Gingerbread Then and Now

Six months ago, while Australia was crowing about how it was avoiding the global financial crisis, I was in the kitchen baking my first gingerbread house. It was a roaring success,even getting some editorial coverage (RedBalloon July 09 Newsletter and Flickr).
Now, six months on, I've gone back into the kitchen and done it all again with my brilliant co-chef Elliot... The results are somewhat different :)

Could it be that my baking is influenced by the economic outlook, or maybe a prediction on the months to follow. I certainly hope its not the latter, else there's rough times ahead. Bushfires sweeping through the neighborhoods
causing cement to melt, roofs to cave in, walls to collapse... not a pretty picture... and not so tasty.

Bag-gy trousers

It seems like only weeks ago that i was adapting jackets for chilly mornings and evenings... and already the midnight heatwaves are upon us. Shaberdash needs to get on the spring/summer tip.
First things first. Take those nasty pockets off the baggy camo combats and shape them up. In the process of doing that I figured why not put those old pockets to use - they're so big and well-constructed.
Putting them back to back with some extra off-cut linen makes a handy bag for trips to the beach. The pocket flaps can also be joined to create a versatile press stud lid to the bag. For a strap I dug out a bargain basement tie from River Island in what appears to be a black on blue baby leopard print.
I'll leave the shorts for later.

Jockey chic

My splice and dice concept seems to have worked so far. The only problem is they have the appearance of something a jockey wears. Never mind, I've yet to actually sew the pieces together. They're currently just stuck to the tape backing. The pic shows a few stitch colour samples. I like the pink and purple. Jockeys are so HOT this season, not just 'cos they're skinny.

Tshirt Face-Off

A shameful curse of the consumerist age is the overwhelming urge to refresh one's wardrobe... monthly! I'm trying to curb my unnecessary wardrobe cleansing by doing a bit of wardrobe blending. Today I'm trying out the splice technique. Cutting up two tshirts and putting them back together in a different order, creating two completely new pieces without an inch of wastage. The only additions are the thread to rejoin them and some masking tape to hold the pieces together - to avoid misalignment due to stretch - when sewing. The masking tape then tears of neatly along the stitch line. I tried some without the tape, it failed - the tshirt fabric bunched up a lot. After a successful sample, here goes the real thing.

Pocket Geometry

I've been having an interesing time trying to figure out the pockets
on these shorts. I'm using a bound button hole technique in a large
scale which creates some great lines and strong joins. The pattern of
the fabric is vertical stripes and I wanted to keep the lines going in
the same direction for the pocket facing. I struggled with this for a
few minutes before realizing this was the moment my high school maths
would pay for itself. A 45' angled pocket hole would allow for the
fabric to be laid on the horizontal and folded up to match the
vertical lines. Geometry in action!

Cut Copy Festival Pants

It's been too long since I got the needle to the fabric, so today I'm
going to whip up a pair of shorts for the Falls festival in Tassie
over New Year. I'll be working in the Chai tent so will need to look
the part. Something earthy, something tactile, something Arnj*!
I'm just going to trace the pattern from a old pair of jeans which fit
well enough.
As for the fabric...
Luckily I have some offcuts from those cushion covers I battled
through a few months back. My confidence has totally rocketed!

*fashion orange

All clear brew

Ever found yourself in the awkward situation where you have fresh
ground coffee beans but no espresso maker or plunger to make your
brew? I have on a number occasions and have tried many techniques for
separating bean from water to avoid a gritty cuppa.iT's never the
brewing that's the problem - it's always the straining. None of my
previous methods has worked very well - the old sock, the mosquito
net, the brides veil, even a regular sieve - they all either let the
grit through or slopped everywhere.
Today was different! I found an almost perfect substitute which
percolates beautifully.
Take an old teabag (opened up and de-teaed) and a large takeaway
coffee cup with lid - any economically active citizen is bound to have
one of these on hand. Place the ground coffee in the cup, add boiling
water. Lay teabag filter over the cup. Place the lid firmly onto cup,
holding the filter down. Stare into space for 3 minutes then gently
pour the coffee into a cup through the mouth hole in the lid. Add milk
and sugar to taste and enjoy your grit fee cuppa.

