Interesting knit top styles

I really like the quality knit tops in the mid/high end RTW stores, and am able to sometimes pick up viscose knits (rayon) which I could use in the same sorts of styles. I have a serger and a coverhem machine, and yet I seem to not have access to the same range of interesting knit top patterns as the RTW designs. Sadly I am not clever enough to work out how to emulate these designs myself.

I wear a lot of the knit tops I make, and are a way of cheering up my frankly boring suits so I can see its worth while getting some more interesting top patterns. I probably do need a gallop though my existing large pattern stash to see what I can find.

Here are some examples of the sort of thing I mean.

Clothing purging (or not)

I've now unpacked all my clothes, shoes, boots, bags, scarves and other accessories into my new house. I've had to overflow into the coat cupboard in the hall to get everything in which is not ideal.

I'm aware I've got too much but at least its all in the cupboards now, and its fairly sensibly categorised as well, though the tee shirts/ knit tops will need further sorting out as I don't want the high round necked long sleeved winter ones jumbled in with the scoop necked short sleeved summer ones, or the 'bumming-about-on-a-Saturday' ones mixed in with the 'smart-enough-to-wear-with-a-suit-for-work' ones.

I am obviously going to need to do one of those closet purge activities, but I think you need to be able to get into the right mental place for that and I'm not there at the moment. I really need to cut down on my shopping so making good use of what I have is going to be a great starting place.
I also seem to have stabilised at a reasonably constant size (no idea on my weight as I've not currently got any scales) so looking sensibly at the too large and too small items makes a lot of sense.

For the moment I shall just breathe a sigh of relief that I am unpacked in the wardrobe arena, and look for my red nail polish so I can do myself a sandal wearing pedicure!

Any tips on wardrobe purging would be greatly appreciated!

Desks moved to utilise the view

I worked from home today to test out the newly connected broadband and realised despite having a view of green hills and trees n stuff out my window both the sewing table and the computer desk were helpfully constructed by dad to face blank white walls.
They have now been moved by yours truly to both be partly under the window. This has proved btw that dad was right (as they mostly are) when he said the desk was not fit for purpose and needed to be replaced, as its now held upright by being sandwhiched by the filing cabinet but hey ho.
Of course by the time I'd finished moving the furniture it was dark and now there isn't any view at all.
I'm also about to go away for the weekend, but it does mean that in the longer term scheme of things I can look out of the window and see greenery when sewing or using the computer. This is a good thing.
I've still no idea where the cable for the camera is so no photos yet - sorry about that - but they'll hopefully be good when they arrive.
Time for bed, but I am getting there :-)

I think I shall actually buy myself another white table (or two) when I decide to bin the desk, and have a gleaming row of them under the window for sewing and computer use. They are not really the right thing for office work due to the shiny surface.

I have however made the happy discovery that the small rotary cutting mat sits neatly on top of the filing cabinet (its a 2 drawer one, so only table height) which slightly extends the teeny sewing area.
Cutting out is on a board on the bed, which is quite high for a bed but a bit low for a cutting table, but we live in the real world with non-ideal sewing situations and still mange to do stuff creatively and be happy.

New home and 100 followers!

I safely moved into my new home over the weekend, with a few bits and the keys on Friday and the main removals on Saturday. The study and sewing room is still rather full of boxes, but I have made great strides and am already feeling at home.
Work related friends came to help on Saturday, and family on Friday and Sunday so I have been well looked after.

And very excitingly I now have 100 followers and so need to follow through on my promise of a blog giveaway......
I need to unpack a little more and find the cable to connect the camera to the computer, and then I will post some goodies.

I may also be able to show some things I sewed (bedding for the folding guest bed) and a faux shearling jacket back in January, plus a few lengths of fabric I bought. I don't have broadband at home for another week at least, so can only use the internet if I stay late after work!

So please bear with me, but I shall be keeping my promises.
There will also be pictures of the sewing room once it looks better and the machines have been let out of their boxes.

