Author Archive for Melanie

Things 210 & 211

Another birthday party, another Liberty gift set.

I still had some lovely scraps of the Mitsi lawn, but since it wasn’t quite enough for a zip bag I went for a two-tone approach. The yellow fabric is the same that I used to line the last set I made and is a great match for the creaminess of the flowers. I found a zipper in my stash in the same shade of creamy yellow.

The zipper didn’t go in perfectly but considering the tight deadline I was on and the speed at which I was sewing it’s respectable and better than expected. I started the set after Esther’s swimming lesson this morning and needed to have it ready by lunchtime.

 

photo 3_130

 

The tissue pouch is made of two triangular scraps sewn into a square, and then lined with the yellow.

 

photo 2_167

 

These were the last biggish scraps of the Mitsi so it really is time to get started on that patchwork quilt. Ha! That’s a joke. I don’t do big projects. I have patience and perseverance issues.

 

Cost of these Things: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €277.74

Thing 209

Back in February I made a pouf and two couch cushions for my friend, Mirjam. I still had a mountain of fabric left so I told her to think of more Things to make with it. Last week she brought me a squishy neck cushion and asked if I could make a cover for it.

 

photo 3_128

 

The structure is the same as a pouf so I used the same method as this tutorial, just with different dimensions.

 

photo_51

photo 2_165

 

The zipper is from my stash. It’s actually olive green but it blends well with the fabric. I used the same linen curtain fabric for the piping that I used the last time.

 

photo 1_167

 

The cushion cover is a little on the tight side, which rather takes away from the squishiness of the neck pillow, but that’ll soften with time as the styrofoam balls in the pillow compress.

 

photo 4_99

 

Otherwise I’ll just make a bigger cover. I certainly have enough fabric.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €277.74

Thing 208

Just a short post tonight. The late nights of football have taken their toll, as has the crushing disappointment.

Moving right along.

Today’s Thing is quick and useful: more underwear.

The last time I made underwear I tried the free hipster pattern from Makebra.com. They were a hit with Martina. Apparently they’re the most comfortable pair I’ve made for her.

So last week when one of her favourite t-shirts developed a big hole I decided to turn it into underwear.

Once again I used the tutorial at Very Purple Person.

 

photo_50

 

I’m getting better at stretching the elastic evenly around the leg holes. I could have pulled the waistband elastic a bit tighter but otherwise these worked out great.

And now off to bed.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €277.74

Work-in-Progress Wednesday: Reusable Snack and Sandwich Bags

My car broke down again today. I was riding merrily along in the far left lane of the highway during rush hour when I pushed in the clutch to change gears. It made a snapping sound and stayed down. Urp. Somehow I managed to get off the highway, jam the car into first, and pull off at a safe place, all without panicking, which is a major victory for me. Generally I’m not the person you want on your team in a crisis.

The roadside assistance guy used duct tape and zip ties to make a temporary repair, good enough for me to get to the garage tomorrow. This will be my third visit in three months. I’m afraid my 17-year-old VW is entering her twilight years.

All this has nothing to do with Work-in-Progress Wednesday.

I didn’t have much time to sew today but I did get started on a project I want to get done before summer vacation. I’m making a set of reusable snack and sandwich bags, similar to these.

 

photo_49

 

The fabric is a Michael Miller polyurethane laminate. It’s waterproof to prevent drippy sandwiches and snacks from leaking all over the place. I didn’t research patterns and sizes until last night so the zippers I bought two weeks ago for this project are a little smaller than I would like. I’ll have to make a set of smaller bags for snacks like goldfish and grapes and use velcro for the bigger ones.

Since I’ll be carless tomorrow I might just hole up in my sewing room and get these done.

 

Things 206 & 207

Today is the deadline for the Sporty Summer Sewathon over at Did You Make That. Remember the Thurlow shorts I was working on? I hope not, because I never made them. Maybe after the summer? I just haven’t got the mental energy to face the learning curve. So many pieces, so many ways to get it wrong…

However, I still wanted to join the sewathon. I just needed to find a pattern that was both sporty and non-panic-inducing.

Esther bought two lengths of jersey print at the Haagse Markt the last time we were there. One is covered in photos of cats and the other in wild animals. They’re a super soft cotton with some lycra and a dreamy drape. She has her own plans for most of it but asked if I could also make a shirt from each of the prints.

It’s Renfrew time!

Esther had a particular design in mind: animals front and back with solid coloured sleeves and trim. I had some purple and blue cotton knit in my stash to fit the bill.

 

photo_47

 

The print fabric is a great quality and a pleasure to work with. The cheap knit? Not so much. The purple neckline drooped, so I folded it over to the inside and hand-stitched it down. The blue sleeves got all stretched out and wonky when I tried to top stitch them. I had to cut off the cuff and start again. The knit doesn’t have great recovery either, so the sleeves and waistband on both shirts are a bit saggy.

However, droop and sag notwithstanding, my animal-loving girl is thrilled.

