Let's talk about EASE

My favourite type of patterns to sew from are vintage patterns from the major pattern companies - Simplicity, New Look, McCalls etc. While s...

Fabric Stash Organisation & How Much is Too Much?

When I posted last month about sewing, ethics and consumption , there were lots of well-considered and interesting responses and I really ...

Thoughts on Fabric, Ethics & Consumption

We all know that high street fashion is not a good thing. It's bad for the people who sew the clothes in poor conditions for low pay and...

What's the Next Big Thing?

I've been blogging for nearly five years, and in that time the online sewing world has developed enormously. There are so many sewing bl...

Sew Simple = So Boring?

I am all about simple sewing right now. Give me a project that's not too hard to mess up - a skirt, a knit top, a pattern I've made...

Your Thoughts on Sewing Blogs

Thank you to everyone who read and commented on my last post. It obviously struck a chord and there were many long and wonderfully thought-t...

Thinking about Sewing Blogs - Information, Inspiration & Authenticity

  I've been blogging for over four years. That's a long time in the blogging world, and things really have changed in that time. H...

What's Your 'Almost' Pattern?

Since December I have wanted to make the Wiksten Tova top:    Image from here But somehow, other patterns keep jumping the queue. ...

Have you ever lost a beloved handmade?

Just before Christmas I went to the Post Office near my flat, then got on the bus into town. It was only when I got off the bus I realised t...

Sewing and Perfectionism

I would not describe myself as a perfectionist. In my life, as in my sewing, a desire to get things done overtakes any attempts at perfec...

An Astonishing Fashion Photograph

Photograph by Clifford Coffin for British Vogue, June 1947, at Grosvenor Square, London Evening dress by Rahvis Image source I fi...

Living the 'Crafty Lifestyle'

I recently received an email about a new magazine called The Simple Things . It's from the publishers of Mollie Makes and as an ex-sub...

What are your medal-worthy sewing achievements this year?

Is anyone else a little taken aback that it's August? How on earth has two thirds of this year passed already!? That being the case, I t...

Keep it Simple or Go for Broke?

So, I'm going to make a maxi dress for my holiday later this year. This is fabric I'm going to use:   I bought it at Goldhawk R...

Do You Keep a Sewing Diary?

This is my sewing book: In it, I try to record all my sewing projects, noting the date when I started, any changes I made, any mistakes...

A good match of dress and fabric?

Last year I bought this dress pattern on eBay: Style 2241 from 1978 I'm always a fan of dresses with pockets, and thought it was...

I Think I Have Pattern Amnesia

Last week I posted about 4 vintage patterns I had purchased. As I read the comments, I realised that I had admired a couple of these pattern...

Has Your Sewing Machine Ever Broken?

Last Sunday I was merrily sewing away on my Peony , when disaster struck. My bobbin winder was loose and wouldn't click into place prope...

Whose Sewing Opinion Do You Seek?

When you've finished your latest creation, sewn or knitted, who do you like to get approval from? Is it close friends, who know what y...

What Do You Do with Your Empty Thread Spools?

1200 metres of sewing, represented in spools During the year I have gathered a collection of empty thread spools. I have been reluctant to...