One plus two equals three

I have been busy sewing and trying hard not to fret about my Samsung Tablet. After a software upgrade it wouldn't connect to the Wi-Fi so I couldn't blog - Catastrophe!!

It was sent to tablet hospital for repair and released back into my care yesterday - Joy!!

Euphoria didn't last long - the problem is back again - black mood again!!

Before it gets re-admitted I managed to take some photos and sync them to my PC so I can at least show you what I've been up to.

After the success of the navy trouser fit, I was spurred into using a strange green fabric I had to make a second pair. I decided to try a bit of design by using a scrap of dark teal to make them look distinctive. I also used a couple of self covered buttons [my first attempt] to help the concept along.

Side view shows pocket and tab detail.

And the rear view which unfortunately shows the line of my 'tucked in' top but you can see I left the back plain.

 The second pair are made of an aubergine stretch fabric I purchased at the knitting and Stitching Show recently. It was lovely to work with and my best pair yet.
Like all patterns when you make them the first time there are things you tell yourself you will do differently or modify slightly 'next time', well the result is three pairs of trousers in one month.

 Here is the inside showing the zip fly and finished waistband. I tried a new technique [for me anyway] to edge the band with bias binding and stitch in the ditch from the right side. This reduces the bulk considerably and I like the fun colour of the binding which only I will know is there when I put them on.

I lined the pockets with some luxurious lilac silky lining fabric which makes them feel very expensive when you put your hand in.

Now on to my next project. I have been very fortunate to be given some John Lewis Crepe in a bright green. This fabric has great draping qualities so I am going to make a blouse to go with the aubergine trousers. I will blog about it when I've finished but here is a photo of the fabric although the camera doesn't do justice to the true colour.

Do you ever make up a pattern many times to make improvements?

Eyelet or Grommet Curtains

If you're in the UK these would be called Eyelet Curtains but in the US they're called Grommets but whatever you call them this was my very first attempt at making them.

I did have help in the form of the latest Craftsy Class from Susan Woodcock who made the whole thing seem a lot easier than it was. That said it wasn't exactly difficult just hard to manage the volume and getting everything really straight and accurate measurements.

Our newly decorated dining room needed curtains to close over the big sliding doors that lead out into the conservatory. I measured the space and worked out that I needed 7½ metres of fabric so I called in to our local curtain fabric shop and chose a modest but pleasing pattern from the many books available. On enquiring the price I was told £70 per metre [!!] so the length I required would cost £525.00 before any lining, fittings or fixtures. This was way more than I wanted to spend so I came back to my computer and looked on line and especially one of my favourite eBay shops. Here I found what looked like the perfect fabric for the room but the length offered wouldn't be enough. I sent an email to Susie and Yvonne from Susiechatts and they came back at once to confirm they could supply 7½ metres and gave me the link so I could purchase it right away. The cost was just £22.50 and the material is fabulous. It's called Hawarth by Textra and is a heavyweight cotton and is made in England..

Next I bought the lining and also sent for Eyelets on a roll from Tasseltrove on eBay and set about following the instructions from the Crafty Class. The total cost including the class came to less than £90.00, a massive saving on what I could have spent and I'm extremely happy with the result. Plus I've learned a new skill which can't be bad.

 Here is the tape pinned to the top of the curtains ready to be stitched in place. Once the tape is stitched to the top I marked the inside of the holes with a pencil and then cut them out before snapping on the outside rings. There are spacers between every other pair of holes that you clip together so the curtain folds hang in the right place. You have to have an even number of rings per curtain and make sure the ends have the right amount of gap to ensure the curtain's end sits against the wall when they're pulled open.

This brief video shows the construction of the eyelet.

And here are the final curtains in place.

Thanks for watching, I hope you found it interesting, please leave a comment if you did.