Its been a little while hasn’t it?

Well actually its been such a long while that my blog is too out of date for me to update to any recent version of WordPress which as it turns out is kind of necessary!

Sooo I have built a new blog which you can find here

I really hope to see you over there!

Ami xxxx

Knitting finished object:

Angel Face Turban by Amy Appel knit for the #rockabillysummerkal hosted by herself and Casey Maura of Carey’s elegant musings.

This is a one skein (well 55g) fingering weight project and great fun to knit and wear. Perfect to protect pin curls or just to add a little vintage flair to your life! The yarn I used was from the gorgeous Beth of Beehive yarns– go check out her shop she sells beautiful yarn.

You can find the pattern on Ravelry. If you would like to be friends over there I am littletailoress.

Knitting works in progress:

Old Romance cardigan by Joji Locatelli, a romantic lace sleeve cardigan reminiscing of 1920s knits but with a modern twist.

Mine is knit with my Pearl Button colourway on my Alpaca Silk base which you can find in my Etsy shop when I have shop updates. The best way to find out about the timing of these updates is over on instagram where you can find me as @littletailoress.

Vanilla socks knit on 2.25mm 9” chiagoo needles, the 9” needles take a little getting used to by I am enjoying them now My normal method of socks is the magic loop
Two at a time method on 32″ needles.

I use Judy’s magic cast on and the fish lips kiss heel. The yarn is my ‘Soup At Sophie’s’ colourway on Alpaca silk cashmere with a contrast toe in Golden Pippin and the heel and cuff in Peony. See note above regarding my etsy shop and shop updates.

Knitting Plans:

Blossom shawl by Mandarines, this beautiful pattern can be found on Ravelry and looks so 1930s and graceful to me.

I plan to knitnit in Herbsblatt Regina yarn (beautiful German hand-dyer!) in her Speckled egg colourway on merino silk singles with my new colourway Maybe Baby on merino silk singles.

So Faded Pint sized for Jack- pattern by Drea Renee Knits on ravelry- I plan to use Madelinetosh Plunge on their sock base and my Fortune Teller colourway. The pattern runs from baby and she also has a very popular adult sized version of this top down raglan jumper.

Sewing:

Finished object:
Pin Wheel quilt in a fabric collection called Breakfast At Tiffanys

No particular pattern followed just basic pin wheel blocks.

WIPs/plans

Baby bibs to send to Jessica of the JessicaRuthKnits podcast- one of my favourites to watch. She is hosting a charity drive for her local maternity home, making baby items for the women there who are in a bad situation or fighting addiction etc… if you are in US you will receive a skein of indie dyed yarn in return for your donation. Go watch her podcast regardless- she is a gem.

Eve dress from Sew Over It and the 1930s Button Dress pattern from Decades of Style. Fabrics picked out are both by Atelier Brunette.

Podcasts mentioned:
Knotty Knit Wits– a must see. Two of my favourite people on this planet and I’ve never even met them in real life! Hehe. Hilarious and wonderful.
Casey maura– a wonderfully inspiring soul who has been a inspiration to myself and many other vintage loving sewists for many years now.
Lovely Jessica Ruth Knits- see above.
Yarn Hoarder– Amber is so knowledgable it’s impossible not to learn something from each episode. Plus she has fabulous hair!

Blabber:

Books books books!!

‘Trials of the earth’ by Mary Ann Hamilton
‘Orphan Train’ by Christina Baker Kline
‘The Lake House’ by Kate Morton
‘Rebecca’ by Daphne Du Maurier
‘The Girl in The Photograph’ by late Riordan
‘How to Catch a Frog’ by Heather Ross

Ylang Ylang oil

Tuft woollens– amazing soaps and balms etc… for yarn and knitters! The scents are to die for!!

Thanks all so much for watching and I hope you all agree hat the camera is miles better!! Yay! See you next episode

Ami

Yesterday as I was heading out the door at golden hour for a stroll with my husband and the boys I realised that I was wearing two of my recent makes and thought – hey, here’s a wacky idea, why not try and take some blog photos!

