What I made in January

- Circle skirt

I was not happy with this when it was finished, but now that I wore it I am in love. I discovered a matching petticoat in my closet and it was so much fun to wear it. It´s a bit different to Lolita skirts. Now I can´t wait to make more vintage clothing.



(Oh and as you can see I had a date with the hair dresser. My hair is now much shorter, but I like it and hope to have more time for new ways to style it.)

- I made the petticoat for my Rococo garment

- Chemise is also ready

- Made some christmas gifts, but still not everything is finished

Plans for February:

- 1960 dress
- Simplicity dress (fabric is already cut)
- Crepe by Colette
- Regency stays
- Regency dress
- Rococo stays
- Lady Grey
- Shirt(s)

New books

I ordered some new craft books recently and wanted to share my opinion of them.

Vampire Knits

First is a knitting book. I really don´t know why I buy knitting books, when I don´t actually knit, but the theme of this book sounded really cool. It´s all about Twilight and other vampire stories.
The projects are overall really appealing. If I could knit I would make at least half of the projects. There are a lot of scarves and other accessoiry, but you also find a cardigan and a sweater (for boys).
Maybe my Grandma can make me some things.

Sewing calendar 2011

Although it is called day-to-day calendar there are no projects for every day of the year. All in all it´s over 100 sewing projects for 2 or 3 days. The ones I´ve seen so far (no cheeting, sometimes I love surprises) were interesting, so far nothing I really want to make, but nothing really creepy.
The projects are printed on paper, which I didn´t expect. I thought it would be heavier paper. The pages come in a box, which is not very good made. I am not sure if it will survive the year. Also you can´t store the papers in the box afterwards.
All in all it is a great idea. For the price it is okay.

Vintage Notions

Not really a sewing book, it´s something to look at and enjoy on (rainy) days.
The author collected articles from the 1920s about fashion, cooking, sewing and so on. I can´t wait to read all of them. But alone for the illustrations it was worth the money. If you are in vintage fashion this is a book for you.

Witch Craft

I love this book. There are so many cute projects in it. And it´s all about my favorite holiday. There are almost no practical things, but cute decoration and jewelry. I hope I can make a lot of the projects. Especially I like the food things, because they are easy to make (I am no godess in the kitchen and especially not with English recipes). Oh, and of course I love the ruby slippers.

Review: Sewaholic Patterns - Pendrell Blouse

Pattern Description:

This is a pattern for a sleeveless shirt. I made view B with the ruffles. The construction of the shirt is really amazing.

Pattern Sizing:

I made the size which fit my bust and had no problems.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?

Because I made a mistake with the seam allowance it is a bit tighter than given. Anything else was like I saw it on photos.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Instructions were really easy to follow. But it´s an easy cut so that was to be expected.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

I really like the straight but also a bit playful look. You can wear this to many occasions, if you choose different fabrics.

Fabric Used:

I used a cotton jersey and sewed it with my serger.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

Nothing

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

I plan to sew it again with the same fabric this time in black.

Conclusion:

I love the pattern and hope to make it again and again. It´s such a great wardrobe builder. You can make many different shirts for many occasions. And because it is so long you can wear it with all those vintage (inspired) skirts.

You can get the pattern here. And I also recommend to visit her blog. It´s so inspiring.



Pendrell blouse

poupeegirl

Goals for 2011

Seems like I am the last one to post my goals for 2011, but nevertheless here we go:



1. Vintage challenge

I changed my plan a bit. Goal is now to sew one of my vintage patterns each month. I already have the fabric for six or even seven patterns. And because I bought some more in the last month it´s so difficult to decide which to make.



2. Sew a men´s shirt

Now that I can make a men´s t-shirt I want to make a men´s shirt. I know this will be difficult. At the moment I really like the pattern by Colette patterns because it is slim-fit.



3. Use up my stash

I feel bad buying new fabrics, when my stash is so full. So I have to work more with the fabrics I already have. This will be a hard goal.



4. Finish my Rococo garment

I bought the fabric 2009 so it is time to finish it.

What I made in December

First something I made a while ago:



Little bags as advent calendar for my boyfriend and my parents. It was so much fun to make and fill the bags.

On to the real things:

- scrunchies



Chou chou

poupeegirl

I stick to my challenge and made one each week. And I use them a lot.

- pot holders



I made ten of them as christmas presents. All people liked them so far.

- Pendrell blouse



Pendrell blouse

poupeegirl

Review will follow soon.

- Simplicity skirt



Simplicity Cynthia Rowley skirt

poupeegirl

I am so happy about the outcome. With this my silvester outfit was complete.

- Quilt



I started I think 2 or 3 years ago to collect leftover fabric panels for my blanket. Now it´s finished. It was no fun to sew and I am glad it´s over. But at least my boyfriend likes it, because it´s not to short for him.

Oh, and I made these cute Christmas trees. Because I can´t have a real one.



Plans for January:

- Petticoat
- finish the last christmas gifts
- Crepe sew-a-long
- Lady Grey Coat
- Rococo petticoat
- Rococo chemise
- Stays
- Dress

I know I will not finish all of this, but that´s okay. This month will be my exams so I have to learn a lot.

I hope you all had a good start into the new year.