A Bit of Evening Millinery

Hello Lovelies,

Just a quick little post to show you  my paper hat block in action.

I spent this evening blocking a brim with my all new and spectacular paper hat block. Not sure how it will turn out until it's dry tomorrow. Taking a hat off the block is always a mixture of nerves and excitement for me!

Also, at the mo I am a bit obsessed with Mexican folk art and crafts,  I've been drawing a lot of patterns found in Mexican art for  project research recently,  I haven't quite worked out how this will translate into my accessory designs yet  but it'll be exciting to find out what I can come up with.

Anyway will post a bigger post later on in the week, until then have a great week xxxx

Margo's new hat!

Just thought I’d share this  photo of  Margo, my poupee,  sporting a project that I’m currently working  on.

Now  I know it may look like I  am creating a fabulous paper hat  but  I’m actually making my very own hat block!

A while back I promised that I would make my friend a hat, I’d shown her this hat that I had made with a lovely upturned brim the only problem was I didn’t have the brim block to make it again.  For ages I was pondering  how get round this ,until one morning I just woke up and had a eureka moment.

   

 I covered the original hat with one layer of clingfilm  and then two layers of masking tape  to take  a mould of the shape and am now  building up the layers with paper mache to strengthen it. It’s a total experiment and I have no idea how it will turn out but  I’m really excited to  see if it will  work.  I’ll  let you know  how it goes

Les Puces de Saint-Ouen

I wanted to do a post on the amazing flea market that I came across whilst on my adventures in Paris.

Both Me and Clare are avid bargain hunters and also love  seeking out vintage and antique finds so were keen to check out what  Paris could offer.We we so glad we did when we came across the vast  sprawling market complex that is Les Puces de Saint-Ouen

 Legend has it that this complex of no less than 14 separate markets first came about  approximately 200  years ago when street hawkers and rag and bone men started  selling their where outside  the city walls of Paris.

 It was developed in 1885 when the streets were paved and areas specially designated for market trading. Now holding over 2000 stalls it is one of the largest antique markets in the world. 

To be honest the outer stalls  are nothing to shout about and are very much like any town or city market across Europe selling  fake designer goods and copied dvd’s etc. But as we got further into the complex the curiosities and bricant stalls started to take my fancy  and I was left wishing I had a car to  take home all the treasures I came across.  

 Then came the real treat, further within the market   are the  antique haberdashery, fabric stalls and   vintage sellers and it was a good job i was on a strict budget because there was so many things that took my fancy. I am quite a shy market  shopper and am always a bit hesitant to ask the price of items  but  everyone seemed friendly and  a came away with a few treats to use in some upcoming projects.

I would defiantly recommend looking  Les Puces de Saint-Ouen up if you are ever lucky enough to be  in Paris, I think I probably saw about a third of the markets so it's worth dedicating at least a day to rummaging around if you can and also get there as early as you can as it does get busy in the afternoons.  I will certainly be going back to stock up  again, the amount of beautifully  fabrics and trims I found  make me think I could probably justify a  trip to Paris just  for that reason! 

If you are going to check it, out hear are a couple of good sites and posts that will give you more information about  the markets

http://www.parisperfect.com/paris-flea-markets.php  - good sumary  of the market and a breakdown of the various areas 

http://www.marcheauxpuces-saintouen.com/1.aspx - the official website of the markets - though i could only get this up in french today.

http://ohhappyday.com/2011/03/how-to-get-to-the-paris-flea-market/- lovely post with a really clear map of the different areas.

 I always find these sorts of places a great source of inspiration  as well as  a fab place to stock up supplies of one off fabrics and trims that you don’t come across on the high street. It has made me wonder how many places like these are  closer to home and am going to enjoy seeking them out and report back with any I come across. Xxx

Hello again!!!



Two chic chaps in paris !!

 I've been absent off the blog for quite a while,  I'm very new to blogging  and so I'm still trying to find my feet and work out what I want it to be about.

   

      Fear not though I haven't been idle, my sewing machine is still whirring and I have got my teeth stuck into a good few projects.

 Also I had a wonderful and inspiring trip to Paris with millinery friend Clare

 

 My lovely freind  Clare looking glam

  It was great to explore the  less touristy parts of paris and  stumble upon  a couple of amazing places for fabric and supplies which I intend to  blog about  very soon because trust me I was in danger of spending a serious amount of money.




Me, not  looking quite so composed as Clare !

       I thought you might be interested in seeing a couple of the pieces I have been working on.

                                                  

   This is a hat that I originally blocked about this time last year and had been sitting naked and untrimmed on my bookshelf gathering dust 

I needed a new hat for winter so I used some of the silk flowers I made practicing new techniques and some left over  fabric  from a previous project to finish it off  lined and everything.

