Toddler Leggings Vs Napping

No, this project not going to set the sewing world alight with it's complexity, but the fact that I have managed to make something, let alone something that is actually wearable, means that I win. My baby girl blessed me with a succession of tiny windows of opportunity (opportunities that perhaps I should have spent napping or trying to excavate the lounge under all the nappy sacks) to make her cousin Anya (18 months old) a couple of pairs of leggings for Christmas. 

Pattern:

'And then came Ottobre magazine, and lo, it was good...' My mum bought me a subscription of the children's version of Ottobre for my birthday last year and I flip out with excitement each time one appears on my door step. Well technically it's not my door step, we share it with another flat and the pub below (yes I live above a pub). I digress...

This pattern is a super simple toddler leggings pattern that consists of two pieces, a front and a back. I omitted the knee patch piece, but I have some ace ideas for making knee patched versions in the future. To be honest I haven't really got my head round baby and toddler sizing yet. These magazines use height guides rather than age suggestions, plus I haven't figured out if Ottobre patterns generally come up big/small etc. They then confuse things further by telling you age and heights of the models wearing the style. It nearly melted my sleep-deprived mind. But after some texting with my sister-in-law and further deliberation, I chose to make the smallest size (92cms) but add about 4cms to the leg length just in case. In the end they did come out a bit long, but they looked pretty cool with turn ups and it means that they should have a longer lifespan. 

The pattern is a great basic, but I feel that the illustrations are a little misleading. Even taking into account the extra 4cms I added to the leg length, I think the final garments (as seen at pictured at the top of this post) came out quite different in proportion to the stubby, baby wear-esque illustration in the magazine (pictured above). 

Fabric:

Anya is quite a girly girl so I chose some fabric from my stash that reflected that. The fabric on the left is some Liberty jersey that I've had knocking about for about as long as Anya is old. The fabric on the right I've had for longer, I acquired it at a sewing meet up/swap in Brighton a couple of years back, I think it used to belong to Tilly. Both are very sturdy jerseys with a good recovery, just what you need for a toddler, I'd imagine.

Details:

These garments are obviously pretty plain and functional items, so I added these little labels (also acquired from a sewing meet up/swap) to make them a little more special. I also think it's handy to clearly indicate in some way which is the front and back on an ambiguous garment style like this, particularly as getting babies and children dressed can be like trying to wrestle an octopus!  

Conclusion:

I think these came out really well and I was pleased to see got quite a few wearings by Anya whilst we were in town visit Pat's family. I'll definitely be making a whole stack of them for Dolores when she is big enough in a variety of solids and prints. I'll probably be doing that instead of napping. 

If you sew for babies/toddlers/children, do you have a favourite 'workhorse' pattern that you come back to again and again?

Goodbye 2013: Plus Sewlution Success!

January 2014 is already into double figures but I don't want to wave goodbye to 2013 without a little look back:

(image source: Me-Made-May'13 flickr group)

Me-Made-May '13

2013 saw the most well-subscribed, exciting and vibrant me-made/self-stitched challenge yet. So many people signed up for Me-Made-May '13 by pledging to wear their self-made creations more often, and the flickr group reflected that with over 6000 outfit images posted there! You can hear (yes hear) me chatting about the challenge here. I'm so excited about 2014's Me-Made-May!

(image source: Miss P)

The Refashioners

I also had the pleasure of taking part in The Refashioners challenge. Organised by the ever-awesome Miss P, the purpose of this challenge was to bring the concept of refashioning to a wider sewing audience by asking a whole mixed bunch of talented soles to transform randomly assigned second-hand items into reworked wondrousness. Have a look here at what the unassuming collection above became if you didn't already...

My Sewlution

Along with a large slice of the online sewing community, I took up the challenge set by Karen from Did You Make That? at the tail end of 2012 to identify our own sewing aims for the forthcoming year. My personal sewlution was to make 12 garments in 12 months. But not just any old makes, I specified that these garments had to be successful in the areas of comfort, fit and in reflecting my sense of style. These items had to become regularly worn items, not just items that get dragged out for Me-Made-May!

