Category Archives: Scrap Sunday

Scrap Sunday: Phew, done (well, not really)

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IMG_3014The scrap skirt is officially done -well, apart from the hook, can’t find them, might have to buy new ones. I might have donated them to a sewing class, thinking that I will never ever sew a skirt.

I have only ever been working on it on Fridays, so it took for ages.

I think we can file this one under “a few lessons learnt”. It is not bad but also really not what I had in mind, so lets recapitulate:

I had this burgundy, very fine corduroy, a huge piece of scrap from a previous project. I wanted to make a skirt with 8 panels, each cut on the bias to show off the lines of the corduroy when they meet on each of the eight seams. Great idea I think, well not idea, great remembering from skirts that I have owned many kilos ago.

I did not have quite enough fabric to do that and it had been pointed out to me that since the corduroy was so fine, no one could actually see the lines. So I cut it straight. Big mistake as now I have an awkward seam in the middle of the front for no reason which actually blocks the fabric from falling nicely. Once I realised I had to cut it straight, I should have gone for 6 panels to avoid that seam.

I wanted too many things at the same time, nice A-line skirt with godets, cheekily showing of some kind of patterned fabric. Oh, and the whole skirt rather short.

The proportions of the whole thing are wrong, the corduroy can’t even hold the A-line shape as it’s seams are broken by the godets.

And the godets? Don’t get me even started. Too small, or rather too short. And maybe too many.

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On the other hand, I still love the colours and their combination. I also love the unplanned overlocked hem. Remember I only wanted to neaten the edge and then turn once, to keep the godets as long as possible and it actually looked rather nice. I did consider to do that again in blue but actually my blue thread was not quite the same tone so I kept the white edge.

And the blue lining is really cool, I think. Remember, you can’t see it but I know it is there 🙂

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Will I ever wear it? No, most likely not. I guess, this would have been a good calico project, I know now how not to do it and what I could have done better (I am now even thinking of a simple  A-line, with one big pleat in the front, more or less from the top, and that is where the patterned fabric is hiding – but that might also be a bit too extreme – I will definitely not try that one with nice fabric, but 6 panels with longer godets would definitely look good), so I do not regret the project as such but it is a real shame that I have wasted that cute patterned fabric as I only had one fat quarter bought on my weekend away in Oxford a couple of weeks ago. Clearly, I should have found a better use for it.

Anyway, with or without hook, I consider this project done and can move straight to the next one. Which has it’s deadline next Friday but I should really have it finished by Monday. Which happens to be tomorrow. I don’t want to reveal too much yet but you might consider wearing sunglasses next time you are looking for new posts on here 🙂

 

 

Scrap Sunday: A bit of a happy (almost) end

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Still working on the skirt, what an endless story! But – and you might not believe it after my many complaints – but this week I had an actually rather positive experience, or lets call it surprise, with my skirt.

As you might remember, one of the problems of this skirt is that the godets are not actually long enough  (in my opinion), so I really did not want to take away too much at the hem. The plan was to neaten the edge with the overlocker and then just do one turn of not even a cm and stitch it. I was also considering to put a small blue ribbon along that hem but I would definitely try that first on a sample, just to see if it will go around the corners between main fabric and the much thinner godets.

Anyway, I decided to use white thread for the overlocker to make sure that there is no darker colour showing on the back of the godets and after what felt like two hours of thread changing, I just quickly neatened that edge in what felt 2 seconds. And it actually looked rather lovely, just the nice contrast I had planned to add with a thin ribbon. That was really a very positive surprise, I did not expect it to look like that … that seems to happen on a regular basis to me, I do not seem to be very good in visualising things, do I 🙂

I was wondering if I should do it again in blue as this was the contrast colour I had been after initially but after consulting my taste expert in the sewing club, I had to agree with her that the thin thread would probably not be strong enough to get me the desired effect. I would have to try it out, meaning another thread change just for a little sample (and then maybe another one back to white).  So I decided to stick with white.  I just wanted to emphasize it a little bit more. So I tried to just overlock over the same seam and to zig zag over the overlocked seam. I tried that on a sample obviously, not on the skirt don’t worry.

That looked both rather horrible so I decided to do another seam with a smaller stitch length and cutting off the old one (even if that meant I will be loosing 7mm of the lovely godet fabric.) That looks really great, except for about 5 cm at the back where the seam almost falls apart as one of the threads had jumped out of its little hooks that creates the tension.

