Extending space...

I work out of the house and lots of prep work is done in the garage, a lovely space that has been warm and cosy and very well suited to what I do. Over the six months I have been looking to extend the classes and the space I have to lay out and work. My obsession of course is fabric printing and this is a space consuming affair... I used the Rated People  website and posted my job on. Within a few days I had about ten answers from builders within my area. I chose four that I wanted to quote mostly choosing from past experiences and the information they had on their websites. Once I had chosen who I wanted to do the build with (actually was an easy decision, I went with my gut feeling) and the work started. I had moments of panic and a back yard that looked like this...

To this....

I love the new space. The cutting table has tons of natural light. Important for when I print. There is space to move and it all flows well. I have lots to do in terms of arranging the space to suit me, but for now this will do! I have a nook for thread and a space for me silhouette machine and printer etc... and my beloved overlocker now lives on a table instead of on a shelf. productive year for me! 

Family time and looking back...

What a busy time it has been, I have been sitting and thinking about the last quarter of last year and it was jam packed with all sorts of things. First Miss T started school and settling her in was not a lot of fun. I really struggled with the two off/ pick up issues and the kids were not so thrilled with how this was all going down. We went to Disney in Paris with the kids in Oct which was great catch up time and they really loved ice skating as well as the main event...

 

                       

                          

 

Back to school and then Christmas was on us. Work was busy and all the lovely school plays and activities that come with the season. I was very glad we opted for a quiet Christmas. I have been working on various projects and I look forward to blogging about them soon. I extended the office and  will post about that soon as well.  

On skirts, bleach printing and patterns..

I have been collecting ways and means of mark making and printing on to fabric to help me with the year three curriculum. I also have to admit that I adore printing on fabric. Anything to play with paint and fabric. Anyway, I digress.... I looked at block printing, tie dyeing and then I remembered that I saw this article on the Thread Magazine on printing with bleach.  A wonderfully easy way to change surface pattern and colour and the results are immediate and therefore most gratifying.
I used a pattern which I got from the this page from the Alabama Chanin site.

I cut a 6 piece wide skirt which in retrospect was the wrong pattern for this particular technique though I did want to try to get it to overlap on the seams which you can just about see in this picture.

The idea is to start with a basic stencil and strip the colour away on the knit to expose various other colours and with a dark knit, because so many other colours are used to achieve black, what you get is not predictable which for me is just fine!  I used my trusty silhouette machine to cut out the stencil and then used it to simply dab bleach that has been diluted onto the fabric.... the results are quite interesting.Once I finished I created the skirt and then added sequins and beads to it. Here is what I ended up with ....

I thought I would start the girls off with a t shirt and then move onto other more interesting things...I hope they enjoy this as much as I do! 

Light Layer top

I love this time of year, the light turns slightly golden and there is a nip in the air, the time to layer is here. I looked through my cupboard and realized that it was woefully lacking in the light layer department. Having wanted to make something to help with this I cut out a pattern from Alabama Studio Sewing + Design book. I also wanted to try out this way of embellishing for the Year 3 class.

The pattern in the book for a cover up was a short one which I did not want to use, a bolero. I used the t shirt pattern which had the length that I wanted and since it would not have a fastening in the front I cut down the middle of the pattern and added a few inches for the front facing. I also used a bell sleeve pattern from the book which is nice though rather long (I ended up gathering it up from the side hem a bit.)... I had some of this fabric left from the mountain of t shirt fabric bought on a whim :) A lovely light black with a goldish tint to it. It does'nt have tons of stretch to it which always made to re think using it for t shirts, perfect thought for this project. 

I cut the basic pattern out and then used fabric gathers to accentuate it 

It took me a few nights in front of the TV and at little miss's ballet class to get this done but it feels lovely to wear, more than just because I made it! It feels special. One last look at my current favorite make... More of this on the way. 

Summers gone...

It's fall. The leaves on the horse chestnut trees that line the street where we live have turned in color. There is definitely a nip in the air and I have come out of sewing hibernation, which only seems to happen to me in the summer. The family holiday was amazing, Aziz my brother's wedding was lovely and I fit into the Shalwar! Hurray.

It was brilliant to be surrounded by friends and family and simply enjoy this wonderful occasion.

Our friend had a significant birthday party while we were out in Lanka as well, so glad we were there for it. A wonderful affair organised on the beach, so what if a bit of rain came our way :) Especially lovely for the Mr and me to catch up with all our friends, we both miss the social aspect of life in Sri Lanka and our friends very much.

Back to life in the UK and school has started as has work. Little miss started in reception, a hard time for me and she is already showing signs of loving it. Master A is now in Year 2, I cant believe it!

New classes at Langley and more connections to be made for me. The third years continue with lots to crack on with and learn this year. We cover more zips and fastenings and I have the lovely task of teaching them about mark making on fabric and some fabric printing. Having thought through the curriculum more, I have decided to keep to simple designs and processes. We will be covering block printing and prints using basic stencils only. We can work on more complex designs using embroidery and fabric manipulation. More on that later...

Students leaving and the end of term

Almost done for the term. This year has felt like it has rushed by me. I had a moment to day when I stopped and watched my year 8's sewing. They were almost professional in their attention to the project at hand. No more do I hear " miss, how do I _____?" Projects are being planned, implemented and executed with a few looks in and nods from me. Did I ever think this day would come?  The projects are varied, a patchwork quilt to remember her sewing class (she leaves us at the end of the term), a t shirt with a woven collar, (collar designed, drawn and cut and sewn by her!) a door stop to match a redone room (colors and textures are being considered), a wall hanging with lots of personal memories tied into it (Paris!). I love that they customize and make each project their own. This is why I teach.
The second class was tinged with sadness, one of us leaves today, her last class. We shall miss her. The class gets reshuffled and new students join us. Happy to almost be at the end of the term. Sad to see some of them go. Almost all have chosen to do Textiles, something that makes me smile more.

Look what landed on my door mat!

Pretty things off the fabric swap :) 

Thank you to all my swappies for the amazing fabric. I don't know what I am making with it but it's going to be awesome.