Stuck - here's a poser for you....

I have got stuck on a sewweekly challenge. Here are the 12 covered buttons I have made for the project. This pattern just will not come together - I even sewed it together wrong and spent an hour of my last sewing lesson unpicking it. *looks sad*

Still, it is looking good and I'm hoping to put it into the UFO challenge in a couple of weeks....

Can anyone guess what pattern I am making????

Blogging from my new phone !

Look at the completely gorgeous new pattern I treated myself to from etsy. 1930s and the simple (ha!)  instructions are gibberish but I couldn't resist .....

I'm a guest blogger!

I'm very proud to be a guest blogger at http://www.houseofpinheiro.blogspot.com/, where the talented Rachel documents her sewing and other crafts. It is a great blog and I couldn't be more thrilled that she has let me post there today.

Check it out!

Baking on the edge: how I do it with a 3 year old

Firstly, here is why my January diet is Not Going Well:

It's frosty outside and we can't play in the garden. I love baking and I have an extensive collection of cookery books. I have two drawers full of different sized cake tins. I made my own wedding cake. Baking is an excellent cold weather indoor child friendly activity , but:

1. Do an easy recipe. Three year olds prefer the "chuck it all in and bash it about" school of cookery.
2. Try not to get too wound up about hygiene. Your "helper" IS going to lick the spoon and put it back in the mix.
3. The mix contains raw egg. I don't care about this much and we still lick the bowl. But if you think the sight of your child licking raw mix is going to freak you out, think it through first.
4. Try to make something you can decorate. Kids LOVE this. We usually make one of two things: fairy (cup) cakes or a Victoria sponge (the pic is of a chocolate Victoria sponge we made today). And here's the thing: I buy a tub of pre-made "frosting". I KNOW it's easy to make but it's much less hassle to just hand the child the icing already done.
5. Be aware: your child WILL suck sweets then use them to decorate the cakes.

and finally....

6. Ssssh, don't tell but sometimes I don't do the baking part at all. I buy a dozen plain fairy cakes at the supermarket. They are very very cheap (about 60p). I buy a tub of "frosting". Then I get out the sprinkles etc. Mia likes this as much as the actual baking.

I signed up to sewweekly 2012 because I am clearly mad

Ever done something you weren't sure about? Did it turn out ok? Last year I sewed along with http://www.sewweekly.com/ and managed just under bi-weekly. Mena, chief-blogess of sewweekly asked for people to sign up for this year.

So I did. Here's my first post.

I did warn Mena that I couldn't do every challenge though.... I only did 22 this year.

Still, I'm in: are you?

What is my style anyway?

I have a nearly four year old. Small children are obsessed with "What's your favourite....". Her favourite colour is pink or red. Her favourite tv programme is Peppa Pig. Her favourite clothing is dresses. Her favourite animal is a giraffe (because it licks).

This is easy for her. It's very clear cut. She asks me "what's your favourite?" and usually I make something up - I don't usually have one I love more than the rest. But I do have a favourite book:

My favourite book of last year (!), my favourite sewing book ever, The Colette Sewing Handbook. It really is making me think. I am currently pondering page 32 "Editing for your style". This is about wearing things that make you happy. The author Sarai Mitnick suggests picking 5 things you love to wear to help work out your style. Thinking about them and what makes them special.

So here are mine:

Number 1:

This is a silk flower. It has a sort of crocodile clip in the back, I think it was for your hair originally. It was in  my stepfather's mother Eileen's  house when she died. She was nearly 100 (She had one child, late in life. My stepfather is 74 now) and it was over 10 years ago that she died. It's handmade and I like to think that either she or one of her friends made it and wore it in the 1920s. I wear it clipped to a shrug. I was going to wear it on my wedding day but it didn't look right in the end. It's a bit grubby but I daren't wash it - it would be ruined.

Number 2:

I bought this little handbag from ebay. It was the seller's aunt's bag from the 30's or 40s. It's battered but I love it. When I take it out I can't fit much in it but that's not the point.

Number 3:

My blue suede shoes from Monsoon. Spotted in a store in the summer but not bought because of the cost, they preyed on my mind until weeks later I tried to buy them online and they had Sold Out. Panic. Then I drove to my nearest Monsoon 30 miles away and luckily they had a pair. Phew.
Number 4:

This is my grandmother's opal and diamond ring. I think it was her mother's and I got it in her will. One of the opals was damaged and I got it mended even though I had very little money at the time. I wear it nearly every day and I just love it.

This is my Gran with my Dad in 1990:

Number 5:

This is my Colette crepe dress from earlier this year. I really like it even though I can see the flaws in it now and where my sewing was not that great. I made it on the old machine and the tension problems are obvious in the stitches now I know what I am looking for. But I was so proud of it and I wore it it Gemma and Dan's wedding.
You will notice I am also wearing the silk rose, holding the bag, and I have my grandmother's ring on. Only the shoes are not there, although this pair, also from Monsoon, nearly made it onto the list. I am also very fond of the glasses I am wearing in this pic.

I have no idea what conclusions to draw about my style from my "top 5". It seems I like things that are old, don't mind if they are grubby or battered but am attached to sentimental things.

What are your 5 top things to wear? Have you ever thought about it? What do your favourite things say about your style?