Sun cover-up kimono jacket

Here in Australia we see a lot of sun. I don't say that to make you northern hemisphere dwellers jealous, honestly :-) The light here is really harsh, and sees many of us suffer under it. My heritage is English and so my skin does not cope so well, I've had a skin cancer cut from my face and would be surprised if I don't have more. Not that I sit out in the sun, it's just that it gets you even when you have sunscreen on, are trying to stay in the shade and just going about your business.



So... particularly in summer I try to wear my hat (and sunglasses) everywhere, and I also find that covering up works the best, if I can. Those dessert dwellers with their loose floaty tops and trousers seem to have worked it out. Taking inspiration from that I'd been thinking of making an open shirt (like a light cotton cardigan) when I saw a lovely kimono jacket on Renee's blog. I thought it might be the answer when I'm heading outdoors to go get the kids from school and need to cover my shoulders to stop them getting burnt.

I grabbed this tutorial that Renee had used and drafted a pattern based on the instructions. I added a thick strip of double fold binding to the front and neck edge, to give it a bit of weight and structure and also a bit more coverage around the back of the neck area.



You can see the shape of the jacket in the pic above. It's very simple but really comfy and drapes well, though I think a rayon would drape better. I looked for some but couldn't find anything I liked, so with that nagging little voice in the back of my mind I used a Japanese cotton lawn fabric from my stash, bought from Spotlight on a whim (isn't it all?!). I had fallen for the blue background and dandelion print. The drape could be better but it won't stop me from wearing it.



And even though I made this as a sun cover-up it's really nice to wear for a little extra warmth when the sun isn't out and the temperature drops.

Tova top #1

I made my first Tova top a couple of weeks ago and am optimistically calling it #1 as I have another version in mind, though it will have to wait a while now that KCWC is almost upon us.

I used black voile from my stash plus the last of a Japanese print I'd been hoarding. I'd previously made a cuff with the Japanese print and love the colours and pattern. But I'm not thrilled with this top as I'm not sure about the contrast between the black voile and Japanese cotton, and also it's a bit tight (pulling at the bust). So I decided this was my muslin, and the next one would work better.



Having said that though I have worn it quite a few times already, as it's really comfortable (the voile is super soft), good for the weather at the moment, an easy shape to wear, and also just something new in my wardrobe.

I enjoyed making this top and thought the pattern was well written and easy to follow. As other people have noted attaching the yoke to the bodice is a bit tricky, and I could do with a bit more practice, but overall it's a nice pattern to work with.

So for #2 I'll go up a size and make it all in the one fabric. But me being me I can't resist making my own changes and will attempt cap sleeves, an in-between hem length, and maybe some cute little ties off the neckline. Well, that's what's in my head, we'll see how it translates once it's in 3D ;-)

Girly dress no. 2

My lovely piece of Nani Iro japanese fabric has been sitting around in stash waiting for "the perfect dress pattern" to appear. So I got realistic and decided that it wasn't going to happen soon, and I'd rather wear and enjoy it in an OK form than not at all. So... I just used the trusty Simplicity 3835 AGAIN. Yes, I can't say I haven't had my money's worth with this pattern!



And as with the 1st "girly dress", I made a few modifications til it was right for me. It's easy to wear and great on a hot day. Looking at the photos taken last week though, it makes me shiver a little as our temperatures have plummetted and we have non-stop rain. Which makes for interesting child care conditions, as I'm sure you can appreciate. Still, at least we're not flooding as other areas are.



Please excuse the headless shots - the hair and makeup people hadn't been in that day ;-)

More creative goodness to see over here.

Rare find

I begrudgingly popped in to Spotlight recently to look for some plain linen for making teatowels & pot holders to screenprint (linens at my favourite stores being too expensive/too thin/too just not right). The linen was still not quite what I wanted (why is it so hard to find?!), but looking around the dress fabrics, I suddenly felt like I'd stepped into an aladin's cave of great fabrics rather than a boring chain store.



Was it that I hadn't been fabric shopping for a while, or that I was on a caffeine high from the strong coffee I'd just had? Was I in the wrong store?? When I go to this chain store (the equivalent in the US seems to be Joann's?) it's normally just for some basics, some thread, a bit of stuffing for soft toys, that sort of thing. But I seriously could have bought home about 7 different great prints this visit. But I told myself I could just choose one * and narrowed it down to this beauty...



The docket says it's 'Japanese tana lawn, hydrangea'. And the colours - pale grey background with splashes of vivid purple, deep blue and yellow - perfect! The sales assistants (or 'ladybugs' as my boy calls them ;-) couldn't tell me the difference between lawn and voile - does anyone know?



Anyway, I adore it, even though I had a moment of "is it nanna or gorgeous?", not that it can't be both! I put that down to the hydrangea print. My paternal grandmother grew beautiful blue ones near her door.

I plan to make a version of my boring dress for those hideous days like last Monday when the temperature reaches the high 30's c and it feels like we're living in a furnace. Fingers crossed that the image in my mind comes out the same way.



* Lets just forget all about this post, shall we (ahem)? Ah well, 3 steps forward, 2 steps back ;-)

My creative space

I'm playing along with Kootoyou's Thursday 'My Creative Space' this week.

I pulled some fabric out of my stash today to make a case for my new sunglasses. I'm a cheap sunglasses kinda girl (I lose them, kids break them etc) but I'd like to keep this pair scratch-free for more than a week, and also I couldn't bear to leave them in the dreadful thin nylon bag they came in.

The outer fabric is a beautiful japanese cotton that I love. I intend to line it with the pale grey linen and use the grey ribbon for some detail. I think I'll sandwich some felt between the layers for padding, and use velcro on the inside for the closure. I was thinking of using one of these flex frames but I'm too impatient to wait until I get one.