Fun in the Sun

Two posts in one day!  I've been wanting to do some more sun printing for a while now but it's been too hot for me to spend too long in the garden then windy then rainy and so on.  It was rather late this afternoon but it was sunny albeit too breezy to contemplating using the pretty leaves that I'd kept aside so some hastily gathered alternatives ..............
 

Rice ..............
 

Spaghetti .................

Buttons ..................

Do I like them?  No, I don't think so.  Conditions weren't ideal and they're a bit on the murky side for me though with a bit more thought and paints that aren't past their best I can see potential with the buttons.  In fact, the rice, for some unknown reason, is shouting rodent droppings and making me feel quite ill right now ............... think it's time for bed and dreams about nice things!!

Some leaves I experimented with earlier ..............

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McCalls 8409 Mens Shirt

Well, we have a shirt!  I'm kind of impressed that I made a shirt too (thankyou ladies) - I made a blouse at school (about 35 years ago) but this is my first shirt!  And it fits ............. it may not be a tailored fit but my husband likes it and I'm rather pleased with it too .............

It fits number 2 son as well but, despite promising to only show the shirt, I wasn't allowed to take a pic!

 I used McCalls pattern 8409 ............... it comes up really big, I mean REALLY big so had to go down a size. The only thing I changed was to straighten the hem (by request so the shirt would be more suitable for wearing "out" when wanted). There were a couple of glitches along the way so, more to remind myself than anything else ...........

Not wanting to cut the actual pattern to the smaller size I laid some of this garden fleece over and cut it out in this BUT I didn't mark it so mistakenly used one of the front pieces to cut the back on the fold in fabric ........... luckily it was the front pattern piece I'd used so was able to reuse the fabric for the (smaller) back.  Matching the sleeves to the bodice was a little tricky and, despite my very best efforts, still had about an inch overlap on the seam - ideally I would have liked to French seam the armholes like I did the side seams but couldn't work out how best to do it so they are zigzag finished.  The buttonholes as marked on the pattern are a teeny bit large for shirt buttons so will try and remember that for next time.  

Now I can breathe for a bit!!!!!!!!!!!
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UFO Resurfaces

Two years ago I blogged about a UFO.  Well it keeps resurfacing so it's out and I'm working on it!  Not quite to plan as I've already unpicked some stitching done last night and this morning (not neat enough ............. the eyes again!) so just needs rethinking a bit but I shall plough on.

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And for inspiration I pulled out a jar of my hand dyed threads.  I have more jars of these ............ and boxes .............. and ................ one might think I have a problem but I'm not the only person in the world obsessed with dyeing threads and yarns.  It's the magic of mixing colours on different fibres with a delightful surprise at the end because they never turn out exactly the same.  Good job I've got quite a stock of them having recently had a compulsory water meter installed!

Of course I have to mention the shirt.  There were problems with the stitching across the grain (the vertical bits in the pic).  It seemed a bit bizarre that with the grain was fine as was any other fabric so I asked on the Sewing Forum and it's been suggested that I try a Microtex needle.  It's a decent fabric (Italian shirting) so could be because it's tightly woven/high thread count now I've looked into it ................. shall remember to get some of those needles when we're out on our travels.

It was quite good to do some "dressmaking" and, though I have more to do, I won't be going into mass production ............ it's not quite the same and I didn't realise how difficult it would be to find some decent shirt buttons at a sensible price (two towns exhausted this week alone)!
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We Have Colour ............

on the back of the cushion ..............

I like the surprise element.  It wasn't difficult to decide which of the ideas to use ............. I dropped the rotary cutter on the tiled floor so the other two were out (and that's the 2nd blade I've ruined the same way this year).  No buttons this time (trialling velcro).  I've been looking at machines that do more decorative stitches (I only have a couple to choose from) .............there's no harm in looking ................... and, for the first time, think I might quite like one!  I think might like is as far as it will get for the forseeable future!


A few pics from a recent drive to Dungeness .........

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with fish and chips at the Pilot never failing to please.
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Shabby Chic

Well, the cushion front is done!  Not sure about the "experimental" centre panel - should have spent more time thinking about it - but it's done now and doesn't look too bad in reality.  I could add a central button but doubt it would stay there very long in this house!

