Pattern review: Josephine Dress by Violet Field Threads

Do you ever make a project, and stop and look at it half-way through, and begin to wonder if it's really going to turn out as well as you hope it will? That, dear readers, was what happened during the making of this, the Josephine dress. As the sewing on this progressed, I kept the dress on a coat hanger in my room, and every time I glanced upon it I began to be assailed by the fear that Tyger wouldn't end up with a cute dress, but something oddly resembling a 1950's housecoat, which needless to say, wasn't quite the look I was going for!

It just seemed so large. And frumpy. And housecoatey. Thankfully, with the help of some grosgrain ribbon working as a belt, it turned out AWESOME!

Admittedly, it is a little on the big side, but the ribbon helps cinch it in. And it looks pretty darn cute on Tyger, who got loads of compliments on it when she wore it on the weekend. Phew! Sewing failure averted!

Now down to the pattern nitty gritty. As you can probably tell, the pattern runs a little on the large size. That's fine for us, as it means Tyger can wear it again next winter, but if you were making it for a special occasion and wanted the perfect fit right here, right now, then you might want to go down a size and add length as required.

It was a fairly easy pattern to put together, but one thing that slightly bugged me was the fact that the pintucks were not marked on the pattern. Instead, after attaching the ruffled button band, you had to measure and manually work out the pintuck placement for yourself. I'd prefer it to be marked on the pattern itself, as is usually the case.

The other quibble I have is that a pattern piece for the button band ruffles is not included, so unless you carefully read through the entire pattern before cutting out, you might not realise that you needed to measure and then cut out the two pieces yourself. Considering that the pieces required for the larger dress size come in at 43 inches, you'd hate to not have enough fabric, or have gotten rid of your fabric scraps like I almost did.

So my verdict is: cute pattern, but read through the entire instructions carefully before embarking!

Project Details
Pattern: Josephine Dress by Violet Field Threads, size 9-10
Fabric: 1.5m of Raindrops Poppies Platinum from the Field Study collection by Anna Maria Horner
Notions: 15 buttons, 1.5m black grosgrain ribbon, matching grey bias binding

I got myself a Chevy

Is it bad that, when you first hear the news that a family member is going to have a baby, your second thought (heartfelt congratulations being the first, of course) is that it means you can begin a brand new knitting project?

Case in point: scrummy yarn purchased from Purl Soho so I can make this rather snazzy garter stitch chevron baby blanket. I may have squealed with excitement when receiving the package from the post lady. It's so squooshy!

But fear not, dear readers. I shall dutifully put this delectable, gorgeous, so soft and lovely yarn aside until all other projects are finished. Did I mention how soft it is? Oh, who am I kidding - I started already!

Well, I couldn't risk that wee little baby getting cold now, could I? Even if it isn't due for, oh, another four months...

Say hello to spots!

"I'm free!" squealed the spotted fabric with obvious relief. "Free from the confines of the cupboard. Seriously, I thought I would never get out. Four years I've been trapped in there, lying neglected in the fabric stash, watching wistfully as other fabrics came and went. But now my moment of glory has come. No longer shall I have to remain hidden away, wishing that I, too, was being made into a summer dress. I shall shine in the sun with the best of them!

"Just between you and me, I was beginning to fear for my sanity, being stuck in there all that time. Had she forgotten about me? Was I not good enough? Truly, folks - I was beginning to get a bit, well, dotty!"

"But you are..." began a brocade, confused by the lack of self-identity shown by the fabric when Sabrina the dressmakers dummy shushed her. "Let it go, ducks. Just.Let.It.Go."

Monthly menu plan - August/September

We're already in the tail-end of August? And it's nearly September? Once again the year is slipping by. Soon it will be summer, and all I'll want to eat is cool tomatoes and juicy mangos, but there's still a few chilly days left yet until that happens. So - to the plan: I've snuck in a few wintry favourites. Got to enjoy them while I can still can!

