Tag Archives: Random Life Stuff

feeling blue

I took this photo during our holiday on Rotto but never put it in with the other travel wardrobe photos… the blue skirt was appearing too often.  But I still think it’s a nice photo so I decided to post it after all.

Details:
Raincoat: self-drafted, of non breathable nylon ripstop, details here
Top; top “a” from shape shape, formerly known as Unique Clothes Any Way You Like, by Natsuno Hiraiwa, of white cotton, details here
Skirt; Vogue 1170, blue corduroy, details heremy review of this pattern here, and see this skirt styled in 6 different ways here
Thongs; Havaiana

I’ve been a bit sad and have lost some of the blogging joy over the past few days… thanks to a very sarcastic nasty comment on my blog I discovered recently.  A few might have seen a recent blog post I wrote about it … but probably not many because I deleted it soon after publishing.  I also deleted the mean comment too eventually; Craig told me I should have left it to allow everyone to read it, but rude comments upset me.  I just don’t want hurtful stuff on my blog.  I usually prefer to be all Positive Pollyanna.  
The commenter took exception to my review of Natsuno Hiraiwa’s Pattern book Unique Clothes Any Way You Like, or shape shape, which she interpreted as a personal attack on her character.  Apparently she was an author of one of those scathing reviews on amazon about Natsuno Hiraiwa’s book.  Of course it goes without saying that she had nothing nice to say about my own makes from the book!  She outlined her alleged long sewing history, I guess as a means of “proving” her superior level of sewing expertise, thus granting herself the authority to override my positive review of the book.  Despite admitting again she hadn’t even used the book.  She classed me a “spoilt Anglo Saxon sewer” (and btw I have used Burda magazine patterns a lot too), and very sarcastically dissed the skirt I had made, skirt “d” pictured at the top of my review.
So.
I don’t like to drone on about my own history since I prefer for my handiwork to speak for itself… plus one thing I’ve learnt from the internet is how lots of people can talk until the cows come home about how utterly expertly fabulous they are at something without ever offering any evidence to support their claims; so I will not.  I have posted about some of my really old stuff under the label ancient history.  
However, for the last three years I upped the ante to the max and took on sewing my entire wardrobe; and this has been documented pretty thoroughly here on my blog.  I have not bought any clothes in all that time.  In my real life, I am literally the only person I know who sews all my own clothes.  I really enjoy doing this; I love clothes and I love the challenge of creating them myself, and it gives me something to do in my spare time.  I’m a busy person, and don’t like to be still, so sewing keeps me happily and productively occupied in the hours when I am not doing my official work in the office, cooking, housework, and on the weekends when my husband, who works very long hours, is on call or at work.
Blogging about it started out in a small documentative way; but has built up to become so much more to me, a community of wonderful like-minded people, with whom I share a common love.
Of course, I know I am very lucky and undoubtedly I am spoilt in many many aspects of my life BUT …. I’ve still put in many hours to get to the level of sewing expertise I am at, and I put in quite an effort to make things the best I possibly can.
I also put in quite an effort to present my creations in a fun, lighthearted and interesting way here, and to make my blog the best it can be.  I’m not the sort to make a half-hearted effort.  And I prefer positivity over negativity.
Anyway, I don’t even know why I’m baring my soul defensively in this way… just feeling a bit down I s’pose.  I hope I am not over-sharing in an embarrassing way.  

(I wrote this a few days ago, and I’m feeling more cheerful now  🙂

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A petticoat and an ISTJ

OK, so I have posted about this new… er, thing before; and in a comment janesewandtell expressed surprise that a petticoat should have a zip … the answer of course is that even though I did describe it as a “petticoat” of course it really was only masquerading as a petticoat.  Actually it is a bonafide dress, and can very well be worn as one!
So I thought it really deserves its very own post to show what it looks like on!  Since it has a fitted bodice it does need a zip so that I can actually get it on and off.  I supposed I described it as a petticoat since it is made of a lusciously soft silk that is kinda flimsy.  Meaning it can be worn underneath a loose lightweight thing like my tunic top and function quite well as a slip.  But the fact is that as the weather warms up this is the kind of light and airy sundress I will love to pop on and wear on its own too!
So here ’tis!
And sorry to mess with your heads, but I’ve accordingly copied the petticoat/dress’s info from the original post it shared with the tunic top to here  🙂
I used Burda 8071, a terrific basic pattern I have used ten times before; for ten different dresses and petticoats.  This is the eleventh!  To see a gallery of my previous versions of this pattern, go here  🙂  The bodice is lined with ivory silk charmeuse, leftover fabric from this top.
All the seams are French seams and all other raw edges are finished with HongKong seaming, in a lightweight ice-blue cotton leftover from this shirt.
Details:
Dress/petticoat; Burda 8071, powder blue silk
Sorry, you can’t see them very well in the picture above but I am wearing these sandals; a gift from Misano. 
I loved reading about sewbusylizzy’s Myers-Briggs personality! and no one is going to be surprised to find out that I am a ISTJ; the Examiner, or the Duty Fulfiller.  The type of person who sees out to the bitter end what she has started even if she is hating it. This explains why I am dutifully continuing with the year of self-auditing my sewing habit, which I am heartily wishing I had not started… is everyone bored stiff with my meticulously accurate but excruciatingly dull accounting??  That’s OK.  I wouldn’t blame you one little bit  🙂

