Life As We Know It... and Another Online Class and Another Pattern

Hurrah! My next class at CreativeBug was released this week. 

It's a super-simple back-pack, that focuses on finishing techniques and strap-making that will improve all your general bag-making. You can see a little promo video of it here, with the other October Releases.

As promised, there are more of my classes to come on CreativeBug.  Watch this space and I'll keep you informed. 

In other bag-making news, my publishers have released a pattern for the Berlin Slouch, which was originally written as part of The Better Bag Maker, but was lost in The Great Word Count Disaster (ahem...along with 5 others). If you're in Australia, I know that it's available through Fishpond and Book Depository.

And yes... I know that it has been too long since I was in the blogosphere, and here I am, popping up and advertising classes and patterns.  There have been goings-on and craftiness of all kinds, and I haven't blogged any of it. The blog police (mostly one of the parents* at kiddie-yoga who reminds me each week) have certainly noticed that I don't update my blog or website much these days. (*Hello Shane, if you're reading this!).

The truth is, I miss it.  I miss the time I had before for considered diary posts on a regular basis.  I miss chronicling the creative development of both my work and that of my gorgeous girleen. I miss the connection with people who read and enjoy this little corner of my world.

The other day, the girleen and I scrolled through the blog archive I have of her early years.  We laughed and were surprised by the things I'd forgotten and the things she actually remembered.

Life goes on.  The girleen continues to amaze me...

And we still have crafty school holiday playdates...

There are other projects in the pipeline... 

 And a new spanner thrown into the works...

 I'm loving my teaching job.  Being back in the world of Fashion and garment making is inspiring and challenging in all the right proportions (and I get to hang out with these photogenic beauties all day).

But the juggle of life - parenting, work, business, writing projects, household management, garden maintenance and other commitments - means that it's easier for me to share on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  This is a shame, but it's the reality of how much one small person can manage and still have time for the people and things she enjoys.   

Lately, I've given up trying to live up to other people's expectations and am focusing on what's important to me - my girl, my home, my family and friends.  And in between, I work on things that I love. And occasionally, I even write a blog post!

I think I'm happier this way.

Feeling quilty

I've had this niggling quilty feeling for the last few weeks.  I keep thinking about the quilt I accidentally started (when I was making a patchwork panel for a small handbag) a few months ago.

 

I woke up on Sunday and started stitching again. I needed a day to let my brain freewheel and unwind, and this seemed like the perfect meditation.

 

Every fabric is designed by an Australian, and I'm lucky enough to call some of those talented designers my friends. These were scraps that were too precious to throw out.

 

I had visions of floating these strips in broad bands of a solid colour, but couldn't decide which colour.  After bit of experimentation, I thought a mix of red, black and grey would be interesting...

 

I started cutting up fabric and began the well-practised art (read: habit) of flying by the seat of my pants.  There was no clear plan.... just the enticing notion of a finished quilt and a strong sense of very little time in which to make it.

 

 

After I cut up all the red fabric I had, I decided that there should have been more thought put into proportions and layout, with a few much wider bands.  I didn't have enough fabric to re-cut. 

 

In came a 3-D shadow effect with grey and black.... which appears to be overwhelming the subtlety of the pieced prints.... I'm not sure about it... but it's sewn together and there's no more red and.... well... let's just see what happens, shall we...?

 

My approach to quilting appears to be of the improvised "from little things, big things grow" variety, which - as an amateur - could lead me into all sorts of unforseen  trouble.

 

My girl, on the other hand, is a planner.  She dreams big.

 

She talked about "an idea for a quilt" for a week before she suggested starting it at a time that wasn't two minutes before bed, in the middle of dinner or just as we were simultaneously brushing teeth and running out the door to get to school on time. 

 

 

  We found an appropriate moment and she started vliesofixing and sketching out shapes for applique.

 

 

There were flower petals cut and flower petals fused, and then the addition of a caterpillar... and then the retro-fitting of some caterpillar-bites out of a flower petal....

 

 ...and then the narrative of the caterpillar story was 'adjusted' to fit in with the designer's waning enthusiasm for flower-petal cutting and fusing.

 

"The caterpillar ate the rest of the petals."

 

It was quilted, "bound" and declared finished.  

 

I think that maybe, some time in the future, she'll be employing me.

Still in Portland....

By complete chance, (well, actually it was the decision-maker on the idea) my first Quilt Market in the USA happened to be in Portland, where my eldest sister has lived for 18 years.  We've combined business with family time, and a bit of a relaxing break after the madness of the trade show.

The wee girl has had time to get to know her cousins and we've had time to do everyday things like go swimming and...ahem... fabric shopping.

We spent a lovely afternoon yesterday with the gorgeous Lola Nova and her crafty girl, visiting Modern Domestics and Bolt, and chatting over dinner.  

I came away with warm and fuzzy feelings about the crafting community and like-minds' and a goodly stash of new fabric.  My wee girl came away with felt, needles and embroidery floss, and began crafting a cat on the train home.