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So I will have to fix this first before I can wear it, and I simply didn’t have enough time yesterday to finish it as we held the annual ginger bread baking event, where a bunch of children will eagerly roll and cut out dough for about 15 minutes before then equally eagerly leave little dough crumbs in the whole house (a little bit like a posh version of Hansel and Gretel really) while the mulled wine drinking mums have to finish the actual baking. And just between us, they are getting lazy (compared to the previous years), at some point I had to actually tell them to go back to work!!! They were just chatting, completely ignoring the huge ball of gingerbread dough in the middle of the table!!! I told them nicely to please continue as otherwise they would have to take the dough home to finish it there as I would not be prepared to keep it! (That threat worked a treat, 10 min later, everything was done 🙂 )

The house is fairly clean again and I just love the smell of gingerbread, still hanging in the corners (probably a few missed crumbs thanks to my hoovering style will extend this lovely post baking phase).

Today, the advent excitement continues as we will be going to the theatre to see Room On The Broom, I will be back to crafting on Monday, I still want to make the knitted Christmas trees.

What about your weekend? Are you busy with crafting? Or preparing for Christmas? Or avoiding Christmassy stuff? In any case, I hope you are having a lovely one.

 

 

Scrap Sunday: YOU can’t see it but I know it is there

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So, the scrap skirt is still in progress. I have only basically managed to put the lining in. However this lining is the very positive version of one of my problems in life: you can’t see it but I know it is there.

Some people think that I have too high expectations of myself and the things that I am making and that I am never satisfied with anything I do. They seem to think it is a bad thing. Well, I don’t. If you are always just doing easy things and are than happy with the result, you will never improve (a little bit me in knitting really 🙂 )

Anyway, I often have the following type of conversation:

– Oh, did you make this? It is beautiful.

– Yes, I did. But it is not quite what I wanted. Here, it has problem X.

– Oh, but no one can see that. It is different and people will love it.

– I don’t care what other people think. It is not what I wanted. The whole point of making your own cloths is that they fit you perfectly and that it is exactly what you wanted.

I know that sounds rude (this is why I often just think it rather than saying it out loud) and I know that people want to be nice, I really appreciate it but it is true and when I say it is not what I wanted, it is a fact.  And it bothers me be because I know it is there even if no one else can see it.

But I am not alone anymore. In my Friday sewing club there is another equally obsessed person. She made a thin piping between waistband and skirt. (After a long discussion with me which colour would be best 🙂 ) And this piping is almost perfect, there is one spot where it is maximum 1mm wider than on the rest. I had not seen it before she pointed it out. Really. But it is true. If you look closely, I mean really closely, you will see it. (and probably get a restraining order). So I feel for her 🙂

Now back to my skirt, I have chosen a light blue (same colour as pattern in godet) lining for it and while I was basting it to the skirt I was thinking  loudly about the point of the colour choice:

– Does it matter to chose a different colour for the lining? In the end, no one can see it?

And my new found soul mate finished my thought: Yes, but you will know it is there 🙂

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In case you might think I am taking this Scrap Sunday challenge too easy by talking about the same thing over and over again, I have also used up some yarn by knitting a new – festive – window display. I just think that deserves its own post.

And as I know that some people are wondering how I can manage to knit and sew so much with two children around, this is what they do when I am busy:

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They also line up all the toy animals on a yoga mat in the kitchen and put plates with plastic food in front of them. (sorry, no picture there).

It takes them ages to do these things. And then they are really tired. Too tired to tidy it up.

 

Scrap Sunday: To be continued… still

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As I was still busy with the yoga bags this week, I have only been working on my scrap skirt in the Sewing Club on Friday and a little bit afterwards at home. So far, not so good.

I have to say, it seems to be turning out a little bit different from what I would have wanted. The godets might be too small. And too short. Especially as I haven’t even done the hem yet.

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I think I pictured something more A-liny in total but with the godets showing a bit. And I should have done 6 panels instead of 8. I planned 8 as initially I wanted the corduroy lines in the bias, so they meet at the seam and do a bit of a zig zag. But I did not have quite enough fabric to do that and it is such a fine corduroy that it would not have shown anyway. So I cut it straight. And now that central seam looks a bit silly.

Would have been good to make a calico version of this new design. Never mind. I am sure it will not look too bad, just not as I wanted. And I have definitely learned something.

On a brighter note: Don’t forget the yoga bag give away. If you don’t do yoga, don’t worry. The bag doesn’t know that. Just use it as a knitting bag 🙂

Oh and I have also finished the second bag for the introductory offer on etsy. And I have made a few other ones which are already listed in the shop.

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