Sunday, February 14, 2010

Works in progress.

Firstly, my helpers. Fast asleep, as usual............



Felix has snuggled himself under the blue and white fleece cat quilt to the left.



I was seen taking photos, so Coco demanded a fuss and a tummy rub.



The cat bedding was all in a messy pile so that I could take photos of the projects I am currently
working on.

But first, a couple of completed items. The first is rather an indulgence. This skirt is a kit from clothkits. I do love their cheerful designs. I bought this for myself some months ago in one of their sales. I just could not resist. Fully lined, the skirt is knee length. The design is called "Big Birdie".



The second skirt if a little longer. I made it using the same shapes as the Big Birdie skirt. This was made from a scant metre length I had in my stash. I added the pockets. The striped fabric came from my stash of quilting fabrics. Like the skirt above, this too is fully lined



Now onto the items in progress. First, the knitting:



A delightful cabled bag design by a friend. I just love the way the cables twine into each other. This has a picot edge and will have a ribbon threaded through a series of holes. It is knit from the top down.

Next, another pair of socks? Well yes, I do not feel that seven pairs is quite enough.......... Well, thats my excuse. The pattern is "Wise Hilda's Basic Ribbed Sock" by Kate Atherley.

This time I have tried to make them the same. I have not quite succeeded. I might have done better if I had thought of the idea first and measured the length of the first red length of this variegated yarn. I'll do it next time.



Now the projects I am working on. First, a bag. I need this one for a holiday which is coming up. Since I don't like the handles, I am going to made a shoulder strap instead. Much more practical for me. The pattern is Vogue V8215. You can see the lining fabric to the top right hand side of the bag.

The outer fabric was a remnant from a local Upholsterer's sale, but the lining is an Amy Butler fabric I bought in an online sale.



The next item is a new skirt. Or will be. I had to piece two short lengths of wool tweed together to get enough fabric for this project. The design is from the second edition of "Sew Hip".


The next project will be a re-build. (The link gives details of what I did last time. You will need to scroll down. The finished bag is here.) One of my faithful shopping bags has started to deteriorate badly. I had lined it some time ago to keep it going. Now, however, it needs rather more work. This will be fun!


It is still functional, but the outer is getting rather too thin and going into holes. The lining is holding the whole thing together.



Oh yes, I found these two remnants sticking out of a shelf in a craftshop recently. I can see two nice little evening tops here.

Next week is Half Term Holiday for the local schools, so I can sew................... Hope you have a nice week too!

6 comments:

Christine said...

Hi Mandy. Your Coco looks like a character, by Bob (female cat) does the same thing. You have certainly been busy, cooler weather is ideal for sewing and creating. The hot humid Summer here in Oz has NOT been ideal for anything creative unless you have full ducted air and I don't ! I've been very lazy since mid Jan so now have to play catch up with lots of projects.
Thanks for sharing all your photos,
Hugs from your "sister" Christine in humid Sydney Australia.

Mandy said...

Its nice to hear from you, Christine. I hope the weather cools sufficiently for you to catch up with all your projects.
Best wishes,
Mandy:)

Anonymous said...

I've just been thinking. If you use a long tail cast on, you can put the slip knot at the transition of two colours, that way it would be in xactly the same place on both socks!!

Mandy said...

Thanks so much. What a very sensible suggestion!

CraftyGoth said...

Lovely inspirational blog. And that clothkits website is awesome! Thanks for your kind comment :> Anca

Mandy said...

Thanks so much Anca, for visiting my Blog.
Best wishes,
Mandy:)