October 23, 2014

Flamingos and a blog hop: a classic combination


While I continue battling on with my coat, I thought I’d whip up an easy TNT outfit and make full use of those adorable flamingos, which I wisely over-bought when purchasing the lining for the aforementioned coat. Another McCalls 6931 if you please! 
Even though this pattern is pretty basic, the combo of pleats and elastic waistband and only taking 90 minutes to make is a winner in my book. It works best with swooshy fabrics, and these flamingos were most certainly swooshing around on the poly crepe de chine. I bought mine from EmmaOneSock, but it’s still available from Caroline Amanda’s new venture, Blackbird Fabrics.

Can you guess…..?

YES I AM A FLAMINGO LADY.

In addition, I have been mulling the possibility of making a wrap top with my dear Christine Jonson wrap dress pattern, and finally made it happen. I don’t know what I was waiting for – it took all of an hour and I totally love it. All I did was hack the pattern off just below the waist, and then add a 1 inch hem band. I didn’t bother making a hole for the ties to go through, and it seems to work fine just wrapping around my waist. I used an gorgeous merino wool sent all the way from New Zealand by the lovely pink-haired Sophie-Lee.

 

My other bit of news is that I was nominated by my dearest sewing friend Mary of Idle Fancy to participate in the seemingly never-ending blog hop that’s been going around. So if you’re interested, read on – and if not, scroll back up… look! flamingos!
Why do you write?
I’ve always enjoyed writing, although for a long time it was mostly confined to schoolwork. However a while back I started up a blog about books, after telling someone that I read about a book a week during the year and then wondering if that was really true. Turns out it was! Then, there was a hiatus until Lauren and I learned how to sew, rapidly started learning almost everything from the sewing blogosphere, and then decided to join. Rediscovering the joy of writing has been just one of the many things blogging has brought me, and for that I am grateful. 
How do you write?
My blog posts usually start with pictures, and I’m lucky enough to have a sewing lady blog photo posse. I’m most often joined by Katy & Laney but also sometimes by Ping, Carrie and MacKenzie, and the day usually goes like this: rendezvous at my house. Get coffee. Wander the streets looking for a blank wall with good light. Two or three of us take photos of the other one, paparazzi style, hiding in bushes, up trees, and, a favourite, standing directly in the middle of the road. Repeat. Get the lint roller out. Adjust hair. Get another coffee. Well deserved brunch. As you can tell it is a most pleasurable approach to blog writing. 
Then it’s back home, and I usually edit and write my posts straight away. I’m generally a “fast” person  – I read fast, write fast, talk fast and so on. So blog post writing gets done fast – I don’t think it ever takes more than an hour from photo editing to finishing. Luckily (for me at least), my writing is pretty similar to how I think and talk so it tends to come easily, and I don’t worry much about how things come across – I figure if you like it, you like it, if you don’t, you’ll stop reading!
How does your blog differ from others of its genre?
I don’t think my blog is entirely unique (apart from the fact it’s the only one exclusively featuring me!) but I do think I’m in a small but growing group of curvier bloggers who don’t talk about trying to get smaller or look thinner, but rather just get on with looking good and making what we want to wear. When I started reading blogs it took a while before I found kindred spirits, but just in the past few years I’ve noticed so many more compatriots and that’s incredibly heartening. Of course there’s also the Curvy Sewing Collective, which has also hopefully helped encourage more curvy women to get sewing and blogging!
What are you working on next?
Well that’s that #*?!@ coat… But I also have some awesome laser cut neoprene that I’ll be making a pencil skirt from; some Prada (apparently!) silk to make a busty-lady Archer, and some pattern testing which hopefully will yield an incredible silk Christmas party dress! 

So, passing on the blog hop next.. it’s hard to choose! As I’ve mostly seen fairly well-known bloggers participate so far,  I thought I’d throw it to a newbie: Rosie from SparkleNeedles.

Rosie has only just started sewing and blogging but 1) she is hilarious. Like, really, really funny 2) she is already getting so good! 3) I love her style (it is, in her words “a 5 year old at a rave”)  4) it’s fun to revisit the beginner days and 5) did I mention she’s hilarious? Anyway, you should totally check out her site, and even though I know she’s only just started blogging I would love to hear her answers to the blog hop. Over to you, Rosie!

27 thoughts on “Flamingos and a blog hop: a classic combination

  1. I LOVE this outfit on you! You need more wrap tops in your life!!

    1. Jenny says:

      I’m actually tempted to make another one in the same fabric so I can keep them in rotation!

  2. Andie L. says:

    That outfit is the bomb! 🙂
    Yay for nominating newbie blogs. I love Rosie’s style and am glad to read another beginner sewist. 🙂 Thanks for pointing her out and I love the “5 year old at a rave” style, too. 😉

    1. Jenny says:

      Glad I could introduce you ladies 😀

  3. That wrap-top is fantastic, and I LOVE that skirt (as you’d probably guess).

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Nicole! It’s totally worth picking up in the next sale

  4. tanyamaile says:

    I love everything about your outfit! Before I read that you had made that top, I was thinking: “that’s such a super cute top!” And paired with that delightful flamingos skirt and your chic red heels — AWESOME!

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Tanya! I haven’t worn those shoes in years but suddenly realized they’d be a bit more fun than my black wedges yet again 🙂

  5. Whoop! Challenge accepted! THANK YOU!

    And this outfit is SUPERB! So chic!

  6. Madalynne says:

    I just can’t get enough of these flamingos!

    1. Jenny says:

      There are more to come..

  7. Wrap tops look awesome on you! You should surely make more.

    1. Jenny says:

      Thanks Alicia! It’s definitely on the cards…

  8. Lovely outfit and always nice to find a new blog!

  9. Ahhhhh your pink shoes SO CUTE AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! You’re a right sexy lady flamingo! It’s so awesome you were able to make another garment with the flamingos- they deserve to be out in the open, too, not just hidden in a coat!

    Can I just say how jealous I am that you have a blog photo posse?! Mine are always taken by my husband, on our block, in about 3 minutes, at odd times of the day whenever we both happen to be home during daylight hours… not exactly a recipe for success. My sister did them for me once and they were the best photos ever… other gals just GET IT and totally let you know when your hair looks weird or something’s riding up all funny. I should just go ahead and move to Boston so I can be a Crafty Fox. Need a roommate? 😉

    1. Jenny says:

      I haven’t worn them in yonks but they called to me when I put this on…. And yes blog lady posses are the best kind of posses! Move to Boston ASAP and we will welcome you with open arms

  10. This outfit looks beautiful on you. In fact all of your outfits do, you are a good model (-: I love the combo and you are really selling me on that skirt pattern!

    1. Jenny says:

      It’s a winner! If you can get it for $1.99 you should go for it…

  11. I love the outfit too! Somehow you make flamingos cool and not kitschy! Definitely should make more of the Christine Jonson wrap tops!

    1. Jenny says:

      Ha ha maybe it’s because you can’t tell they’re flamingos from a long way away 😀

  12. Silk charmeuse M6931: yea or nay?

    1. Jenny says:

      Yay! The nice thing is that its slinky and full at the same time so works well for floaty fabrics. I’ve used cotton voile, silk twill and now this poly crepe de chine and they all worked well

  13. Cool! Thanks for the info, Jenny. I need a quick, satisfying make, while I figure out what to do with my coat project. This would be perfect.

  14. I WANT THAT OUTFIT!!!!! Love love love love it! Your blog is killing my checking account but I’m loving every second of it!!! And now I know what I’m doing this weekend…..

Let me know what you think!