Rip it up and start again!

Hello everyone,

In my last post I mentioned I had been knitting again. well I did but it was months ago.

I started on this pattern. An absolutely lovely twin set with delightful ribbing pattern around the neck with matching ribbing at the lower part of the cardigan.

Taken from this book. Which is filled with fantasic period inspired designs. Mine was such a bargain. The book can be found on Amazon here although it does have a different cover it is the same book.

Well I got so far on the back of the jumper before putting the knitting down, when I eventually came back to it, two things had happened.

Happy the puppy had made a tasty treat of my needle and chewed off the end. Luckly all the knitting was still on the needle. As for the other well I am now a bit bigger than I was when I had started this jumper and there is now no way it is going to fit me.
So decission time, do I pull it all off and start again. Nope, because by now I was a little bored with this pattern and the idea of making two items, I also know being the very slow knitter I am it would not be ready until next summer (hence my love of chunky knits).
I had bought lots of wool enought to make both parts of the twin set. Off I went on a pattern hunt and have decided life should be brought to this little beauty instead.

Sirdar 9522. What is really cute about this pattern, is that the flower is part of the button hole, How sweet is that.

I checked the wool amounts and I have plenty to make the long sleave version in the pink colour shown above. And enough to make the short sleave in the contrast colour I had chosen and can you believe I can not remember what colour that was. I think it was a paler pink to tone with the dark pink rather than contrast against it, but there is a 50/50 chance that I am very wrong.



I am not going to give myself a time limit on this. Because I have a waiting list of items to be made up for other people. Some are presents and two are comissions, (yeah me. two people have asked me to make for them, how cool is that!)  As long as I do not put more weight on, it should fit. It will be less forgiving the the tight fitted twinset.

It will be a very long time before there is an update on this piece but I wanted to share with you what has kept me away from my little blog for so long.

Has anyone else had a change of heart during a project, or even come to the conclusion that they are growing faster than the project they are working on (pregancy excluded, of course) ?

Love to you all Vala x

By the way I love my new size, I now actually have a figure known as curvy and it is great.

A story of two waistcoats and a little bit of Morris dancing.

Hello dear friends,

Sorry I have been away for so long. It feels as though in our little part of the world we have had every season during what usually is known as summer here in Wiltshire.

The holidays have been spent travelling back and forth to Bedfordshire, where my lovely S.H. resides.
We have been to another wedding, and on the creative front I have been sewing, knitting, then giving up on the knitting and starting again.

Meanwhile I am slowly begining to change the face of my little blog. My daughter has offered help to bring more life and colour into it too.

 Now for the first of the makes. These were for two very special little girls. My neices daugthers.

The girls dance in a Morris dance troup,

Now I am a Northerner living 'down South' and when I told people I was going to make my great-neices wasitcoats to hold their Morris dancing medals, everyone thought I meant this

(source)

Now what I did not realise was, the kind of Morris dancing I used to do and the girls do is actually very regional to Lanashire/Yorkshire and North Wales. I only found this out while looking for these pictures.

What the girls do is more like this

(source)
It can be seen as a cross between cheerleading and Irish dancing. Although I had never heard of cheerleading all those years ago but when I tried to descibe it that is the only way I could think of.
If you wish to learn more about Morris dancing it can be found here.

And so to the waistcoats. Using this pattern

I used McCall's M6229. For the fabric I used black cordroy for the outer layer (to support all those medals they are going to win.) and for the lining I dyed a lovely firm white cotton sheet black. I would guess it was egyptian cotton by the feel of it but as it came from a charity shop, I will never know.

( my son this evening walked up to me asked if I knew what the word cordroy meant, then proceeded to inform me it is because it is the fabric of kings, and then walked off. He does that sometimes. I do not know if it is true, I would have said that was velvet but hey I am not going to go searching it out. )

The cutting in progess.

And then along came sleepy Javaise, or as he is known Java baby bear (I have no idea why we call him that)

My wonky hand sewn lining edge, really not good. Out came the unpicker, time to redo

Wow, much better. And finally...

The only extra tweak I did was to top stitch all edges. The pattern did not ask for it but I think it gives a much better finish. (Yes the bottom edging is level, it is my model betsy who has developed a wonky side to her personality)

And the back view.

The only tricky bit was the top stitching I used a jeans needle but even so it did not like all those bumps. Even though I cut the seams down to minium so they were inside the top stitch seam.

