Claire Shaves her Head!

Heads up - I'm going for an extreme haircut.


On the 17th July i'll be shaving my head for charity, I'll be doing this at school and recording it!. I'm raising funds for Cancer Research and Nepal Leprosy Trust.

I've been deeply moved by the events in Nepal recenly and the very real need for long term aid. I have firends who have a long standing relationship with Nepal Leprosy Trust and have spent several year out there working with to support those affected by leprosy and those who are very poor in Nepal. They are there for the long haul and will not just disappear once most people have forgotten about the earthquake.

I've also had friends and family who have suffered from breast cancer, some have made it and some haven't. I have a choice - I can shave my head, my hair is not falling out from the side effects of Chemotherapy, and I am choosing to do this to help those who are going through it. Maybe one day there will be a cure.

https://www.justgiving.com/teams/claireshavesherhead

If you would like to support me you can do so via JustGiving. I have two pages, one for each charity so you can choose who to support.

Nepal Leprosy Trust



Cancer Research


Thank you

Eat your heart out Mary Berry...

... or my mother in law's floral jacket.

Earlier this year my mother in law decided that she would like a floral blazer, a bit like the one worn by Mary Berry on the GBBO. The ones available in the shops were not quite the style she was after and she had a particular colour scheme in mind.

I took her measurements and went searching for a pattern, settling on #135 05/2014 from Burdastyle, which looks like this in the magazine.

We then went searching for the perfect fabric, we found quite a few quilting weight cottons, but nothing substantial enought to make a jacket from. Eventually we found some perfect fabric at a local funrnishing fabric store.

The jacket was an easy make and went together well. I only made slight pattern alterations, adding a little extra width at the waist and reducing the CB by about 2 cm. The sleeves were also shortened slightly. Instead of a press stud fastening we opted for a self covered button and made an in seam buttonhole.

This is my first successful attempt at bagging the lining and it worked perfectly. I did catch stitch the shell and lining together in a number of places to ensure the layers didn't shift when wearing.

Wrap Style Dress

I've been inspired by a dress I've seen in a shop recently. I tried on the dress in the shop, but the fit was off for me. too small on the shoulders and to big at the bust. I was in love with the dress, but however many times I tried it on - it still didn't fit :(

I set to work trying to create my own version. for my take on this dress I created a notch neck bodice, with a standing collar and cap sleeves - which was different from the dress I'd seen. I love cap sleeves and have been using them a lot this year.

I made a half circle skirt, which is not as full as the dress I'd seen, but better for everyday wear. I added long ties at the waist, which cross over the front and then tie at the back. This was the feature that I liked from the style in the shop.

I made my dress in a plain dyed black cotton from The Sewing box in Morpeth. It's fine for day wear, but something with more drape would be better for a going out dress.

I wore this dress with my restored DM mary janes and a red cardy for shopping in Newcastle today.

When I made the first draft I screwed up the colar on the bodice and had to redo the whole thing. thankfully I had enough fabric to make another one.

Masterpiece Seamed Dress Burdastyle 09/2014 #122

On first glance I had passed this pattern by. I think it was the styling of it in the magazine.

Then I saw this version by dawn at Two on, two off. I liked her adaptation of creating the dress without the godet, and as I only had 1.5m of fabric I decided that this would be the dress to make.

For Christmas my husband had bought me some bright pink soft cotton baby cord. 3m of it and at 150cm wide, that's a good amount. I had used 1.5m to make a tunic dress back in January that is still waiting to be blogged. the rest was destined for this dress.

I did not make a muslin, but measured the pattern carefully at the wait and hips. I cut my usual size 38 for the bust and waist and graded to 40 at the hip. I extended the centre front to avoid having to cut the godet.

As the dress has lots of curved seams around the bust area I wanted to make sure that the fit was good, so after sewing the fronts together and the shoulders. I basted the side seams and tried on. I ended up pinching out about an inch at the shoulders, tapering to the arm edge. The side seams were fine in the bodice area, but the skirt was far to big and I ended up taking quite a bit in at the hip. I could have got away with the size 38 for the whole dress.