OK, the Organisational Odds n’ sods for October…
Fabric;
a re-fashioned ball gown
Patterns;
Vogue 1170, used previously
Zip; recycled from the same dress
Hook
& eye; from stash
Total
cost: free
Fabric;
leftovers
Pattern;
used previously
Dye; (first time used, bought at a 30%off everything sale at Spotlight) $7.77
Bra cups; $12.95
Hook and eye closure; $2.49
Underwires; $2.49
Elastic; 2x $3.49= $6.98
Ribbon; $0.10
Total cost: $32.78
Fabric;
$28.00
Pattern;
McCalls 2772, used previously
Swimwear elastic; $4.99
Thread; had already
Total
cost: $32.99
Fabric;
gift from Craig
Pattern; Vogue 1309, $8.75 on special
Zip; $2.50
Thread;
had already
Total
cost: $11.25
Fabric, zip and thread;
gift from Cassie
Patterns;
all used previously
Buttons; gift from ElleC
Total
cost: free
Fabric;
from my friend C
Pattern;
self drafted
Buttons and thread; had already
Total
cost: free
Slender Man mask
Fabric; $13.19
Zip; $0.65
Total cost: $13.84
Miscellaneous
No
miscellaneous purchases this month
Total costs for October, not including Tim’s mask:  $77.02
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Aranciello

I’ve invented something!…  I think  🙂
Last month when I posted about my batch of limoncello, velosewer commented that she would love to make limoncello too but she only had oranges… of course my brain instantly leapt to exciting new possibilities; thank you so much for the fabulous inspiration velosewer!  It’s been brewing for the last month and is finally ready for its debut  🙂
This liqueur is based on the recipe I used for limoncello, but I substituted oranges instead.  Since I’ve never heard of this before, which I concede does not mean it does not exist, somewhere, but still, it’s new to me:   I am claiming the right to give it a name.  And since “arancia” is Italian for “orange” just like “limone” is Italian for “lemon”: thus “aranciello”  Pronounced the Italian way naturally… ah-rahn-chel-lo.  Si?

Aranciello
6 oranges
750mL vodka
225g sugar
435mL water

Place the oranges in a saucepan and cover with boiling water.  Set aside for 1 hour to soak.  Drain and pat dry.  Finely grate the oranges, and combine the rind and vodka in a jug.  (You don’t use the juice from the oranges in this recipe, but obviously they can be juiced and the juice can still be used somewhere; waste not want not   🙂  )
Heat the sugar and water in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring for 5 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved.  Increase heat to medium and bring to the boil.  Cook without stirring for 5 minutes, or until the syrup begins to thicken.  Set aside to cool.
Add cool syrup to the vodka mixture and pour into an airtight container.  Seal and store in a cool, dark place, shaking occasionally, for 1 month to develop the flavours.
Strain the vodka mixture through a fine sieve, into a clean sterilised airtight bottle.  Discard the rind.
Note: This liqueur must be served well chilled.  Place it in the freezer for 1 hour before serving.
Now of course, I did not actually discard the vodka-soaked rind after straining, any more than I did the vodka-soaked lemon rind when I made the limoncello last month.  Quelle horreur!  Anyone who reads this blog will know that I am a mad anti-waste crusader…
Each time, I’ve saved the rind and used it to make a raaather decadent, adults-only cake…
I can add in the recipe for this if anyone really wants it, but really it is just a basic common-or-garden butter cake with the vodka-soaked rind added at the butter/sugar creaming stage; easy peasy…  but tres delish!
Oh, in random blogging news, today is the third anniversary of my funny lil’ ol’ blog here.  I’ve managed to not click on that “delete blog” button all this time!  (wipes sweat off the ol’ brow)
Here’s to avoiding that hairy one for a few more years yet….  I’m mentally chinking aranciello-filled glasses with y’all right now  :))
Cheers peers!
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Blooming lovely

Thank you so much for all the gorgeous birthday wishes!
I was very spoilt, and I would love to share the beauty of my birthday bouquet with you.  Please enjoy!
I wish I could share my birthday cake too, made by Cassie.  It was quaite delicious  😉

