In the shake of a tail, another year will be over, feels like it's just been the Spring and the Summer...

There's no escaping it now the clocks have gone back - the evenings are dark and winter is definitely on its way. Over the past few years, since I've been back in an office environment, I have really felt the effects of SAD. It's partly the artificial light and it's also at least partly the sudden proliferation of dark clothes everywhere! A few years ago I decided to try to fight against the winter blues by filling my winter wardrobe with bright colours, fun prints and fabulous fabrics:

A peep inside my wardrobe

This isn't foolproof and I still suffer from SAD. But it definitely does help. I think I brighten up the office for my colleagues, as well, particularly as they wear lots of corporate black and grey.

This is a fairly typical cold weather outfit for me - a bright structured dress and smart shoes!

So, while I have no shortage of colourful winter clothes, when the folks at Avenue 32 Clothing asked me to put together a winter brights outfit, how could I resist? This is purely fantasy shopping, but here's a daydream winter brights outfit:

This gorgeous blue floral frock from Calla is described as a cocktail dress, but I'd wear it out and about in the daytime anyway. I think that shape could take you anywhere. The bright blue in the print is uplifiting without being garish and the high neckline and sweet little sleeves are classic and elegant. I'd wear this with dove grey tights and a pair of classic black court shoes.

And, as this is a fantasy wardrobe, I'd top this whole look off with a bright coat - it's too sad to cover up your lovely bright outfit with a dark coat! I'd go for this flame orange wool coat by Giles Deacon:

You won't get lost in the fog in this little number!

This is just designer window-shopping, of course, but even daydreaming about winter outfits has made me feel better about the dull weather. Well, a little bit, anyway!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post.

I've been told when I get older that I will understand it all.

Evening evening! I hope wherever you are, you're all cuddled up against the cold. It's blinking freezing in our flat, so much so that we've cracked the no heating til November rule to put on the heater in the living room. Not that it's making any discernable difference, sadly.

Aaanyway. It's been a good, and restful, weekend. Just what I needed after my week. I usually work at home on Fridays and this week was no exception, so coming home on Thursday evening always feels a bit like the start of the weekend. I was even more keen to get home from work this Thursday because I knew there was a parcel of goodness waiting for me at home...

I hadn't been shopping again - not this time, anyway. This was a parcel of gifts from the wonderful Sarah of Rhinestones and Telephones. In September she launched her 52 Dresses project and she and I put our heads together to organise a swap. As fellow dress-lovers separated by an ocean, it seemed like a fun way for Sarah to get closer to her goal and for me to, well, get some new dresses. We agreed to spend £40/$50 Canadian each on each other and to keep it a surprise. It seems Royal Mail is a bit quicker than Canada Post - Sarah posted her parcel to me on 23rd September! But it was extremely exciting when it did arrive and I tore it open eagerly. And what a treat!

The loot!

The contents of the parcel were a complete surprise and I was floored by Sarah's thoughtfulness and generosity. Along with a pretty polka dot frock from Modcloth and a gorgeous petrol-blue knit dress from Tag, Sarah had included two dresses she'd made for me! I know I shouldn't be surprised that a gift from a sewing blogger would include handmade dresses but I was so thrilled and touched that she had made them especially for me. As well as the dresses Sarah had included a letter and some other gifts:

A handmade hair flower, an adorable kit for making a needle case and two Mirasol Farm soaps

Of course I couldn't wait to get wearing the frocks! Yesterday was bright and sunny, even if it was a bit cold, and I took the chance to wear the modified Colette Truffle dress Sarah had made for me.

The Pursuit of Love Colette Truffle dress and Carvela court shoes

This fabric is fabulous, isn't it? The combination of the Paris theme and the pinup girls is just darling, and it's why Sarah picked it out for me. One of the details reminded me of one of my very favourite books, The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford.

In the novel the heroine, Linda, runs away to Spain to be with her lover. This doesn't work out well and she is forced to make her way home. At the Gare du Nord in Paris she finds, to her despair, that her ticket has expired and she is stranded in Paris without enough money for even a meal.

