Patchwork with Rae

One of my goals this year is to try new things, including classes and learning new skills. PatternReview offers some online classes and I saw that a class on making patchwork for garments was back. It was offered last year but I missed it then, so I quickly signed up this go round. 

It's given by Rae of Made by Rae patterns, and has two units. I just watched the first class and it went over choosing fabric, kinds of seam finishes, and various considerations to think about when you are using patchwork for garments, whether as accents or whole pattern pieces. And what to know if you make your own patchwork, decide to use it just as patchwork or to layer and quilt it, or reuse exisiting patchwork like thrifted quilts. 

I found it really interesting! And inspiring. I like the idea of patchwork garments but have a less 'noisy' aesthetic when it comes to using scraps, colourblocking or patchworking. So this was very helpful, to think about colour and print and balance. 

I have a patchwork clothing board on Pinterest, where I've been collecting images for a long time, but I've never really tried anything. I need to test out some of the techniques from the class, to use up some scraps and get a feel for what goes together. 

So far I have just laid out scraps to see what combos I might like, pulling from some recent leftovers. I didn't even iron them so excuse the rumpled nature 😄

The next class (next month) is about using the patchwork you create in garments, and will talk about the best kind of patterns to choose, seams, finishing etc. I'm looking forward to it for more info and more inspo. 

Weekend Review: Crafting a Cold Case

Crafting a Cold Case / Barbara Emodi
Concord, CA: C&T, c2025.
256 p.

I read the latest volume of the Gasper's Cove series by Barbara Emodi at the very end of December, during a huge winter storm. Timely, as it is set mostly during a huge winter storm! It made it feel quite recognizable. 

This is such a fun series, and the characters grow with every new story. In this 6th installment, Valerie shows her inimitable amateur sleuthing skills again, when there's a murder, a snowstorm, and a number of strangers in town outside of tourist season. 

The story begins with the usually unflappable Catherine, former librarian and Valerie's cousin-in-law, calling her in panic mode. Valerie drops everything and heads right over, to discover that the crisis is two unwanted guests at Catherine's B&B who are driving her crazy. Valerie responds immediately. 

“I went over to the pantry and found a box of Morse’s Tea, the official consolation beverage of Nova Scotia since 1870. I picked up the kettle and filled it at the deep, stainless-steel, industrial-sized sink. While I waited for the water to boil, I found a tin of shortbread and put enough for four people onto a plate. Emotional breakdowns are no time to be skimpy with baked goods.”

This book is such a great balance of mystery and humour. I love this series for this reason, and I find that each book gets better. There are two extra guests, one a prepper who follows Catherine's partner Rollie around constantly, and one a peevish old professor there to talk to a local group about antiquities. The other stranger in town is a smooth talking podcaster, unfortunately brought to Gasper's Cover by Valerie's daughter -- nobody else really likes him, but her daughter seems enamoured. 

There is intrigue from the start, but then a storm blows in, one that their local weather station seemed to miss completely. And it's a bad one. It snows them all in, even as one of the locals in the antiquities group is found dead in a snowbank. Murder, and who was it? It's a real mystery this time with some pretty plausible red herrings sprinkled around liberally. Lots of people to dislike and suspect, whether of murder, stealing a snowplow, or just being a jerk. 

I really liked this one. So many good characters, intriguing setup, funny commentary, and an unexpected conclusion. Even a big surprise for everyone (even herself) when one of Valerie's guesses proves correct. I'd read this again, just for the characters. And that snowstorm!

 

Burda Sweater in Grey Merino

 

This week I finished a very warm top made from some merino wool jersey. It's a lightweight, two-way stretch fabric, which I received from Our Social Fabric in Vancouver as part of their Sew & Show program. Once you've joined, they select a specific deadstock fabric every couple of months, and you can opt in if you want to participate in that round. You can make what you like with it -- this was my first project for them. 

I've never sewn with merino before so I had a hard time deciding which pattern I was going to use. But I knew I wanted a comfortable top that had a little more oomph than a t-shirt. I finally went with a Burda magazine pattern, 131 from the August 2013 issue. 

The fun part of this pattern is that there is an integrated scarf, sewn into the front piece. You then wrap that around your neck and tie as wished. It was a bit puzzling to lay out but once I found enough room to do so it went smoothly. This pattern has four pieces: the really large front, a back, raglan sleeve and neckband. It sewed up really quickly and easily! 

I had a hard time figuring out how to cut the scarf and the front seam that attaches it all together. Should I add seam allowance to this part? Thinking about Burda patterns, I realized they are always a little wide in the neck for me so I didn't add seam allowance to the scarf and centre seams, thinking that would narrow it just enough for me anyhow. And that worked. I added on 1/2" seam allowance everywhere else, as I usually do. 

Back is pretty plain - please excuse this strange pose 😄

The only other alterations involved shortening the sleeves - as always for me. I took off a full 2" here, and they ended up just right. This is a lightweight fabric, and I was wearing it with my poly knit skirt and poly acrylic cardigan so it did get a little bit staticky. Sorry for the wrinkles here, I hadn't shaken it out properly. 

Otherwise, this was easy to sew and comfortable to wear. It was very light on but also very warm. I found the scarf really comfy, it laid nicely and didn't pull at all once it was tied and arranged. A heavier fabric would probably hold the shape of this top a bit more, but I found it nice in this merino and enjoyed the little bit of extra puzzle to the pattern. I did worry a bit whether the wool would bother me as a base layer like this, but it was soft and easy to wear, not scratchy at all and as it turned out, I found it very comfortable and airy. A really nice experiment for me!

