I didn’t let the reason bother me too much; instead, I just got into the business of making stuff. So far this year, I’ve sewn four dresses and knitted quite a few beanies, not to mention my cabled cardigan. I took lots of photos. Honestly, I enjoyed the break and I waited until the time felt right for a return.

That time was last week. Read on for the video and a bit of an explanation of this whole hiatus business…

Watch the Video!

What have I learnt?

What did this latest video teach me?

Firstly, I learnt that I prefer videos of doing stuff over just talking to the camera. I love it when other people do it, but it honestly bores me when it comes to editing. You have no idea how much stuff I cut out in the edit!

“Nope, boring. Nope, I’ve already said what I need to say about that. Nope, people don’t need to bother with that. Nope, nope nope.”

It probably wasn’t boring and people probably would have liked to bother with it, but I didn’t have the patience for it.

The things I did have the patience for included all sorts of establishing shots. Footage of the interesting scenery and wildlife. The video of playing on the swings…

(I had to shoot that twice because I couldn’t actually get on to the swing in the first one. And when I could get on to the swing, I wasn’t able to use most of the footage because it showed more of my underwear than I thought you’d like to see, although I’m pretty sure I was wearing some of my handmade undies, so at least it would have been relevant. Sort of.)

I also learnt it’s important to leave the stabiliser on even if it makes an annoying mechanical noise while recording. Most of the Gooram Falls footage is so shaky I couldn’t even watch it without feeling a little dizzy.

All of this learning leads me to the following point.

Do what you love

This is actually a piece of advice I give in the video – one of my tips to new sewing vloggers – do what you love. Don’t feel you have to conform. I asked people to tell me what they’d like to see on my channel in the future and one of my lovely subscribers said that it didn’t matter – I should take my own advice and do what I love.

That’s when I realised I was speaking to myself when I gave that advice. I should stop putting pressure on myself. Stop telling myself to do tutorials. Stop demanding that I take part in challenges. Stop doing things that don’t feel right for me or suit my style. Do what you love instead.

I’m lucky to be part of this fabulous community and I’m even luckier to have such lovely subscribers. They come on adventures with me. They don’t mind when I completely change things up and try a podcast on for size. They support me no matter what.

So I’m going to be myself in my vlogs, even more so than before. It might get a little random and you might have to squint to see the sewing at times, but I do hope you’ll join me for the ride.

The post Roadtrips & Vlogging Tips appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

One of my hobbies is buying fabric for my stash.

“Well, of course!” you may say. “Everyone who sews needs a stash, otherwise you can’t actually sew anything.”

Here’s the thing, though: the fabric in my stash isn’t fabric I want in my wardrobe.

My ideal wardrobe is packed full of dresses and skirts in strong, jewel tones with bold prints. Up until recently, my wardrobe was full of dresses and skirts in pastel tones with fun but small prints.

I wanted to open up my wardrobe and spend a good few minutes or so deciding which of my fabulous dresses I wanted to wear that day; instead, I’d open up that door and just settle for something.

After a couple of years of this behaviour, I had to face facts: I was buying fabric because I thought it was pretty.

We’ve all seen the meme that goes around every now and then, haven’t we? The one that goes a little like this:

I’ve decided that buying crafting supplies and using them are two separate hobbies.

It was funny the first couple of times I saw it… until I realised that was exactly what I was doing. Instead of building up a stash of fabrics that I could turn into beloved dresses, I was just building a stash of pretty fabrics that I really liked. Perhaps it was time to take some lessons from a past Katie who used to spend hours in shops looking for just the right dress…

Fabric shopping vs. clothes shopping

Once upon a time, I used to buy my clothes. When I walked into a shop, I’d look for the dresses that were a little bit different. A bit retro. I was drawn to the dresses that were covered in silly prints. Magnetically attracted to items that were just a little bit bold.

Let’s take a look at the very first dress I made.

I loved this dress and it was a sad day when I decided to donate it to the local op shop. It was the dress that taught me how badly all of my store-bought dresses fitted me. The dress that taught me a waistband should actually sit on your waist, not an inch or two above it.

And yet, it’s a dress I wouldn’t have bought if I’d seen it in a shop.

The print would have called to me – it’s little cars and caravans, so how could I resist? – and I might even have tried it on (because it’s covered in little cars and caravans, so how could I not?) but I wouldn’t have bought it. The print’s a bit too small and the background colour’s a bit too plain… Perhaps if there was a version with a navy blue or scarlet background… Perhaps then, I’d buy it.

As fabric, however, it was irresistible. Never mind that I don’t tend to wear beigey colours, this is the dialogue that went through my mind at the time.

“It has cars and caravans on it! I have to buy this.”

(Which I did.)

“I shall make a dress from it and call it my Roadtripping Dress!”

(Which I did.)

“I shall wear it on every roadtrip with my friends and it will be amazing!

(Which I did.)