...which she finished today... complete with a wardrobe of costumes.  Instead of coming into town to explore the city with me today, she wanted to stay home and sew.  No idea where she gets that from.

My exploration of the city involved mostly sitting in Starbucks with a friend from home.  

I nearly caught a train home from the city and then a phone call to my sister confirmed that it would be better if I spent another hour in town if I wanted to be picked up from the station.  I wandered around town, Powell's Books and in the rain for which Portland is so famous.

It's a cool and kooky place, where everyone appears to be incredibly polite.  And nobody uses umbrellas, despite incessant downpour.

I like it.

Both sides now

When I was in Addicted to Fabric a month or so ago, I was completely besotted and amazed by the double-sided prints that are available, even in the finest of fabric weights.

I came home with several metres of the double-sided knits, and have been thinking about what I might make with them.  I haven't made a decision, nor have I had the time to sew for myself, but I'm hedging towards pattern-free and a bit twisty.

Mostly, I'm just looking forward to having the time and brainspace to sew for myself again.  My head is full of garment ideas.... and little fantasies about yoga retreats or weekends of sewing in Apollo Bay.

 

Life has been  completely out of balance these last few months: very heavy on the work and panic and very light on the family, friends and breathing-without-hyperventilating.  Now that the projects for the book are done and the manuscript is in its final tweakings stage, I'm able to stand still for odd moments and take in the scene.

 

Yep....

 

 

(If I look at that same table right now, it actually has twice as much craft debris all over it ...and onto two chairs and the floor.)

 

Now that the book is nearly done, I've realised that there is less than a month until I go to Quilt Market in Portland... and there's ...ummmm... quite a lot to do.  I hadn't even started before last week.

 

I plough on.  I neglect my blog.  I'm still reading the same novel I started months ago.  I let the wee girl watch too much mindless television. I don't sew anything that isn't work-related.  

 

As Jodie so eloquently puts it, I'm totally hampstered.

 

There is balance in my mind, if not in my itinerary. I still count my blessings, delight in every blue skied day (a residual habit after living for 5 years in Ireland).  I'm thankful for every day without sickness and for my beautiful girl. And I know that at some point, all this madness will be a distant memory.  Hopefully, the memory will serve as a reminder to keep life in balance a bit more in future, and not take on more than I need to, or can cope with. 

 

 

Amongst it all, I must remember to keep my eye on what's really important, and on the example that I'm setting. 

 

My girl has an eye for detail, is creative, independent and strong-willed. I think I know where she might get that from, but I wonder what else she's absorbing.

She made these dolls to please me... not by her creativity but by "keeping busy and out of [my] way"...  It was one of those parenting moments that cause pause and reflection.

It'd be nice if we could take an extended holiday while we're in the USA, but the reality around here is that I have to hit the ground running when we get back.  Nobody else pays the bills.

I have ideas for patterns (how long is it since I've done one of those...?).

I've been scheduling classes for the winter (... and if you 'd like to do any of them, I'd suggest getting in quick because they're filling up). 

And I've been thinking of ways to be more present when I'm parenting, and more joyful in the presence of the magic that is my clever, creative, extraordinary kid.

And I'm definitely looking into the possibility of a weekend away. Apollo Bay is calling.

The Thick Of It

I still haven't tidied the studio. I sweep occasionally and load the dishwasher.

 

The rubbish bin is full of interfacing trimmings and Mini Magnum wrappers. 

 

And now, on top of the fabric, foamcore board and general clutter, there are samples, toiles and finished designs.  And there are more to come.  My head is full of them.

I've just passed the halfway mark in developing designs (and writing instructions, shooting how-to photos and drawing diagrams) for the new book. When I'm not feeling worn out and overwhelmed, I'm feeling inspired and capable and full of hope. 

 

This new book-writing biz has been a see-sawing, hot-cold, drought-flood sort of affair, so far, but all the time I've had to work through it. The deadline is pressing, and I still have to organise getting myself to Grampians Texture, various teaching gigs around the country and I have to get to Quilt Market in the USA.

 

And all the time, I'm loving beautiful fabrics by Saffron Craig, CurlyPops, Ink&Spindle and Kristen Doran.

 

I'm also in the throes of overhauling lots of pattern covers with new samples, in fresh new fabrics. These are all from Riley Blake "Flutter" and "Hello Sunshine" ranges.  Don't they just SING?

For the first time since the girleen was 2, I've had to delegate the sewing of samples. I've realised the limits of my time.... which is a shame, because I'd love to be playing with these.

 

And as any Australian parent-of-school-age-kids knows, it's the loooooooooong school holidays right now.

 

I've seen 3am more times lately than I dare to think about it.

 

Speaking of school holidays, there have been other bag designs emerging from studio You SEW Girl.

 

 

Of course, I opened it.

 

 (I helped to make it, so there were no surprises). The pocket was especially designed as a "book pocket".  That's my girl.

Busy times.

