Wednesday, February 24, 2010
6:08 PM | Posted by
Odette
Here are some patterns that I bought last week:
Vogue 8581
Vogue 8420
Of course, these patterns have been around for a while and are probably "last year" for the more prolific and keen sewists. But if you take into account that I still want to make the Infinity dress (http://www.rostitchery.com/infinity-dress.html) that has been around on blogs since ca. 2006, it should not be too suprising!
Vogue 8581
Vogue 8420
Of course, these patterns have been around for a while and are probably "last year" for the more prolific and keen sewists. But if you take into account that I still want to make the Infinity dress (http://www.rostitchery.com/infinity-dress.html) that has been around on blogs since ca. 2006, it should not be too suprising! And then there were some fabric purchases too:
Shweshwe for Ingrid with whom I connected via DaWanda whilst browsing her shop alteLiebe (http://de.dawanda.com/shop/alteLiebe):
Shweswe is a traditional South African cotton fabric and as per the SA Fabrics website "worn in one form or other for hundreds of years and made in South Africa since 1982. It was made more popular internationally by Nelson Mandela, who is often seen wearing a Shweshwe shirt. Now entirely manufactured in South Africa, Shweshwe is possibly so-named because of the 'swish-swish' of the fabric as it moves when worn as a dress or skirt."
But I also cut out this pattern, I am going to make the tunic pictured in the right bottom corner. But I actually wanted to make the dress, but I don't wear dresses a lot so the tunic it'll be. I'll keep you posted on the progress...! The pattern promises it is "easy"! 
Shweswe is a traditional South African cotton fabric and as per the SA Fabrics website "worn in one form or other for hundreds of years and made in South Africa since 1982. It was made more popular internationally by Nelson Mandela, who is often seen wearing a Shweshwe shirt. Now entirely manufactured in South Africa, Shweshwe is possibly so-named because of the 'swish-swish' of the fabric as it moves when worn as a dress or skirt." But according to another site, the "original form of this fabric was imported from Europe, as German Settler women wanted to be dressed in the fabric to which they had become accustomed." So there you have it if you have ever wondered about this (or not)!
And then some more fabric to add to my stash:
But I also cut out this pattern, I am going to make the tunic pictured in the right bottom corner. But I actually wanted to make the dress, but I don't wear dresses a lot so the tunic it'll be. I'll keep you posted on the progress...! The pattern promises it is "easy"!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
It's not often that we do something as a family - usually someone is too tired (me!), my husband has some sport to catch up with or we are still having horrible memories from the last time that we went somewhere with the kids - broken glass, spilled tomato sauce, a climbing toddler and a burst balloon all come to mind.
But, it seems we have recovered sufficiently to make a day of it on this previous Sunday. And boy, was it relaxing and fun. We just hit the road up the coast with no specific itinery and turned into all the coastal towns that I have always heard of but could not picture: De Kelders, Perlemoenbaai, Gansbaai, Franskraal, Uilenkraalsmond and Pearly Beach.
Some pictures for posterity:
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
I browse pattern catalogs a lot and have quite a lot of a lots in this sentence!
Anyhow, my nearest big fabric store that stocks patterns is 1 hours drive away in Somerset-West. And I usually go to Somerset-West for the big monthly grocery shopping for all the stuff that is available and/or cheaper compared to our local Spar. But I am digressing - actually just wanted to show some Vogue patterns that really appealed to me. And that I hope to find at said fabric shop. Here goes:
Badgley Mischka for Vogue, I looove this dress, now just need an occassion.....
V8032, love the white top on the left or maybe its because of the nice earings and hair and I would probably never look like that in the blouse....but its still nice!
Anyhow, my nearest big fabric store that stocks patterns is 1 hours drive away in Somerset-West. And I usually go to Somerset-West for the big monthly grocery shopping for all the stuff that is available and/or cheaper compared to our local Spar. But I am digressing - actually just wanted to show some Vogue patterns that really appealed to me. And that I hope to find at said fabric shop. Here goes:
Badgley Mischka for Vogue, I looove this dress, now just need an occassion.....