Linda sank onto her suitcase and began to cry; nothing so dreadful had ever happened to her before. She cried bitterly, she could not stop. People passed to and fro as if weeping ladies were the most ordinary phenomenon at the Gare du Nord... She became aware that somebody was standing beside her, not an old lady, but a short, stocky, very dark Frenchman in a black Homburg hat. He was laughing. Linda took no notice, but went on crying. The more she cried the more he laughed. Her tears were tears of rage now, no longer of self-pity.

This is how Linda meets her darling Fabrice, the man who gives her Paris, a love of fashion and the happiest 11 months of her life. I know the lady on the suitcases above isn't crying, but she couldn't help but make me think of Linda in the Gare du Nord. If you haven't read The Pursuit of Love, you must! My copy is one of my most treasured possessions, as I bought it in Shakespeare and Company the first time Nic and I visited Paris together.

The dress itself is adorable and full of sweet details like the dobby cotton lining and the lace on the hem - and this pretty little button at the back:

I'm so touched by the effort Sarah went to in making this dress - it's so beautifully finished! The bodice is a wee smidgen big but this isn't a problem. Sarah switched out the skirt from the pattern for a full, gathered skirt and it's so pretty! It's just exactly my style as well, which is what's so touching. I love it so much, I got my copy of the Colette Sewing Handbook out on Saturday afternoon and traced the pattern off! I loved doing the swap with Sarah - I really enjoyed picking out dresses for her and I know she's planning a post soon about what I sent to her. It was a fun way to add a few more dresses to my collection and an excellent way to bond with Sarah. So, yay, basically. Thank you, Sarah!

So, I wore this dress out and about on Saturday. Not that you can tell from that photo but I had my hair done on Saturday (but then it was all windy) and spent the afternoon running errands in town. Nic and I met up with some friends for a drink in Wilde's in the afternoon and, well, that turned into a fair few glasses of the old house red. Which was excellent fun and actually just what we both needed, as well as being a lovely way to catch up with some loved ones. But of course coming back to the flat a little bit worse for wear in the early evening could only mean one thing - the Kate Bush records came out. Not that I have to be drunk to listen to Kate Bush - if you follow me on Twitter or even just know me a little bit, you know that I listen to Kate Bush a lot, but even more so when I've had a few jars. It was lush - we did Lionheart and then The Whole Story.

Again, I don't have to be drunk to want to dance to Kate Bush, nor to sing along to her songs. Nic took this picture of me singing along and dancing to In Search of Peter Pan without me realising it:

 

And I will be an astronaut and find Peter Pan...

Hey but you actually can see the dress really well in this photo! It made me laugh so much to find this. For one thing it gives me an insight into what it's like to be Nic but also, I think this might be my favourite ever photo of me. This is what I feel like on the inside - I'm this silly person miming dramatically to Kate Bush because I feel too happy not to! I texted this photo to my Daddy because I thought it would make him laugh, and his reply was "Wuthering Heights?" - ha! To be fair that is usually it!

I'm going to sign off here as I need to help Nic to make the dinner. I'm going to leave you with this photo of how beautiful Leamington was looking on Saturday afternoon:

I'll be back later in the week with another one of Sarah's beautiful dresses... see you all then!

Can I put in journal I am very good cook of Full English Breakfast?

Evening all! This post is brought to you by a very tired wee face. This week is running my ass ragged. I can't quite believe it's only Wednesday. This week has been intense. Productive in some ways, and stressful and intense in others. And mad, too. When you start your working week with an email from a colleague describing, in detail, his stomach bug, you know it's going to be an interesting week. EEEEEWWWW.

Anyway, not much craic out of me except work. But I wanted to check in, mainly to share some photos from Sunday. After Nic and I dropped Clarabelle off at the station we went for a walk along the canal. We were just heading towards the glamorous destination of Lidl, but that stretch of the towpath is really very pretty indeed. Sunday was bright and cold, which is how I like (tolerate) autumn days.