Not quite the luxury of some faux chenille but not bad for an old sheet and might improve with age - there's not much that comes with a label "Must Tumble Dry"!

Another sample ..........

I have ideas for more faux chenille .......... a lap blanket would be nice for the winter evenings if the fabrics weren't too heavy ........... too many ideas too little time!

The shirt ............. I'm still looking to pluck up enough courage to cut out the real thing!  I already had the pattern (well 2 actually) but didn't have any intention of using them anytime soon when we saw this Italian shirting.  I am thinking grandad collar and suggested that it might go with the navy suit for a wedding we are attending shortly so need to get my skates on and fingers crossed!

I bought a metre of this lightweight cotton just because, like you do, and himself thought he'd like a shirt in this so I got some more ....................

I picked up some lovely quilting cotton - kitchen blind in mind but thinking it would make a lovely sleeveless summer dress for a toddler when himself said he would really love a shirt in this ................ now this is juxtaposition!!!

So we now have enough fabric for 3 shirts!  Toile also fits no 2 son who would like "loads" of shirts ............ plain, striped, check, not too heavy - just like the toile ........... well apart from the pattern!  Steady on eh ............. fabric don't come cheap and I'm only gonna live once!!
 

Ooooops ...................

Recycling one worn cotton sheet into a luxurious faux chenille cushion .............

 Revisiting possible designs for cutting on the bias .....................

  

So why did I mark out, stitch and start cutting the middle square on the straight (not sure what's happened to the pistachio green in this pic)?

Will be interesting to see how I rescue it!  My excuse is that I was distracted by somebody in the kitchen making these ...............

From the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook bought from here using a free delivery voucher found here .  I have to say that it's a lovely book.

And on another positive note (at least for the moment) ............. the toile I made for my husband's shirt using McCalls pattern 8409 seems to fit ok ............ well after I lopped 4" off the width.  The pattern comes up big ......... well not just big but huge so have gone one size smaller than comparable RTW.

The sleeve length is about  right so I'll have to add some extra seam allowance and am going to get rid of the curved bottom (by request).

Oh, and I won't be using a relatives old quilt cover for the real thing!
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The Lilac Project

Another set of Helen's Towers of Flowers from Stitch Magazine.  These are for a friend .............. I hope she likes them .............. they're a bit purple though aren't they?   Not quite the perfect back drop but the lighting was better outside

 

The eyes - well according to opticians it's an age thing but from near perfect eyesight to reading strength about 4 and distance glasses in 6/7 years is a bit of a concern especially as my old reading glasses were ideal for the computer until a couple of weeks ago.  If I need my reading glasses for that then they soon won't be strong enough for stitching ............ I'm finding hand stitching with the precision that I like difficult anyway ................ not to mention threading needles!  The free machined flowers above were a bit "hit and miss" stitching a foundation grid to incorporate the outlines ............ I seem to lose focus frequently.  Opticians just don't understand unlike the lovely ladies who read my blog ........... thankyou for your good wishes everyone!

Getting Back on Track .............

It's been ages and ages.  Despite all manner of family health problems we did manage a week in Cornwall - would have loved to have stayed longer but was thankful for a week and found loads of inspiration.

Anyway, on to textiley things.  The friend I made a bag for earlier in the year asked if I could make a couple more for her sisters who liked pastel colours.  I had some "Juliana" by Clothworks so got to work when we returned from our break.

In the post yesterday were some lovely buttons that I won in a giveaway from The Button Company.   I have plans for some of them already!

My eyesight continues to be deteriorating and I might start to panic in that there is so much I want to do that I'm not going to be able to see well enough to do it before long.  I think the way forward for me, at least for now, is less embroidery and more "sewing" - living without practising some kind of textiles wouldn't be living "my" life!  Whilst at the library last week I picked up Jane Brocket's "The Gentle Art of Domesticity" ............... it is so "me".  I love it - it's one of the most creatively inspiring books I've picked up in a long, long time.

 

Whilst I am gathering my thoughts for the way forward for me, I'm progressing with a lilac  themed project using snippets of these fabrics