Sewing...clothes?

Uh oh.  People, I'm thinking about sewing clothes.  I have a history with garment sewing - through my teenage years I sewed clothes for myself somewhat regularly - usually with much wailing and gnashing of teeth (and help from my mum).  Believe it or not, I find piecing quilts much easier than I found sewing garments.

Recently I've been thinking more about trying to make my own clothes again.  My sewing skills have definitely improved so I'm hoping I might be a bit more successful than previously.  It would also be nice to have a spring/summer dress that's actually the right length.  At 5'8" I'm not exactly super tall, but I'm tall enough that dresses which are meant to sit just above the knee end up sitting quite a lot higher on me.

Ruby Dress by Made by Rae.

Anyway, the other day I saw that Rae of Made by Rae has just released a new dress (and top) pattern - the Ruby Dress and Top.  It's described as a pattern for a beginner sewist, which sounds right up my alley.  Unlike some of the other patterns out there which I can tell will not suit me, I think the shape of the Ruby Dress will work for my body (fingers crossed!).

Even though I'm a huge fan of using quilting fabrics in my quilts, I'm not planning to use them for this dress.  Instead, I think I'll take the opportunity to visit The Fabric Store, a local shop which stocks a great range of amazing garment fabrics.  I've been there before and lusted after all the gorgeous fabrics, but couldn't see how I would use them.  Haha - now I have a plan!

So - any other quilters out there trying their hand at garment sewing?  Anyone specifically planning to make this dress?  I'd love any tips you might have.  Mum, I might be calling you bringing my debacle of a dress round for you to fix...

WIP Wednesday

A good friend of mine is expecting her first child soon - a much longed for baby girl.  I'm so pleased for her (and also for myself, because I've been hanging out to make a baby girl quilt all year) and to celebrate I designed this completely over the top quilt.

I hope my sketch is encouraging to anyone else who is thinking about designing their own quilts - you can see that my drawing skills are pretty minimal (yes, those are birds and flowers) but that hasn't stopped me and it shouldn't stop you!

I really wanted to create a quilt that was fun and a little bit crazy, and would allow me to use lots of different colours and fabrics.  This quilt uses a variety of different techniques, including piecing and appliqué, but the intention is that it's simple enough for even a fairly novice quilter to make.

I spent the weekend at my first ever quilting retreat.  It was awesome - I got a bunch done and it was lovely to hang out with lots of quilting obsessed people like me.  I took the opportunity to make a start on this baby quilt.  I'm pretty happy with where it's going so far and can't wait to work on it some more this weekend.  I have to give a special shout out to my friend Helen (aka the appliqué queen) - she was on the retreat too and she did a beautiful job of the machine blanket stitch on the central appliqué block - thanks Helen!

Have you been to a quilting retreat before?  I'd definitely do it again - my only complaint was that it was too short!

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced:

Blackberry Winter Blossom

Spring in Wellington means the long winter nights get shorter, and the days get longer.  Lots of green sprouts appear everywhere, everything is growing.  It also means weather that is even more changeable than ever, and you can really get four seasons in one day.  There is more sunshine, but especially in these early days of spring, there is a lot of wind and rain, and a day can turn from warm and sunny to freezing cold and rainy in an instant.  I wanted my first quilt to capture that early spring feeling - it has started,  but we're not completely out of winter either.

I designed this really simple block to try and capture that feeling.  To me, it's reminiscent of both a flower and a snowflake.  "Blackberry winter" is an old fashioned term used to describe a cold snap that occurs after the blackberry bushes have blossomed, preparing the way for fruit to appear in summer.  It seemed like the perfect name for this block, and so even though I'm sure it already exists in some other incarnation, I'm calling my version the Blackberry Winter Blossom Block.

This quilt is a large scale version of the Blackberry Winter Blossom Block, with each square finishing at 2.5" and the whole quilt top finishing at around 44" square.  I really really love the colours and fabrics in this little quilt top.  The border fabric is a particular favourite and actually inspired the fabric pull that this quilt is made from.

I knew when I started making this quilt that much of the definition in the block design would be lost because of the different values of the fabrics I've used to make the quilt.  If I had chosen a more consistent value contrast between the squares that make up the background, and the squares that make up the flower, the flower shape would be clearer.  I really don't mind this - I love all the variation in the quilt, but I will be taking the opportunity to add definition to the edges of the flower with the quilting.

With a really small version of the quilt top, you can see the pattern a lot better.

I'm pleased to say that I have more of most of the fabrics I used in this quilt - they will definitely be appearing again.  I have the backing pieced so I just need to get it basted and then start quilting - can't wait to do some FMQ on this one!

Has the change in seasons where you live been influencing your quilting?

Linking up with:

    

Caturday Wisdom #36

Fake it 'til you make it. 

This is completely unrelated to my new toupée luscious locks. Ralph

Saturday! Be nice to your people and animals.

As always, pet advice submissions are welcomed at adrianneonthewindyside at gmail dot com.

WIP Wednesday

It's been a while since my last WIP Wednesday post so I thought I'd show you what I've been working on lately.  This block is for Camilla, made as part of the Simply Solids bee.  I love all these super hot colours and I think Camilla is going to end up with the most stunning quilt!

As predicted, I've also been working on a new spring inspired quilt.  This is only part of it but I'm really excited to finish up the quilt top.

What have you been working on this week?