DIY

If you’ve sewn a few garments  you’ve probably heard the term “grain” and seen grainlines on your pattern pieces. But you may not know exactly what it is and why is it so important? In this post I have a few tips on how to easily straighten the fabric grain. 

Last weekend I decided to clean up my sewing room. It’s always a great feeling, it clears my mind and I find patterns and fabric I’ve forgotten about. I found a Burdastyle magazine (issue 12/2016) and this ruffle mini skirt style #105 caught my eye. Perfect for the cool wintery weather here at the moment.

Once again I was thrilled with the response to my call out for testers for my new Gypsy Swing top pattern.  I am so lucky to have regular testers to work with and testers who are very good at their craft.

This dress was my attempt at replicating a dress from the Stop Staring retro clothing website ( A very catchy name for a clothing website).  I originally blogged about it five years ago on my original Nine Stitches blog. Wow! How fast does half a decade go?

I am delighted to announce the release of the Gypsy Swing Top PDF sewing pattern. The inspiration for creating the Gypsy Swing Top came from observing so many ruffles around this season. There are literally ruffles everywhere and they are easier to sew than you might think. I wanted to create a simple sewing project that […]

Recently I was given a beautiful but oversized 80’s wool/cashmere two toned coat by a lady I instruct at my gym. She knows I am a sewer and thought that if I didn’t fancy the coat that I could use the fabric and transform it and refashion it into something else. A great challenge,  how could […]

Fashion Revolution Week is a campaign in April run by the Fashion Revolution movement which falls on the anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh, which killed 1138 people and injured many more on 24th April 2013. During this week, brands are asked the question #whomademyclothes and are encouraged to respond with the […]

The Venus Kimono – Oversize pattern has been designed to fall generously over the body to create a relaxed bohemian look.  I have been asked a lot recently by sewers if the oversize version would also be a suitable plus size pattern. Yes! It is the perfect pattern for plus size sewers and is ideal for the size […]

After a long time in the pipeline, I am so excited to finally release the Daphne Day Dress PDF pattern. I started working on it last year but unfortunately my darling partner decided to scare us all silly with a health scare and was in hospital for a few weeks. Over this time, sewing and designing […]