quilt, guilt and sturdily built

Yep, I worked a bit hard on that title and it's all the worse for it.
I have been sewing a couple of things for myself, but I need to rope someone else in as photographer so no posts on those yet.

So, awkward rhyme number one. Quilt.

How gorgeous are those raindrops?

Progress on quilt-for-Charlie. I bought three prints from the Tula Pink 'Prince Charming' line, because Charlie is a big fan of frogs. And the colour green. I had this beige-ish linen, with small side stripes, in my stash. I thought it worked well for a 'solid' component, but it was all looking a bit pallid.
I was also feeling some guilt (ooh yeah, rhyme #2) because I had bought all these fabrics online from non-Australian sources. I am terribly lucky to have a fabric shop just around the corner from my house. It doesn't stock everything I want; in fact nothing I salivate over such as Anna Maria Horner, Heather Ross, Nani Iro, or eco-friendly stuff I'd love like organic cottons or bamboo. However, it does have plenty of great stuff. If I want it to still be there in one year, five years, ten years... I really should buy more of my fabric there.
Case in point: my regular dealer for hits of quality chenille? Closing down! Apparently the owner has been trying to sell the business for some time without success. Yikes! Anyone know of another Australian source of good chenille?
So anyway. Off I trotted around the corner today and bought two metres of lovely chocolate brown linen to throw into this quilting mix.
The plan is, as you kind of see here, strips of random slices of the three prints, interspersed with strips of the plain colours. Nothing too ordered, even or pattern-like, however a lot simpler than my first quilt.

Third rhyme. This is the sturdily built Singer 201K.

crappish pic, but if I'm ever to post this, it will have to do for now!

It was my Mum's first sewing machine.
A straight-stitcher, built in 1952. My Mum's parents purchased it for her second-hand, since these things apparently cost a bomb when new - something like half a year's average salary. They had it converted for her from knee-lever to foot-pedal operation.
It has sat unused for probably 45 years. I dusted it down, and oiled it up. After I realised the needle goes in sideways (so you thread it left-to-right not back-to-front), it was off and running; purring, in fact. The quietest machine I've ever used.
Here's a closer look at another sewing hand-me-down. This fabulous fake woodgrain sewing box was my Grandma's. It holds heaps but is always a mess and overflowing. Just a little insight here into my sewing space... which is our, ahem, dining table. I could probably count the number of times it has been used for 'dining' on one hand. Jigsaw in background has been there for weeks and is at the difficult-blocks-of-sky stage so the boys have lost interest. It's taking up good sewing space there.

Part of me would love to have a dedicated sewing room. Everything ordered, stored, pretty. But a lot of me likes it just like this: my sewing chaos, in the midst of all the regular family chaos.

- Jane x

Going easy on me

Work has been overwhelming in the last couple of weeks. And it looks like my second career as a wildlife photographer isn't going to pan out. (Small joke there peeps.)

Honeyeater's butt with star dropper

Andy heads off on another overseas work trip next week. My folks are away. I'm feeling a little bit like I need to let a few things slide.
On a 'home day' with Clem, I let him watch a lot of this stuff:

(Picture hung before purchase of ginormous TV)

And when he had a babycino, and asked to 'do the chocolate sugar myself', I let him. For quite a while.

Later in the day I abandoned my small efforts at house cleaning and immersed myself in fabric while I let Clem play 'Red Fish' endlessly on my laptop.
I had just received this gorgeous stuff in the mail:

Tammis Keefe reproduction print

and used it, together with some old barkcloth curtain fabric that never seems to run out, to make Charlie a hanging wall pocket for his loft bed.

The fabrics actually go together a bit better than this low-light photo suggests.

This is it hanging from the picture rail, behind the railing of his high, high bed. It's mostly to hold the book he reads at night but it seemed silly to make just a single pocket. I beheaded two cats on the fabric (oops) but there is a whole one on there as well.
In the evening Andy and I watched Mamma Mia! which on the third viewing is only getting more fabulous. The colours are astonishing; I think the whole thing must be very true to some art director's 'inspiration board'.
Anyway. That was a Good Day. Even if a Bad Mama Day. And much needed.

- Jane x

Japanese pattern + Japanese fabric = love

A friend and I have been swapping Japanese pattern books. I had this Nani Iro double gauze fabric I'd bought as a remnant. I just can't resist 'rescuing' those poor, unloved roll ends at bargain prices.

There was just enough to make up this shirt from Pochee Spring 2010, and I think the texture of the double gauze works beautifully. Plus, the floral helps stop it from looking too clown-like. I hope.

I suppose I should have ironed it.

The sleeves were meant to be longer and gathered into a bias strip finish, but I ran out of fabric and liked the open ends. Ooh look, here it is actually on my body. Not game enough to show face yet ;)

The Nani Iro double gauze prints go right up to the edge. This is great in that you can use the selvedge on sleeve ends etc. However, you can end up with a bit of unintentional branding.

It's kind of loose and vaguely maternity-like, so I'll be recommending the pattern to my friend whose book this comes from, since she actually is currently gestating.

If I made it again I'd definitely shorten the front (what do you call it?) slit part. I did shorten it a bit but it's still too peek-a-boobie to wear without a singlet underneath. Those waif-like Japanese models in the books make layering look so chic but I could do without the extra pouff-factor.

Sorry the photos are still so dark. Will work on that.