Tea? (Part 2)

[Arch]

Well done on your genius status!

Tea to celebrate?

 

[Speicher]

Can I ask a question of the sewers seamstresses on here? I am going to make a new cover for the V-shaped pillow. I had put it on the sofa to lean against, and it is much more comfy than a pile of squashed pillows, just like it is when you are reading in bed. But the pale cream cover looks odd against a red sofa with multi-coloured normal cushions.

I have bought a metre of press studs pre-sewn onto tape. Should the popper go on the top edge or bottom edge? If they are on the top edge, they will be seen, along with the gapes in the fabric. If I put them on the bottom edge, do you think they will be uncomfortable to lean against?

I found some spare fabric, just the right colour for the lounge.

BTW I finished sorting the buttons. After careful consideration they are in three boxes, large buttons, small buttons, and shirt buttons.

 

[wafflycat]

Put it whereever you want, with the provisio that it's sometimes the shape of the pillow that decides position - in terms of ease of getting covers on and off.

 

[wafflycat]

You're sure she's not a Bowerbird?

Saw them in the latest Attenborough series, one was decorating his bower with very brightly coloured live ladybirds, and getting very frustrated when they refused to sit still in the pattern he'd arranged...

Just having my ham sandwich and a piece of cake from the bakery. Why do I feel so bug-eyed today? I got an extra half hour in bed even! (that's probably why, I lay in when I could have got up).

Perhaps she's an ex-battery bowerbird...

 

[Arch]

I have bought a metre of press studs pre-sewn onto tape. Should the popper go on the top edge or bottom edge? If they are on the top edge, they will be seen, along with the gapes in the fabric. If I put them on the bottom edge, do you think they will be uncomfortable to lean against?

I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't have thought they'd be hard to lean against, assuming they have the soft pillow underneath... I'm not quite sure what you mean by top and bottom edge though.

BTW I finished sorting the buttons. After careful consideration they are in three boxes, large buttons, small buttons, and shirt buttons.

Excellent. Shall I send Oli round to mix them up again for you? He likes tipping things out onto the floor...

 

[Speicher]

I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't have thought they'd be hard to lean against, assuming they have the soft pillow underneath... I'm not quite sure what you mean by top and bottom edge though.



Excellent. Shall I send Oli round to mix them up again for you? He likes tipping things out onto the floor...

Although it is a V shaped pillow, in practice, it is sort of n shaped. Not sure how best to explain it if you have not seen one.

I am sure that I can manage without the pleasure of re-sorting the buttons. You may thank Ollie for his kind offer. The reason that there are so many is that when elderly relatives have stopped sewing, I have been the recipient of their sewing cabinets. I have also sorted the cotton reels etc. Into dark colours, did you know how many different shades of blue that exist? and pastel colours. I am confident of never again having to buy some thread to repair a garment.

 

[Arch]

I am sure that I can manage without the pleasure of re-sorting the buttons. You may thank Ollie for his kind offer. The reason that there are so many is that when elderly relatives have stopped sewing, I have been the recipient of their sewing cabinets. I have also sorted the cotton reels etc. Into dark colours, did you know how many different shades of blue that exist? and pastel colours. I am confident of never again having to buy some thread to repair a garment.

You realise, with the buttons and the cotton reels, you've pretty much described my idea of a really good afternoon?

ooh, it's snowing again!

 

[Speicher]

I wanted to be able to do more sewing this year, but the sewing chest of (two) drawers was a complete muddle, and I cannot work properly in a muddle.

The lady in the sweet shop in the market "sells" the plastics boxes that sweets arrive in, (she sell the sweeties by the quarter). Proceeds from these boxes go to Air Ambulance funds.

 

[wafflycat]

I wanted to be able to do more sewing this year, but the sewing chest of (two) drawers was a complete muddle, and I cannot work properly in a muddle.

The lady in the sweet shop in the market "sells" the plastics boxes that sweets arrive in, (she sell the sweeties by the quarter). Proceeds from these boxes go to Air Ambulance funds.