Once I’d started, this fabric buying behaviour became a habit. Time after time, I’d come home with fabrics on pale backgrounds with simple prints when I’d previously been buying dresses in strong colours with bold prints. And I ended up with a wardrobe full of dresses that fitted nicely but were doing a rubbish job of expressing my personality.

Of the first four dresses I sewed, only one remains in my wardrobe. It’s a simple dress with a fitted bodice and a gathered skirt – just like the others – but it has one point of difference: with its retro pink rose print on a faded black background, I would have made a bee-line for in a shop.

Putting a stop to the nonsense

The good news is that I get to talk about this habit in past tense because now that I’m aware of it, I can take steps to avoid making these same mistakes.

My first order of business was to work out what I wanted to wear. I love strong, darker colours and jewel tones are my absolute favourite. Deep navy, teal, purples and magentas are top of the list. I’ve never really liked pastels: they’re nice enough, but they just feel like colours that can’t commit.

Big prints.

Florals.

Colours that go together.

This was the easy part. I already knew what I liked to wear – the trick was to keep that uppermost in my mind when I was shopping for fabric.

Whenever I’m out and accidentally find myself in a fabric shop (this is a well-known phenomenon that occurs to all crafters on a regular basis), I still find myself gravitating towards pale fabrics with pastelly prints. Just the other day, I picked one up, declared it to be lovely, and would have taken it to the counter if I hadn’t taken a firm hold of myself.

If it’s not one of my favourite colours, I’m not buying it.

If it’s a bit on the pale side or features pastels, I’m not buying it.

If it won’t go with anything else in my wardrobe, I’m not buying it.

I’d rather do more with a piece of fabric than just pull it out of my stash and talk about how lovely it is!

Success!

So far this year, I’ve made four dresses. Two of them feature fun prints on navy backgrounds. Another is a riot of deep purples and blues. The fourth one is a fun print on a beige background, but it was meant to be a toile anyway and the print is so colourful it goes with almost anything, so I forgive it.

I have another navy skirt in the works that definitely fits the bold theme: it has a crazy seaside print on it and I’m taking steps to make it extra poufy. Once that’s done, I have a purple leafy/floral print and a matching purple knit that will go perfectly together once they’re a skirt and a top.

These days, I open up my wardrobe and smile like a loon at the sight that greets me. So many dresses and skirts in styles that I want to wear!

Yes, all of that self-discipline is definitely worth it.

Do you suffer from this problem, too?

Tell me I’m not alone in this! Do you buy fabric for your stash that you would never actually wear? Have you developed any techniques to make sure you end up wearing what you buy? Let me know in the comments!

The post Sewing and Stashing: A Tale of Two Hobbies appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

You need some new knit tops for Winter, but you haven’t even pre-washed your fabric yet.

You have so many things you want to sew but nothing ever seems to make it to your wardrobe.

I know. I hear you. This used to be me until I worked out how to fix the problem. Read on to find out exactly what I did…

The problem: projects drag on and never get finished

It feels like you started your latest sewing project last week, but six months have passed and it’s still not quite what you’d call “wearable”. It’s so frustrating! You want this new dress now. It’s cold enough to wear those Winter tops as of yesterday.

But they’re still not finished.

Believe me: I know. I was there. I’d start projects, certain they’d be finished in no time at all, only to find myself ignoring them as they taunted from the dressmaker’s dummy where I’d flung them weeks ago.

Eventually, I worked out what I really needed to get these clothes off my dummy and onto me instead.

The solution: set yourself a deadline!

On some level, we’re usually sewing clothes for a particular reason. You might be running out of wearable undies, for example. Or perhaps you’re going to a wedding and you want to swan around in something new and fabulous. You have two ready-made deadlines right there.

(Please note that any resident felines will not care about your deadline and may, in fact, do everything in their power to hinder your efforts.)

You get to make the rules with your own sewing projects, so you can set a deadline that suits you. It can be as simple as “I want to finish this by the weekend”; alternatively, you could use upcoming events in your life. For example:

• Any type of event (wedding, party, dinner, coffee date, etc.)
• A birthday or anniversary (you can consider the garment to be a gift to yourself!)
• A holiday with friends or family

Recently, I used Easter as a deadline to help me finish sewing a dress. Technically, it still needs belt loops before I can officially say it’s 100% finished, but I’m still taking that as a win. After all, it has a zip, a hem and all the necessary seams required to hold it together; belt loops are just the icing on the cake, really.

Why does a deadline help your sewing?

Some people are super disciplined and able to get on to things without deadlines.

I am not one of those people.

Over the years, I’ve learnt to love a good deadline. It gives me something to race against – a burst of adrenaline as the time grows nearer and I still haven’t finished my seams. But there are some actual reasons that are even better than this.

It helps you plan for events/occasions

Special events do double duty: not only are they a handy deadline, you can use them to ensure you have something lovely to wear at them.

