Read all about it! Bundana goes berserk with stash

Enough hoarding and keeping, time to get minimalistic on my fabric stash and start using up, up UP


I bought 3 Colette patterns last month and now they are going to get their asses MADE!

3 dresses, 3 weeks... allows me to buy more fabric as I will have precious little left. Everyone is a winner!

Let me know what you think of the colour combinations. Honest advice is always welcome here. I am a ginger (and proud) remember, sometimes I am a bit over ambitious with my colours that I decide that I can wear.... even though by some pictures of previous outfits I have seen myself in, a little more honesty in my life wouldn't have gone amiss! Here are the colour combinations that I have made for them, no deliberation... just sewing. Sunday was spent wrestling with the eternal Bombshell mess dress, but I need some quick(ish) fixes to keep my proverbial sewing pecker up... and these seem like just the ticket!

I've made a plan for my 'Eclectic Eclair'

Green for the main fabric and that ditsy floral print for the contrast sash, nice and should be appropriately dress-up and downable, as my wardrobe should always be i.e. able to be worn with flats and dressed up with some mean heels.

Here is the fabric and the notions (button less at present) for my 'Partay Parfait'. This fabric print reminds me of a beach print with a touch of Chinese influence. I likey. I've also had for too longy. Must sewy and enjoy-ee. OK, stop now.

What colour buttons do you think for the 6 x 3/4" buttons that are used in this pattern? I was thinking Pink or Blue.... let me know some thoughts, if you like

Finally, this is my Caffy de Crepe.... a fine and strong dress... ready for my mean blue heels that I have had my eye on or the brown of the contrast fabric will allow me to wear my (too many) brown sandals and shoes ('Brown Caffy never really died- see Winkerton Flasher entry for what I mean).

So folks, during these light evenings... you know where I'll be... working on my kitchen table tracing the life of these three on my reliable (and cheap) parchment paper, cutting into my stash and making pretty dresses. This should lighten up my mood from the weekend task of 'The Bombshell Sesssions'. 
Now, don't get me wrong- I am loving doing that dress. However, that dress reminds me that I am a baby in this dressmaking industry, I know nothing- but I am adoring the learning! Dresses like the Colette dresses make me feel like I have made really loads of progress. Slight difference there. I am hoping that the Colette trilogy is the 'ying' to my Bombshell 'yang'.


In other news:

• I am writing away for my Abakhan article #2
• Colette Sewing Handbook is on order... yipee!

Bundana

X

Dusk Dinner Date Cape - Butterwick 3566

A reversible Cape.... 

I made this this week! Waiting for my seam gauge and my invisible zipper foot, I thought that I would go back to my 12 in 2012 list and see what I could make in the mean time. Yes, I know Spring is coming and a thick winter-woolen/tweed cape is somewhat season-inappropriate but I was giddy after my UK fabric shopping and found the navy and black fabric for €2.50 a metre! Yummy! 

The 'Dusk Dinner Date Cape'  came from a.... twinteraction with @SewYou (Abi) where she was wishing that she had made her cape but being too late. NOOOO! A cape is perfect for a 'Dusk Dinner Date' anytime of the year... 365. Visit Sew You Handmade, it's inspiring what that lass can do with a sewing machine and a piece of fabric!

I also won, at Christmas, the Sewing Directory Advent Giveaway (Day #8 I think) 3 metres of the fabric of my choice- so I chose the Black Wool Coating @ £10.50/metre. I cannot believe I won something!!! Wow, that never happens to me! Seriously, I am so grateful for this beautiful coating from Abakhan Fabrics who sponsored the Sewing Directory Advent Giveaway. Genuinely, If you want something sewing related, go to the Sewing Directory first... they will help you. 

Ebay €2.40

The pattern uses, quite frankly, a scary amount of fabric, but it was a pleasure to sew. With just 3 pattern pieces, the pattern allows for imagination and flair. Obviously, with the hood and the neat finish of the cape, I was sewing on the reverse- I have never done this to the extent of this piece but I love the finished result!

After sewing the seam allowance, trimming it and then serging it... I turned the cape the right way round and added top-stitching the entirety. I LOVE it, looks so professional and finished. Just, yummy.

