length. Find the centre and pin right sides together on the main side starting at the centre back. Work your way around the edge from the centre. This will give you even ties on each side.

Machine into place from corner to corner on the bonnet leaving the ties untouched. Turn and fold under as you did the lower binding.

When youve whip stitched around the face of the bonnet, press and turn under the ties and whip stitch into place.

Done! I honestly made a cup of tea and sat down to make this bonnet with tea not going stone cold. Its very quick once you've taken the measurements and have your pattern pieces.

And then you get to put it on the little recipient who might go " NOooooooooo not a bonnet!! Ohhhh"

Followed closely with " Im begging you mummy-I can't go out like this" !!

Now I er on the side of "it only fits for five seconds" caution and tend to make things too big. If you make your bonnet to fit it will look more 'super spunky baby' and less 'little house on the prairie'. Not that I'm knocking that show. Loved it. But ...well... you know.