:-)

Moving on

I'm moving on, my divorce is final, I've legally changed back to my maiden name and on Friday I move into my own little rental. This has hampered the sewing though so sorry about that from a blogging perspective, but once I've unpacked and hosted a few housewarming events hopefully I shall back to sewing once again. Pennies will be tight though, so it'll be an exploration in using a lot of my existing resources (which are frankly quite plentiful!).

Here's my new home.

The garage is for the boxes of fabric and will probably never host the car.

I've actually had a fantastic time living with my parents this last 4 months. We've got on well and all enjoyed rebuilding the relationships and supporting each other. I am very blessed!

I see the blog roll is at 91, so here's a promise :-) if it gets to 100, I'll have a blog giveaway as a little thank you for the enouraging comments. Likely to be patterns and something homemade!

Lost the camera lead

well I took pictures.... but can't locate the camera lead.
Meanwhile I sorted quite a few old boxes of papers with mum's encouragement and assistance, and have now started making cream cushion covers for the new house.

Happy Easter

The Lord is Risen..... He is Risen indeed!

Church this morning and extended family for the rest of the day.
Hopefully posts over the next few days to share some of my crafty gifts from Christmas, a project I made with dad and a few fabric purchases.

Fabric purchased

Despite having no sewing room and not having sewn for 4 months I went to the market in Leeds yesterday lunchtime and bought fabric. Both were viscose (rayon) knits prints in true Ruthie style and were £2.50 per metre.
One is grey/white/black/lime huge print, and I hope will be a tunic to wear with white linen trousers.
The other was a stylised peacock feather print in black/white/teal/lime which will be a striking knit dress I think.

Will add pictures later if I can locate the camera......

Update

I don't have a lot of sewing news to update with. Life seems to be taken up with work, going places and doing things and generally hanging out with my mum and dad.
I'm doing a lot better in myself which has to be positive.

I've been buying Burda magazine and planning what I would sew and although I did go to the fabric stalls on Leeds market this week I didn't buy anything as none of the fabric really spoke to me, and having packed all my fabric up around Christmas I knew full well how much of it I already have.

Interestingly my mum, who these days is mostly a knitter and not much of a sewer refashioned a large tunic shirt I was passing on into a blouse which fits her nicely and is very pleased with, so maybe some of my sewingness has rubbed off on her.

I have some things I want to sew, but I hardly dare mention them as I don't seem to follow through at all at the moment.

I've put a few more things in the charity bag.  Yesterday I went to the Meadowhall centre (a shopping centre) and met up with my friend E (slightly nearer to me than half way). Mostly we just chatted first over lunch then later over coffee which was really good, but we also did a bit of shopping, for ourselves and for her little girl who is having a birthday soon.

I brought home two wide elastic belts in black, one with a black buckle and the other with a leaf clasp. Both great for comfortably showing you have a waist, whilst still allowing the ability to breath which can't be overrated.
I also was quite pleased to buy myself a navy striped trouser suit in the Next sale for less than half the original price. Very smart for work, though needs the trousers shortening slightly as there were only Long length left and I'm pretty standard in leg length.

Off this afternoon to get a few final bits from the old house. Hopefully there will be some actual sewing, crafting etc stuff to share in a bit.

Wardrobe Advice

A quote taken from http://www.insideoutstyleblog.com/ in an interview with Pauline from http://englishorganizer.com/

The one piece of advice most women need but don’t get?
We all have far too many clothes, most of which we don't love, or don't flatter us.  Weed out your wardrobe to include only items you love, and you'll be surprised how much easier it is to get dressed and how much better you feel.

I did get rid of a few things the other day for the latest charity bag, but still have a long way to go.

I have been wearing my new boots, and as a Clear Spring since very dark brown is one of my key colours,  have loads of things in the wardrobe to wear with them. Yesterday was the brown and orange 70s floral print knit dress, today is one with broken vertical stripes in black bown and gold. All worn with tights and a lined jacket, and this being me a big chunky necklace.

I unpacked all my necklaces yesterday, and pinned them up on two large cork boards so I can see them all.
2 were sent off to the charity shop, and another 5 were more mum than me and went in her direction, but all the rest are there waiting for me to choose one each morning. I do love my necklaces and they are one of the Ruth things in an outfit. I am enjoying also wearing some of my own sewn pieces. Knit dresses are so very comfortable, and the less crazy prints are OK with a jacket for work.

