Finished Object - Nora Jumper

A few weeks ago I took a five day shift off work to use up some of my holiday, and had a long list of sewing plans that didn't quite all come to fruition. But one of the things I did make, was a Nora Jumper. Pattern by Tilly and the Buttons.

Shortened Body

I made it with some fabric I had been given, the same as my Heyday Dungarees. I don't know much about the fabric, but it does have about 20% stretch and was lovely and cozy. So given I had the Nora pattern, and it calls for fabric with 20% stretch, I decided to give it a go, and this was my first time working with stretch fabric.

I went for the full length version, of both the body and the sleeves, as I had enough fabric to make it. But after wearing it for a day I decided that the body was too long for me and I shortened it. I made it almost entirely to pattern although I hand-stitched the pieces where I had to do top-stitching. This was because I didn't have a thread that looked nice on the fabric, and whilst I used the colour that most closely matched the fabric, it wasn't quite close enough that I liked it. So the collar, cuffs and hem were hand stitched with a whip stitch, only picking up the fabric on the inside of the jumper. Whilst you can't see any of the stitching, this doesn't make it invisible, but I am pretty happy with it. 

This jumper has already made a fair few appearances in Me-Made-May and I am really enjoying it. So I may even make a Nora tee soon as well! 

Before Alteration

Finished Object - Heyday Dungarees

I had a few sewing plans for my days off and this was the first of them. The Heyday Dungarees by Made By Jacks Mum. The pattern is a brilliant price and available as a digital download, so you can get sewing almost as soon as you buy the pattern. I printed the pattern at home, although there is a copy shop pdf if you are that way inclined, and I glued all the pieces together and cut out the pattern in my size. What I love about pdf patterns is that I can cut around the pieces of my size rather than worry about saving the larger pattern sizes, as they can be printed again later.

The fabric I have used was given to me by my Aunty and Uncle as they had cleared out my Uncle's Mum's loft and had loads of fabric that needed to be put to use. The fabric was only about 90cm wide and I had 2.9m of it. There was just enough to make the pattern if I shortened the legs a little bit, which was fine as it is my back that makes up most of my height. It is a soft woven fabric that had a sort of flannel-y feel to it, it's cozy none-the-less.

I have to admit that it probably wouldn't have been my first choice for a pair of dungarees, but the more I wear them the more I seem to love them! I followed the pattern exactly, and managed to not go careering off the rails as I seem to often do - I'm not very good when it comes to following instructions or being told what to do. But the pattern was easy to follow and the methods of making the dungos good and straightforward. 

I did add a jazzy front pocket. I wanted a little something to shout out me, and I had the perfect piece of fabric leftover in my stash. The aeroplane fabric I got originally to make a Stevie top for my birthday last year, and I still had a bit left. I am super excited about that pocket, and I really am enjoying wearing these for Me Made May this year. 

Finished Object - Tailors Ham

I thought it would be a week or so of Works in Progress for you all, but I managed this sweet little stash buster to help with my future makes. A tailors ham isn't something that I had really thought about before, I've always muddled through when pressing, but when planning out a few sewing projects for my days off it was suggested in one of the patterns that one was needed. So I set about trying to make my own using a helpful tutorial from Tilly and The Buttons Blog, which includes a free printable download. 

I rummaged through my box of odds, ends and scraps and found some thick, upholstery type fabric which would be up to the job. The pattern piece is designed to be cut on the fold, and whilst I had one piece of fabric big enough to do that, my other piece of fabric was such an awkward shape that whilst I could get what I needed out of it, they couldn't be one piece. So I traced the pattern piece out twice and added a half inch seam allowance along the fold edge. 

The pattern itself written on the blog was easy to follow and in no time the ham was sewn quickly up. The next step was to stuff it. The blog talks about using sawdust to stuff the ham, but also mentions that soft fabric scraps could be used as well. As we're in the middle of a nation wide lockdown, and I have no idea where I would get saw dust from in the first place I had to make do with what I had to hand. I thought that the softness of the inside of my ham wasn't too important (more than happy to be corrected on that). I am going to be pressing things around it, not pinning into it. But I did have to bear in mind that heat would be applied during the pressing, so I made sure that what I was going to stuff inside wasn't going to melt or something when heat was applied. 

I stuffed it pretty well, and firmly using a lot of what I had in my scraps. I was pretty pleased with the end result. I have also put it to the test with my latest sewing project (more on that soon!) and it was rather helpful pressing the crotch seams into where they need to be without trying to flatten everything. So overall I'm pretty pleased with it, I also couldn't resist throwing it around like a ball... Can you tell not seeing real life people is getting to me! :P 

Anyway, I will be back later this week with some other exciting things for you. So I hope you are all looking after yourselves in the way that you need. Stay safe! L x

Finished Object: My First Quilt

So a very long time ago or what felt like it, (looking back at the original blog post is was about 2018), I started my very first quilting project. I started off simple with a couple of fat quarter packs from the local Hobbycraft and set about piecing them together to make a top and bottom quilt. And then they stayed in drawer for a few years.

It was only a year or so later when I decided to make a quilt for my Nephew when he was born that I actually decided to get a walking foot for my sewing machine and quilt my first quilt as a practice for doing my Nephew's. It worked pretty well, and then the quilt went back into the draw to be forgotten about.

We are now into 2020 and I have finally got around to finishing the binding on the quilt. It took me to get a bias binding maker and get into the swing of making my own binding to actually do it. So the quilt is bound at the edges using binding I have made from scraps I had lying around. I've managed to match the opposite sides, but I do love the way it has turned out.

The first row of stitching on the binding is sewn by machine, but the second set, after it was turned over the edge I've done by hand. This was mostly because the edges were not that even and it was a little bit of a nightmare trying to get the binding to sit nicely. It was far easier to do it by hand and was completed over a couple of nights sitting watching some podcasts with a brew.

I'm pretty pleased that the quilt is finally finished and can now be put to good use. Maybe next time we'll try a scrappy one.

Finished Object - Dino Apron

As my baking has ramped up recently, and after one particular vegan chocolate cake escapade, I decided it was probably time to get myself an apron for when I'm in the kitchen. Thankfully I only got my work shirt covered in chocolate and not a me made! So time for a me-made that wants to get covered in chocolate.

I've been meaning to get on with making myself an apron, and wanted a full length one to cover my top half as well as my bottom half, so the pattern I used for the spinning skirt was out. I found a free tutorial on The Sewing Directory which you can find here. The tutorial walks you through drafting the pattern and then sewing the actual apron. I used the tutorial for drafting the pattern and loosely followed the instructions for sewing it together as I really wanted to go my own way. 

