A Stitching Odyssey: February 2018

I've struggled to keep my blogging promises recently, but even though this post is over a week late I'm ridiculously excited to finally announce the 2017 #VintagePledge prize winners!

Choosing winners was a challenging task - check out the beautiful makes shared on the dedicated Pinterest board to see why - and I only wish I could shower every one of you with goodies! Contrary to other years, I decided to award prizes based on 'collections' instead of single garments. I also found it hard sticking to my six sponsored prizes, so I dipped into my own stash to spread the love a little further and crown 10 winners.

Before the big reveal, a reminder to all winners: leave a comment with your email address or drop me a line at astitchingodyssey[at]hotmail.co.uk to arrange delivery of your prizes!

SPONSORED PRIZE WINNERS

Mrs. Hughes

Tanya, you've blown me away with your stunning 1920s and 1930s makes! Your fabric choices and embellishments are second to none. I hope you enjoy your Simplicity gift hamper including three sewing patterns of your choice and this tote bag, iron-on transfer and sewing planner stickers from their 90th anniversary range!

PeterSilie & Co

I'm so impressed by how contemporary your vintage makes look, Sabine! Turning vintage glamour into everyday chic is no mean feat. Your prize consists of three vintage-inspired PDF patterns of your choice from How to do Fashion and a 12-pack of delicious Doughnut Pattern Weights from Oh Sew Quaint.

Victoria Carswell

Not only have you sewn yourself fabulous vintage makes, you've also dressed your loved ones in bygone fashions. I'm in awe of the sheer variety of garments you made last year. Have fun spending your £30 Sew Essential voucher on your choice of fabrics and sewing patterns!

Verity Vintage Studio

Kirsten, your range of 1930s and 1940s makes has stolen my heart. Everything you've made looks beautifully authentic and I'm so impressed that you stayed true to your vintage aesthetic during pregnancy as well! You'll be spoilt for choice spending your £30 voucher on gorgeous sewing accessories and tools from Beyond Measure.

Vintage Gal

Oh, Cate! Your knitted and crochet jumpers are to die for! In fact, I'll trade wardrobes with you any day...your vintage aesthetic is one I can only aspire to. Enjoy spending your £25 Girl Charlee UK voucher and picking two PDF patterns of your choice from Decades of Style.

Seam Racer

Kelly, you stitched up a staggering number of vintage makes last year. They're all so perfectly made and true to their era...what a talent you have! A beautiful dressmaking fabric hamper worth £50 from Minerva Crafts will be making its way to you soon.

NON-SPONSORED PRIZE WINNERS

Annotations of Jenny

I know I said I was awarding prizes based on 'collections' this year, but how could I not acknowledge this work of art? Jenny, your 1930s-inspired wedding dress is simply breathtaking and you were a vision of old Hollywood glamour on your special day. I think you'll do this vintage pattern the justice I haven't managed to since buying it years ago and I'm pretty sure you'll rock the fabrics too.

By Gum, By Golly

Tasha, your handmade vintage wardrobe is the stuff of dreams. There's literally nothing you make that I wouldn't snap up in a heartbeat. I'm pretty sure these prints from my stash couldn't be going to a better home, I hope you have fun scheming what to make with them!

Jade Juney

Anyone who manages to make me less skeptical about 1960s fashion is a winner in my books! Jade, you've won me over with your super cute shift dresses and the incredible detail you've put into them. Here's hoping you can get creative with these reproduction patterns.

Lillia Rae Sewing Adventure

Last but not least, I can't get over this gorgeous dress made by seven-year-old Lillia Rae, the youngest #VintagePledge participant to date! Lillia Rae, it's been an absolute pleasure following your sewing adventures last year...hope the selection of fabrics below will lead to many more this year!

And that's a wrap, dear friends!

A HUGE congrats to all the winners and a MASSIVE thanks to everyone who has stitched up a vintage storm with me over the last four years. I may not be hosting #VintagePledge this year, but please feel free to keep using the hashtag on social media so we can stay in touch and continue to inspire each other!

Friday, February 23, 2018

The irony is not lost on me that I'm standing here posing in activewear, when I'm at my heaviest and un-fittest...well, ever! But, when you get asked to take part in a blog hop to celebrate a book by the incredibly inspiring Melissa Fehr, you say "yes" and check your self-consciousness at the door.

Even during my more active stints, I've never been interested in making my own workout gear, but Sew You Own Activewear has definitely changed that. Now I want to start exercising again, just so I can sew up Melissa's patterns!

There's a sneaky peek of the book here, which takes you through making a capsule wardrobe comprising of 13 activewear designs using just four basic pattern blocks. The book takes you through sewing techniques and performance fabric selection, sharing useful insight that even the seasoned jersey/knit stitcher will find beneficial.

I decided to break myself in with the Raglan Tee, which can be made in regular jersey fabric. RTW workout tops are what I've always struggled with in the past, with many being sleeveless, too clingy and almost always too low-cut.

This loose fitting top with raglan sleeves, banded V-neck and wraparound side seams is the perfect mix of comfortable and cute. The fun thing about it is the clever concealed pocket in the back - for stashing a key, some cash and so on - which I left out as I'm more of an indoor exerciser.

As a self-proclaimed lazy stitcher, having to 'draft' the Raglan Tee using a basic block was a little off-putting. However, the process was faster than I imagined and the satisfaction I got from it was worth the effort. Following the instructions and illustrations was easy enough, but be warned that getting a sharp V-neck band takes a lot of patience...and unpicking in my case...so much unpicking!

There are so many tempting designs to choose from in Melissa's book, but some of my favourites are the Crop Top, Yoga Bottoms, Winter Base Layer and Split Shorts.

Having dug out my neglected workout gear to use as props for these photos, I'm actually seriously considering rejoining the gym. So, Melissa and her awesome book could end up being responsible for motivating me to get back in shape this year...now that's no mean feat!

How about you? Do/would you sew your own activewear?

Tuesday, February 06, 2018

With our kitchen-related building work finally nearing an end (if you follow me on Instagram you'll know it's been a looooong time coming), I realised I never did share our bedroom makeover with you!

We finished it about 14 months ago, but it took us an embarrassingly long time to get there. This was partly because Charlotte insisted on doing it straight after our spare bedroom and we were totally burnt out. It was also because everything seemed to go wrong from the wallpaper not budging despite copious steaming to discovering a ceiling crack which resulted in stripping all the lining paper off.

Anyway, it's hardly a new look anymore, but we truly love it!

Unbelievably, I have no before photos other than the ones we took when we looked around the house just before buying it. So the styling in the two photos above is not ours, but you can get an idea of the previous decor including busy wallpaper, lots of lilac, dodgy green carpet and poorly located radiator.

Moving said radiator and laying new flooring was Charlotte's dad's excellent handiwork, but everything else was our own blood, sweat and tears. And there was plenty of each...ok, maybe not the blood bit, but everything else.

If I had my own way, our whole house would be decorated in a vintage aesthetic with a mid-century vibe, but apparently when you're in a relationship it's customary to compromise. Charlotte prefers modern lines and I've discovered a fondness of Scandinavian design, so this explains our new decor. Much like the rest of the house, our choices are also dictated by my intolerance to clutter (dusting is my most dreaded chore), love of light/space and our need for storage.

So what do you think? If you like any of what you see, Charlotte's put together a handy shopping list below. Word to the wise though, if you're interested in our ceiling light fitting, it's much longer in real life with red and black cords. We cut ours down and coloured the cords with a black marker pen!