Sewing World Spread (and giveaway!)

I've had to keep this quiet for what seems like forever but now that it's been published  I can tell you that I have a full pattern in the June issue of Sewing World... And a cover mention no less!  Arrow and POW bubble (obviously) added by myself.

Here's the skirt I made and the pattern that's included: it's a drop waisted bubble skirt with a full lining for neatness, an elasticated waist for ease of dressing and in sizes 3 years to 12 years.

There are paper pieces to cut out (as opposed to measurements to draft your own) and a three page step-by-step tutorial.

This picture of the orange linen interior shows how neat the inside finish is.

And this picture shows what happens when a magazine lets a contributor write their own 'About Me'.

There are lots of other projects in the issue and even a bonus House of Pinheiro doppelganger.  Every magazine should have a House of Pinheiro doppelganger if they don't have the real thing.

I had to provide the skirt for the photos, but it's back with me now and I'd like to give it away!  The size is 3y/4y with a 20" waist (stretching to about 24") and length of just under 11".  If you have a three to four year old, a child that will eventually be a three to four year old, you know a child that is or will be a three to four year old, or even if you have one of those creepy kid-in-the-corner dolls that fits the bill, leave a comment for a chance to win.  The giveaway is open internationally and I'll pick a random winner on Sunday; make sure that if you're a no-reply commentor that I can get a hold of you!

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Capturing Childhood: The Workshop

I made a whirlwind trip down to London last weekend for the inagural Capturing Childhood Photography Workshop, travelling down on the train on Friday and back up to Edinburgh on Saturday!  After completing their Collect the Moments and Manual Overdrive e-courses, I was curious as to how much more the workshop would offer.  Obviously, the correct answer is heaps.

The workshop took place in a stunningly beautiful studio with the most amazing light.  The morning consisted of lessons from Kat and Kat on various topics interdispersed with tasks to test what we were learning.  Most helpful to me personally was learning about aperture; shutter speed and ISO I've been able to (more-or-less) wrap my head around but aperture nous remained elusive.  Consequently, I mostly shoot in TV mode and let my camera decide aperture.

But hark! I think I understand it now! The pictures I took on Maia's birthday were indoors with low light (a normal indication of impending failure) and I shot in AV for the first time ever.

We also had a very interesting guest lecture from a professional stylist Poppy Norton about dressing photoshoots, and a late afternoon walk about Shoreditch to practise our outdoor shots.

It was so helpful to be able to pick their brains on the spot about which settings to use rather than poring over diagnostics afterwords to figure out which combinations worked best.  Or didn't, as is often the case for me.

Those of you on Instagram might have seen that I had my own contribution to the workshop (which of course I didn't get pictures of before they were doled out) but nevertheless exist and Kat can prove it:

Rainbow camera straps for the goodie bags! They are comfortably padded and quilted straps with red leather ends and adjustable webbing. After I complete my outstanding orders and get the grown-up Skater Dress out to testers they'll be available in my shop.

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Princess Seamed Skater Dress

During Kids Clothes Week, as well as playing around with the Skater Dress pattern to make a peplum top, I also played around with giving the bodice princess seams.  I only had the tiniest of scraps of Blue Vikings left and never got a chance to use it before it disappeared.  As good a time as any?

Despite starting it a couple of weeks ago I only made it as far as the bodice and bindings before putting it aside because I wasn't entirely convinced it was working.  Feelings of guilt that I hadn't made anything specifically for her birthday made me pick it up and finish it yesterday...  A weirdo dress is better than no dress, amirite?

The original plan was to pipe the seam lines and I did that to the back bodice before the OMGCurliness of the trim (and the resulting seam ripping) made me forgo piping the front.  Of course, I wish I had now because I dig it.  Just walk backwards holding the hair cape, girl.

I think the piping works as it separates the side panels and their expanse of blue from the centre print with its predominant blue- the seam lines get kind of lost and the print kind of runs into the plain. Another idea I had was to mix two prints within the bodice.  Is a princess seam bodice hack something you'd like me to share?

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Today, she is six

To prove the adage 'time flies' is correct, the little girl turned six today.

I'm lucky to be a mum to this firecracker of girl.

She loves hard, she feels big, her smile lights up the room and my heart.

