Sunday, October 5, 2014

A blog hop around the world

Welcome to another stop on the blog hop around the world! No one seems to know how or why it started, but it's been lots of fun reading everyone's answers so far, so here I go.

My gorgeous friend Jen from The Stitcher and Gatherer nominated me for the next round of the blog hop. I met Jen, along with a whole lot of old and new-to-me sewcialists earlier this year. We all clicked immediately and try to spend as much time with each other as we can, usually drinking, swearing a lot, going to movies, fabric shopping and occasionally sewing. How often can you say that for a group of women of differing ages, sizes and fashion interests? Sewing - it definitely brings you together. 

Jen is a very clever sewist, and manages to make the most stunning creations out of fabrics from op shops and garage sales. I go to a garage sale and sometimes all I can see is mess and dust and rat poop, but Jen goes and sees whole new creations she can sew, and she looks absolutely fabulous in them.. I really admire that about her.  She looks fabulous in yellow - one of my favourite colours that I can't wear successfully. Also she has a cute arse - she modelled the women's Strasse jeans for Corr Blimey at the winter Hustle and Scout. I love her to bits and pieces and I was honoured she asked me to join in the blog hop.

But enough about Jen - this post is about me! MEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Why do you write?
I love writing. In a past life I trained to be an English and Geography secondary school teacher, and I used to write short stories as a teenager and OMG Really Bad Poetry that occasionally fooled eisteddfod judges into awarding me prizes. I even got a poem published in Dolly once. I know. What happened? Now I'm just a person who vomitblogs like a person after a really bad kebab and too much Midori. 

May 9

All jokes aside, I started blogging over 10 years ago to no readers. I just wanted to blog what I made. There wasn't much else to it. I never wanted to be a personal blogger, but always a craft blogger. I don't take it seriously, I don't ever want to monetise my blog, and I abhor emails asking me to write free blog content for profitable organisations. I just want to create, write about it, and hopefully share some of my passion for sewing with other people who are as nuts as I am. If I can someone to learn about quilting? Great. If my simple skirt makes someone else think the can make a skirt too? Even better.

What are you working on?

Cutting out


(I am not working on this - it's a photo from the archives!)

A lot! In my head! We are travelling overseas soon on a holiday and I need to write a list of clothes I need to make - probably a few long sleeved t-shirts, a pair of leggings and another skirt with pockets will be on the list. More than likely I will run out of time, and but I'd prefer if I didn't. It will be late autumn and cool where we are going, and after wearing the same winter clothes since April, I'm really sick of them and want to make new ones. 

In my more immediate future I need to make some blouses and skirts for work. It's warming up steadily here in Canberra (today will be 27 degrees! Howzat!!). I'm not a wearer of suits but I also don't do casual at work - no casual Fridays for me (I blame Tim Gunn and his abhorrence of casual Friday). So some nice neat skirts, a couple of comfortable blouses and a frock or two and I should be right for the rest of the year.  On my list I have planned:


image

Speaking of lists, I have this book and I've just started using it. It's amazing how putting a list in a spiral binding inspires you to think outside your usual square.

How does it differ from others of it’s genre?

I also quilt, so you'll see a lot of quilts on here. At the moment I'm having a break from quilting - with the exhibitions I entered this year it all got a little bit too much, and to be perfectly honest I'm very much over it at the moment. Also clothes are quicker to make than quilts, and I can wear clothes to work (I can't wear quilts to work) and I am really enjoying being part of the clothes sewing community online and in real life at the moment (It's so much less competitive than quilting! And no one is getting all judgy on my arse for starting a new project while not finishing an old one!)

Simplicity 9193


How does your writing process work? 

I don't write unless I have something to say. I am a no-obligation blogger. I don't keep to a schedule. If I don't make something, I don't blog it. Sometimes I make something and forget to blog it. But usually there is a story behind the thing I make and I like to tell that story. My creations are usually the result of a need - physical, emotional or spiritual - to create something for someone, or for my own heart, and in the case of clothes sewing, for my own body. I'm proud of the fact I can make things - love to make things - and I sometimes can't help myself and need to write about it to share.

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So who am I tagging? Well I was a little bit excited by who said yes! Mel is a Sydney Spoolette who is apparently a new sewer although you'd never know it. She is super confident with knits but a little scared of wovens. I'm confident with wovens but super scared of knits. We are complete opposites when it comes to sewing but get on really well and have a shared love of food. I know this because yesterday Mel and I met for the first time, shopped, shared guacamole and had some bevvies with some of the Canberra Spoolettes and she was exactly as I imagined her. Also she's really funny, super cute and just a nice person. I like nice people.

Mel and I

16 comments:

  1. Aawh, what a great post Michelle. You must show me your Dolly published poem!!!

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    1. I don't think I ever saved it! And I published it under one of the pseudo-thingies (so filled of teen angst!!)

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  2. Informative and funny as usual. Thanks for the pattern links!!!

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  3. Dude, there is a Dolly poem? Why has this not been shared? God, I hope it is full of teen angst ;) And so glad we had that chance meeting in A2F after some instagram stalking- you ladies have been the highlight of my year!

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    1. FULL of it! No evidence. I can't even remember what year it was. 1984 perhaps?

      I'm glad I'm the highlight of someone's year!

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  4. So you just made me cry...twice! Once when i read it, and then once when i made Cyril read it!! No one has ever said such lovely things about me. Thank you. I am very touched. I certainly treasure your friendship.
    I LOVE the first photo of you, its totally you and totally gorgeous.
    And OMG Dolly magazine, girl you have hit the big time, i also would love to hear it!!
    Love you lots xx

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    1. OMG! It was the talk of your cute arse that made you cry, wasn't it?

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  5. That Melanie is one awesome chick...LOL. Thanks for nominating me...and it was SO great to meet you in Canberra on the weekend. I had such a rad time with the sewing ladies. Cannot wait to come back.

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    1. Oh she is! You should meet her sometime!!

      Come back! Come back! We miss yooooooooo!

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  6. Competitive quilting world? Surely not :) I do like that Anthea dress pattern - very classic

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  7. So nice to read that you're enjoying your stitching, you ladies sure were having a blast Saturday! What is the top you were wearing in the AMH pastry line? It was gorgeous!

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    1. We do tend to be loud! Love it. I was wearing Simplicity 2938 a.k.a the Not-Sorbetto. I have about a gazillion things made out of that top pattern, including dresses.

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