The fabric is quite thick so I didn't bother with a lining and faced the armholes and neckline with bias strips in a matching cotton. In retrospect a self fabric neck facing would have been better, as it would have given a flatter finish, and I think I might reshape the neckline a bit too. I can highly recommend this dress. it takes a bit of skill, but it's very flattering and forgiving.

Wool sweater to cardigan refashion

I just love wool sweaters. Last year I was give a large mans wool sweater. I originally planned to boil it and felt the wool, but on closer inspection it was actually in good contition.
I adore wearing cardigans, they are great for layering and fab for spring when a jacket is too heavy but it's still too cool to go with short sleeves.

I used the pattern from Gertie Sews Vintage Casual. It was my first make from the book, and it won't be the last! I cut a size 6. I kept the original hem and cuffs, but had to find a way of binding the neck edge.

In the end I cut a strip of the sweater and treated it like I would a jersey binding. the results were great.

To prevent the neck and front edges stretching out of shape I applied a thin strip of interfacing. I also used ribbon to form a button band.

Wisely I tested the buttonhole first on a scrap, and it's a good job I did, as the knit fabric jammed and got caught in the button hole foot on two tries. I ended up folding a piece of baking paper around the edge and sewing the button hole over the top. this worked very well. It stabilised the fabric and was easy to tear away afterwards.

It's actually quite a while since I made this and I have worn it LOADS. It's a good basic cardy and great for layering. I need to make more of these.

New landscapes

Stormy Sea - £95

I'm so pleased to be able to share with you my most recent paintings. These were created earlier this year and recently exhibitied at Newbiggin Maritime Centre.

House on the hill - £95

I work with acrylic paint and other items on canvas to create my paintings. I have't created any landscapes for a while, which is why I wanted to capture some of the local views - in my own style of course.

East Sea - £95

East Sea - detail

All these works are approximately 45 x 100 x 4.5 cm - not a format I work in usually, but I really enjoyed the challenge of working in a more elongated format to my usual work.

The Bay - £95

If you are interested in buying any of these - do get in touch. Each painting is £95 plus postage and packing.

The Loch - Sold

Dying for a new lease of life - how to dye leather shoes.

 

I just love Dr Martens Shoes. I have done since I was about 17. Several years ago I had these tan leather Mary Jane DM shoes, which I wore all the time. You can see from the photo that they had become scuffed and rather tatty, to the point of being unsuitable to wear and they ended up relegated to the backof the shoe cupboard. 

A few weeks ago I was clearing out, and wondered if there was anything I could do to breathe new life into these that wasn't going to cost the earth. After a little bit of research I discovered that dying leather shoes wasn't that difficult and relatively inexpensive.

Step 1. Clean the layers of polish off the shoe. you can buy special deglazer to do this, but I used nail polish remover and cotton pads. deeper scuffs could be sanded with fine sand paper.

 Step 2. The dye. I bought Fiebing's leather dye from Amazon, it cost about £5, but i had some gift vouchers so I used those. I also bought neutral wax shoe polish, this was only £1. You will also need something to apply the dye with. I used a sponge dabber, but a natural fabric cloth or paintbrush would also work well. Gloves are also a good ideas to keep your hands clean.

Step 3. Cover the surface you are using with Newspsper and stuff the shoes with paper too to support them while you apply the dye.

Step 4.  Apply the dye. I worked in sections, starting from  the heel so I could check it was going on ok. This dye did run a little, but that was becasue I put too much on the sponge. apply a thin even layer and allow to dry fully. Depending on the style of your shoe, you may need to mask some areas with tape. I just wiped spills away with damp cotton wool. After the first coat of dye the shoes had a pinky tinge. In total I applied three coats of dye, allowing the shoes to dry completely in between each one. In total I used less than 1/3 of the bottle of dye.

 Step 5. Polish. I applied wax polish and buffed to a shine. I used two layers of the clear polish to achieve a good finish. The colour darkens considerably when the polish is added, so bear that in mind. I'm really pleased with the outcome and feel that these shoes have a new lease of life. can't wait to wear them.