The pattern uses a small facing along the top of the apron to help insert the neck strap, and the rest is pretty simple too. I made my first apron following the instructions and I think it turned out okay.

I had two old tablecloths that used to be my mothers, which she gave me when I moved out, but which didn't fit my dining room table, so I thought they would be perfect for the job, as they were a fabric that I wasn't going to be too sad if it got covered in food and I had a couple of dinosaur fat quarters which I thought would make a brilliant contrast fabric.

Now I don't actually know what type of fabric the tablecloths were made out of, but I do know now that it is a little thick and almost impossible to get a nice crease out of when pressing. When cutting out I managed to lay out my main apron piece so that the bottom of the apron was along the already hemmed edge of the tablecloth saving me a little work.

The top strap and the pocket I cut out of the dinosaur fabric. Here I deviated a little bit from the pattern. I hadn't actually got enough fabric to create the whole upper strap in one piece, and I had been a little lazy and hadn't cut a pattern piece for it. I knew that I had a little buckle left over from when I made waistcoats for my Mam's wedding, so I thought that I would try and combine this in to the upper strap to make an adjustable one. So I created one short strap and one long strap, but which would both make up the length of the pattern strap, which were then inserted in the top of the apron as the pattern suggested.

The buckle was then sewn on the end of the short strap and the other end fed through to make the adjustable strap. The idea was all well and good, and the strap worked as an adjuster. But my fabric I think was a little too thin and the buckle didn't actually hold in place and would just slide off from around my neck when any pressure was put on it. I solved the problem by pinning the loose and of the strap to the other strap with a Simon's cat pin.

I can't say that straps were my strong point on this apron at all either. My main straps, whilst long enough to tie at the front - which is a must for me on my apron - were made of the same tablecloth and just feel a little to big a bulky for my liking. I think that is nothing to do with pattern but all to do with the fabric I was using.

I realise there is a lot of complaining about how this project wasn't perfect, but not all are. I will say that despite all of these things that aren't perfect with it, I do really enjoy wearing it in the kitchen and I do love the dinosaurs. The apron is perfectly functional, if not perfect in the way that I would have liked it to be.

With that in mind the cogs in my brain were turning and over the next couple of days I had thought up of ways that I would have done the apron differently to make it work, and I decided to have another go. I also had a good friend who wanted a dino apron too!

The next apron I made used the other tablecloth I had, so was made out of the same heavy fabric that was a little bit of a nightmare to work with. I decided that this time, only the main apron front was to be made with the tablecloth. I used a white dinosaur fabric for the neck strap and the front pocket, and used a thinner plain white cotton for the main straps (I had a good long length of this in my stash which was perfect for the job) I had also been toying with the idea of making the facing on the back a lot bigger to incorporate the side straps so they could also be sewn in easier.

Second apron with larger facing

This facing I decided to do with a scrap of light/medium weight cotton I had, to reduce the bulk in the top seam, and I think it worked really well in the end. The second apron I am a lot happier with then the first. The bigger facing allows the straps to be easily installed, and the added understitching along the facing added another strengthening seam as well as encouraged the facing to turn under. That apron will be sent off soon and I really hope it is enjoyed where it is going.

Finished Object - Cleo

My first off shift of the country wide lockdown started off quite productive, and I managed to get another long standing queue sewing project done. Quite a while ago I treated myself to a kit from Tilly and the Buttons to make the Cleo dress. Now I'm not normally the one for dresses, I only own one or two, but I fell in love with this one, and even more so now I have finally made it.

I did have one or two worries to start with, I had gone with the denim fabric kit, and I have never before worked with denim, but I did have a listen to the Love To Sew podcast episode on Denim and it made me feel a lot less nervous, and finding some denim needles in my sewing box I thought I would just dive straight in, and I am so glad I did.

I spread the making over a few days, but it could have easily been smashed out in a day. I started off tracing out the pattern on one sunny day and the next day was cutting out the pieces, again with the glorious sunshine on my back.

The pattern, with its lovely booklet, talks you through how to make the dress with clarity and lovely clear photos. Perfect for the ambitious beginner or a nervous sewist. The kit I got came with everything I needed, including the buckles and buttons, which was so useful, but I'm sure they are pretty easy to come across on the internet.

Taking the pattern slowly and one step at a time it really got my sewing mojo back on course and I loved how it turned out. I was worried at one or two points along the way that I wouldn't like the end product. I've said before how I'm not much of a dress person, but I think having made this and finding ways to style it that I feel comfortable in, I'm really quite happy.

I was also quite excited to learn how to finish off the seams in that typical jeans style, and got a lot better at my top stitching when making the pockets. Yes you read that, pockets! And so many! If you are anything like me, pockets on anything are a must and incredibly exciting. I took the options of a big front pocket and two smaller back pockets, but there are also instructions for front hip pockets too. I'm sure that if you were adventurous enough you could add in seam hip pockets, which might be my challenge for another day.

Having now got sewing with denim tucked firmly under my belt, I am looking at trying a full set of dungarees as well as a pair of jeans. I'm already excited for these, but first I've got a few other things to get sewn, whilst rocking this new dress of mine!

Finished Object - Spinning Apron

I feel that calling this a spinning apron makes me seem like a saxon maid who is sat outside her mud hut watching the chickens and spinning away. That may be completely historically inaccurate, and I apologise, but calling this anything other than a spinning apron would just be lying.

For some time now I have had a small amount of fabric sat in a box waiting to be sewn into this apron. I didn't know what sort of apron or what style of apron it was going to be. I just knew I wanted something to keep the fibre from sticking to my jeans when I was spinning.

In the past few weeks I've been missing my sewing, and it was only when I finally bought myself an iron that I felt able to get back to it. I find an iron so so helpful it was a little odd to even try anything without it. While scrolling through youtube videos, I found one of Juliet Uzor's videos on how to make a circle skirt apron and I thought that would do. I'm not sure how I feel about it at the moment, I'm not really one for skirts, never been able to feel comfortable in them, but if I didn't get this sewn I don't think it would have got made at all. So I went for it.

Juliet has a free pattern for the apron on her website Sew So Natural, you can gain access to her resource library if you sign up to her newsletter. The library gives a printable PDF pattern. My only problem was that I don't have a printer, and I wanted to make the pattern there and then. So I got my maths head on. I know that I wanted half of a circle skirt, which as the name suggests is just a circle. Good old Pi came out to play. Let me run you through a quick drafting method for making your own.

First of all you want to take the measurement of your waist, or where ever the waistband of the skirt is going to sit, that could be around your hips if you want to. This measurement will become the circumference of inner circle on your pattern.

