Sewing !!

YAY !!!

I have been sewing all afternoon, just finished for today, but I am that close to having a finished Ginger ! Today I interlined all the skirt pieces, ironed on fusible facing, sewed the seams and pressed and attached the first waistband.

OK, so the stitch picker is now out and I am unpicking the waistband, but hey ho.

I think I may be finished in the next couple of days, if I can get back on the machine, so I will show you the finished item very soon.

I am very pleased so far with the fit, and cant wait to get it finished. I was going to add piping, and as I have had to unpick the waistband I think I just might. Either navy or green, I cant decide yet.

Friends I cant wait to show you something wearable, this will be my first completed adult item of clothing. Sorry nothing to show today, but I dont have the pictures ready yet.

In other news I went to Heathcotes and spent a fortune (good old mastercard), I treated myself as its my birthday this coming Friday and so I bought presents for me ! I know what Mr P got me, as I picked it ! But I shall share with you next week. I will also share my new fabric buys, very excited as I had a plan this time, I took patterns and chose fabrics specifically. It worked like a dream.   :-)  

Well, I hope you all had great weekends, its a shame that they fly by so fast !

K xxx

Back from Bournemouth

Hello friends,

I had a lovely time back at home, I meant to take pictures of beautiful Bournemouth but just didnt have the time !

I am very excited as Heathcotes in Tiverton have a sale this week, 20% off all Fabrics (shhhhh dont tell everyone !) and I am off there after work tomorrow.

Its my birthday next week, and I have been collecting pressies left, right and centre, and I will share these with you next week.

In other news, I cant believe the wanton thievery and destruction that is happening in London right now. That's my town and I am absolutely disgusted and horrified at the behaviour of a group of people who feel it is acceptable to behave in this awful manner. These people are an absolute disgrace and I am ashamed to call myself a human being when we have people like this representing us.

They are not fighting a cause, rather they are enjoying causing chaos and destruction. I wonder what goes through these peoples minds, I absolutely cant fathom it. If you want to make life better don't destroy your own community FFS !! Look around you and think 'what can I do to make things better'. Honestly !

Rant over, I trust you are all safe and well.  Please people, if you are out and about, be careful. Some people really do have jelly for brains, and are dangerous to normal folk like you and me, going about our business.

Fingers crossed for peace tonight.

Big love  xxxx

Hump day !

So friends,

I am sat here....

With one of these....

Now that's what I call happy  :-))

I was working in Tiverton today, and as such I just had to call into Heathcotes, I tell you that place is going to be the ruin of me !

I managed to sneak these home today  :-)

I love these sailboats.  You know, the nautical theme is all the rage these days.

I LOVE the buttons, they look so nice with this sailboat fabric. I am going to make a sencha using these I think. I think these buttons will look great on the back of the sencha.

I also bought this !

To make a Ginger. Which will be piped with this

I love love love looking around fabric stores, just wish I could come away empty handed for a change. But I am so looking forward to a hand-crafted wardrobe, which will be started in earnest come October.

In other news, I have Gardenias ! They are beginning to flower and I cant tell you how beautiful their scent is. I wish I could share with you, but for now you will have to make do with this

I hope you are all making the most of this glorious sunshine ! Only 2 more sleeps til I go to the homeland, tres excited !!

K xxx

Sunny !!

Hola beautiful people

Sorry for my lack of posting... I have been soooo busy, I have not had a spare 5 minutes. Mr P's sister came for a visit with her adorable family. Friends I never thought I would feel broody, but after spending time with MM, I feel slightly more receptive to the idea of children then I did this time last week.

We had a lovely time, and Mr P and I felt quite bereft when they left.

The weather has been on and off gert lush, and I have quite the tan. This is because as soon as I finish work, I race home and sit in the sun studying. It's made my study time so much nicer having an outside table and chairs. Studying in the summer has become almost bearable.

I have also booked on a local dressmaking class, which is for 3 Saturdays in total, starting in October (the week before my exams actually, not great timing but hey ho). I am sooo looking forward to the class, not only will it be great to learn sewing skills but also fab to meet like-minded people and I am hopeful that I will make new friends and hopefully rally together some folk for a regular 'stitch and bitch'. I am super excited ! It cost £60, and that's for 15 hours in total, which I think is quite cheap !