Shape up

Oh the joys of playing with wooden blocks! I'm sure there is something therapeutic in it. It pushes some dusty buttons in the brain and changes your perspective from dead stares through sensory overload to healthy and considerate gazing on the 3 dimensions. Throw in some crazy diagonals for an exhilarating ride.

Old decking made good

A discarded pile of old timber is always a pleasurable find. Last week I saved a few slats of decking planks from the pavement and decided to used a couple to frame a painting. The picture is only a small one and only just wider than the planks. I didn't want too chunky a frame, so I cut opposing C shapes into 2 planks to fit neatly around the picture. I sanded the edges down and left a small gap between the planks. They're held together by 2 offcuts glued at the back which also hold the picture flush with the frame. This gives an interesting effect, like the picture has been neatly set into a wooden fence... or just sunk into the deck.

I always liked the picture but it needed some natural woodiness to lighten it's sombre mood. It's now happy on Elliot's wall.

A hoodie for people with necks

Do you ever find your hoodie doesn't quite cut the mustard when it comes to keeping the front of your neck warm? When strolling along Coogee beach this afternoon, the chilly breeze had me clasping at my hood to cover my neck. What a wasted use of a hand that could have been catching a frisbee or skimming a stone across the wavelets. Maybe my neck is a sensitive one but I think we all feel a little safer with a cosy Adam's apple... thus the popularity of the macho men's scarf. In fact, its been reported that 87% of all men who wear scarfs are in fact male.

It struck me while walking with one arm rendered useless that a small adjustment to the hoodie design could turn it into an effective neck warmer without any expensive or weighty accessories. Just add button holes and lace it up.

On my return home I quickly made the change (6 strategic button holes) and have tested it on the roof terrace with great results. My neck is happy and my hands are free to wander.

In my opinion the decorative nature of this adaptation softens the thuggy reputation of the hapless hoodie and Bonds will soon be paying me the big bucks.

Gianni joins Shabersace!

Reverse Garbage (RG) in Marrickville has got the most bizarre mix of second hand goods ranging from assorted foam pieces and fabrics to CRT monitors and overhead projectors all for next to nothing prices. RG collects all these things from companies that would prefer their unwanted stuff went on to a better home than into landfill.
Lucky for me Versace needed to get rid of a few tailor's mannequins for $50 each.
So my manly mannequin, Gianni, has a new home and he's exactly my size, so we can share wardrobes :). This means I'll no longer be pinning fabric to myself and then doing contortions to see how it fits my bum in the mirror!

The world needs more greenery

I finally got a chance on Sunday to attach some colourful touches to
my jacket. Off with the brown faux leather buttons and on with the
bright green ones from Newtown button shop. In addition I've attached
a yellow bee to the pocket. Now I just need a little patch of land for
a veggie garden and I'll be set for the good life.

Waste Coat rules

I thought I'd been so clever in thinking up this brilliant wordplay. It was not to be. A pair of lovely ladies, Angela and Sue, from Surrey in the UK had beaten me to it - they even own the domain name www.wastecoats.com and are doing their thing for charity. What a great idea!

Anyway, my waistcoat is made of offcuts although fairly large ones - so I'm not sure it qualifies by Angie and Sue's rules.

Last night I managed to get my wastecoat to a wearable state, having seamed the armholes after some painstaking pinning. I used a green and black thread combo with the green thread coming out on the mustard fabric and the black thread on the gray - this looks pretty smart, so I intend on continuing this effect with some patterns across the back to make it stand out in a crowd.

Waistcoat hold up

The simple waistcoat proves to be quite a puzzle. Making it reversible
probably increased the level of trickiness. Initially I thought it
would be a simple case of sewing the seems while inside out, then
inverting and hey presto neat a waistcoat with seamless edges. Its the
armholes that pose the problem. It just isn't a simple innie outtie.
I've been staring at it for many an hour hoping a 'real world'
scenario would pop into my head for easy reference. Alas none.
I'm fully aware that Yahoo Answers probably has it all with diagrams
but that's just not my thing. I'm wanting to experience the pain
that the early bushwhacking haberdashers went through when they
stitched old wombat hides together with vines.