Week One:
Monday - Chilli tofu and vegetable stir fry on brown rice
Tuesday - Thai red lentil and pumpkin soup
Wednesday - Zucchini and lemon pasta with big fat garden salad
Thursday - Tomato and capsicum soup with Irish soda bread, slathered in fresh butter
Friday - Lentil and chickpea burgers with red cabbage coleslaw
Saturday - Roast pork with vegetables, followed by pannacotta with berry coulis
Sunday - Pea soup with salad baguettes

Week Two:
Monday - Potato and pea samosas with garden salad
Tuesday - Beef and beer stew with garlicky mashed potatoes
Wednesday - Leek and ricotta tart with green salad
Thursday - Spicy cauliflower, lentil and bean pilaf with minted yoghurt
Friday - Pizza night! Probably roast potato, and capsicum and mushroom with rocket
Saturday - Vegetarian shepherd's pie with parmesan beans on the side
Sunday - Roast chicken with lots of vegetables

Week Three:
Monday - Chicken and tofu laksa (using left over roast chicken)
Tuesday - Farro risotto with roasted pumpkin and spinach
Wednesday - Chunky minestrone with garlic bread
Thursday - Pappardelle with cavolo nero and side salad
Friday - Beef and lentil burgers
Saturday - Individual asparagus lasagnes with garden salad
Sunday - Bangers and bean stew with roasted vegetable couscous

Week Four:
Monday - Spicy bean burritos with salsa and guacamole
Tuesday - Spinach and ricotta cannelloni with chunky tomato and lentil sauce
Wednesday - Dhal with mango lassis
Thursday - Curried cauliflower soup with olive cornbread
Friday - Home made fish and chips with salads
Saturday - Ratatouille pies with salad

That's why they call it a shirtdress

You know your child is growing FAST when your husband comes home and when his eyes alight upon the latest thing you are making for her he comments "Cool - you're making yourself a shirt!"

Er, no. That would be a dress for Tyger. Who will no doubt be wearing all of mine, soon enough!

Cabled red capelet

Finally, finally, finally finished! I tells you what, peoples, this capelet was an exercise in cables. And then some. I was trucking along pretty well, but then fell over on the yoke, which was full of short rows. No matter how much I knitted, the darn yoke never seemed to grow. But I sucked it up and got there in the end. A lesson in cables AND patience. Whoo!

As you can probably tell from the pics, Tyger is rather chuffed with it. It may not have gotten finished for her birthday (what was I thinking?!? Good grief!) but it's done for her Book Week parade tomorrow, and since she's going as Anne of Green Gables again, she's thrilled.

Project Details
Pattern: Sirdar 1386 - Hooded Cape and Cape
Yarn: 6 balls of Woolganics Organic Merino DK in Chili Pepper (from stash - YES!!!)
Needles: 3.25 circular needle, 4mm circular needle, 3.25mm straight needle, 4mm straight needle

Loved working again with this yarn - I had used it previously for Tyger's red dress. Plus it's always nice to use up a bit of the stash. Makes room for more yarn (Galumph, I hope you didn't read that. Ahem!)

The only thing I don't like is that I cast off my front ribs a little bit too loosely. I might unravel those and redo them a bit tighter. Apart from that I'm happy with how this has turned out. And Tyger informs me it's lovely and warm and snuggly to wear. Win win all around!

Crafting and sanity

There are a few things that are vital to keep my mental health in a happy, balanced state. Enough sleep, a walk every day in the fresh air no matter what the weather is, not watching television with it's blaring exhortations to buy more and more because you are not good enough as you are, and regularly servings of good wholesome food.

So far, so typical. But to that list I might add a regular dose of making. I seriously think that I would be a far grumpier person without the lift that crafting gives me. Even if I don't get my hands involved in cutting something out, or winding yarn through my fingers, just the thinking - the planning, the dreaming - is often enough to lift me out of any doldrums. Heck, you can make me happy just by insisting I peruse vintage patterns on Etsy for a while!

