The Striped Sweetheart Tee

Please look away now if you’re getting sick of various iterations of the Knit Sweetheart Top from Gertie Sews Vintage Casual, as this is my third version. I reckon it’s a good’un, though!

Striped Sweetheart Top 6

In a Nutshell:

A striped tee with vintage, rockabilly vibes. Continue reading “The Striped Sweetheart Tee”

No space of my own! Sewing in a shared space.

I’m always admiring the beautifully organised sewing spaces people share online and get major envy at the idea of a sewing room of my own. But for most of us–especially those on lower incomes or who share a house with young children–having a dedicated sewing room is a dream for the far off future (or possibly September, in my case, but who knows how long it will take Andy to convert the garage into another habitable room…)

But that shouldn’t stop anyone creating, and in the hopes it might give someone else inspiration on how you can sew a lot in a small space and on a budget, I thought I’d share my little sewing corner. It’s not the most photogenic space, but I’m giving you the unvarnished, no-filters, look at what it’s really like in my sewing nook!

So, here’s a relatively tidy pic:

Sewing space 2017 5

My sewing corner is a table and a tall cupboard at one end of our living room/dining room. Luckily there’s plenty of natural light by the window (north facing) so it’s a lovely place to sit and create. This is what the sewing corner really looks like if you pull back a bit and take a look on a more messy day #keepingitreal Continue reading “No space of my own! Sewing in a shared space.”

The Some Like it Hot Dress

Today the heatwave has finally broken here in Somerset, but I’m sharing the perfect dress for summer. Here’s hoping I can get plenty more wear out of it this year! Although I don’t really want any more days as hot as yesterday, thank you very much. That was the hottest June day in my lifetime and I could happily go another 40 years without seeing another one like it.

Anyway, enough about the weather. On with the sewing!

 

Sweetheart maxi dress 2
Yes, I know I shouldn’t have worn a black bra but it was the only colour not in the laundry!

 

In a Nutshell:

The perfect vintage-inspired maxi dress for a heatwave!

Pattern:

The Knit Sweetheart Top from the Gertie Sews Vintage Casual book by Gretchen Hirsch. I made it once before as a black tank top that got loads of wear during Me Made May, but this time I hacked it into a maxi dress with the aid of my knit maxi skirt pattern, drafted using this tutorial. Continue reading “The Some Like it Hot Dress”

Starry, starry dress

Right, well I’ve been busy sewing up a storm this month, but all on one project which I’m doing to an insanely fine finish. French seams galore! And I’m still not quite finished!

Anyway, luckily I have a few of last month’s makes to share with you still, and here’s one I had the foresight to do the pics for when I wore it for the first time, at the very end of Me Made May. Unfortunately neither me nor my photographer noticed I had a twisted strap (curse you, Andy!) and we haven’t had a chance to redo the pics yet. But I’m sharing them anyway because I’m sure you all have the imagination to picture what that strap would look like if it wasn’t twisted. Pretty much the same as the other one, in case you need any help 😛

Denim stars Cleo dress 1

In a Nutshell:

A summer version of my much-loved cord dungaree dress. Starry denim ahoy! Continue reading “Starry, starry dress”

Bucket (and spade) hat

As part of my continuing mission to do at least a little bit of unselfish sewing for my nearest and dearest, I’ve made my boy a summer hat. And now, of course, everyone wants one. I’ve made a rod for my own back!

But seriously, how cute does he look?! Gabriel has always loved a hat, but has an annoying propensity to lose them. I’m just hoping he can keep hold of this one. At least until I’ve made him a newsboy cap…

Gabriel's Bucket Hat 8

In a Nutshell:

A cute and simple summer project, which is a perfect introduction to hats. Warning: you could get addicted to hat making! Continue reading “Bucket (and spade) hat”

May round-up and June sewing plans

Okay, I’m really getting into the swing of thinking of my sewing in monthly chunks. Not sure why this is so helpful to me, but it is what it is. May’s plans are here, should you be interested. But now on to what ACTUALLY happened in May…

Blogged in May:

The month was rather dominated by my Me Made May roundups (Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4 and Week 5) but I did blog my main sewing projects completed in April: The Gertie Skirtie, The Knit Sweetheart Top (black tank version) and the Jalie Drop Pocket Cardigan. I may not bother blogging my simpler April makes (knickers and Daisy’s skirts), or I might lump them together in a future post if I make more knickers. Who knows…

