I made a Princess dress for a 5-year old. I didn’t use a pattern, I just cut out the fabric pieces by eye and used a measuring tape to ensure I was making the dress to the right dimensions. Sorry, no in-progress pictures! It was a fair bit of work but not that hard as… Continue reading Princess dress
Sewing underwear (01)
I normally buy underwear from the store, but sometimes the fit isn’t quite right, I think that’s because I have a relatively small waist but a much fuller bottom/hips meaning a lot of my volume in this area is positioned on the back. So, I wanted to try my hand at making my own underwear!… Continue reading Sewing underwear (01)
Inspired – The art of making historical fashion
I recently visited the Bankfield museum in Halifax. They have several permanent exhibitions as well as some temporary exhibitions. They now have ‘Inspired – The art of making historical fashion’ on until the 21st of December 2024: This exhibition covers people who make historical costumes or costumes inspired by historical costumes, including a maker of… Continue reading Inspired – The art of making historical fashion
Sewing course 2024 (04)
This week, I made lounge trousers for a man. I started off making a block for basic trousers using his measurements. I used green pen to mark the front piece and red for the back: I then traced the front piece as well as the back piece onto a new piece of paper each. I… Continue reading Sewing course 2024 (04)
Sewing course 2024 (3)
During this week’s sewing class we were shown some techniques and materials for creating applique, reverse applique, and free-motion embroidery. I made this really fun applique artwork (see below for how I made this). It’s for sale in my eBay shop: One material that was shown is dissolvable fabric. It looks like thick cling film,… Continue reading Sewing course 2024 (3)
Paper making (01)
I watched a short clip on Instagram of someone making paper from used/scrap paper, and it looked really easy. I thought: I can do this! So, I took a piece of double corrugated card of approximately 30 x 40 cm and tore it into smaller pieces. I put this in warm water in a small… Continue reading Paper making (01)
Sewing course 2024 (2)
In the second session of my sewing class I decided to get started with applique and reverse applique to create my own textile. I got inspired by the many samples that are on display in the classroom. I took photos of some of this: Below is the start I made. It took me almost 2.5h… Continue reading Sewing course 2024 (2)
Sewing course 2024 (1)
I had such a good time at the sewing course last year, that I decided to enroll in the first one of this year as well. I’ve set out a few aims for myself: Dress: Pant: Update: I made the dress! I am considering cutting up the panels that make up the shoulder straps as… Continue reading Sewing course 2024 (1)
Almalauha?
You may wonder what ‘Almalauha’ means. It stems from ‘alma lauha’, the Germanic name for my home town of Almelo, the Netherlands. ‘Alma’ means ‘elm’ and ‘lauha’ refers to woods on sandy ground near a settlement (is there an English word for this?!). My hometown is well old, with the first mention of House of… Continue reading Almalauha?
Sewing course 2023 (04)
I’ve just had my last session of the sewing course I enrolled in at the start of this academic year. I actually made this jumper at home, but within the aims I set myself for this sewing course: I wanted to try making a few different kinds of garments and especially learn more about drafting… Continue reading Sewing course 2023 (04)