London on a budget (Day 3 and 4)

On day three, we decided that we should just chill out a bit and have a day of window shopping. So we spent the day ambling down Oxford street. It was fun to play the game of, if I had this budget what would I get.

Then in the evening we had our (fancy) meal out for our final full day in London. For this meal we went to pizza hut on Leicester square.

Finally we finished up the day by going to Shakespeare's globe to where we had standing tickets (£5). It did hurt to stand up so long but was well worth it. The actors where amazing and we got to see an iconic tourist attraction for a super cheap price.

For our final day in London we went to Camden market, where we got some good (and not so good) deals.

London on a budget (Day 2)

Today, was all about doing some more stereo typical Tourist attractions. We started off the day by going to the horse guard parade to watch the changing of the guards. We got there 20 minutes early and where able to bag ourselves a good spot. If we'de been any later then we would have been a good couple of rows away from the front. The changing of the guards was very spectacular due to all of the soldiers being on horse back.

After that we went on a lovely walk through James park, so that we could have a picnic in Hyde park. However when we got to Buckingham palace, we where just in time to see the changing of the guards there. We where able to get a front row view by standing to the right of Buckingham palace and looking from the edge. Considering that we had already seen the changing of the guards at the horse guard parade, we where extremely happy with where we were standing.

After seeing the changing of the guards we carried on to Hyde park where we had a really nice laid back picnic.
Once we'd finished our picnic, we took the tube to the British museum. We where just in time for the 14:30 free tour about Ancient Egypt. The British Museum have lots of free tours going on through out the day, so it's well worth having a look when and where they are.

We were planning on going to the Curzon cinema in the evening to watch a subtitled film but decided that we were all too tied. So we just went back to Camden and had an early night.  

London on a budget (Day 1)

Hey! Recently I went to London with 3 of my Friends. All of us are students, which meant that we had to be careful with our money. So aside from a few things we desperately wanted to see, everything we did was either free or extremely cheap.

We arrived by train at mid day. Firstly we went to where we were staying to unpack and to buy all the food we would need for our stay. We based ourselves around Camden, so that we could easily get around London.

Once we had settled in and eaten, we set off for the south bank. My friends really wanted to go to the London dungeons (£28 per person), where as I fancied going to the Tate Modern (free). My Friends got a cheaper rate for the London Dungeons by using the Kelloggs 2 for one vouchers. It actually worked really well. My Friends finished their tour at at around 6:00 pm, which is when the Tate closes, so we just met up again by the London eye.

We were quite tired by 6:30 so we decided to eat out at an all you can eat Thai buffet (£7.50), which was just down the road from Camden tube station.
As a first day, it was fairly expensive for my friends but not that expensive for me. However the London Dungeons was something they really wanted to do and they had a really good time.

The Joys of Productivity

It's almost Easter! In fact it's good Friday tomorrow, which means that there are lots of events going on at my local church.During the week before Easter the church that I go to team up with other local churches to create a series of out reach events. One of these events was a craft evening that I went to with my Mum.
 Although I may have seemed a bit anti-social with my sewing machine in the far corner, I still found the fellowship amazing. Being surrounded by not only people who share the same hobby but also the same passion for Christ is truly wonderful.
During this time I was also able to finish two sewing projects that had been on my 'needs to be finished' pile for a year or two (or maybe even 3). Yes, you heard that right, I finished a top about 3 years after I first started it!
But at the end of the evening I was so joyful, that not only had I been productive, when it came to my 'needs to be finished' pile but I'd also been productive in finding out more about Jesus (thanks to the amazing speaker).
So this got me wondering, what are your traditions at Easter? Do you follow lent and if so how's that going for you?

And as always,

I hope this has inspired you!

10 Random Questions

Hey Guys, I realise that you probably don't now that much about me, so I thought I'd share some random facts that you may not know.
1. Do you like your hand writing?
Not really, I think it's a little too functional and not elegant enough.
2. What is your favourite lunch meal?
Probably something quick and easy like pasta or sandwiches, as I'm usually in a bit of a rush.
3. Would you bungee jump?
No way! I'm absolutely terrified of heights.
4. What is your favourite ice cream?
Definitely anything with chocolate in it.
5. Red or pink?
Red
6. Favourite sports to watch?
Gymnastics, the gymnasts are always so graceful and elegant.
7. Any Tattoos?
No, sorry not my cup of tea.
8. Where were you 3 hours ago?
In my room.
9. Have you been to the movies in the last 5 days?
Yes, I went to watch Star Wars again!
10. When was the last time you went for a run?
A couple of days ago, I struggle to stay on top of exercise in the winter. I mean who wants to go for a run outside when the temperatures at 1 to -1 degrees? Although now the weather is starting to pick up again.

Sewing Quiz

I was surfing the internet when I can across this sewing quiz, it's definitely worth a try. I was shocked at how little I knew when it came to the history of sewing. Let me know how you get on with it :)

Let's talk: Where do I get my patterns from?

Hey Guys! I hope you're enjoying this new series as much as I'm enjoying writing it. It's really helped me to evaluate my sewing. Today I'd like to talk about, where I source my patterns from, so with out further to do, let's get to it.

My main source is free on-line patterns. You can find the free patterns I have designed here. I mean who doesn't love getting something for free! Also have a look at the blogs listed on my inspirational blogs page. These blogs quite often have some great on-line patterns.