I'm not sure if it's the pretty colours of the fabric and yarn, or the quiet focus on a solitary activity, or the visualisation of a finished project, or the satisfied buzz of achievement when something is finally completed, but crafting can often fill a hole for me that nothing else can.

I'm so lucky to be able to make. Good times will come and go, and every life will have it's fair share of sorrow and suffering, but it comforts me to know that I'll always have a pair of knitting needles and a sewing machine to hand to give me relief when it all feels like too much to bear.

Grey leaves part two

Ach! I couldn't help myself. The siren call of making the Flora layered leaf skirt was too much for this knitter to resist! Despite the previous unravelling, despite the faulty pattern, despite the fact that winter is almost over and I really should be thinking about summer knits I am determined to conquer this thing. I will own it! Well, technically, Tyger will own the actual skirt, but I will own the knitting, dammit!

And besides, knitted leaves are fun! Oh dear, it's official - you truly are old when you prefer to stay home to knit leaves for crying out loud than go out and get sweaty on a dance floor. Gulp!

Red knits

Aha! All this time people thought pink - in particular that hot fuchsia pink - was my favourite colour, but let me tell you this: I have been a red girl for longer than I care to remember. I like my bikes to be red, my toenails to be painted red, my necklaces to be red. And, judging by the below, my handknits!

If anybody wants me, I'll be hanging out somewhere between orange-red and magenta on the colour wheel. Or maybe button shopping. These beauties need the perfect buttons, stat!

(And yes, have already checked Nan's button bag. Alas, no luck. I really will have to go button shopping. Oh, how ghastly!)

C is for...

...cables! And weird knitted C shapes. And crap, I have to seam all of that long edge. Cursed crafting chores!

Pattern review: Vogue 1314

What with the knitting, and trying to make most of Tyger's clothes, and beavering away at Handmaker's Factory, I haven't had much of a chance to make things for myself this winter, especially at the sewing machine. But I did sneak in this dress last week. May I present my version of Vogue 1314:

As soon as I saw this pattern I said to myself "Jorthy, old girl, this has your name written all over it!" It was really easy to make - just like a giant t-shirt, but with some gathers. And speaking of gathers, I cheated and did it my way, rather than how the pattern instructed me to, by using elastic on the side seams. Eeeeeeasy!

The only thing I don't like about this dress is how stretchy the fabric is. I used a viscose knit, which is quite thin, and as a result my gathers tend to sag a bit. I really should have made the next size down to prevent this, but it was one of those things that you don't realise until you have finished and tried the darn dress on. Judging by what a few other bloggers have said, the fit on this dress tends to err on the generous size. If only I'd researched before I'd sewn. Gah!

I also didn't line my dress. Shhh! Don't tell anybody! Even though the fabric is thin, it's not sheer, so I decided not to bother. I also did a t-shirt style neckline binding, just cause I could. What a rebel I am!

Apart from that it's super comfy, easy to wear and hey - I've always wanted an animal print dress! Roar!

Project Details
Pattern: Vogue 1314, size 8
Fabric: 2m of viscose print from The Fabric Store
Notions: 1cm wide elastic

Wrapping up for winter

The head of the Committee For Ensuring Winter Sewing Projects Are Completed peered over his half-moon glasses at Jorth, and asked in his stenorous voice "Are you completely and utterly certain that you will get all of the planned sewing and knitting projects for your daughter completed by the end of winter, namely one more dress, the finishing of the cabled shawl and the Sea Princess cardigan?"

Jorth thought of the lovely fabric she had picked out for the Josephine dress, and felt the itch in her fingers to get started on the project. She was also dying to begin knitting the cardigan, and that shawl was so close to finished that she wasn't even worried about it anymore. So standing tall she looked the committee head straight in the eye and declared that yes - all projects would be done by winter's end.

"Fine!", sighed the committee head. "26 days and counting. You'd better hop to it, young lady!"

So that's my challenge - sort out those pesky winter projects and have a clean slate for summer. I've got dresses planned - lots and lots of loverly dresses! Bring on the sunshine!