Sewing done in May:

L-R: Denim stars Cleo dress, Striped Knit Sweetheart Top AND Rockabilly headtie, Spotty maxi dress (based on Knit Sweetheart Top) Continue reading “May round-up and June sewing plans”

Me Made May – week five and final round up

Wow, what a Me Made May it’s been! Only my second year taking part, but I’ve learned a huge amount about my style preferences, my wardrobe gaps and about taking better pics. Here’s this years’ posts in full: Pledge, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4.

And to wrap it all up, here’s the last few day’s outfits, followed by some general thoughts on the whole month.

mmmay17 29

Day 29: I wore my freshly made Striped Knit Sweetheart Top for the second day running (don’t judge! It passed the first test of laundry: it didn’t smell or look dirty, therefore it wasn’t dirty). This time I wore it under my needlecord Cleo dress, (fourth appearance) like I’d always planned for this top. Yay, it looked as good as I’d hoped! Continue reading “Me Made May – week five and final round up”

Me Made May – week four

We have truly had ALL THE WEATHER this week, which shouldn’t really surprise me as a Brit living in the West Country, but still, it’s been remarkable. Heatwave days when it was too hot to move, thunderstorms, torrential downpours–we had it all. At least it’s stayed too warm for socks, although the kids seem to disagree. Gabriel gets very upset if we try to put him to bed without socks on, even if it’s 22 degrees C in his room. And then he pulls the duvet over his head /o\

You’ll see some hot weather clothing in this lot, then, and also a couple of new me-mades. How exciting is that?! Okay, contain yourself, people. Let’s roll…

mmmay17 22

Day 22: It’s the first appearance for my Colette Aster blouse, teamed up with my rockabilly headtie. Mixed feelings about this top–it’s really comfy in the heat and I love those mother of pearl poppers, but I don’t think it fits right. I decided this one will be relegated to gardening wear in the future. Continue reading “Me Made May – week four”

Me Made May – week 3

This has been a weird week in terms of weather, with a few days of unrelenting rain, wind and now back to sunshine. Okay, probably not that odd for spring in Somerset, but still, it’s made it more of a challenge to put together new outfit combinations (see my pledge here) as not all that many of my me-mades are suitable. I’m really hoping this next week is as good as it’s meant to be so I can break out more of the summer clothing!

Anyway, here’s what I managed to throw together:

mmmay17 15

Day 15: Tried to find a good indoor photo location as it wouldn’t stop raining! I’m in the Easy Knit Pencil Skirt again (2nd time) and the Wembley Cardie (also second time). This outfit looked quite dull until I added the chiffon scarf, which suddenly tied everything together.

Continue reading “Me Made May – week 3”

My dream cardigan!

Anyone who’s been following my Me Made May posts either here or on Instagram will have seen this cardie plenty of times already, but here’s the full lowdown on what has become probably the most worn item of me-made clothing this month.

Drop Pocket Cardigan 6

In a Nutshell:

Like the title says, this is my dream cardigan! Do you really need to know any more than that?! Oh, okay. Read on, then, to find out why… Continue reading “My dream cardigan!”

Me Made May – week 2

Well, we had a couple of glorious warm, sunny days this week, but then it got cool and rainy. I suppose I should be glad for the garden, but instead I’m wondering how I’m going to get a chance to wear the rest of my summery me-mades this month!

You can find last week’s outfits here, and details of my pledge here, but now on to week two…

mmmay1700010

Day 8: I went for three me-mades today, seeing as how two of them were accessories. I teamed up that black Knit Sweetheart Top (second time this May) with my chunky necklace and freshly made rockabilly head tie. Really liked these together, although I did at times wonder if the head tie was giving off more of a housework vibe than the vintage glam I was after! Continue reading “Me Made May – week 2”

The Gertie Skirtie

It might have taken me a long time to get around to making anything from the book Gertie Sews Vintage Casual, but since the success of the Knit Sweetheart Top I haven’t been able to stop! This is my second project from the book. Read on to find out if I like it as much as the first…

Gertie Skirtie00008

In a Nutshell:

A basic but incredibly useful pattern. Wish I’d paid a bit more attention to my fabric, though!

