I can't take any credit what so ever for this wonderful video. It wasn't filmed by me and I didn't even source it, I stumbled across it on Strawberry Anarchy's blog. But I feel compelled to share it, because not only is it adorable but it explains why babies need so much sleep! Make sure you watch it with your sound on, the song is perfect!
It's made me curious as to what a time lapse video of our house would be like? A fierce tornado throwing all the toys around? Full formed jackets flying out of my sewing machine (it'd have to be a long time lapse)? Jamie pounding Ryvita like one of those speed eating contests? Maia flying through a schizophrenic range of emotions? Actually, we wouldn't have to have a time lapse for those two, just a normal video...
What would a time lapse video of your house be like?
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
Monday, 16 March 2009
3
When I first started sewing I didn't know anything, including which fabrics are hard to sew and which are easier. So all of the first things I sewed were made out of knit material. How those knowledgeable sewers amongst you will laugh! It's a wonder I persisted, because knits can be hard to sew (although not in the same league as satin or organza mind you...). But I didn't know that, and it retrospect it was fortunate in a 'baptism by fire' type way.
One of my Craftster pals recently tried my kimono dress tute and laughingly titled her post 'I tried KitschyCoo's knit kimono (aka I picked the wrong day to stop drinking.)' Although I had a knot of fear in my gut that my tute drove people to drink, it turns out that it's the sewing with knits bit that caused so much angst. I'm no expert, but I thought I would share some of the things I learned about sewing with knits.
I have to admit, my sewing life became much easier when I bought a serger. It does make sewing knits easier by more effectively keeping the layers together, sorting out curled edges by trimming and binding them and the differential feed dial minimises the 'waving' effect so common with knits. But it is possible to get good results with a normal sewing machine.
And then I moved on to little dresses like the one above. Again... easy. Rather than stressing about binding or hemming the neckline and armholes (which I find the hardest part of sewing knits), I used two front and back bodice pieces and just turned them inside out. So my point is... if there is a specific reason you don't like sewing knits (like binding neck or arm holes), be a bit creative with your patterns to avoid the issue.
But if it's just generally that you struggle with knits, here are some other tips:
Sewing with knits
When I first started sewing I didn't know anything, including which fabrics are hard to sew and which are easier. So all of the first things I sewed were made out of knit material. How those knowledgeable sewers amongst you will laugh! It's a wonder I persisted, because knits can be hard to sew (although not in the same league as satin or organza mind you...). But I didn't know that, and it retrospect it was fortunate in a 'baptism by fire' type way.
One of my Craftster pals recently tried my kimono dress tute and laughingly titled her post 'I tried KitschyCoo's knit kimono (aka I picked the wrong day to stop drinking.)' Although I had a knot of fear in my gut that my tute drove people to drink, it turns out that it's the sewing with knits bit that caused so much angst. I'm no expert, but I thought I would share some of the things I learned about sewing with knits.
I have to admit, my sewing life became much easier when I bought a serger. It does make sewing knits easier by more effectively keeping the layers together, sorting out curled edges by trimming and binding them and the differential feed dial minimises the 'waving' effect so common with knits. But it is possible to get good results with a normal sewing machine.
If you're new to knits, I would start with a more straightforward project. The first things I made were trousers with matching appliqued onesies like the one above. Trousers are really easy, quick to make and more forgiving to mistakes. You don't even need to have side seams, just cut each leg on the fold!
And then I moved on to little dresses like the one above. Again... easy. Rather than stressing about binding or hemming the neckline and armholes (which I find the hardest part of sewing knits), I used two front and back bodice pieces and just turned them inside out. So my point is... if there is a specific reason you don't like sewing knits (like binding neck or arm holes), be a bit creative with your patterns to avoid the issue.
But if it's just generally that you struggle with knits, here are some other tips:
- Choose your fabrics well. The thinner the fabric, the harder it is to sew. If it curls up when you cut it, it will most likely do your nut. Good fabrics to start with are fleece, sweatshirting or french terry. Ribbed or waffled knits are especially tricky when you first start out.
- Stabilise. You can try to stabilise knit fabric with spray starch, or you can include a layer of tear-away paper (even tissue paper or coffee filters work) while you are sewing and then just rip away later. This might help your layers from shifting away from each other. Press, press, press and pin, pin, pin. Hemming giving you ulcers? Try ironing it up first with one of those fusible wonder hem tapes, it will add some stability and keep your hem straight.
- Use an appropriate needle. Definitely get yourself some needles that are designed specifically for stretch fabrics. I don't know what's so special about them, maybe they're magic, but they will make your life much easier.
- Test different stitches to see what works best for each fabric. If your stitches are too close together or tight, the fibers are pushed apart and that's one of the reasons the fabric will become wavy. Your sewing machine will probably have at least one 'stretch stitch' (it looks like a little lightening bolt). Some people exclusively use zig zag stitches for knits. If you are sewing something quite close fitting like a t-shirt, a hem will need some stretch in it or the thread will snap when you're putting it on. So a zig-zag or stretch stitch should be used here.
- Raise your pressure foot. Check your sewing machine manual about how to do this, but mine is just a turn of a dial. The less pressure your foot places on the fabric, the better the results. If your foot is pushing down hard on your fabric it causes that pesky waviness as the fibers are forced apart. It's also responsible for the little folds you can sometimes get, because the feed dog causes the bottom and top layers to move at different speeds and the top layer shifts out of the way or folds over itself.
- Finishing. A wavy seam can often be improved (or even fixed) by more pressing and steaming.
This is by no means a comprehensive list, feel free to add your own hints and tips to the comment section!
