Tilly And The Buttons Bettine Dress

We've had a spell of such lovely weather recently and I was so glad to be able to start wearing summer clothes again after what feels like the longest Winter ever. This is my favourite time of year and I pretty much live in dresses when I'm not at the day job and the sun is shining. So with that in mind, I was determined to finish my Tilly And The Buttons Bettine dress!

These are the most sensible photos you are likely to get of me I'm afraid- I'm not a natural at having my photo taken and have to resist the urge to fall about laughing..!

I am really slow at dress making- mostly because I start something and then leave it half finished on a shelf- and with this dress I'm ashamed to say that through lack of time I left it on the shelf for what must be two years. I was determined to finish it so I could wear it during this lovely weather and also during our upcoming holiday in France.

It's been that long since I started the dress that I couldn't find the original photos I took of me cutting out the pattern etc- they must be lost on my laptop somewhere. 

Working in a craft shop I've always got my eye on a pretty roll of fabric or five (it is a dangerous place to work, I always say they may as well pay us in fabric and yarn) and I love this pretty floral fabric I picked for making my Bettine.

The Tilly And The Buttons patterns are so comprehensive- as well as the pattern itself you also get an instruction booklet complete with colour photos to guide you through the process of making your garment. There are even in person and online workshops to go with some of Tilly's patterns, so if you were new to dressmaking there is a lot of support. Although I have a degree in fashion and textiles, the majority of my degree was spent making knitted textiles and working on surface embellishment, so dressmaking is an area I would like to work on and the TATB patterns are perfect for this.

I'm so pleased with the dress, it's so comfy and easy to wear and I feel really proud that I made it! I'm now looking into making some Bettine tops, inspired by this Bettine Hacks blog post.

Have you made any Tilly And The Buttons patterns and are there any other lovely patterns that you'd like to recommend?

Bead Embellished Gloves How To

It's been a colder than normal January in the UK. I'm so looking forward to Spring-  I can't remember the last morning I woke up and there wasn't a frost and below freezing temperatures!

However, although I'm not a fan of the cold, I really love Winter clothes- big knitted jumpers, cosy coats, hats and gloves. I'm never without a pair of gloves at this time of year and this gave me the idea for this How To. Why not add some sparkle to your Winter wardrobe with my How To for bead embellished gloves? Stay warm and happy making!

How To... Make Pretty Napkins Using Tea Towels and Pompom Trim!

Try my latest thrifty How To and turn a set of tea towels into colourful napkins! These would be fab for a special dinner/garden party and you could even use them as place mats too! Here's how to make 

them...

1) You will need

Cotton tea towels (one tea towel makes two napkins), pompom trim, fabric scissors, pins, sewing machine, thread to match the pompom trim, hand sewing needle

A note on tea towels- If you have any vintage tea towels that are in good condition they would make lovely napkins, but if not, buy a pretty set to match your dining colour theme

2)  Wash and iron the tea towels. I'm terrible at ironing so mine look a bit crumpled... oops. Cut each tea towel in half across the width. Fold over the raw edges by 1cm, then press, pin and tack into place

3) Straight stitch each raw edge on the sewing machine,stitching close to the raw edge. 

4) Cut two pieces of pompom trim to the length of the napkin. You need two pieces per napkin. Place the trim on the edge of the napkin so the pompoms hang over the edge, then pin and tack into place

5) Again using a running stitch, machine stitch along the pompom trim, close to the edge without the pompoms

Happy making!

The Small Project Challenge- The Flo-Jo Knicker Making Kit!

Back in January in this post, on a mission to be organised and reduce the amount of half finished projects I have on the go, I shared my goal of completing one small crafty project each month in 2015. I've called it The Small Project Challenge! For the challenge in February, I made knickers!

A while back I was searching for quirky craft kits to try and I discovered the Flo-Jo Knicker Making Kit from the Flo-Jo Boutique.

The kit contains everything you need to make a pretty pair of knickers, from the pattern (in size 8-18), pretty fabric (there are lots of pretty prints to choose from, including Liberty), frilly knicker elastic and ribbon for a bow. The great thing as well is that if you trace the pattern off you can keep the pattern to make more pairs!

Although the pattern recommends cutting out the fabric using pinking shears to prevent fraying, I don't have a pair so I used regular fabric scissors. I'll definitely invest in a pair to use when I make some more knickers as I think it would give a neater finish

As a first attempt, this pair is by no means perfect- the elastic is a little over gathered in places and the finish could be neater (I really need those pinking shears!)- but I had a great fun afternoon making them and that's the main thing! There was something very therapeutic about making them and I'm excited to choose some fabric to make some more. I'm hoping that practice makes perfect!

Have you discovered any quirky or unusual craft kits? Do share!

Sunday Stitching and stitching recommendations

Today I wanted to share with you a few recent stitchy discoveries and recommendations!

My first recommendation is Tilly Walnes's book Love At First Stitch, which I treated myself to last week and today I have made the Brigitte scarf, which is the first project in the book.

I'm no seamstress- Although I spend my time immersed in all things knitting, at the back of my mind I have always wanted to sew clothes too, but a few less than brilliant attempts have deterred me. I do own several "Learn  to make your own clothes" type books, but have found them too technical and not really geared to the beginner. So, having read and enjoyed the Tilly and the Buttons blog for some time now, I was so pleased to discover Tilly was writing this book! It's bright, fun and jargon free, which is perfect for the beginner, yet appealing to the more advanced dressmaker too. The uncomplicated style of the book, guiding you through projects with step by step photographs has given me confidence and having enjoyed making the scarf I'm intending to make my way through the projects in the book. Next up it's pyjama trousers! There are several full sized patterns included in the book too, so no photocopying or printing out hundreds of sheets of paper, which is a real bonus! I'd definitely recommend grabbing yourself a copy if you're keen to make your own clothes.

You could wear the Brigitte scarf in a variety of ways, but you'll find me wearing mine wrapped around my messy bun!

Something that has held me back when it comes to dressmaking and machine stitching in general is that I find it hard to accurately measure and stitch the seam allowance. Some machines come with seam allowances inscribed on the plate under the presser foot, but mine doesn't have this detail, but a lovely friend recommended I try one of these magnetic stitch guides- you measure your seam allowance from the needle and the magnetic guide marks this measurement and also helps you stitch straight seams, as you butt your fabric up against it as you sew. So simple but so effective! I would definitely recommend getting one, find them in good craft shops. 

Another genius sewing aid I've recently discovered is the Frixion pen! In the past I have used the fabric markers that  fade after use, however I've found them a bit hit and miss- more often than not they don't fade, leaving lines over your fabric, which completely defeats the object. Handily though, I was recently introduced to the brilliant Frixion pens- you can use them to write on paper and then rub the lines out using the other end of the pen, or you can use them to mark your fabric and then remove the lines by hovering over them with a hot iron. Magic! A great addition to your sewing kit, you can find Frixion pens in craft shops and supermarkets

What are your crafty recommendations? Share them in the comments below!

Happy Sunday and happy stitching everyone!