 Sail Away Ceylon by Colette Patterns and Vivienne Westwood for Melissa Ultragirl pumps

Dudes obviously I put a coat on, too. But that's not that exciting so I take it off for photos. How gleamingly white am I in these photos, though! The Irish skin comes out in force in the dull weather.

Anyway as I have been sewing more frequently recently it has made me more mindful to show my other me-mades the love. This Ceylon dress remains one of my favourites - it's so comfortable and (I think, anyway) chic. I'm still dead proud of my piping! So this little post is just to show you how I live my me-made life.

 Getting cold now, time to put that coat on...

Well, short and sweet tonight. I'm ridiculously tired so I'm having a bath and going to bed. Oh and drinking some gin. It's been that kind of week.

That’s what they said about Hasselhoff, then he tried to make out with me during a commercial break.

Evening all! I hope you're all having delightful Sundays and generally wonderful weekends. All is well here - I have a lovely big mug of tea, an episode of Case Histories on the DVD player and I even managed a little nap this afternoon. I am a lady of simple pleasures and I'm feeling pretty happy right now.

I've been having a brilliant weekend. I was working from home on Friday which is always a bit of a mixed blessing. It means I can be warm and comfortable - and no bloody fleas - but I always feel like I have to work twice as hard and there's nobody to talk to. The coffee is better at home, though. I had an early lunch at Stone Monkey with Lucy where we caught up on all sorts of things and talked sewing. She has some of the beautiful Michael Miller Springtime in Paris fabric and we discussed the possibility of turning it into a fabulous dress. It was really great, as it always is.

Nic and I had a very quiet Friday night in as we were both totally knackered, and I was up bright and early on Saturday morning because I had lots to do and I had a new dress to be wearing...

 Sewaholic Cowgirl Cambie dress, worn with Office 'Love Me Tender' shoes and a vintage handbag

My Cowgirl Cambie, at last! The fabric arrived on Monday and I started sewing this on Monday night. As this is my fifth Cambie (counting my first one, which is no longer active) there were no surprises at all with the construction of this and sewing it was lovely. By Wednesday night the dress was hemmed and hanging up. I put it on on Friday morning and the motherflipping concealed zip jammed at the waistband and I had to take it out to get out of the dress! I basted in another concealed zip on Friday afternoon and same problem. Extremely annoying. I had interfaced only one of the waistbands but the fabric was too bulky for the concealed zip to get past. So, I sulked for a bit. Then I cleaned the kitchen. Then I put in a hand-picked lapped zipper and had a gin and tonic. It was all good. I'm honestly not sure why the concealed zip gave me gip this time, because my polka dotty Cambie is made of stiffer fabric and it was fine. Hmm. Anyway the lapped zipper worked fine but I'm not going to show you a picture of it, because it's not brilliant. It did save this dress, though, and at least all the tiles in my kitchen are nice and clean now.

Anyway, apart from that small annoyance I really do love the dress. I mean, how could I not? Look at the fabric!

Alexander Henry From The Hip in blue

I've been after this fabric for ages - ever since seeing another dress made from the pink version of it. I bought a Get Cutie dress made from the black colourway but sold it on ebay as I didn't like the fit or the nasty polyester lining. I bought this from Fabric Rehab and, come payday, I'm going to treat myself to the pink version although I'm not sure yet what I'll make with it. I wasn't prepared for just how hard I'd fall for this shade of blue, though. Isn't it fabulous?!

There isn't a lot to say about this pattern that I haven't already said five times. Or that Lizzy hasn't said 17 times. It is the hardest working pattern in my stash and I'm not done with it yet! Oh the other thing to say is that this is the first time in ages I haven't had a long block of, like, a whole day to make a dress. I made this over the course of a few evenings. This is harder when you don't have a dedicated sewing space because it means my sewing shit is all over the living room and there were blue threads everywhere! But the up side is spreading the joy - especially when work is quite shite it's nice having a project to work on in the evenings. I hemmed the skirt by hand (of the shell - the lining is machine hemmed) and of course I had to handpick the zipper. I actually love hand sewing, it gets me into my zen place. So as well as having a bunch of sassy-as-fuck cowgirls on it, this dress was therapy. You can't say better than that hi boy.