Sunday, 15 March 2009
3
Lime and Fushia
With my 'To do' list practically stretching down the hall, I'm relieved to have finally finished the tutorial for my asymetrical jacket. I sent pattern pieces to my lovely tester about a week ago but have been so swamped since then I haven't been able to get the tute done. It's been causing me stress, so I consoled myself by using new fabrics for the jacket I used for my tutorial photographs.
Friend Sarah took me to IKEA a couple of weeks ago because I heard a rumour that a new season of their fabrics had come in. I was disappointed that this turned out to be a malicious lie, but I did get to stock up on more of the fabrics I already had, and found a new colourway in this leaf print. I had the black and white already, but found this one in fushia and lime green. Hooray!
Sticking to palette, I reversed the jacket with a plain lime green heavy weight cotton with fushia polkadot buttons. Satan convinced me to try the automatic buttonholing feature of my sewing machine again. I tested it eight times on identical scrap fabric and it worked perfectly. First try on the jacket, you guessed it, it went doolally. It wasn't the end of the world because it was way too short as opposed to too long, but maddening all the same.
Saturday, 14 March 2009
8
Remember this lovely jacket that I made for an order last week? Luckily for me, the customer who bought it is the European editor for a website called Babygadget, which showcases new, innovative, fun, sometimes wacky or highly functional and smartly designed products for little ones. Their words, not mine :) But all true, of course!
And she's given me a lovely write up on the website, I've been virtually skipping around with pride and happiness since I saw it!
Lookee, lookee!
Remember this lovely jacket that I made for an order last week? Luckily for me, the customer who bought it is the European editor for a website called Babygadget, which showcases new, innovative, fun, sometimes wacky or highly functional and smartly designed products for little ones. Their words, not mine :) But all true, of course!
And she's given me a lovely write up on the website, I've been virtually skipping around with pride and happiness since I saw it!
Click here if you want to see the whole thing (which of course you do). And while you're there, check out all the other stuff on Babygadget too, there are some really amazing things!
Friday, 13 March 2009
5
Folksy Finds Dan Jackson
So it's Friday, you know the drill! I normally feature ten different products by ten different sellers, but this week I'm doing something a bit different... I've been desperate to feature someone for awhile but I haven't been able to fit him into one of my categories (plus I can't narrow down his work into a single favourite!). So this week, I'm turning all of my attention to a single person... step forward Dan Jackson!
Hands up, I admit the last one is my favourite. I laugh everytime I see it. Sorry, Mom...
As you've probably gathered if you read my blog, I have a bit of an *ahem* unique sense of humour. I like quirky, I like clever, I like subversive... and I love Dan's photography. He does a lot of amazing things with food and little people:
Hands up, I admit the last one is my favourite. I laugh everytime I see it. Sorry, Mom...
Thursday, 12 March 2009
3
The number game: part two
Really sorry to do this to you two days in a row, but I'm still trying to bash my way through all these orders. Normal service will resume tomorrow, I promise :)
- Orders in last 48 hours: 11
- Heavy colds: 1
- Pounds lost from excessive nose blowing and dehydration: 6
- Showers foregone today to work on orders: 1
- Meals foregone today to work on orders: 2
- Number of hairclips Maia insisted on wearing this morning: 10
- Number of trousers Jamie insisted on not wearing this morning: 1
- Threats issued if trousers weren't worn before trousers were put on: 4
- Number of penises drawn on sidewalk between our house and childminder's house: 13
- Number of times Jamie asked 'What's that?': 300
- Number of times I said 'A flower': 5
- Number of times I said 'I told you, a flower': 10
- Number of times I said 'I told you, a flower, stop asking': 285
- Ulcers: 3
- Number of minutes spent talking about nice shoes with childminder: 10
- Number of nice shoes made: 4
- Child free hours today: 4.5
- Hours spent shaking fist at serger, re-threading serger, muttering expletives at serger: 4.5
- Time Outs given to serger: 1
- Number of times Maia pointed at my frown lines and said 'Wot dat?': 2
- Time Outs given to Maia: 1
- Number of children with mullets: 2
- Number of orders still outstanding: 2
Phew.
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
5
I'm a bit too swamped to write a big post today, so I thought I would just list some pertinent stats:
Let the numbers do the talking
I'm a bit too swamped to write a big post today, so I thought I would just list some pertinent stats:- Total orders in the last 24 hours: 9
- Clothing orders in the last 24 hours: 5
- Plain dry bread rolls consumed by Jamie in last 24 hours: 4
- Hours slept last night: 4
- Number of times I had to reheat my coffee this morning because I kept forgetting to drink it: 3
- Children with conjunctivitis: 2
- Jackets awaiting buttons: 1
- Number of minutes expected to wait for Dad at the bus stop yesterday: 10
- Number of minutes actually spent waiting for Dad while walking up and down busy road trying to enforce hand-holding: 120
- Number of times I considered phoning The Samaritans while walking up and down a busy road trying to enforce hand-holding: 20
- Number of dog poos gormlessly stepped in while walking about waiting for Dad and thinking about phoning The Samaritans: 2
- Cupcakes left: 2
- Testers waiting for tutorials: 2
- Number of times I've caught sight of myself in the mirror and thought I needed a haircut: 40
- Number of times I've caught sight of myself and thought I needed Botox: 150
- Movie dates cancelled with Steven: 2
- Fingers sliced with cutting knife: 1
- Number of cheerios dumped on the floor by my lovely children: 4000
- Anonymous slanderers on my blog: 1
- Number of Maia's babies that freak me right out: 2
Okay, I think that about covers it.
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