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I hope you enjoy reading it. And if you're interested in where my passion for sewing comes from, you might like to read my About Me page. I have a fantastic old photo of my great grandfather's factory in Europe. 
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I promised yesterday that I’d show you my recent button splurge, so here it is. As I photographed them, I loved them even more! Which is a good thing, considering how much I spent on them.  this is all of them Most of them were 5 for $2.00, which makes it sound like I hardly spent anything really.  gorgeous square buttons with a hint of fire Except, I of course wanted six of each, not five. you have to have enough spare buttons too, right? I mean, what if you lost one!  I’m a sucker for “embroidered” metal Which is how this whole thing started in the first place.  more interesting metal buttons See, one of my buttons had come off my coat. I’d put it in a really good safe place, so I’d be sure to have it when I got round to sewing it on.  three random single buttons that literally just jumped into my bag! Of course, you know how that goes. I simply couldn’t remember where that safe spot was, and after weeks of searching, I gave up.  lovely smooth granite-looking buttons I went back to the shop where I’d bought the coat, just on the off-chance they’d have spare ones floating around.  I adore these! I just love holding them, and running my thumb over their smooth flat tummies (wish I could say the same about mine!) Lo and behold, not only did they have some of the buttons I needed, they had shelves lined with jars full of buttons!  unusual toggle buttons and those darling little silver things for the ends of twisted cords I’ve been collecting buttons since, oh… well, decades now. My box is rather full with all kinds of buttons.  more gorgeous metal I do use them, they don’t just sit there all dressed up with nowhere to go, like other collections I have.  yep. had to get these too. I didn’t take close-ups of the little red buttons, or the lacy clear buttons, but they’re equally as gorgeous as the rest of them. I left the shop and drove off with a smile on my face the whole way home.  my very own Dritz Bound Buttonhole Maker! YAY!!! Since I first saw these things, and first heard all the fuss about them, I’ve wanted one of my own. But I kept missing out on auctions! They either went for ridiculous money, or I simply missed the auction altogether, reading on someone’s blog about how they’d won. Finally! This one came onto eBay, and I stalked it! I think the auction was a long one, because when I got the reminder email saying today’s the day, don’t miss out, I’d actually forgotten about it! I just hope the shipping to Australia isn’t too much. Fingers crossed. But I actually don’t care. It can’t be that much, and I only paid about $15 for it, so I don’t mind. Don’t mind at all! Hmmm. I just realized I haven’t shown you my recent buttons splurge. I bought rather a  YSG! Florentine Teardrop Purse When Mum insisted I borrow her stunning white gold and sapphire jewellery to wear with a new outfit I’d bought for a family wedding in Sydney, even though I’d already made myself a new purse for the occasion to match my old gold jewellery, there was nothing for it but to make another evening purse. The gold purse just wouldn’t work. Again, determined to find something in the cupboard and not buy anything, I finally settled on a piece from the same range I’d used for the gold purse, but in another colour. Much more of a match with the white gold jewellery. Id just been down to Nikki’s office to stock up for Sisters’ Market, and spied her Teardrop Purse pattern. It’s just the right size for an evening purse! It wasn’t on the wholesale order list, but I had to have it! And, I picked up some more copies of the pattern for the shop that’ll I’ll also take to the market. I think it’s divine! If you like it too, be sure to pick one up from our shop or from our market stall on 8th Sep. I don’t know if Nikki will bring it back or not.  Swarovski crystal beads I found these beads left over from my daughter’s wedding dress. Don’t they look lovely with the frame and fabric?  the lining I used the same fabric for the lining and pocket as I’d used on the sides of the purse. I think it’s nicer than if I’d introduced another pattern.  the side view I adore the cute puffy sides! This purse was also quite easy to make, although it did take a little longer than the party purse. Sewing the frame to the purse with the seed beads take a bit of time, but not too long. I still managed to finish up the purse in one day, with many interruptions throughout! As always, Nikki’s instructions are fabulous. I managed OK with gluing the fabric into the frame, but I think next time it’ll go even better. Luckily, the sewing keeps it all in place, so even my poor gluing skills didn’t really pose any problems.  view from the top I’m quite delighted with it. In fact, I love it! What do you think? I’m going to an engagement tonight, wearing my outfit with this purse. I’ll see if I can get a nice shot to show you tomorrow.  my outfit Our cousin’s daughter was getting married in Sydney, at Luna Park (should have seen how everyone eyed us all up and down as we walked with other wedding guests through the park in all our glitz and high heels!), and I’d just bought myself a fabulous little black dress with a lovely breezy dark navy thing to wear over it. I liked it especially because it made me look almost slim! I loved how the old gold necklace they had at the shop looked with the navy, so I bought that too. I’d worry about bracelet and earrings later. Now, since our anniversary was two days after the wedding, we decided to make a week of it in Sydney. I found a lovely bracelet and a pair of earrings to match the necklace. Perfect. But I needed a new purse for this outfit, as none of mine would look at all nice with it. Of course, I’d only bought the outfit four days before we had to fly out to Sydney for the wedding – nothing like leaving things to the last minute! Which meant that I had even less time to make a new purse! I’d always wanted to fill the “gold evening purse” gap in my wardrobe, so I searched through my fabric cupboard, determined not to buy more fabric. I found the perfect thing! I’d actually bought this fabric for a quilt I wanted to make, but hadn’t gotten to use it yet. I love the gold, of course, but I really like the blue through the fabric in the little flowers. Makes it a perfect match with my outfit.  Florentine II by Robert Kaufman Doesn’t it look brilliant with the jewellery? I picked out this little Liberty tana lawn print I had left over from my hexagon quilt (oh my god! I have to finish that!), and picked up a black zipper.  this lining will look perfect with the fabric, don’t you think? I decided to use the Nicole Mallalieu “Party Purse” pattern I’d picked up on the trading table at a quilt guild sewing day, and I was amazed at how quickly I finished it! If you like, you can purchase your own downloadable pattern from You Sew Girl!  Party Purse pattern I think I started at about 6:30am one morning, and by 9am it was done!  Old Gold Evening Purse I love the gathered overlay! It’s optional, but I think it really makes it evening-y.  the strap I wasn’t happy with the length of the strap when I made the purse; I thought it was too long. But I wore the purse to the MSO last night, and it actually is a perfect length! So that’s good.  inside This purse is a perfect size to hold my lippy and blush, mobile phone, keys, and cash, with room to spare. Great little evening purse! Now I was all set for the wedding. Just needed to pack my case, and… go! Oh crikey! I think I’ve used the word “perfect” a million times in this post! It’s just that everything – the outfit, the jewellery, the fabric, the pattern – is… well, perfect! |
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Welcome! I'm so thrilled you're here! I'm Helene, and this blog is about my sewing, dressmaking, quilting, knitting, and sometimes other craft exploits.