It gives you a goal to aim for (and satisfaction when you meet it!)

Your house is a mess and you don’t know why half of your socks are missing, but you’ve finished your dress in time for coffee with friends and that is a win. A sense of achievement is a fabulous thing to have. You’ll be swanning around looking fabulous in your new dress and no-one will know why you’re looking so damn smug about it all.

But you will.

Unless you’re like me, desperately trying to hide your lack of belt loops while swanning.

It allows you to prioritise your sewing

It’s easy to let your sewing slip when you don’t have a deadline in mind. But when that finish date is looming, it’s amazing how much time you can scrounge for sewing that hem and putting your pockets in your skirt.

I like to plan what I want to achieve each day as I approach my deadline. For example, I might set myself the goal of basting pleats and attaching the skirt to the bodice one day, followed by reinforcing the waist seam and doing my zip the next day. It makes it easy for me to stay on track and make sure everything will be done on time.

Sometimes, I have to say “no” to my knitting when there’s a zip I need to hand-pick if I want to wear my brand-new dress on a coal mine tour.

(I’m not even kidding about the coal mine tour. Check out my Katie Writes Stuff blog for the proof of that coming soon.)

Over to You

So far this year, I’ve used the deadline technique to sew four dresses and one top. It definitely works! You don’t even have to be too tough on yourself, either; once or twice, I may have missed an initial deadline, so I simply switched to a different one. It’s important to remember to have fun, even when you have a deadline looming ahead of you!

Have you ever set yourself a deadline for a sewing project? Is it something you would like to try? Let me know in the comments – I’d love to hear from you.

The post How Sewing to a Deadline can Increase your Productivity appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

What do you mean, That’s a fine way to start?

Oh. Right. Because it’s been well over a month since I posted here. And almost two months since I posted my last video. That.

It does need a bit of an explanation, doesn’t it? Luckily, that’s precisely why I’m here today! Read on to find out where I’ve been and what I’ve learnt in the last month or so.

Why did I take a break?

Searching for inspiration in my tea.

The break was completely unintentional.

I fully intended to record my second podcast the week after my first, but I ran into a slight problem: I’d come down with something and I had absolutely no voice. And while it could have been a fun challenge to record a video using improvised sign language and interpretive dance, I thought I’d simply wait until I could talk again.

The next week, it rained so hard we could barely hear ourselves think.

I was beginning to think interpretive dance might be the way of the future…

And before I knew it, I was out of the habit. It was that simple and it was scarily easy, which made me wonder if it was actually something I needed to do but hadn’t realised until I accidentally stopped. So I listened and I went with what felt right and I’ve learnt a thing or two along the way.

What did I learn from taking a break?

There’s so much pressure to be busy these days. Every now and then, I wonder if I’m doing something wrong because I’m not rushing from event to event or breathlessly explaining to someone that I’m so busy as I rush to the next big thing.

Then I remember that I’m an introvert and I’m fine with that and you can keep your crowded events to yourself, thanks. I’ll be here with my knitting and my cuppa and probably both cats on my lap instead.

So it’s nice to take a break from the noise. I love that our YouTube sewing community is growing by the second. Every time you turn around, there’s a new face with new ideas and new excitement to share and I love it.

But it’s an awful lot to keep up with. And I couldn’t help wondering if my voice was still needed in that chorus when it seemed to be growing like crazy. The sewing and knitting revival is thriving and that makes me happy.

It just so happened I’ve been happier to watch from afar for the last few weeks. While sewing. Or knitting. Or taking photos of my sewing and knitting.

Pleats! Definitely worth all the hand-basting.

Unfortunately, there’s one type of photography I absolutely can’t do: outfit photos. My lovely subscribers are always asking (quite rightly) for a chance to see my finished projects on me rather than my mannequin, Madam.

I’d love to oblige you all, but I’m just rubbish at it.

No, it’s true and I’m OK with it. I’m pretty good at photography but when it comes to turning the camera on myself, it all goes to poo. Have I given up, though? Nope! In fact, I’m toying with setting myself a self-portrait challenge next month (which also happens to be Me Made May, so that could be a fortuitous union).

But why would outfit photos prompt me to take a break? Quite simply, I realised I was putting too much pressure on myself to take outfit photos that never work out.

Which led me to subsequently realise that they probably don’t work out because I’m putting too much pressure on myself.

So the plan is to remove myself from that pressure and work out how to take good photos of myself by starting with a whole bunch of bad ones. There’s nothing wrong with failure, provided you take lessons from it!

Finally, I’ve learnt that it’s good to be selfish every now and then. This is coming from someone who is almost exclusively a selfish sewer and knitter, too! It seems all of my selflessness goes in to creating vlogs and it is something I love to do. If you are part of this community, you know that it takes time to create a vlog or put together a blog post – and we’re happy to do it, because we’re rewarded with lovely comments and connections and a feeling of being part of the community.