COWGIRLS FUCK YES

So I wore this fabulous frock to meet up with a lovely local sewing blogger, Helen. I met her off her train and within about 30 seconds we were gassing away like we'd known each other for years! I showed her around Leamington's fabric shops, although neither of us bought anything, before we sat down for tea and cake in Vinteas. It was brilliant fun and we got on famously - as in fact I have done with every other sewing blogger I've had the privilege to meet. Gosh we are a talented, attractive, funny and basically amazing bunch of lassies. Well done us! Helen headed off after coffee to meet her fiance and reassure him I wasn't an knife-wielding weirdy and I dandered down to the train station for the second time that day to meet my friend Clarabelle.

I've known Clarabelle since we were eight years old and met on a local youth club trip to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the cinema in Cookstown. She moved to the midlands a while ago and it was high time we caught up. Nic and I showed her round Leamington and took her for a late lunch in The Clarendon.

QUARE TIGHT GIRRRRRLLLLS

It was great craic altogether and after dinner at home we took Clarabelle out to Wilde's for cocktails (lovely bar, full of wankers) and The Somerville for gin. And that bottle of Prosecco she brought with her was emptied at some point over the evening too. It's some kind of magic that I'm not hungover to all shit today. I think it was the protective magic of Clarabelle's keyring:

"Kenring" (tm The Rev)

It was wonderful to see her and catch up with her and gossip about all manner of things. I hope she comes to visit again soon. She headed home early this afternoon and I have been relaxing ever since, readying myself for a busy week ahead. I'm hoping I can borrow a bit of sass from those frolicking Cowgirl ladies for the rest of the week. Now it's time to watch Scott and Bailey and make dinner. Living on the edge, me.

Well Father, you've got 4 out of 5 questions right on your specialist subject, William Shatner's 'Tek Wars'.

Evening all! Well this week has been a busy one, I was starting to doubt that Thursday evening was ever going to roll round. It usually feels like the start of the weekend for me as I work at home most Fridays - I'm always kept pretty busy but it doesn't feel so bad when I'm in my living room!

Anyway, Thursday evening it is and I am pleased (as you no doubt are, too) that I managed to get through 80% of my work week without swinging for someone. No mean feat at the moment. What has helped, though, is I decided to go from being a member of our union to a rep for our union. I figure I might as well use my anger for the greater good. It makes me feel more empowered - which is a good thing. Work is as it ever is this week, and the delightful spoonful of sugar has been discovering that the floor I work on has an infestation of fleas. FLEAS. They're the reason I came home from work yesterday with a lot of bites around my ankles. So that's delightful, especially as our building is not even three years old yet. Not content to suck the life out of us, our workplace is now sucking the actual blood out of us. Heh.

Still it's been a decent week and last weekend was gorgeous, too. It was our dear friend The Rev's birthday last week so on Friday night Nic and I joined him and a few friends for dinner at Cosmo in Coventry.  Cosmo is quite ridiculously awesome for both the range of food on offer and the quality of that food. It helps also that it's pretty bonkers - alongside really good dim sum and amazing sushi and almost anything else you'll think of, they have bowls of wotsits and frazzles. At the desserts, as well as every variety of cheesecake you can think of, they have bowls of rainbow drops and banana custard! It makes for a very entertaining evening, but you really do have to have a strategy when it comes to pacing yourself. I think we all acquitted ourselves marvellously but I was full for most of the following day. After a painfully slow bus journey back to Leamington we were in time for a last few drinks in the Somerville before home to bed.

Nic and I headed out for breakfast on Saturday morning with Lysy and The Scientist to the newly refurbished Star and Garter.

