Grey Wrap Dress - Simplicity 2369

This is the long waited wrap dress that I promised myself months ago.  I started work on this dress over Christmas. The pattern is simplicity K2369 from the May addition of Sew magazine.

Grey Wrap Dress - Simplicity 2369

I bought the fabric from the Birmingham’s Rag Market for £1 a meter, and bought 3m’s of it. Its is a knit fabric; i don't know what it was made of but it was very easy to work with.  I cut out a top from the same material, and made the top up straight away, but have waited until now to sew up the dress. So for £3 i have managed to get a top and a dress for my money, not bad going. 

Grey Wrap Dress - Simplicity 2369

When I first decided to make this dress I really wanted a long sleeve dress for the winter, so I made the top version of this pattern as a warm up (see Blue Wrap Top).  I had never altered a pattern in this way and it did not work out. So I eventually decided that I should not mess with the pattern and made up view B, with the cap sleeves. It has turned out very well; I find the wrap part at the front really very flattering as it covers up some of my fat tummy.   

When I get board of this as a dress I might shorten it so I can wear it with jeans.

Reflections - granny square scarf

I have been busy making granny square scarfs for my Etsy shop (which I still need to make live). I made these two together, alternating squares as I went. So I would finish one square and make the center of the next square using the yarn from the outside of the previous square.

Both of these granny square scarfs are reflections of each other.

Each scarf is measuring

Both Purple scarfs about: 210cm x 13cm

Original black, red and white: 200cm x 12cm

I don’t know why the original scarf has come out smaller; I think it is because I used a different brand of wool for the main black part. It also could be due to my tension. Though there will always be variation in handmade work.  I really want to be able to get some uniformity in my work because I am planning to let people request their own colours for their scarfs and work on a ‘made to order’ basis. 

Granny square scarf

Granny square scarf

Granny square scarf

 I still have two more scarfs that I have started in this pattern, so we will see how they measure up. 

On Sunday i started work on some more granny squares.

Blue Beret 1960/70s style

My sister in 1960/70s style blue beret (Sirdar 6520), i really
love her  orange jumper.

I don’t usually wear hats as I am one of those people they look terrible on, but I actually think I look half decent in this. It has come out so well I have actually worn it outside a few times. The first few photos here are actually of my sister and the last is me but I have a really bad cold and could not take a good photo of myself and this is the best I could do.

This is my first attempt at a hat for some time, when I first started crochet I made quite a few with varying results, but I did them all free hand without patterns. This is my first attempt at using a pattern for one.

The pattern is from my mum collection of patterns going back to the 1940’s (which are great). It is SIRDAR 6520. It is 1970’s, I think? It is defiantly post 1969 as it is in new money rather than pounds, shillings and pence. She bought this pattern originally for the knitted hat and scarf, and made the hat but did not like it, and never looked at the pattern again. Personally I like both of the crochet patterns here, and I plan to make the cap as well.

My sister in 1960/70s style blue beret (Sirdar 6520)

My sister in 1960/70s style blue beret (Sirdar 6520)

Me in 1960/70s style blue beret (Sirdar 6520)

The original pattern Sirdar 6520

Black, White and Red Granny Square Scarf

15 square granny square scarf

Another granny square scarf for the collection. This is made in the left over yarn from the scarf I made over Christmas, I actually think I like this one better than the last. The colours remind me of my Mad Men DVDs.

There are 15 squares in the scarf and only four rounds in each square. I have also added a boarder of two rows of single crochet.

Black, white and red, granny square scarf.

Black, white and red, granny square scarf.

Grey Top for the New Year - NewLook 6807

NewLook 6807

This is a top i have made in grey jersey from Newlook pattern 6807, it only took me around a hour to piece together. I cut it form left over fabric of a grey wrap dress, which i have cut but have yet to sew together.

I am very happy with my work on this as i have made very few mistakes and the neck binding is very neat. My previous attempts at neck binding have been very messy indeed.

It is a pattern i have made before, last time i made it in light grey and cut a size 14, which was way too big for me. So this time i cut a size 12 which fits much better.

New Look 6807

New Year’s Resolutions

2012 will be the start of this blog really; I wanted to do a blog for a long time but just got started at the end of 2011. So my first resolution:

1>     Keep this blog up to date.

I also really want to start an Etsy shop, I have so many ideas for it, but I am going to start out simple by doing made to order granny square scarfs.

2>     Start Etsy shop

A dream of mine would be to make all of my clothes and not buy any, this I can see will not be a reality as ever item I make I feel the need to go and buy clothes and accessories to go with it. However I defiantly want to make more of my own clothes and get better at it.

3>     Improve my sewing skills

Granny Square Scarf

My sister modelling my red granny square scarf

Ive been busy with the crochet hook making granny squares. I made this scarf over Christmas, and i am so addicted to making granny squares at the moment that i have started another!

I used red yarn for this scarf which is very unusual for me because i usually go for everything in shades of blue, green or purple. But the red shades caught my eye at the market, and they really look fantastic together.

Actually i have started another two with the yarn left overs. I have completed 7 squares of one but i am running out of dark red. So have started a third in red, black and cream. I shall have to go back to the market on Friday and hope that i did not get the last ball of dark red, which i have a horrid feeling that i did.

The start of two new scarfs

Christmas Star

Crochet Christmas Star

Mum rang me last night to ask me if i had sent my grandmother a Christmas card yet. No, I always forget. So I crochet this little star for her Christmas tree last night and got it into the post this morning. I found a great little tutorial on this blog.

Knitted cuff

I have this idea of making a knitted cuff and encasing it in fabric. But I just cant see how to do it. I am now on my third attempt and I just cant make the casing professional enough. My problem is at the ends where the two pieces of fabric meet. The middle section look awesome. I have googled it and I can't find anybody else who has done anything similar to what I have in mind. Its getting frustrating as this was going to be a little christmas present for my sister and time is ticking. My lack of experience as a sewer is really showing on this little project. Tomorrow I might try doing it using bias binding instead.

Blue wrap top, fail?

The final version.

This top was made from a pattern i took off the May addition of Sew magazine.  I made it as a warm up to the dress variation i am planning to make in dark grey.

I wanted a top/dress suitable for the winter, so i made it with long sleeves. This was the first time i have ever tried to alter a pattern so radically from the original and it did not go to plan. After i had finished it the sleeves were just too short. So i decided that it was best to shorten them to 3/4 length sleeves. I put elastic through one of the sleeves and left the other one blank to see what looked best and decided on the loose sleeve.

I also made a mistake when sewing up the back seem and had to unpick it, i damaged the fabric and in trying to cover this up the neck line does not sit quite straight. I am possibly the only one who know it is there, but it is there and it is going to nag at me.


Now to decide how to make this grey wrap dress. I still really want long sleeves, but i am now slightly lacking in confidence to pull this off with out extra fabric to make mistakes. i could make the cap sleeve variation and layer it with a black long sleeve top underneath!! This will give me something to think about over the Christmas holidays.

The sleeves were just too short in my first version.

3/4 length sleeves one with elastic and one with out.