Pattern:

The Easy Knit Pencil Skirt from Gertie Sews Vintage Casual. It’s a simple pencil skirt with an elasticated waist and all the shaping in the side seams. I cut a size 6, grading to an 8 at the waist as my measurements indicated. Continue reading “The Gertie Skirtie”

Me Made May: week one round-up

This is my second year of Me Made May, and I have so many more garments to choose from this time around! That’s why I decided to up the challenge level to wearing two (or more!) me made items a day, and to try not to repeat any combinations (read my pledge here). It’s totally okay to repeat garments, though. I’m not that well stocked. Maybe next year…

Anyway, I’ve been posting my outfits daily on Instagram (I’m @anna_jo_sews), but thought I’d do a quick round-up on the blog every week, with some closing thoughts. Nothing like a bit of clothes-related navel-gazing, right? 😛
mmmay1700001

Day 1: My Heather Dress and handknit socks. Liked this combo, but felt at points in the day that the socks were a little too warm. Continue reading “Me Made May: week one round-up”

Best Tank EVAH! (aka Gertie’s Knit Sweetheart Top)

Right, I’ve got a lot of sewing from April to get blogged, so prepare yourself for lots of posts this month! First up is one of the most useful garments I’ve ever sewn.

 

Knit Sweetheart Top (3)
I’ve been photobombed by a pine cone!

In a Nutshell:

A seriously versatile basic tank with some cute details, that has become my new favourite top!

Pattern:

The Knit Sweetheart Top from Gertie Sews Vintage Casual. I made the sleeveless variation which Gertie models in the book in black too. Such a copycat! Continue reading “Best Tank EVAH! (aka Gertie’s Knit Sweetheart Top)”

April round-up and May sewing plans

April has been an incredibly productive month for me, sewing-wise, although I must admit the blogging has rather fallen by the wayside. That’s partly because of the way I’ve been working (batch cutting lots of projects, then batch sewing all the grey overlock bits, followed by all the grey sewing machine bits, then the black overlock bits, and so on) which meant that I had lots of projects on the go at once, and most things weren’t completed till nearly the end of the month. It’s also because I wasn’t one hundred percent happy with the finish on two garments, and had to redo them until I was happy. That meant I’ve only just been able to get photos of those two projects, but rest assured, there should be plenty of April’s sewing making it onto the blog in May 🙂

Sewing done in April:

L-R: Jalie’s Drop Pocket Cardigan, Gertie Knit Sweetheart Top, Gertie’s Easy Knit Pencil Skirt

 

Clockwise from left: Daisy’s Striped Skirt, Seamwork Geneva Knickers, Made by Jack’s Mum Speedy Pants Boxers for Gabriel

I also made a black knit school skirt for Daisy, but I don’t have a picture of that one yet so you’ll just have to imagine it. It’s like the striped one above, only, you know, black.

 

There were a few projects I’d hoped to complete in April but didn’t get done: a grey short sleeved tee and some more knickers, along with a school dress for Daisy. But that’s okay, because I made a couple of extra skirts instead 🙂

I had also hoped to get some materials together for a maxi dress (done and ready to cut), as well as a shirt dress and a Moss skirt. Those last two aren’t at all ready, but I’ve been thinking about the shirt dress so that counts for something, right?!

The almost-a-disaster dress

Happy Me Made May, everyone! I’m actually wearing today’s make to kick off my Me Made May (find details of my pledge here). Anyone else taking part?

Right, I’ve finally got around to blogging my last March make: the Heather Dress. Not so tardy, really, as I made a change after completing it, and it’s only just come back off the sewing pile. It’s another installment in my search for the perfect knit dress pattern. Read on to find out if I’m still searching…

Image00007

In a Nutshell:

I remember thinking “I must make this dress!” when the pattern first came out. It had everything I was looking for in a knit dress: a fitted silhouette and big pockets, plus some interesting style lines to make it a bit different to the other knit dresses I’ve made. Took me a little while to get around to actually buying the pattern, but I’m glad I waited as I got it on sale and got to take advantage of all the online feedback about the pattern sizing. Continue reading “The almost-a-disaster dress”