Summer cooking.

A Seasonal Cook in Turkey: Dolma: Summer Vegetables Stuffed with Meat and Herbs
I happened to come across Claudia’s recipe for stuffed summer vegetables and was inspired to make my own. Of course this is a very popular summer dish in Greece too, but as it’s rather time- consuming, I rarely make it.  The good thing about it is that it can also be eaten cold, especially if you make it with  just a rice filling, so it’s handy for taking on picnics near the beach during  summer. Here are two photos of my stuffed vegetables ( ‘Gemista’ / ‘Dolma’) They turned out quite well although next time I will make them a little more spicy.  Anyway, thank you, Claudia, for your recipe. 
                                                                               


                                                                       

Another dress using Simplicity 2174

The dress I finished a few weeks ago using Simplicity 2174 was so comfortable to wear on a hot summer’s day that I decided to make another one in a different cotton print. ( Please see previous post for a review of this pattern). I haven’t got a photo of me wearing my latest version of this dress yet, so here’s a photo of it on a hanger.
                           

Rainy Sunday.

I thought summer had arrived but after a week of hot weather, this weekend turned out to be cool and rainy, so instead of splashing about in the sea, we went for lunch at a mountain taverna. I’d forgotten how beautiful it is in the mountains at this time of the year. Here are a few photos taken at the restaurant and then on our walk at nearby Stavroupolis.

                   

 

                                                               

                           

This is the first time I’ve tried to use ‘Windows Live Writer’ and I’m having quite a few problems trying to insert pictures and to add captions and text. It looks as if I’ve got quite a bit of homework to do! At the moment I think I’d rather get on with my sewing.

My cousin's handmade jewellery.

 My cousin’s hand-made jewellery website.
My cousin, Susi, in Swansea, South Wales, makes beautiful jewellery.Here’s a link to her website in case any of your are interested in taking a look. www.lushjewels.org

How to Sew with Sheer Fabrics - CraftStylish

How to Sew with Sheer Fabrics - CraftStylish

I added this link at about midnight last night and was much too tired to comment on it to. I get very nervous at the thought of cutting silks and other sheer fabrics so I wanted to save this very useful article for future reference. I'm sure others will find it very helpful too.

Faye's Sewing Adventure: STAY COOL - STITCH UP A DRESS...

Faye's Sewing Adventure: STAY COOL - STITCH UP A DRESS...

Faye at 'Faye's Sewing Adventure' is hosting a Summer Dress Challenge, so if anybody is interested in joining, just click on the link to find out more about it. It's fun to sew your own garments but it's much better if you can share your progress with others and as you can't always find people in your own neighbourhood to share with, it's great to be able to share with other dressmakers on the Internet. ...My next summer dress is already cut out.

Simplicity 2174 Amazing Fit dress finished.

I had my first swim in the sea today, and even though the water was rather cold, I think I can safely say that summer has begun and I now have a chance to wear the dresses I've made during the last 4 months plus one or two more that I intend to sew. Yesterday I finished another cotton dress - Simplicity 2174. I really like this pattern and I think it turned out more flattering than I expected. Here is the review of this pattern that I wrote for patternreview com. I was surprised that I was the first to review this pattern as I thought it would be a popular choice.

photo added 28th May 2011

                               

Pattern Description: Ladies dress with individual pattern pieces fro A,B,C,D cup sizes and two different necklines and lengths

Pattern Sizing: Sizes 6-14 and 16-24. I cut a Size 16 with the C cup pattern pieces.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, it looked like the drawing for View C.

Were the instructions easy to follow? As with all Amazing Fit patterns, the instructions were very detailed and easy to follow. They really help you get that perfect fit. The only thing I can't understand is why with Amazing Fit dresses they tell you to sew the facings before the zipper. It's more difficult that way to finish the top of the zipper and facings neatly.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I particularly like the sweetheart neckline, the waistline and the pockets even though I wasn't sure that I wanted pockets before I started sewing it. There's nothing I dislike about this pattern.

Fabric Used: Cotton print.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: Fortunately, Simplicity Size 16 patterns fit me almost perfectly so I only had to make the waistline and hip area slightly bigger

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?I would definitely recommend this pattern to others especially to those who are learning to get the right fit. I'm going to use this pattern again for another cotton dress. ( You can't have too many cotton dresses during our hot summers) I'm also thinking about making it a third time in silk but then I would have to omit the pockets and that would probably involve making the side front pattern pieces again so that would be a new challenge for me.

Conclusion: I think the pattern envelope should include pictures of all versions of this dress and not just the drawings. It's difficult for beginners to imagine what the finished dress would be like just from the drawing.

Here's a photo of my dress on a hanger - I'll try to add a photo of me wearing it later on. I think I'll make another cotton dress with this pattern using the lilac floral print pictured in one of my previous posts. 

   

Our trip to Ayvalik(Αιβαλι) and Izmir(Σμυρνη) April 26-30.