Now my machine is truely in need of a service and has been for a while. The machine I use is one of those computertized sewing/embroiadary all signing all dancing ones. For some time I have been thinking about getting a more solid and dedicated sewing machine and leaving the other just for machine embroidary and now I am glad I have. The nearest service to me is over an hours drive away, so until I have a day when I can spare the time to take it, leave it and then go back to pick it up. It will be cool to have another machine to use and not lose sewing time while one is away being serviced.

How about you do you have certain machines for certain jobs?
Have you sewn with cordroy, how did you manage the bumps, any tips would be great.

 Love to all Vala x

P.S. I really must remember to do those little tags at the end of each post. Oh dear.

Another direction? Time for a change ?

I have been wondering for a while that a change is required to update and refresh my blog.

I have seen some lovely blog designs out there, background, title designs etc.
I have asked my daughters to help me design and change mine, as any teenager does, they start get board then give up and walk away to do something much more intersting instead.

So I thought I would change slowly, while I figure out the tech stuff.

Firstly the name of my blog, (I know I have talked about this before, but it turns out I was not ready).
When I started blogging I was not ready to open myself up to the world, ok I know I do not have mega following like some, and I like that. but still I hid and since I won the blog award in which you give a little more of yourself to your readers I realise I am still hiding.

When I first started blogging it was under the psudo Sew Vala and the blog was titled 'make it sew... trial and tribulations of sewing'. This I chose as a trekker, trial and tribulations is a  DS9 episode and a pun on TNG make it so'. But graduly I thought this title made it sound as sewing was such hard work. Yes it is I am a slow learner, mainly because once I do something I like to repeat it over and over before I move on  (look at the amount of shirts and dresses I have made from the same pattern) perhaps I should move on more quickly, this way I would learn more to get out of my comfort zone. But sewing and making is also really enjoyable and what I live for. If I cannot create I get 'nouty', grumpy if you like.

So I changed the title to Vala Sews...  with the intention of adding a witty line but the witty line has never appeared, because I cannot think of one. Any way Vala was choosen from one of my favourite characters from SG1 another sci-fi show, My real name is Di. I am a very ltteral person, I once asked my friends to sum me up in one word, idiviualy, to see what they would say and they all said the same thing, unconventional. Which to be honest I was very pleased with, I thought and still think its cool.

I have a very small bussiness selling jewellery, lapquilts and handbags that I have made in the past at craft shows. But my goal is find a style and sell unqiue clothing, or made to order. I have had lots of inquries into the yellow hoodie and plan to make more in different designs of my own which is a start. I have discovered a great love of Japanese Gothic Lolita or Gosu Rori as it is known. It was my daughters who showed me these and have asked for me to make them these clothes as buying them from Japan can be very expensive. My eldest saved up and bought a fabulous outfit from Japan, when it arrived, she was rather taken aback. The outfit is lovely but made from such cheep material she was a little disappointed but loved the overall design, she payed almost £100 for this outfit. My skill will get there and when it does I will be able to create a similar outfit for less than half of that. For which I am sure she will be happy, and if this makes her happy I hope it will make other too.

So in the future there will be inspirational pictures and hopefully completed designs from Gosu Rori while I learn and then some of my own creations. I think my daughters may feel I myself am too old for the look but with some adapations I may 'get away with it' outfits. Along with the Steampunk I adore and of course many more loud shirtd for S.H. I am trying to get my son into them but with no success, jogging bottoms and hoodies for him, I am sad to say.

What does the future hold, well I hope a bright and new colourful blog, with a new name (please keep an eye out for the change and do not be surprised when it happens, wondering who is this.)

Wow what a long post with no pictures, therefore here are a few with visions of a bright new new future.

 

Until next time you lovely people Happy creating,

Di (Sew Vala). x

Finally some makes,

A day after the wedding myaself and S.H. both came down with a viral chest infection. Not nice.

After a few days rest the boardom was bugging me more than the illness so what to do.
A found a cardigan I had started was was at the point where it only needed sewing together and the colar knitting so I picked up the needles and carried on.

Here is the finished cardie

It is hanging weirdly on Betsy (the lady has become very static and clingy, any advice on how to sort this would be greatly appreachiated)But the cardie is level when I tried it on.

I used this pattern

Wendy 5316, with out the fake pockets and with buttons. The cardie looks just as good with a belt.

