It's exam and end of term time so my students are slightly panicking to complete all studies in time for summer and my priority now lies with them. In addition I have exam papers to mark with a very quick turnaround and when you think that peoples' futures rest in my hands it adds emphasis to the important things at this time of year. Projects from the sewing room will be scant for a few weeks as I aim to push people towards brighter and better futures. I use the sewing table as an examination marking space so the machine is packed away.
I will not be completely sewing-free. I bought this book and am fascinated by the shapes and twists and turns that can be made with a bit of fabric. Ideas are just pinging round my head and I fall asleep with fantastical garment plans that will never be made.
Now that I've passed the Burda pattern tracing examination with this, I can be kept busy tracing lots of patterns from all those past issues that I kept in the hope that one day the patterns would just materialise by themselves somehow.
A hint to pass on to you.... I bought a cheap, disposable paper tablecloth in the supermarket the other day for £1.75 and it's just perfect for patterns. It's soft and flexible so real easy to push pins into; takes the indentations of the tracing wheel perfectly; accepts the pen marks without bleeding or rubbing off; is a giant size, about 1.80m x 1m so you don't need to patch two bits of paper together and doesn't rip or tear like tissue paper. And it's SO MUCH cheaper than Burda tissue paper which retails around £3.00 here and I still have to tape two pieces together to get full length.
They come in so many pretty colours that if you were really organised you could colour code your patterns: blue for skirts, yellow for dresses etc etc etc.
And finally, I can still peruse the online fabric shops when I get fed up with real life and need a little bit of virtual living. I'm looking for stretch black and whites to make this top - Marcy Tilton for Vogue V8817.
So far, I've collected the combinations below - but still lots of places to search yet. These are from Tissu.
Of course I shall be reading all about YOUR sewing adventures even if I'm not producing any myself, so keep up the good work.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned. Ruth
I love that V8817 and I can see it in a black and white fabric, too.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with finishing out the term!
Ooh, I like the paper tablecloth tip! Must try it out. I've been using the cheapest gift-wrap but it's a bit too shiny to write on and the pencil doesn't rub out easily.
ReplyDeleteYes, good luck with school...
And doesn't the Pattern Magic 2 book look good?! One day, one day....
Ohh thanks for your support and encouragement - aren't you so glad you're not 17 again?
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for your sweet post and for the good idea of using paper table clothes:it's really cheap,and funny by the colors.Makink pattren by myself,i 'll enjoy to put them in plastic pockets,and find them easely .
ReplyDeleteSee you soon on the blog!