I spent an oddly fruitless yet industrious day today, zigzagging the edges of fat quarters and pre-washing them. Two bobbinsful of thread, several hours of work and yet nothing to show for it except an artily-draped clothes horse covered in cotton and flannel. I never used to pre-wash fabric, but I was recently reading some scary articles online about the chemicals they use in dyeing and sizing fabric. Also, apparently flannel shrinks like a fish. (And frays, and stretches… I was looking forward to making the snortlepig’s flannel quilt, but I’ve been a bit put off by a brigade of craft bloggers assuring me the stuff’s hellish to sew. Maybe I’ll start with the cotton quilt instead.)
I did finally finish the snortlepig’s green winter top, too. Hopefully there’ll be a few more cold days to justify its existence! Not a roaring success, though… I made up the pattern myself in a fit of artsiness, and it’s a bit too big and a lot too wide and slightly dodgy round the neck and armscyes with a dodginess I can’t quite pin down, but which probably has something to do with the asymmetricality of sleeve pieces. I have a whole new respect for pattern drafters. Anyway I bought a bunch of half-price remnants and clearance Spotlight cottons the other day to make the snortlepig’s summer clothes, and this time I’ll be prosaic and use patterns. Free toddler sewing patterns are few and far between online, it turns out - most of the freebie patterns are for weedy things like baby burp cloths and hooded towels. Still, I found a few cute dress patterns and one little crossover kimono top pattern. I’ll start with those. Well, I’m planning on altering the dress patterns a bit. I can’t help it. It’s a compulsion, like doubling the vanilla essence in previously-untried recipes just to prove I’m my own woman and not a mindless minion of The Man. Also, vanilla essence is delicious.
Would you accept a million dollars if you knew it would increase your chances of getting lung cancer by 7%?
Miriam Says:
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