Who's for pizza?

My brother, Joe, loves his Volkswagen campervan and winter has been spent respraying Rhubarb. The first time I was going to be able to give him his birthday present was at DubFreeze where Rhubarb was on show!

Anyone who's even been to a Volkswagen show knows that they aren't like other car shows. I own a Morris 1000 (called Blue) and the Morris scene is no where near as cool as Volkswagens. At a Morris show I feel I fit in; when I go to a Volkswagen show I feel desperately uncool. One thing they really go into at the Volkswagen show is accessorising their vehicles - and this isn't the odd period atlas and old radio on the back seat - each van is done out like a complete room! The tables are laid for lunch with Volkswagen-themed melamine, vintage fabric bunting hangs down, 1950s cool boxes and wicker baskets are on the roof rack, you get the picture.

I had the idea to make some felt food for the table, initially thinking of cupcakes... but Joe's favourite food is pizza. Having a browse on the internet I found Buggabugs have a pizza pattern. I like Buggabugs patterns, they are straight forward and easy to follow, but really imaginative. I used her Pizza pattern; my pizza came out a little 'well done' so next time I would buy lighter felt for the base and the cheese (the perils of buying felt on eBay).

Thursday evening craft

As promised here is what we made at craft night last Thursday; iris folding.

(I couldn't show you earlier as it was a Valentine's card and I wanted to keep it a surprise for Matthew)

Iris folding is very simple. It involved arranging folded strips of paper or ribbon along a pattern to create an effect which looks like the iris of your eye. You can do lots of different shapes - this one is a heart - have a look on etsy or google images. Although you are meant to by special paper for iris folding I think it would be a great way to use of those little bits of fabric, ribbon and paper and you could really get creative.

Gladys also made a Valentine's card which she gave to her Daddy. I love crafting with Gladys, she gets so exciting stamping her hand in the paint pad and then on the paper. I hope she has a passion for homemade things too.

I didn't manage to get any pictures of my jumpsuit at the weekend. It was raining and the light went before I finished (the camera is rubbish in the gloom)... I will post when I can get some decent pictures.

My wardrobe for the spring/summer

Up until I became pregnant with Gladys I loved to look at the catwalk, find out what the key trends were for the coming season, and then translate my favourites into my wardrobe (long before Gok). When I was pregnant I stopped buying Vogue as it got me down that I couldn't fit into the latest fashions, and made up my own maternity wardrobe. The last two seasons I have been in a fashion wilderness; struggling to love my new body shape, and fit into clothes that make me feel good. Thankfully some of my body confidence is coming back, I am learning what styles suit me now, and are appropriate for my new lifestyle. 

One of the downsides of being at home is you can get very lazy about how you look and what you wear. We have a 'sloppy Joe day' when we clean the house which I would have never of dreamed of doing pre-Glads! 

When I go to mother-and-toddler groups everyone is wearing jeans and a top because we can just throw them on and not think about it... but I love clothes.

I feel like I have been away from fashion for a long time, so have been working to get back in touch with the latest trends, laugh at the funny things on the catwalk, and look at what key pieces I want to make for myself. I have a small list of things I would like:

Jumpsuit (more below)

Denim pinafore 

Long maxi dress in white

Fun summer dress in fuchsia or cobalt blue

Bright boyfriend style cashmere cardigan

I had a jumpsuit in the 90s when I was about 13. It was a cast off from my mum's 80s wardrobe and I used to wear it in the garden. I loved how comfortable it was and I used to feel very feminine (though I wouldn't ever be seen out in it then). My parent's garden backs onto a meadow and I used to climb over the fence with a book, and lie in the grass totally immersed in the story, wearing my flowery jumpsuit...

Two years ago I saw this pattern on an American site and bought it for $15, I was almost certain that it would suit me and it bought back memories of lazy summer days. My wardrobe has always been a little bit eccentric and I do get away with more mad clothes than most so I thought I would be able to carry it off. I never got around to making it and then fell pregnant the following summer. I have some lovely fabric I bought in Paris a couple of years ago. I did buy it with the intention of making some loose, wide fitting trousers - but the next day in Paris I found the trousers I wanted so never got round to making anything with it. I think it will be great for the jumpsuit as the fun of the garment will be balanced with the serious grown-up birdseye fabric. 

I have made a toile and was surprised at how nice it looked. With this style of bodice is needs to fit perfect and the fitting is in the cut, rather than darts, so I have made a few adjustments (with the aid of Matt and my pincushion). It is now all cut it out and overlocked! I am hoping to finish over the weekend so hopefully I will be able to post some pictures on Monday.

What are your plans for your spring/summer wardrobe this year?

Flower embroidery

One of the things I love to collect are vintage embroidered tablecloths. Often, when I am in charity shops, I see them for sale.

I imagine someone spending hours, bent double, working on the flowers, then only using it for Sunday teas as it would have taken so much work to complete they wouldn't want it getting ruined. It makes me sad to then think that it has just been discarded by relatives and dumped in the charity shop, where they sell for £1.50. I have an airing cupboard full of hand worked linen now, so much that my husband has banned me from buying them!

I find embroidery relaxing: watching the thread, hearing it pull through the weave of the taut fabric, and seeing the image gradually develop before your eyes...

But the old style of embroidery isn't for everyone so I have tried to do a modern take on flowers. I drew the flower illustrations in Adobe Illustrator, and printed them onto the cotton before hand embroidering. There is only a little stitching as I really wanted to catch the detail and bring some texture and avoid it looking over fussy.

Which one is your favourite?

Vintage sewing guides: Simplicity's guide to fashion fabrics

I am a self-taught dressmaker. I am never one to brag, but I feel I was born to sew - it just makes sense!

I like to get together with people who share my passion and although you hear in the media all about 'young' people taking up knitting and sewing, we are few and far between. I do get together with like-minded crafters for a craft night once a month with the Trefoil guild in Staplehurst. I look forward to this evening so much.

Each time we learn a new craft skill (beeding, card making, sewing, etc). The ladies that I meet are full of experience and most of them have been crafting for years and are now Grandmas (which means they can talk about their grandchildren and I can go on about Gladys without boring each other).

In my church there is a lady called Gill, she used to be a home economics teacher and is currently moving from the family home to one for her retirement. Going through the loft she came across a box full of educational materials from the 1960s, thankfully, before they went in recycling she thought of me! It is so important that these skills and materials are handed down to the next generation; one of the reasons I am learning to knit is so I can teach Gladys.

Over the next few weeks I am going to rummage through the box and share the interesting ones with you, I thought I would start with Simplicity's guide to fashion fabrics.

This handout cost two shillings and is dated 1965. It is a 12 page black printed booklet, with a photograph of the fabric types on the front, and illustrations of women wearing the different fabrics inside.

It starts of with 'Ten Important Guides' on how to treat all fabrics; there is nothing new here for me but it is always good to remind yourself. The guide presumes you know all the basics and is aimed at advanced sewers wanting to experiment with new fabric types

Over the remaining pages it goes over the following fabric types; stretch; laminated and bonded fabrics; plaids and stripes; knits; mohair and diagonal fabrics; nap and pile fabrics; deep pile or fur-like fabrics; sheers; lace; and leather and suede. For each fabric type it covers purchasing, patterns, preparations, cutting and marking, sewing machine settings, pressing and sewing tips.

I can see this guide becoming well used. I find it difficult to find new sewing references that go into this much detail; I can't wait to see what else is in the box!

This Thursday is my evening craft night - we are doing something Valentines related - and I will let you know more when I do.