We now need to find the diameter of that circle, we will call the diameter "a" (as on the diagram). To find "a" we use the equation: diameter = circumference ÷ Pi. If my waist measurement was 74cm then I would calculate: 74 ÷ 𝝿 = 23.55 (Nerd alert, I do everything to two decimal places/three significant figures, you don't have to, round up to the nearest whole number to make it easy!) I used a scientific calculator because I have one, but if you don't then you can use the approximate figure of 3.14, you don't have to be super accurate.

So brilliant, we have measurement "a" now measurement "b" will be the length of the apron. This one is down to personal preference, I held a tape measure at the point I wanted the apron to sit and then measured down the length I wanted it to be. You will want to consider the amount of fabric you have and how the pattern will fit on to that fabric too. I decided that my length was going to be 45cm, which was really as long as I could possibly get out of the fabric and don't forget to add a little bit for hemming at the top and bottom.

The piece of fabric you will cut will be half of the circle. Just like the top part of the circle above the green line on the diagram. I got out the fabric and folded it in half to trace out the measurements for the pattern. Starting at the corner on the fold, I measured down the radius of inner circle along the edge with the fold. The radius being half of value "a" that we worked out earlier, then on the other side coming from that same corner I marked out the radius again. Then from that corner I marked the same distance out in an arc around that corner. This then marks the inner circle on the fabric.

From that first arc you can then measure down the length you want the apron to be including seam allowances for the top and bottom hems. Mark out this distance at regular intervals along this arc to make another much bigger arc further down your fabric, and you'll see the general shape of the apron start to take place.

Now I didn't really have enough fabric for this project, and I am actually making it out of an old blind that I found in a charity shop. So I decided to do a little bit of historical piecing and cut another couple of small pieces to stitch onto the sides to make the full skirt, else it would either been very short, or a really odd shape. I think it worked well overall though, and it being only something to keep the fibre off my legs while spinning, it really did not have to be the most perfect thing. I'm loving all of its imperfections and perfect functionality.

The waist ties that keep the apron on are the next thing to tackle. I'm pretty sure I bodged these and I'm not entirely sure how to explain how I did them, but I'll give it a go. The most easy thing to do here is to just hem all the edges of the apron and sew some ribbons to the edges next to the waist line and go from there. (I'll definitely do that next time) But I tried to make some ties with the fabric I had leftover from making the skirt.

 I used as much length as I could, which wasn't quite long enough, and cut them into about 4" wide strips. I turned the strips right sides together and sewed along one of the short sides. The other short side I placed right sides together over the waist of the apron, with the short side lined up with the edge of the apron. Each side of the strip was either side of the apron fabric. I then sewed along that short edge attaching the strap to the apron. That was the most complicated bit, and there probably is a much better way of doing it that maybe one day I'll discover. So after all that strap wrestling, I pulled the strap right side out and gave it a press, turning under the bottom raw edge and going along it with a bit of top stitching to hold it all inside. Then simply repeat with the other side... :P

Next time I really am just going to use twill tape or something similar as the straps, as these were so much effort and to be perfectly honest are not really that great. The apron has been put to good use though and I am happy that I've finally got around to making it. More spinning and less cleaning of my clothes from now on! ;)

Christmas Knits

Christmas is over for another year, and however you are celebrating at this time of year I hope you had a lovely time.

I like many other makers, made a lot of my Christmas gifts this year. I made sure I didn't give myself a million and one different things to make this year, as I know there is a fine line before I end up getting overwhelmed and loose my mojo all together. I did however manage to get one present started and finished in the summer, so I was well on my way. I thought I would give a run down of the things I've made for gifts this year, even the questionable ones!

Sam's F1 Socks
These were one of the last presents I made, they were mostly made when I came to finish them off, but they spent a lot of time with a thousand ends to sew in and missing their heels. I did have a small sense of humour failure after spending almost two days weaving in ends, which has put me off a tiny bit from finishing my own pair of F1 socks, which really have taken a back seat for now.

I thought this design up after being inspired by a pair of socks that Rachel from the Crafty Historian podcast made, detailing the women throughout the Game of Thrones series. Mine however needed me to think about how to display each podium and race of the F1 season. I'm very pleased with how I managed to do it, and might even right the pattern up for future use - if I can find a way to get rid of quite so many ends! ;)

The pair of socks were mainly made up of Coop Knits Socks Yeah! in a few different colours representing the different teams. Mercedes in Chryso, Ferrari in Carnelian, Red Bull in Benitolite, Toro Rosso in Larimar, and suprising us all McLaren in Citrine. The heels, toes and cuffs break the mould being West Yorkshire Spinners signature 4-ply in a plain black colour. I made this pair cuff down with afterthought heels, cut in using a cardboard cut out of Sam's foot. The socks weren't a great fit sadly, but they were fortunately too big instead of too small. Maybe the next pair need to be on a smaller needle.

Needless to say, regardless of the fit Sam loved them and kept on telling anyone who would listen about them.

Pop Socks
This present was one of the very first I made this year, started late May and finished in July. They are a simple vanilla sock, made with my usual sock recipie, using 64 stitches.
There isn't really much exciting to say about this pair, they have German Short Row heels and are made from Austermann Step sock yarn, colour way 328.

This pair I gave to my Dad for Christmas, but I am not sure how well they fit. I didn't have a cardboard cut out of his foot so I made them to fit Sam's feet which are a similar size. I hope they are alright.

Becca Socks
The next in a longish line of socks I made this year were a pair for my sister-in-law, this was another 64 stitch vanilla sock. This one with a shorter cuff length, but still with a German Short Row heel.

The yarn I used for this one was Opal sock yarn although I don't actually know what colour way. It is interesting working with a few of the other work horse sock yarns, seeing as I have worked with West Yorkshire Spinners almost exclusively apart from the odd luxury skein of sock yarn here and there. I'm going to see how these two pairs turn out and maybe I'll work a little bit more with them in the future.

Chris Socks
Now this is where the socks become a little more interesting. I did a little more thinking for this pair, as my brother does have rather large feet but fortunately I did have a cardboard cut out of his foot to help me. I decided I would use a 2.5mm needle and 64 stitches, which is my larger go to sock recipe but to make sure they would stretch even further I decided to make the sock a 2x2 rib.

So setting out with a suitable hardy West Yorkshire Spinners signature 4-ply in the pheasant colour way. I made these with a longer then normal leg, as I know that is what my brother likes. I had to be somewhat careful that they weren't going to be too long and I end up struggling to fit them around his calf. The sole of the sock was in plain socking stitch, but I continues the rib down the top of the foot.

I think out of all the socks I've made this year, these are definitely the ones I'm most pleased with , both in style and in fit. I also believe they were received rather well.

