Learning As I Go

Here I am again. 

I was going to write a post last night, but I got distracted by a bit of post-war drama and my knitting instead.

Tomorrow the girls and I have a special extra day off. 

 School's in this County close for the Norfolk Show each year. Some close tomorrow and the rest on Thursday. We used to have fabulous family days there so I feel sad when we don't go, but it's darned expensive now. Anyways we have to get stuff sorted for Miss Millie's two day Bushcraft camping adventure so we thought a bit of mooching and maybe a ladies wot lunch treat instead.

All in all I have an extra day with my girlies, just us three.Woohoo.

Now I've still been busy sewing along these past few days.

My night time knitting's a slow old thing, one day there might actually be something to show you.

Do you remember these fabulous fabrics I found on the May bank holiday weekend. The purple's been re-born into a bag, the blue is in bits slowly becoming a coat and as for the big brash rose print. 

Well a couple of weeks ago I was buying breakfast pastries before work and I spied a sewing magazine with a great free pattern. I can't remember the name of it right now, but there you go, that's my mind a lot these days.

 Anyways, I was saving the black and greeny rose 60's print for exactly the right dress and there on that magazine was exactly the perfect dress shape.

It was a dream to make up. In fact it took a whole night of football until 1am to stitch it together. 

I changed the pattern about a bit to suit my height and longer rib cage and I was off. 

Now I'm thrilled with the dress apart from two things. One, I kept it to the 1960's hemline, but I think I'll have to lengthen it as my knees shock the hell out of the dress. And for two, I just don't do black at all. I have nothing black to go with it so it's not been worn in public and roadtested yet. 

For me if I can wear handmade in public for a whole day, feel great and the outfit doesn't rip apart then it's an all round success. I love the dress, but it hasn't loved me back yet.

Even so I really enjoyed making this and as I love the shape I'll try making more of these dresses. That was before finding a fabulous book in the library.

I'd not come across Gertie before, she also has a blog you know, so it was all the more exciting to find this gem of a book. I'll be ordering my own copy once payday comes around as I want to make pretty much everything in this book too. All the clothes in it are exactly the styles I love so I'd better get stitching hadn't I.

 A dress I absolutely love in it is a drop waisted cocktail dress in a sassy leopard print. Well I'm sold on it and fancy a saucy hussy dress for myself before I get too old.

I thought I'd kick off first though with a Peter Pan collar blouse where I had to draft the collar myself.

 Now having used up nearly all the longer lengths of fabric I'd got in my piles and being on the skint to very skint side I turned to my trusty pile of 60's and 70's bedsheets for inspiration.

 I chose a white with pink rosebuds in the end, although I think a polka dot is made for this pattern.

 I re-drafted the blouse pattern for my shape and then followed the instructions on how to draft your own collar. That's the thing that interested me about this book. It's about the more advanced dressmaking techniques I want to learn and all in designs that I love. 

To make a lot of the designs you have to re-draft the patterns and there are brilliantly written explainations to help you learn how to do this. As I want to keep on learning all I can then this book hits all the right buttons. It even uses boning and horsehair stiffeners so it's serious stuff!

 Now at this angle it looks like I've done ok with my Peter Pan Blouse. Actually my collar's gone wonky and shrunk on one side and I've yet to sew all the buttonholes down the back.

For sanity, as I've got to unpick facings and bias bindings, the blouse has been stuffed in a bag for now.

I did find a few other things to get on with between then and now mind you. I'll show you those makes next visit.

 Thanks for stopping by and leaving your encouraging words. 

I was really pleased you enjoyed reading my last post so much. 

The fact that you say you find this a happy place to visit means a lot.

I write honestly and from my heart, it's how I am.

Now I believe bed is calling as my eyes are struggling to keep open. 

Night night.