Friday 28 August 2009

Stitched in time

I'm off to the seaside (again!) tomorrow, making the most of the last weekend of summer. This time I am going to be let out for the whole day (yippee!) and am taking myself and Princess Bunchy down to visit my sister-in-law the Seaside Landlady at her bijou holiday house by the sea, which you can see here. The Head Chef and the General are in negotiations as to who will welcome the B&B guests, and I will have to be up early to bake the cakes to welcome them, but the rest of the day is mine in which to have fun.

I have also been having a bit of stitching fun at home - well, maybe not unalloyed fun as there was a bit of unpicking involved, but I have finished yet another of my long list of outstanding projects.


And I took a photo of some of my sewing bits and bobs because they were looking so fetching - somehow having pretty little bits and pieces of equipment adds to the pleasure of sitting with needle in hand. I can understand why in the past women so often gave each other presents of needlecases and pincushions. The Cath Kidston pincushion will probably be familiar to regular readers from this post, the apple needlebook is from Paper-and-String, the matryoshka one from PaperFish, and the square pincushion from Henhouse Homemade.

All were put to good use yesterday, and I have finally finished this dress for Princess Bunchy, made from McCalls pattern M5458. Just in time for the end of the holidays. Although, as you might remember from here, the little princess tends to favour shades of blue and green, she was rather taken with the red check fabric in the photo on the pattern packet, and commanded me to seek out the same.

And find some I did: Creative Fabrics stock a red check homespun fabric, and I used a small check for the dress, and a co-ordinating larger check for the pockets. The effect is very pretty, but be warned, this is a loose weave and thus tends to fray, so is perhaps not the easiest fabric if you are a beginner. And if in a fit of absent-mindedness you sew up the armholes when attaching the facing, then unpicking also encourages a bit more fraying.

Such pitfalls aside, this is a fairly easy pattern, with no zips or buttons. If you are a complete novice then it is probably best to start with a simple gathered or A-line skirt, before moving on to a simple dress such as Miss Madeline from Samantha at the Handmade Dress which I wrote about here. You will then be ready for  gathering and setting-in sleeves which you have to do in this pattern.


So I can tick off another project from my unfinished list, but now I am in a slight quandary. I need some knitting to take to the beach tomorrow, but the blanket needs a bit more stitching, and then picking up round the edge. Not the work for company. And I have a jumper for Princess Bunchy which needs sewing up - for that I need a bit of peace and quiet. And the stripy bag - lots of different coloured balls of yarn - far too messy to take out for the day.

I could always start something new, I suppose ...

13 comments:

Unknown said...

I love your post. I always used to sew dresses for my girls! I am knitting something which I started two years ago, but I am always up for something new! so take a new something to knit with you! Suzie. xx :)

Amy Friend said...

I love the pockets! What a cute detail.

Marigold Jam said...

Have a good day. Love the little red dress and am sure Princess Bunchy will look lovely in it.

Jane

...Nina Nixon... said...

Beautiful stitchery things and have a lovely day,

Nina x

Diane said...

Ive loved your recent posts - had a sneaky peak whilst at work so daren't leave a comment!!. Ive got Whitstable on my places to visit - it looks really lovely. I think one blogger has fallen out with me because I left him a comment which never appeared on his blog. He was very insulting to tourists who visited his town in summer(of which I am one). I mentioned that I remembered the town when all the tourists desserted it and went to Spain instead - it was dismall and very much like you described Whistable in previous years. The price a town pays for making its living from tourists is obvious to me - the alternatives are often very unnatractive. I am loving your blog.

Michela said...

..just to wish you a fabulous weekend! Hope you have some sunshine!

LPFish said...

OH... that dress!!!! *wants* x x

Anonymous said...

That beautiful dress is something to be proud of it's so pretty. I've just been looking at the house at Pett Level, it's an area I know well and have stayed there many times. Our first visit was about 33 years ago (that's a scary thought). I just love it there, haven't been there for a while and can't remember seeing the house but I am a great fan of that contemporary style in a beach setting.
Adele

Jackie said...

I should think everyone is fighting for a chance to stay in that house. Book me in now! It looks fabulous and on the sea too.
Oh Oh.
Oh.
I love it.
I love the pocket on that red dress and I'm sure I had one like it when I was little. What pleasure !

LOVE STITCHING RED said...

Love the little dress you made. The homespun colours are gorgeous and what I love too! Hope you have a lovely holiday! Best wishes, Carolyn

Yvonne Temple said...

Your blog has brought back so many memories of sewing for my girls when they were oh so much younger.. Thanks for the reminder.
xx

Reading Tea Leaves said...

Ooh I love Beach House - very chic and contemporary, which looks great in a coastal setting. Hope you had a great day by the seaside!

Love the photo of your colourful pin cushions and bits & bobs - very fetching!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Jeanne x

Duchess of Tea said...

Hello darling,
I am back and have missed you terribly!! I have a post on my blog that explains my lengthy absence but enough of that, I just wanted to stop by personally to thank you for the sweet birthday wish you left Cristina and to let you know that your kindness meant the world to us both. I am now off to read the posts that I have missed and to look around your gorgeous blog.
Love & Hugs
Duchess ♥♥♥

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