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!

 

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

 

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.

 

 

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.

 

 

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).

 

 

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

 

 

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

 

I needed a cosmetic bag for some skin care product for a friend’s birthday gift. I pulled out the Liberty Mitsi fabric leftover from my Belcarra blouse. Liberty is beautiful and dreamy, but also expensive. The only way I can make it work in this 365 project of mine is by using every last scrap.

 

 

I had a cream-coloured zipper in my stash and the lining is a beautiful yellow cotton from a men’s shirt (thanks, Jim). I added a two-inch gusset so the bag can stand up — always handy for a cosmetic bag.

 

 

Then, because I still had some scraps left and I wanted to fill the bag a bit, I made a matching tissue pouch.

 

 

I love this set and I’m glad to send it off to a good home.

I still have some scraps left, though they’re mostly pretty small. Maybe it’s time to start a Liberty patchwork quilt.

 

Cost of these Things: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €263.44

Today’s Thing is last Wednesday’s Work in Progress, the Simplicity blouse in Liberty lawn. Esther wore it today with her blue Hollyburn skirt.

 

 

The blouse was quite easy to put together. It was interesting to see how my sewing knowledge has improved. In the past, if the directions called for a step I didn’t understand or see the point of I would just skip it. So I never understitched (didn’t know what it was) and I never trimmed seam allowances (didn’t see the point). Turns out the finished product looks more, well, finished, when you follow the directions.

My only major hitch was the zipper. I accidentally bought an invisible zipper and didn’t realize it until I was home. I had neither the time nor the inclination to head back to the Haagse Markt so I googled “inserting an invisible zipper” and plowed on ahead. Unfortunately, the very first step is to attach an invisible zipper foot to the sewing machine. I don’t have one.

Let me sum up the next hour of my life: Gaaaaah! I sewed the zipper in three times and it was still not lining up at the collar. On the fourth I got it respectable. Not perfect — you can see a thin line of the zipper — but respectable, and that’s all I was going for by that point.

 

 

But zipper issues aside, the end result was good and Esther loves it.

For the Netherlands-Mexico game this evening she embellished with an orange tutu and other orange paraphernalia. Needs more cowbell. Check.

 

Note: The game was the most stressful one yet. Tied in the 85th minute of the game, and won after the 90 minute mark. Our collective screams just about peeled off the wallpaper.

I’m also really glad I don’t have to clean up all the decorations yet. Here’s hoping they stay up until the 13th!

 

 

Cost of this Thing: €27.45 (Liberty doesn’t come cheap)
Cost of all Things to date: €263.44

 

 

Another day in Yellow Sheet Week, another pair of underwear for Martina.

It’s a new pattern for me, a freebie called Hipster from Makebra.com.

 

 

Instead of using the directions at Makebra, I followed the tutorial at Very Purple Person. I just had to change one thing on the Makebra pattern to make it work. The gusset (crotch — I dislike that word. Ew.) needed to be a separate piece from the front, so I just snipped it off. I like how the edges of the lining are completely concealed with this method.

Martina says it’s the most comfortable pair yet so I think I’ll make some more of these.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99

 

 

It’s Day Three of Yellow Sheet Week and today I present you with another pair of Cheeky Panties underwear for Martina.

I don’t have much to say about them. This is my fourth or fifth pair and they are easy peasy (when I don’t make dumb mistakes).

 

 

I’m getting a bit bored with making these so to shake things up a bit I tried another undies pattern. I’ll post about them tomorrow.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99

 

Day 2 in Yellow Sheet Week is another bra for Martina. (Mom… stop... please…)

It’s the Anna Cross Over Bra from Ohhh Lulu, the same pattern I used for the first three I made (here, here and here).

 

 

I ran into a lot of problems this time, all of my own making.

First I sewed together the front pieces wrong. I pulled it apart and started over.

Next I attached the back piece backwards. I cut it off (it was serged and I wasn’t going to unpick it) and reattached it, right side out.

I started to sew on the elastic around the bottom when I saw that the back piece was now upside down. I removed the elastic and cut the back off again.

As I was pinning the back piece in place I realized I had actually done it correctly the second time — it wasn’t upside down. By this time the back band was at least 2 cm shorter than when I started. (Fortunately the fabric is soft and stretchy.)

Finally, the bra was done. Until I saw that one of the straps was twisted. Sigh. The stitch ripper was put to some good use on this Thing.

 

 

I didn’t have any white fold over elastic so I used lingerie elastic for the whole thing. It doesn’t give as polished a look to the bra, plus I’m not sure how well it will hold up, especially the straps.

But it was free so I don’t mind taking a chance on it. Living on the edge…

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99

 

It’s Yellow Sheet Week.

It should be Orange Flag Week in light of Holland’s THIRD WIN! Yeah, baby! But I’m out of orange fabric, so Yellow Sheet Week it is.

I had an old yellow cotton jersey sheet that presented possibilities. Some may see an old ratty sheet. I see wardrobe staples for my children.

The first Thing I made from the sheet is a Renfrew shirt for Martina.

 

 

I used the same sizing as for her black polka dot shirt. The only change I made was to the neckband. It didn’t lie completely flat on the black shirt so I pinched a bit out of the pattern piece before cutting out the yellow fabric. That did the trick.

 

 

I used the least worn areas of the sheet, near the edges, away from the middle. The fabric is a bit thin but it isn’t pilled or discoloured. (And, yes, I should have ironed it for the photo.)

 

 

Have I mentioned how much I love the Renfrew? It’s not too many pattern pieces (five), I can sew it entirely on the serger and it’s usually done in under two hours.

 

 

And best of all, it turns out great every single time.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99

 

I’ve started working on some summer buffer to keep the holidays relaxed. I made a few future Things today but the last one — a zipper pouch — is today’s Thing.

The outer fabric is Liberty leftovers and I lined the bag with some black polyester lining from my stash.

 

 

I tried to get all fancy and add lace. It probably would’ve looked better if I’d attached the lace nearer the bottom. Or left it off altogether.

 

 

To be honest, the bag didn’t turn out as well as I’d planned. The zipper didn’t go in great and I had to hand stitch both ends. It looks a bit wonky and homemade.

 

 

Still, it’s a good size for a wallet or passport case, or just an all-purpose pouch, which always comes in handy. And it was free.

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99

 

Martina is at a birthday party tonight. She took the crocheted bunny gift I made earlier this week.

Yesterday I sewed a little zip pouch for it and the other gifts. I still had some squares cut out from the great tissue pouch marathon. Martina picked four different ones and a purple zipper from the stash.

I don’t use a pattern or tutorial anymore but I found this one so helpful when I was learning.

 

 

I like how it’s four different patterns: flowers, dots, checks and stripes.

 

 

Martina filled it with the bunny, an EOS lip balm, Jelly Belly candies, Mentos and some cash. Then we wrapped it in tissue paper and cello wrap.

 

Who wouldn’t want to unwrap that?

 

 

Cost of this Thing: 0
Cost of all Things to date: €235.99