But it is a lot of work and it can be awfully good for you to step away and be self-indulgent for a while.

A creative break can be good for you

I’ve done a lot more sewing during my break! Instead of talking about what I’m planning to sew, I’ve actually been sewing it instead. Full confession: this means I’ve started the wrap skirt I was going to sew on my Singer Blue Magic sewing machine. It was meant to be a sew-with-me video, but I never really got set up properly for it. So every time I thought I’d make a start on the skirt, I’d hold myself back because I’d have to set up the video and put on some nice clothes and in the end, it just seemed like too much work.

So even though I really want to do some ‘sew vintage with me’ videos, I don’t think they’re going to happen. You’re most welcome to come to my place and watch me, though! Bonus points if you bring your own vintage sewing machine with you.

Sewing my 1970s wrap skirt on my mum’s Husqvarna.

Almost as soon as I started my accidental break, I felt the pressure vanish. This was not external pressure – not at all. No-one has been banging on my door, demanding podcasts and blog posts. No-one’s been giving me the side-eye and looking impatiently at their watch. Or calendar. Or sundial… whatever’s closest.

No – I’ve been the one causing this pressure, so I’m the only one who can put a stop to it. I’ve always been a crazy perfectionist and I’m trying to take a step back from that by embracing Instagram stories. Yes, an odd place to start, but it works because the whole point of insta stories is that they are raw and unedited and those are two things I do not like my images to be.

But it’s been an awful lot of fun to share raw and unedited images so far. I also like the way you can only comment on insta stories by sending messages – it’s a lovely way to start a conversation with people. This is helpful if you happen to be completely rubbish at starting conversations, ie. me.

The break has also allowed me to focus on something I’ve been bad at since I left my job: self-discipline. It was much more fun to plan videos or update my graphics for my channel than to look at my much-neglected personal website. With vlogs off the agenda for a while, I was able to focus on work that needed to be done and to get to grips with building a more professional personal website.

Although, I have to be honest: I’ve mostly built that professional-looking website in my imagination, but I’ll be making a start on the real thing today.

But there’s always a down side…

I miss the community. It does feel as though everyone is powering ahead without me, but I’m sure that’s just FOMO speaking. And there’s an up side to the down side because I’ve been making an effort to contact people directly. For example, I sent a couple of emails to my old colleagues yesterday and now I have two invitations to go out for coffee and a chat.

That’s a win, in my book!

Will I come back to Vlogging?

The short answer?

Yes!

The long answer?

But I don’t know when that will be!

One of the biggest lessons I learnt during my break was that it’s important to try new things. So be prepared: I may be trying new things, whether it’s experimenting with going live or approaching my videos in a whole new way. I don’t know and it’s exciting that I don’t know. We’ll be going into the great unknown together!

Have you ever taken an accidental break from your blog or your vlog? What did you learn from it? Let me know in the comments – I’d love to hear from you.

The post Why I took an accidental hiatus appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

I wasn’t even this worried when I uploaded my first ever sewing vlog just over a year ago!

Why all the thoughts and worries? Why was I second-guessing myself? Read on to find out.

It’s Sew Old Fashioned: The Podcast Edition

Why the change?

When I started my sewing vlog, I tried to keep my videos around the ten minute mark. I thought it was a good guide: not too long, not too short. It was a length I enjoyed as a viewer, so I figured it would be the ideal length for me as a creator.

Then I found longer videos sneaking onto my Watch Later playlist. I’d been subscribed to a few podcasts but never really watched them as I wasn’t sure I could commit to an hour of viewing, but now I was popping them on and discovering they were the perfect company for some knitting or a hand-sewing project.

As my viewing tastes changed, I began to think about changing my own channel’s content. My ten-minute videos undergo a lot of editing: I love to get things just right and to insert helpful footage or photographs as I go. I end up with a video I’m proud of, but it takes a while to get there! This led me to ask the question: do I want to edit a perfect video or what I rather have a chat with all of my fabulous sewing and knitting friends?

Thankfully, the answer to that is obvious!

I began to wonder if a longer, rambly podcast could cut down on the hours of editing while maximising the time I could spend with my online knitting and sewing circle. So I tried it out and had a fabulous time – right up until I uploaded the podcast and was assailed by a wall of worries.

What makes it a podcast?

This is one of those handy terms that we seem to use however we like! I always thought of a podcast as a purely audio production – the sort of thing I like to play on my Bluetooth speaker as I’m sewing. More and more, however, we see it used as a way to describe a longer video on YouTube, so I just went with the flow there. It’s a handy way to differentiate it from the more common shorter videos.

Is the Sew Old Fashioned Podcast here to stay?

Will I keep podcasting? Oh, yes! I loved having a good old ramble and I’m still amazed that I talked for so long – I don’t really think of myself as a great talker. The finished video was forty minutes long, but there was still a bit cut out. All up, I think I recorded over an hour of rambling!