Lessons in biscuit economy

Even though our family budget might currently be tighter than a coffin nail I always find that life is far more bearable if the biscuit tin is full.

It's also far more economical to have those treats awaiting in their tin of blue. Truly - it only costs a few dollars to make a batch of biscuits, but it can save HEAPS! For example:

Friends want to go out for lunch? Invite them around to eat your biscuits instead!

Saw that dress you love in the window of the shop where the price tags usually have at least three zeros on the end? Keep the money in your wallet and come home and eat biscuits instead!

Ran out of bread for toast in the morning? Thank heavens you've got those biscuits! (Try not to do that one on purpose)

Yup, life is better and cheaper with biscuits. Especially these double chocolate crackle cookies, from the Meat Free Monday cookbook. They're so good that you'll never want to go anywhere and spend money when you can stay in and eat these instead!

Another shirt, and the story of Nan's buttons.

My best friend, who is also my daughter's godmother, was blessed to have a wonderful grandmother called Nan. Unfortunately, I never got to meet Nan, but I had long admired the wonderful knits she had made for my bestie, and listened with great pleasure to the stories of the clothes she would make for her and her brother when they were little. Not only did she seemed to be a skilled seamstress and knitter, but in every photo I've ever seen of her, she is beaming out to the world. The best kind of Nan, by all accounts.

A few years ago, after Nan  had passed on and the house was being cleared out, my friend and her mum came across some of Nan's sewing supplies, including a huge plastic bag full of buttons. Nan had kept every button from every item of clothing that could no longer be repaired, and squirreled them away for a sewing rainy day. After going through the buttons themselves and keeping the ones that had especial sentimental value to them, my friend and her mum decided to give the bag of buttons to me, as I was the only crafter they knew who would appreciate them. And appreciate them I did! It felt like an honour to be entrusted with something kept so carefully by one who was loved so much by people so important to me.

Fast forward to this weekend, and there I am, beavering away on my sewing machine to finish another shirt for Grumbles. Usually when I buy fabric, I have a very particular project in mind and try and get all my notions and bits 'n' bobs at the same time, but for some reason I didn't buy any buttons when I purchased the fabric to make this shirt. But before the button panic could commence, I remembered Nan's button stash. I found the bag, hunted about and found the perfect set of buttons. One still even had the original thread caught in the holes.

Now the cynics might scoff and say "Buttons. Really, dudes. What's the big deal?" but to my mind, this is the best kind of recycling. I'm giving new life to something that was important to somebody, even though it might seem small and insignificant to others. I'm keeping the crafting spirit of Nan alive, and forging another life tapestry string between me, my daughter, my best friend and her grandmother. These are not bonds that can easily be broken. Tyger is proud that I would entrust Nan's buttons to her wearing, and my best friend was moved to tears to think that Nan's buttons were not only being given another shot at use, but that we were helping keep the memory of Nan alive in their use.

So here, my friends, is another shirt for Tyger. The shirt may be new, but those buttons have got a heck of a pedigree!

Project Details
Pattern: Rousku shirt (no. 23) from Ottobre Design magazine 4/2010
Fabric: 1m of organic cotton from the Scamper collection by Birch fabrics, purchased from GJ's Discount Fabrics
Notions: 3 of Nan's carefully kept buttons, iron-on interfacing

On a budget? Make ravioli!

Whoosh. Swish. ZOOOOOOOM! That, my friends, is the sounds of money leaving my wallet at the moment. Start of term means payment for activities, so with each piano lesson/sports invoice my wallet become noticeably thinner. July was rapidly becoming what Galumph terms "a tight month"!

And then, of course, the washing machine broke down. Cue red hot budget meltdown when we realised that the machine, after 13 years of faithful service, had gone to the big whitegoods store in the sky, and it needed to be replaced asap.