This is my favourite time of day, the light right before sunset makes everything just a little bit more magical.

This is my liberty print blouse that was inspired by a little Zara smock I bought in the early Spring. I loved the shape so much- especially those frills!-and felt the need to recreate it in some of my all time favourite fabric- liberty tana lawn. It’s the summer cloth that dreams are made of, soft and light and floaty. Obviously their beautiful prints speak for themselves, this simplistic , sketchy floral one just sang 70s romantic to me and needed to become this smock.

The blouse it was based on has embroidery on the yoke so i replaced that with some pinktucks for this floral version just to add a little interest to that area. I think it adds to the vintage, Laura Ingalls Wilder feel of the piece and helps to balance out the main feature- those oh so frilly sleeves!

I used french seams for the whole garment for durablility and hope to wash and wear this into oblivion.

We are so very grateful that this little flower meadow is on our daily dog walk, wild flowers are one of my favourite things on earth.

Jack is certainly always happiest out and about in the woods, I hope he keeps his love of nature and the outdoors- maybe if he does the two of us combined will be able to finally convince my husband to go camping!

The weather has been a little crazy here just recently, slightly like whoever is in control of it has been having pretty severe mood swings. We have had days of stormy winds- the kind that give you an uneasy underlying sense of impending doom. Whole days of heavy rain that make everything a wonderfully intense green and then glorious days like yesterday with warm sun and a gentle cool breeze, just right for cotton blouses and woolen shawls, especially as the day progresses in to dusk.

This is my Boho Blush shawl designed by the goddess that is Drea Renee knits, you can find her many gorgeous designs on ravlery. It’s not only one of my favourite knitting projects but also now one of my absolute favourite possessions. I knit it up in my own Little Tailoress Yarn in my Blowing Smoke Trio which is a set of three skeins of yarn in three intensities of grey that knit up to create a gradient or ombre shawl. This is on a 100% merino base and is baby bunny soft. The pattern includes brioche stitch and feather stitch and lots of simple garter stitch sections too. I knit a lot of this shawl while watching The Lizzie Borden Chronicles on Netflix, I loved that show- it was horrendously gruesome but the beautiful scenery, houses and clothes cancelled that out entirely and it was gripping too!

This is a moderately large shawl, it used nearly three skeins of yarn, around 275g or so including those tassels. My normal habit of ‘just one more row before bed’ resulted in a few late nights once I was into the full wingspan when you have over 400 stitches on your needles and each row takes a good 20 minutes, hehe. It never got boring however as the little brioche and lace sections interspersed throughout kept up the interest.

Tassels and sunsets forever.

Thanks so much for reading and for those of you who haven’t already be sure to pop over and find my knitting, sewing and crafting video podcast on YouTube to see more of what I have been making.

Hope you are all keeping well and are enjoying the holiday season!

Episode three of my podcast is up on youtube and below are some details from the video.

Thanks for watching

You can find me on instagram and ravelry as littletailoress.

Baby Jack’s socks
Pattern: Mrs Weasley’s Familys socks by A Homespun House
Yarn: Piratenwolle and MandaPanda creative both on Etsy

My Winter Lake Socks
Yarn: Six Skeins Etsy

Techniques used for both pairs of socks
Fish Lips Kiss heel
Magic Loop
Two at a time
Judy’s Magic cast on
Jeny’s surprising stretchy bind off

Nilla The Unicorn pattern on Ravelry
Drops Alpaca Boucle Yarn in Light pink used together with drops babymerino in light purple
Drops kid silk yarn in sea green used together with drops baby merino in light turquoise
3.25mm dpns

Cascade 128 Superwash in Sapphire

Tilly and The Buttons Agnes pattern
Tilly and The Buttons Coco pattern
Stripe interlock jersey from Village Haberdashery
Solid Navy viscose elastane from Fabrics Galore in Clapham

I hope you have all had a good week. So I have graced YouTube with my ramblings for a second time! You can find all the relevant info for episode two of The Little Tailoress Podcast on this blog post below the video . Thanks for watching!