I failed a *bit* on the lining-up of the hood.....

....but nothing too horrendous.

I could have added loads more buttons, but chose not to. I like the simplicity and wrap-around-ability of this finished cape. I have 5 trips back to the UK this year- all by ferry. Now, you can take the girl out of Yorkshire and all that and being savvy, thrifty and down-right tight with my money- I go on the 2am ferry which is the cheapest! Minimal passengers and relentless air conditioning mean that it gets ruddy cold on that starry and windy ferry, so this will be a godsend! Its my wearable blanket and I love it.

My first button.... 

12 in 2012...

No. 5 of Separates... Butterwick 3566 Cape.

No. 11 and 12 of Skills... Necklines and Buttons

No. 8 and 11 of Things.... Wildcard (Seam Gauge, now) and Invisible Zipper Foot. These arrived halfway through the making!

Time Taken: 10 hours 

Cost: FREE wool lining from winning the Sewing Directory Christmas Advent Competition, €8 on the blue/black tweed, Upcycled Buttons = FREE and €1 on the industrial navy thread and the pattern €2.40
TOTAL = €11.40

Make again? Yes, for a friend or if I found some more beautiful tweed. Its just a great showcase for beautiful fabric.

Oh yeah.... here is my 'Date' getting in on the action.....

... I don't know if he's a lucky man or I'm a lucky gal 

Bundana

X

Valentine's Oven Gloves... How I did it!

I made these oven gloves for Q and I took pictures as I went along as I *think* I found some quite interesting methods of doing this! I got given this fabric on Freecycle and used red stitching and bias tape as its a luuuuuuuurve gift! I do dressmaking, not generally stuff like this... But I think that a shirt, like other seamstresses seem to have gone for is a bit beyond me right now (both ability and time!)

First off, I drafted a pattern, not rocket science or anything- just the main body of the gloves, which I cut on the fold and the glove part which I made slightly larger at the wrists so Q can get his hands in!

I cut out 4 gloves of wadding and one main body in wadding. For the fabric I had 4 gloves and 2 main body pieces of fabric.

For the gloves I sandwiched 2 of the fabric pieces between one of the glove wadding pieces.

For the main body, I made a sandwich of one glove wadding and one main body wadding... then used the fabric as the bread! I did this to protect a bit more against heat by adding thickness.

 After pinning my fabric sandwiches... I then used my quilting ruler and using the white horizontal line on the fabric and angled the ruler 45 degrees... 

... Then I used 2 pieces of tape on that 45 degree angle and then got the old sewing machine ready...

... then I sewed on each side of the tape!

I kept on moving the pieces of tape and sewing... then again using my ruler I found the opposite 45 degree angle and sewed some more.....

Quilting, quilting and more quilting later......

Huzzah!!

I then bias taped the bottom of the glove and then attached the gloves to the main body by stay-stitching....

I then bias taped the whole of the edge of the gloves.... yes, I was that determined to make something nice for Q!

Then.....

.... DONE!

Reflections....

• Bias taping is still an art-form I have yet to master. T'was my own fault for making the thumb part of the pattern. It was really was hellish to sew and tape around.
• He loves them, but loves them so much he doesn't want to use them!!
• It took ages! Ladies and gentlemen who make and sell stuff like this for a living, I take my hat off to you. This was a day job from drafting to quilting to bias taping, I was exhausted!

Q has been great these last few months, helping me pin my clothes, turning up my hems, bringing me copious amounts of Diet Cokes and snacks and hours spent on his own when we used to be chilling out together. He deserved something nice and seeing as cooking is his 'thing'... I thought, why not?! 

OK, back to dressmaking... Onwards with the Clovers. I now have the pattern traced and altered. I'm keeping original patterns intact now and tracing off them. I like it for preservation, thrift and making my mates clothing! Just need to decided on the fabric of my wearable muslin now.... hmmmmm. I'm still thinking 'Dresden'.

                                              Bundana

                                                   X

Time Taken: 6 hours

Pattern: Bundana Original

Make again? Yes, but probably miss off the thumb bits and just make it more streamlined for an easy peasy bias experience!

Cost: €3