And now for something cute...

Kids! magazine, besides having heaps of clothing patterns, has instructions for making all sorts of accessories: ear muffs, slippers, hair accessories, bags and more. When I spotted this rather cute bear scarf, I thought how much cooler it would be if it were a cat. The fact that I happened to have some cat-like black fleece in the cupboard was most fortuitous.

Above is the scarf as pictured in the magazine. I changed the ears to pointed ones, embroidered a cat's face and changed the bear paws to silver claws, but I did use the original scarf pattern and the template for the head. I'm a pretty hopeless embroiderer but I like to think that my 'naive' style did the job well enough!

R really loves her new scarf. Putting a cat on things pretty much guarantees that they will be worn!

So cute... do you think I could get away with wearing one myself?

 

A sweet winter jacket for R

The weather has taken a turn for the chillier here, and as R has pretty much grown out of her old jacket, a new one had to be made quickly. This is pattern W from Sweet Clothes for Girls (you can see the same jacket on the back of the book, shown above), modified to include lining and in-seam pockets. I used a wool blend from Kim Anh fabrics and some long-hoarded cotton for the lining.

The jacket pattern is fairly straightforward, with patch pockets (I left those off), facings and a lined hood. Although I've added lining to unlined patterns before, I always find the process quite mind-bending. How do I incorporate the facings? When I sew the lining and outer together, which bits have to be left open so I can turn it right-side-out successfully? How does that magic sleeve-sewing technique - where you sew the outer sleeve hem to the lining sleeve hem - work again? (there's a summary here if you want to know, although I did mine a little differently). Somehow I muddled my way through and it all worked out. I even added a little 'secret pocket' to the inside of the jacket and remembered to include a fabric loop below the hood so the jacket can be hung on a hook if required (although I can't imagine when this might be). Five big red buttons add a bit of colour and are nice and easy to do up and undo.

You can see from R's expression that she was a bit fed up with modelling by the time I took that last photo of her with the hood on!

I'm pleased with how this one worked out, although I might opt for a pattern that includes lining instructions next time, in the interests of my mental health. And as this jacket is a perfect fit - that is to say, it doesn't have loads of growing room - I will probably be doing exactly that come next winter.