Dear Blog Diary ,
I have been very busy but I have been thinking of you .
I have been working and travelling lots .
I flew to Townsville and then drove 3500kms back home .
Then we drove to Merimbula for a short but sweet holiday. On the way back I stopped at Bairnsdale and then cycled to Paynesville . A short ferry trip across to Raymond Island to see the koalas and then a train trip back home and to real life ( ie work ) .
However real life includes sewing and even the occasional blogging so all is good.
Before I went away I sewed blue tops and lots of them for literally every female in the family .
DD 1 Blue Top.
My eldest DD just happens to live only about 10 minutes ( if the traffic is good ) away from Darn Cheap Fabrics in Heidelberg . We went there for a bit of a cheer me up session and she really liked this stripey , diamondy fabric . She has a very favourite oversized top which is also very stained and pilled and wanted it recreated .
No problem at all ! A very easy sew as I was able to unpick the original top to copy. I have previously tried rubbing off an intact garment to make pattern pieces but found it quite tricky .
DD3 Blue Top
Well I overestimated the amount of fabric needed for DD1 top and DD3 loved the fabric too . There was just enough to cut out a top from the Burda April 2016 issue . This is a easy fitting top with dropped shoulders . All the vavoom is in the back with a V back and a little strap going across . Also a very simple sew but I ignored Burda`s instruction to add a snap to the strap at the back . I can see no purpose for it as the top easily fits over her head . DD1 and DD3 are very similar in appearance and in many other ways ( they both dislike bananas for example - weird !) so now they can be real twinsy wearing their stripey tops.
DD2 Blue top.
I have been unable to pin down DD2 for a pic. I made the same pattern as for DD3 using the silk I used to make my kimono jacket bands. So a plain blue top basically. But lovely nonetheless .
Me !
I bought this exotic peacock chiffon from the op shop . There was something like almost 4 metres of the stuff. I started sewing up a Kwik Sew tunic pattern but I hated it . Not the pattern , nor the fabric just the combination. The chiffon is a see through and slippery customer indeed . I hated the see through seams and the crooked hems and the fraying sleeves . I was ready to chuck this big time but then thought NO . It is just fabric and I will not let it defeat me. So I soaked the chiffon in a gelatine mixture ( I originally just used starch ) and since the Burda April issue was lying around traced and cut out a really simple little shell top. The only features of the top which are totally obscured are some darts at the neckline. I lined the top with self fabric but as you can see it is still quite transparent. However I have ended up with something quite wearable - a little shell top and it only took 4 metres ! I have sworn off chiffon for a bit now but expect it will be like childbirth .
I usually like to add pictures of the patterns I have sewn because personally I find this very helpful when reading blogs . But I lent the magazine to a friend who wants to make a tunic and a dress for her sister . It really is a terrific issue.
So Blog Diary I am glad to caught up with my sewy news . Hope to report back again soon.
