July Projects

I didn't have many plans for this month aside from a camera bag and continuing with a design I'm doing, but I ended up doing all sorts of stuff.

There have been so many damsel flies and butterflies coming in our conservatory this summer we have been planning to get a fishing net of some kind to scoop them out before they die. I ended up making one from a piece of net fabric I had knocking about, some garden wire and the extendable handle from an inspection mirror I took apart ages ago. It actually works really well, pretty ugly though.

DSCF0034

I got my camera bag done. I looked for some inspiration pictures for an interesting shape and made a paper pattern around the camera. There were a few odd angles and curves so it took a few goes to get it looking good. I marked out the pieces on the leather being careful to avoid the flaws in the print, I thought I might have to use my craft knife to cut it out but I managed it with my really sharp scissors. FYI I got my scissors from a magazine that ask people to review items, you apply and if you're picked they send you something that you test and then write a short review. It's worth looking out for opportunities like this. Anyway I cut out all the pieces and used my craft knife to angle the edges, that took ages and was not always as tidy as it could have been, there's probably a special tool for doing it that I don't have. I got my leather hole punch and punched holes along every seam so they matched . I got some thick yellow thread and stitched the pieces together. I cut a groove in the lid flap to form a hinge and stitched the lid on along the back. I went through all my fittings and found a clasp that would work well but I couldn't find any strap fittings that would work. I ended up stitching the cotton strap on with a contrast leather patch over the ends. I used the contrast leather as part of the clasp fitting as I wanted to attach it to the lid in two places. I made a lining with some old blanket and flowered cotton using the same pattern. It's not my favourite bag but I really needed it for my camera so it's fine and it's not a boring black or grey one.

Camera Bag front

Camera Bag back

Camera Bag clasp detail

Camera Bag lining

As the weather has been insanely hot and dry this month I have been wearing my hat a lot. I got my hat years ago from M&S, it's made partially of paper so I can't wash it, it must be way more disgusting than it looks. I decided I needed a new hat and on a trip to the Fabric Guild I got a couple of fat quarters, one a dark denim and one a liberty pattern heavy cotton. I thought the pattern was too much on it's own so I wanted the denim to tone it down a bit. I made a pattern from my old hat and stuck it together with tape, tried it on and fiddled with it to get the brim at a right angle. I cut the fabric out and stitched the sides together first, then stitched that to the top. I made the brim with denim on top some other denim in the middle stuck with sheet iron on glue and liberty pattern on the underneath. I stitched around the brim several times getting closer to the middle to help keep it stiff. I attached the brim to the rest of the hat, then made a linen lining and stitched that in. I also stitched some thin strapping inside for a sweatband. The shape isn't quite what I wanted but it fits well, keeps the sun out of my eyes and I can wash it.

Liberty Hat front

Liberty Hat side

The weather also influenced my next project, I have been meaning to make some summer PJ's for at least a year. The nights have been so unbearable I finally got round to it. I found the pattern for the top of the last PJ's I made and redrew it to be a vest, I made the pattern for the shorts from my fave super baggy men's PJ bottoms. I was going to use the fabric I had left over from my last PJ's but mum thought it was too warm so I got out the sari I dyed the other week and used that instead. I cut out the pieces and stitched them together, for some reason I couldn't get the tension right on my machine so the seams puckered a bit, so annoying. I stitched a channel in the top of the shorts and added some elastic. The vest was way too baggy around the armpits so I moved the seam in 3 inches and tapered it back to the original side seam and added a small bust dart. I did a rolled hem around the bottom, neck and armholes by hand, and bound all the seams by hand. These are really not the best fitting items of clothing I've ever made but as I will never wear them outside the house it really doesn't matter. They are really comfortable and great to wear on a hot night. Love the fabric.

Summer PJ's

Summer PJ's fabric close up

I only found out about the British Heart Foundation sewing challenge after it had ended, I tend not to shop in BHF too often as, for a charity shop, they are pretty expensive. The Big Stitch was an upcycling challenge to buy something in BHF, alter it and put before and after pics on social media. If you look up #thebigstitch you'll find some of the projects people have done. There are some really good things. I particularly liked what a lady called Ellie made (sewingforswing on instagram), she turned two men's shirts and a pair of stripey jeans into a lovely blouse and skirt. There are some really dubious transformation too, it's worth a look.

