The jeans waist expansion project

My waist measurement fluctuates wildly these days, growing by up to 10cm/4″ (ie 2 sizes). I don’t think I can conveniently blame the pandemic – I think it would have happened regardless. My tummy muscles are shot to pieces, post-partum and beyond, and I’m becoming a woman of a certain age. Those blog photos where…

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New pattern: zero waste bag duo

Hi Everyone, I have a new zero waste pattern. Actually it’s two patterns, both bags. It’s in my Etsy shop now; please enjoy 25% off for the next month. Both patterns are together in the same listing. They’re very suitable for walking, cycling….or making as presents for the walker or cyclist in your life! Both…

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Making a scrap-busting heat bag

During the week I made a couple of heat bags designed for the neck and shoulders. I made them out of scraps. Wait a minute, don’t I only do zero waste? Why am I doing things with scraps? Yes, I do generate scraps, but now they’re all of the useable rectangular type. Typically they’re the…

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New pattern: The Compact Backpack (zero waste)

The Compact Backpack

Hi Everyone, I have a new zero waste pattern: The Compact Backpack. It’s in my little Etsy shop now; please enjoy 25% off during February. The Compact Backpack is compact in two ways: Firstly, the pattern pieces fit exactly into a 105cm/41⅜” x 64cm/25¼” rectangle with zero waste. And, if you make the backpack in…

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New pattern: the Smith Pinafore Dress

Smith Pinafore dress

Hi Everyone, I’m excited to introduce a new pattern: the Smith Pinafore Dress. It’s in my little Etsy shop now; please enjoy 25% off during October. This pattern comes in 12 sizes, from an 87cm/34″ bust to a 142cm/56″ (but can actually be made bigger than that). It’s designed for traditional non-stretch (rigid) denim and…

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Afternoon handbag challenge

afternoon handbag challenge

Sewing brief: in one afternoon, make a new handbag (cross body style) using only stuff we already have at home. The time has come to move onto my next handbag. Since my children were born, I’ve gone from…. For the next handbag era I fancied a cross-body bag so I wouldn’t have to carry it…

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Behold my zero waste jeans

zero waste jeans

On the weekend I finished my zero waste jeans, and here they are! Read about my research and the beginning of my quest, cutting out, and the start of sewing them. The sewing turned out to be fairly straight forward, much like sewing ordinary jeans. There were some unusual shapes which were tamed as I…

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Stitchin’ away at those zero waste jeans

Zero waste jeans front knee patches sewn

Work is part way through the zero waste jeans project (last week I cut them out and the week before I did research and procrastinated). I’m happy with how things are going so far and I’m enjoying putting them together. I forgot to buy a zip so I’ve done everything possible before the fly front…

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3 Useful sewing ideas

3 Useful sewing ideas

A short post this week, with three unrelated sewing ideas I hope you’ll find useful…   Unpicker cover The Clover unpicker, while expensive, is considered by many to be the unpicker of choice, with its smooth sharp blade and comfortable handle. However, it comes with a flimsy sleeve to protect to blade (which I lost). …

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A small gallery of Visible Mending

Visible mending

Hello Folks, I’ve been preparing some samples for a visible mending workshop in November. While I tend to be a fan of invisible mending (as explored in this post), I do like the combination of embroidery, denim, running stitch and creatively working through the household’s mending pile. The technique is very simple and kinda fun.…

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