Friday, March 26, 2010

This is not Project Runway. I don't have to make it work.

Well who would have believed that I have found the time to make two things from the much mocked January issue of Burda Style?

The first was pure necessity. A winter toddler sized sleep sack for a "little boy who wakes for many reasons at night but let's not make cold one of them" . In fact this is just 01-2010-125 minus the hood and with a lining for comfort and a central zipper wacked in. The outer is merino from Global fabrics which I bought in their 40% sale end of last season. It was supposed to be for me, but then I remembered two things I hate about 100% merino - pilling and endless stretch. Who cares in this emsemble?



The next was a toddler sized emergency services play vest which I agreed to make for our play centre. Dumb, because then I got lots of orders for them, thus increasing my sewing-for-others time in what are already very endangered hours. However, this is also 01-2010-125 with just the front and back and a few closure details.




Then I decided that was certainly enough sewing for others and have embarked on the much loved Simplicity 2508 coat. Big mistake. I truly truly do not have the time and energy for such a big project. I have really learned that now. But still the coat must be finished.... and if you are wondering where the title of this post came from, it's what I told myself as I went back to Global fabrics to buy another metre of fabric for the coat because I had forgotten to cut out the facings and there was no fabric left.

Toddler safety vest: fabric $2, Nicks. Velcro 50 cents, visibility strip - grey fabric left over from another project, thread 50 cents = $3.
Sleepsack: wool, $25, lining $2, zipper $8 = $35.

12 comments:

  1. But you totally did make it work! Especially that awesome safety vest- lucky kids at your playcentre. Emergency services have always had a big role in our games, and appropriate health and safety in the form of high visibility vests has sadly been overlooked. It's perfect for playcentre, which ironically enough can be abbreviated to pc.

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  2. I hear ya ;-)

    I'm mightily impressed that you made stuff for your PC, still...the closest I've got to that is overlocking the edges of some bits of fabric.

    Looking forward to seeing the coat!

    J

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  3. Well, your sewing for others is more successful than mine. My islander neighbour gave me 3 pieces of fabric to make her grown-up daughter 3 pairs of elastic waisted pants. No asking mind you. No patterns, No measurements. Just a really old pair to copy off. They have been sitting on my floor for months and now she needs them to take up north. So I squeezed them into my busy schedule this morning. I made all 3 at once and they all ended up smaller than the original. I was hopeful that her daughter was smaller than her but it turns out she is bigger. So now I am teetering between feeling guilty at wasting their fabric and thinking that it serves them right for buying fabric before asking me. I wish I had made the kindy an emergency services vest instead. Yours looks really cool.

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  4. Ooh, I've done the forgetting to cut facings thing too - and the shop didn't have any more of my fabric. I had to cut them from lining and interface them a bit more heavily than proper fabric to . Fortunately the style of my coat meant that the facings don't actually show, but I was still annoyed!

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  5. You are hysterical! I know how you feel about sewing for others. I do it at times because the money I am paid allows me to buy more fabric. I resent the fact that I could be sewing something for ME during that time, though!! I guess we are all ultimately selfish seamstresses!!!!!!

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  6. Cool safety vest. How greedy of playcentre to ask for more! Undying gratitude should be the overwhelming response.
    Do you make pyjamas with feet? I used an excellent kwik sew pattern for wicking polar fleece pjs that I used for my children from 12 months to 6 years (with judicious lengthening) If you put gripper fabric on the bottom of the feet the wakeful child can get out of bed without freezing and run in to wake up Mummy in the middle of the night instead of screaming in bed until she comes to the rescue. I preferred this option, as my pyjamas do not have feet, and being screamed at, then getting cold wakes you up so horribly. (Once the children are old enough for independent escaping from bed of course)

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  7. Dear MAS I do hope you are getting a little more sleep in your household especially with that cosy sleep sack. DId you get to check out your other early childhood options yet?

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  8. That safety vest is awesome! I have a nephew who loves dress-up, you have inspired me to make him some play-clothes!

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  9. I had to laugh that you've embarked on another coat so soon. it was probably all the funnier because I understand it entirely. I quickly get bored with small things and seem to take on impossibly large ones (and then get overwhelmed and over busy and so on) but there is something about stretching out for things just out of reach. Actually I say the same things (whether rightly or wrongly) to the kids at school: to take the hard subjects not the easy ones. They may or may not thank me.

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  10. Aw, the liddle sleepsuit is so cute!
    Re: sewing for others. never, never, NEVER TELL ANYONE YOU CAN SEW! I'm gonna tattoo that on my forehead, I swear.

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