Regular readers of this blog will of course be aware that I spent the majority of 2013 pregnant. Before I started to show I racked up some nice makes all of which fit my criteria (or would have done if I'd had a chance to wear them for longer had I not started changing shape)

1) leopard print Mathilde blouse (pictured above),
2) 40's Tea dress,
3) Mustard Marinière trousers,
4) Lady-like Pussy Bow blouse,

But from April-ish onwards my pregnancy began to dominate most of my sewing activities and effected the sewlution challenge. Because the maternity garments would naturally have a limited lifespan, I wasn't so worried about accurately reflecting my sense of style and felt freer to use fabric and try styles that weren't entirely 'me'. They included:

5) Africa Wax fabric Washi dress
6) Grey Tova dress
7) Peter Pan collar batwing tops (counted as one because the pattern is the same)
8) Vintage fabric handbag (no, not technically a garment but these are my rules and it sure as hell sees a lot of use)
9) Black and blue maternity treggings (once again, counted as one because the pattern is more or less the same)
10) Stripey long sleeved T-shirt
11) Nautical jersey dress and black batwing jersey dress
12) Modcloth-inspired maternity top 

PLUS there was the spotty maternity T-shirt remake and the fancy-sleeved grey T-shirt (pictured above) if you don't think the bag should count in the list! So you see: sewlution success! How did you get on with your sewlution if you took up the challenge last year?

Sailor Slacks and Offset Warehouse Free Thread Code

(Image Source)

First up: you may or may not have heard of the Offset Warehouse, but if you are interested in making some more socially and environmentally sustainable fabric purchases, they are your dudes (/dudettes). I'll be coming back to this topic and this company in the New Year, but in the meantime I am able to offer you a check out code that will entitle you to a free organic cotton thread when you spend over £30. Valid until 31st Jan 2014, the code is: SoZoLovesEco

So, currently I am trying to crawl commando-soldier style out of the heaven/hell of the three months since the baby-tornado landed squarely on my life. And as I metaphorically pick myself up and dust myself off, I've discovered that, lo and behold, I have a body! It's a bit of a mess, and different from the pre-preggers times with its larger, leaky boobs and its looser, slightly crinkly belly skin. But it's familiar none the less. My post-birth wardrobe now consists of three pairs of pre-pregnancy leggings/jeggings and on top I'm wearing layers of vests, jersey tops and cardigans, the combo I've found to be the easiest for 'gaining access' to breast feed without freezing. And whilst I'm pinned to the sofa feeding Dolores or being used as her bed, my thoughts often wander to my long-lost bezzie: sewing.

I'm getting a little fed up of my limited selection of clothing and am longing to add a little stylistic variety for getting out and about in. Sewing woven dresses or tops is pointless as my bust has grown and I don't want to waste precious time and fabric when I don't know what I'll be 'left with' when I stop breast feeding and deflate. I have more than enough jersey tops to keep me going even with a couple of vom-incidents (her not me, usually) each day, so there's no need to make any of those either. I can't begin to imagine ever having enough time again to spend on a large project like a coat or jacket so that leaves bottoms to consider sewing next. I wear skirts so infrequently (particularly in Winter/Spring) plus I already have some awesome ones, so I'm planning trousers. Will you help me?

(Image Source)

Over a year later, I am still lamenting the death of my black and denim pairs of sailor trousers. Plus the wide legged style would be a really different silhouette to my current be-jegginged one, so that's what we are looking at here people. So let's talk pattern-options, I'd appreciate your opinions...

Firstly, there's the old 'If it ain't broke don't fix it' option of using the same pattern (Burda 8488, pictured above) that I used for my previous two pairs of sailor trousers. Using this would make sense because A) I already own the pattern, B) am confident of the construction process, and C) know the fit issues. But it's a bit boring using the same pattern, isn't it?!

Then there's this Sailor Style Pants pattern that is available for download on the Burdastyle website, but I think I may also own the copy of the Burda mag that originally featured this pattern. I like the variation in style where the front pleats are trapped down by the buttons. I think this would look great in a fabric that has quite a bit of drape, so possibly not the most appropriate garment for a shitty Winter like the one we are currently looking down the barrel at. 