Ami

Mermaids inspired sweater

Pattern: Kim Hargreaves Grove from Enchanted

Yarn: Rowan Kid Classic in Willow

Cozy Memory Blanket

Pattern: The coziest Memory by Kemper Wray on Ravelry

Jack’s baby sweater

Pattern: Debbie Bliss Cable and Rib Sweater with Hood in Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino 2.

Yarn: Drops BabyAlpaca silk colour Ice Blue

My Socks

Vanilla Sock

Chiagoo needles 2.25mm 32inch cable

TAAT magic loop

Fish Lips Kiss heel

Judy’s magic cast on

Yarn: Six Skeins on Etsy

Sparkle sock in colourway Chill

My Shawl

Mara shawl- details in episode 1 show notes

Sewing

Drawstring project bag

Pattern: designed by me

Fabric: cotton and steel trinkets collection

vilene fleece interfacing

Gilmore Girls inspired project bag

Pattern: designed by me

Canvas : Whaleys of Bradford

Brush: Pentel  aquash brush

Fabric paint: Textil metallic

Pink sweatshirt:

Pattern: my emmeline tee pattern (altered)

Fabric- from my stash

Bibs

Pattern: designed by me

Towelling : premium bamboo terry from Cuddle Plush Fabric

Quilt

Primitive Gathering jelly roll

Acquisitions:

Mini Skeins: Mothy and the Squid Etsy

Daley Rowney acrylic calligraphy ink

Artesano alpaca silk  4ply Celadon

Christmas cotton and steel fabric from  the fabric fox on etsy

I have missed you!!

As you may well have gathered I have not been too successful at updating this blog now that I am a full time mummy to baby Jack! That is not to say that I am not still busy with lots of sewing and knitting and other crafty endeavours. I decided recently that it may be easier to make little videos to share the things I have been making and so I started The Little Tailoress Podcast. You can find the first episode over on  my you tube channel with my sewing tutorial videos.

Here on the blog I will be posting the show notes to go along with each episode, these will be links to any patterns, yarn and fabric that I mention and any other relevant information from the episode. I may also post the odd photo to show details that were lost on the video.

I do hope you will check out my podcast and if you want to be updated about new episodes that will be up probably a couple of days before their corresponding show notes appear here then be sure to subscribe to my youtube channel or follow me on Instagram.

Thank you

Ami

Episode 1 Show notes

Baby Jack’s grey Hat

Pattern: Aviator Hat (adapted)

Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed in colourway Scree

Pompom maker is the Addi Pompom kit

Baby Jack’s Pumpkin Hat

Pattern: Knit Pumpkin Hat from alittleknittyjen on Etsy

My pink and grey Sock’s

Yarn: Artistic Lilly Yarn from Etsy (LOVE HER YARN!!)

My Mara Shawl

Free pattern on Ravelry

Yarn: Stranded Dye works on Etsy single ply in colourway Spook

Danica Studio Cabin project bag was from loopknittingshop.com

Cardigan

Old Romance by Joji Locatelli available on Ravelry

Yarn: Stranded Dye Works on Etsy in colour Highway code

Cami Tops

Self- drafted pattern which I would like to add to my indie pattern label once Jack is at nursery

Fabric: Rifle Paper Company Rayon Birch Floral in Navy

Other fabrics from my stash both viscose lawn available from places online such as Minerva crafts and Sew Over it.

Project Bag and makeup bag

Patterns: designed by me

Fabric the same as the cami used with Vilene fleece interfacing.

Emmeline Tee Sweatshirt Hack

Pattern: Emmeline Tee by Me

Fabric- pink Cotton sweatshirt jersey from my stash (sorry can’t remember which online shop)

Canvas Brush Lettered Project bag:

Canvas from Whaley’s

Fabric Paint is Textil Metallic

Brushes: Pentel Aquash Brush

Bag Pattern: designed by me

Fabric in Acquisition section is all Cotton and Steel available from various online retailers.