The main reason I want to continue is because it gives me a chance to share everything without having to wait for next weekend’s video. So many fabulous thrifting finds have gone unshared because I didn’t have a chance to do a thrifting haul video, for example. Now, I can do everything in one go and hopefully provide some entertainment while you’re sewing or knitting.

What did you think of the podcast?

I would love to hear your thoughts on the new format. What would you like to see? Are there segments you’d like me to include? Let me know in the comments below.

The post Getting Podcasty appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

And because the challenge was all about matching pairs, I have a matching pair of links for you! Read on to see what’s on offer.

The Vlog

Watch the video for my thoughts on the dresses and why I chose them. I also have a little update on my plans for my channel at the end.

The Blog

You can also read all about my dresses! My post on Elizbeth’s blog includes some of the close-up shots, so be sure to check it out if you’d like to have a closer look at some of the details.

The Day and Night Dress Challenge 2018: Sew Old Fashioned

You Can Enter, Too!

Remember, the Day and Night Dress Challenge is open to everyone who sews! You have until the 5th of March to post your dresses to go into the running for amazing prizes. Check out Elizabeth’s introductory post for all of the information you need.

The post Day & Night Dress Challenge Reveal! appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

And I’m still going to them, because it’s impossible to stop. You can’t go in to an op shop and expect to buy a particular item; you have to go in with an open mind and a sense of adventure and that’s what I love about the whole experience.

Of course, the actual best part of picking up a whole bunch of treasures at an op shop is telling everyone about it! Read on to see what I found when Tim and I dropped in to a couple of fabulous op shops near a friend’s place.

Country op shops are my absolute favourite: they consistently have the most interesting finds lurking on their shelves. On this particular day, we found ourselves in a fabulous country op shop… and then we walked out of that one straight into an equally fabulous country op shop a few doors down. Given the temptations on offer, I was actually quite restrained with my purchases!

Watch The Video

The Bag With A Dream Attached

What’s the one thing you need to carry all of your new-found treasures? A bag!

This cost me a whole $A9.25 and it has never been used. There’s actually a mark on the shoulder strap from where the buckle has been sitting ever since it was first bought. It’s a Fiorelli bag and they seem to fetch a decent price online, so I’m happy with my $9.25 bargain.

Plus, as I said in my YouTube video, it’s a laptop bag and it comes with a happy fantasy of popping my little laptop inside and heading off to a café where I will drink many a coffee and pretentiously type away at my latest writing project. It’s a bag with a dream attached and you can’t put a price on that!

I’m Always Looking For Sewing Goodies

Op shops are frequently full of temptations other than un-used laptop bags, but I always head straight for the biggest temptation of all: the haberdashery department. I never know what’s waiting for me there. Will I find glorious vintage patterns or dubious creations from the nineties? A handful of bias binding or a whole bunch of curtain heading tape? (I had to look up what that was called, because ‘You know, that stuff you sew to fabric that you can insert the hooks in for curtains’ really wasn’t going to work. I do aim for a certain level of accuracy in my blogging.)

Luckily, both of the op shops we visited had generous haberdashery sections. Here’s a little of what I found. (The fabric finds are coming later.)

Here we have a fabulous Kwik Sew pattern for a raglan t-shirt with a square neckline option, some nice ribbon, and a Singer sewing book. I am in love with that book. It was printed in 1950 and it’s full of glorious sewing goodness. Here’s a quick look inside for you.

I don’t want to be picky, but her dress isn’t fitting that well in the back there. Looks like she might need to shorten the bodice, so it’s lucky she’s currently starring in a sewing book that will teach her how to do it!

All the seams.

I love the illustrations! And it’s nice to see that the list of essential sewing supplies in 1950 remains much the same as today.

I Look For Non-Sewing Stuff, Too

Once I’ve thoroughly picked over the haberdashery options, I frequently head for accessories. I particularly love looking for interesting stockings – I’ve picked up some fabulous coloured and printed stockings in the past! And when you get right down to it, stockings don’t generally last that long, so I’d much rather buy a pair for 50 cents in an op shop than $5 or more in a supermarket.

Here’s what I found this time around:

I didn’t even know about the print on those teal tights – I just saw that colour poking through and thought it was glorious. What a gorgeous teal! I only happened to spot the print when I was filming the video for YouTube and now I love the tights even more. If only I could actually wear them! Alas, it is still very much Summer here, so I will just have to bide my time.

Next up: an addition or two for my belt collection:

Both of these belts go perfectly with the wearable toile I made from Gertie’s Ultimate Dress Book – the trick is choosing which one I want to wear at any given time! The pink belt still had its original tag and the purply-bluey one looks like it was barely used. Together, they cost me a whole $A7.50.

And now, it is time to move on to the best part of all: the fabric haul.

So Much Fabric!

There was so much fabric on offer in both of the shops! I could have bought more but I don’t want to be wasteful, so I settled on a small selection that would work well with existing or planned sewing projects.