Throw in a few miniature and major dramas, a whole bag of grief, a bunch of uncertainty, a little bit of optimism, some good times with good friends, some disillusionment with others, some wonderful big blue Melbourne skies, a few marvellously meditative swims, the appreciation of good air-conditioning during a heatwave and the realisation that Mini Magnums really need to start getting bigger (or that I have to admit to some sort of addiction), and you pretty much have my "summer break".

We'll be back to normal business hours next week.  Hope to catch you somewhere in 2013. 
xxx

 

 

 

 

Crafty Christmas

The garage/playroom is the centre of all things Christmassy at Studio You SEW Girl.  Right in the middle (right where everyone can trip over it) is a fine, tall, cardboard xmas tree. 

The wee girl and I seem to have developed our own little tradition with this particular part of the Christmas crafting season.

 

These little hands have been very busy this last week, crafting up a Christmas bonanza of handmade love ....and warming the cockles of this old sewing-obsessed heart. 

(Eeep!  Those confident little crafting hands.... gets me every time....)

There has been a bit of a shift in the young one's approach to sewing, which includes looking for design ideas and occasionally accepting help (if it means that the job will get done faster or better).  Books have been consulted.

And yet - designs are interpreted, not followed.  She made lavender-filled softies for the teachers.

This owl is made from felted jumpers, not the proscribed fabrics, and the scale was tiny.  We used fusible pattern pieces, fabric glue sticks, fusible webbing and basting spray  in the process (anything to make things stay put until they were stitched down). 

I machined the blanket stitch around the eyes and tummy, but only after the girleen had given it a red-hot go, herself.  She managed the outer blanket stitch, and with the help of my new button foot and fancy-schmantzy button-stitch, machined the buttons into place (with helicopter-style supervision on my part).

The "Square Bear" was not so square, because there was a bit of an oversight in reading the "enlarge 200%" bit for the body pieces.  We thought that the curved limbs gave the bear a bit more character, anyway. 

Since we realised that the Christmas stocking was at her Dad's house, and that Santa would be visiting while she was with me (and mostly because it was a scorching hot day and I was scratching around, looking for indoor/air-conditioned activities), we whipped up a new one from a bit of cotton sheeting.

And then she designed a dress. 

 

All on her own, she sketched an idea and presented it to me.  "I want to make this".

 

So we did.  (Go on....ask her what that arrow on centre-front means...).

Again, she was happy to delegate the tricky bits (setting in sleeves and putting the binding on), but she happily sewed up the straight seams on the overlocker (serger) and wondered why "some grown-up ladies are scared to do overlocking."

Such a sombre, understated design for a 7-year-old, but this is exactly what she wanted. I think it was designed around the shoes... as you do. 

 

We had to go out to buy white knit fabric for the binding yesterday - no other colour would do. (I had just about every other colour in the stash and did my diplomatic best to inspire a change of design).  The hemline had to be "wavy", and I don't have a rolled-hem or babylock on my very basic overlocker, so we went even more basic (small zigzag stitch).  

 

She wore it all day yesterday and is wearing it today.

 

She's already showing signs of a creative career (although I think that Corporate Law or Politics would be a better use for her finest talents). 

 

At a xmas gathering of my friends, she held court, and then started drawing portraits of those sitting around the table.  (Warning: evening light and iPod-quality  photos follow.)

Someone gave her money, and then others started comissioning portraits.

I loved the details... (That's a jug and a glass of beer, below.  Others had bowls of nuts in front of them or sunglasses on top of their heads.)  

 

As we walked home, she was excited and a bit incredulous about the $5 she held in her little hand. 

"People thought they were worth MONEY... but I just thought they were worth bits of paper."  She would have given them away.

 

And yes - the fruit hasn't fallen far from the tree.

 

Wishing you a safe and happy Christmas with the people you love.

 

xxx

 

 

 

A possible takeover

Well, it was just a matter of time, wasn't it...?  I have a new competitor.

The price is competitive (can you beat $1?) and the breadth of the new pattern range is staggering. 

 The instructions may be a little vague, but this new designer can pump out new designs like nothing I've ever seen before.  Prolific isn't the word.

 There's even a fancy, multi-colour logo...

 ...and catchy slogans on the display unit.

 There's even a specially-made apron for the specially-made business cards.

 After a crafty play-date with a little friend established that she now knows everything there is to know about knitting machines, I wouldn't be surprised to see a few knitting-machine patterns a-hatching soon. 



And yes.. apparently there are Cat Designs classes planned....

Thank goodness she hasn't worked out how to make a hat, so I'll still have that gig for a little while longer. 

(I thought I'd throw in this picture to remind myself of the lovely time I had at Addicted to Fabric on the weekend.) 

Today, the little designer went off to GJ's for a bit of professional development (a kid's sewing class).  She made this fabulous owl cushion.

The teacher told me that the little expert was indeed very good at keeping an even(ish) seam allowance and that she likes to go very fast.

 

There's a saying about fruit and trees and falling, isn't there?