Greetings from the Southern Hemisphere! I had so wanted to be able to show you the Named Pulmu Skirt finished in all its glory just after the toile post, but I’m afraid things happened and it’s languishing at home while I’m 10 000 miles away. The black crepe looks fabulous and the skirt shell is complete, but I totally ran out of time to make the lining and finish off. One more day would have done it!
I had a week in Cornwall at the end of September, where the weather forecast wasn’t all that favourable. So I decided to take my sewing machine and a couple of projects to while away the time when it was too miserable to stand on beaches or roam through pretty gardens. The dining room of the holiday flat became my dedicated sewing room and I actually did make some progress. The weather wasn’t as bad as the weatherman had made out.
One thing I did manage to finish, finally – was Daughter No2’s crochet granny square sampler blanket. I must have spent around 10 hours sewing in all the ends on the back, mind numbing work, but made easier in the end by a pretty view and a few glasses of wine. It’s only a year late, but she’s forgiven me and the blanket has pride of place on her bed at Uni.
In the meantime, and before I even started the Pulmu toile, I made another pair of Birkin Flared jeans – for me, of course! This brings my total to 4.
The fabric was a lightweight denim with 2%stretch from Croft Mill Fabric. It’s a beautiful dark indigo and is fantastic to wear. I didn’t bother fighting with topstitch thread (again) and stuck with the navy blue ordinary thread. I found a cute button in the stash and voila, a new pair of jeans for me.
They’ve been so comfortable, I wore them for 21 hours on a long haul flight from the UK to South Africa and didn’t bat an eyelid. They kept their shape, I didn’t have a saggy butt or baggy knees and, most of all, they didn’t dig in for all that time sitting in an uncomfortable aeroplane seat. Where do you find this fabulous fabric? It’s called “Formality” and can be found, in low stock now, at Croft Mill Fabrics.
The pocket linings were cut from one of Husband’s shirts. He managed to shrink a couple in the wash so the sleeves are now way too short. I held onto the shirts thinking the fabric would come in handy somewhere (it’s not only lengths of fabric that I hoard). So my pocket bags are pink and stripey!
So these jeans are with me down south and I’m loving them in my travelling wardrobe. I just hope I don’t wear them out before heading back to the big cold, because it would be a shame not to be able to take full advantge of them throughout the winter in the UK.
I made this pair slightly longer than my others, not such a good idea when wearing with flat shoes (and in the mud) but perfect for boots when I get back to colder weather.
But three days after getting back from Cornwall I was on a plane and heading south. I’m with my parents while my mum recovers from a double hip replacement, so there’s precious little sewing going on, although the withdrawl symptoms are great! I was just getting ready to start sewing for autumn and winter, and now my summer wardrobe is having a second outing to the South!
I have made a fabric purchase while I’m here (and I honestly cannot say it will be the last, sorry pledge!!). I was looking for fabric for tops for my mum when I found stuff that just wouldn’t let me pass without purchasing. But, it will all be used for winter clothes the minute I get back, if not before!
So I leave you with a little bit of South Africa, and hope I’ll be able to do a little sewing very soon!
THE COMPULSIVE SEAMSTRESS 