August in Review

Sewing, Alterations and Mending

Clockwise L to R:  Reversible wool winter jacket (OOP Vogue 2571), cotton patchwork garment cover (no pattern used), cotton knit panties (OOP Simplicity 8229).

Most of the sewing on the reversible winter jacket was done in the previous months.  I didn't finish it before August arrived and I certainly didn't plan on sewing it during the hot summer months.  This project almost took a year to complete from the dreaming about it stage to sewing the last toggle on.  I'm just happy I'll be set for when the cooler weather arrives.  Apparently, we're supposed to have a traditional cold prairie winter with lots of snow.  Woohoo!  I'm not a fan of the summer heat or the insects that thrive in this weather.  

the winter of 2024-25 should see below-normal temperatures for about two-thirds of the nation, from east of the Rockies to Ontario. 

Winter temperatures will be coldest from the Prairies into the Great Lakes region. The coldest outbreak of the season will come during the final week of January into the beginning of February when frigid Arctic air brings a sharp plunge in temperatures especially across the Prairies.  [Source:  Canada Winter Weather Forecast 2024-2025 - Farmers' Almanac (farmersalmanac.com)]

This reversible wool winter jacket and a pair of ski-pants will keep me warm enough to survive this weather outlook.  

Replenishing undergarments have certainly been on my want-to-sew list this month.  The wish to sew a new batch of panties only yielded one pair so far.  Currently all my sewing equipment is put away but once the equipment comes out so will OOP Simplicity 8229.  

As far as alterations, I did spend some time with a seam ripper and try to alter this skirt hoping to make it fit.  But it ended up in the scrap fabric pile instead.  If the skirt couldn't be altered, the plan is to save and reuse the fabric.  

There is a big mending pile that was neglected this summer while I tended to the blessings from the garden and fruit trees.  

Top L to R:  Fruit and custard tart (birthday dessert, recipe from Good Housekeeping Illustrated Book of Desserts), homemade ricotta cheese (because the price of ready made cheese is ridiculous and it is super easy to make cheese, recipe from shelovesbiscotti.com) and apples prepped and ready to make a batch of homemade apple juice (so many recipes found online, take your pick). 
Middle L to R:   this was the summer of pie-making, apple and gooseberry pies (recipes from Good Housekeeping Illustrated Book of Desserts).  
Bottom L to R:  homemade hamburger buns (recipe found online), homemade French bread (recipe from one of the Moosewood cookbook), and gooseberries!, oh my gosh, so many gooseberries that there was even gooseberry jam production.  

With the exception of the ricotta cheese, all of these were shared with others.  The ricotta is saved to use in lasagna which will likely be shared with others.  It was fun and exhausting working in the kitchen but I will admit I miss having some time to sew.  Although, after all that hand-stitching on the winter jacket it was nice to have a bit of a break and let the sore fingers recover.  Maybe now that it's approaching the end of harvest, I might get a chance to tend to that mending pile.  

Stash-busting 

Stash busted this month:

• 4.5 metres fabric + scrap pieces patchworked together to create new fabric yardage
• 2.4 metre elastic
• 5 leather toggles
• 5 metres of knit binding / trim
• 4 thread spools

Stash-busted totals for 2024:

• 63 metres fabric + scrap pieces patchworked together to create new fabric yardage
• 5 metres of knit binding / trim
• 8.6 metres interfacing
• 6 invisible zippers
• 2 metres Knit 'N Stable tape
• 6 metres trim
• 8 sewing labels
• 25 buttons
• 5 leather toggles
• 7.4 metres elastic
• 18 thread spools
• 4.3 metres basting tape

Total additions this year:

• 5 leather toggles
• 14 thread spools
• 11 sewing patterns
• 10--20 mm buttons
• 7.8 metres trim
• 15 metres fabric
• 1 second hand cover stitch machine.  

Happy Sewing!