 I wore - Simplicity 2591 made from a vintage curtain and Vivienne Westwood for Melissa Ultragirl flats

 I haven't been into the Star and Garter for years - ever since seeing a rat in there a number of years back I haven't been keen to revisit it. Well the rat was one thing, but it was the totally laissez-faire attitude of the former landlord that threw me. After establishing that it wasn't merely a mouse (yeah because that's any better) he told me "Ah well they come over from the garages across the street. They usually look around and then leave"  - yeah. That place served food, so I didn't go back. But seeing as it has changed hands and Lysy spoke so highly of it, and they do free toast if you buy a drink in the morning, I was willing to forget my memories of rats. It's very nice indeed now. I mean, I could live without all of the 'keep calm' twee and the posters of Churchill and all, but they've kept a lot of the pub's original charm and added some lovely features, too. And, free toast. And no rats, none that I could see anyway.

We spent the rest of the afternoon running errands and doing stuff around the house, and dodging the rainstorms. It was a relaxing and uneventful Saturday.

Sunday was much the same - some grocery shopping and pottering around during the day gave way to watching a film in the afternoon.

Bernie Dexter Happy Valley Jessica dress and Irregular Choice Mermaid shoes

I bought this gorgeous Bernie Dexter dress on ebay last week after selling a couple of things, so it basically cost me nothing. I have been curious about the quality of Bernie Dexter's clothing for a while but there are so few UK stockists and I was too nervous to buy one online from America. So when this one - which, coincidentally was in the print I was most keen to get hold of - showed up on ebay in my size I may have done a little squirm of joy. It is GORGEOUS (and in fact I am also wearing it right now) Bernie Dexter dresses are priced a little lower than some of the other repro vintage brands such as Stop Staring or Bettie Page, and I think it's because the Bernie Dexter dresses are made from cotton rather than bengaline. But that's really the only difference - the quality of this dress is really lovely and the fabrics are so gorgeous - Bernie Dexter also produces dresses made from prints by Alexander Henry and Michael Miller so I can see they're worth the money. If I had a bit of spare cash right now I'd go for this one:

 Jackie dress - $156 from Bernie Dexter

One of the things that I love so much about the Happy Valley dress is the border print - there is just so much to look at! Also it reminds me so much of our holiday in Orlando earlier this year - the greenery on the dress is very much like beautiful Lake Lily in Maitland:

Of course it was much too cold to wander round in a sundress, so I did cover up with a cardigan...

In the afternoon we watched Pretty Woman, which Nic was teaching this week. I hadn't seen it for some years and I very much enjoyed it, despite my reservations about the whole story. Richard Gere is very good at playing the total creeper that buys a woman and I'm not sure if the movie isn't deliberately encouraging the viewer to see him as a creep. It certainly had me shouting at the television!

This weekend I have a friend coming to visit, I'm meeting up with a sewing friend, and we are celebrating another birthday. It's going to be a busy one indeed, and I am very much looking forward to it! And with that, I will leave you. I'm going out for a walk. To the chip shop. I have been sewing, though, so look out for a post about that coming soon. Anyway. Chips....

Right Ted, the way the Phantom of the Opera doesn't exist.

 A little picture just to kick things off with - this was my birthday card from Nic, based on a Batman story I made up for him!

Afternoon all, and happy Friday! This week really does feel like it has crawled by... but it's the weeked at last and I have a few lovely things planned. I'm away out soon to start the weekend off right, but there were a few things I wanted to catch you all up on.

First thing is to say thank you to all of you who commented on my last post about my frustrations at work. I don't like to think of you guys going through something similar, but I'm grateful for your understanding. I've felt too depressed about it up until now to do something about it, but I have been looking for other jobs and doing other things to make work less stressful. I hope it works!

Secondly is to thank all of you who took the time to comment on my post about The Angels Take Manhattan. You all really gave me something to think about! I wrote a letter of complaint to the BBC about it and yesterday I received this reply:

Dear Ms Muldoon
Thank you for contacting us regarding 'Doctor Who', broadcast on 29 September on BBC One.

We understand you felt a scene showing the characters Amy and Rory jumping off a building was irresponsible. We raised your concerns with the production team.

