Trench coat project part 1
Aquite a while ago I wrote about my plans of making a trench coat. At that time I had the basic materials ready but was still browsing through the internet to find the perfect pattern. I was annoyed to have found out that McCall’s 5525 trench coat pattern was sold out. However, guess what! I was super lucky to find the exact pattern on Ebay after weeks of searching! Now, I said that I hated making toiles. Well, for this coat I made an exception since the materials alone were expensive. I also really need this coat so I did not want to spend weeks making this coat and then…
Sew Over It Coco jacket
Sew Over it released new pdf pattern last week: The Coco jacket and I had to get it immediately. I had a perfect fabric for it that I had by change bought from Sew Over It Clapham shop while visiting London. I was originally planning to use it for a pair of trousers but I still remember the sales person telling me that many people had used it for their Coco class. At that time the Coco pattern wasn’t available outside those sewing classes, so I was so delighted when it was released. Sizing Coco is a Chanel inspired short jacket that is perfect for the kind of weather we…
Red bag for my son
My son has been frustrated with his lack of a proper bag to carry his essentials around. His school bag is too big and bulky if he just wants to take his wallet and phone to visit a game shop or to buy some ice cream. Lately I haven’t made that many things for my son, so I promised to help and make him a boyish red bag. I found this sturdy plastic-backed canvas and the black strap at a local fabric shop called Inkuri. After getting hom, I immediately started cutting the canvas. Without making a proper pattern, I just determined a suitable width to the bag and started…
Cape refashion
Several years ago I got a wool wrap as a present. It was soft and made of a great quality wool, but the style did not really suit me and the wrap stayed in my closet. Finally I decided to refashion the wrap into a stylish cape. I found a cape pattern from a Finnish Moda sewing/crafts magazine. Unfortunately I have since lost the magazine so I cannot tell exactly which pattern I used. This is how the wrap looked like: I shortened the pattern a lot, since I wanted a short cape. Because of the length of the wrap I had plenty of extra fabric to make a standing…
Sewing and doodles #2
Watch were you step. My mother sews…
Leather slippers
S’s teacher recommended having indoor shoes at school, so I took the opportunity to practice my leather sewing skills. Finnish sewing blogger Maria has generously published a free pattern and a tutorial for kids’ leather slippers. Unfortunately the tutorial is in Finnish, but luckily there are enough pictures to explain the steps. Leather is not very easy to find around here, especially if you don’t want to pay a lot. I took a trip to the local recycling center that is an amazing place. People donate stuff they don’t need and the staff sorts them out and sells them at a cheap price. All the profits go to charity. They have quite…
Sewing and doodles #1
Humorous insights about my life amidst piles of fabric.
My mix-and-match autumn dress with some piping fun
The schools have started and that means it is officially autumn here in Finland. I have been looking for a perfect dress pattern for the dress I have held in my imagination but for vain. In my mind, I had an image of a floral dress with a gathered skirt and a fitted bodice, long sleeves and a peter pan collar. I found this amazing floral viscose fabric from the factory remnant section of Eurokangas. Finally I decided to use the patterns I already owned. Cami dress by Pauline Alice (my version is here) has a perfect bodice and the Rosie dress by Sew Over It a perfect skirt for…
Robots for the little ones (Ottobre 06/2012 2. Nukkumatti and 16. Raide)
My dear friend had a little baby boy and I wanted to congratulate the newcomer and his big brother with matching outfits. Ottobre design 06/2012 had two patterns that suited the purpose beautifully. Ottobre 06/2012 2. Nukkumatti is a baby pyjamas pattern (“Nukkumatti” means “Sandman” in Finnish) but when my children were babies I used to dress them in overalls like these even during daytime due to their easiness. Ottobre 06/2012 16. Raide is a pattern for a basic long-sleeved t-shirt for a little boy or a girl. I found this lovely robot jersey from Paapii design. I bought just one metre of it which was enough for the both…
Shy Bear dress (Ottobre 04/2017 12.)
The schools start on Thursday next week here in Finland and my first-grader is waiting for her first school day enthusiastically. I found some really nice jerseys at Eurokangas and wanted to make something cool and modern but still comfortable. I chose the Ottobre 04/2017 12. Shy bear. Shy bear is a perfect pattern to combine two different fabrics with its different top and bottom parts. Handy little pockets are hidden in the seam. The name of the pattern comes from a really cute bear face appliqué. I left the appliqué out this time but am planning to use it in some other version of this dress. The sleeves are 3/4…
