Making Life more Beautiful
Marianna recently did a short, and rather amusing, post about invisible mending, a dying craft. My father used to wear what he called a “sports jacket” at weekends, and in the 1960s he had a few tailor-made jackets (from Alec Leadenham … Continued
Last Saturday I shared my thinking and my questions on what sort of yarn and pattern to choose. And, as ever, you have given me the very best advice, based on experience and offered with the utmost kindness and generosity. Wonderful … Continued
I haven’t even finished my first knitting project and I am thinking about the next one. Not a problem – as the thinking and planning time is the most important aspect of a project, in my view. And I need … Continued
I think learning to knit is like learning to dressmake. And probably learning anything. You don’t know what you don’t know. At first you don’t know much and the only thing is to complete a garment you can pull on … Continued
Regular readers will know that I am always on the search for new knowledge and I frequent – as often as time and money allow – various educational institutions across London. Last summer I did a two-day course on Indigo … Continued
I have never knitted a garment in my life. Well I made a few items for Esme, when she was a baby, using very simple patterns, the odd scarf and a granny squares blanket. I know how to knit, but I … Continued
Right at the beginning of our course we were asked to draft an easy fitting dress block. If you have already drafted a dress block, making it looser and easier to wear is very easy. You basically reduce the bust … Continued
I got some very nice feedback for my first off the shoulder dress, and provided some information about how I have developed the design. You may remember the toile for the off the shoulder princess line dress with an attached … Continued
At my evening class Vanda gave us a drawing of a dress with sleeves, princess line bodice, a high waistband and flared skirt. Over the three hour class (and a very short break for me to eat a bowl of … Continued
I usually love going to the V&A – it is one of my favourite places in London. So an exhibition of underwear had lots of appeal. It is impossible to study the history of fashion without also studying the history … Continued