These fabrics are destined to become a skirt, a slip or petticoat, and a Winter dress. I wish you could reach into that photo and stroke them all! The navy fabric is some sort of knit that my mum thinks might be a wool blend. It’s so cosy and huggable!

Fortunately, the other two came with handy labels, so there’s no guesswork required.

Pure wool worsted flannel and deluxe satin – at bargain prices.

Then there’s my favourite find of the lot…

My Favourite Find Of The Day

Oh my goodness, I am in love with this fabric. Just have a look at it and you’ll understand why.

Yes, it’s printed fabric and yes, I’m meant to be trying to make some plain clothes to wear with my printed garments, but I couldn’t walk past this. It’s perfection. I’m actually working on a three-part blog post series about defining my style and one of the things I want to sew is floral dresses and skirts on darker backgrounds.

And what’s this? A floral fabric on a dark background. In other words: perfection! I can already see it as a dress with a fitted bodice and a full, pleated skirt. The colours go with so many of my cardigans, too.

The fabric feels like a nice sateen and it has lovely widthwise stretch. I need to turn it into a dress right now. I’m so obsessed with it that I’ve already washed it and I’m planning to make a dress from it once I’ve finished my #dayandnightdresschallenge projects. It will be perfect for Autumn and I can’t wait to swan about in it, possibly while taking my laptop to cafés with my new bag.

And that’s everything I found on a particularly good op shopping afternoon. What was your favourite find? Have you found something fabulous in a secondhand store recently? Let me know in the comments.

The post Fabulous Thrifting Finds appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

Even though I really wanted to.

In fact, even though I really needed to, given the rate at which my underwear was falling apart on me. (Not literally on me, although it was only a matter of time.)

The situation worsened early last year when I bought myself a handful of new undies and found them to be almost unwearable. Too small there. Too big here. Too everything wrong everywhere. There seemed to be only one solution: I had to start making my own undies using a pattern that would fit me and satisfy my own requirements.

Read on to find out what happened next!

I did the only logical thing in the circumstances, which was to record a video about the situation and upload it to YouTube. Because showing your underwear to strangers on the internet is the classy thing to do.

Can I Show You My Underwear?

The best thing about this is that several of my friends from my concert band watch my videos, which meant that the first question they asked me upon seeing me at rehearsal each week was, “Have you made undies yet?”

Unfortunately, for quite a few months, the answer was a sheepish “no.” Why? Because I was engaged in the sort-of-relevant busy work of the first step to sewing underwear.

Step 1: Source Some Patterns; Buy Some Fabric; Panic

As a dedicated op shop fanatic, this was my obvious source of patterns. Any time I saw anything that looked even remotely like an underwear pattern, I snaffled it up with glee.

Bikini bottoms? Great!

Ruffled bloomers to match a tennis dress? Why not!

An actual pattern for actual underwear? Score!

(The pattern in question was Bevknits 7007. I’d never heard of Bevknits before finding this particular gem, which meant I needed to engage in some research about the history of the company, so I am now full of facts that are mostly irrelevant to everyday life but probably quite interesting to anyone who sews.)

Then I bought some fabric online from Spotlight. This was fifty percent successful. On the up side, I learned a vital lesson about jersey and its relative lack of stretch.

Now, armed with both a pattern and one suitable piece of fabric, I did the obvious thing: I panicked and sewed everything else instead.

Step 2: Run Out Of Underwear

By this stage, I was down to three usable pairs of undies, provided you ignored the almost stretchless elastic and the fact that the fabric had become see-through. It was time. I had to step up and ask myself the question: What’s the worst thing that could happen?

Answer: I could ruin a small amount of fabric.

On the other hand, I could end up with a pair of undies that actually fitted me. It was definitely worth the risk.

(This photo demonstrates one of the best things about sewing underwear: When your amazing, fabric-saving technique for cutting out results in one pair of underwear having upside dinosaurs, no-one needs to know.)

Step 3: Trial Your Patterns (While Recording Yourself, Of Course…)

I tried two patterns: the Bevknits pattern and a pattern from Kwik Sew’s Beautiful Lingerie by Kerstin Martensson. There was nothing alarming about it at all! It turns out that sewing with knits is much like sewing with wovens, except there’s a lot more zig-zagging involved.

You can follow this particular stage of the journey in the video below.

The Bevknits pattern turned out to the winner, although it didn’t sit quite high enough on the hip for me (this has always been my problem with ready-to-wear underwear and I now know it’s all because I have a relatively long torso). The Kwik Sew pattern, however, sat a little too high. I needed to reach a happy compromise between the two.

Armed with my new knowledge, I heightened the Bevknits pattern and ended up with a pair of undies that fitted me perfectly. Fabulous! I even unpicked the elastic on the Kwik Sew pair and re-cut them using the modified Bevknits pattern. Tthat’s two lots of zig-zagging, in case you didn’t know. It was a lot of effort, but worth it because I now had two pairs of undies I could wear in comfort! And one pair that wasn’t quite perfect, but was equally wearable.

