I think the changing season gives me more desire than anything else to have (another) total wardrobe clear out. I have been holding out though; we move house next week and so that is definitely a good excuse to make some more space!
I have to admit to some purchases this month; all 'legal' though. I bought 4 pairs of pants for £5 and a bra for £20, both from Marks and Spencer, and some tights for £7 (ridiculously expensive and when they ladder it will be time for bare legs!). But I have also been given quite a few things from cousins and friends. They are:
Two vest tops
Four t-shirts/long-sleeved t-shirts
A skirt
Three dresses
A pair of leggings
A long knitted cardigan.
So, despite all of my clearing out, the wardrobe is probably more full than it's been for a while!
I have also been particularly creative this month. Which I am very proud of!
I found quite a good deal on Dylon machine dye on ebay and so spent a weekend with the washing machine on almost constantly to produce two bath towels, one hair towel and two hand-towels, all a very bright 'Bahama Blue' which will certainly cheer me up more in the morning than their previous, slightly grubby, white did!
I also used 'Burlesque Red' (which is a gorgeous deep red-wine colour) on two vest tops and a duvet and pillowcases. At first this wasn't so successful. The vests were the colour I expected (though annoyingly were stitched with white polyester thread, which hasn't coloured) but the duvet cover and pillowcases were much lighter than I expected. When I checked the label I discovered they were 50% polyester - I had presumed that bedding would be 100% cotton. So there is my first lesson of dyeing - ALWAYS check the fabric label first; even if you think you know what it is!
After my initial disappointment and having slept in it for a week, I have come to love my 'blackberry stained' duvet cover and pillowcases and have decided that a deep red would have been too overpowering on such a big scale... maybe.
In other creative news, I have been experimenting with crocheting a rug out of old t-shirts. I wasn't sure whether it would work but it is going brilliantly and soon I am hoping to have a really decent sized rug to put by our bed in our new house. I was surprised by the amount of fabric it uses up without growing quite as much as I had expected, but now that I have got a little further on I can see that it is becoming really thick, which makes it feel much more substantial than I thought it would be, which is a bonus. Unfortunately progress is going to have to slow down this week, as I have reached the end of my old t-shirt supply! Either R is going to have to have a clear out of his clothes or I might have to find a jumble sale. Anyone is welcome to send unwanted t-shirts this way!!
Here is a picture of progress so far; as you can see, it is only about 5 inches long at the moment, so still has a way to go! I have used two t-shirts and a pair of leggings to get this far.
Today I am sending off our wedding invitations, which I made out of scraps of fabric, sewn (with a machine) onto the card to create a line of mini-bunting. I am really proud of the overall effect, and the responses I have had so far have been really great. It is quite a simple design and used hardly any fabric but looks very impressive (if I do say so myself!)
Perhaps later in the year when things have quietened down, I will be able to add bunting cards and crocheted rugs to my etsy site!
My next project is to felt the brown jumper from the Christmas market and see what I can make out of that. It might be getting a bit late in the year for wrist-warmers, so I'll have to see how much fabric there is one it is felted and experiment a bit.
I have loved being so crafty this month and feel really inspired to make more things. I just wish that I could devote more time to it.
Now I'm going off in search of more signs of Spring to convince myself that the cold weather really is nearly over....
