sewing – LaineeMakes

Advanced/Plus Difficile… Irresistible!

Looking through my pattern stash/library I realised that quite a lot of my old Vogue patterns are graded ‘Advanced/Plus difficile’. Why is that phrase so appealing to me? It just reveals that side of me that can’t resist a challenge. At times I think I’ve viewed my sewing like an extreme sport, the more challenging […]

Sep 13, 2018Sep 13, 2018Knitting LaineeMakes sewing Sewing challenges UFOs Work in Progress

LaineeMakes does SewPhotoHop2018 : Week One

I’m entering another photo challenge. No sooner had #braugust2018 come to a close than it was time for #SewPhotohop. It’s organised by Rachel of @houseofpinheiro and seems to be one of the most popular on the sewing IG calendar. I joined in sporadically last September because, as always seems the case I was away for […]

Jul 12, 2018Jan 6, 2019Challenging Ideas LaineeMakes Pattern drafting Pattern making sewing Sewing challenges

Sewtogetherforsummer my SMYLY time.

This time last year I was bursting with joy over the brilliant challenge started by @sewsarahsmith, @rocco.sienna and @sewing_in_spain. so this year I had to enter again and it just so happened that the challenge garment was on my #2018makenine list. The Diane von Furstenberg Wrap dress is the inspiration and I wanted to draft my […]

May 25, 2018Jun 25, 2018LaineeMakes Motivation sewing

The No Sewjo Sojourn cannot go on!

You know when you’ve had one of those No sewjo sojourns where you just keep hiding from the stash, the WIPs, UFOs and your ‘To Make’ list. Well, that’s where I’m at right now. A few months back I smugly congratulated myself on tidying my stash, organising and ranking my WIPs, actually finishing some UFOs […]

Jan 23, 2018Sep 10, 2018LaineeMakes sewing

A Perfect Place to make: a new sewing space

I live in a little house in a terraced street which probably used to be a “Two up two down” once upon a time. We added a room in the loft/attic whatever you want to call it about 20 years ago to accommodate our home-based work. Both being teachers we needed a space to do all […]

Dec 1, 2017Jan 18, 2018Clothing how-to LaineeMakes Pattern drafting Pattern hacking Pattern making sewing Sewing challenges

Sleevetober? A twist in the tale.

I didn’t have time to enter #sleevefest as I was travelling, nevertheless, I am bringing it with a sleeve AND and twist front on my latest make. This dress is my favourite RTW dress and I’ve worn it nearly to death. I have been trying to figure out the twist front for years without success! […]

Nov 1, 2017Feb 12, 2019Clothing Destashing Madebyme Pattern making sewing

Self drafted T-shirt goes long – taking it to the Maxi.

In March I was getting my sewjo back with a vengeance and sewed my first self-drafted item for a while. I made a simple T-shirt based on an old RTW favourite and used some dramatic fabric to give it life. I’m going to use the same technique and extend that self-made pattern into a maxi […]

Oct 19, 2017Oct 19, 2017Challenging Clothing Fabric LaineeMakes Pattern drafting Pattern making Product testing sewing Sewing challenges

Evergreen: an adventure in colour and creating

A little while ago I blogged about drafting a dress from a photo I had seen in the Vogue Pattern book. I’ll show you here how I turned that pattern into a real-life dress. The original was a shift style dress in denim and I had intended to make a close copy in the traditional fabric […]

Aug 7, 2017Sep 14, 2017Clothing LaineeMakes sewing Sewing challenges

Something tells me I’m into something good.

There I was sitting at my computer trying to force myself to complete the hundreds of exam scripts I still had to mark, I hear the third knock at the door this morning. It’s not as if I need distracting anymore than I can do myself. I have had to put my phone away so […]

Aug 7, 2017Nov 3, 2018Clothing Destashing Fabric LaineeMakes sewing Sewing challenges Sewing saves UFOs

The Accidental Winner: why it pays to dig out those sewing UFOs.

Now meet my “Afterthought” dress, the late to the party dress, the slow-slow-slow game-winner. It’s months since I made her but only now got around to wearing and writing about it! I’m currently in a phase of craving instant gratification I see a new fabric or pattern and I want to sew it now, but […]