Vintage Patterns Sale

Shameless plug relating to some vintage patterns I am selling on Ebay. Me and Rob plan to go to Japan for our honeymoon but boy, is it expensive! I had planned a clear out of patterns I know I'll never make  and those whose size is too different from mine and now is a perfect time to do it. There are also a few books and a super board (and some sewing unrelated stuff).

A lot of these patterns are in a sad condition and many have something silly missing, like a facing or a tie belt. I'm hoping they'll find someone who will cherish them.
Click here to see items!

Red Renfrew

This Summer hasn't been the best sewing or pattern making wise. I started by feeling really guilty but then accepted that there is nothing wrong about wanting to do other things, rather than sewing. But I have finished one item, started absolutely ages ago and finished just before I got married. The very comfortable and stylish Renfrew top by Sewaholic.

Please ignore the somewhat blanket look. Today was not a easy day at work. I was feeling very tired and a bit low. Also ignore the bare look behind me. We have spent all Summer landscaping one corner of our back garden and it's slowly getting there. We have a rock garden and plan to plant some trees by the fence.

The making of this Renfrew wasn't the best. I managed to sew the pieces for the cowl wrong and only noticed when the thing was almost assembled. I contemplated leaving it as it was and use it at home only but couldn't bare to waste this gorgeous jersey. It's a length bought in Portugal of very good quality soft jersey. Feels very lush and comfortable!

Now that the days are getting shorter I know I'll be back to the sewing cave. I'll blog very soon about Autumn/Winter Sewing plans, the next instalment of Photography Fun and an update on Suzy Patterns.

Wedding Photos...(photo heavy!)

Happy to be sharing why you all some of my wedding photos, it was such a lovely day! The dress was custom made by the lovely and talented Bea from Vintage Inspired by Beatrice Winter, shoes by Miss L Fire,  makeup and hair by the also talented Siobhan Drew working for Pretty Me Vintage. Last but not least, photography by Phil Bourne. 

 

Sewing Mojo Rescue

My sewing mojo has taken quite a severe hit! It all started in May time, when I suddenly swapped the dark sewing room for the back garden. After that initial hit, came the anxiety ridden last minute preparations for my wedding. I had absolutely no motivation or time to sew. Now I'm finally married (photos to come, including details of a very special dress made by a very special seamstress) but my sewing mojo is still affected. It is quite annoying as I am itching to sew but just can't seem to get myself sewing. Hope is on the way though, thanks to the talented Tasia from Sewaholic and a yet unknown to me but I'm pretty sure talented Megan Nielsen.
I received the Alma Pattern on the post yesterday and it really fired me up to do it. The plan is to do a wearable muslin out of View A followed by a version of C (with collar). Fabric is chosen!

Megan Nielsen most recent pattern release, the Kelly skirt fired me too. It's adorable but what won it for me was the high waist. I placed an order from Australia so it might be a few weeks to get it. Very curious to see how these patterns sew up and fit.

http://megannielsen.com/collections/sewing-patterns/products/kelly-skirt-sewing-pattern

What do you think of these patterns? Planning to sew any of them?

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A bit of housekeeping only. I never new what it meant but I know now! I have claimed my blog on Bloglovin.

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Photography Fun: Equipment

Before I can start talking about tips and hints and ways to improve your photography, I need to talk about equipment. Not meant as a ultimate guide or anything of the sort. Simply the tools I will be using throughout these series. The important thing to remind yourself is that you do not need a super expensive camera to take amazing photos. Creativity is very important as well. Saying that, there are some things you simply cannot do in a phone camera and understanding your limitations is important.

The Camera

I will try and cover 3 very broad camera groups. The compact camera, seen at the far right, the DSLR with it's multiple different lenses (2nd and 3rd from right) and lastly the ever so handy phone camera. Alls these will perform differently but all do the basic: they take photos. As a note I took the photo above with Rob's camera, which is also a DSLR.

The Light

Light is so, so important in photography and there are many sources that can be used and controlled to achieve what we want. You have the flashguns (above left) that can either mounted on a SLR or off camera (with a transmitter), you have your inbuilt camera flash which can be too harsh so little little controllers such as the ones above in the centre scan be used for. There are also reflectors that can be used to maximise existing ambient light. And let's not forget the sun :)

The Props

Props for me are the fun part of photography. They help you tell a story, but most important they will help you feel relaxed and get a great photo. Don't know what to do with your hands? Grab a book! Feel the background is too bare? Add something to add interest. We'll explore how anything can be used.

So what equipment do you have and use?

The guilty pleasure of a break

I think I haven’t touched the sewing machine in about a month. “Oh my gosh, what is wrong with her?!” I hear you say. To be honest I asked myself the same question to start with. I felt something was wrong with me, I felt guilty! Guilty because I wasn’t sewing and I love sewing so something must be wrong. But then I relaxed and though to myself: sewing is supposed to make me happy, it’s supposed to be done at my own pace according to my needs and whims. And if I need a break, why not! It’s a hobby after all! I know Suzy Patterns is in the making but it's not a  secret that I want to take my time with it (for now I can do that and with some  limits of course). So what has happened?

After my holiday back in May, my day job went overboard insanely busy. I really struggled to hold the fort between tight crucial deadlines and low staffing levels. Things are a bit better now but new targets and deadlines are pushing the envelope quite hard. I spend much of my time in the evenings doing nothing, just lying on the sofa, watching TV. To be honest I am close to being completely exhausted. I can’t wait for my holiday and dare to say I anticipate the time off more than I anticipate my wedding. 

Something else happened. I  started to crave spending time outside. It’s my first Spring with a garden of my own and suddenly I felt the urge to be out and about planting stuff. I tend to go overboard when I find out I enjoy something, so much time has been spent in the garden. Sewing allows me to escape and relax but gardening allows me to do something that doesn’t need to be precise, something I can do with my other half and most important something I can do in natural light.  I love my sewing room but it is a cave as it faces north and has a tiny window. Even on a sunny day I might need to put the light on. Spending time outside till 9 or 10pm has won.

Source: https://pinterest.com/pin/231372499576315880/

I’m starting to really miss sewing, so I think I’ll brave the cave soon to continue work on my Couture Dress. And don’t worry, I won’t bore you with gardening stuff. I started a blog especially for that ;)