Q & A

When you're embarking on a new crafty adventure do you ever run through a whole series of questions before you begin?

Do you plan meticulously and only start when you know it's going to work out right?

Or do you just jump right in there, fully clothed, with both feet - not even bothering to take your boots off?

Yup. Me too ;-)

After a week of busy at work, a headful of cold and too much family distraction, I finally found the time to play with the overlocker today.

I thought of my questions retrospectively.....and thought I'd share them with you as you may find them helpful.

1. Will you read the instruction book fully, at least twice and watch the 'instructional DVD' at least three times before even threading your machine?
Nope. I'll thread the machine whilst watching the DVD for the first time, having given the instruction book the most cursory of glances.

2. Will you spend your time wisely, practising all of the machine's functions on a wide variety of fabrics, so that you know what it is capable of?
Nope. I'll spend about ten minutes whizzing up and down straight bits of an old curtain and then get bored.

3. Now that you are ready to start your first project on your machine, will you choose something sensible and straightforward like a handkerchief or a cushion cover?
Don't be daft! I'll remember having read something somewhere on the internets ages ago about how you can use an overlocker to put in a zip and then I'll make a zipped pouch to keep my sock knitting in (without bothering to find the said internet article just to check if its actually true or I dreamt it).



...took ten minutes....only very slightly bodged.....and you can't see the bodged bits!


4. Now that you seem more confident with your new machine, it is time to move on to your next project. Maybe keep it simple,huh? Straight lines? No curves?

Righty -ho, I want to make me a pinafore, to wear with jeans, a bit like the lovely brown linen one that I bought in the sale at that designer place.....Peacocks....with a nice curved neckline and armholes.....and an interlined bodice.

5. Um, good idea. Are you going to take a trip to the fabric shop to choose a nice pattern?

What? Of course not! I'm going to take off the brown pinafore (cos I'm wearing it) and draw round it onto some old wrapping paper!

6. Ah....well maybe you could treat yourself to some lovely new fabric then?

No...no time...need to start this RIGHT NOW....where's that denim duvet cover I got from the charity shop last year?

7. Mmmm - could work. How about making it look really lovely with some pockets and maybe some reverse applique or handstitching to give it that 'designer' touch?

Not possible - sorry.....got to finish it in as little time as possible....

8. Have you ever made an interlined sleeveless bodice before?

No but I saw this tutorial for a fabric carrier bag and the principle is the same.

9. Good luck......fool.....

So there nerrrrr - I did it!

A few adjustments made along the way and it fits. I mean, it's not exactly perfectly tailored or anything but the fabric is actually very nice and I can wear it under a big long cardigan!!! The carrier bag tutorial worked brilliantly for the bodice, by the way.

I think it may be time for something more sensible.

How about Wednesday's dinner?

Charlie P has set herself the challenge of trying out one new recipe a week this year. I almost contemplated joining in but just knew I'd buckle under the pressure!

However, in the interests of using up some eggs - 'cos our crazy chickens are still laying when they're supposed to be taking a break - I went googling for a do-able, edible eggy recipe.

I found this one - layered potato with leeks and bacon. The recipe is here.

For once, I actually had all the ingredients at the ready. It was delicious and very very cheap - especially if you grow your own eggs :-)......or even cheaper if you grow your own potatoes and leeks....and bacon....

The small people yum yummed all the way through and Moogsdad and I thought it was delish. I'll be making this one again.

So now, the weekend is almost here. It's felt like a very very long week - not helped by having a stinky cold and a very busy time at work.

We have no plans for the weekend. Maybe a walk? Planning some meals for next week. Possibly a bit of sewing. A touch of rippling and sock knitting...and spending a bit more time enjoying these....


....ooh ooh - and listening to this that my lovely hubby bought back from last night's emergency trip to Tesco for another box of tissues, some wine and some....lady products...if you know what I mean. All he needed to add to that list to make it truly complete was a mahoosive bar of chocolate ;-)

Hope you have a happy and restful weekend xxxxx

New year....new toy!!

There's something I have wanted for simply ages.

Thanks to some cash from Father Christmas and a rather fortuitous bit of back pay this month I have indulged.


Totally.


And.


Utterly.



I spent hours and hours researching this baby over the holiday. I set myself a budget.....and only exceeded it slightly...ahem.

Last Friday afternoon I spoke to a very lovely and helpful young man in Welsh Wales who listened to my questions and gave me some very useful answers. He also told me that as I'd just missed that day's dispatch I could expect my machine to arrive today....and it did :-)

Thanks to a bit of obsessive sewing before Christmas I had concluded that 2009 would be a very good year for making my Minx a whole load of groovy clothes.

The only thing that put me off was making them on my normal sewing machine. Not only is it a pain to have to neaten all the seams but there's no hiding it's homemadeyness from some people!

Now I can churn out neatly finished can't tell it from Designer at Debenhams funky girl clothes at a rate of knots - this is how smiley I feel (the one of the left will no doubt be a good example of Moogsdad's patient face when he gets home ;-) ) :



Image borrowed from here.


Now all I have to do is read the 100 solid pages of instructions, watch the 'here's how you do it' DVD and then I can start to make inroads into the 50,000 metres of thread that came with it!!!



Certain other obsessions may take a back seat for a day or two.

Good job I got these finished in time then - socks#5!!!


Warm and cosy 100% merino wool for wearing inside my slippers socks. I did these in double knitting wool so they're extra cuddly.

Did I mention I can't knit socks?

xxxxx