Winter on the Farm

So after lots of sewing chat lately I thought I would show you a few things that we see/do around the farm during the Winter months.

Let's start off with this little guy who was crossing the road when we were on our way out to the main road last  weekend.

Echidna's are very shy creatures, this little guy heard me coming, hunched his back and dug his claws into the earth so all I could see what his spines, I just crouched quietly and waited for him to stick his nose out for me, can you see it there?????

Some more cuteness for you, we have LOTS of these running around at the moment.

The Lambs are so funny, we have the feed cart on the vehicle and it runs a line of pellets out and the sheep just run stupidly from place to place getting pellets, the Lambs all run into a big group sometimes, like a playgroup and they run around, together jumping and playing, very cute indeed.

This little guy got a bit close so got captured for a quick pat.

 And last of all I thought I would show you why I could never go back to living in the city, especially now that I have kids.
Who wouldn't want this playground for their kids.  Sam takes his football everywhere and practices kicking every chance he gets and Jessie just likes to run around after him.

Can you see them all the way down there????

Running and taking a bounce......

Kicking for goal....... and he scores!!!!!!!

It was a perfect Winter day, the sun was out but it was still quite cool and because the grass is shooting green it's quite pretty to look at, a beautiful July day.

Jocole Crossover Tunic/Dress Pattern Review

This is getting to be a scary habit, I am yet again blogging about an awesome sewing pattern I have just made up.

This pattern is another one designed to be used with knit fabric and it looks so much more difficult than it actually is.

The designer is Jocole Sewing Patterns and she has a great range of patterns for Ladies and Girls.  There are some for woven and some for knit fabric also.

I have a large number of her patterns already but this is the first that I have actually cut and sewn up.

The Crossover Tunic/Dress caught my eye as it looked to be flattering and also has a number of lengths you can choose from.  It comes in a Girls or a Ladies option. There was mention of a Sew-a-long so I thought I would take part and see how I go.

There is also a number of free modification tutorials you can download from her store.... yes I said FREE.
This designer is very generous with her tutorials both on her blog and with free modifications for her patterns from the Store.  Blog

The original pattern comes with a cap style sleeve but I chose to modify the pattern to put sleeves on it as I do try to cover my arms up even in Summer due to my large number of Moles on my skin.  

The pattern also comes with great instructions, lots of pictures and many options/instructions on finishing your edges and neckline, these are also free tutorials on her blog.

Here is my finished tunic, it's quite flattering I think, I can wear it with pants, shorts or skirts and I only used 1 meter of fabric for this whole thing.

I mostly used my overlocker but for some parts I did some test sewing on scrap pieces of fabric before doing things like the neckline, hem and sleeve ends.

I am sure you an see the ripples at the front bust, that's my sewing, not the pattern, I rushed a little but it's still VERY wearable and next time (there will definately be a next time) I will be more careful when make a dress length.

It's very versatile, I also want to try mixing up the fabric on top and bottom and using binding around the neckline.

I suggest anyone that has wanted to try sewing with knits go and take a look at some of Jocoles tutorials and instructions on her blog, it has a huge amount of free information and her patterns are wonderful to follow and sew up.

The store has some great Bundle Pack Pricing options too so you can buy multiple patterns for a fraction of the price. Along with some great Mix and Match options you could be set for anything in one visit.

Again I stress I have not been paid or bribed in any way to write this review, I just throught i would share another adventure in my sewing world......

Seafarer Top Sewing Pattern Review

I am fairly new and still a a little scared of sewing with Knit fabric so when I saw this pattern being talked about a month or so ago I thought it looked easy enough to have a go.

The Seafarer Top Pattern by Sew Much Ado

I printed the pattern out, taped it together then it sat around for the next 6 weeks until I had a clean up on the weekend and found a nice piece of fabric I thought would be perfect to try out.

So I cut it out, decided on my options, yes there are a number of options you can choose from, you can have bands on the arms or not, a band around the bottom/hip area, and one around the neckline if you choose.... OR you can choose to do all of those without bands or a combination as I have done.
I nearly forgot there is a pocket option and instructions on adding a lace or ribbon detail down the front

I wanted to experiment too so I cut it out 1 size smaller than I measured to see if it would fit a little closer like a regular t-shirt.

The instructions are VERY good.  Lots of great explanations and pictures to follow, some good suggestions for working with knits for newbies like me and also for handling them a little better to stop it getting out of shape and stretching while sewing.

I think it took me less than 1 hour to put together, that includes cutting fabric and sewing it to completion and it was soooooo easy to do.  I have to admit, I do have an overlocker so that made it super easy, I just had to make sure I did a test run on some scrap and adjust the feed so it didn't stretch the fabri cout.

I didn't feel hesitant or confused at any point and it just worked.  Here are my photo's, I have put bands on the arms and the neck but done the longer bottom hem.

View of the Arm and Neck band.

Please excuse the thread hanging down on my arm, I totally missed that and it's too cold to strip off and do it again.

Just for the record I have not been paid or bribed in any way to write this review, I just throught i would share......

Also I know some of you may hate my fabric but it was an odd end and I will wear it for Netball training and working out, it's super comfy and I quite like it.