All styled up! 

Cover Designs! #40: The Secret Life of Violet Grant

Cover Designs is a feature in which I try to match up the outfit on a book cover with a dress pattern and sometimes even potential fabric matches as well. Today's pick is The Secret Life of Violet Grant by Beatriz Williams. 

This story moves back and forth, between Manhattan, 1964. where Vivian Schuyler has defied her rich family to join a NY magazine as a journalist, and Berlin 1914, where Violet Grant, a young physicist, faces a decision between her older German husband and a young British army captain at the outset of WWI. Vivian's search for the truth about her long forgotten aunt drives a fascinating family story across the decades. 

As for the cover, we have an independent woman shown here, wearing a pantsuit in the 30s style. What could we use to copy this shipboard style? We might start with this vintage pattern, a 30s style 'beach pyjama' outfit. The pants are just right; wide legged, with front patch pockets. But the blouse is a little off. 

For a blouse that's a little closer, you could try this vintage reprint now available through Lady Marlowe. It has the right crisp short sleeve and slightly gathered front. 

To get this chic summer look, use a beautiful drapy white fabric. Maybe some Radiance Silk, a silk-cotton blend by Robert Kaufman, as found at Riverside Fabrics 

 Or a flowing linen-bamboo blend for that classic feel, at GK Fashion Fabrics

To this, add a flat, wide brimmed hat and a silk scarf, and you'd have the look exactly. Keep dreaming of summer! 

 

Weekend Review: Craft Your Cure

Craft Your Cure / Gemma Longworth 
London: Watkins, c2025.
184 p.

This is a cute book I picked up at the library recently. It's a collection of fairly simple craft projects that are all aimed at crafting and upcycling to raise the spirits. It's a cheerful book, full of bright, light colours and photos, with projects which will be accessible to people with very little experience with the various crafts included. I thought it had a really nice balance of types of crafts, and ones that will appeal to beginners and more accomplished crafters alike. 

As claimed on the cover, there are 25 projects shared. They range from arm knitting to decoupage to origami and some fabric crafts too -- affirmation banners with iron on words, decorative embroidery/mending, making a lampshade or a bag from fabric scraps, cushions from old shirts, button jewellery and more. There are essentially three sections; after an intro (which includes a project to make a vision board, very timely this time of year) she breaks the projects up into Healing, Memories, and Mending. There are many paper crafts like collage and origami, sketching, clay work, some chunky knitting, a few decoupage ideas, some stencilling, kintsugi, and the previously mentioned fabric crafts. It's a really nice mix and I think that most people could find at least one or two things to try out here. The projects are simple, most could be done in a day, and are straightforward enough for beginners. 

I really liked the layout of this book - both the photos, which are bright and engaging, and the instructions, which are clear and thorough. I also liked the layout and the progression of the book. The writing style feels welcoming and there is a bit of story with most of the projects, too. I think it lives up to the title; the idea of craft as self-care/cure is strong throughout the book, both in difficulty levels of the crafts included and the additional notes by the author in the intros to each. It was a nice read, and made me feel calm just reading it, before I even tried any of the projects! Well done. 

 

PatternReview Stash Contest: Plans

There are many sewing challenges, sewalongs and sewing contests out there in the sewing world! One of my main community sites is PatternReview, and they always create a full roster of contests throughout the year. The first one of the year, running through January and February, is a Fabric Stash contest, a throwback to the very first contest they ever ran, 25 years ago when they were new! 

The idea is to sew things using only fabric you've owned since prior to June 30, 2025. I think I have enough to choose from ;) 

And since I've determined that I need to use my stash, I've signed up for this one! My plans are a little loose; I'm putting some fabric and patterns together and thinking of what I should make next. Of course, the items on my MakeNine list are on my mind here, too! 

Right now I am thinking that I will make 2-4 items. I have a lot going on in January so might not get to much this month! I would like to try the Vikos Dress from my MakeNine, and if I can make one of the Burda dresses I have put into the last few years of MakeNines, I'd be happy with that!  

Another part of this contest prep is just going through the stash. I have so much fabric right now. I need to sort it, choose some to sew up right away, and decide if I am going to keep some of the other pieces. So a weekend of stash sorting awaits... 

Word of the Year 2026: Practice

 

I've returned to choosing a Word of the Year. If you aren't familiar with this idea, you can find more about it here. Basically instead of resolutions, you choose a word to focus your year around, fitting it to many areas. Some years it takes me weeks of pondering to find a word that feels right. But this year, one popped into my head and was immediately the one that resonated. My word this year is: 

PRACTICE

Practice can be both a verb and a noun, and I feel the need for a verb this year! Merriam Webster defines Practice in verb form as: 

1

a

: carry out, apply

practice what you preach

b

: to do or perform often, customarily, or habitually

2

a

: to perform or work at repeatedly so as to become proficient

b

: to train by repeated exercises

And Practice as a noun is similar: 

1

a

: actual performance or application

b

: a repeated or customary action

2

a

: systematic exercise for proficiency

practice makes perfect

b

: the condition of being proficient through systematic exercise

Basically, I want to practice many things, in order to create a practice of creativity. I find I am very often reluctant to try new supplies or a new technique, whether that is in sewing up my wardrobe or creating fabric art. I worry that it won't work, that it won't be good. So I want to let go of perfectionism this year and practice everything I do, with a beginner's mind. If I remind myself that I'm just practicing, the pressure is off. And eventually this will lead to A Practice, a routine that I stick to so I can prioritize my creative output. That's 2026! 

Photo by Madhuri Mohite on Unsplash