Emma Socks
The last pair of gift socks for this year, and lets be perfectly honest, they weren't the best, but the person who got them was grateful. I've made a pair of socks for my best friend Emma before and I thought that this time I'd treat her to another pair. She had recently given me some cotton yarn, which I thought would be good for the job. Having already given me some to make a pair for her Mum. Unfortunately I didn't learn from the first pair...

So I cast on the normal 64 stitches on a 2.5mm needle, and decided that I'd skip my least favourite part of the sock and make a shortie pair. I hate knitting the leg on socks. The pair went smoothly, top down with a German Short Row heel. But my, they were far wider then I was expecting. The same thing happened with the other cotton pair, so it shouldn't be a surprise.

Like I say, they were quick, easy, and well received, if not baggy and only useful for slippers. Maybe I should learn to make cotton socks properly.

Alison Hat
First of the hats, one for my other sister-in-law. She got socks from me last year as well as my brother, so I decided to make them hats this year. Alison's hat was one I started fairly early, and was something that had been in my queue for a little while, so it was nice to make.

It did spark off a little urge to make many more hats, which I haven't quite satisfied yet. I used the leftovers from the un-dyed skein in my Fern and Feather jumper, a DK skein of Grande Merino from Countess Ablaze and a 3.75mm circular needle. The project didn't last long and was a lovely palette cleanser between other projects at the time.

The pattern, Irma Hat by Aneta Gasiorowska, was nice to work through and used simple methods to create a lovely pattern. It really was a joy to knit, and lovely to see it enjoyed when gifted.

Colin Hat
This hat was  I think the present that brought me the most joy in making. A somewhat ridiculous panda hat for my brother, I was tempted to make a matching one for his son, but seeing as the sizing started at 8 years old, his 5 month old would have a long time before it would fit. So I only made one

It was the first time I used my book on knitting animal hats in earnest. I've used it once before to get the basic hat pattern to make a walrus hat a little while ago for a friend of mine. I've found the book intuitive to use, and I was quite pleased with the hat once I was done. Unfortunately I don't have a photo of the finished hat, but when I do I will add it in here.
I used a simple acrylic chunky yarn as I wanted it to be easy maintenance. There was a fleece lining to the hat as well, which kept it snuggly and warm and ready for the winter.

Leo's Jumper
For my baby nephew I decided to make a christmas jumper. He's small enough that knitting a jumper for him isn't a huge undertaking. I wanted the jumper to have a Christmas-y feel, so decided on a red jumper with some colour work. I decided to use the Flax pattern by Tin Can Knits. It's one I've used before to make a jumper for Leo when he was born. I made the 1 to 2 year old size, which given my gauge has come out slightly large, but he'll grow into it.

I took to Pinterest to find some charts and get a little inspiration to hack the Flax pattern. I found a snowflake chart and a polar bear chart, that I thought were lovely. I'm a sucker for a polar bear, I used the Flax pattern for the bare bones of the jumper, leaving out the garter stitch panels on the sleeves. I planned out the number of stitches on the body and the charts I had found to try and work out the best way to fit the pattern into the jumper.

I used the first part of the jumper before the sleeve separation as a gauge swatch and whilst the width of the jumper was going to be fine, the body would be a little long. The length of the body I wasn't really worried about, he is a long baby. For my first major colour work project I am glad that it was a baby jumper. I am also quite pleased with how it turned out. The jumper did turn out a little bit on the large size, but I am looking forward to seeing my little nephew in his new jumper.

Wallace and Gromit
This present was one which warmed my heart when I gifted it. The person who received it was made up, and it felt so good. I made a little amigurumi crochet Wallace and Gromit, which were far from perfect. The pattern and yarn came from a kit that was given to me, with the person I made them for in mind. The pattern was quick, like most crochet, and was easy to follow. I wasn't too keen on all the sewing up though.

I have to admit the individual pieces got made up quite quickly and then spent a good few weeks in a box waiting to be joined together. I finally got myself together and joined all the pieces up and my least favourite bit, sewing on the faces. The faces left a little bit to be desired, but we got the general effect. Terrifying. The faces weren't the only far from perfect bit. Wallace's jumper was a little too short, showing a little part of his midriff, not to mention the problems with Gromit.

Gromit started off so well, but things got a little wrong when I ran out of yarn for Gromit's legs. Gromit sadly ended up with rather short front legs. I then had no yarn left for his back legs. I used the leftover yarn from Wallace's head, as it was the closest colour I had left, so he now has slightly off colour, and slightly longer back legs. Despite all things that were wrong with both Wallace and Gromit, they were absolutely loved. It does go to show that no matter how many flaws we see in our own work, the people we love, who love us, will always see the best.

Bag and Bunting
The last present I made was a sewing project, and one I finished fairly early. I had the task of turning three pieces of material into a present. I had three very similar pieces of fabric, they had a sheep design on them, but in three different colours. The person they were for loved the material and I had got my hands on three oddments of them to make something. I settled for one piece of bunting and a bag. I wanted a small quilted bag, and managed to find a free online pattern and tutorial for one.

The pieces were an awkward size and I had a fun time trying to jigsaw puzzle the pieces on what fabric I had left after making the bunting. I managed though, and I am pretty pleased with the outcome. The pattern was from The Fabric Mutt and includes a brilliant walk through tutorial, which really does hold your hand from start to finish. I'm happy to say that this present was loved by the person I give it too, but unfortunately I haven't got many good photos of it. I have also managed to get no photos of the bunting either.

That is where all the hand made gifts ended for this year. I felt quite pleased that I managed to get quite a few presents done, and they were really well received which made me all the more want to make gifts again next year.  

Episode 19: Summer Holidays

Welcome to the Lemmon Juicer Podcast, I hope you have a lovely time watching.

Instagram: @lemmonjuicer
Ravelry: sockbug97
Ravelry Group: Lemmon Juicer Podcast
Blog: www.lemmonjuicer.blogspot.co.uk

Extended Shownotes you will find on the Blog or in the Ravelry Group.

Finished Objects:
Bronwyn Shawl: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/bronwyn-shawl - A lovely crochet shawl that I am pretty sure I will get a lot of wear out of. It is made with DK yarn in four different colours, Green - Countess Ablaze, Grande Merino, Footloose, Light Blue - Malabrigo, Arroyo, Cian, Yellow - Babbles Yarns, Delicious DK, Solid Gold, Dark Blue - Fyberspates, Vivacious DK, Deep Aqua.

Colin's Triceratops: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/triceratops-head---taxidermy-dinosaur - a commossion from my brother for an excellent piece of livingroom furnature! ;) This is made from Cygnet Seriously Chunky in the Fawn colour way for the pale colour and Meadow Green for the main colour.

