Time flies for sure… the busy build up to an event – the planning, the logo, the promo, gathering of goods and rounding up the masses – to the the ultimate excitement of the day; a sweep up, a take down, a moment of after-buzz . . . and then it’s done – finished in a flash. Then it’s on to the next thing, a bit too quickly. I’m referencing the Mending Meet-Up of course, hosted by Sarah @mhwpatterns and me at Kindred Studios last weekend. I was feeling a bit sad about moving on from it so fast until I clicked through to Dan’s photos and I was transported right back to last Saturday with an op ..read more

fugitive /ˈfjuːdʒɪtɪv/ noun a person who has escaped from captivity or is in hiding. I wonder how many words we process in a day. Spoken, heard, read and written – it must amount to thousands or quite possibly tens of thousands if you are a Wordy Rappinghood like me! Sometimes a single solitary word begs to be repeated more than a few times – pronounced with different stresses, in different accents, elongating the syllables – toying with it until it’s meaning is lost. One such word that presented itself one day was ‘fugitive’. A word I’m sure I’ve only read and heard and ..read more

I don’t think I ever imagined myself wearing or making a pink suit. Yet here I am. Pink tights, scarf, handbag and all. And it totally wasn’t in the name of Barbie, I can assure you! The back story begins with a gifted pair of freshly laundered and neatly folded vintage M&S curtains from my very good friend Kiki. The jury is still out as to whether they are late 60s or 70s but either way they are something special! Initially I wasn’t sure as to why she’d ‘thought I could do something with them’. They were so far from my every day vibe. But I did feel a pull to retain the faith she had in ..read more

Yes you read that right! This is a dress made entirely of sleeves – those that were cut off of Dan’s RTW shirts after he got fed up with how tight and annoying they were when he was working in them! I intercepted his route to the bin when I spied a couple of them poking out of the bag. And there then ensued a tussle, with Dan persisting that I had quite enough fabric already. What does that even mean – ‘quite enough fabric’?! He laid the gauntlet, firmly before me – challenged me that unless I could cite good use, they should not be added to the peak of ‘stash mountain’ ! ‘A dress!’ Was my c ..read more

On waving this wonderful Serpentine fabric in front of Mr O, and declaring that I wasn’t sure what I should make with it, my foot suffered an instant shot. “A shirt for me” he said, with no hesitation. Doh! I had no quick comeback! It was a perfect suggestion, of course.  Fabric Godmother were so kind in forwarding on my goody bag, when I was unable to attend one of their events last year and this fabric was one of the treats inside. I thought on first feel that it was a cotton lawn but it turns out it’s a viscose sateen – a new one on me – and it is gorgeous to the touch and super to s ..read more

When Minerva presented their range of exclusive sweater knits to me I was very curious to know what they were like and when this piece of brushwork/giant animal print arrived I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a generous medium weight, very soft and super smooth to touch. It was definitely worthy of a unique design so I got sketching in my Fashionary book. It’s fair to say that the natural drape of this fabric is what inspired the design. I wanted something cosy with long sleeves and and a high neck for chillier days. My skirts get shorter in the winter so I can embrace statement tights but I wanted ..read more

Original post written for the Crafty Bloggers Club The first time I met the ladies of Crafty Sew and So was at their fabulous Dressmakers’ Ball in 2019. I’ve since been to their Crafty Sewing Camp and can verify that they throw a damn fine party! And so it seemed quite fitting that I chose to sew the Ready to Party Dress for my first experience with a My Handmade Wardrobe sewing pattern. However, true to form and with no imminent fancy parties on the horizon I decided to make it up as an every day-dress instead.  To make it more every-day, this dress was going to have to be su ..read more

London welcomes back the ultimate textile craft lover’s day out as The Stitch Festival returns to the Business Design Centre, Islington from 3rd– 6th March 2022.   The Stitch Festival is a hotbed of creativity, textile talent and inspiration, with a line-up of top UK tutors and stitch VIPs sharing their skills and secrets in a packed programme of nearly 250 workshops and daily sessions on the Festival’s Stitch Stage. Esme Young Dressmaking will be a major focus with BBC Great British Sewing Bee judge Esme Young and contestants Lawratu Patton and Mark Francis join ..read more

I’ve been admiring all the Masin Sicily slips since I saw the very first one, with the same thought in mind each time ~ could I pull it off?! It’s a very clingy nowhere-to-hide kinda dress and I’ve never been ok with putting my belly out there but I figured I’d never know the level of exposure until I tried! But why the lilac Janene? Haha, I thought I’d get in there before anyone else does! Because to be fair I don’t often break out of my red and black palette. (I’ll be running back to safety after this post, don’t you chicken curry about that!) Truth be told there was a lilac lovers party g ..read more

I struggled to make a satisfactory rouleau loop for years and dodged any sewing patterns that involved spaghetti straps, button loops, ties and such decoration. Determined to get the technique nailed for my Vogue Liberty silk dressing gown, I rehearsed the following method with great results. I hope this works for you too! STEP 1: First make a paper template (or you can mark directly onto the fabric.) Your strips should measure 2.5cm/1” wide and however long you need.  Cut the strip(s) on the bias grain. STEP 2: With right sides together, fold your strips in half length-wise and pin ..read more