The silk flowers themselves are another project I have been working on recently.  I was given a lovely Edwardian  millinery book for  my birthday this year and it has a huge section on how to make silk  and ribbon flowers , so over the last couple of months I’ve started working my way through them picking out the flowers that take my  fancy and  temporally  decorating Margo my poupee with them until they  eventually find a home on a hat.



    Here she is sporting a couple of my more recent creations I think she has a slight Freda Kahlo  feel to her.

Book Talk- Contemporary Quilts by Sandra Meech

After my mini foray into patchwork recently  a friend leant me Contemporary Quilts by Sandra Meech. 
This book gives a introduction into contemporary quilt making. The blurb describes it as  "as an essential too for quilters and textiles artists who want to break away from traditional designs... " It focusses on the artistic side of quilt making rather than  the basic principles of traditional quilting and gives a good insight into how to plan and develop a contemporary quilt.

The first part of the book discusses  where to get inspiration for your quilt, looking at areas such as elements of the natural world , architecture or even emotions and experience and also touches upon how you can use your own photographs or images to inspire your pieces. It then moves on to discuss how to create different surfaces to use within your work before discussing  composition  and colour principles.

I especially like the  areas where it shows you how to take you own original art work and apply this onto your quilt.

The last section has a more practice focus discussing the different techniques  of how to apply stitch creatively into your quilts using techniques such as appliquéd and embroidery in a contemporary way and then also  briefly discusses  quilt construction techniques.

The book does appear to have been written with a competent quilter or textile artist in mind and assumes that you already know the principles of the craft. Personally I think the most appealing thing about this book is the beautiful image of the various work it shows on every page.  Its a book that I can will defiantly call upon when I'm in need of some guidance with my creative work , and I think the principles discussed can be applied to may other projects as well as quilting

Getting my sights on a prize!

Well I have been doing pretty well  at maintaining my motivation over the last few weeks and doing this blog has a lot to do with that.  But as I move on with more projects over the last few weeks I  want to  ensure that this doesn’t drop off as I  find other things to talk about here and therefore  feel that I don’t need to push so hard with my own projects.Obviously the thought of having a wardrobe unique and handmade wardrobe s a big motivator  but I still think I may need a further  boost to get me even more motivated!

image from  www.vintagestylemannequins.co.uk 

For a long time I have been longing to have a dressmaking dummy. Whilst in Uni we  used the gorgeous traditional  a Kennet and Lindsell tailor's dummy like the one above  and  I have missed not having one around especially when I come up with ideas for  items that I can’t find a pattern for and don’t feel that confident with my own pattern cutting skills just to make it on the flay. Now alas as the K+ L models are custom made to a specific  measurements  and are  completely out of my budget  so I think it would be sensible to have an adjustable one.  Apart  from the expense I can only just about get away with my ever expanding collection of millinery equipment and  hatboxes I  don’t think a collection  of dressmaking dummies in a variety of  shapes and sizes would be  tolerated!

So I have promised myself that if I have completed a total of 8 more sewing projects ( not including the dress I’m working on at the moment )  by the end of November  I will  treat myself  to an adjustable dressmaking dummy as a Christmas present to myself.

image from  dressmakers-dummy.com/uk/ 

Now on a practical note I think this adjustable one  with legs would be perfect as it   means I could do shorts  leggings and trousers as well as  dress and skirts . 

 .  

image from  http://sewing-online.com

However the girl in me adores the slightly more aesthetically pleasing  floral patterned one.  I suppose I should air on the side of practicality I can always make a  cover for it.  Anyway before I can get distracted by  finding the perfect one I better get back to the sewing! Xxx

A new project begins!

 

Well I have finished my patchwork project, I am no longer calling it a quilt as it has actually turned into a cushion instead.

Halfway through the project I had a feeling that something was not working and I started being reluctant to work on it. After laying it on the floor  I realized that I didn’t actually like the fabrics I had used and they didn’t work cohesively  together as a quilt.

Determined not to  gain yet another abandoned project I realized that although it was not destined to  adorn a bed in quilt form it would make a rather  quirky cushion so using the  squares I had made I adapted the layout slightly and have now completed it. I am much happier  with the finished result of a cushion  and have  learnt  a lot in  the process.

Next time I attempt a quilt I will defiantly take more consideration  with my fabric choice and colour scheme and   will take the time to  design the overall pattern  layout of the quilt and plan it out  so I know what each square will be before I even  cut the fabric. 

Completing the patch work project has defiantly made me feel a lot more  confident about my machine sewing skills and I now am at my most comfortable  sitting at my machine so I’m sure you won’t be surprised to hear that I have already moved on to my next project .

After rummaging in my  vintage pattern collection I have unearthed this lovely pattern from 1980 to use.  I have opted to  make up  the red dress  as I prefer the shorter sleeves and  am not too fond of patch pockets.

  

So after selecting this lovely fabric to make it up I ready to get started again. Wish me luck xx