Latest midnight maraudings

Forcing myself to do samples is paying off. Because it can be really bloody frustrating when things don't work, but at least it's on a sample rather than on a bag. Loving the red lines thing, but the silk is totally stretching so I need to find a way to keep it stable. One of those ring things - but are they made big enough I wonder?

Upping the scale

I enlarged my Amy Butler pattern to see if it scaled it up nicely. I think the proportions still hold out which is great, but at this size it's fairly floppy and I have no idea how to attach that bag firming plastic stuff and still be able to sew it. Hmmm. Time to buy another pattern I think that includes instructions. And also, it's clearly time to bite the bullet and get to grips with zips because a bag like this needs one otherwise all my belongings will be whipped away the second I get on the tube!

The glasses case that never was

Wanted to try out a bit of quilting using type as seen at the V&A exhibition. Then when it was done thought I'd turn it into a glasses case for The Magnificent Mum. But I rushed it, it went all cock eyed, so now Mum is just going to get this sample as a "thank you for having us to stay at Easter" instead. Typeface is Gotham (perfect, solid, modern, I heart it). Learnings? Quilting takes bleedin' ages.

The fountain of all knowledge

This is the Magnificent Mum. In her sewing room. Which is totally crammed full of interesting things and little boxes of stuff and colours and books and sewing machines and jelly rolls and fat quarters. I am insanely jealous of the space and all the wonderful things in it.



She gave me a masterclass in how to put zips in and do understitching. We had a bit of mother/daughter argy bargy but we came out alive and still friends. What a brilliant Mum.

I think I'm in love with this bag

Made it for The Magnificent Mum for her birthday after the disaster that was the pleating effort. But by golly, it made me realise that sometimes, it's good to cock things up because you'll no doubt end up doing something better!



I had been to the V&A exhibition about Quilts and just felt so totally inspired afterwards that I stayed up way past my bedtime to make it. I loved making it, I can't stop thinking about it, I must be losing my mind.

Warped pleating wierdness

Turns out the material was too stretchy for turned pleats but I persevered and made the bag anyway. Totally wonky and chunky and generally a bit of a failure! But am loving the zesty green against the dark grey.

Material experiments

Recently, The Magnificent Mum came to stay with us for a while. She bought me a box of sewing delights that included some seriously mind bending books on material manipulation. I'm going to try and make sense of some of it and try out the techniques - in the meantime, here are some recent experiments with a bit of folding and what not. (They may or may not feature in a birthday present for The Magnificent Mum, she's been known to have a snoop on this blog from time to time...)