So our month went from tight to what I'd like to term budgetary strangulation. Ouch! After totting up the numbers, calculating necessary expenditure (i.e. we still need to buy food) and figuring our how long, exactly, we had until the next payday (answer: too long!) we decided that this weekend would be a spend-thrifty as possible.

Cue cheapy weekend activities. Bike ride on Saturday, and dusting off of pasta machine on Sunday after realising that I had all ingredients already in the house for ravioli. Viva la household economics!

Spinach and ricotta ravioli

For the pasta:
500g strong pasta flour ('00')
5 eggs
pinch of salt
semolina flour for dusting

For the filling:
250g fresh ricotta
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
250g frozen spinach, thawed
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 - To make the pasta, place the flour, eggs and salt together in a food processor, and mix until a dough forms. Knead by hand on a floured surface for 5 minutes until the dough is nice and elastic, then wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2 - Meanwhile, make the filling. Squeeze out any moisture from the spinach, then mix well with the cheeses and nutmeg.

3 - Roll your pasta through the pasta machine one piece at a time until thin. When you have two lengths, place one on the bench, and spoon small spoonfuls of the mixture on it, with a couple of cms space between each one. Place the second piece of pasta on top of the first, and press down to enclose the filling, making sure there are no air bubbles and that the pastas are stuck together. Cut into squares. Repeat with remaining pasta and filling.

4 - Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Carefully drop the pasta in, and cook for 3 - 4 minutes, or until the ravioli are bobbing at the top. Drain, then serve with a simple tomato pasta sauce or melted butter with herbs.

Miette: in progress

So close to finishing my Miette. Normally I lag a bit knitting up the second arm on a garment, but I have developed a serious thing for the Magic Loop method and am whizzing through my second sleeve using it. For those who mightn't know what that is, it's a way of knitting a smaller circumference in the round with a long cable needle, rather than using double pointed needles. Now that I am Lord and Master of the Magic loop, I just want to knit everything with this method!

Sure, I'll be stuck knitting nothing but sleeves, socks and door snakes, but dudes! It'll be GROUSE!

90's pattern timewarp

It all happened so quickly that in later years even Jorth herself sometimes wondered if it was real or a dream. One minute she was merrily stepping along the street on her way to buy groceries, the next she was surrounded by a screaming, whirling wind that picked her up and tossed her about. Her brain felt like it was turning into cotton wool, and she closed her eyes against the harsh, violet light that filled every space.

Round and round she was thrown into a nothing that was everything yet not. How long she remained there she knew not, but eventually the light became less intense, and the wind, if not a true scream, was at least reduced to a dull roar. She landed upright and frantically pushed the hair out of her face as she strained to figure out where she was. From where she stood the world was nothing but a series of chaotic images, flitting past her whilst a dirty and wild fog swirled around. Concentrating hard, she tried to pick up what she was seeing. Was that a pair of happy pants on that person? And was that noise a song by Lisa Loeb being played on a cassette player? Was Beverly Hills 90210 playing on that tv?

Suddenly the atmosphere changed. The fog was replaced by a cruel, quick wind that whipped thousands of pieces of paper past Jorth. She tried to catch them - anything to give her a clue as to what was happening - when once more she was picked up and tossed into the whirling air, and quickly the violet light obscured all else.

Just as soon as it had begun, the wind stopped. The light returned to normal and Jorth found herself on the street once more, only this time clutching some papers tight to her chest. Once her dizziness left her, along with the feeling that she might puke all over her shoes, she looked at the papers and was thrilled to see that they were a collection of patterns from the 1990s.

"I KNEW IT!" she gasped. "I fell through a hole in the time/space continuum. Whoa! This is fricking amazing! Not only am I the world's first time traveller, but I've also got some awesome patterns out of it!"

She wondered briefly if she should call the experts at the Max Planck Institute of Physics in Munich to tell them of her adventure, but realised she had something far more important to do first. She needed to rush home and gets sewing, stat. These were really good patterns!

Weekend breakfasts, with a side of reading

A few months ago the Tyger came to me with a plan. "Mum?", she said. "Can I start making breakfast on my own on the weekend?"