She wants to be an artist when she grows up.

A joker and a ham, with pen forever on her hand.

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New Kid on the Block: Crafty Magazine

I was recently sent a copy of issue two of the new UK magazine, Crafty, for review and wanted to share my thoughts.  There have been loads of new magazines springing up over the last couple of years, be they general multi-craft journals or more specific niche publications for sewing, knitting, crochet. So what sets Crafty apart?

Overall, I'm pretty impressed.  There is a wide array of projects included from the Leichtenstein cross-stitch and clasp clutches seen on the cover, the kitschy cowboy knitted bag, bottle garden, multi-media postcards, stamp pendants and typographical crocheted stool seen in the collage above, and others like knitted plastic bags, five projects using scarves and upcycled tart pan displays.  Not being a knitter or crocheter myself, there are some projects that are of less relevance to me personally but I can still doff my cap in appreciation of their application.   The two projects I am most likely to actually do:

I love the wall decal furniture upcycle and could totally see this working out well when I redecorate the kids' room.  The clutch purse includes three different potential projects (two sewn and one knit) and the frame was included with this issue.  Outside of projects, there are regular features like a news and trends section, a save the date calendar (covering fairs / concerts / festivals), book reviews, and walk-through of a place to visit (this issue is Maltby Street Market).  Finally, there are helpful features on taking good product shots and information on how to set up a pop-up shop.   Add that to a smattering of interviews of and columns by established  independant designers, and  I surmise that the demographic Crafty is wooing are independant designers (or those considering it) and their aficionados.  

The oeuvre of knitwear designer Gary Kennedy, taken from his interview

I think the picture above sums up the general aesthetic I got from Crafty; fun, irreverant, and modern but definitely on the hipster / geek side of the craft spectrum rather than the shabby chic / twee side.  Which suits me just fine, as that's the side I fall on. 

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What's New In Skater Dress Land

Lots of exciting news to share about the Skater Dress pattern!  First up, did everyone see this lovely little girl sporting a miniature Skater Dress?

'But wait, Amanda, surely she's too little for your Skater Dress?' you plaintively ask.  Not so!  I have graded the pattern down for sizes 6-12m and 12-18m, and you can get them for free here.  It's just the pattern pieces to download, if you want the instructions they come with the pattern for the bigger girls. Many thanks to Max California for testing it out and writing such a sweet post, and also for being the co-creator of that delicious baby. Nice work, my friend.

In other Free Skater Dress News, Katie drafted an adorable flutter sleeve for all sizes and is gracious enough to share both the pattern and the instructions! Seriously, one of the kindest people around, Katie is.

Finally, my heart grew at least two sizes last week seeing all of the awesome Skater Dresses pop up in the Kids Clothes Week Flickr pool.  There were heaps on Instagram too!  Love seeing all the variations from appliques, waistbands, pattern mixing, flutter sleeves, peplums... and see that little gentleman top left? Lengthening the bodice of the Skater Dress yields awesome tanks and tees!  Keep on keeping on, peeps.

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KCW: Hosh Pants and Colour-blocked Tee

It's been more than a year since I've gotten Maia to wear woven trousers for more than an hour or two.  They're too tight! They're too itchy! They're too uncomfortable!  To be fair, she has a very valid point;  We have had zero success with store-bought jeans or woven trousers.  Largess in the hip department (for reference she has the same waist to hip ratio as I do) means that despite fitting through the legs, jeans and trousers can rarely be pulled up past her bum even with a fly.  It's an exercise that flies uncomfortably close to body shaming and, ergo, one best avoided. 

 

Enter EmmyLouBeeDoo's Hosh Pants pattern!  The cut sounded very promising for Maia's body- slim through the legs but with extra room to the rear, a nice higher rise, and an elastic to the back to eliminate the dreaded gapping. The pattern only goes up to age five but I graded it up to a six for length and used Maia's measurements through the hips to adjust the back section and rise.  The result... woven trousers that got a full day's wear!

 

The fabric is a lovely stretch sateen that I had left over from the Catriona Dress.  I also made a colour-blocked dolman tee as she's seriously lacking non-patterned basics.  Wondering what that is on the ground?

This weather is killing me.

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