Gift Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/c-socks - A pair of gift socks from Christmas, these are 64sts on 2.5mm needle, in a 2x2 rib pattern. They are made from West Yorkshire Spinners, Signature 4-ply in the Pheasant colourway.

Margot the 2nd - Tilly and the Buttons pattern from the book Love at First Stitch, a wonderful book for getting started sewing your own clothes.

Spinning: Shetland and Icelandic blend, spun into a simple two ply that has come out as a light sport to fingering weight yarn.

WIPs:
F1 Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/sams-f1-socks - I have two pairs of F1 socks on the go, with a range of different yarns from CoopKnits in their Socks Yeah! base. The colours I have used I've listed on a previous post, so go back and have a look if you want to find out more.

Deck The Halls Stitch-a-long by Caterpillar Cross Stitch - a lovely stitch-a-long which is not too late to join in if you want to! I'm loving it!


In The Shed:
Handmade Notebook
Kiwico Eurika Crate - Pinball machine

Podcasts Mentioned:
Babbles Travelling Yarns
The Project Bag
Crafty Historian

Real Talk:
These are some links to the people leading the conversations around racism and inclusion in the
knitting community, take a look at their stories and discover some new people - please respect
their spaces:
@su.krita - https://www.instagram.com/su.krita/?hl=en
@thecolormustard - https://www.instagram.com/thecolormustard/?hl=en
@ocean_bythesea - https://www.instagram.com/ocean_bythesea/?hl=en
@booksandcables - https://www.instagram.com/booksandcables/?hl=en
@ggmadeit - https://www.instagram.com/ggmadeit/?hl=en

Layla F Saad's workbook: https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/
Unfinished Object: https://www.unfinishedobject.com/
Vox Article: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/2/25/18234950/knitting-racism-instagram-stories

Music:
"Inspired" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Episode 18: Wipseseseses

Welcome to the Lemmon Juicer Podcast, get the kettle on and we'll get stuck in.

Instagram: @lemmonjuicer
Ravelry: sockbug97
Ravelry Group: Lemmon Juicer Podcast
Blog: www.lemmonjuicer.blogspot.co.uk

Extended Shownotes you will find on the Blog or in the Ravelry Group.

Finished Objects:
Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/b-socks
- Just a plain vanilla sock, with a german short row heel. Made out of Opal sock yarn, on a 2.5mm needle with 64 stitches.

Irma Hat: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/irma-hat
- Another gift knit, this is the Irma hat by Aneta Gasiorowska, knit up in Countess Ablaze, undyed Grande Merino. This was a lovely quick knit, maybe I'll do another!

WIPs:
Bronwyn Shawl: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/bronwyn-shawl
- This lovely crochet shawl is the Bronwyn Shawl by Toni Lipsey, it is going quite nicely and I am loving the outcome so far! The yarn I have used is, Countess Ablaze, Grande Merino in the Footloose colourway, Malabrigo, Arroyo in the Cian colourway, Babbles Yarns, Delicious DK in the Solid Gold colourway and Fyberspates, Vivacious DK in the Deep Aqua colourway.

F1 Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/sams-f1-socks
- These I am really enjoying, and is a pattern made up by myself, and there is one pair for me and one pair for Sam, made out of pretty much the same colours:
Grey: West Yorkshire Spinners, Bo Peep - Tin Can
Black: West Yorkshire Spinners, Signature 4 ply - Black
Ferrari - CoopKnits, Socks Yeah! - Carnelian
Red Bull - CoopKnits, Socks Yeah! - Benitolite
Mercedes - CoopKnits, Socks Yeah! - Chryso
Torro Rosso - CoopKnits, Socks Yeah! - Larimar

Colin's Triceratops: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/triceratops-head---taxidermy-dinosaur
- This delightful dinosaur was a request that I was happy to fulfill. The yarn is Cygnet Seriously Chunky in the Fawn colourway and the Meadow Green colourway.

Gift Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/c-socks
- Another pair of gift socks in readiness for christmas. This pair I am not knitting to a pattern again, but I am thinking of doing them as a 2x2 rib all the way down. They are 64 stitches and on a 2.5mm needle as always! The yarn is West Yorkshire Spinners, Signature 4 Ply in what I think is the Pheasant colourway.

Margot the 2nd - Tilly and the Buttons pattern

Spinning: Shetland and Icelandic blend

In The Shed:
Handmade Notebook

Real Talk:
These are some links to the people leading the conversations around racism and inclusion in the
knitting community, take a look at their stories and discover some new people - please respect
their spaces:
@su.krita - https://www.instagram.com/su.krita/?hl=en
@thecolormustard - https://www.instagram.com/thecolormustard/?hl=en
@ocean_bythesea - https://www.instagram.com/ocean_bythesea/?hl=en
@booksandcables - https://www.instagram.com/booksandcables/?hl=en
@ggmadeit - https://www.instagram.com/ggmadeit/?hl=en

Layla F Saad's workbook: https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/
Unfinished Object: https://www.unfinishedobject.com/
Vox Article: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/2/25/18234950/knitting-racism-instagram-stories

Music:
"Inspired" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Lemmon Juicer Podcast Ep 16: All the finished things

Welcome to the Lemmon Juicer Podcast, settle down with a mug of something and we'll get started.

Instagram: @lemmonjuicer
Ravelry: sockbug97
Ravelry Group: Lemmon Juicer Podcast
Blog: www.lemmonjuicer.blogspot.co.uk

Extended Shownotes you will find on the Blog or in the Ravelry Group.

Finished Objects:
Galewood Gauntlets:https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/galewood
- Made from John Arbon Devonia 4-ply in the bleeding heart colourway, using the pattern by Honor Adams. I definitely enjoyed these more after I had blocked them, very much fell back in love with them.

Fraternal Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/lottie-socks
- A pair of socks knitted for myself on a 2mm needle using Bergere de France Goomy 50 - Imprim Jaun, and West Yorkshire Spinners Bo Peep 4-ply in the teddy bear colour way. A fun pair of fraternal socks just to give it a go.

Lyne Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/lyne-socks
-The pattern is by Dawn Henderson and is a beautifully thought through shorty sock, I've made it with Gamercrafting Yak sock in the lagoon mist colourway, which an incredibly beautiful purple and soooo soft.

Trophy Ram's Head:https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/faux-ram-trophy-head
- From a kit bought from Sincerely Louise, which was incredibly fun. Going to be entered into the Village flower and produce show, so we will see what we win!