I did get a great bargain in Loros this month. I always have a good rummage in the craft section, they have a big basket of fabric oddments. I found a bundle of yellow/black check fabric for £3.45, I wondered about it for a while, I held it up against myself to see if I could decide if it suited me or not. As it's cotton I though I could probably dye it if I decide I don't like it as it is, I think it's the blue stripes that were putting me off. I bought the fabric and measured it when I got home, I hadn't realised how long it was, it's 5 meters long, brilliant. I cut a strip off the end and cut that into 4 bits, I also cut 4 bits of white linen. I stitched each piece of linen to a piece of check fabric. I put all the swatches to soak in some salt and soda solutions then mixed some procion dyes up, I mixed a blue, a lavender, a green and a red. I put each pair of swatches in a different dye and left them for an hour. I rinsed the fabrics out and left them to dry. I think the blue worked best as it has the most variety of colours, but I really like the lavender too, I can make a couple of things with that much fabric and dye one of them. I got a blue Dylon in readiness as they were on special but I shall decide about the colour later I think.

Yellow check fabric

Swatches for dyeing

Swatches after dyeing

I made a card for my friends son's 2nd birthday. Last year I made him a card with loads of lift the flaps inside. This year I wanted to make him a card with a pull tab so the picture changes on the front. I searched around for ages till I found a site with a template and how to guide. https://www.cardmakingparadise.com/changing_picture_card.html

I downloaded the template and resized it and added pictures, I used one of my friends son and one of his current fave cartoon character. I followed the instructions for the slider section then did what I wanted for the rest of the card. I basically gave it a red frame and added Happy Birthday in letters I'd cut from my design magazines in cool fonts. I used regular paper to print the pics on, I should probably used something stiffer as the tab bent when I pushed it back in so I added some sticky paper to stiffen it a bit. It came out really well but I'm not adding a pic as I don't want to show a pics of my friends child online.

The sewing machine I won has arrived, it was wrongly addressed so I had to go down my road to fetch it and carry it back in this crazy heat. After I'd had a wash I unpacked the box, (so much packaging) I laid everything out to look at. The machine is a Janome 100 QDC, it came with all it's bits and bobs and a load of extra feet, including a walking foot and a free machine foot. I plugged it in, threaded it up and did a couple of tests to make sure it's working. I'm so happy with it, I could never have been able to afford one myself, every time I've managed to save a few hundred pounds there was always something more important to buy. I can plan some more complicated projects now, but the first thing i'm planning to make is another pair of shorts for around the house.

Janome machine

I have been trying to find a pac a mac that I can just throw in my bag when I'm out for the day. I haven't found one I like that is a sensible price for a rarely used item, I actually saw one for over £200. I had a look at the price of waterproof fabric and anything that's not plain cost more than I'm willing to pay. I have ordered a shower curtain with tentacles on it, it's 180x180 cm, I'm hoping that's enough for a jacket for me, I'm not thin. I've used shower curtains to make things before and they fray really badly but my new sewing machine has a special stitch for fabrics that fray. I shall have a rummage for a pattern and see what I can come up with.

I made my round the house shorts with my new machine, it's so much better than my old one. It should be really as mine cost £80 several years ago and this one retails for nearly £600. I had my instruction book with me so I could fill the bobbin and change to the correct foot. I used the edging foot, I don't think I got the tension quite right when I was zigzagging as it's a bit all over the place but you can't see it. I need to get a little caddy for all the bits and bobs as they don't all fit in the compartment and i'm a bugger for losing stuff in my room. My mum suggested putting my new machine in her studio but I think I will put the old one up there and keep this one handy or I won't make use of it.

I have a 50's style dress that I got in a charity shop a few years back, it has always needed altering but I have finally got round to putting a few pins in it. It also needs a proper underskirt, I have the bits to make one but I'm just not sure how long to cut the bits for the layers. I have looked at a couple of how to's but they were not particularly helpful. I might put the petticoat fabric back in it's bag for now and come back to it at a later date, The dress is looking better so that's something.

I have achieved more this month than I though I had, nothing particularly exciting, but generally useful. The weather has been so hot doing anything has been exhausting, but the heat has also dictated some of my projects. I think next month I will find a pattern for a baggy shirt for the check fabric and a jacket pattern for the pac a mac.