Get ahead, Get a Hat!

I'm quite a 'hat' person. I don't own loads but I do like them. I'd been looking about at the 'Baker Boy' style caps around as I like the style but they're not cheap, especially for something you're not exactly going to get a tonne of wear out of. So, I pondered on making my own, found a pattern and here's the result.

I don't have a 'head dummy' to show it on but managed to find a very patient model instead :)  The pattern came from a magazine and was pretty good, apart from at the end when it told you that if you wanted to put elastic at the back (to make it a little smaller), it's supposed to be put on before you turn the band lining in. At least that's how it seems. I'm just going to see how it feels when I wear it. If I want to make it a bit smaller then, I'll just have to put a bit of elastic on the inside of the band at the back. No-one will see it when it's on my head anyway.

The fabric I used is a thin denim, recycled from a pair of jeans that I made into shorts for my friend. I had the extra leg bits left and it was just enough to make the hat from.

I had to make a self cover button which was a first but I don't think it went too badly, considering. I did try it with other buttons I had to see how a contrast would look but nothing suited it so I stuck with the suggestion for a self covered one.

The lining is some cotton from a remnant someone gave me a couple of years ago. I thought that it went with the whole 'vintage-y' feel of the cap's style.

So all in all, the make didn't cost me very much at all; a bit of tie back interfacing was the only thing I actually had to get for it, the rest was just stuff I had in my stash!

Hope you like it! Please feel free to leave a comment :)

Hair clip/Corsage/Brooch

I had fun making this little cute clip. It's using felt, tulle and vintage buttons. And the tulle has sequins on it. I mean, what more could you want?

Some of the cutting was a bit fiddly, even though I used a die, it doesn't cut the net too well so I had to help it a little. This gives it a slightly more random and certainly more individual feel because if you make more than one, it's unlikely you'll cut it in exactly the same manner again. But that's what so fab about handmade isn't it? The individuality of it.

I finished the piece off with a salon style clip which means it can be worn in the hair, as a brooch or as a corsage on a bag, etc. Whatever you feel like on the day! And if you feel differently the next day you can move it around to suit!

I think it's a sweet little piece and plan to make another soon, probably in white - a kind of wintery theme there I suppose!

I'd love to hear your views on the clip, and if you have any other ideas or suggestions!

Love maxi x

I Heart Buttons

This is a project I've had in my Inspiration book as a doodle for some time. I've even had the fabric for it cut out for a while - it was just the actual sewing bit I hadn't got around to! Then on Sunday I had a pretty good flare up of my fibromyalgia which meant all the other things I'd planned to do went out the window.

When I can, I try to use these times at least sort of productively so I therefore spent an enjoyable while swotting up on roman blinds, curtains and cushions from the Debbie Shore DVDs (highly recommended if you haven't seen them - she makes it far less scary than it can otherwise sometimes seem!) Although I have made curtains before. it's been so long I lost my confidence a bit.

With the rest and painkillers helping me along, I began to feel a little more human and so I did some hand sewing - and seriously underestimated the amount of time it would take to sew on all those buttons! Still, I wasn't going anywhere so it didn't really matter.

I Heart Buttons

The main fabric is some upholstery weight cotton with a self fabric detail that I had left over from a screen I made years ago. The buttons are all out of my Mum's button box which she donated to me a while ago, so they're nice and vintage with various ones coming off our baby clothes, etc. There are so many beautiful fabrics out there but it does feel good making something pretty out of things you already have. A totally 'free' project!

Yesterday I went into Next to have a quick look around (new store) and noticed that they have various home dec items featuring buttons so not only was my project free, but also bang on trend!

Hope you like it and I'd love for you to leave a comment if you do!



Your Singer Story

Just a quick little post which might interest you if you have an older Singer sewing machine. With the company celebrating its 160th birthday this year, they are encouraging owners to share their 'Singer Stories'. You can also enter the serial number of your machine (if it's prior to the 1970s) and find out what year it was made. A PDF link will then appear and you can print a commemorative certificate. It's quite cute and something nice to keep if you and your machine have some history together!

I need to take a picture of mine to put on here but having just entered the serial number I've discovered that mine was manufactured in 1929, the year of the Wall Street Crash that helped kick off the Great Depression. It arrived at our house probably in the very early 80s or late 70s when my Nan bought it for me from the local paper as my first machine. She was a seamstress by trade and taught me how to sew my first items, although I wish now that I had paid better attention of course! I remember the day it arrived and was set up on the dining table. I opened the case and that wonderful smell of polished wood and machine oil hit me. It was in fantastic condition and sewed beautifully. It makes you wonder though, doesn't it, what life did it have before it became my very first machine? In those intervening 50 years, who had it and what did they create with it?

Wonderful graphic courtesy of the Graphic Fairy Blog