Mum H socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/mum-h-socks
- I pair of socks knitted for my best friends mum for her birthday on Schachenmayr Catania cotton yarn, they are now being posted off the their new home, and I really hope they fit their new owner!

Stevie Top: https://shop.tillyandthebuttons.com/products/stevie
- A Lovely pattern by Tilly and the Buttons, it is now a favourite and I do like the style of the top. This top I have made from some cotton fabric found in my local fabric shop. It is so me and I made it for my birthday top, something that I feel might become a tradition in the future!

Baby Quilt: Fat Quarters for the front pieces from various fabric shops, backing fabric
from Hobbycraft.
- A quilt that I decided to make whilst looking through the scrap bin in a fabric shop near my best friends house, they had some seriously cute things and I was sold! I picked up a couple more little pieces at one of my local fabric shops and got started.

Spinning: John Arbon Corriedale
- A lovely bag of undyed corriedale for me to try came along with my John Arbon Mill membership, which I really enjoyed spinning and looking forward to spinning the rest!

WIPs:
Pop Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/pop-socks
- A pair of vanilla socks made in Austermann Step yarn. This was a yarn that I bought with the intention of making a gift pair of socks, we will see where they end up!

Triangle Knit Shawl: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/knit-triangle-shawl
- An imaginatively named shawl from a Bernat Pop! ball band. I loved the colours of the yarn and bought it with the idea that maybe I should try and knit more shawls and I could start with this one on the ball band.

In The Shed:
Noste Pinne - Made from windfall wood and utilising my whittling skills, which haven't really been used for a while, and I kinda miss it.
Letter Opener - I would say the words above again, but I don't need to, look up! ;)

Real Talk:
These are some links to the people leading the conversations around racism and inclusion in the
knitting community, take a look at their stories and discover some new people:
@su.krita - https://www.instagram.com/su.krita/?hl=en
@thecolormustard - https://www.instagram.com/thecolormustard/?hl=en
@ocean_bythesea - https://www.instagram.com/ocean_bythesea/?hl=en
@booksandcables - https://www.instagram.com/booksandcables/?hl=en
@ggmadeit - https://www.instagram.com/ggmadeit/?hl=en

Layla F Saad's workbook: https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/
Unfinished Object: https://www.unfinishedobject.com/
Vox Article: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/2/25/18234950/knitting-racism-instagram-stories

Music:
"Inspired" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Me-Made-May 2019 - The Turtle Skirt

This post will be the last of four posts that I have finally got around to writing for Me-Made-May 2019. They have been posted in the order that they were intended to be posted throughout the month, so you will most probably see this one first then scroll down to see the rest. So I hope you enjoy.

The last Me-Made that made its way out for Me-Made-May was my 3/4 circle skirt that was one of the very first pieces of clothing I made for a mostly adult me. I say mostly adult, I think I had just turned 18 at the time. I'm not entirely sure but I remember drinking a horrible bottle of wine to celebrate redecorating my bedroom at the same time.

The pattern was a self drafted pattern from some instructions that I found on Pinterest. Whether the formulas from this website or my maths at the time were off it is hard to say. But the pattern I drafted was meant to be a full circle skirt, and I did cut out enough pieces to create the full circle.

The fabric I used I found in a box in our house, and if I remember rightly was originally used to make toddler Lottie a pair of shorts and a vest top. Which I seem to remember wearing on a family holiday to the Isle of Wight. I may be corrected later by Mam. The fabric was a white jersey type fabric with cartoon turtles on it, which is quite cute.

I had never sewn with jersey before (and never have done since) so on the actual sewing side of things, it is a little bit of a car crash, but its held together and still functions as a skirt, so why not just wear it around the house on a summer's day?

I mentioned that I was intending to make a full circle skirt, and yes I did have all the pieces, but I did find that once I had sewn three of the pieces together that actually that size fitted around my waist and that actually if I added another panel in it would have been horrendously too big. So I left out the last panel and sewed up the skirt. Which to be fair wasn't too bad.

But there ends all the different makes for Me-Made-May 2019. Writing this on the 9th of June I can say that I did indeed wear a Me-Made almost every day for Me-Made-May. Whilst it was challenging at times I did manage it, with the exception of one day, where I wore a skirt I had made for an hour before deciding I felt too uncomfortable in it. So here's to a successful May, and to many more Me-Made clothes in my future.

Me-Made-May 2019 - The Stevie

Day 12 of Me Made May was my Stevie and I fell in love pretty quickly. I took my newly made Stevie out to Bath for a weekend away that I had planned and got some lovely photos of it out in the wild as I was enjoying myself in sunny Bath.

Stevie is a pattern by Tilly and the Buttons, and you can get the digital download or order a paper pattern to be posted out to you on their website here. The pattern is both a top, and a tunic dress which makes it quite versatile. I however am not really a dress person, so I stuck to the top version.

I used some 100% cotton that I picked up in my local Hobbycraft, I'm not sure what sort of weight cotton, but it was on the medium side I think. (Hobbycraft don't really like to put labels on anything...) The sewing went well and I really did enjoy it. The only thing that started to frustrate me was that there wasn't enough of a seam allowance to create a rolled hem. The instructions just give to turn up the hem on both the sleeves and the body once and then find a way to finish the raw edges.

To start with I only pinked the edges with a pair of pinking shears, but after wearing it once and loving it I suddenly felt terrified that the edges weren't quite strong enough and I was scared I was going to loose my beloved top! That probably won't be the case, but I am the kind of person who is always worrying about something.

So after wearing it for the day, I very carefully turned over the tiny bit of hem left and hand stitched a running stitch through it to try and hide the raw edge and hope that it wouldn't want to fray.

The last adorable thing I love about the Stevie is the back. There are two options, a tie back, or a little button and loop. I had to pick out the perfect button for this project and I am so glad I found it. It may be designed for a child garment, but those who know me and indeed the fact that I am still really a child at heart will agree that this is the right button for this project.

Now I am writing this post a little while after I wore this, and in fact a little while after the end of May, and I have already been able to make adjustments to the pattern for myself and make another one, which became my birthday top. I added an inch and a half hem allowance for both the sleeves and the body, which allowed me to create a rolled hem and not worry so much about fraying. I however didn't use the whole inch and a half allowance on the sleeves which does mean that they are ever so slightly longer, which I quite like - but more about that top on my next podcast.

For now, here is the picture of the cute little button on the back, and this top will certainly get more wear for years to come.

Lemmon Juicer Podcast Ep 15: The One With All the Sewing

Welcome to the Lemmon Juicer Podcast, put the kettle on and get stuck in.