Step 4: Try Them On

It was time to see how my undies fit…

…on my head.

I really couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate my underwear success than by popping a pair on my head and sharing it on instagram.

Step 5: Sew All Of The Underwear

Now that I’d started, it was impossible to stop! I’d gone from wary to excited in the course of one afternoon. The question was no longer Am I actually capable of sewing underwear? It was now Where am I going to store all of this underwear I’m making?

I may have gone out and bought a selection of printed knits especially for underwear. The great thing about sewing such small items is that you can buy a half metre of a fabric and reasonably expect to get three pairs of undies out of it.

Tim insisted that one of these fabrics be minions. Well, who am I to say no to such a reasonable request?

Fortunately, I don’t have to worry about coordinating my underwear with my outerwear, so I can make them in all the crazy prints I want.

Sewing Underwear Is Easier Than You Think

It’s also much quicker. You could easily make yourself a new pair of undies in half an hour. It takes no time at all to go from cutting out the pieces to taking a photo of your new undies in their origami animal print.

Or, if you prefer, you could just wear them instead.

What about you – are you tempted to give underwear a go? Do you already make your own? Let me know in the comments below – I’d love to hear from you.

The post How I Learnt To Sew My Own Underwear appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

Bascially, it’s time for another Knit and Natter!

Keep reading to find out what I’ve added to my knitted vintage wardrobe.

Watch the video

Better Late Than Never! Or, The Saga Of The Knitter Who Hates Sewing On Buttons

You may remember seeing this cardigan (or possibly jacket) some time ago. In fact, I showed you the finished garment on my channel way back in June. (You can see it here: June Makes – Knitting, Sewing and #thesewbackproject).

It was completely finished… provided I never wanted to do it up. For some reason, I really hate sewing on buttons. I will put it off in favour of more enjoyable pursuits such as washing the dishes or marking out twelve darts with tailor tacks. It doesn’t even take that long, but I seem to build it up as being an impossible task in my mind.

Thankfully, I finally gave myself a good talking to and just sewed on those buttons.

How did I manage to get over my relucatance? I laid out the cardigan on my sewing table with the buttons nearby and essentially sewed on a button whenever I had a spare minute or so. In no time at all, it had its six buttons and I could finally call it a complete garment.

Speaking of the buttons: how amazing is that colour match? My mum originally found these and I talked her into giving them to me because I knew they were pretty much made for my cardigan. Plus, there were only six of them and cardigans generally require seven buttons, but mine happened to need just the half dozen. It was meant to be!

Madam’s New Jumper

Who on earth is Madam? you may be asking, and with good cause. Madam is the name my mannequin managed to give itself, in flagrant breach of the fact that I rarely name inanimate objects. Despite this, the name kept coming out of my mouth every time I moved the mannequin around.

“Out you come, Madam,” I’d say as I dragged her out of her home in the wardrobe.

“Sorry, Madam,” as I bumped into her.

“I’m just going to pop this on you for a tick, Madam,” as I eased my lovely lilac jumper over her decorative knob.

And doesn’t it look gorgeous on her?

When I put it on, all you can see is boob. This is what happens when I wear garments knitted in a wide rib, but I wasn’t aware of this fact when I started knitting this mid-century pattern. I love this jumper to bits and I’m hoping I might be able to wear it with a jacket or coat in Winter; or that I’ll feel more comfortable in it if I keep losing weight thanks to cutting out sugar in my diet.

In the meantime, Madam gets to enjoy wearing this beauty with the diagonal cable detail.

It’s such a fabulous design feature – and it’s done so simply, too.

This jumper has actually taken quite a while to complete, although not because it’s difficult. I shelved it a couple of times to focus on garments that were more seasonal, such as a Summer cardigan. Then there were other times when I failed to read the instructions and had to un-ravel vast amounts of knitting, as seen in this pic on my instagram:

Read the instructions. Read the instructions. Read the instructions. At the start of last week, I was beyond the ribbing and making progress on the back of this jumper… until I realised I hadn't read the instructions as accurately as I should. I had to start from scratch, all because I made an assumption instead of checking the facts. Learn from my mistake: double-check EVERYTHING before you cast on your first stitch! #knitting #vintageknitting #patons #frogging

A post shared by Katie is Sew Old Fashioned (@sewoldfashioned) on Aug 2, 2016 at 6:17pm PDT

What happened there? Well, I should have read the instructions. The pattern directed me to make the front piece first, so when I’d finished it, I cast on the stitches for the back piece and assumed I’d just use the same amount as the front.

As it turns out, there are more stitches used in the front piece to compensate for the effect of the cabling. I actually needed to cast on a completely different amount of stitches for the back. It’s so frustrating having to unravel hours of work just so you can start over again, especially when you know it’s all your own fault.