Recent Favourites:

At The Edge of the Orchard by Tracy Chevalier

Little’s Chocolate and Caramel infused Coffee

Podcasts I mentioned

Casey Maura’s creative musings

Hey Sister Podcast

Bad Wolf girl sits and knits

Jessica Ruth Knits

Crazy sock lady

I’m writing this post sat in the hairdresser waiting for my colour to come off! Having a baby seems to have made me far more thrifty with my time, hehe! Jack still feeds every two hours so my days have become very structured.

I took these photos a couple of weeks ago and crocheted the little boots a couple of months before Jack was born. The pattern was one I found on Etsy by The Lovely Crow and fell immediately in love with.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/85121840/cowboy-boots-crochet-pattern-for-baby
Does anyone else love Etsy and Craftsy for little independent knitting and crochet patterns- I’ve spent more than a few hours perusing the selection on both those sites!

I really loved making little baby bits while I was still pregnant, it was one of the only things that made me feel like I was actually going to have a baby. I know that sounds crazy but for me pregnancy was such a bizarre experience and it never truly seemed real. Crochet and knitting were still surprisingly possible in the first couple of months he was here as he was so sleepy and so teeny he fit perfectly on my lap!

The yarn I used is a Louisa Harding aran yarn called Akiko which is a blend of merino and alpaca. I love the shade of donkey brown and the incredibly soft texture. It’s crocheted on a surprisingly small hook for the weight of the yarn which creates the stiff and solid texture of the boots and I think makes them warmer because of the close weave.

I’ve put them on Jack quite often, I think they look especially cute with his little trousers which are one of my favourite things to dress him in- partly because they look like mini grown up clothing and partly because of the lack of poppers! (Anyone else get slightly over poppers after having a newborn?!) I have made him some gingham neckercheif bibs recently which really complete the western look I will actually need to crochet him the next size up of these boots very soon because he has oddly long feet for the size of him! Luckily they are very easy and quick to do! I have seen some ladies slipper patterns that use a similar approach that I am tempted to try.

Jack loves kicking his little legs these days, perhaps he thinks these boots actually were made for walking- even if it happens lying down!;)

Do you like my corny photography attempt at desert light and long shadows?!  Has anyone else read or seen The Homesman?  It’s a great book and film, both are pretty harrowing (the film slightly less so than the novel) but very gripping!

Thanks for reading! I will be back soon with some new grown up sewing!

This one has kind of crept up a little on me, perhaps due to a certain little chap keeping me extra busy!  I have managed to squeeze in making a few homemade gifts, a couple of little makeup bags and eye-masks that I love making and a teeny teddy for my niece from a little pattern I got from the American museum in Bath. I also spent an evening with an school friend making pine cone garlands and giggling over champagne which was lovely and festive. The fact that I never got around to hanging said garlands properly and just have them hap- hazardly draped over my dressing screen is of course neither here nor there! Hehe! Next year when i pull them out of the decoration box I will have fond memories of making them and they will probably even make it onto the wall!

One of my favourite Christmassy makes of all time are these little gingerbread men from the Tilda book ‘Crafting Christmas Gifts’. I believe this is their fourth Christmas now and I’m always happy to hang them on the tree. That being said this year I have actually stuck cocktail sticks in them and dotted them around the place standing up.

They are made from scraps of silk fabric that I stained with rooibos tea (my favourite and a beautiful pinky brown shade for dyeing things) although in the book she uses linen which I just didn’t have to hand. They didn’t take long to make and as with everything I have made from the Tilda books were lovely and easy to do. And who doesn’t need some gingerbread teddies around the place to ramp up the festive spirit!

Do you have any favourite homemade decorations?

