WIP (Work in progress) progress

 I thought it was about time I updated you on my rabbit Work In Progress. It has been a challenge for my sewing skills - both hand sewing and machining and I have taken my time and done some when I felt in the mood to do it. Above, you can see the hat and pantaloons.  This was the second hat I had made and it still didn't seem right.

 Back view of the rather voluminous pantaloons and hat.  I have since decided that I don't like the hat at all so have been searching through various craft books looking for a different pattern.  I think I have found one that might work, but I'll let you know!

 Then came the dress, in plain blue cotton.  I raised the waistline a little from the pattern, as I wanted a sort of Regency feel. 

Then the apron, made from my precious puffed sleeve dress material.  I had toyed with the idea of make a pinafore-type apron, but in the end, I decided just a little apron would be fine.  So, I now have to have a go at the hat and add some hand made lace to either the dress or the apron.  Oh, and then there is her face - a bit of a make or break thing, so it has got to be right!  Once she is finished, I'll post about her again.  Then I would like to make another rabbit, perhaps using a different pattern, so that there are two of them and they won't get lonely!  (Really, I wanted to make the inside of the ears in my puffed sleeved dress material, that is the more prosaic reason for making another rabbit!) 

Puffed sleeves



It all started many years ago, when I was about 5 or 6 years old.  I was desperate for a dress with puffed sleeves.  I don't know what it was that had given me this overwhelming longing for puffed sleeves, but it was there.  Eventually, my Granny made me a little dress with puffed sleeves out of the blue floral fabric above.  When I read Anne of Green Gables for the first time, I really identified with her longing for a puffed sleeve dress. 

So, moving on to the present.  I found a small piece of the material which Mum had kept, so decided to make something with it to remind me of the joy of having that dress.   I had thought to include it in my bunting, but there wasn't enough to make two triangles, which is what I needed.  I then thought I could make a rabbit.  The leap from bunting to rabbits isn't exactly clear, but it was due in some part to seeing linen rabbits in clothes all over the place, on lots of blogs.  (Some of the most detailed and beautiful can be seen over at Millefeuilles , and the owner has recently included mice too).  Anyway, I digress again!  I decided I could make a rabbit dress out of the fabric instead.  Then came the hunt for a pattern.  I looked at the pattern which Helen Philipps had included in her book Pretty Patchwork gifts and at the rabbits which appear on her blog here but ended up being seduced by the rabbits in the floppy hats which appear in this book (the Tilda ones).  You can see the rabbits page from the book in the final photo.

 

 So, here is where I have got to with my latest WIP (Work In Progress).  It is cut out and sewn together, but requires stuffing, sewing up and clothes making.  Chris suggested that I should make a pinafore/apron out of the floral material and I like that idea.  I have some plain pale blue cotton which I can make the dress from, using the pattern in the Helen Philipps book. 

I am intending to make a dress with a higher waistline and then the pinafore/apron over the top, a hat and some pantaloons too.  There's nothing like a challenge!  I'll keep you updated on my progress.  Little did I know where the puffed sleeves would take me...

 

Has anyone been watching the Great British Sewing Bee on BBC2?  I said I wouldn't watch it, but have succumbed and have really enjoyed it so far.  It is lovely to see such a wide range of ages all taking part and creating such different things.  It is also great to see a person create something from start to finish (this is aimed at you, Kirstie Allsopp, who has a go and then lets experts finish off) and gives me hope when even people who know what they are doing sew something on the wrong way round! I understand the programme hasn't been doing well in the ratings, but I'm going to keep watching it.  If it encourages people to get sewing, it has to be a good thing! 





Aprons and baking

 Here is my lovely apron won in the giveaway, which arrived yesterday, much to my excitement!  It was wrapped beautifully in tissue paper and tied with the flowery ribbon you can see in the photo.

 Here it is hanging on the door.

 A close-up of the two different materials used in its creation.

 With the apron, there was a very thoughtful hand made card.

 In the apron pocket, there was a surprise present of this crocheted egg in very Spring-like colours. Again, huge thanks to Elizabeth of http://mrsthomasinatittlemouse.blogspot.co.uk/   for this wonderful gift.
Once I had received the apron and pranced about in it for a while, I decided I needed to bake something to christen it with.  Scones were deemed to be the ideal choice and then this developed into scones with cream and jam for a cream tea at the morning break.

 I made two batches of scones - the ones above were made with vegan marg and soya milk (I nearly had a catastrophe due to not remembering milk was a major ingredient in scones and promising to make vegan ones specially, but luckily, the local shop was open and even more luckily, they had soya milk!)

The finished scones, some vegan, some vegetarian.  I took them to work today and added some Channel Island very thick double cream and raspberry jam.  I have to say they tasted wonderful!  The vegan option was vegan spread and raspberry jam, but from the comments later, they were yummy too.  So, my gorgeous apron has been christened and we have enjoyed (rather too much in my case) a proper cream tea.  All in all, two very good days.