I also purchased the delightful Gertie's (from the blog for better sewing) online sewing course - you can see a preview here. Not sure that I am ready for the couture skills required to make this dress, but I am ever hopeful as always. I think it will be sometime before I can make a 'tiki' dress, but the sections the course shows on boning (ho ho) and other skills will be invaluable.

Wish I had some pretties to show you but I don't - boo !! I have been slack on the sewing side, but only as I have had another assignment to complete. One more book, one more assignment and one exam and I will be done for the year. Then I will be making (and finishing) gingers all over the ruddy shop !

I am off home to Bournemouth this weekend and I am so excited to see my Mum and my friends, I really miss them living so far away. I really feel for Mr P's sister - she lives in Tas, and does not get to see her people that often. I could see mine more often, and I am lucky for that.

I hope the month of July has been kind to you all. I cant believe we are nearly at the end of it already.

In other news, today I sampled my first home grown cherry tomato - and 2 blueberries. I was too excited for words ! Looking forward to a bumper crop (next year maybe).  ;-)

Well, best get on and do the tea, a sometimes seamstress work is never done it seems.

And, last but by no means least - a massive welcome to new friends joining me on my adventure to find more time !

K xxx

More on-line fabrics

So, the weekend is nearly ended. Boo !

The weather has been glorious here in Devon. Not had time to make as been busy studying for most of the weekend. I must admit, sometimes I have to literally force myself to open the books ! Especially when the sun is shining and I can think of a million things that I would rather be doing instead.  I finish for the year in October - and then I will be make, make, making. Friends, I cant wait as I have so much I want to complete, but I just dont seem to have the time right now.

I really need to finish up my Ginger. I am hoping to be able to work on it for a couple of hours this coming weekend.

But, I have found some more on-line fabric places (even looking at fabric makes me feel creative) - so I will share them with you    :-)

http://www.croftmill.co.uk/

http://www.stonefabrics.co.uk/

http://dittofabrics.co.uk/

No other news to report today.

I hope you all got to enjoy the sun this weekend, lets hope the weather holds for a bit.

K xxx

Pretty flowers

I have not done anything exciting today, so I thought I would share with you something pretty instead.

These pictures were taken during a recent trip to the Eden Project. I may do a post on that place soon, but for now I will let the colours do the talking   :-)

Beautiful eh ? I wish I had such pretty flowers in my garden !

I love this 'meadow' look - we have a side bit in the garden which cant really be used. I would LOVE it if we could make it look like this....

Pretty in pink...

Lovely lavender (I absolutely love lavenders !)

Mr Bee looks super happy

Beautiful bird of paradise...

So, what are you all dreaming about today ?

In other news, its only one more sleep until the official start of the weekend. And you cant get better than that. Woop Woop !

K xxx

P P P Pilton !!

Friends,

Well, its been a while since I posted - but I have been sooo busy ! Not sewing, unfortunately. My Ginger skirt remains unfinished. Boo. But I fancy I will have more time to sew once my current OU course finishes, and then I will be creating wonderful garments left, right and flippin centre, lol.

I have been busy studying and getting ready for Glastonbury. But I am back now.

I love festivals, but I must admit, I don't enjoy them quite so much when its been raining and the ground is all boggy. Its difficult to walk about as your boots get stuck, and sometimes you find yourself sinking ! (I think its a little bit to do with the fact that I am getting old now too !)

Here are a few pictures to illustrate my point... (and this was only Wednesday afternoon).

And check this out for an ironic sign   :-))

ha ha - as if !!  ;-))  I dont see any grass, other than a sad little circle around the base of the sign.

Le camper was a dream - and to be fair, the field we camped in was pretty much OK, not too boggy as its on a hill. And, it was a glorious day on Sunday, I got quite a tan !

I love festivals, but its not just the music, its the atmosphere and the camping. And I love all the creative aspects of it too.

You couldn't NOT have a spin of these prayer wheels.

And I loved having to be outside pretty much all of the time as I love sitting outside.

The moon chair was a definite hit - and resulted in much 'chair envy' from fellow campers.