Mr WC bought me the ideal sewing chest. It's a workbox that has lots of decent sized compartments in it, and it has a clear lid, so I can see exactly what is where, so I don't have to rummage about.

 

[Speicher]

I have one of those cantilever sewing boxes on little legs for small items like needles, scissors thread, velcro etc. The chest drawers has larger items in, like the small bits left over from dress-making. Then - er- lots of fabric in a cupboard. Quite a few curtains, that would make cushion covers or chair covers. (Or curtains from deceased relatives, I only kept the really nice ones, most of which were passed on to other relatives.) I am also accumulating lots of those sample books that you see in upholstery shops with lots of different colours in the same fabric. Beautiful colours, just need to decide what to do with them. I could transform a plain quilt cover into something quite unique. I also have some clothes that need altering. That is one of the reasons for sorting all the threads out, so that I can find exactly the one I need, and not buy new thread in a colour I already have.

Sometimes the Charity shops have clothes that are slightly too big or too long, that with a bit of altering, would make lovely clothes. It is considerably less expensive to buy fabric as a garment in a charity shop and then alter it than to start with new fabric. Unfortunately, there is not a good fabric shop with a large range near here. I can get plenty of the items needed, but not the fabric itself very easily.

 

[Speicher]

Put it whereever you want, with the provisio that it's sometimes the shape of the pillow that decides position - in terms of ease of getting covers on and off.

I think I will cut the fabric with plenty of seam allowance, and see where best to put the poppers. Probably down one side, where it will not be leant on, and not show the pillow underneath, by adding extra fabric as a Placket? is that what it is called.

 

[wafflycat]

Sometimes the Charity shops have clothes that are slightly too big or too long, that with a bit of altering, would make lovely clothes. It is considerably less expensive to buy fabric as a garment in a charity shop and then alter it than to start with new fabric. Unfortunately, there is not a good fabric shop with a large range near here. I can get plenty of the items needed, but not the fabric itself very easily.

That is, alas, very common. In my neck of the woods it's very easy to get craft-type fabrics for projects such as quilting, and there's even a decent range of upholstry fabrics to be had. But dressmaking fabrics are much more difficult to find and even more difficult to find in fabrics/colourways/patterns I like. There is a shop in King's Lynn with a sort of half-decent range of stuff and one in Norwich with a sort of half-decent range. Back in the 90s there was a much greater range of dressmaking fabric shops about.

 

[Arch]

I think I will cut the fabric with plenty of seam allowance, and see where best to put the poppers. Probably down one side, where it will not be leant on, and not show the pillow underneath, by adding extra fabric as a Placket? is that what it is called.

That's exactly what my Mum would call it, and I regard her as the fount of all knowledge, sewing wise.

Regarding fabric availability, she recently wanted some furnishing fabric to cover an ottoman she's restoring. Eventually she found just what she wanted in a sample book at the upolsterer's suppliers, and it had to be ordered - from Florence! Apparently a lot of our cloth comes from Italy these days. I was pulling her leg about how posh she was, having her brocade imported from Florence, probably by mule train over the Alps....

 

[Speicher]

One of my sample books is an Aztec style of fabric in deep red/green/blue shades. Each page is about 24" by 24", so, for instance, as long as then ends of an ottoman were smaller than that, the top could be in two colours etc. That is why I like collecting them. I get different colours in the same pattern.

The other reason for a massive tidy up is that our recycling collection service now includes plastic like yoghurt pots, and some other plastic. Which I thought they would start collecting in the autumn of 2008 and was stored in boxes from A4 paper. These can now be gradually added to the green wheelie bin.

I would like to find out how to recycle the outside bit of asthma inhalers. They are a dense plastic and would be easy to sort by colour and style.
I think the Resource Exchange would provide a collection point, if they knew that they could be recycled. Any ideas? anyone?

 

[Landslide]

Morning all!

A day off work for me, think I might go for a ramble in the Peak...