Catching up

Well it has been a while since my last post that is for sure! Over and above all of the craziness that the world has gone through in the last 18 months, life at the home of Celtic Thistle has been more full on than most. 

Two of our sons, their partners and our two grandsons all ended up living with us over the summer as their house and country moves dragged out. With 4 of them working from home as well, not to mention an overlocker service that ended up taking 2 months instead of 2 weeks sewing was very much on the back burner :)

It wasn't a complete write off though, I managed to make these two half-zip hoodies for the boys before they arrived. First time sewing in an invisible zip! More practise is probably needed on that though :)

Before the overlocker disappeared into the black void that was a supposedly quick service (!) I whipped up a few pieces for the boys.

So we had Tractors

Pirates

Seagulls (very apt for their holiday by the sea!) and rainbow submarines

Surfboards and campervans, especially appropriate when you enjoy sitting in the drivers seat of your Uncle's blue campervan!

Rainbow animals,

 

blue crabs,

nosy Highland cows

and parachuting penguins!

Some pirate boardshorts, first time using boardshort fabric too - very slippery! 

Jellyfish leggings! These have even been worn to school on a "Pantosaurus" day, so I think he likes them :)

Naturally there were a couple of underpants and boxers run up to use up some of the scraps! 

By the time that my overlocker was finally returned my friend's daughter had had a baby boy, so these outfits were soon hot off the needles. I had forgotten how tiny clothes for new babies are :)

It was a busy summer and we were so greatful to be able to spend so much time with our family after spending such a long time apart :)

A little sewing

Thanks for all of your kind words on my last post, I really did appreciate them.

Despite the recent turmoil here there has been a (little) bit of sewing going on.

A top and  2 pairs of leggings for the newest addition to the family.

I made the 3 month size but it doesn't look like he is going to get a lot of wear out of them does it?

Naturally, I turned to my trusty Brindille and Twig patterns for these makes just like I did when I made similar for his big brother.

Of course, I couldn't make for our newest grandson without making something for his big brother too!

Our gorgeous grandson has a vivid imagination and loves dressing up so when I saw this book I knew that I had to buy it.

Here is my first attempt at an outfit from the book - a lion hat, which I am pleased to say fits and has gone down well :) It is admittedly a rather elderly lion with all that grey hair in his mane but sometimes you just have to work with what is available!

And then there were six!

Somewhat surprisingly we have been basking in sunshine in my part of the world recently, not something that the West coast of Scotland is very well known for :)

So it was definitely time to have a go at Brindille and Twig's Banded pants pattern to rustle up some smart new shorts for the gorgeous grandson, who has also been enjoying the summer sunshine. I bought the pattern in April when it first came out, but this was my first attempt at making the shorts.

The gorgeous grandson is not yet 2 but I made the 2 - 3 size as I was worried that the 18 - 24 months size might be too small. (Turns out I was right to make the bigger size as they are not too big at all!)

I rummaged through my knit fabrics and had enough of this blue/black knit to make my first pair. As always with Brindille and Twig the pattern was really straightforward and quick to put together.

So, I had another rummage and discovered that I had enough of the grey and white stripe from an earlier t-shirt for the boy to make another pair of shorts.

Then I came across this great spot knit! I had to be a bit inventive with the cutting on this one so the front has an extra seam up the middle but I was delighted to have eked another pair of shorts out of the remnant.

By now I was on a roll :) I have lots of this plain green knit as the original order from Fabricworm had an ink mark down the middle of the yardage, so they sent me a complete replacement for the original order. As some of the original order was salvageable for these tiny size clothes I ended up with a lot of spare fabric. Can't fault the customer service from Fabricworm I have to say!

Next up another plain from a previous order from Fabricworm. Can you tell that I was having great fun rustling up these little shorts??

Finally a dotty grey with cream ribbing to round off the set!

They should keep the gorgeous grandson smart in the sunshine for a while wouldn't you say, and I didn't even buy any fabric to make them :) Now I need to get cracking on some t-shirts to go with them! Now, that might involve some fabric purchasing because there are just so many great knits around!

So, my New to Me this month is trying out that new pattern from Brindille and Twig, what have you tried out for the first time in June? Regardless of whether it was a roaring success or dismal failure link up to this month's New to Me link party and we can share your pain or celebrate your success!

As always the Link Party will remain open until the end of the month so you still have time to write up that blog post and share your experiences with your fellow bloggers.

An InLinkz Link-up

Shorts, shirts and shirring

Welcome to another New to Me Link Party, come celebrate or commiserate with me on the highs and lows of trying something for the first time!

This month I have sewing related New to Me's for a change.

First up, I tried a New to Me pattern for Baby Bloomers from Vagabond Stitch

The pattern was so easy to follow that I stitched it up twice more!

Of course, shorts need a t-shirt to go with them, so I tried another New to Me pattern from Brindille and Twig

This pattern is free too, so if you need to whip up a t-shirt or two for a child then it is definitely a great one to try. The sewing wasn't altogether without incident, but all troubles were entirely self-inflicted. I was not able to convince myself that no-one would notice the upside down dachshunds from my first cut but, fortunately, I was able to rescue the fabric to make the sleeves! I found attaching the sleeve binding a tad difficult so would probably add that before stitching up the sides next time. This t-shirt is for 12 - 18 months so I suspect it would be even more difficult if I had been making the t-shirt for a newborn. Other than that it was really straightforward to do.

