Ceylon, a Journey Yet to Be Completed...

Months ago, I spotted the lovely Casey, from Casey's Elegant Musings, sporting her version of the Ceylon dress by Colette Patterns:
Though I am but a beginner, I knew I simply HAD to make this dress, or drive myself crazy in the process.  Unfortunately, I did drive myself crazy in the process, very much so in fact.  Why?  Oh, so many reasons, but the biggest: not properly putting an effort into the muslin (this was a big NO-NO!!!!).  I don't think I can overstate missing this step enough.  Despite the pattern being explicitly labelled 'Intermediate', and well knowing myself as a beginner, I went ahead with it anyway, cutting my pattern out (which I will now have to try to salvage with tracing paper) and, in the process, wasting the beautiful cherry red linen I purchased for the garment.

      As it stands now, my failed first attempt at Ceylon now sits practically hidden in my sewing room, waiting for resurrection.  Since then I have made concerted efforts to improve my sewing skills, making three skirts (one patternless!), and even taught myself to embroider!  Now, with more experiences at my machine, and physical results of my efforts (one of which I wore on a girls' day out with my daughter and mother-in-law), I feel better prepared to retackle Ceylon.  Conquer it I shall...hopefully.  ; )

New Creations

I've been quite bad at updating my posts, but duty (my 3 year old & 18 month old) calls.  I'm on a sewing kick lately.  It's a hobby I love, but also find necessary as today's style isn't quite my thing.  Below are my newest ( mostly) finished pieces.

Based on the Ginger Colette Pattern 

My first patternless skirt!  This one is a nod to the Circle Skirt Sewalong with Casey of Elegant Musings.

I so love putting these two skirts together, and it's spurred me to do more of my own dressmaking.  Must go...fabric awaits...

Mummy & Me

Just got back from a fabulous date--with my 3 year old daughter!  She's absolutely nuts over Cars (or, Roary, a similiar British cartoon, as she calls it).  She was so well behaved, and had a blast.  Having never been to a cinema before, it was a sensory-overload for a spell, but seeing the smile on her face as she saw her favorite characters made it so wonderful.  As if that were not enough, lunch then consisted of McDonalds.  My little Daisy's Celiac's Disease, a gluten intolerance, and a low weight allows her a McD's treat every month, so she was elated.  Daisy not quite ever child; she couldn't care less about what toy lurks within her Happy Meal, as long as her chips as in there!

While we certainly cannot expect such good behavior each time we visit the cinema, it definitely made the date even better---and Mummy didn't have to tear any hair out.  Of course, there was the optional extra charge for seats in the back, but that's another story...

My 1st finished garment!

Ok, am very happy about this: I finished my first garment!  Thursday, with the kids at daycare, and me in need of a change of scene, I headed to Edinburgh (about an hour south of us) for a day out.  I knew that John Lewis (a huge department store) held a large sewing section, so I headed there for a look about.  Whilst there, I found some gorgeous vintage-ish looking pink cotton fabric, and though I just had to have it, have to make something from it.  Grabbing a Simplicity pattern 2609 and a matching zipper, I was all set to make a skirt.

Now, as I've mentioned before, I'm a beginning beginner, so the pattern I chose was labelled, "It's so easy!"  Well, it wasn't, not really.  For someone approaching the project with little or no experience, the pattern wasn't very explanatory.  BUT, with what I've learned so far from the dress disaster, and reading from sewing sites and blogs, I did it!  There are some little mistakes, but nothing that would really show.  I'm still new to making seams straight, but these are things, I'll admit, that won't be very visible.  I'm very proud of my skirt and am excited to wear it outside. Pics to follow!

Dress Agony

A few months ago, brousing through one of my favorite blogs, Casey's Elegant Musings (if you haven't seen, please look it up), I saw Casey modeling an absolutely gorgeous, 40's style dress; in an email, I learned it was from Colette Pattern, the Ceylond dress.  Well, I just had to make it.  Or, at least try, right? 

I ordered my pattern from Colette's (who have an amazing stock of other vintage-inspired patterns), and, rather impatiently, awaited its arrival.  Now, once it did come, I saw, very clearly, it was labelled, "intermediate."  I am, to be frank, a beginning beginner; the only thing I'd made previous were a couple of pillows and Christmas stockings.  But, I figured, why not?  Learning is doing after all.  I went to a local fabric store, bought a gorgeous length of red linen/cotton blend and interfacing.  I even made a partial muslin out of sheets from a second-hand store; it seemed to go well (though, now I can see, it should have been done fully to check sizing).  So I went at that beautiful red cloth with my scissors.

Now I have a red monstrosity that gives off a "boxy" feel, instead of being sleek.  The bust comes nowhere near my own, and the waist, well...the whole thing just doesn't look right. 

Final verdict?  It's hard to say.  I still very much want to do this dress, but the necessary skills just aren't in my possession right now.  Not certain if what I put together can be resurrected, but, one day, I shall try again--this time with a proper muslin.  : )

A Room of Many Colors--someone had so much fun.

As mentioned before, we've recently moved to our first house, and I get to use one of the unused bedrooms for my sewing.  The one choose is desperately in need of redecoration.  The previous tenant was either seven or colorblind.  Two walls are red, one is hot pink, and another is blue.  But it doesn't end there...the ceiling and skirting boards are canary yellow and the door is baby pink.  It's a room that truly brings tears to one's eyes. 

That will all change.  Once I've the ok from the landlords, I have plans to make my sewing room a true haven (especially after a day when my children have driven me to pull my hair out!)  Some of my thoughts have been for a wall border about halfway down, with light purples and greens, with the top half of the wall cream and the bottom a violet.  I also absolutely love a gentle yellow, but I'm not sure.  Any thoughts?  I so cannot wait to turn this into a proper sewing room.

Homesickness Bout

It's the 4th of July, one of my favourite holidays, but one that brings a fresh bout of homesickness.  Though with me in one form or another, right it's like an open sore that cannot be ignored.  If I were back home now, I'd be eagerly awaiting the annual Pops Goes the Fourth by the BYO (or, for those unfamiliar with Boston's patriotic extravaganza, Boston's Symphony Orchestra) alongside the Charles River, making my way to at least one cookout.  I'd deck my children in red, white and blue and hand them little flags to wave about.  As it stands, I am a resident in another country--ironically, the very same one from which my home country celebrates it's independence.  I can only hope for recaps of the concert, praying desperately that someone posts the '1812 Overture'.  And those children I wish to dress up in the spirit of the holiday?  They are British citizens, subject to Her Majesty the Queen--though, when we do relocate back to the States, we can apply for their citizenship due my American birth. 

On the other side of the coin, I genuinely do feel at home in the British Isles.  I like the small portions at UK restaurants, and the extra efforts at manners--I must hasten to add this isn't always the case in Dundee, Scotland's answer to Lynn, MA.  Despite all the things I love about Britain, it simply does not erase or ease the ever present longing for the States, but especially for Boston.  Though certainly not a cure-all by any means, for today we'll be endeaouring to assuage our homesickness with Buffalo chicken wraps and a wee look at an mlb online.