The scene where Amy and Rory were on the roof was about them taking a leap of faith; believing in each other. When they’re on the roof the dialogue is clear that they believe they will survive if they jump as it would create a paradox. Amy wouldn’t let Rory do it without her as a show of love and commitment, as a symbol of their marriage. Although they were scared they had faith in what would happen. The surreal nature of their descent underscored the fact that they had not actually jumped from a high building, and were not plummeting to their deaths.

We see Amy and Rory in a subsequent scene and they are both very much alive, having defeated the Angels.

Nevertheless, we appreciate how strongly you feel on this matter and we're guided by our audience feedback, so we’d like to assure you that your complaint has been registered on our audience log. This is an internal report of audience feedback that we compile on a daily basis and it’s made available to programme commissioners, channel executives and senior management.

The audience logs are seen as important documents that can help shape decisions about future programming and content.

Thanks once again for taking the time to contact us.

Kind RegardsBBC Complaints

Now, I am grateful and all for the reply. I don't know how seriously they really do take this audience log, but I think it's a good thing that my concern was brought to the attention of the Doctor Who production team. However, and it's a big however, this response doesn't really address my concerns. I don't really need the BBC to explain the narrative reasons for the suicide to me - I watched the programme so, you know, I get that. But a child might not get that it is 'surreal' and see only the very vivid imagery of two people jumping from the top of a tall building to their deaths. And honestly, I totally disagree with the claim that Rory and Amy had not actually plummeted to their deaths - the narrative makes it clear that they had as the paradox would not have been broken if they hadn't died! I am considering whether to reply that I still think that the imagery and the presentation of the suicide is irresponsible given that Doctor Who is a children's television programme and that even if it is narratively justfied (which I don't think it is, really) that the imagery romanticised suicide and this is potentially harmful. I don't know what difference it would make, though! Let me know what you think of their response in the comments - I'm tentatively writing up my response.

Finally just to finish it all off, here's a wee outfit shot from a few weeks ago...

ASOS Midi dress, Poetic Licence The Right Stripe shoes and vintage handbag

I confess, I'm a big ol copy-cat. I saw this dress on Amber months ago. It was from ASOS and already sold out, but when one in white popped up on ebay I bought it and a box of Dylon China Blue dye and BAM! Blue midi dress. It came out a darker shade of blue than Amber's dress and the self-covered belt that came with it didn't survive the dyeing process but I'm pretty happy with the finished article. It's a nice dress but I have to say, I would be reluctant to pay full price for an ASOS own brand dress (I didn't for this one) - the quality of this isn't brilliant and the fabric wrinkles like crazy. But for an ebay cheapy I'm pretty happy. I wore it with these Poetic Licence shoes that don't actually match (but sure when has that stopped me before)

These were insanely cheap on amazon and when I instagrammed a picture of them, Karen commented to say that it was like a shoe designer somehow got inside my head! She kind of has a point - especially the combination of stripes and the cherries you can see just behind the strap. Of course these are highly impractical for the coming winter but I'll wear them again come Spring!

And now it's Friday and I'm off. I'll see you all around the way.

Wash and Go. You know that stuff in the ad, where the bird washes and then pisses off.

Apparently the weather is going to take a turn for the worse tomorrow and start raining. Yuck. But I have dug out my rather fetching rain hood in preparation so things could be worse! I've had a busy but pleasing day, topped off by catching up with our friend Zoe and her beautiful son Ted, who are in the country for a brief visit. A glass of wine, a dear friend and a beautiful baby put a shine on my day!

I'm in a bit of a strange place at the moment where my personal life is absolutely brilliant and I'm really happy, but work is horrible and making me very angry. The fact that I'm happy outside of work is getting me through the work days but I also feel a bit like the happy smile is a mask between the hours of 9 and 5. I'm lucky to have good friends in my workplace who understand but a lot of the time I'm smiling determinedly but inwardly feeling like I want to swing for someone. I'm finding ways to cope with it, but it's really tough. As I said, focusing on how many good things I have going on is helping and this past weekend was a welcome break from the work stuff.

