Quilts in review

Before Christmas I got a couple of books out of the library to give me some gift making ideas. I thought I'd give them a brief review as I'm not sure I found either very helpful.

First up is Quilting in No Time, by Emma Hardy. This book focuses on the home, so there are lots of throws, pillows, curtains, table linens etc. There are also a couple of bags and things - I particularly like the knitting bag and notebook bag.

These are not really quilting projects, they're more sewing projects with a patchwork theme, and some quilting done on top of this. Although I haven't made anything from this book, the instructions seem limited and as a beginner in both the patchwork and quilting worlds, I was hoping for a bit more help. I think I'll be trying a couple of the project in here, so I may change my mind later! Most of the designs are clean and fresh and the sort of thing I would be happy to have in my house.

Second is Mandy Shaw’s ‘Quilt Yourself Gorgeous’ which is full of different projects. There are a couple of bags and purses, some dolls and some quilts and cushion toppers, bunting and a tea cosy. The style of the items is often not to my taste - most of the items have a 'crazy patchwork effect', with blocks unevenly sized as seen on the cover. Personally I like all my corners to match up in straight lines (OCD? Maybe a little). Plus the use of ricrac and ribbon edging on everything makes the designs a bit 'busy' in places. Even so, I really liked the shopping bag, cosmetics case and the Anja doll. Again, most of these are patchwork and sewing projects, not true quilting projects.

I decided to make the 'Strippy stripy bag' for my Mother in Law as a Christmas present. Sadly, I found the instructions not only thin on the ground, but confusing as well. For example, when I started cutting out my fabric I couldn't find directions for how big to make the lining. After reading all the steps through, I couldn't find anything that said the lining has to be turned under or anything so I made it the same size as the completed outer for the bag. Fortunately this was right but it was a complete guess. And there were lots of steps like that. Previously unmentioned features for the bag came up in the instructions and some steps, felt needlessly complicated. I was never sure whether I was supposed to be working on the wrong or right side of the bag at any given moment.

I increased the width of this bag so that big folders would fit, and didn't add all the trimmings recommended. I have to say, though, that Karen made a version recently which looks lovely and she included the trimmings, so maybe I was too hasty in my decision...

I think of myself as a reasonably experienced sewer, and capable of working most things out myself, but I found this fairly simple bag a real struggle.
It's a shame, as all of the projects in the book are lovely and the bag turned out very well in the end. I would think twice before making anything from this book again though.

Fabulous giveaways

There are 2 great giveaways that are worth having a look at soon;
The first is over at The Long and Winding Bobbin. This is a lovely giveaway of some patterns, some very pretty fabrics and a beautiful handbag.
As part of the giveaway she's asked entrants to post a picture of their current project. I figure that this is a chance to commit to finish one or two projects, so here they are. Number one is lining a suit I bought a while back, number 2 is Simplicity 3688, from which I'm making the skirt. This pattern calls for fusible interfacing on the waistband and this is the first time I've used it, so it'll be a learning experience for me.
I'm off work with a horrible cold at the moment, so if I can get myself off the sofa for long enough, I'll do an hour or so on these today. Wish me luck!

The second giveaway is from The Last Piece where Sarah is giving away packs of fabrics. They're such lovely designs, they're well worth looking at. I've been planning to make a quilt and I think that these prints would add a great splash of colour.

Things I've done this week

In no particular order.

1. Received my Wearing History Panties pattern. I've been wearing my Kiss Me Deadly girdle and because it comes so high, my underware just doesn't work with it. I figure the best solution is to get some genuine 1940s shorts to wear instead! I love the pair with plain legs and am planning several pairs in satin and flannel as recommended. I might make some of the bloomers to keep my thighs warm in the cold!

2. Oggled lots of other people's sewing spaces over at Blue Gardenia. I love being nosey and this satisfies that and my love of craft rooms! I'm really interested in these sewing boxes that Gabriella has her patterns in. I've never seen them before but I want some!