Whilst we are mining the wealth of patterns on Burdastyle, check out these bad boys pictured above. I'm not too sure about the waistband element as those tend to give me trapped wind (TMI?! Another result of having given birth is that I no longer have any shame!) but they are mighty handsome strides, let's make no mistake! Obvs I wouldn't bother with the back pocket coz I'm a lazy-arse. 

And then there's the Hot Patterns Riviera Hello, Sailor! Pants pattern. I like the leg shape of these but my current sewing machine does not have a one-step button hole function so I'm kind of baulking at the prospects of all those buttons! If I did go for this one I'd omit the tie-back feature. 

My final offering for your perusal is the Kwik Sew 3854 pictured above. Technically a shorts pattern, I'm sure these could be elongated with little bother. A somewhat subtler version which also has an added benefit in that I already own this pattern having bought it just before I became pregnant and therefore has yet to be used.

So there we have it peops, what are your thoughts? Which should I use to form the basis of my next sewing project? Has anyone used any of these and feel it could be recommended or should be avoided? Or do you know of any other sailor trousers/pants/shorts patterns that you think I should use? Thanks in advance! 

Labour in Labour

I was wondering earlier today if I am merely naive, or actually slightly touched by madness. The reason being that, for some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to organise the biggest craft market that I've created to date at EXACTLY the point when I become a mother of a tiny baby for the first time. I had already booked the usual venue for not one but two weekends of festive contemporary crafty goodness before I became pregnant but instead of either cancelling the dates or passing the organisation over to someone else, I decided to go ahead with organising them myself. I thought that I'd be easily able to check my emails here and update the blog there during my final weeks of pregnancy and whilst wrangling a tiny infant. Pat has a photo of me answering Craftaganza emails during the 17 hours of labour that I spent at home before my contractions were close together enough to be allowed to head to the hospital (33 hours from breaking waters to baby, in case you were wondering!).

With over 110 sellers over the two weekends it's been a real challenge, and in hindsight I would not have taken it on, but I am proud of myself for having achieved this and goodness knows we could use the money at the moment. But I guess my actions do show the extent that self-employed people and those who work from home have trouble stepping away from their work. There's probably a more in-depth point to make from all this but I'm too tired to extract it at the moment.

So if you happen to be in the Brighton area, or at least South-East England and looking for something to check out this weekend and/or the following, you'll find some incredible designer-makers selling their wares at the Fabrica Gallery in Central Brighton. You'll be able to scoop up some phenom unique Christmas presents and with different sellers each weekend there's no reason not to visit twice! And there'll be mulled wine. Unless I drink it all.

Dolores's Baby Quilt!

This is the fourth baby's floor quilt I've made now, and it felt pretty surreal making one for a baby that I was going to be giving birth to! It would be a bit embarrassing if I didn't make one for Lola, wouldn't it?! Considering I went to the trouble of making the baby and all. 

It might not surprise you to find this one has a nautical theme! The fabrics have a variety of sources: a gift from a friend, a couple of old men's shirts, the scrap basket at Sew Over It and even some left overs from some sleeping shorts my mum made my dad! 

I made this in the exact same way as the others and at the same time as making Theo's quilt as it made sense to buy the wadding and backing fleece for both at the same time. I actually started cutting out the squares for the patchwork before we knew if the baby was going to be a boy or girl, but as I've mentioned before, I'm not a massive fan of gender-specific colours for babies/children anyway so something more unisex suited us better anyhow. 

We've been using it fairly regularly to place her on her belly for 'tummy time' to help her to start developing her neck muscles and head control. Hopefully it's also developing a fixation for anchors and boats as well! 

Refashion Friday: Interview with Eddie from Refashion Co-op

(all images sourced from Eddie's Room except where stated)

After the awesome refashionistas I've interviewed so far, you might have been wondering where I was going to go next to find more thought-provoking and inspiring interviewing. Well, I'm very pleased to announce that today's Refashion Friday interview features a heavy-hitter on the refashioning scene: Eddie from Eddie's Room blog and the creator of the influential Refashion Co-op.

Z: What appeals to you about refashioning and can you remember how you begun?

