As a dressmaker, people assume that I must make all of my own clothes. Wouldn’t that be a dream! But in real life I am usually too busy teaching and working on commissions to be able to lavish such attention on my own wardrobe (in fact, much like plumbers always have dripping taps in their own houses, I’ve been known to walk around with trouser hems held up with double sided sticky tape and dresses held together with safety pins!). January however, is a quieter month on the whole and gives me the chance to partake in a little fabric-stash-busting, and wardrobe restocking. So this week I’ve decided to share with you the latest makes from my handmade wardrobe. I found this gorgeous piece of wool on the remnant table in Ditto and after a month of sitting on the cutting table being admired by my students it became this mini skirt, with... read more
Firstly, may I wish you all a belated (but none-the-less heartfelt) Happy new Year! The studio was a busy place to be in the run up to Christmas with everyone (including myself) hurrying to finish projects before the Christmas holidays began. I’ve been meaning to share these pictures of student work for weeks now, but as time wore on I realised quite how many were destined to become gifts, and i couldn’t spoil the surprise so I’ve waited until even the last presents have been exchanged before sharing these pics with you. As well as all these gorgeous gifts we’ve been busy making a few goodies for ourselves too… After a sluggish start to 2015, the studio is back in full swing, classes all started up this week and many new projects have been gracing the cutting table, but you’ll just have to wait and see… See you next week!... read more
I found this jumper in a charity shop a few weeks ago, and was instantly attracted to the gorgeous wintry colours and that it is pure wool. With a few holes near the hem and a slightly felted texture it felt snuggly and warm but had obviously seen better days, but for the grand price of £2.99 I gave it a new home. On a rainy afternoon in December I turned it into this….. And these….. And this…. Not bad for just £2.99, a bit of Pom Pom trim and some beads! I realise that wearing them all together makes me look at best like an unfortunate from a 1980’s Clothkits catalogue, and at worst like one of those crazy women who dresses from head to toe in one colour and carries a small dog around in a matching handbag, but for the purpose of the photograph, here I am in... read more
Two winters ago I cut out a coat in some beautiful grey wool that I bought in Ditto, but time was not on my side and Spring had sprung (twice) before I’d finished sewing. The coat pieces were relegated to a carrier bag and banished to the piles of denial beneath the cutting table. Although I don’t make New Year’s resolutions I did promise myself that this year I’d try to finish some of my started projects and not leave anything hanging around in bags gathering dust. So it’s been my mission this week to get this coat finished. I’m hoping to wear it tomorrow on our class trip to London, there’s nothing like a deadline! And here’s the finished article, I really rather like it, what do you think? The pattern I used was Burda 7131, option B. As ever, I didn’t quite stick to the pattern (I added a... read more
Well, it’s getting close to that time of year again. Christmas is already in full swing in the supermarkets and department stores and although I won’t allow myself to be sucked into the hype this early in the year, it doesn’t hurt to be a little prepared when it comes to gifts especially if you are planning to give handmade presents. With so much disposable tat in the shops it’s lovely to slow down and make something personal and thoughtful for our loved ones. There is a bit of a theme emerging in the studio this season with students choosing to make vintage style aprons as gifts for friends and family. You could come and make your own vintage style pinny at a weekend course, suitable for everyone from the complete beginner. Or why not treat someone to a course as a gift? I got so carried away with this vintage apron idea that I made... read more
I was out shopping and spotted this beautiful wool/cashmere mix in Ditto. I knew it wasn’t a good idea for me to make a garment (such a fine, loose weave wool is fairly disastrous when you have pets), so I bought a square and decided to make a shawl. It is such simple thing to do, and allows you wear a piece of fabric you love without making a long term commitment. You could still turn it into something else later. First step was to straighten the grain. Pull one thread from the selvedge of the fabric near the cut edge, I used tweezers to ensure only grabbing one thread… When you pull the thread out it will leave a slight ‘shadow’ giving you a perfectly true line to cut along. Select a very narrow zig zag stitch… Once the edge is cut true, zig zag stitch along parallel to... read more
This is a fairly common alteration but a little time consuming and quite fiddly. Having said that if you have a beautiful jacket but the sleeves are too long it’s really useful to be able to do this job at home, follow this tutorial to achieve a professional finish and save money having it altered by a tailor. You may be feeling a bit daunted but don’t worry, I’ve even taught relative beginners to tackle this alteration in my classes. Note: All of the pictures for this tutorial are featuring a left hand sleeve, First things first, establish the new desired hem line. Try the jacket on and pin it up to the level you’d like it… For a classic man’s jacket this is just about skimming the top of the hand, leaving space for a bit of shirt cuff to show at the wrist, like so… Take the jacket off and transfer the hemline... read more
As we charge ahead into autumn, I’ve been looking back at the glorious summer we had. It’s been all go in the studio, and it’s about time I shared with you some of the amazing work that my students have produced. We’ve had an array of beautiful dresses (some of which have travelled to far-flung places)…. A fabulous collection of shirts… Summery gorgeousness… And some lovely things for little people… And then of course there was Jade’s Prom dress, wow! If you’ve been inspired and think you’d like to learn to make your own clothes then get in touch… Book here to join on one of our courses. See you next week, happy sewing!
I love wearing vintage clothes but it’s not always practical for daily life. They are often too delicate or fragile, and can often be difficult to launder so don’t stand up to the requirements of everyday wear and tear. The other problem for many of us with wearing vintage is that gals were shorter and thinner back then. In addition to their smaller frames ladies would usually wear foundation garments to give them a defined waist and curvier silhouette. Even as a UK 10 I struggle to find dresses from the early 20th century that fit properly, without resorting to this kind of thing… If you simply can’t find vintage clothes to fit then why not cheat and make your own? There are some fantastic patterns available, here is one of my favourites from Simplicity… I made it in a wool/viscose mix from Ditto and used some scraps of red... read more
I recently purchased a walking foot for my sewing machine. Without being over dramatic IT HAS CHANGED MY LIFE! There are certain materials that can render even an experienced dressmaker to a gibbering wreck, reaching for the nearest bucket of gin (I love the idea that you might just happen to have one lying around for emergencies). For me this material has always been leather, but armed with my new foot last week I merrily set about the task of making myself a leather jacket. It has been so much fun and so successful that I thought I’d make a little clutch bag from the left over leather, and share with you so you can have a go for yourself. First of all, decide on the size of you bag. The bag is designed to be turned down twice much as you might fold a paper bag containing sandwiches or a chunk of cake. Draw... read more