Instagram: @lemmonjuicer
Ravelry: sockbug97
Ravelry Group: Lemmon Juicer Podcast
Blog: www.lemmonjuicer.blogspot.co.uk

Extended Shownotes you will find on the Blog or in the Ravelry Group.

Finished Objects:
Madison Scarf: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/madison-scarf  - Made out of Malabrigo Rios in the Purpuras colourway, and knit on a circular needle at quite a loose gauge. It was a fun a intuitive knit and was finished pretty quickly.

Spinning: Green Batts - Batts I picked up from a yarn shop, no idea what sort of fibre content they have, just know that they are wool and they are green! Spun into a simple 2-ply with my wheel.

Stevie Top: https://shop.tillyandthebuttons.com/products/stevie - A lovely pattern, and as I has discovered easy to wear! Made out of a blue cotton with a button and loop fastening on the back. Fabric and button were from Hobbycraft.

Delphine Skirt: From Tilly and the Buttons book Love at First Stitch - This I made to try out some new skills and techniques, not sure what it will go with in my wardrobe yet though. Fabric from a bargain bucket in a fabric shop near my LYS.

Hoddie: A self drafted hoodie pattern from YEARS ago, finally finished it. - Made from a pigs flying fleece from many many moons ago, I finally put some cuffs on it and it is now rather wearable.

WIPs:
Baby Cross Stitch:https://www.sewandso.co.uk/product/train-birth-record-cross-stitch-kit/1001851 - Whilst I did not show this today, it is very much still a WIP, although some progress is being made. Next time I'm pretty sure it will be done.

Galewood Gauntlets:https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/galewood - Finally got cracking on making the second one and fortunately the mojo is returning. Made with Devonia (John Arbon) 4-ply in the Bleeding Heart colourway.

Lyne Socks: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/lyne-socks - Slow progress but I do have a HO, one sock done and the cuff of the other also completed. Loving the pattern and even more so the yarn: Gamercrafting Yak sock, in the Lagoon Mist colourway.

Socks for me: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Sockbug97/lottie-socks - A pair of sock I'm making without a pattern for myself. On a 2mm circular needle with 64 stitches. It is a fraternal pair, one is already finished and the next one is getting on. Yarn is West Yorkshire Spinners, Bo Peep in the Teddy Bear colourway the other is Bergere De France Goomy 50 in the Imprim Jaun colourway.

In The Shed:
Niddy Noddy: Making a niddy noddy out of windfall wood.

Real Talk:
These are some links to the people leading the conversations around racism and inclusion in the
knitting community, take a look at their stories and discover some new people:
@su.krita - https://www.instagram.com/su.krita/?hl=en
@thecolormustard - https://www.instagram.com/thecolormustard/?hl=en
@ocean_bythesea - https://www.instagram.com/ocean_bythesea/?hl=en
@booksandcables - https://www.instagram.com/booksandcables/?hl=en
@ggmadeit - https://www.instagram.com/ggmadeit/?hl=en

Layla F Saad's workbook: https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/
Unfinished Object: https://www.unfinishedobject.com/
Vox Article: https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/2/25/18234950/knitting-racism-instagram-stories

Music:
"Inspired" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Me-Made-May 2019 - Blue Three Quarter Circle Skirt

I have now caught up and I am writing this post about day 8 on day 8, but it won't be published for a few days! Oh well!

Now Day 8 is a little bit of an unusual one. Those who know me will find the idea of me in a skirt a very odd one. I am not really a dress or skirt kind of person, but for some reason I have three Me-Made Skirts. All of which I never really know when or where to wear them. So Me-Made-May is the perfect time to put some thought into it, and find out what goes nicely with what and what sort of outfits I can wear.

This skirt is a three quarter circle skirt, from a pattern that I drafted myself, and had made another skirt out of before. Although that first was was a little unsuccessful, but you will be seeing that at some point soon.

This skirt is made out of what I believe was the skirt of some sort of evening dress. I was helping out my Granny clear a couple of boxes that had come from another lady's loft somewhere and it was full of yarn and fabric. This showed up, and I was really taken by the colour and the shiney-ness of it. So I took it home and it spent quite a lot of it's days hiding with a lot of the other fabric in the house and nothing really became of it.Until recently when I decided to get my finger out and make something. I dug out the old self drafted pattern and set about making something.

One of the modifications I decided to make however was including a waist band. There wasn't one on the original skirt and I felt that this skirt needed one. It also had a zip, not really done many zips before but the internet is a wonderful thing!

The skirt was whipped up in a couple of days, I had started and finished it around October time and it had it's first outing at a new years eve party later that year. I have to admit it is the first time it has made it out since.

I love the re-made nature of this skirt, and I kept some of the original seams from the previous skirt in it, and it seems to give it a little piece of history. So here is me trying to squeeze it into an outfit for Me-Made-May, I paired it with a yellow shirt, but being me I'm never sure of how I look in these particularly girly things - luckily I don't have to go outside today!

PS - I may have forgotten when I posted the insta story that it wasn't a half circle skirt. It really is a three quarter, I had a mare while drafting the pattern, but more about that later!

Me-Made-May 2019 - Brigitte Scarf

I went away for the weekend, so I'm catching up with blog posts now I am back with my laptop again.

Day 3 of Me-Made-May I wore my Brigitte Scarf. A little head scarf that I made very shortly after I got my Tilly and the Buttons book (it's a Tilly and the Buttons pattern suprise suprise! ;) ) and it is the first pattern in there and brilliant for new beginners. It is also on her website as a tutorial, so follow the link above if you want to find out more.

I did this pattern just as a little something to keep my fingers busy before deciding what the next big sew was going to be. The fabric was from a scrap bin in a fabric shop near to my LYS, and I thought that the blue with little birds in flight was lovely. It seemed the perfect thing to make with it. The Brigitte scarf itself is very versatile as well. I have worn it in so many ways since I made it and I really do love it.

The fabric scrap wasn't long enough to make a scarf the exact same length as the pattern says, but I made one as long as I could out of the fabric I had. Fortunately I have a small head so there wasn't going to be many problems.

I wore this on the train journey up to London for the weekend and it helpfully kept my hair out of my eyes - and I have a lot of it!

Unfortunately I don't have a close up photo of the scarf, so you cannot see the stitching, but I did make some changes the following time that I made this pattern. This particular scarf when I turned the scarf the right side out, I ran a length of top stitching along the edge with the hole in it. It looks fine and when wearing the scarf it isn't noticeable, but for some reason it bugged me. I have a basic sewing machine, so I don't have any of the snazzy top stitch settings that some do, which would have finished the edge of this scarf off beautifully.