Pushing the buttons, offline

The Button Shop (King St, Newtown) gives the full sensory experience
that'll make you realise whats missing when shopping online - why those sterile cart processes leave you feeling so empty.
Step into the Button Shop and you immediately get the full rainbow spectrum effect as
you spin around - the buttons are arranged by colour and intensity. The old
furniture smells, the button textures along with the clinking sounds
and eureka yelps from excited customers make it a very worthwhile trip and gratifying offline shopping experience.

Yarnbomb sighting in Newtown

Outside Campos coffee.

Dappled Cities light up the Metro

Last night, Elliot and I had the pleasure of seeing Dappled Cities kick off their Zounds album tour at the Metro. They were on fine form - bringing their abundant child-like energy and enthusiasm to the stage. They draw a unique crowd too - all age group, all well-manored; the die hard audience of a seasoned act.

The finale saw them donning the fairy light jumpsuits as seen on TV in the video
for their single The Price - the first off the album. The bellowed chorus of 'Something should be holding us back' reminds me that being part of, even witnessing, such passionate creativity can be quite overwhelming and very addictive...

Where are those old fairy lights, I need to get busy!

Winter's days are numbered

Just as I'm stitching the final details into this epic adaptation of a
winter coat, summer decides to get its boot in and spoil any chance of
the coat's debut! I would have looked a right nonce parading amongst
the board shorts and wife-beaters in today's winter heatwave.

A new direction for cuffs

Cuffs are fiddly things. Especially when try to invent new shapes
while working inside. I went though hours of trial and error
before settling on a cuff design that literally points itself in the
right direction. I've never seen one of these before... and in my
opinion that's a good enough reason to do it!
What I've done here is take the cut-offs from the length of the jacket
and attached to the original cuffs after opening them up. The plan was
to make cuffs that fold back or down depending on the weather. I've
also taken the arm width in by 2 inches at the wrist, blending the tuck up to the
shoulder. This should keep the breezes out.
The lining can be sewn back into place afterwards.
Now to try replicate all this on the other arm without in going all
wonky.

The skirting issue

Should men wear skirts? I prefer mine unpicked and crafted into a nice
pair of shorts with a sturdy crotch.
For these I purchased a $4 skirt from opp shop then I copied the
pattern off my fave pair of G-Star jeans so I knew they'd hang right.
Like men who wear skirts, I too like to make a spectacle of myself so
I attached a big yellow teardrop pocket to raise some eyebrows.
Ironically, the only comment I got was 'cute shorts' from a G-Star staff
member.
Must point out that discovering the effectiveness of the Singer's
button hole foot adapter was a special moment. :D

Hand in pocket

Phase 1 complete. Pockets repositioned for comfy handwarming. Just
wore it out for lunch. Heads turned.. maybe because threads and lining
were hanging out everywhere - still, I wasn't thrown out of the cafe.

Now lets see that on the model

Got the lines going. Have sewn in the gathering around the back. Chose
to use a top stitch with the folds symetrical around the panel joins.
Will probably need to extend into darts to neaten up as it bulges a
bit funny due to the thickness of the wool

Bomber pocket

Hem line cut, now we need to move and rotate the pockets for
sideloading action.
Damn girl! Where are my Wayfarer's?

The first cut is the deepest

I figured out that what i actually want to do it turn this jacket into
a tailored bomber jacket with ridiculously big cuffs.
So I started last night by chopping of a 4 inch section of the back
that cuts down to 1 inch at the front. This gives a plunging hemline.
The excess cutoffs will be used in the cuffs.
Now to reduce the waist size by gathering and darting and give it that
bomber puffiness up top.

Yarnbombing in Taylor Square!

Just minutes ago, an act of unspeakable terrorism has taken place in Taylor Square, Sydney!

The old toilets in Taylor Square have been defaced with brightly coloured natural and ployester-mix fibres. Local business owners outraged!
A bunch of very cheerfully dressed knitting enthusiasts hit the square earlier on today in broad daylight, as shoppers past on their merry way - not even bothering to call the authorities. Such apathy is rife in our city.

Crap jokes aside. Whether or not this is yarnbombing in the true torrorist sense, I'm not sure but it looks pretty damn cool. Better than any permanent commissioned structure I've seen in a while.

Will endeavor to find out more on who and why - the message wasn't totally clear... something about condoms and 'fair isles'.

For more on Yarnbombing:

• http://www.yarnbombing.com/
• Google images
• Urban dictionary definition.. needs work