As you know, I spent Friday afternoon and evening sewing away. Nic had a long lie-in on Saturday morning but I got up early-ish to redo the zip on my Home Sewing is Easy dress and to finish the seams. The sun was shining and putting some finishing touches to the dress with a big mug of coffee was most pleasant. After breakfast, Nic and I went out for a walk in the sunshine and went for lunch at Stone Monkey. Stone Monkey is really fab - it's very laid back and cosy and the food is utterly delicious. We lingered over lunch and coffee, reading and chatting, before heading back into town through Clarendon Square:

 Sewaholic Cambie dress and Vivienne Westwood for Melissa Lady Dragon Wing shoes

As you can see, it was very sunny! I'd put one of my more wintery coats on but of course I ended up carrying it. Because the Cambie dress is lined it's actually pretty comfortable in cooler temperatures and you won't be surprised to learn that I'm planning on making some more.

Because, you know, I DO multiples. This is my sixth pair of Lady Dragons. When I find a style I like I bloody well stick with it, don't I? Don't come here looking for innovation, folks:

I've sold a few things on ebay recently so I treated myself to these. They were sort of a consolation because the pair I wanted were sold out in my size and I feel sort of bad for the shoes now, because they're just brilliant. I think they're just on the fabulous side of ugly. Like my other pairs of Lady Dragon shoes they're really comfortable and they were just right for an afternoon walk. We had planned to get back early but the weather was so gorgeous we lingered in the park for a while before walking along the river.

We had planned to go home at this point, but were seduced into staying out for a last drink on the terrace of the Grand Union to watch the sun set over the canal. I know most places look nice in the sunshine, but Leamington is especially beautiful. I feel very lucky to live here.

Leamington Spa Mission in South Town

Nic and I had a quiet Saturday evening in, I hemmed my dress and watched a DVD. Once the sun went in, it was very cold and it was freezing in our bedroom. I went to sleep with the hood of my onesie up! But Sunday was sunny and gorgeous and I had a grand day parading around in my new frock. In the afternoon we went along to Wilde's for their monthly Jazz jam.

 Wilde's does an absolutely cracking Mojito. The wine was Nic's and was very good, too!

After dinner we were back out, to meet some friends for drinks in a nearby pub. All in all it was a really sociable, fun weekend. I felt revived for the week and I'm still feeling the benefits of it now. Sunshine or not, I'm hoping for a similarly enjoyable weekend this time, especially if this fabric I bought on Monday arrives on time for some weekend sewing!

Alexander Henry - From The Hip

Now. It's cold, and I am lame. So I'm going to go to bed. Goodnight!

Home Sewing Is Easy

Hello loves! It's Sunday, some unexpected sunshine is streaming in through the window, Nic is working and we're listening to Bill Evans. It's pretty damn nice! We're heading out shortly to listen to some jazz in a nearby wine bar. It's been a good weekend, which is wonderful after the shitty week I had at work. I don't want to go into it too much here, but I had a horrible few days and I'm glad they're over and the gorgeous weather at this weekend felt almost like a reward for getting through them!

The other thing that can provide solace to a troubled mind is making, and I was able to do some of that over the weekend as well. I had a date with my sewing machine on Friday night and, as usual, the comforting chunter of the machine lifted my spirits and took my mind off my worries. When I came back to work after my holiday in Northern Ireland my dear friend SJ told me that as a birthday present, she had planned to buy me some gorgeous fabric. She knows me well, but she was overwhelmed by choice so I pointed her in the direction of Frumble and she bought me some of this:

Alexander Henry Home Sewing is Easy cotton -

You might recognise this as my blog header!

