time for a dress I guess…

Tags

african wax, dress, hot cocoa, improvised, self drafted, sewing

… sometime on the Tuesday I decide I better check my dress…

… for years, whenever I get invited to a wedding I wear the same dress, I am not a dress person, but I quite like this straight rust orange linen dress, I have a cardigan that matches as I am always cold, I used to have the perfect pair of trainers to go with it, but the dog chewed those when he was smaller, now I have a pair of simple flats…

… I tried it on, hung it in the bathroom hoping wrinkles would fall out and I was set for the Saturday when a good friend was getting married…

… sometime midweek, ideas started spinning in my mind… a morning ceremony, followed by a lunch, “maybe the dress was too formal?”, ceremony on the other side of town, too far to walk, “would I be able to cycle in the dress?”… at some point I decided I could maybe make a new dress for the day?

… Thursday night, after yoga practice, ideas still spinning through my mind, I procrastinate, I know exactly which fabric I want to use, another piece of African wax, I think about shape and decide on A-line with narrow shoulders, remembering a dress a friend had many, many years ago…

… 10:30pm, I kick myself into action, I get out the Dixie DIY hot cocoa sweater pattern, that I already made up “conventionally“. I use front and back pieces, extend the top corners instinctively and extrapolate the length to something I think will hit just above the knee. I cut out the 2 pieces and cut out a second short version of each piece that hits just below the arm hole to use as facing.

… neck and arm seams are sewn, shoulder “corners” are pushed through, side seams are sewn (using French seams), shoulders are temporarily safety pinned shut as I try on the dress – either it is exactly what I wanted, or a sack, I hope for the former! I fall into bed at 1am…

… next day, after yoga, I drop by a local tailor’s and ask nicely if she would mind pinning my hem, she admires the dress, boosts my confidence (someone doesn’t think it looks like a sack!), and home I come with hem pinned. An afternoon of errands, another yoga class in the evening, 10:30pm back in front of the sewing machine. Shoulders are sewn, hem is turned up, pressed and sewn, I fall into bed.

… Saturday morning, after a run in the forest, home, a quick shower, I pull on the dress and rush out to the wedding, it passes the cycle test with flying colours. After the gorgeous ceremony, I congratulate the bride, she recognises the fabric (I made her a reversible bag in the same fabric over a year ago, the bag I have with me is lined in more of the same), admires the dress, and during the course of the day makes sure all her family and friends know I am the person who has been teaching her to sew and I made my own dress…

… and just for Jo…… bonus funny story… after the wedding I jumped in the car and headed down to the Belgian Ardennes, our “mountains” for the rest of the weekend. I remembered dog, dog bed, clothes, food, yoga mat, etc, etc… but half way there I realised I had forgotten to pick up any shoes, so I had to hike all weekend in my best smart shoes!

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printer overdrive…

Tags

bloggers, fabric, meet up, sewing, shopping, swap

… a fabulous Belgian/Dutch sewing blogger meet up yesterday, a chance to meet some lovely fellow sewers, put faces to blog names and discover new blogs too…

… over lunch, after visiting a couple of fabric shops, where I picked up a soft, drapey piece of turquoise viscose for another 3/4 sleeve Renfrew – my first one seems to be in the wash every week, I must be wearing it plenty – came the much anticipated fabric swap. I came poorly supplied, I don’t have a stash as such, just a few pieces of fabric earmarked for specific projects, I don’t have many patterns either, I mainly use the same few over and over, or adapt and self draft patterns based on items of clothing I like. Others had plenty to offer, the table piled high, much to the bewilderment of the waitresses and the amusement of other patrons of the wonderful Houtsiplou terrace…

… While everyone went through the offerings I kept my eyes on a couple of pieces – a green on green striped jersey and a brown and yellow patterned jersey, no one else seemed as interested in them as I was, so I brought them home. I also picked up a turquoise and green jersey baby blanket that I am sure will be perfect for a t-shirt. Kamila took a magazine of Japanese patterns I had brought and insisted I chose a couple of pieces from her pile. I went for some green (see a trend here?!) waterproof fabric and, at her insistence,some burgundy red fleecy wool fabric.

… it was also a chance to meet the lovely Lelie of a bouquet of buttons and she brought me a bunch of fabric I had won in a giveaway she ran a few weeks ago…

… after lunch we went to a couple more shops, we tried to visit Le Mercerie de Bruxelles, a tiny, absurdly well stocked and reasonably priced haberdashery, but they, like so many Belgian businesses, were on annual holiday. We went to the huge warehouses of the Chien Vert, it seems appropriate that I bought some emerald green webbing here for a new dog lead…

… home, dog walked, and I started looking at my pile of new acquisitions, planning what I could make with some of them…

… I already have a grainline scout planned with my failed pyjama fabric, I decided the yellow and brown fabric would probably work well for this empire waist top from crafthabits.com and I will make Maria Denmark’s kirsten kimono tee from the baby blanket… so printer was loaded up with paper, and patterns were printed…

… I also printed up the pattern for Madalynne’s Amerson undies while I was at it, I have been meaning to give making them a go for ages, and it isn’t like I don’t have enough scraps!