Eventually, all of the pieces were complete and blocked and ready to be assembled. The finishing touch is the opening on the left shoulder that enables you to put the jumper on. Garments from this era have very tight collars and a shoulder opening is the only thing that will permit your head to fit!

Most of these openings are made with crochet at some point, so it’s very handy to be able to crochet if you’re interested in using vintage knitting patterns.

That Cardigan With The Ruffles

Have I mentioned how much I hated knitting the ruffles on this? Yes? Then I shan’t labour the point.

But I did not enjoy it.

The only thing that kept me going was the thought that those ruffled sections would look lovely when they were done. And they do! I think it’s a clever way to create a design feature that doesn’t involve fancy techniques or extra needles or anything like that. If you know how to knit increases and decreases, you’re fine. Of course, you then need the patience to knit your way through 300+ stitches tightly wedged together on a knitting needle, but once that section is past, everything else is plain sailing.

With my front and back pieces complete, I thought I’d do a before and after shoot to demonstrate why blocking is a form of magic. Have a look for yourselves.

On the left, we have an unruly and mis-shapen mess; on the right, a beautiful cardigan ready to be sewn together. That is what I call everyday magic!

I’ve almost finished this cardigan now; the only thing I have left to do is sew on the buttons, so you’ll probably see it some time around August.

Now on the Needles

Now you’ve seen the garments I’ve been sewing together – but what about the things I’m currently knitting? At the moment, this beauty is currently adorning my needles:

It’s a pattern from my favourite company, Sun-glo, and it’s one I’ve been wanting to make for ages. I’m knitting it in this beautiful purple 3ply wool from Bendigo Woollen Mills, although the pattern asks for 2ply. Given that it’s not that easy to find 2ply wool around here, I thought I’d try 3ply and hope that it would also enable me to size it up without any additional effort on my part.

I’ll be able to test that theory soon as I’ve almost finished the first piece. The lace pattern is fun and relatively easy to memorise, although things get a little tricky when it comes to decreases. I can’t wait to do another before and after shoot when I’m blocking this. If you think blocking is magic on plain garments, just wait until you see what it does for lace patterns!

Now you are all caught up with my knitting shenanigans. Which is your favourite garment? Are you knitting something at the moment? Let me know in the comments below – I’d love to hear from you.

The post Knit & Natter – A Vintage Knitting Update appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.

I had no idea I’d be sitting here a year later, still uploading those videos, with over 1,200 people subscribed to my channel. It’s still a little surreal, to be honest!

It’s high time I gave something back to say thank-you to everyone who has jumped on board. Read on to find out what I’m giving away and how you can enter!

A Handmade Giveaway

At first, I thought I might like to offer a prize of a pdf pattern or fabric… Then Tim suggested I give away some of my calendars and I knew immediately that was exactly it: I wanted to give you something I’ve made.

The first part of the prize is one of my 2018 calendars. These are smaller than the ones I gave my family for Christmas because I think they’re slightly better quality. I love the size of the giant ones but the paper they’re printed on isn’t as thick and they’re a little droopy. Who wants a droopy calendar? No-one, that’s who; so I’ve had these ones printed instead.

The calendars feature photos I took during 2017 and they are all labelled so you’ll know precisely what you’re looking at.

But Wait – There’s More!

If you happen to win the draw, you’ll also receive a handmade project bag.

I love these bags! They might look small but they hold a surprising amount of stuff. I use mine primarily for my knitting and I’ve frequently had the front or back of a jumper snuggled inside one of these bags.

You even have a choice of fabric!

The eucalyptus print is an early favourite on YouTube so far! You can also opt for the crazy cat print or the moustaches, if you prefer. The bag will be lined with a navy and white stripe.

How Do You Enter?

Firstly, make sure you’re subscribed to my YouTube channel. Leave a comment on the giveaway video with your answers to the following questions:

1. What sort of video would you like to see on my channel? OR What was your favourite video so far?
2. Which fabric would you like for your project bag?

Watch The Video

An Extra Chance To Win!

That’s right – I have a second calendar to give away and this one is for people who like and follow my facebook page. Here’s how to enter the second draw:

1. Head to my facebook page
2. Like and follow the Sew Old Fashioned facebook page
3. Leave a comment on the giveaway post

And yes, you can enter in both places!

The winners will be drawn on the 11th of February.

Good luck and thank-you for being such a fabulous part of my sewing and knitting adventures.

Update: The Winners

Well done to Jodie and Nicola, the winners of the giveaway. Jodie will receive a calendar and a project bag in the eucalyptus print fabric and Nicola will be receiving the second calendar. Thank-you to everyone for entering the giveaway and for being such fabulous supporters of Sew Old Fashioned.

The post Enter My YouTube Giveaway! [CLOSED] appeared first on Sew Old Fashioned.