Summer is coming!

Finally, some sunshine over here. And warm weather :-) This weekend is going to be exceptionally nice with 25+ degrees and all sunny! So, time to get some serious summer tops going. I made the Azalea from Burdastyle.com as a top. I had the blue voile for a long time and always wanted to make a top like this with it. When cleaning out some of my stash I found it again and immediately knew what to do with it!
I did not have enough of the blue tricot to make a belt out of it as the pattern calls for. It really was a scrap that was barely big enough for the top and facing. So, I am using a ribbon from my stash for now. I do think it needs to be a bit wider, but I cannot be bothered to go ribbon-hunting right now. It is ice-cream time! :-D

Too busy!

I haven't been posting here for a while. The reason is not that I have fallen off the wagon. I have been a good girl and stuck to my pledge. With all the re-signing I have done I think I have been coming up to nearly a year and a half of being a refashionista!

I have bought some clothes in that period. But you are allowed to for a few times. Once was at the beginning of the pledge - I had bought some new sportsclothes, sweatpants, t-shirt you know, for my dancing. I kindof think it is specialty clothing and wasn't sure if it counted, but hey....
Then I bought 2 pairs of jeans after New Year. I really, really tried to make pants myself, but I was so busy with dresses and all. And I had no jeans left... So I bought only two (cause it was two for the price of one).
And the latest splurge was last march. 2 blouses and one top from Primark in Belfast. I figured I deserved those, as I had thrown out about 30% of my wardrobe at that time and donated to charity.

So, there ya go. 3 buying events in 16 months. I don't think that is bad at all, even if I do say so myself. I am still in dire need of pants, but summer is creeping up on us and I do have enough skirts to wear. I just don't do skirts in winter... even with tights and all I still think it's too chilly!

I really should work on the making of stuff, but as I mentioned earlier, I really am sewing irish dancing dresses non-stop. I am not even updating my blog! But soon, soon, I will make some shorts from a Burdastyle pattern, and soon soon, will I make myself a nice sleeveless top. I have all the fabrics. I really should start on it!

Easy Rib Scarf

This is a last-minute birthday gift. It is a cotton yarn made up of about 18-20 lace weight strands. Very nice and soft. The yarn is so beautiful it does not really need a fancy pattern. For the scarf it's just a simple 3x3 rib +1 alternate stitch on each edge. I slipped the first stitch on each row and knitted each last one. Added a little tag to show off my work :-) The recipient seemed to be very pleased with it.

Size: about 150 cm long, excl. fringe. Knitted on 7.0 mm needles.
Yarn: Ornaghi Filati Bazar
2 skeins - 242 yards

Warm wrists!

While waiting for the new year to happen I decided to do tackle some knitting. I always wanted some fingerless mitts and I always wanted to try cable knitting, but was too afraid. I recently joined Ravelry.com and I found a GREAT pattern! And it is free!
The cables are very easy to do and the result is quite classy and elegant. I used a cheap acrylic yarn for the first try-out, but I will surely make many more versions in the near future.
The pattern is called "irish hiking wristwarmers" by Delia and can be found here:

http://wineandneedles.blogspot.com/2004/12/wrist-warmer-pattern.html

Thank you Delia for your great pattern.

Busy with gifts

Long time since I posted.

I have had a lot of dress-orders and had nearly no time to sew anything for myself. I did not really need a lot (except pants/jeans) so I was ok. I got some clothing from friends to replace old and worn out items. I brought some too goodwill because I simply could not fit into it anymore, and.....I bought some.

Yes I am very ashamed, I bought 2 pairs of jeans. I really was going to make some, but time was running out and I spotted a great sale of 2 pair for 55 euro. So I got 2 pair. Needless to say I am very happy with them :-)

Now the gift season is upon me and I need to get some birthday and Christmas gifts going. I already got some books and stuff for my family and this weekend I will attend a housewarming a.k.a. birthdayparty of a friend. She only wanted oven mitts. So I got her oven mitts. But instead of buying, I made some!

The pattern is from Burdastyle #8125 B. Really easy to make and don't they look great! The fabric is a great find I got from the USA (contemporaryfabric.com I believe ). I already used part of it in a dress and what I had left was perfect for these babies :-) They turned out so well that I am thinking of making a few more to give away during Christmas season. It's the perfect gift for encouraging your friends to bake more of those lovely cookies!

Continuing the wardrobe plan...with pants.

Recently I killed yet another pair of jeans and I really need to start replacing my old pants with new ones. Pants are tricky to do, however... I was pretty happy with the lilac pair in linnen fabric, but I need something more sturdy that will keep out the oncoming chill of autumn. This is a more fitted model in a denim-like fabric. It is not cotton, however and has a lovely no-crease quality to it. I picked up this fabric for 4 euro from a stall and thought it perfect for a try-out! The model is ok. I had to really, really shave off from the sides of the legs as it was WAY too wide for me, eventhough the pattern was for a size 36. I have a problem with getting the crotch right on the front and this time I was able to get it really nicely done. I tried my hand at an invisible zipper, but it is not really invisible....Still happy with it though.




I do like the back, the fake-welted pocket shamelessly gives away my inexperience, but again, I am happy with the result. I am sure I will do better next time. It really is a "you-have-to-do-it-a few-times-to-get-it-right" thing.

The only thing that bugs me is the diagonal lines in the back when standing still. I looked it up in my sewing book and I cannot find the cause of the problem. I can see there is tension and too much fabric under the bum (ooo I wish I had a bum!). I will really need to correct the pattern for this next time, but I have no idea where!?!?!? If any of you might have an idea or answer, please let me know....I still need to make jeans and another pair for winter!

******Update*****
I thank all the readers that posted comments on how to fix my pants! You were all very helpful and I have a good idea of how to fix the pattern now before I start in true jeans fabric. I had alread sewn this pair and am not willing to do major reconstruction on it, but I have opted for deepening out the crotch curve. As you can see, it does not fix all of the roominess in the back, but it does get rid of those sharp diagonal lines! Thank you so much all!

Granny shawl

I used to have a triangle shawl from my granny. I loved it very much as it could be used as a shawl and a wrap. ....it disappeared when I moved in with my boyfriend 3 years ago. Since then I forgot about it as crochet items were not in fashion anymore and hey, one oughtta keep up with fashion right? Wrong. I loved that shawl dearly and when I noticed these triangle wraps were coming into fashion again and crochet is now the *hot* thing to do apparently, my thoughts dwindled on my old black wrap and it's comfort. So, nothing to do about it: I had to learn to crochet and make myself one. I had already started knitting simple scarves and I figured crochet was not that different from it. I bumped into this pattern for a triangle shawl in one of those shops where they sell all kinds of wool and knick-knacks for knitting and sewing. It was hanging on a dressform and I just loved it soooooo much! The kind lady of the shop saw me gazing at it and told me: "You know, if you know how to crochet, single crochet and double crochet, it is really easy to make. And if you don't know how to, I'll show you -no problem". And I did. It was really easy to follow the pattern, it only took me a week doing a few rows every evening sitting in front of the telly with my boyfriend. AND I LOVE IT!!! 6 euro worth of skins and I am sooooo much happier now :-) I can't wait to show my Grandma!