In some ways, September feels more like the beginning of a new year than January does. Lots of years of school and university, then being a teacher, and now having school aged children makes it hard to escape the squeaky new shoes feeling that September has. My older three boys all went back to school this week. My eldest is now at 6th form and the middle ones are at the secondary school round the corner. It feels odd after the summer ... Read the Post...
How to Make Lavender Bags
This post contains affiliate links. For those of you who have been following along for a while, it will probably come as no surprise if I tell you that my garden is a crazy mess. It's a sunny little spot, and only the size of a postage stamp. The weeds do very well, along plants that thrive on neglect. My rule is that if it is pretty it can stay, so I have rosebay willowherb, hollyhocks and foxgloves that have self seeded and random ... Read the Post...
How to Make a DIY Tie Dyed Dress
This post contains affiliate links. One of my youngest boy's favourite things to do at the moment is to make tie dyed t shirts, and it's easy to see why. As well as looking fabulous, at 9 years old he's experiencing what those who are makers feel every time we wear clothes that we've made ourselves. He's wearing something totally unique that he made himself, with colours he chose and with a design that is the result of his own little boy ... Read the Post...
What is a Toile and Why Would You Make One?
A toile, also known as a muslin in the USA, is a prototype of a garment. In the design process, it sits in between drafting pattern pieces and the finished version. The toile allows the designer to check that the idea in his or her head will actually work from the pattern pieces they have made. If it doesn't, alterations can be made to the toile, then transferred back to the pattern pieces. The idea is to make a version from cheaper fabric ... Read the Post...
