Apparently

It's Friday today.  Not quite sure where that week went - My Best Friend comes back from Mackay, in Queensland, (pronounced mah-kai) tomorrow, They've had rain in Mackay but no flooding, thank the Goddess.  I've been popping by her house to collect mail, real and junk, from her mailbox, and I think part of my malaise this week has been because I've really missed her company - being on your own all day is no fun, really, even surrounded by boxes of fabric and great music.  


I've been distracted by the stories from the floods in Queensland - my heart just goes out to those poor people.  Such devastation - like Italy or Germany immediately after the end of the World War II - and because we've been asked not to send stuff, I have decided that any money I make from the shop during January and February will go to the Queensland Flood Relief Appeal, so now would be a good time to buy lavender bags, doorstops and Froggies, Gentle Readers, or anything else you want.


In other, more cheery, news, my lovely friend Auds, who is from Mumbai, has asked me to think about joining her on a trip to a wedding in Mumbai in mid-February, as she's not taking Mr Dingers or any of the (not-so) little Dingers'.  I must admit that I've been a bit inspired by the very lovely Flickety-Splits' photographs of India, and think that it's the opportunity of a lifetime, to go to India with somebody who was born there, knows it and loves it - much more interesting than a group tour, or wandering aimlessly with Mr Golightly, each saying "where do you want to go", and "I don't know, where do you want to go", as so often happens on our holidays...


Anyway, I can get a return fare to Mumbai for about $1300, and given that it appears I will be returning to the August Institution in March, I think I'll take advantage of the opportunity and go.  More info will be gathered tonight at dinner with the Dingers family... so stay tuned.


In crafty news, I have finished both pillow cases.  I got off my lardy-arse yesterday & whipped up the second one in about 10 minutes flat; isn't it strange how the first one of anything takes so long, but the second and subsequent items, exactly the same pattern, take a fraction of the time?


Anyway, here:

I was very happy with the way the zip flap turned out, next time I make a dress I'm going to use the sandwich method - very neat & tidy, no effort at all, but I did think afterwards that I probably should have put these in the back of the pillowcase, but I don't think anybody is going to poke their eyes out on this:

French seams throughout the pillowcase, no raw edges of any kind.  Nice job, Mrs G.


And for today, I think I'm going to indulge myself and make that Owl.  What a hoot!  (Ouch.)  


Ciao!

Sometimes I astound even myself...

So, in anticipation of the [question without notice, what's the term for something that only happens every four years??]  Quadrennial (I just looked it up) Golightly Photo and Travelfest, we went mad and bought Mr Golightly some spiffy new clothes, so he wouldn't get arrested in countries less tolerant than our own, of balding, newly middle-aged men wearing body-shirts and flares, complete with hush puppies, from the 1970's.  Actually, that's a bit unkind, he's probably worked his way into the early '80's by now.  Maybe.


I held out for Sportscraft, which is an Australian clothing company that's been around since the 1950's, they had a bit of a rennaisance about 10 years ago & really got, as the Americans say, with the program - nice quality, good colours, conservative enough so you don't feel like you're wearing your 24 year old nephew's stuff, but not so conservative that people think you've shopped at that other menswear store that starts with L and ends with prostate trouble and arthritis.


The only reason, I have to say, that I make Mr Golightly buy Sportscraft is that nobody has seen fit to resurrect Gowings, which really was an Australian institution, established in 1868, and gone, all gone, by the end of 2005.  Gowings was fantastic, a multi-levelled menswear store not entirely unlike DJ's or Grace Brothers, or whatever the hell it's called today, but it was, um, for want of a better word, and not trying to be unkind, ordinary.  Comfortable.  Domestic.  You could buy Bonds undies, socks, swimmers, bowls gear, you could get your hair cut for $10, you could get everything from head to toe, even dinner suits and Birkenstock sandals .  


Mr Golightly felt as happy as he ever gets shopping, shopping there, and I could take him once a year, wander up & down the floors, and come out knowing he looked respectable without being flashy, and that the quality was good.  So good, in fact, that he's still wearing Gowings t-shirts and shorts from the 1990's.  Which is the subject of a whole 'nother post, one we're not getting to tonight!


Anyway, we bought him this smart Navy jacket to take away on the Golightly Quadrennial Photo and Travelfest, in the hope that he'd leave his somewhat daggy shapeless polar fleece jacket behind.  Hah!  Did I say 'vain' hope?  Should've.


The main concern, gentle reader, was that the Sportscraft jacket didn't have an inside pocket.  I mean, really, what were they thinking?  What item of men's outdoor apparel doesn't have inside pockets?  Men need somewhere to stow things, that's the only reason they get away without being afflicted by the curse of the handbag!


So... I undertook to put one in.  Now, you know that I have done dressmaking.  For me.  Skirts, pyjamas, blouses.  Nothing complicated.   Nothing tricksy.  Nothing too challenging (apart from the Corset, of course).  However, I've made a zillion pouches, lined, with no raw edges showing, so how hard could it be to gently unstitch the lining of the jacket, insert a pouch & restitch up, leaving on a zip?


This hard:

 Not too hard at all, actually.  I had to do a bit of hand-stitching at either end where the zip foot wouldn't go, but it doesn't look too bad.  I did mean to have funky lining, though, but after making the pouch twice and realising I had it round the wrong way, when I did get it right, I couldn't be bothered to swap it back again.    I used something not entirely dissimilar to this:

So everytime Mr Golightly opens the inside pocket in his ultra smart Navy Sportscraft jacket to get his passport out, I'm going to have a small chuckle. 

That's probably it for me for a while, I may get to post from parts unknown, but no promises.  Stay safe, gentle readers!

  

Madeit!I

I just found Madeit & have registered for a shop - sadly the shop names are limited to 9 characters (why is that?) - so I had to make do with IsabellaG - but I'm sure those who want to find me will be able to!


I've listed just a couple of things, and may move away from Etsy if it works out - not that I have anything against Etsy, but it is so Americentric, and they have some policies I'm not that happy about - but I hadn't seen an acceptable alternative until now - anyway, if you have spare cash & want to purchase some of my beautiful products :-)), give MadeIt a go & let me know what you think...


And these turned up today, after 6 weeks - I'm really happy with the quality and the price (100 zips for US$25 (works out about 33 cents per zip, a real bargain) but boy, six weeks is a long time to wait!

That's it for me, having escaped from the office at 6.00pm for the first time in 3 weeks, I'm going to have an early night.  Yay!

Zippetty Doo Dah!

Man, when I've got it, I've got it. When you're hot, baby, you're hot. I made another two of these little babies, firstly using up some fat quarters I didn't really like that much (well, the pink is okay but the mustard is not really in my preferred quadrant of the colour wheel...) Snidely Whiplash eat your heart out.

Anyway, I digress... I thought the first lined one went well, but I couldnt work out how to put it together & still be able to trim the angles - so it has the pinked angles inside the lining. Who's ever going to look? Nobody, that's who. It's not going anywhere, except into the bag of unwanted prototyped sewn stuff... or maybe into my handbag? It's a good size for something, but I have no idea what - maybe a small iPod or camera?

Anyway, I got on the net, and found this excellent tutorial which walked me through making the lining, and all I had to do was figure out how to put in the corners from the other one - anyhooooo, mine has come out a little non-square (that's the technical term for boat-shaped, honest) but I like it. I'm going to send it to my friend Kaz with some matching lavender bags & then make some for sale ...