Which is great and all, but how are these sporty, you ask? Oh, I can spin this…

 

photo 2_164

Jungle badminton

 

 

photo 2_163

Cat-cycle

 

 

photo_48

Snorkelling on the wild side

 

 

photo 1_163

Kitty dreams: Pigeon hunting

 

That’s how.

See? Totally sporty.

 

Cost of these Things: €3 (Since this is Esther’s fabric I only am counting the cost of the amount I used for these shirts. The rest of the fabric will go back into her stash.)

Cost of all Things to date: €277.74

 

Thing 205

When I cut out the pieces for Esther’s blouse from the delicious Liberty lawn I was able to eke out a Hollyburn skirt as well.

This is my fourth Hollyburn and I’ve got this pattern down. I don’t bother with the zipper anymore. In fact, I only did the zipper on the very first one I made, the pink Hollyburn for Martina. I like it with the zipper but elastic is easier. The Path of Least Resistance for the win!

photo 2_161

 

I used two inch elastic and the same method I used for Martina’s blue Hollyburn. It’s the method I learned when I attached the cuffs on Esther’s Minoru jacket. Basically it involves sewing the waistband into a loop, folding it in half and inserting a loop of elastic, and then attaching the whole thing to the skirt. This allows for a clean, neat finish and avoids a chunky back seam.

An invisible hem was the final touch and this skirt is ready to go. Unfortunately, Esther doesn’t have anything to wear it with — all her tops are loud prints or the wrong colour — so I may have to whip up a quick t-shirt this week. I think I have just enough blue jersey left.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €274.74

 

Thing 204

ea95dca3d6a651db6328a7b5b8eb4021

 

Exactly. Thank you, Pinterest. You understand me.

But since this strategy is obviously not working, I decided to forgo real cupcakes and make this instead:

 

photo 1_161

 

The free pattern is from Bittersweetblog.com. I crocheted the cupcake with acrylic and a 2.5mm hook and added pink sprinkles and a cotton cherry on top.

It’s a quick make. Despite frequently jumping up and losing my place I was able to crochet most of the cupcake during the Netherlands-Costa Rica game last night. I finished it off today, once my nerves had calmed down. (The games get more and more stressful.)

 

photo 2_160

 

This sweet, low-cal cupcake is part of a gift I’m putting together, more to be revealed over the next weeks. Summer vacation is fast approaching and the panic is setting in. So much to make before then!

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €274.74

 

Thing 203

The last time I was in London I found this sewing book in a little discount bookstore near the hotel. It featured several patterns I wanted to try, so at just five pounds it seemed a worthwhile investment.

 

photo 1_159

 

Martina chose some lightweight cotton print from the Haagse Markt for a camisole and shorts set. I got the bolt remainder of 2.7 metres (enough for a couple of projects) for five euros, along with a metre of solid purple cotton for two euros. Then, a couple of weeks ago, my beading friend, Hester, brought along a purple silk shirt for my stash. It had an irreparable tear on the front, but the rest was beautiful, usable silk. It wasn’t enough for the camisole/shorts set but it was exactly right for the contrast fabric on the Sweet Dreams Nightdress.

 

photo 2_158
photo 3_124

 

It’s an easy project with a few nice details like a keyhole opening at the neck, hidden by a wide grey satin ribbon (also from Hester).

 

photo 5_54

 

I love the final product: sweet and light, just right for summer vacation. The silk adds a luxurious touch.

 

photo 4_94

 

However, Martina wasn’t too thrilled. She finds it a bit too frou-frou for her taste. We gave it to her friend, Jessica, who loves it — so this Thing is off to a good home. I’ve already started on the camisole/shorts set for Martina.

 

Cost of this Thing: €11.30 (€6.30 for the book, €5 for the cotton print, with plenty left over)
Cost of all Things to date: €274.74

 

Thing 202

Happy Independence Day, America! Today’s Thing is for you.

 

photo 2_157

 

His name is Genghis. His head and body are acrylic, the beak and feet are cotton, all crocheted with a 2.5mm hook. I attached the feet a bit too far back so he looks extra patriotic in his stance, with his chest puffed out and his shoulders back.

 

photo 4_95

 

“May these gates never be closed.”

For non-West Coasters, that is the inscription on the Peace Arch at the main Canada-U.S. border crossing near Vancouver, now represented symbolically by my crochet projects. I must be feeling homesick this week.

And since I live in Holland, let’s go even more multi-cultural…

 

photo 5_55

 

Oh, say can you see…

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €263.44

 

Thing 201

My beading buddy, Cheryl, brought me some more beads last night in her ongoing efforts to clear her stash and prevent me from clearing out mine. I had no other plan in mind so I decided to use them up right away.

photo 3_122

They’re glass beads but they have the honey-warmth of amber. I used silver, green and cream-coloured seed beads as well as random bead cap leftovers to fill out the pattern and give it some depth. I finished the necklace off with a little toggle clasp. I have a baggie of these clasps and I have no idea where they came from but I was glad to find them. My clasp supply was running low. The end result wasn’t a particularly exciting or original necklace but I still like it. It could be a low-key addition to to an everyday, casual outfit.  I’m putting it in the gift/sale pile.

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €263.44