As a teenager, I was an avid reader of 90s teen magazines (Bliss and Sugar) and was fascinated when one issue (bizarrely, as it certainly wasn’t a regular feature) included a pattern for a, presumably crochet, string bikini. I didn’t knit or crochet at the time, but the idea of […]
Knitted Swimsuit from a Vintage Pattern Read More »
I always take two weeks holiday at Christmas, and one of the nice tasks I set myself is to have a reminisce about what I made, enjoyed and generally got up over the past year, aided by a scroll back through Instagram. When I started looking back at 2023, I
I didn’t finish many knitting projects in 2023. My main knitting project this year, which has been in my stash / slowly in progress for a few years, was a Moomin jumper, using a Novita pattern and yarn. I’m on, approximately, my fourth attempt at knitting it, a combination of
The Winter Crop Jumper and 2023 Knitting Projects Read More »
Every other year, Birmingham Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers holds a dyeing day and it’s always one of my favourite meetings. It’s held in a fellow guild member’s garden, there’s a constant pot of tea on the go, and all attendees bring along a contribution for the buffet lunch.
Earlier this year, I decided to get my yarn stash organised and attempt to use it all up. My yarn stash isn’t especially large (unlike my fabric stash) so it’s a realistic aim and would challenge me to find projects for yarn that I’ve had sat in the house for
Yarn Stash Projects Read More »
Yesterday was this year’s (and the ninth) SewBrum meet-up. Thanks to everyone who bought a ticket or donated a prize to the charity raffle, we raised £1,138 for this year’s charities; Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid and St Basil’s. That means SewBrum has now raised a total of £8,750 since
I’ve always really enjoyed writing an end-of-year blog post, as an opportunity to remind myself what I got up to over the last 12 months and reminisce about the best bits. I also really enjoy revisiting those post a few years later on, as a neat encapsulation of my year.
It’s been ages since I sat down to write a blog post about a finished garment project. This little knitted skirt has been on my ‘to-make’ list for so long that I thought actually finishing it deserved recording. This is the Masika Skirt by Kari-Helene Rane, designed for, and knitted
Masika Knitted Skirt Read More »
Despite the fact that I rarely wear hats, including the RTW beret I have owned for years, at the end of last year I suddenly got the urge to knit a beret. I originally purchased a different knitting pattern, but then James N Watts’ Best Beret pattern was released and
During January, I finished two coat sewing projects which I started one year ago, during the 2018 Christmas holiday. One coat for me, and one coat for Phil. I managed to complete both coats in time for a week’s holiday in New York, which we treated ourselves to last week.
Kate Davies The Observatory Hap Read More »