Sewing and Gardening

In between moving piles of mulch around the garden, I have managed to get a little bit of sewing done. 

Firstly this pin cushion constructed from one of the wrongly sized blocks I made for my solstice dream quilt.  The finishing touch was the beautiful rainbow fringing.  This was gifted to a fellow sewist at work for her birthday.

I have also joined the #summerofbasics2019 sewing challenge.  This is where we list three garments we intend to make over the summer months.    I have started November's one, which will be another Eva dress in this beautiful maple coloured linen.  Just the skirt and pockets to sew , top stitch and hem before attaching to the finished bodice.  This will be the third version of this dress, which is one of my favourite things to wear over the hot summer months.

A few before and after photos of my garden all freshly mulched and  most excitingly, the first of my dahlias are flowering.  The top one with dark leaves is Dracula and the bottom one is an anemone type called Purpinca.

Wish you all a wonderful weekend ahead.

Things Here Lately

Lady Dancing ornament for Janine

Lady Dancing ornament for my set

• Exploring a new to me beach.  While Mr J was sailing a couple of Sundays ago, I took myself out to Kariotahi Beach, a black sand beach on the West Coast.  I imagine it can be very cold and blustery on a windy day, but it was the most beautiful day while I was there. There were a lot of people walking as well as 4WD vehicles using the beach.

• I've been working on my 12 Days of Christmas ornaments, cos Christmas is not so far away now.  Finally finished the Dancing Lady ornaments for my sister and I, and I'm working on my drummer drumming one for me. Patterns for this series from here.

• I made another Peppermint wrap top, this one is a deep khaki linen/cotton blend.  I had emailed the designer asking for advice on how to lengthen it with out widening the wrap ties.  She kindly sent me a detailed email with diagrams and instructions, and this is the result.  I'm quite pleased with the finished length and feel there may be another one in my summer sewing plans.

• This little orchid is putting on a brilliant display of colour in my garden, it's about all that is at present.  In other exciting garden news, all my dahlia tubers have sprouted.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend ahead.

Peppermint Wrap Top

Over the past few years, Peppermint Magazine have provided a free pattern from In The Folds.  The last pattern was a wrap top designed for woven fabrics.  I'm a sucker for a wrap top, so I downloaded the pattern, found some pretty lilac Italian cotton shirting at The Fabric Store and made it up during a week off work.

This top was the first garment I have ever made with french seams, and creates such a tidy finish.  I was slightly worried about trimming the initial seam down, but they have all turned out really well. In the Folds pattern instructions are very clear and detailed, probably the only area I had problems was easing the sleeves into the armscyes, and that is through my lack of technique rather than the instructions.  I don't think anyone will really notice a couple of tiny gathers there though.

Based on my measurements I made size D without any alterations,  Should I make it again I would like to lengthen it by a few centimetres, it is a little too cropped for my comfort levels, however it will work well with higher waistshorts or trousers and I would probably shorten the ties also.  There was a lot of pressing and stitching to do on on the full hem length of those. I also wondering about grading to a size C through the bodice sides, this quite a quite a roomy top.

Overall I love how it has turned out, I love the colour and how silky smooth the fabric is and my beautiful finishing inside the top.  Now I  just need warmer weather so I can enjoy wearing it.

WOW in Wellington

The Beehive

Wellington Cenotaph

New Zealand Parliament Buildings - old and new

Woman of Words - commemorating Katherine Mansfield

Cuba Street Bucket Fountain

Past entrant of WOW

Past entrant of WOW

Solace in the Wind

FINALE:Bouquet at Te Papa

Tivaevae quilt at Te Papa

Homeward bound

I have just spent a lovely weekend in Wellington (New Zealand's capital city) with my mum and Miss B. We flew down to see the annual World of Wearable arts festival.  More on this further in the post.

Friday saw us all meeting up at Wellington airport, then making our way into the city.  We caught up with my Aunt and wandered the city, finding where the Arena was and the WOW sign for a photo opportunity.

Saturday was cold and wet,  however we were out early to do a tour of our parliament buildings which was very interesting, then we made our way to Cuba street, which is filled with lots of boutique shops, cafes and people, as well as the picturesque bucket fountain. That evening we attended WOW.

 WOW is the World of Wearable Art and is a design competition with entries from all around the world. The show is likened to part theatre, part catwalk show, part Cirque du Soleil. We weren't allowed to take photos in the show itself, but around Wellington there are displays of previous designs.  It was a most fabulous evening,and we had wonderful seats.  The imagination some people have to design these costumes and bring them to life is amazing.

We flew back home early Sunday evening so spent the day at Te Papa and wandering the waterfront on a most glorious sunny if somewhat cool day. Te Papa is a fabulous museum so many interesting exhibitions and displays.  I particularly liked the Gallipoli exhibition and Finale; Bouquet by Nike Savvas.

It was a most wonderful weekend and such a treat to be able to enjoy it with my mum and daughter.

Hvar Jacket

I have admired this little jacket from Itch to Stitch for a while, thinking that it would make a great tran seasonal addition to my wardrobe. Last week there was a discount on it, so the pattern was subsequently purchased, printed and pieced.

Reading blog posts and viewing #hvarjacket I noticed there were a lot of suede type ones which really appealed to me. so I found a lovely deep rusty coloured butter suede fabric  from Spotlight.

Based on my measurements I made a size 4 and made a muslin from my trusty old sheet to check the fit across my shoulders. The pattern itself is very clear and easy to follow.  Kennis also links to online tutorials for slightly more difficult techniques. I have learned a new skill with Hong Kong seaming, using some lovely Liberty bias binding I had bought a while ago.  Gosh this gives a lovely finish to garments and hides any fraying and loose threads.

The fabric itself was lovely to cut and sew, however it was difficult to pin and press, so I am somewhat disappointed with how the seams  and overall finishing looks.   My fabric choice  has also somewhat hindered fitting in areas, such as inserting the sleeves, and the double layer of fabric in the collar means I lost a lot of the drape too.

It is still a wearable garment and my husband tells me that no one else will notice the imperfections I am aware of.  I like the fit and style on me, and would like to make this again, however I will be a little more cautious with my fabric selection next time.