I have previously made this jacket in teal , but on this one I did large ribbing on the bottom instead of moss stitch, more of a mistake than intentional but I like it.

I hope none of you my friends get struck with this viral infection, until next time xx
Sew Vala. x

A wedding outfit post.

So as promised in an earlier post I said I would tell you more about the gorgeous shoes I bought in Carnby Street when myself and S.H went to visit Liberty's last month.

They are called Abigails Party and are from a lovely shop irregular choice who can also be found on the internet.

I wore them to my nieces wedding last week and despite the large heal (I have such small feet, which makes the heal seem larger) they were comfy all night long.

Here is a picture of some of my family with the lovely bride and groom

Thats me in the blue dress and S.H. was asked what he would be wearing, dare he wear one of the shirts I make, so out came the Batman shirt.
For a wedding you may ask, well why not. The day is all about the Bride and Groom, their love for each other and if we are chosen to share that day with them I am grateful and honoured.
So Congratulations to my lovely neice and her husband, may you have many happy years together ahead of you. 

And my nails

Well thats enough about me next post will be sewing Honestly.

Sew Vala. x 

Things you find at the bottom of the garden,

For the past few weeks we have had a visitor hanging around the ajourning gardens out the back.

He just appears in the evening, sets down to roost,

Wakes us in the morning, then disappears again

 We have asked around and no one knows of a missing cockerall.

Good night all. x

Exciting news

I would like to say a really big Thank You to Wendy over at the butterfly balcony for giving me this blog award. I am thrilled, on three counts.
1, people come over to visit my little blog,
2, people like what they see
3, and that I was thought of to pass this one to.

So the deal is seven little bits of infomation about yourself and then pass it on.

1, I adore loud shoes. I have lots. Amongst my favourites is a pair of bubblegum scented black shoes by Vivenne Westwood. I am currenly saving for a pair of Steampunk shoes or boots from goodgoth.com

2, I live 'in the sticks', many do not understand this phrase they think I just mean the countryside. Its a small village, we do not have streetlights (so at 5o'clock in the winter it is really dark), we do not have a shop or a pub. These are in the next village and we are not on a bus route. I live with my three kids and 6 pets, and we all love it.

3,  I have three tattoos and ten pearcings. For my daughters' 21st Birthday I paid for her first tattoo.

4, I used to play Sudo 3 in a Samba band. Until I had constant pain in my elbow, cortizone injections unfortunalty have left some muscle distrophy which means I can no longer play the drums. My daughter has discovered a local (well about ten miles away) Uklele Band, which sounds like great fun so we hope to pop along there soon.

5, I have dicovered I love Gosu Rori. Japanese Gothic Lolita clothing. Lots of frills, bows, and wild. I have purchased some Gosu Rori books and will be blogging about these shortly.

6, I do not listen to music as much as I used to, parhaps the noise of kids and pets is enough, LOL. But currently my favourites are
Steampunk Opera- Dolls of New Ablion

Steam powerd giraffe-Honeybee

Vocaloid-HatsuneMiku-World is mine

7, I have been studying for my degree for a while now. My next course is Myth in the Greek and Roman Worlds. I have two moduals left to do. Previously I have completed
An introduction into Art and Humanities,
Homer- Poetry and Society,
5Century Athens Democracy and State
History of Medicine 1500-1930

Well thats enought about me, I wish to pass this award onto some of my favourite bloggers.

Rosey at http://sewingadicta.blogspot.co.uk/   She makes the most fabulous cakes and embroidary is gorgeous.

Kimberly at smolderingwickdesigns.blogspot.co.uk  She has fantasic tutorials in sewing and receipes. Shw made her own wedding dress which is beautiful.

Ginny at http://buttons-and-bobbins.blogspot.co.uk who makes the most adorable dresses for little girl.

Ewa at http://sewewellyn.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/self-drafted-1930s-inspired-cotton-top.html who has make some fabulous self drafted clothes.
  
These Ladies inspire me no end when I get stuck. I hope you would like to check out their blogs also.

Another exciting happening for me this week was when I had two of my Loud Shirts published on Fancy Moon facebook page.

One again Wendy Thank you for thinking of me. Sew Vala

Oh and if anyone is intrested Paul Shapera over at http://steampunkopera.wordpress.com/  he writes the most amaizing blog not only about his opera but subjects include, theatre, art, all genres of music, architecture to name but a few.