I did make a second Brigitte scarf, which you will probably see later on in the month, but for that one I hand stitched the hole closed in a way that hides the stitching from the outside, which I feel makes it so much better. But I am happy with this one! I will leave you with the picture from my Instagram stories for day 3, I also was wearing my Margot Pyjamas, well, because they are my pyjamas! ;)

Me-Made-May 2019 - Margot Pyjamas

Now I don't know if my second day of Me-Made-May is a cop-out or not. But I still wore it! For my second day, I have a lovely pair of pyjama bottoms that I made from the Tilly and the Buttons Margot pattern.

I think the pattern is only available in the Tilly and the Buttons book Love at First Stitch, which really got me into home sewing. It really was love at first stitch. If you do want to get started it is a really helpful book, and will go through everything. I mean EVERYTHING, you could never have seen a sewing machine before and by the time you'd finished that book you would be able to sew a dress. It is fun to read and there is explanations for all the sewing jargon. You can probably tell I love it.

One of the first patterns I tried from that book was the Margot pyjamas. They looked fun and were one of the easier makes - plus if it looked horrible then no one was going to see as I would be wearing them to bed. Result.

As with most projects, knitted or sewn, there is always something that doesn't quite go to plan. Just like the Fern and Feather one of my problems was to do with measuring. But that wasn't my first problem oh no. It started well before the pattern was actually started.

I had it in the back of my mind to make these and it was a trip to a fabric shop with my best friend that set the idea of making them into motion when I found the fabric. A cream coloured fabric with green planes and blue cars. I loved it, decided that was what I was going to make my pyjamas out of and bought a metre. That was my first mistake. I hadn't looked at the fabric specifications at all, and what a newbie sewer like myself didn't know what that a metre is hardly enough to do anything - even if you are a smallish size.

The disaster was saved somewhat by that same delightful friend who make a quick trip back to the same fabric shop to pick me up another metre and post it to me. Once that was sorted I got on with making the pattern. But even two meters wasn't quite enough to make the full length of the bottoms, but I made do with a cropped length. Which I think looks fine.

The second mistake, was my measuring mistake. I learned the hard way where exactly you should measure when it says "hip measurement". That is the widest part around your bum. Not the top of your hips - just sayin'. Lets put it this way, I made the size too small (I have a tiny waist but larger hips) the size would fit my waist quite well but not my hips so much. Which I found out when I first went to try the pyjamas on.

I will give you an amusing mental image. I managed to wriggle my way into the bottoms, they JUST got over my hips and settled nicely around my waist, "sorted I thought, not so bad after all", but there I was wrong. They were kinda hard to move around in and it was then I realised that I couldn't actually take them off... Luckily I had put them on inside out and the seams were easily accessible. So there I was sitting down, unpicking the side seams of my pyjama bottoms whilst still wearing them, in order to take them off.

It was rather disheartening really, but having the engineers way of thinking, I quickly came up with a solution to my problem. Re-making them in a larger size wasn't really an option. I didn't have enough fabric anyway, and to do that would have been a waste and felt wrong somehow. So I remeasured my hips and worked out how much more space I needed to create at the top to allow me to get in and out. I then created two triangle pieces to put in at the top. I put them in with the point at the place on the side seam where I was the widest, and that allowed me to be able to wear them properly. Thank goodness.

So I managed in the end to make a functional piece of clothing. It isn't the most polished or the prettiest, but I still love them. I am quite proud of them, and they are in my usual pyjama rotation now. I do intend to make another pair the right size and the right length soon too, now I know exactly what fabric I need! ;)

So here is the photo for Me-Made-May day 2, sleepy having just got up early to go and vote in the local elections with my Mam.

Happy Making!

P.S - I forgot to say they had pockets! Yes, pockets.

Me-Made-May 2019 - Fern and Feather Jumper

It is the 1st of May, and it is my very first time taking part in the Me-Made-May Challenge hosted by Zoe of the So Zo What Do You Know Blog, and it is the 10th Year of the challenge. I had heard of the challenge before hand, but only really in passing. But it was this year, with my more recent sewing experience with Tilly and the Buttons new book, Love At First Stitch I decided that I was going to join in.

The idea is to make a challenge for yourself and make a pledge to complete your challenge. My pledge I made on the SoZo Blog, to try and wear at least one item of clothing that I had made every day throughout May. Hopefully in the process I will be able to find out what sort of things I need in my own Me-Made wardrobe. Now the challenge is not a photo challenge, but people are more than welcome to share their photos and progress. I personally want to share photos in my instagram stories to keep me accountable every day to make sure that I do manage to carry out this challenge.

What I plan to do is every day that I wear a new Me-Make, I will post a little blog post here with information about what it is, the pattern I have made it from, and the materials I have used. So I will start off my first blog post of Me-Made-May 2019 with my Fern and Feather Jumper.

This is the Fern and Feather knitting pattern by Jennifer Steingas, that you can find on Ravelry. The yarn I used was by Countess Ablaze, the base for both colours was the Grande Merino base. The main colour was Footloose (Funk Remix), and the contrasting colour was in a natural undyed, white colour.

The pooling of the colours of green throughout the jumper I loved, and it was my first proper garment! I had knitted a jumper before, but it was without a pattern, having never made an adult sized jumper before and I went ahead and winged it, and it isn't quite right. I think for Me-Made-May I will get it out and do some jumper surgery. But back to the Fern and Feather.

It really was a joy to knit, and the colour work yoke was surprisingly easy. I loved it so much, that I knit another one for my Mam.

My knitting however wasn't without it's mistakes. The biggest mistake however, wasn't really anything to do with my knitting, But my ability to read the pattern instructions properly.

Those of you who have made a Fern and Feather before will know that the pattern is designed with about 3 inches of positive ease. As you can see from mine, there isn't any. Now I am dyslexic and I struggle to process information properly the first time a read it and that is exactly what happened and by the time I had realised I had already done the yoke, split the sleeves and started on the body. So I assumed that seeing as the pattern had 3 inches of positive ease, that making the size that was my bust measurement would mean that it would be 3 inches bigger than that. But I was wrong - oh well!

I had got quite far when I realised and I decided to just carry on and finish the jumper. I am glad I did, but I will admit that it was the reason that this jumper has only really been worn once or twice since it was made, which is a shame really.

Putting this jumper on this morning was a joy though, and I can't really believe that I was holding off from wearing this jumper just because it wasn't like the pattern suggested. I'll leave you with today's photo from when I put it on. Check out my instagram stories for the daily updates on what I am wearing each day (previous days will be saved on a highlight that you can find on my instagram profile) and you will see how often this jumper gets worn. Hopefully a lot more than it ever has been!

Happy Making, I hope your Me-Made-May is enjoyable, however you plan to spend it.