… I now have a pile of paper that needs laying out, taping then cutting, so I can start sewing…

… but first a few more days of wallpaper peeling…

vive la Belgique…

Tags

belgium, bloggers, brussels, meet up, sewing

… long live the King…

… this weekend is pretty special in Belgium, it is national day on Sunday and we are getting a new King…

… but even more importantly a bunch of Belgian and Dutch sewing bloggers are meeting up in Brussels, organised by Anneke, following the international examples from around the blog-o-sphere, and going for a fabric-shop crawl! The program includes two of my regular shopping havens Berger and les tissus du Chien Vert, but we will also be going to a few places I don’t know including Atchoum and De Banier. There are refreshments on the program too: lunch at Au Soleil and after shopping drinks and a swap at Walvis…

… I think it is going to be a lot of fun!

switching light switches…

Tags

1930s, apartment, berker, electricity, light switches, renovation, replica

… hardly anything had been changed from the original 1930s design…

… the person who owned my new apartment prior to me lived there from the mid 1960s until 2010, when she died, leaving an empty apartment and no one to inherit it. In her time there she had probably added to the countless layers of paint on wallpaper and wallpaper on paint on wallpaper, she had unfortunately relatively recently updated the kitchen and bathroom, but she hadn’t done much else.

… all the doors are original, the windows are original, the wooden floors and granite floors are original, the three fireplaces are original (although sadly not working), and I suspect much of the electrics were original!

… prior to selling in an auction, the solicitor has to carry out all the usual structural and infrastructural surveys. I bought the place knowing full well the electrical survey had a big red “FAIL” stamped across it. That is the first thing I have been tackling – or rather I contracted out. The electricians have been working for a week already, my heart is bleeding as the whole apartment is thick in dust, the walls have gaping gashes that are being patched over, and holes are ready to receive new sockets and light switches…

… when I went back to the apartment after buying it, the second visit after my first 10 minute visit with about 20 other people there, I took the time to look at the details a bit more closely, and I realised it was going to need a bit more than a lick of paint to make it liveable…

… light switches… the place was a concise history in light switches of the 20th century, from the original brass 2 button options, to chunky Bakelite external switches, to inset Bakelite switches, to sleeker square 80s designs (installed with inter-phone wiring, my electricians were “impressed”)… I didn’t actually get round to photographing them all before they were swiftly removed and relegated to the depths of a plastic bag, to be reviewed and assessed at a later date!

… I loved the original brass switches. I am trying to maintain as much original character as I can, while at the same time making it a practical and energy efficient home for the 21st century. I googled and searched ebay and found similar switches for sale, and thought about it, but then realised I didn’t feel 100% comfortable with them, that I actually wanted something more technologically advanced – I have a lot of respect for electricity!

… then I stumbled upon something that caught my eye… their website stated:

“Modern and classic – the Berker Serie 1930 in the style of the functional Bauhaus design creates a special ambience. The most modern technology concealed behind a timeless classic façade. A perfect combination for those who appreciate that special touch.”

… that ticked all my boxes. I started looking for suppliers, I found one in the Netherlands, I visited a wholesaler here, “no they couldn’t get them for me”, I called the importer “your electrician should be able to get them at the wholesaler”, I sent my electrician back to the wholesaler, “no they couldn’t get them”, I called the suppliers in the Netherlands, “of course we can send them to Belgium”… I ordered my light switches 2 days ago, they arrived today.

… I was like a kid at Christmas as I opened the box, each switch beautifully packaged, my electrician thinks I am mad not taking the cheap basic model, there are some things that can’t be explained…

… now I am thinking I should have ordered the wall sockets too!

feeling slightly guilty…

Tags

apology, basket, blog, fail, knitting

… the most visited post on this blog is the one on “how to knit a basket – kind of“…

… it makes me feel kind of bad every time I see someone has arrived here, several visits a day – usually via a google search for something like “knit basket pattern” – because once they get here they will see I had great intentions – and failed miserably!

… I have since found a other patterns for baskets like this one, but haven’t ventured to test any of them…

… I guess people can learn from my post about what not to do, and what kind of material not to use!

… so an open apology to everyone who arrives here hoping to find a super pattern, and leaves quietly, probably muttering to themselves “well, that was a waste of time“!

super sweet blogging people…

Tags

award, blog, chocolate, questions

… I haven’t been around for a while…

… wallpaper scraper has replaced seam ripper as my tool of choice lately, I have spent more time in window dealerships than fabric shops and talking to electricians and plumbers rather than reading blogs…

… it was a wonderful surprise to log on this weekend and see that I have been nominated not once, or twice, but three times for the Super Sweet Blogging Award. The lovely Beata at Red Point Tailor, Michelle at Every Stitch I make and Heidi at My Sewing Factory all bestowed this honour upon me, so here goes…

THE RULES: Copy & Paste This Whole Post and Replace All Your Information — who awarded you, for example.

1. Thank the Super Sweet Blogger that nominated you.
2. Answer 5 Super Sweet questions.
3. Include the Super Sweet Blogging Award in your blog post.
4. Nominate a baker’s dozen (13) of other deserving bloggers.
5. Notify your Super Sweet nominees on their blog.

THE 5 SUPER SWEET QUESTIONS:

1 – Cookies or Cake? cookies, especially Jules Destrooper ones!
2 – Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate, but only good quality Belgian chocolate – I am not difficult!
3 – Favourite Sweet Treat? Apart from cookies and chocolate… fresh fruit smoothies…
4 – When Do You Crave Sweet Things The Most? Smoothies, after yoga, chocolate after dinner…
5 – Sweet Nick Name? None that I know of!

MY NOMINEES:

Where to start? In no particular order…

Sewalife, Seamless, dangerously alice, bouquet of buttons, Mercury – handmade fashion, the amazing adventures of taracat, sosewlovely, gjeometry, sewville, een nieuwe jurk, purls and pleats, clouds full of rain, no time to sew…