E: Looking back to my very first refashion I can see that I was inspired by Oxfam’s DIY Fashion shops. At least that’s what I said back then, but when I look at my first refashion I seem to remember something else. My first two refashions were of linen trousers which had become worn but I still loved them dearly and the top part with the pockets and zip still fit nicely. I just wasn’t ready to part with them and refashioning them into skirts, thus removing the worn part, brought them back to life.

Z: You are the creator of the popular Refashion Co-op community blog. What inspired you to set it up? What were your aims in doing so?

E: At the time I began refashioning the community blog Wardrobe Refashion was the place to be. I got on there and started blogging, and I loved the community it gave. Then after a month the owner of the blog announced that she was closing the blog and keeping it as an archive. She mentioned that she had for a while been looking for people to help out and that the pressure of running the blog on her own had become too much. Together with a couple of other refashion bloggers I started discussions about setting up a new blog. At that point I was also getting enough of running the Historic Crafts blog on my own. So I had already decided that there was no way I wanted to start up a new refashion blog on my own. Actually I wanted to have a setup that was completely independent from myself and any other editor. That’s when I came up with the idea of having a group of equal editors, none of who had more say than the others. The blog would run on a multi-contributor blog where none of the editors would be hosting it and where none of us could pull the plug either. So in one sentence I guess you could say that the aim was to create a refashioning community blog that wasn’t dependent on one person.  

Z: How has it developed during the two and a half years of its life? How do you feel about it now? Have there been any surprises?

E: I wouldn’t say surprises but more confirmation of that the idea of having a group of editors is a good one. I took a whole year off on maternity leave and then I came back to my editors duties last summer. It worked. The blog kept going even though I wasn’t around. Out of the original 7 editors only a few of us are still around. New editors have joined, and different editors have been primus motor for a period. Because of the structure it also gives different editors the opportunity to take a more leading role when they have the time and when they feel a bit burned out or other things in their life gets in the way then they can step back and just do the minimum of editing or quit altogether. The refashion Co-op survives.

Z: What role does refashioning play in your life?

E: I have never been into shopping. However, since I was a teenager I always loved visiting charity shops. Over the years I discovered refashioning and it gave me the opportunity to rework old clothes from my own wardrobe also and create unique clothing items that suited me. I think it’s the joy of creating something unique that drives my refashions - also when it comes to homewear.

(mint and lace silk blouse to children's harem pants refashion)

Z: You've made some fabulous refashions for both yourself and your family. How much of what you/they 

wear has been refashioned or made by you?

E: Well thank you :-) The truth is, surprisingly little, really! At least when it comes to my daughter. I made a funny discovery recently when washing her knitwear. Out of 15 or so items only 1 was actually knit by me. Despite the fact that I knit, a lot, and even design my own knitting patterns, it turned out that many of her sweaters and cardigans were either gifts from my amazing knitting friends, Granny knits from her lovely Grandmothers or items I had bought in charity shops. Most of her clothes are sewn by my fabulous sister. I did prep a load of refashioned items for harem pants for her - but in the end it was my mother and sister who sewed 

them together and brought them to Munich, while we lived there.

I guess when it comes to myself around ⅓ of what I wear is pre-used, ⅓ is refashioned and ⅓ is new and preferably organic cotton.

(my favourite of Eddie's refashions: old adult's T-shirts into children's harem pants)

Z: Where do you find your inspiration for refashioning?

E: Well on Refashion Co-op of course :-) and Pinterest. I have set up group boards for sharing refashions on Pinterest recently and am hoping more and more people will join. Sometimes Pinterest can be such a crazy place to find anything. That’s why I’ve decided to create the subsection groups from dresses, etc. And because a few people like myself also rework other items for the home or garden I created a Recycle Co-op as a Pinterest group board, just for that.

But coming back to the Refashion Co-op, one of the things that has been bothering me lately is that it is so difficult to find things on the Refashion Co-op too. Say I want to find great ideas for refashioning dresses - it’s near impossible at the moment and the search function is not great either. So I set out to change this and I am working on it - however slowly. I do this through the edited Pinterest boards such as this one for dresses. There is still a lot of work to be done on dresses alone as I have approx 1500 posts potentially about dresses to go through yet. So the more people engage with and use these boards the more motivated I become to get this work done!

