My summer dress

So if you look back through my old posts you may realise that I'm not really a dress person. This all changed though when I went with my Mum to a local (but large) sewing and knitting show, where I saw a really inspiring pattern (the simplicity 2884), which sparked my imagination.

When I saw the fabric I knew it was perfect for this Pattern. Looking back I realise that not only is the fabric perfect for this pattern, it's also perfect for summer because it holds it's shape nicely, whilst still being floaty enough for it not to feel to clingy.

I have a feeling that I may be wearing dresses more often from now on. This may even be my summer favourite.

I hope this has inspired you!

My first ever item of clothing

So yesterday I was sorting through my sisters old clothes when I came across the first top I ever sewed. She's grown out of it now because it was a birthday present from 3 or 4 years back now but it hit me how much my sewing has changed. For example I now know not to use a straight stitch on stretchy fabric and also to match the thread colour with the material you are sewing.

 Have you ever looked back and realised how far you've come or are you realising how much you're sewing is improving each day?

I hope this has inspired you!

My cousins new trousers

I will soon be going to stay at my aunts for a week and I wanted a way to say thank you to her for letting me stay. So finally I hit on the idea of making some items of clothing for her daughter, my cousin. The result of which can be seen bellow.

I made these trousers in no time flat and the material only cost me 20p per trouser!
 

I really hope she likes them because I've had a whale of a time making them. If you are worried about venturing into the world of trousers then don't be although the construction may be alien to you it's really not that difficult.

I hope this has inspired you!

Super cute journal cover

This post is sooooo over due, as can you believe it Easter was over 7 weeks ago. I'm really sorry I didn't post this earlier.
So during lent this year (for those of you who don't know, I am a Christian) I decided to document my journey with God during this time by writing down my prayers, my thoughts and my feelings. It was important for me to be completely honest with myself in this book because I have a tendency to kid myself. It was a great experience for me to just write everything that came into my head and I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders every time I wrote in my new journal.

Now I'm able to look back and say to myself "wow, is that really how I reacted, I need to work on that" because we as humans have a tendency to gloss over our memories and adapt them to make ourself look better in our own eyes.

So you may be wondering "Libby what does you writing down your prayers have to do with sewing inspirations and also crafts in general?" Well, firstly our inspirations come from the world around us and this book was part of my world for 40 days and 40 nights. Secondly for the cover I found these amazing journal covers, which are just perfect for anyone who loves crafts.These free printables are also perfect for any journey loving writer :) you can get them from here.

I hope this has inspired you!

My sisters swim dress for summer 2014

Some of you may know that for summer last year I made a swimming dress for me and my sister but my sister has now out grown her old one so today I spent the morning making her a new one. I found the material yesterday for £2.50 and I absolutely love the way the dress has turned out, it's funky and cute but not too childish (as my sisters getting to the stage where she wants to look a bit more grown up).

I made this by tracing round tops, skirts and dressed from her wardrobe to find the best fit. However I now have a free pattern that shows you exactly how you too can make a dress like this, which you can find here.

I also made a bikini bottom in the same fabric so that if the dress does ride up by accident it won't be as obvious what they are but for obvious reasons I won't display them on the internet.

I also had to show you the hairstyle my sister was wearing today. You can find a video on how to do this hairstyle here.

Those of you who have been following my blog for a while may realise that recently I have been distracted by my exams but I'm soooooo pleased to tell you that I have finally finished and I'm really excited to get back into sewing.

I hope this has inspired you!

My super cute lace top

I know that I've not been very frequent in posting my projects recently but I do have an excuse, it's currently the exam season where I live and I've been quiet busy revising since February (I know that February seems like a distant memory but the exams are important to me).
Still I managed to fit in a bit of sewing time recently, as I've almost finished my exams, and made this lovely crop pull over lace top.

This fabric came from a 60p and as I have used the other 2 pieces of material the grand total cost of this top is 20p. I improvised the pattern but if you would like a post about how I made this top feel free to leave a comment.

I hope this has inspired you!

Hawaiian apron

It's always nice to make something for someone else especially when it gets a surprising amount of use.  I made this apron for no one in-particular but when my sister said she needed an apron to take with her to guides (and there was no way she was taking any of my mums, for fear of it getting lost). I gave her the apron as a surprise gift and boy has it served her well.

  I got the pattern from an apron book which I got a while back and so can't remember where I got if from.

 The material came from my mum's stash; she got it a while ago and said that she wouldn't mind me using it, as she had never found a use for it. I love it's tropical feel, especially when the weather is starting to get sunny again outside.

Have you ever made an apron?

I hope this has inspired you!