Another source of mine is sewing magazines. I love how you get so many patterns for such a small price. You rarely find them where I live but whenever I visit my grandparents I pick up a copy. Of course you don't always like all of the patterns but usually there'll be 4 or 5 that I like.

Finally, I sometimes get printed patterns from the larger fabric shop near me. As you know from my previous post, I rarely go there hence the reason why I don't often follow those kinds of patterns.
So how do you source your patterns? Do you have any hints or tips?

I hope this has inspired you!

Let's talk: My sewing inspiration

I constantly talk about getting inspiration but I rarely tell you where I get my inspiration from. Ladies and gentlemen, that is all about to change!

Some of you who've explored my blog al lot may have come across my inspiration page, where I talk about my on-line inspiration. However that's not the only place where I get inspiration from, here are some other ways I decided what I'd like to sew for my self:

These Molly makes mini cards provide me with a great deal of inspiration. I think they come with every magazine (however these may have been a one off).

• Through window shopping. I'll often walk past a shop window and go "that's cute! I should totally make one for my self". Sometimes it my not be a single piece that inspires me but instead a general trend, such as the Kimono I recently made for myself.

• Through catalogues. If there's something in the catalogue that I think I can make it for cheaper than I can buy it, I will totally put the effort in, to make it. Not only is it a fun challenge to try and work out how I could make something similar but it's also really cool knowing that you saved some money. Like when I made this striped skirt.

• Through sewing magazines. I get a lot of ideas when of patterns I could follow when reading a sewing magazine, I mean who doesn't. 

Most stores will have a catalogue in store, or will send you catalogues regularly if you've bought something from their on-line store.

Newsagents will quite often have some sort of craft magazine but I always keep an eye out for a sewing magazine. If you don't have a local newsagent, you could always have a subscription to a sewing magazine. (I personally avoid this because I feel that, I wouldn't get value for money)

Similarly to sewing magazines, sewing books also provide me with a great deal of inspiration.

So where do you get you're inspiration from, let me know in the comments section bellow.

I hope this has inspired you!

Let's talk: What I plan on sewing next!

Do you ever find that you have lots of ideas and very little time? Well that's me at the moment. My heads buzzing with ideas but I'm pretty sure I won't get round to completing half of them for at least another year. Scary or what!

Either way I've got a list which I thought I would share with you today and see if you have any suggestions, or if you think that maybe one of these ideas is just a repeat of the others. Also if there's anything you would like to see on this blog, then let me know and I'll see if I can get around to it.

Currently I'm working on the following:

A quilt (yes that's right, me with all my limited time decided to start a quilt about 2 months ago)

A present for my cousins birthday, which I'm seriously close to finishing.

What I would like to make:

A winter coat.

Pyjama bottoms for both me and my sister.

Find something to do with my ever growing pile of scrap fabric.

Some house shoes.

A Christmas present for my cousin.

Christmas presents for my friends.

I think that's everything! It doesn't seem like a lot when I write it down like that, so maybe it is achievable. Who knows! Do you have a list of things you want to make or are you the one project at a  time person?

I hope this has inspired you!

Let's talk: How I choose and buy fabric

So I may have mentioned before, that I live in a bit of a fabric store free zone. My nearest craft store is half an hours drive away (and has a very limited range) but the fabric shop that I usually go to is about an hour and a halves drive away. I know for some of you out there, that will seem like no distance at all but for me this limits me to weekends and usually I have other stuff on at the weekend. This means that often I will only go to the fabric shop once a year. This is probably not a bad thing as I already have enough fabric. Before you ask, I choose not to buy fabric on-line, as you can't see the fabric in person (obviously) and so you don't know exactly what you're going to get.

Please ignore the strange orange tinge to the photos. The store lighting had an interesting effect on my camera and I didn't have the time or patience to change my white balance. 

Recently I went to the craft store I mentioned to pick up some small amounts of fabric for I quick project that I hope to show you soon but this trip got me thinking that maybe I should evaluate how I shop for fabric. Note that this is a personal reflection and nothing more.
1. I always have a budget.
I'm a student with a "weekend job" so I'm not exactly going to spend lots of cash on fabric. I have a budget and stick to it.

2. My list is the most important thing to me when shopping!
Before I leave I create a list of everything I want to get for up coming projects and roughly how much money I'm thinking of spending on each item.
3. I leave a little money spare.
I often leave a little money spare in my budget for those pieces of fabric that just grab your attention and you don't have a plan for but hey it looks cute!
4. Every piece of fabric has to pass the test.
Every piece of fabric I think about buying has to pass the "would I wear this if I bought it from a shop?" test. If I wouldn't wear it normally then just because it's cheap, doesn't mean I should get it, after all I have to wear the item of clothing later.

5. Go with an open mind and understanding you may not get what you where looking for.
Often when I go to the fabric shop, I'm looking for a particular type of fabric, with a particular print. I always go knowing I may not get what  want, that doesn't mean I compromise, it just means that I put that project idea aside for another year.However if I find something that would work just as well and I'm super passionate about it and it would work for the project I had in mind, then that's a different matter.
So there you have it, a quick break down of my thought process when I'm buying fabric.

I hope this has inspired you!