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B-Day

Hmmm.  It’s my birthday.
Yes.  Well.  I’m too shy to go into sordid details, like giving an actual number or any nonsense like that.  OK, so maybe I just don’t feel like it.  But here is a hint; one of my favourite bloggers Yoshimi, and I share the same birth year.  So if you are familiar with Yoshimi, then you know!
Whoo; I haven’t done a random daily outfit picture for a while, so I thought what the hey.  I must be missing those me-made months…   on which note, it’s occurred to me that if there is ever another one, then I will be able to go into it having made my entire wardrobe, including all the underpinnings!  (nerdy woot)
ahh, the small things that amuse small minds….  😀
Walking along the beach with my dog is always high up on my list of favourite daily activities, on my birthday as well as any other day!  I’m also looking forward to being showered with gifts spending quality time with my family, hehe.  Tea, and quite possibly cake, will be consumed sometime during the day with my girl friends too.
Naturally, I must wear something fab.
Tootles, friends!

Details:
Dress; Vogue 1355, polyester chiffon lined with cotton voile, details here

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Lemons, lemons, lemons…

Like many households in Perth at the mo’ we have lemons.  Lots of lemons.  We are overloaded with lemons.  We have lemons coming out of our ears.  To say I have lemons on the brain is no exaggeration!!
Last week I was sad to see one of the boughs on our lemon tree starting to snap from under the weight of a gazillion lemons… so I salvaged all the ripe lemons off of the bough and got this…

D’ya wanna see something scary?  Even after harvesting all those lemons off just one branch, the tree still looks like this…!

So I am on a mission to USE LEMONS…!
I have made lemon curd.  I checked out recipes on the net and found this one, but then made up my own recipe, which uses the whole egg rather than just the yolk.  I consider this to be a far more usable concept in cooking  🙂

Lemon Curd
rind and juice of 4 lemons
6 eggs
1 1/2 c sugar
125g butter

Lightly whisk the eggs and sugar together in a saucepan, then add the other ingredients.  Whisk continually over a medium heat until the mixture has thickened to a custard-like texture then allow to cool in the pan.  Decant into sterilised jars.

I’ve made about twenty jars of lemon curd and given nearly all away to my friends; and they have been surprisingly appreciative, especially considering most of us have lemon trees  😀

Cassie devised this clever idea…

This is mango jelly, made up with the juice from the lemons plus water up to volume, and poured inside the hollowed-out half lemon shells to set.  It can be eaten by scooping the jelly straight out of the half shells, or cut up into wedges like this.  Looks quite pretty on the plate, don’t you think?… Clever and delicious!

Floral arrangement…

I know I know, this isn’t really “using” lemons since they too still have to be consumed at some point.  But one may as well enjoy the visual beauty of laden branches too, yes?  Alongside there is my newest knitting project, hehehe…

I hesitate to mention this last one, since I get a “look” from everyone irl I have mentioned it to…  I am also drinking a lemon a day…  without any added sugar.  I fully realise how strange this sounds but honestly I am enjoying it now.  It only took a few days to get used to drinking unsweetened diluted lemon juice but now I am acclimatised I cannot imagine going back to adding sugar ever again.  I used to add sugar to my lemon juice, but it always bothered me.  I decided I would wean myself off by gradually reducing the amount of sugar I was adding but then I just decided to go cold turkey.  And it worked!  I am getting a good shot of vitamin C, without the extra sugar.   I am cool with it now.  
Juice of 1 lemon, diluted up to a glassful… 

A glass a day keeps the common cold at bay!

I think it is important to note, I am NOT expecting my family to drink unsweetened lemon juice.  For now it’s just me  🙂  For my family, I have been baking a coupla lemon cakes each week.  It’s a good thing everyone loves them….    🙂
And we are slowly getting through those lemons!
Incidentally, does anyone know a good limoncello recipe?
Now perhaps I should start thinking what to do about this…

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You are all so brilliant!!

Woa, you are all so fabulously switched on and fashion-icon-savvy!!  hehe, might I just add; far more so than my husband, who had no idea  …   😉
Yes, of course, everyone was correct, I was Annie Hall.  My husband went Hawaii 5-O; in a loud Hawaiian shirt, his bright red jeans, boaters and a straw hat.  And thank you, we had an absolute ball!  we stayed alive; celebrating raining men, proclaiming our will to survive and asking to be taken to FunkyTown until the wee small hours….   
Naturally one of the fun-nest parts of any dress-up party is checking out and discussing everyone’s costumes… there was a Bianca Jagger, and some Abba’s and more afros, bellbottoms, safari suits, psychedelic minis and gogo boots than I’ve ever seen in one spot.  Giving me an illogical desire to hunt down a pair of glossy plastic gogo boots, ahem…. must resist…  
There is one guy in the group who, for every single fancy dress party, no matter what the theme; wears a fat-Santa suit…  He adds some accessory that is a token nod to the theme, this time it was a peace sign necklace … 😀

For those who wanted to enter into the draw… ElleC, I will be contacting you to send you the pattern.

