Mens Shirt Redesign

I found a nice cotton shirt in a charity shop in Creiff.  It was XL, which gave me quite a lot of fabric.

The blouse is based on a dress from a norwegian sewing magazine, Symagasinet, but I had to change it quite a lot to make it work with the shirt.  The shirt had princess seams on the front, so I left out the darts from the original pattern.  I also made the blouse back in one piece, keeping as much of the yoke as possible, and added 2 darts.

I was worried that the binding at the neck opening might stretch, so I sewed a piece of tape in to reinforce it.  The hem is curved, similar to the original shirt.  If I'd had enough fabric, I would have made the sleeves longer, but this is a nice summer blouse.

Handbag for September Holiday

I decided to make a new handbag for my holiday in September, using the Sazzy Shoes range of fabric I bought a while ago and my own design.





I fitted short handles and a shoulder strap, a zip pocket on the front for my mobile (hidden in the red stripe in the fabric), a larger zip pocket on the back, and a small zip pocket and pen pocket inside.  When I was finished I added some crystals to some of the shoes.

I also made a matching coin purse and makeup bag.  I may make a Diva FrameWallet to match sometime in the future....

Quilting Weekend

This weekend I went to Sørmarka Hotel for a quilt together retreat.  This was the second time I'd attended, but last time I just went for the day.  This time I stayed one night, and had 2 days of sewing and socialising. There were 25 people attending, and I got a very warm welcome when I arrived on Saturday. We sewed, talked, shared ideas, ate some great food, and went to bed late.   I even won 2 prizes in the raffle.

Sunday was a day for more sewing, and show and tell of what we had made.  I haven't finished my Jelly and Jam Quilt from Fig Tree & Co yet, but I made quite good progress.  I came home with 2 new projects I want to try, and a bit more fabric for my stash.

The weather was brilliant, and I went for 3 walks with my friend because we needed a break from sewing and ironing.

I'm looking forward to the next retreat early in 2014.

Diva Frame Wallet

A while ago I ordered the Diva Frame Wallet pattern (Sew Many Creations) and a metal wallet frame from The City Quilter.
2 weeks ago I bought some pellon at the Edinburgh quilt Fair, so I decided to make a wallet.
I started cutting out the pieces yesterday, and stitched it together today.



I used mostly Kaffe Fasset fabrics this time, but may make another using New York themed fabrics I also bought from The City Quilter.  It was easy to make, and I think it will be a useful wallet.

Mobile Phone Holder

On Saturday, the quilting club went to Bærums Verk, near Oslo, to visit Lappe Makeriet.  We saw some lovely finished quilts in the shop, and several of us bought iron on interfacing to make mobile phone holders. The design is from Quiltsmart, and it was quick and easy to sew.



This is the first one I have sewn (there are 3 patterns on each panel), and I just need to make a strap for it.

Twister Table Runner

I was given a small Twister ruler by a friend, and decided to use a charm pack to make a table runner as my first project.  The charm pack I used is called "Warmth", by Howard Marcus, for Moda.

Following the instructions, I laid out the charm pack squares in a pleasing design and sewed them together with a border round the outside.

The next step was to cut out the Twister blocks, and sew them together again.  

I added an outer border where I used some of the offcuts to make tiny Twister blocks in each corner.

The table runner still needs to be quilted,  but I have no idea what pattern to use, so will wait till inspiration strikes.  I don't know what would suit the block pattern best.
The Twister ruler was easy to use, and I really like the effect it gives from simple squares.

20 Minute Dress

I found  an interesting pattern online for a dress you can make quickly:
http://designfixation.blogspot.no/2012/03/faiths-twenty-minute-dress.html

I liked the sound of a dress you can make in 20 minutes, and decided to try making one myself.  A friend, who has an overlocker, also wanted to try, so we bought some fabric, and had a sewing evening.  I used a cotton jersey, which drapes well but is quite easy to work with.  It took me 2 evenings to sew my dress.  I discovered that my Bernina sewing machine has a nice overlock stitch, which finished off the neckline nicely once I'd practiced on some scraps of material.

I adjusted the arm holes a bit, as I thought they were too wide, and made my dress about knee length, which was the longest I could with the fabric I bought.  Other possibilities are a maxi length, and a tunic length, and I've bought some more fabric already to try a different variation.

It was fun to make, and I've used the dress several times this summer.