Thanks so much for following along with this little blog for another year. I hope you all have a lovely Christmas and a very happy year in 2016!

Despite the unseasonably mild weather we have been having recently one of these is a woolly beanie hat I knitted a wihle ago from the Kim Hargreaves book: Still. The hat is called Mist and is knitted with  Rowan Kid Classic and Rowan Kidsilk Haze yarn held together and knitted as one on 4.5mm knitting needles. I chose to knit it with both yarns in grey but with the kidsilk haze that has a slight shimmer to it, because it is blended in with the other yarn the shimmer is incredibly subtle but looks really pretty when  it catches the light. I love a little bit of shimmery sparkliness in the winter as it makes me think of frost and fairy lights, there’s not too much frost going on right now but definitely plenty of fairy lights in our house!

Before I knitted this hat I had already knitted one for my sister and so i knew how much I liked the finished result. The stitch it is knitted in is really interesting, and has an amazing texture that is almost like a rib but doesn’t have the springy shrinking nature of a rib. It creates a thicker fabric with the yarn than something like a straightforward stocking stitch so the hat has a lovely chunky quality to it. Both the yarns used are really warm and really soft and weightless so it’s incredibly comfortable to wear.

The hat is very simple to knit up once you work out the stitch and comes together really quite quickly. The only think I would ideally change in terms of the construction is the fact that it is knitted flat on a regular pair of needles. I prefer to knit hats and socks in the round to avoid the seam that you get from joining them when knitted flat and also just because I really enjoy knitting in the round. I think I will knit this again either for myself in a different colour or as a gift and before I do I plan to sit down and work out the conversion from flat to round.

The sloppy casual nature of the hat makes it great for popping out into the woods for a doggy walk and its also handy for bad ‘mummy’ hair days and post helmet-hair.

I love Kim Hargreaves’ designs and am a little addicted to her pattern books, her designs are classic but always have an interesting twist to them and are styled so beautifully I end up wanted to knit every one!

The other item is Colette Pattern’s Mabel Skirt in a thick black jersey. This is a handy make for popping over tights and leggings at them moment as I am still not comfortably back in my regular jeans after having Jack and so am not really reaching for those for everyday wear right now! Items like this that are forgiving as your body changes size and shape are really handy for this post-natal stage

I really like this pattern and made it up more or less straight from the envelope. the only thing I changed was to eliminate the centre back seam and just cut the back on the fold instead as I wasn’t sure about the merits of the seam there and it saved time not to include it. Its such a comfy skirt and again really nice and casual, although it could be dressed up should it need to be! I would definitely recommend the pattern to anyone and I would say it would be a good introduction to knits for those of you looking for one, especially paired with Colette’s guide for working with knits.

I used my overlocker/coverstitch machine to construct the entire skirt but it would be completely possible on a regular sewing machine using a stretch stitch or a zig-zag stitch and the twin needle technique for the hem..

I have also made Mabel in a jersey fabric that is  fully covered in sequins which I will blog at a later date with my tips for working with sequin fabric. The skirt looks so different in each of these fabrics and I think I will make more versions, I am very tempted by the longer length or may try the shorter one in an interesting print.

I am wearing both these items with my huge big plaid Joules scarf which also serves rather nicely as a snuggly blanket! Come on frosty weather, i’m waiting for you…!

Thanks for reading!

Little Jack seemed VERY excited about the trip as you can see

Unfortunately as with any outing at the moment that involves the car and/or the pram, baby Jack slept all the way through it! At least we have photographic evidence of how cute he looked wearing his pumpkin hat and wrapped up in the log cabin patchwork my mother made for him. It’s such a good and quick little hat pattern I have knitted a few for gifts in solid colours and substituted the stalk for a pompom. I also think that with a change of colour palette this would make rather a good Christmas Pudding Hat! Poor Jack!!

The pumpkin patch is part of a garden store that has a really great farm shop.

We decided to go home with the biggest pumpkin available.

Which inevitably led to this…

Happy Halloween everyone!