3. Had my eyebrows threaded and my nails painted. Essential maintainance stuff and good prep for the wedding I'm attending tomorrow! I feel so much better when I've got all my primping up to date!

4. Bought a red beret from Accessorize. The assistant in the shop was trying one on next to me and was really nice about my outfit and how the hat looked. She made my day, even if she was just trying to make the sale!

5. Visited Ikea and planned my new tv/dvd/cd unit. As well as a stand and dvd racks, we're going to build (!) some shelves ourselves to fill a large alcove to put all of our books on. Not being DIY savvy, this is a big project for us, but it'll give us more space and make tidy our books up.

6. Made some progress on my current cross stitch project. I'm making one of the samplers from Moira Blackburn. It's taking an age to work through. I'm working on a space that's about 1/4 of the total area to be stitched and it's taken me months! I'm really pleased with how well it's turning out though, and the colours of the silks are so beautiful it's a pleasure to work on. It's perfect in front of the TV work!

7. Had my 4th tutorial for my History A-Level. I'm really enjoying it, and I've gone from 1906 through to 1922 so far. It's amazing to see where the political world today came from, and the changes in society during that period. Sadly Votes for Women is something that we're only touching on and I'd like to cover it in a lot more detail, but I don't really have the time to read into the details too much. Hopefully when I've done the exams I can take the time and do my reading then.

8. Watched First Light on Tuesday. First Light is the dramatisation of a book by one of the youngest pilots in the Battle of Britain. It follows his short and brutal experiences in 1940 and 41 and the effect the horrors he saw had on him. It's a great drama and all the more poignant for the fact that it's true. The snippets of the Geoffrey Wellum talking today made a difference. His last line in particular made me think.

"Nobody wants a medal. Nobody wants a thank you. But it would be nice to be remembered. Because then you must remember us all, and not just those who survived”.

9. Wore winter tights with a skirt to deal with the cold-but-sunny days we've had this week. My favourites are these grey cotton tights with lacy diamond patterns through them. Warm but not too heavy. Perfect for autumn!



10. Had a wonderfully girly night in with Millions Like Us. It's a film made during the war and, although it has an unmistakable edge of moral boosting propoganda, is an absolute delight. It's the story of one very ordinary girl who goes to 'do her duty' for the war and ends up in a very unglamourous factory. It's very funny in places (there's a fantastic tongue in cheek description of oranges at the start which I thought was genius), and sad, and interesting. From a fashion point of view it's great because of how ordinary all the girls are - for once this is high street and not couture fashion we see!

I laughed so hard at the lead character's day dreams about her as a beautiful nurse, a hard working WREN or a dashing ATS driver, each time with some handsome officer alongside. It's so true to (my) life! There's a fantastic review at Cargo Cult Craft, which is also where I stole the picture from. Go read what Susannah has to say. I really couldn't have put it better myself.

Progress at last

I was sewing till about 12.30 last night, but I did make some progress with my dress. I've finished the bodice, so I now only have the skirt to stitch together, gather into the waist (urk!) and then put in the concealed zip. Maybe 'only' doesn't cover it. Still, I reckon that's about 1 day of sewing and I'll be done.

See the understitching next to the seam?

I learnt all about understitching last night. Understitching is where you take your seams and sew them on to the lining, to stop edges of lining or facing rolling forwards. It gives a much neater and more professional edge and is pretty easy to do. There's an excellent guide here on YouTube that helped me.

Before (left) and after (right)

However, I did make one mistake, which was trying to irom my seams down before stitching. As you can see form the photo below, the pins left massive holes! I'm hoping they'll fade or be repaired by ironing later. So annoyed with myself!

Today will be mostly spent on some much needed housework and garden tidying and then it's back behind the machine tomorrow.

I also just wanted to share Debi's version of the simplicity pattern I'm planning to sew for the Hepburn and Hepburn project - what amazing colours. Thanks to Sarah for tellinbg me about it. I'm very excited now!