Sadly my third New to Me wasn't anywhere near as successful.

My niece is coming to France for the first time in a couple of weeks and I thought that I would upcycle this dress to make a sundress for her holiday. I don't know her exact size so thought that a shirred top was the way to go. I checked out lots of tutorials, who all stressed how straightforward a technique it was. I found the shirring elastic for sale in the local supermarket, chopped up the dress and set to work.

I stitched the first couple of rows and it wasn't quite as tight as I had anticipated but a couple of the tutorials mentioned that the first few rows might be looser, so undaunted I carried on until I had run out of elastic in the bobbin. Bobbin rewound and replaced I stitched another row, what a difference! Now this looks more like it.

When I had finished stitching with the second bobbin, I had a very tightly shirred piece of fabric but on testing the stretch I think that it is now too tight!

Clearly something is not quite right and I need to find that happy medium between too loose and too tight, so I am hoping that wiser heads than mine out there will be able to tell where I have gone wrong and what I need to do to produce a piece that is gathered but not so tightly that it would be better placed around a wrist than a chest :)

So, these are my New to Me successes and failures this month, now it is over to you. As always the link party will remain open until 23.59 GMT on July 31st, so if you are thinking of trying something new this month but haven't yet here is the nudge that you need. Grab the link party button and take the plunge! Check out the linkers and give them some blogger support for their endeavours too.

An InLinkz Link-up

Then there were three

Once I had made the gorgeous grandson some new shorts for his summer holidays, it was time to get cracking on a couple of t-shirts to complete the ensembles.

As ever I used my go-to Brindille and Twig Lap Neck Tee pattern.

First up, this fun Whale Organic Jersey from Jelly Fabrics that has just been waiting on my shelf to be stitched up into a t-shirt.

Next up, this lovely Organic Jersey stripe fabric from Jelly Fabrics again. I have resisted using stripe fabric before as I worried about the difficulty of matching up the stripes but actually it turned out fine. I think it was probably easier that it was a simple stripe that I was matching. I have some knit fabric that looks like a Fair Isle pattern that I am planning to use for a Christmas top for the gorgeous grandson, but I might need a bit more practise with stripes before I attempt that :)

Last but not least was this Lap Neck Tee made with this fun Flying Hedgehogs Organic Jersey from you've guessed it (!) Jelly Fabrics

I found all of the Jersey fabrics to be 'slippier' than the heavier knits that I have made these t-shirts with before, but that makes them ideal for the lovely weather that the boy will hopefully get on his first summer holiday.

I wish these patterns had been around when my boys were little, not to mention access to such fun fabrics, I could have been a Pro at stitching up boys clothes by now if they had been :)

Good to Go

Remember this hat?

Well, I couldn't just send a hat off to my friend's new grandson, so I dug through my stash of knit fabric from previous projects for the gorgeous grandson and found enough fabric to make this.

My go-to t-shirt pattern from Brindille and Twig. I am definitely getting good use out of that pattern!

This one seemed tiny even although it is only a few sizes smaller than I am now using for the gorgeous grandson.

With the addition of a matching pair of leggings, pattern you will have guessed from Brindille and Twig, I had a much more respectable gift to send off in the post.

Next up some summer sewing for the gorgeous grandson's first holiday :)

Linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts

More tiny togs

When I purchased the t-shirt pattern from Brindille and Twig recently I also bought a pattern to make matching leggings for the soon to arrive new grandchild.

Making the leggings involved tangling with knit fabrics and elastic! So I procrastinated for quite a while before taking the plunge.

Finally I decided that it was time to get off that fence and have a go :) I misread the measurements for the first pair so the stitching of the elastic top was narrower than it should have been, which I corrected in the green spotty pair. I was thrilled to bits though that they were instantly recognisable as baby leggings!

Then I might have got carried away and made some more pairs :)

So have ended up with five pairs made to date and plenty of fabric left to add to that total.

Well, a baby can never have too many changes of clothes in the early days can they??

I have just seen the really cute hooded top that Cathy at Blueberry Patch whipped up on her brand-new serger, I am so tempted to give that a go too. 

Linking up to

Baby steps

Welcome to TGIFF, the link party that celebrates that Friday finish feeling!

This week I have lots of celebrations rolled up into one very little package!

My first celebration is for the fact that I have never sewn an item of clothing in my life before, other than the obligatory costumes for school plays. So, I am beyond thrilled to have produced a recognisable t-shirt :) It might not seem much to the dressmakers reading this, but it is a big deal for me.

Not only is this my first item of clothing, but it is also the first time I have ever worked with knit fabric.

In May I saw the gorgeous baby leggings and hats made by Cathy at Blueberry Patch and thought that it might be fun to have a go. I followed the link to Brindille and Twig patterns and couldn't resist buying a pattern (or two!) Well it was May is for Makers over at LR Stitched, so it would have been rude not to :)

I have to say that working with knit fabric wasn't the easiest thing that I have ever done, and there are definitely a couple of wavy seams in there, but all in all I am pretty pleased with my first attempt with knits.

Which is just as well as I might just have got a bit carried away when I ordered the fabric from Fabricworm and ordered all of these too!

I think that I will have another go at a t-shirt before I attempt the even scarier combination of knit fabric and elastic for matching leggings :)

So, that's my TGIFF finish now it is your turn to link up and celebrate your finishes. Don't forget to check out the other linkers to spread the celebrations around!

An InLinkz Link-up