Well finally the much-anticipated-and-longed-for family holiday to Queensland arrived last school holidays.
Helloooooo Surfer's Paradise.
With it's truly gorgeous beaches.....
And rather impressive (new) multi-million dollar tram network...
We stayed at a very kid friendly resort and had an awesome time (besides the kiddie meltdowns due to too much sugar/activity/lack of regular routine....ah family life ;)
Enough about the touristy stuff!
Guess WHAT I managed to work into the hectic family holiday "schedule" in Surfer's?
Some hand sewing!
Yay me! And yes it is a kinda crazily inefficient way to sew now we have sewing machines but...with two young kids in tow luggage space is always going to be at a premium. With multiple changes of clothes in case of mishaps/accidents/lazy mummy-on-hols washing schedule and the requisite comfort toys/blankies (for the kids!) there is really very little room leftover for anything non-essential.
Looking at our combined family luggage there was NO WAY I could even try to smuggle a machine in there, even if I wanted to (hey I figured this holiday was a holiday from the usual sewing stuff too!).
So IF I was gonna sew on vacation basically anything I took with me would have to be :
a) a good candidate for handsewing, due to aforementioned luggae space restrictions and a desire for a "break" from the usual...
b) simple enough that handsewing the seams wouldn't take forever/break my spirit (I like to be if not immediately then "pretty quickly" gratified with my sewing projects, hand sewing something was no different)
and
c) easily packed away when necessary.
Pattern selected was a tank version of Megan Nielsen's Eucalypt dress (which I tested back here). The pattern is fairly simple with no darts, the fabric pieceswere a discarded UFO were already cut out (major bonus!) and I had already made it so kind of knew what to expect. The fabric was a lovely grey and print batik block print silk, picked up quite cheaply at an op shop (charity store). I had already cut this and the bias binding (for the neck and armholes) out several months ago, so everything was pretty much ready to go.
Selecting what tools to take was fairly easy: pattern instructions,needlebook (with a selection of needles), Guterman thread in relevant colour (black), pin cushion wristband, unpicker, scissors, hem gauge and my snazzy new clover thimble. I figured the hotel room would have a iron and ironing board (they did) and hoped that anything else would be wingable...
All this I put in a large (A4 size) ziplock bag and tucked into my checked luggage. Unfortunately with so many pointy/sharp things carry on luggage wasn't an option, though the amount of time spent on flight would have made a good dent in the sewing load!
As luck would have it most of my flight time was taken up ferrying children to and from the toilet, or showing them how to work the in-flight entertainment, so sewing would have been a non starter anyway.
It wasn't until almost halfway through the holiday that I was able to whip out the bit of Ye Olde Hande Sewing and find some time to make a start.
(***Note to mums it helps if your kids are totally exhausted by the local adventure parks and just want to zombie out in front of the telly!**).
My husband (being the absolute champion that he is )took the kids to a playground one day so I could get stuck into a decent bit of hand sewing. The rest of it was done at night after the kids were asleep , or in intervals while relaxing before dinner.
While not my number 1 (or even 7th) preferred method of sewing I did find hand sewing quite relaxing and oddly fulfilling.
It's good to know that should the need (or zombie apocalypse) ever arise, I can sew a seam and join two pieces of fabric using nothing more than needle and thread :)
Until I get a decent shot of the finished top...
Happy [hand] sewing!!!
Kate x
Helloooooo Surfer's Paradise.
With it's truly gorgeous beaches.....
Enough about the touristy stuff!
Guess WHAT I managed to work into the hectic family holiday "schedule" in Surfer's?
Some hand sewing!
Yay me! And yes it is a kinda crazily inefficient way to sew now we have sewing machines but...with two young kids in tow luggage space is always going to be at a premium. With multiple changes of clothes in case of mishaps/accidents/lazy mummy-on-hols washing schedule and the requisite comfort toys/blankies (for the kids!) there is really very little room leftover for anything non-essential.
Looking at our combined family luggage there was NO WAY I could even try to smuggle a machine in there, even if I wanted to (hey I figured this holiday was a holiday from the usual sewing stuff too!).
So IF I was gonna sew on vacation basically anything I took with me would have to be :
a) a good candidate for handsewing, due to aforementioned luggae space restrictions and a desire for a "break" from the usual...
b) simple enough that handsewing the seams wouldn't take forever/break my spirit (I like to be if not immediately then "pretty quickly" gratified with my sewing projects, hand sewing something was no different)
and
c) easily packed away when necessary.
Pattern selected was a tank version of Megan Nielsen's Eucalypt dress (which I tested back here). The pattern is fairly simple with no darts, the fabric pieces
Selecting what tools to take was fairly easy: pattern instructions,needlebook (with a selection of needles), Guterman thread in relevant colour (black), pin cushion wristband, unpicker, scissors, hem gauge and my snazzy new clover thimble. I figured the hotel room would have a iron and ironing board (they did) and hoped that anything else would be wingable...
As luck would have it most of my flight time was taken up ferrying children to and from the toilet, or showing them how to work the in-flight entertainment, so sewing would have been a non starter anyway.
It wasn't until almost halfway through the holiday that I was able to whip out the bit of Ye Olde Hande Sewing and find some time to make a start.
(***Note to mums it helps if your kids are totally exhausted by the local adventure parks and just want to zombie out in front of the telly!**).
My husband (being the absolute champion that he is )took the kids to a playground one day so I could get stuck into a decent bit of hand sewing. The rest of it was done at night after the kids were asleep , or in intervals while relaxing before dinner.
While not my number 1 (or even 7th) preferred method of sewing I did find hand sewing quite relaxing and oddly fulfilling.
It's good to know that should the need (or zombie apocalypse) ever arise, I can sew a seam and join two pieces of fabric using nothing more than needle and thread :)
Until I get a decent shot of the finished top...
Happy [hand] sewing!!!
Kate x
1 comment:
If you're going to handsew an entire garment, choosing the right pattern is definitely the key! I enjoy handsewing garments, but I choose loose styles with few pattern pieces, and details that will work if they aren't entirely precise. Looks like you mad a good choice with that one :-)
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