Planning to Sew

Life has calmed down a little now I am living full time at my parents, and having sorted a box today I am hoping to do some sewing this evening. (I have a target of a box a day to work through unsorted boxes I brought with me).
I'd quite like to make the Hot Patterns drape neck top in ivory viscose (rayon) knit, but its dependant on finding all the bits - pattern, fabric etc.
I also have a week to make 3 cushion covers with the initials M, R and T on for my nieces and nephew for their various birthdays.
Oh and work full time obviously. That might involve going into the office though as I have mislaid my non standard Blackberry charger! If I could find the charger I could WFH tomorrow which would be nice..... so its depends, perhaps that should be my first activity this evening.

I don't know about the rest of the sewing community but if I go too long between sewing sessions I start to get a bit twitchy.
I am not going to be able to do SWAP this year, and frankly I probably have enough clothes already anyway, but I might they and do a small capsule either as part of the PR contest or the Spring Sew Along on SG.

I also hope to intersperse the posts with a few pictures of the sewing related goodies I was given as gifts for Christmas/Birthday, though that is dependant on me finding everything!

Classic brown boots

You may recall that after Christmas I ordered some classic brown boots. There was sadly quite a bit of confusion and they arrived this week, unfortunately sent to the wrong address, so I had to head back to the old house to get them.
I tried them on this evening and they are a snug fit at the moment, but I think will be a fabulous addition to the wardrobe for many years to come.

I have several brown based dresses which will be great with these boots.

Simple quilts?

I have quite a lot of fabric scraps, cotton fabrics which could be made into something like a quilt.
I'm not a quilter though, so don't want to do anything really complex.
Suggestions?

I like the idea of a simple quilt, or a duvet cover for a single bed sized duvet.
Shopping bags and drawstring bags also appeal.
Any good links?

Valentine's Day

Dear lovely readers of the blog, I'd like to wish you a happy Valentine's day and thank you for the times when you stop by and write nice comments. Its always appreciated.

I'm separated and going through divorce right now so the romantic side of things doesn't do much for me at the moment as I am sure you can imagine. However I'm taking a few minutes out to think about my great family and wonderful friends and be happy that people care for me. And to all those others who are not part of a happy couple (whether by choice or not) please don't be downhearted, you have family and friends who love and care for you, and you can still be whole even if you are not part of a couple.

I don't write about my religious beliefs much here, as its a sewing blog, but I am a Christian and my relationship with God is very important to me.
Knowing that I am a precious and loved child of Father God has been essential for my well being over the last few months.

Update

I have sewn nothing at all so far in 2011 which is a shame, but life and work have overtaken sewing at the moment.
Moving all my clothes and packing to store or move all my sewing stuff has shown that I don't really need another 11 pieces in my wardrobe at this point in time, so SWAP is out for this year as far as I can see due to both time constraints and actually needing those items.
Instead I am going to sew individual pieces to enhance what I've already got in the wardrobe, so will do a small collection but not a whole SWAP.
I'm back for a week to the old house to clear out the garage, freezer etc. and then I'll be able to properly settle in at my parents and start to review my wardrobe needs.
I'm back to wearing either a matching trouser suit (all purchased) or a top/ trousers which match with a contrasting brighter jacket as my work outfits. I do feel comfortable in these, so need to make sure I have total outfits which work together to make getting dressed easy.


The stay with my parents is only for a few months, and after that I'll be renting a little house for myself a bit nearer to the office. There I'll be able to have a sewing room and get all my stuff back together, so I can shop from my own fabric and haberdashery departments in house!


I think I've been so hung up on churning out Collections the last year or two that I've not looked hard enough at what I actaully wear and whether the sewing meets my needs.
Of course there is the other side to sewing which is the creative part, the colours, prints, textures and details - the stuff which makes sewing fun.


So at a point where I am re-evaluating lots of things in my life and experiencing many changes, I am sure my approach to sewing will change as well.