I've had a kind of pottering sort of few days. I've been playing with wet felt, and scraps of tweed; making roses and well just pottering really.
The scraps left over from my Delphine skirt were just too lovely to consign to the scrap bag, and for once I've kind of enjoyed fiddling about with little bits. I don't usually enjoy that kind of sewing if I'm honest.



I had a couple of purse frames knocking about so thought I'd combine the scraps, the roses and the frames into a couple of little purses.





The larger of the two is the least technically successful, but still pretty. I used some lovely quilting cotton to line both purses.



The scraps from the lining also got used up for some scrappy rose brooches too.



My little mindee likes to help me choose buttons to sew on these. He loves playing in the button box.



This one even has a spare button from when I made his Mummy's wedding dress a little over five years ago.

I am still enjoying my Wednesday evenings at college, not least because I get to chat with other fabric obsessed sewists, including our tutor who it seems has a massive fabric obsession. She was telling me the other week how she had bought boxes and boxes of vintage fabrics, and brought some in to show me. Oh My!! There were beautiful intricate laces that must've been from the early part of last century, rayons from the 1940's, gorgeous tweeds and most exciting of all some Utility fabrics, still with their Utility labels on. All Viyella and Dayella, and such good quality, the kind of fabric that just doesn't really show up in fabric shops these days. (Read more about Viyella and Dayella, and Utility marks here )

I fell in love with three of the fabrics particularly, (actually I had to stop looking because I LOVED everything! ) and asked if I could buy them. I bought 4 metres of black and white dogtooth check Dayella for a dress, 1.5 metres of gorgeous 1940's rayon for a blouse, and this beautiful wool tweed.



There was just a metre, but a metre of the best quality tweed I have ever come across. I knew I wanted a skirt in it. The tweed is rather bulky so I wanted a very simple skirt. Delphine by Tilly Walnes came to mind after India recently made one.
I had got Tilly's book free with a magazine subscription and given it to India. The book is great for absolute beginners with some nice patterns. India enjoyed sewing up her Delphine, and I liked the exaggerated A line. The skirt has no darts, and a wide shaped waistband.



The tweed was a joy to sew. I lined the skirt in simple polyester lining, but faced the waistband with the tweed. I had to really consider any extra bulk around the waistband, and forgoe my usual waistband finish of slip stitch, instead finishing the raw edge of the facing and stitching in the ditch from the right side to hold it in place.
I also attached the zip to the lining and the tweed, so the skirt is half lined/interlined.
Initially I turned a fairly deep hem, but hated it, way too bulky, (you can just see it in the photo on the hanger above).This morning after the morning school run,I whipped off the skirt and re did the hem by using my overlock stitch on my sewing machine to neaten the raw edge of the tweed and lining together, then turning a narrow 1cm hem and machine stitching in place, which worked much better.
Lots of rule breaking, but I LOVE this skirt!

I've had Ernest at home all week with chickenpox, He likes to help me with my photos for the blog.....