Finally, I also get a lot of inspiration from more established refashionistas such as yourself, Zoe, whose style I absolutely adore.

Z: What would you say is the Danish attitude towards 'DIY' culture and practices? Does your homeland have a history of doing such things?

E: My feeling is that historically we have a similar history to the UK when it comes to DIY and Make Do and Mend but perhaps without the posters and public campaign. I think that many Danes come to DIY naturally and generally speaking Danes are a very creative bunch with a great tradition for DIY. But it’s not something we talk so much about yet and I think that many Danes are not aware that there is a world wide DIY revolution (so to speak) going on through the internet.

(Eddie's gorgeous men's shirt to women's blouse refashion, look at those pleated cuffs!)

Z: What would you say are your three favourite refashions you've completed?

E: Number one is without doubt the men’s shirt to women’s blouse I made last autumn. I have just begun to work on something along the same lines again. My husband used to wear shirts a lot so there is plenty of material to get cracking with, even though I used most of the shirts for a pair of curtains (which if you are interested - I made a tutorial for). This is not technically a refashion in Refashion Co-op terms as I can’t wear them (unless I do a Scarlet O’Hara of course), so I won’t count it as one of my 3. Then there are the harem pants I made for my daughter out of my mother’s old t-shirts from Swaziland. I love the motifs on the t-shirts but we finally came to the realisation that no-one was ever going to wear these t-shirts again. 

(refashioning for the home: stunning and unusual curtains from unwanted men's shirts)

Finally, I want to talk about one of my early refashions which is a knitting project. A couple of years ago I was really into thrifting knitted sweaters, unravelling them and reknitting them. For me this is also refashioning and a way of putting my knitting skills to good use. My first ever knitted shawl project was one of these. I still have some of this recycled yarn left which I am using to knit a pair of Rosie’s Firestarter Socks that have come out with a wonderful young adult book by Heather Ordover called Grounded. I am very excited about this knitted sock refashion as well as the book.

Z: Can you share with us three of your favourite refashions by other people?

E: This is why, even though it is hard work and so many posts to go through, I love looking through the Refashion Co-op posts and sorting them for the dress Pinterest board. I found so many amazing dress refashions. Ones I had forgotten about, ones I had never seen before, old ideas and totally new and wacky ideas. I have long been thinking about making a dress out of a pair of trousers and then I spotted that Dairy of a Mad Mama had done just that. It’s a crazy idea but it works.

(Eddie's favourite: lace details dress refashion by Birds of a Thread)

I love lace and when I saw Jacqui from Birds of a Thread’s dress with lace refashion I was blown away. It’s an easy refashion but I sure can’t wait to try it.

Finally, you probably realised that I love men’s shirts refashions and dindin does did this fab little black skirt out of a men’s shirt. dindin does is also the same person who made the fun social media icons I use on my own blog.

Z: What advice would you give to anyone wanting to try refashioning but aren’t sure where to start?

E: Come visit us on Refashion Co-op - both the blog and the Pinterest boards and have a look around for some inspiration and then just jump in. Try stuff out - it may work, it may not. Try again :-) When you make something you like, share it with us. Share it on our Facebook page, join one of our groups on Pinterest and if you feel up to the challenge of posting a refashion a month, do sign up as a contributor on Refashion Co-op. We would so love to meet you and see your fabulous style.

Thanks so much Eddie for both taking the time to participate in this interview AND for creating awesome resources for inspiring garment refashioning! Good luck with organising those Pinterest boards...

She's Here!!!!! Introducing....

DOLORES!!!!! (AKA Lola.) This is what I was busy trying to push out of me last week: the sweetest little baby ever! I cannot tell you how much Pat and I adore our new daughter. There really aren't sufficient words to describe how precious she is to us.

You'll be seeing much more of my little muse in the future but I'll just share these three pics from her first few days of life for now. 

Oh, and I'll leave you with this awesome song that, for obvious reasons, I can't stop singing!