Now, while I was digging through my stuff trying to settle on a costume, I found and initially thought I might wear this old thing… and you’d think surely I must have shown all my “old things” by now, hopefully this is the very last!
I’m pretty embarrassed to show it here, it is a rather hideous waistcoat, that I knitted during my teenage years.  I was pretty into Kaffe Fasset knits back then, and this was one of my earliest attempts at his style of colour mixing and matching.   The triangles design is his but I made up the knitting pattern myself…  it has no side seams, but was knitted in one piece in the round, and just joined at the shoulder seams; then I picked up stitches around the armholes and the front to knit up the ribbed bands.   It was knitted in the intarsia method, and sadly has a few moth holes now  🙁  but that’s OK since it’s not as though I was actually going to start wearing it again, except if we got invited to a bad taste party, maybe  😀

I have made a “new thing” though, a gloriously fashion-forward piece of haute couture…
kidding...!  
My old peg bag finally had the richard and I made another one.  It is all leftover fabrics; a small piece of rust-red upholstery fabric (from my friend C) for the outer shell, and lined with some of the blue-grey knit leftovers from this little jacket; so it is double layer for extra durability, and exactly the same shape and style as my old one (which I also made).  I re-used the same old clothes hanger for the top.  Both my grandmothers and my mother always made their peg bags just like this one, and I have inherited a preference for the style.  Mum goes the extra step of hand embroidering “PEGS” onto hers in beautiful script; if I had half her talent and patience then maybe my peg bag would be a bit more visually stimulating!  Mine has more of a slapped together rustic-chic look about it… hehe

(and I know the accounting is boring and I kinda half-wish I had not started, but I said I would so I will see the year out!  :S) 
…so, some judicious jottings for July

Nylon Rip-stop; $22.50
Polyester net lining; $4.99
2 dress zips for pockets; $1.98
Open-ended zip; $2.99
Thread; $2.68
Seam Grip; $17.95
Eyelets; from stash
Cord; $1.49
Cord Stops; $1.19
Velcro; $4.00
Pattern; self-drafted
Total cost: $59.77
Fabric; $13.90
Bra cups; $8.99
Patterns; panties were a free download, and the bra was self-drafted
Hook and eye closure; $2.49
Underwire; $2.49
Total cost: $27.87
Nylon Rip-stop; $12.60
Polyester net lining; $9.98  
(yup, being white = “bridal” = twice the price of the black net I used in mine…!)
Thread; $2.68
Open ended zip; $3.49
2x Dress zips for pockets; $1.98
Seam Grip; $17.95
Cord; $1.49
Cord Stops; $1.19
Eyelets; from stash
Velcro; from stash
Pattern; self-drafted
Total cost: $51.36
(y’know what though? I’m not going to include this one in my year’s total since it is not part of my wardrobe  🙂  )
Fabric; $27.00
Pattern; self-drafted
Total cost: $27.00
Yarn; $108.70
Pattern; a free download
Buttons; a gift from Mum
Total cost: $108.70
Fabric; made from all old clothes
Pattern; my own design
Thread; had the right colours already
Buttons; from my stash
Total cost: free
Peg Bag
all leftover free fabric and a re-cycled hanger
Miscellaneous
This month I also
purchased:
Seam Un-picker;
$3.95
Sewing machine light bulb; $7.95
Total cost: $11.90

o hai there…
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Thoughts on a slow wardrobe…

This morning, I noticed a hole in one of my socks.  Now, your average non-sock-knitter wouldn’t give it a second thought, just toss them out, toddle off and spend a handful of bucks on a bunch of new ones.  But I fetched my darning mushroom…
And as usual when I do anything sock-related, I pondered life, the universe and everything…
 and about “things”.  One really appreciates “things” one has made oneself, don’t you think?  There is that first-hand experience of the time and effort that goes into making some thing.   You come to treasure that thing.  Ergo, you take care of it, and you fix it up if something happens to it.  So, that thing lives on to be useful again.

My handmade socks have really drilled this basic and yet game-changing notion in to me more than any other of my handmade things.  
I think I am less wasteful and more mindful of consumption, thanks to the hours I have spent knitting my own socks.  
Because for sure, knitting one’s own socks is a very humbling endeavour.  Particularly when one walks past those racks of socks in the department stores, $10 for 3 pairs.

I am often asked “why bother?” with a handmade wardrobe.  Why bother spending hours knitting your own socks when it takes so looooong and they are so cheap and easy to buy?  
Well, I don’t know…. but I do take good care of my socks now

(my tutorial on darning is here)

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