"Hmm", I hedged, imagining the smashed plates on the floor, the burns from hotplates, the potential for electrocution. And all for a soggy bowl of cereal? I was about to answer in the negative when she said "Trust me - it'll be good... real fancy pants stuff! Like you get in a café! Can I?"

I'll give credit where credit was due - the kid knows her way around me. Café food with no input from me? How could I possibly say no?

But then thought of the mess once again entered my brain. Accompanied by images of small severed fingers. And trips to hospital. With me still in my pjs, because when you child has enthusiastically sliced a digit rather than a banana, you don't stop to get changed. Not with all that blood!

I looked down as she stood there, reading the conflicting emotions flitting across my face. I was about to inform her that I didn't really fancy spending my weekends pacing the corridors of the hospital in bloody jimmy jams, waiting news from the finger surgeon with a rumbling tummy when in a last ditch effort to convince me she said "Please Mum? Dad can help me! I really want to do this!"

The magic word "Dad" triggered a lightbulb moment. I suddenly realised that in order to make brekkie, she'd need to read recipes. Which could only improve her reading skills, which, to be honest, could do with a little polishing up. And with Galumph there to prevent accidental amputations, what could go wrong?

This was becoming seriously win-win. All I had to do was lie back in bed, whilst they busied themselves in the kitchen making some darn good breakfasts and Tyger, in the process, became a master reader and super chef all at the same time. What a way to upgrade her skills! Couldn't have arranged things better myself!

So I wiped the look of concern off my face, replaced it with a beam and shook hands. "You're on, kiddo!"

No regrets from my end! I have a child who might not be interested in tackling War and Peace anytime soon, but is more than happy to curl up on the couch reading a recipe book. And all fingers are accounted for. Huzzah!

Recipe for Cinnamon French Toast with Berry Salsa can be found here.

Liberty winner

Helllooooo! Check out that double chocolate cherry cheesecake. At least, what's left of it. Burp! So good. Too good. I now have a cheesecake gut. Oh vell... you only get a birthday once a year. Thank goodness. Otherwise I might have a cheesecake gut... and a cheesecake booty...and a cheesecake earlobe...and I'll stop now. Before it gets totally ridiculous (cheesecake gnathion, anybody?)

Anyway, enough bumf about cheesecakes. You're here for the winner announcement, ja? Well thanks to random number generator, the winner of the Liberty fabric is comment #103, which is Amanda. Lucky girl! Thanks to everybody for joining in - I've found some very awesome new-to-me blogs to add to my reading list. That's ace!

Right. I have to go and do something very important now. Like prod myself continuously in the belly and marvel at how rapidly cheesecake turns into undesired fat storage. This could take hours!

Liberty fabric birthday giveaway!

Wheeeeeee! Today it's my birthday, and you all know what that means. Yup, the streets are lined with people crowded around for the ticker tape parade in my honour. Confetti is filling the air, the float is about to set off and folks everywhere are chanting my name like I am the best. thing. ever.

Whaaaaat? Dead silence out there? Fear not - the streamers and balloons will be released as soon as everybody realises that birthdays at chez Jorth mean an awesome giveaway. Did anybody say LIBERTY?

That's right, folks - it's a mega Liberty fabric giveaway! We've got 2m of Lantana! And other pieces lovingly saved from projects, all much bigger than a fat quarter. Look - more Lantana! And Tana Lawn! And Liberty Lifestyle! There's more Liberty fabric there than you can poke a stick at!

Couldn't you just reach in and grab it? Mmmmmmm - Liiiiiiiberteeeeeeeee! All this could be yours - just follow my blog, leave a message wishing me the best birthday ever (with your email addy, natch) and I'll announce the winner Monday my time (AEST). Cos fabric this fine shouldn't be kept in a cupboard. It needs to be out there, man. Living the Liberty life!

I'm happy to post to Timbuktu if need be, so if your hot little hands are itching for some Liberty goodness, leave a comment!