Generous SJ treated me to four metres of this fabric - more than enough to make whatever my heart desired! "Don't feel like you have to sew something out of it straightaway" SJ said to me, when she handed it to me "Take your time and find the perfect pattern." But you see, I didn't have to wait, I knew just what I wanted to do! Now, my fellow seamstresses will know that there are many times when you'll see something in the shops, love it, can't afford it, think to yourselves "I'll make my own" and this is exactly what I decided to do here. The lust object in question is this:

Limb Retro dress - Home Sewing is Easy

I already have one of these beautiful Limb dresses and I wear it a lot. I bought it on sale though, and while I think these dresses are totally worth the money at £99 (they're handmade by a small company, and they're beautifully made at that) I just don't have £99 to spare right now. But Butterick B5603 - previously seen as my Magnificent Obsession dress - felt like it could give me that Limb feel without being a total knock-off.

The fabric was washed and dried and cut out on Thursday night and, as I was working from home on Friday, I was able to sit down at half past four and get going. As with the Magnificent Obsession dress, this is a marvellously quick dress to sew. There are four darts - two in the skirt and two on the bodice back - and there's around a mile of seam to finish but there's nothing complicated in the construction at all. I elected to leave the bow detail off the neckline and the underbust. It would be darling in a plainer fabric but I thought it would be too busy with this one. I had taken some time with the fabric placement on the bodice and it was just so good to sew again! It's been a wee while. By 9:30 I was all done except for hemming and seam finishing, which I did on Saturday. Oh and on Saturday morning I took the (invisible side seam) zip out and put it back in to get it just right. I am pretty freaking DELIGHTED with the finished garment:

 Home Sewing is Easy dress - Butterick B5603 made from Alexander Henry cotton and worn with Irregular Choice Mermaid shoes

I'm wearing it here with a petticoat - which you can just see peeping out from underneath the hem - but like the Magnificent Obsession dress it looks just as good without. I could have done with doing a toile of this view of the bodice because, as you can see the bateau neckline doesn't lie flush against my chest. However this doesn't overly bother me because it means I don't feel too restricted. I tried to place the bodice piece to capture my favourite piece of the design:

 

Now really, if I was being picky I'd say that ideally I should have moved the Home Sewing is Easy bit of the print up a bit. But do you know what? I don't give a shit - and I love that you can also see the wee "burst my seams with pride" conversation!  I was totally inspired by my darling Sarah in this placement - check out her Home Sewing is Easy dress - amazing, isn't it? To be honest it's almost a shame to have to break this pattern up with seams and darts at all but before I cut into it, I photographed my favourite panels:

 "The name of my dress-maker? Why certainly! It's me!" I love this one - it looks like something Joan Crawford might have worn in Mildred Pierce

Look at that bitchy article in the pink hat. "Oh thank you. And - I made it myself!" UP YOURS BITCHY BOOTS.

Some comedy sewing terms there. Erm, using the word 'comedy' loosely, that is...

I think this one is actually my favourite. Check out the creepy little whistler in the background!

As with the bodice of the Magnificent Obsession dress, the back comes down in a v-shape in this version too:

I had the bodice most of the way put together when I thought "shit! That v-neck is going to flap around" so I took it apart and applied interfacing to the back neckline and the neckline to give them some stability. Of course it would have been better if I'd remember while I was making it, but no harm done. I'll know for next time. I hemmed the skirt by hand and, as you can see, it's long enough to wear a fluffy petticoat underneath but not an awkward length on its own. I catch-stitched the hem with hot pink thread - no-one will see it, but it makes me happy to know it's there! I turned and stitched all of my seam allowances too. It's my favourite method for finishing seams, it looks so neat on the inside and it leaves the seam allowance intact for potential future alterations. It's also quick and easy. Win win. 

I refrained from modelling this dress like the pattern envelope, this time. But Nic did encourage me to twirl and fart around a bit:

Twirling

 Walking

 Gurning

Basically the dress, she does not lie. Home sewing is easy. If you've been on the fence about this pattern in the past, go for it, it's gorgeous! For my part, I'm absolutely thrilled to have it in the wardrobe. And I can't thank my darling SJ effusively enough - not just for the fabric or the kind thought, but for being such an amazing friend in every way. SJ, if you're reading, you and this fabric and this dress make me feel like this:

Now, there is jazz to listen to and mojitos to drink. Good afternoon everyone!