Sewing FOPs (for other people)

I have been true to my word. I have been sewing for others all November.

I have

1) hemmed 2 pairs of trousers for my husband

2) made 3 aprons. A word about the aprons. Aprons make great gifts, I've discovered. Like socks and underpants, everyone needs them but they never get around to buying them often enough. Aprons are all occasion gifts, saying "I care" from birthdays to bereavements. Aprons require no fitting, can be made in under an hour and can be made from offcuts making them very cost effective.

I have made just one change to Simplicity 2824 - removed the D-rings and added a slider. The D rings mean that the strap hung awkwardly upside down but the slider enables it to drape itself gracefully.



3) Made a bolster for our cleaner. This shows how I've matured as a person. 3 years ago, I told her "no way" when she asked me to do some alterations for her. Now 3 more years of selfishness has been drained out of me by a child.

This was not an easy project - the fabric, a synthetic upholstery grade polyester was left over from her curtains. It did not want to ease and could not be folded. It hugs the lumps of the bolster like lycra on an overweight gym enthusiast. The ends then had to be fitted, which is difficult with circles even with easy fabric, and even more tricky when you factor in the piping. I hope she likes it because it was about as far from fun to make as, well, any of the other projects above.

And if she asks me for another forget it. Maturer, yes, an idiot, no.



And finally some GF/DF cooking. I have been experimenting with the best way to present my findings - I tried an extra page but it's not easy to update since you can't make separate posts. In the end I decided I would just tack it on at the end of a post and those who are interested can read on.

This is the best recipe for GF/DF bread I have found so far.

I have tried 5 internet recipes - 3 of them were inedible, and immediately binned. Absolutely vile. If a recipe goes on about its health content you know you are in trouble.

To make this bread in a bread maker you have to reduce the water content. Instead of 3/4 cup, I found 1/2 cup with 2 extra tablespoons of water to be just right. I also add 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds and 1 tablespoon of chia seeds. It tastes really nice and keeps well.



Righty ho, we are only half way through the month, so half a month more of FOPs to go!