Hello friends. Now I’m not going to pretend for a minute that I went to hospital just so I could get flowers. No , I went to hospital to get a shiny new hip (well, I’m not actually sure if it’s shiny, but it’s definitely new, and it’s definitely a hip). The flowers from my dear BFF are a nice added bonus! I was born with a left hip deformity which has gradually got worse, to the point where I was more shuffling than walking (painfully). Happily I was referred for a full hip replacement in Feb of last year when I was still pretty mobile. The op was six weeks ago, and while I’m on crutches (and ..read more

Hello again Hello again. Back from hols , a long weekend here in Aotearoa and I made a dress. We arrived back from an amazing six weeks in the UK last weekend, after jet lag and approx. 400 loads of washing I’m finally back on track, so I thought I’d share the first make from the wee stash of fabric I brought back (yes the suitcase was a tad heavy…) Always good to have a plan The fabric is Henri from Merchant & Mills, a gorgeous linen with a subtle green & brown check. I chose a Fielder dress , a pattern I have used before and really like. The rib knit is from Miss Maude , the bronze I ..read more

Hello friends, please excuse my absence, I’ve been moored in the snot filled world that is Sinusitis for the last 8 weeks or so and can I just say, DO NOT RECOMMEND. Apologies for using the S word, but honestly, it’s been a ride. I managed my first Fifty rotations of the sun with nothing more than the odd cold (touch wood, I’ve never even had Flu), then suddenly I’m waking up every morning feeling like I’d been punched in the face eating a freezing cold ice cream while my wisdom teeth come through. Miserable much. Especially when you cant even taste anything delicious to cheer yourself up, ga ..read more

Business at the front… Hello friends! Hello little blog, I’ve missed you. It’s been Covid (both of us, boo!), several colds, a dodgy haircut , zero overseas adventures and many sewing fails long, and here we are. Nice to be back. So to celebrate, a new top that is all business at the front…but lots of fun at the back. After seemingly endless rain and cold any party attitude is most welcome. Some fun at the back. The pattern I started with is the Tarlee tee by Muna and Broad  , a great versatile pattern I have made before . I really like the fit of this pattern, especially the curve over t ..read more

Nice & easy like Sunday morning Well hello there, it’s been a while.* After 50 some days of Lockdown here in Tamaki Makarau I’m not quite sure how long, so let’s stick with a while. September came and went in a carb fueled haze, October does appear to be shaping up to be the same but with less rain, so that’s something at least! I’ve not been completely idle on the sewing front , if anything I’m glad to have an absorbing hobby that sees me through some rather anxious times. Even if some days it’s just folding beautiful pieces of fabric in my stash & thinking about what I might make. St ..read more

The sun is out! Winter has well & truly arrived. Yes I did have to scrape ice off the windscreen the other morning. Mr PK & I have already had our annual “how to operate the heat pump” argument. I favor leaving it on all the time at a lower temp (also recommended by the installer), he is all about turning it off & on as required. So basically it will be operated with passive aggressive turning off and on in an extremely inefficient manner until September. Happy days! So why am I wearing a relatively summery style dress then? I cut this Assembly Line Box Please dress out about ..read more

Wondering how much chocolate we have left… And just like that its autumn. The clocks went back over the weekend and I now have the correct time on my oven for the first time in six months, yay! Sadly we’ve just brought a new car, never mind the clock, I’ve only just located the handbrake , a button for goodness sake? We had our previous car 16 years, so technology has moved on quite a bit (goodbye CD player…) My husband picked it up from the dealership with the aircon on full, couldn’t work out how to turn it off & was slightly hypothermic by the time he got home so apparently we’re a fami ..read more

Well, back into Level 3 lockdown here is Auckland. Three cases in the community, a family including a border worker who thankfully, as soon as she felt unwell,  got tested. Fingers crossed with some pretty epic test & tracing going on it will be nipped in the bud. I spent today working at home in my “lounge wear” under the supervision of Tommy & Tuppence. Many treats & cuddles were administered, cats love lockdown!  Sadly however, I did not get the chance to wear my swanky new SILK shirt to work. Boo! Yes, you heard me, I tackled silk. There were no tears, barely any swe ..read more

Stardate Year 2021 day 4572….no wait, what? We made it to February? Yeow, whoop whoop , kiss me a kitten! Holidays done & dusted here, back at work, although thanks to Auckland Anniversary day and Waitangi day we have two long weekends on the trot, perfect. As you can see I need to spend at least one of those days in the jungle of my garden…  So what has been occurring at Plum Towers? Well for starters please do admire my fancy new tee. This is the new Muna & Broad Tarlee tee.   Now, you might ask myself does the world need another tee pattern? Such a simple garment ye ..read more

Ok, I was going to start with a hearty Happy New Year, but honestly, how about We Made It, Go Us instead? Crawling into 2021, doom scrolling Twitter, and wondering, between the shocking events unfolding in the US and the terrible Covid situation what the heck is next. If this were a Gerard Butler film I’d be yelling at the TV “no, its too much, so unbelievable”! Retreating to my sewing room, I spent an inordinate amount of time rearranging fabric (almost like a completely separate hobby from actual sewing, and so relaxing ), finding a lovely piece of Spotlight rayon left over from a previous ..read more