Pimms anyone ?

We didnt get to see as many bands as I would have liked, but we recorded them on the telly box so we can watch them again.

In other news, my mini orchard arrived, and I planted the trees up. To be honest I thought they were all dead. But after getting back from Pilton, 3 of them have revived. I peeled back a tiny bit of bark from the cherry tree and its brown inside and dead as a matchstick. So, I am hoping it will be replaced. The rest of the garden is coming along nicely (compared to how it was) but there is still plenty more that needs doing.

Since we received our new garden furniture, the weather has been appalling, and so I have not really had a chance to use it as yet. But I am hopeful for some nice weather over the next week. I could study outside, if only the sun would come out, and then it would not seem like such a chore.

I have also been VERY impressed with everyone's 'me made June'. Wonderful job ladies. I hope to be able to partake in one of these challenges one day, but at the moment its hard to find the time to finish even 1 garment !! (remember the crepe ? blue flower top ? ginger ?)

I hope to have some sewing news soon. Meanwhile, I will get my creative kicks by checking out all of your wonderful blogs, I really love reading them all. Keep up the good work people !

K xxx

Addicted.

Friends, I think I am addicted - to buying fabric.

I am already planning not just a trip to Tiverton in 2 weeks. But also a phone call.

To the shop (no online retail store for Heathcotes).

Tomorrow (as it is too late today).

To buy more fabric (Yipppeee !!).

This is a bad state of affairs (for my bank account), and if anyone knows the cure - please share.

:-)

K xxx

Bad girl !!

Friends - I need locking up !!

I must NOT be allowed to roam newly found fabric stores unsupervised !

Look what I came home with today.....

I already have plans for the black and yellow :-))  oooh and the brightly coloured flowers too.

I went to Heathcoat fabrics in Tiverton, my word I thought I had died and gone to heaven. There was almost too much and I didn't quite know what to buy as I wanted ALL OF IT.

I will be going there again, for sure. Tiverton is quite a distance from where I live - but I work there at the CAB one day every 2 weeks. I can see a real future for this particular shop and me.

I also bought plain navy buttons for the Sencha and a few zips and spools of threads.

I know you probably all think I am a little mad - all these lovely patterns and all this lush fabric, and not a 'me made' garment in sight. Readers - have faith ! I will get there in the end, and I cant wait to have a wardrobe bursting with handmade delights (not that I have a wardrobe - my clothes are all piled up on the floor like one big massive jumble sale - but you know what I mean).

Maybe having beautifully crafted clothes will give me the push I need to actually purchase a wardrobe !!

No other news today - I didn't do anything else except work and hang around the fabric shop !

Le camper is still at the Dr's, I hope to have a diagnosis soon.

Hope you are all fine and dandy,

K xxx

Garden bargains

Lol - not of the green variety ! Friends my tomato plants are ALMOST DEAD. And its not because I have more yellow fingers than green (in fact I have neither coloured fingers, but you get my drift).

Look what arrived today !!  A gift from Mr P's lovely mum and delightful uncle ! All pour moi !  :-)  (actually they are joint xmas and birthday gifts for Mr P and me - but I have wanted garden furniture for soooo long, Mr P was not so keen). Mrs P to the rescue ! She said we could have garden furniture as a joint gift and I get to choose !! I liked her reasoning, and her wickedness. Yipppeeeee   :-)  Mrs P is indeed a legend - and look what has been erected during my day at work.....  (by the legend, Mr P)

Delightful non ?.

I have already been sat out there - and I must say I LOVE IT.

AS IF IT WERE A CHILD AND I WERE THE PARENT.

And that's that. Now come on sun !!!!!

In other news, Bella (AKA Le Camper) decided today would be an excellent day to break down and not work. AT ALL. I nearly cried. Friends, Mr P and I are off to the Vale of Pilton on Wednesday and now our mobile home is mobile no more.

I have been reliably informed by N from the brilliant W's garage that all will be ship shape and hoi poloi by Tuesday, and readers I am hopeful that this will be the case.

I'm asking you all to keep your fingers crossed that Bella makes a speedy (and cheap) recovery !

I trust your weeks have been ticking along nicely.

Love,

K xxx