Goodbye winter

You could not imagine two more differing days if you tried.  Yesterday (Sunday) was a perfect late winter's day; cloudless skies, temperate weather.

Which was just as well, as we gathered for a family lunch to celebrate my brother's birthday.  

The boys amused themselves reading and drawing, waiting patiently for their favourite food ...

Dessert!

In contrast, Saturday began for us at two in the morning when loud hammering invaded our bedroom.  It transpired that our apartment neighbours had a wee problem with their plumbing which necessitated the emergency services of a plumber. With a big hammer.  You can imagine how thrilled we were to discover a few hours later that we were the recipients of their excess water.  

At least it prepared us well for the day ahead, which included joining our granddaughter's cheer squad for very soggy netball semifinals.  Thank goodness for the pop-up coffee vendors who kept us warm on the inside at least.  I felt so sorry for the poor little pets playing their hearts out in such atrocious conditions. 

Available here

 However, it was perfect weather for sewing.

And here

Spring will be arriving in a week (doing the traditional End of Winter Dance of Joy) and I will be busy between now and Christmas with new stock for the summer months ahead and for the Christmas season.

Image: Sara Sprague

Bring it on!

Begone Winter

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring.  I am doing a little dance of joy as I wish Winter a fond farewell. However, I am not foolish enough to fling my winter gear into the depths of my wardrobe and don warm weather clothes, but the sun is rising earlier and hanging around a little longer and the blossoms are exploding in the gardens.

I am not alone in the anticipation of Summer.  A few days back one of my dresses was featured in this delightful Etsy Treasury  by fellow Sydneysider Helen of Cooper Street Vintage.  As you can see by the lovely summery goodies displayed, we are completely over Winter.  Below are a few samples of my Spring/Summer collection.

Butterflies and Summer go hand in hand and a few days back I made this skirt in the hope it would hurry the season along a little.  No sooner did I list it in my Madeit shop than it was featured in their shopping guide under the heading Little Miss Sunshine.

Here's another version of the same skirt, with its sash which can be tied either at the front or the back and adjustable elastic at the waistband back to allow it to last longer than one season.

This little outfit is perfect for toddlers, because the top is completely reversible.

 So handy when you have those pesky ice cream spillages. 

I have to confess that blue is my favourite colour and I particularly love these shades of blue.  

I found these adorable buttons which are ideal for the back closure.  

And then there's Christmas.  I know it's crazy, but I have already had Christmas sales and even a bunny garland for next Easter!  There are more Summer goodies planned over the next few weeks and you can find all the items listed above (and many more) in my Etsy and Madeit shops.

It was Netball Grand Final day today and we Fudges, from the oldest to the youngest, were there to support our granddaughter.  It wasn't to be, but both teams were so good and they played their little eight year-old hearts out.  We were so proud of them, as were no doubt the parents of the winning team.

They practically ran to receive their runners-up trophies at the presentation.

As I looked at this image of my granddaughter and her bestie admiring their tropohies, it dawned on me that I had been wrong when I stated in my last blog post that there were no sporting genes in my makeup.  

How could I have ever forgotten?

The Quay

Every few weeks we get together with my brother for a feast of fish 'n chips.  It's something like an elongated pub crawl, without the fun of alcohol. However, the company makes up for that.  Today we decided to give Circular Quay the benefit of our esteemed presence.

If you were able to choose a perfect winter's day, today would be the one.  Clear skies were softened by the winter sun and the air was still.

We had completely forgotten it was the last week of school holidays, which was strange because my brother is a high school teacher.  The Manly Ferry appeared to be in popular demand and who could blame them?  We haven't been there in years, so it's now down on our list of places to eat fish 'n chips.

Speaking of which, today's version had to be the worst we have had since we began our quest.  As I sit here typing, I have to block out the upper part of the screen so that my stomach doesn't revolt at the sight.  I will go further to say that it's possibly the worst meal of fish 'n chips I have ever had, half cold and oozing grease from every pore.  I don't know the name of the take-away shop which is perhaps just as well.

I only hope these two little fellows don't succumb to Chip Belly overnight, because they seemed to rather enjoy my cast-offs.

A quick vote was taken and the decision made to walk off the meal.

 There was so much to distract us.  Street art ...

... didgeridoo player with his very modern music ...

... and of course the ferries.  The jaunty older ferries are named after the First Fleet.

The more modern ones are named after Australian female athletes.  I don't know how Olympic swimmer Nicole Livingstone feels about having a vessel with such a broad beam named after her!

What a stunning day and even better, tomorrow is Friday.

My week in the sewing room

Everybody loves a surprise, a pleasant surprise that is.   

Last week the Hawthorne Threads Newsletter arrived via email and as I scanned down the images of beautiful fabrics, I was stunned to see one of my dresses featured.  What a delightful surprise, particularly as it was such a gloomy, rainy day outside.

My fabric stash has been growing alarmingly, much of it set aside for custom orders, but all too many yardages suitable for one-of-a-kind dresses.  I had enough of a particular fabric which I knew would make a perfect sailor dress.

By coincidence I came across this pattern by Tie Dye Diva Patterns.  In the past I have tested down-loadable PDF patterns and some have left a lot to be desired - confusing instructions, poorly photographed and generally difficult to follow.

However, this pattern was a joy to work with - precise instructions and clear images.  

Some time back I bought this gorgeous voile fabric from Hawthorne Threads and was happy to simply look and admire, not wanting to cut into it.

Finally common sense kicked in and I realised it was time to let go.  There was enough to make a dress in size 4 and it's available here.

Image by ImageInCafe

As soon as I saw this fabric I knew exactly the style of dress would suit it perfectly.  Even in sunny Queensland it was becoming a little chilly, so I hurried off the dress to Sandrine of Image In Cafe, hoping that this adorable little model wouldn't freeze to death during the photo session.  She didn't and it's available here.

But it hasn't all been about dresses.  With so many scraps taking over my sewing room, the timing was perfect for the call-out from my quilting group to make some blocks for the quilts we are planning to give to a local women's refuge.  We now have enough quilt tops for several beds and the next step will be to get them quilted and on their way.

And now back to the machine to put finishing touches to a couple of dresses which will soon be on their way to be photographed.

At least it takes the mind off winter.

Somewhere in the world it's warm

Sitting here in Sydney on a fairly miserable day, I take heart in the knowledge that in that other hemisphere people are basking in the sun, licking melting gelato and generally enjoying what was ours only a couple months ago.

Putting on my Pollyanna hat, I could say if we didn't have winter
we wouldn't appreciate the warmer months.

Imagine how boring it would be if it was warm all year.

Even worse, if it never rained.

OK, I wouldn't mind a little rain now and then.

Maybe I should move to Hawaii.

But then I would miss the changing colours of the trees and the beautiful winter flowers.

So I'll embrace these winter months and appreciate the joy of each season.

At least until I can feel some warmth in my bones again.

In the meantime I have been kept busy with the first of the new season's designs.  You can find them here or here. Wherever you are, I hope you are enjoying and appreciating the wonders of the season.