Fabric Friday: Circus at Night

Lions and Tigers and Bears oh my! The circus is in town - carousels, ballerinas, elephants, monkeys - they are all featured on this fabulous printed cotton from Cosmo Textiles, Japan.

When I first saw this fabric in Japan I just knew that we had to stock it. We initially only picked up a small amount but we have just received another shipment which means that there is more than enough for any project you can think of.

There is just something about this fabric that makes my want to make it into ruffles. How old do you have to be before you are too old to wear a ruffle skirt?

-Ky

Wishlist Wednesday: A special one for Curlypops

One of our favourite bloggers, Curlypops is not feeling very well. So this week, we are dedicating the Wishlist Wednesday to her & hope that she has a speedy recovery.

We need to start with a card. I like this bright, happy one from Little Mo & Friends. It says "Sunshine Wishes for You" and it would look very pretty on her treasure shelf after she gets home.

Some Ruby Slippers would be perfect for lounging around the house while curlypops recuperates don't you think? These are made by alifecrocheted and have the best buttons on them.

There is no point lazing around either. Curlypops is always crafting so we would also need to pop in a Surprise Goody Bag from JamboChameleon for her to play with.

And we would wrap it all up in some vibrant, eco-friendly, recycled paper from PaperbyForgetMeNot. I think the yellow would be the best colour to match the card.

We know this is only a 'virtual' present but we hope it cheers you up Cam. Get well soon!

Cloud & Ky

New Dress

I have been working on this dress for quite a while now and have only just managed to finish it.
The pattern is Vogue 2902 and it is only the second Vogue pattern that I have attempted to make. As Vogue patterns are notoriously difficult, I enlisted some help from my sewing teacher, Alison. Even with help it was a difficult pattern to fit due to the strange way that the bodice is constructed. I don't think I have ever done as much unpicking as I did on this dress.

The top band and straps are sewn as a seperate piece that is then topstiched over the main bodice piece. The fit can't be checked until this step has been done. Unfortunately for me, it is the point where I discoverd that the dress needed to be taken in approx 2cm on each side. I had to unpick and resew the side seams on the lining, bodice, piping and top band to do the adjustment.

The front darts are very short and deep and difficult to sew without having pointy bits at the front of the dress. Madonna in her Gaultier stage is not the look I was going for! In the end Alison suggested turning the darts into fake princess seams so that they could be eased out over a longer distance and the pointy bits avoided.

The waistband also proved to be problematic. It took several attempts to get it straight. I also made a belt to hide any remaining wonkiness.

The outer fabric is a Yuwa print that I picked up on sale while I was in Japan earlier this year.
I have lined the dress with cotton voile which ended up costing 2 or 3 times more than the outer fabric. It is worth it as cotton is much better than a synthetic lining in the Brisbane summer heat.

Overall the dress has turned out ok and the skirt has a satisfyingly high twirl rating.

Ky

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Ghastly Bats Now Available

Ghastly Bats from Alexander Henry has arrived in store.

Hand drawn by Phillip De Leon (co-owner of Alexander Henry Fabrics) these fabrics are part of the Ghastlies Halloween range. We have more designs from this range on order and they are scheduled for delivery in August.

Cloud has demanded that I make her a circle skirt or fifties dress out of this fabric. I told her she can make it herself. I'd better supervise though because Cloud has had mixed results with clothes making. Rabbits are fine. Clothes, not so much :P

Like all Alexander Henry products this fabric is of a very high quality and can be used for dressmaking, craft, quilting... anything you can think of really.

Ky