I ,( like I imagine loads of people ), am obsessed with interesting fabrics, textures, colours , prints and patterns, fibre content all of these are fundamental to my purchasing and making decisions . Some prints are such that what I make is determined by that . This make is such a garment. I made it in 2020 a self drafted dress , in a cotton fabric from spotlight , that completely determined how I would lay out the pattern. I couldn’t bear to break up the print so it needed to be one piece.
2020 me in my dress that I only wore for the photo.I changed it to zip opening I still haven’t worn it but this will work in the wheelchair.Back view
I decided to open the front in 2022 , as I hadn’t worn it and thought I would get more wear out of it as a jacket. I still haven’t worn it but it has potential now.
I hope you are doing whatever creative pursuits fill you with joy.
I purchased the fabric for this make from Chic Fabrique a small fabric store on the central coast in NSW . This store is a treasure trove of beautiful fabrics I thoroughly recommend you visit if you can .
I used this pattern for my jacket it is more of a shrug really.This gorgeous quilted knit is like wearing a hug
I lined the body in a teal satin and the sleeves with a stripped knit fabric for comfort.
Back view
Wearing this is like a warm hug , I am very happy with it , feels glorious on and it will work with the wheelchair so that’s good. The quilted knit is lovely and soft and the colours are wonderful. I will use this pattern again but may modify it next time. I would like a bit more length at the front to cover my body changes.
A few weeks ago I went on a road trip with my lovely sister in law. We were both very excited to see the Alexander Macqueen exhibition at the NGV in Melbourne. We also caught up with my son who lives there as well. For me to take a long road trip 9 hrs from my home to Melbourne we needed to break it up. So we left Thursday afternoon and got home Monday afternoon.
We left on a Thursday afternoon 3 hrs to Jugiong and stayed at the St George Hotel ,in an accessible room which was good. I could wheelchair easily to dinner and the room was very comfortable. I drove at the start of our journey to Melbourne the next day and then Anne took over for the remainder of the trip.
We found easy disability parking at the NGV and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Breakfast before exhibition
We checked into our hotel it was one I would always stay at prior to my diagnosis and realised that there was no accessible room so that was disappointing we managed but it wasn’t great.
The exhibition was wonderful so worth seeing. He was an incredible artist.
After the Alexander Macqueen exhibition we then went to the NGVA meeting up with my son , and saw the Melbourne Now exhibition it was really good .
My son Conor and I
Dinner at a suburban winery called Jamsheed in Preston completed a wonderful day .
Lovely big coffee to start the day
On Sunday we went to Queen Victoria market after breakfast. We had a lovely few hours wandering. Before heading to Albury for our last overnight.
We had an accessible room in Albury and it was great and the footpaths were nice and flat and easy for me to navigate. Dinner at a pub called Bended Elbow was really good, it was a short stroll back to the hotel .
The trip home was uneventful and we felt really happy about our trip . It was wonderful to travel to Melbourne it’s a city I love to visit , and will again.
I love a shirt dress ,that piece of clothing that is a bit more versatile than a dress or a jacket as it is both. I am a fan of clothing that is multi purpose that has some scope to play .The pattern is V9299.
I have had this pattern V9299 for a while I love the sleeves.
I managed to purchase some lovely vintage silk from The Sewing Basket a charity shop in Newington NSW. I wanted to use the whole pattern so it is quite long .
As a jacket Back view
This is the view D with a straight hem. It is very nice to wear. I love silk .
A few years ago , I was given some lace by my friend . She had received it from a deceased estate that had been left with her. It wasn’t something that she would use so she gifted it to me. Not long after I received it I made some things.
I spent a bit of time deciding what I would make and settled for a cropped bomber jacket and a long jacket .
This is the bomber jacket pattern I used . It looks very cute but not on me so I gave it to a dear young friend . This is more my style
I made the long version self drafted with a split sleeve and side splits and used vintage glass buttons and thread loops to close it . As I like long tunic style tops, I have a self drafted pattern I use, (although now unless they have split sides I can’t really wear them sitting in my wheelchair). I am adding split sides to lots of previous makes these days, so that I can still wear them.
It is a light layer to wear . I don’t have a picture of me in it but I have worn it a few times.
Hope you are enjoying your week . May creativity fuel your days. I have loads of garments to share with you over time hope you like these.
How the hell does this make sense? MND is my reality my life is now ebbing and flowing to the rhythms of my disease.
This is not how I planned my life to go ,
I loved my life , my family and all the wonderful challenges that were part of my day to day .