Since I started writing this blog last November, I haven't been on an trips but 3 weeks ago we decided it was time to have a break and went on an organised bus trip down to Ayvalik and Izmir in Turkey. We've been twice before but our previous trips were in the middle of August so it was a chance to enjoy these places with much cooler temperatures. Of course, our trip also included visits to the Ephesus, Pergamos and Troy, but as we'd been before (apart from Troy) we didn't take any photos this time. Today I'll just post a few of my favourite photos of the trip.

Dervish.

View of other islands ( Moschonisia) .

The Greek Orthodox Cathedral of St. Taxiarchis - badly in need of renovation.

An old house near the Cathedral.

Izmir Clock Tower, Konak Square.

Kemeralti Bazaar, Izmir

One of the many shoe shops at the bazaar.

Lunch time and a delcious rice pudding.

Simplicity 3833 in a floral print.

About a week ago I finished a dress using Simplicity 3833 for a second time. It's a cotton, summer dress in a floral print and I'm quite pleased with it even though the sleeves are rather tight and I regret not making the sleeveless version. I hadn't realised that floral prints are in fashion this summer! Anyway, if I sew this pattern again, I will chose a plain fabric or fabrics as in Views C and D. ( There are pictures of this pattern in one of my older posts)

                                

                                                                         

Fabric and patterns ready for other summer projects.

Before I post photos of the cotton, summer dress I've just finished making using Simplicity 3833, I'd like to talk about the other sewing projects I've planned to do before the summer heat makes me feel too lazy to sew towards the end of June.

I've got two more dresses in mind. I haven't worn dresses for years but now I really like them and fortunately dresses seem to be very much in fashion again. Here are photos of the dresses I'm going to make next.

Pattern is Simplicity 2174 and the fabric is cotton.

I'm going to make View C which is the third one in the row. It's another Amazing Fit pattern and it's one of Simplicity's early summer new releases, so I haven't been able to find any reviews of it. I'll see how it turns out before deciding whether I'll use it again for another cotton dress.

Here's another cotton print for Simplicity 2174 or 2247.

When I've finished those, I think it will be time for a break from dresses, so then I plan to make to cotton blouses.

                        










                         
                

Silk crepe dress finished.

In my last post I mentioned I was going to make Simplicity pattern 2247 again in silk crepe. I finished it a few days ago and I'm quite pleased with the result although I found it very difficult to get the hem to lie flat - it must be something to do with the fabric. Sewing with silk crepe took a lot of patience and care, but it wasn't as bad as I'd expected. Anyway, here's a photo of my new dress.

Simplicty 2648 and 2247 dresses finished!

It's more than two months since I last updated my blog. It's not that I didn't have anything to say, but I have been busy with my sewing and I was a bit lazy about writing. Anyway, I'm pleased to say that I've made two dresses since January and I'm ready to start on the third one.

The first one I made was from Simplicty Amazing Fit pattern 2648 which I talked about in a previous blog post.  Here is the finished dress:

 The front belt is merely a decoration, so I will have to sew it in place to stop it sagging. I am pleased with the fabric. For just 3 euros a metre, it seems to be good quality. I have written a full review of this pattern on http://www.patternreview.com/

I had also been looking for a suitable pattern to sew the silk and silk crepe fabrics I bought during the summer. I had a few patterns in mind but then I saw Simplicity 2247 and knew it was the right dress for me.

As I was afraid of ruining my precious fabrics, I decided to have a trial run and make it in cheaper cotton fabric I had in my stash. I've just finished it and this is how it turned out:

The photo doesn't really show the shape of the dress but it is much to cold to model summer dresses at this time of the year!  I now feel more confident about sewing this dress in a better fabric like this:

                                                                



Find The Straight Grain On Scrap Fabric.

How to Sew a Princess Seam

How to Sew a Princess Seam

I just found this very useful video about sewing Princess seams and thought I'd share it with my readers.

Womens and petite lined jacket Sewing Pattern 2284 Simplicity

Womens and petite lined jacket Sewing Pattern 2284 Simplicity

I would also like to learn to make a lined jacket and chose the above pattern which has quite a few alternatives. Fortunately it has no collar so I won't have to worry about that yet, although there are plenty of other details to challenge me.

By the way, a Happy and Health 2011 to everyone!

Womens knit tops with sleeve Sewing Pattern 2283 Simplicity

Womens knit tops with sleeve Sewing Pattern 2283 Simplicity

These knit tops also caught my eye. I've never sewn with knits before so it will be a new challenge, but I want to learn something new with every sewing project.

Simplicity Creative Group - Misses' & Plus Size Amazing Fit Dresses

Simplicity Creative Group - Misses' & Plus Size Amazing Fit Dresses

It's a long time since I posted! I'll be writing about my latest news in due course. I'm making good progress with my dress - the one I wrote about in December. It looks as if it's going to be a good fit, although whether or not it will be amazing, is another story! Anyway, when it's ready I'll post pictures.

Last week http://www.sewingpatterns.com/ were selling Simplicity patterns for 1.99 dollars. ( I haven't got the dollar symbol on my keyboard - just euros and pounds) so I chose 3 I liked and I'm waiting for them to arrive.  I liked the pattern in this link as soon as I saw it and it may well be my next project. If I start early enough I may get a few dresses for summer.