Sewing has taken over a bit recently as I have lots of projects in my head. In fact, I have had to start a hobby notebook which so far has sewing project ideas, wish lists of plants and wish lists of more crafting goodies. However, I am gradually making progress on the sewing list front. I have finally finished my cat cushion cover which has turned out just as I'd hoped. The centre panel is a screen print onto calico, surrounded by a cat print material which I love as it makes me smile.
The back is a simple envelope but shows off the fabric nicely.
This tunic dress has featured on my blog several times and I am finally happy with it and actually wearing it now. It was too short originally and I made it with puffed sleeves which weren't very comfortable. I changed the pattern to sleeveless and lengthened the hem, covering the seams with blue bias binding. However, it was then too long and I didn't like the bias binding much. As a last attempt, I took off the binding, shortened it a bit, and covered the bottom with cotton lace. Now I am finally happy!
I have also finished my second Cleo pinafore. I stuck to the seam allowances more this time so it is a little slimmer than the first one, but still comfortable and loose to wear. The buttonholes went really well too - no unpicking needed this time!
Here's the back. I have worn it once so far. It will be great for Autumn.
Here's the material for the next Cleo pinafore (it is a little bluer in real life) and then I would like a denim version.
I also bought this sheep fabric to make a new bag for work, probably using denim for the bottom panels and this for the top/
How can you not love a stripy sheep?
My next projects are these. Two (hopefully) simple summer tunic dresses. I have had the patterns for a while but have never got around to making them. I will make a toile version first, just to get the hang of the patterns and to adjust the fit - I have narrow shoulders so will probably need to adjust the pattern a bit.
Here are the fabrics for one of them - I really like the cheerful little birds and thought they would look great as a contrast hem or pockets or sleeves (or all three).
I saw this magnolia fabric and just had to buy it. It may be the main fabric or a contrast - I haven't quite decided that yet. So, plenty to keep me busy and I do need to get on with the summer dresses - I need them for work!
Having a walk around the garden, I couldn't help noticing the furry magnolia buds which were framed beautifully against the brilliant blue sky. It was a cold morning, but with the sun out, you could almost be fooled into thinking it was Spring...almost.
The magnolia buds are a positive sign because although they are tightly wrapped against the cold at the moment, they hold the promise of unfurling into the beautiful scented flowers in a month or so. I love to see the garden gradually starting to wake up.
I was in the garden yesterday morning, enjoying the sunshine and hanging the washing out when I noticed the colours of the magnolia (liliflora Susan) and lilac (old tree, unknown variety) against the blue sky. It really was beautiful. The magnolia has been flowering for a couple of weeks and has a lovely scent and the lilac is just coming into flower. I love this time of year.