I have loads of friends and family , but few who call or pop in .
I don’t love my life now !
Or have I managed to stay the same for another little bit. Prognosis is unknown but progression is inevitable ,no treatment or cure just managing the issues as they arise.
Every day I wake up to the knowledge that something may have changed. Is this the day ?
The days seem endless most days I am home alone . Sometimes I see my family (at the moment my husband and son ) in the morning before they leave for work, but most days I don’t. They are both active and exercise after work so that means they leave at 7am or earlier and are home for dinner around 8pm . Sometimes I have an appointment so I leave the house on the scooter for that . Otherwise I am home.
It’s funny you don’t know who your true friends or tribe is until you find yourself incapacitated somehow.
When I did my costume and millinery course I felt I had found my tribe those people who shared my passion and spoke my language . I now have little contact with them . If you can’t be there amongst it you are forgotten.
The world is very selfish in a lot of ways . Everything is set up for the able bodied and there are some concessions for disabled people but not as many as there should be.
The decision to leave the house and where to go is completely governed by what is accessible. Are there footpaths and ramps ,are the bathrooms accessible. All these are taken into account before I agree to go anywhere.
I hate that it’s not just a matter of hopping in the car and going like it used to be. I have given up my license as it’s not really safe any more for me to drive . I only enjoy the experience if I don’t have to walk and as I can’t lift my wheelchair into my car or out it means I couldn’t use the car on my own before. I use the scooter almost always. So if it’s raining I stay home.
Life is a daily challenge, never easy , rarely fun , sometimes it’s ok.
Sometimes not so much.
Trying for positive energy means not allowing myself to be bored it requires keeping busy .
Anything that takes my mind away from myself is good. Sewing helps but managing fatigue means it takes longer and it’s hard to feel good about making clothes for myself when I don’t go anywhere much and I can’t wear a lot of my favourite styles of clothing anymore . I upload them on the blog and then keep or give away . My hands are an issue these days they fatigue , so I have been advised to try not to overdo it. So that sucks. I am a tactile creative and now I am just supposed to stop using my hands as much.
I was sitting at the sewing machine and my fingers are fatigued so I needed help to thread a needle. Then I need to get food as my body winds down if I don’t eat . I can’t eat around my sewing so a break is needed. I used to sew all day and forget time , just lose myself in the process that’s not possible anymore , my body demands attention and dictates my output. It is constantly frustrating.
I plan my time energy by needed , duration possible And breaks required. It’s hard for spontaneous creative urges to be successfully produced when there are roadblocks everywhere.
I hope I can continue to create for as long as possible we shall see.
Today I am blogging about a jacket I made quite a few years ago but for some reason I didn’t blog about it . I still wear it and love it. The pattern is a Vogue Marcy Tilton Pattern V8982 I don’t know if it’s available anymore. As a short person it is better to wear cropped jackets . They are more flattering and now being in a wheelchair I find they work well .
I made the jacket but I will make another and a vest I think going forward. A great pattern.Perfect buttons The fabric was a gorgeous linen from The Fabric store. I underlined the bodice with a white cotton taken from an old sheet . It is beautifully soft .
When I bought this linen I also bought a matching blue linen and made the Tessuti Robbie pant with that. I have blogged about those. This is a delightful jacket to wear light and bright and feels incredible on .
I have over the years tried to make gifts for the small people in my life that are a bit different. Last year I made dragons. I used Simplicity pattern 8715
I used the dragon with wings pattern
I have made 10 dragons so far with 5 more to go then I will be finished forever .
I think making these has contributed to my hands losing strength and dexterity due to fatigue . I have been advised that the less I fatigue my hands the longer they will still work. I have also been advised to find interests that don’t involve using my hands to much . This is a tricky ask as a tactile creative , I am looking at electric scissors and tools to help me navigate this.
The first dragon The next 2The next 2 Another 2 more Poly fill and teddy bear stuffing tool essential for this process Lots of fiddly pieces to put together and stuff.
This is really not a quick sew but all the little people who have received these love their shoulder dragons .
As I had made a birthday jacket for my son from the silk kimono jackets my daughter requested some shirts from other ones.
Vogue 1476S9854Gorgeous silk
These three were made for her as a birthday gift as well . I also gave her a shirt I had made many years before I fixed the buttons and buttonholes and tidied it up my skill has improved in the last 30 years.
Me wearing it in LA many years ago.
I don’t know what pattern I used for this shirt . The print is very retro .
suessewbyme 