V8032, love the white top on the left or maybe its because of the nice earings and hair and I would probably never look like that in the blouse....but its still nice!
Oh, and did I mention that I am a Novice sewer?!! Maybe I should rather focus on those 1 hour projects!
Sunday, February 14, 2010
As an acknowledgement of the fact that today is a day for lovers, loved ones, secret admirers and celebrating romance, I did some reading. There are a lot of versions regarding the origins of Valentine's day, but here is one:
"Saint Valentine was a Roman who was killed for his faith on February 14, 269 A.D.
He had refused to worship pagan gods, and some stories say he was a priest who would
marry young couples in secret who loved each other but who did not have parental permission. In 496, his 'saint day' was established. He is associated with love because he fell in love with the daughter of his jailer, and would pass notes to her.
His final note, before he was executed, read 'from your Valentine'. "
I for one, do care for this day - yes, there should be love 365 days of the year, but fact is that life does often get in the way of romance. It is therefor nice that a day is singled out to remind us all - and that goes for Mother's day, Father's day, Christmas and all the rest.
Happy Valentine's day!
Monday, February 8, 2010
I also did some sowing lately - living on a farm, there is always a shortage of fresh fruit & vegetables. So I decided to grow my own (first of course, reading up a lot on the when, where and how's of this growing business) and then earmarked a spot.
I had some seeds that I had bought and started with some salad and herbs, as well as zucchini. The latter germinated really fast and the salad is also doing well. But alas, no sign of any herb poking its tender green bits through the ground. Here is a shot of the spot:
I also got some mint and basil from a neighbouring farmer - the basil is going strong, but the mint is not in the same condition that its name would suggest!
Now for the remaining gardening to-do list:
I had some seeds that I had bought and started with some salad and herbs, as well as zucchini. The latter germinated really fast and the salad is also doing well. But alas, no sign of any herb poking its tender green bits through the ground. Here is a shot of the spot:
I also got some mint and basil from a neighbouring farmer - the basil is going strong, but the mint is not in the same condition that its name would suggest!
Now for the remaining gardening to-do list:
- Buy more lavender
- Buy more iceberg roses
- Buy fruit trees (peach, apple, pear, lemon)
- Plant all of the above
- Plant pumpkin and beans
Well, as they say, Rome wasn't build in a day, so I am not going to put any undue pressure on myself, but I should really get the number of that fruit tree grower ........
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Hi! I finally plucked up my courage and did my first sewing project for 2010! And my first blogging activity as well - figuring things out as I go along! (Has this thing got an "undo" button?!)
I am a novice sewer and am daunted by all that I do not know (yet!) and need to know to make something wearable and unique. I therefor started with a very basic NewLook pattern (http://images.patternreview.com/sewing/patterns/newlook/6648/6648.jpg) and found it not too bad. I have to confess that I did have to use a seam ripper as I attached the ruched waistband the wrong way - well, that's what you get for sewing late at night and doing it in a hurry! Anyway, herewith some pictures of the completed top:
I am a novice sewer and am daunted by all that I do not know (yet!) and need to know to make something wearable and unique. I therefor started with a very basic NewLook pattern (http://images.patternreview.com/sewing/patterns/newlook/6648/6648.jpg) and found it not too bad. I have to confess that I did have to use a seam ripper as I attached the ruched waistband the wrong way - well, that's what you get for sewing late at night and doing it in a hurry! Anyway, herewith some pictures of the completed top:
I am now a bit restless and trying to figure out what to sew next. There is a big fabric stash waiting to be transformed and I do have a lot of patterns (I like to be prepared, not for me those chapters in sewing manuals advising on all the necessary tools one should have! )
Anyway, I will keep you posted!
O.
Labels:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
