Secret Life of a Seamstress

Secret Life of a Seamstress

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  • Pattern Reviews

    Sewing my first coat | A review of the I Am Merlin Coat by I Am Patterns

    March 17, 2021 /

    When I Am Patterns brought out the Merlin Coat in autumn 2020 I jumped at the chance to buy it. I had been looking for a pattern to try as my first foray into coat making for a while and I loved the oversized look of this coat and the slight cocoon shape in the body. The Pattern I ordered myself the paper pattern directly from I Am Patterns and it arrived around a week later.  This is the first paper pattern I’ve bought from this company and I liked the minimalistic style of the pattern cover with its gold backing and see-through front. Something to note about the paper…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments

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    DIBY Club Emmeline Dress

    DIBY Club Emmeline Gathered Dress Pattern Review

    March 5, 2020
  • You Tube

    Vlog | Playing the ‘ask me anything game’, answering questions about sewing and life…

    February 15, 2021 /

    Hi everyone – welcome back to another video, this week I’m answering all of my ‘ask me anything’ questions. Thank you so much if you did send me a question it was really fun to record this video. Thanks for watching! Sally xx

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  • Pattern Reviews

    Sewing My First Two Myosotis Dresses – A Pattern Review…

    February 3, 2021 /

    It took me so long to get around to sewing up the Myosotis Dress, I think it sat in my pattern stash for almost a year before I finally gave it a go and I really don’t know why it took me so long. I think initially I simply couldn’t decide which version to make.  I loved the frilly sleeve but wasn’t sure how it would sit under a cardigan (a very important question!) and while I loved the bottom frill, I just wasn’t quite sure about that either. So, after a lot of overthinking (who me – never!) and a lot of putting off I decided it was high…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments

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    DIBY Club Emmeline Dress

    DIBY Club Emmeline Gathered Dress Pattern Review

    March 5, 2020
  • Pattern Reviews

    My First Wildergown – a pattern and fabric review…

    January 23, 2021 /

    I absolutely loved the look of this Art Gallery Rayon fabric from Minerva particularly because of the beautiful rust/burnt orange colour of the print.  I loved it so much that it took me ages to decide what to make with it because I had so many ideas. I’ve been thinking about making the Friday Pattern Company Wilder Gown for a long while now too and after a lot of deliberation I decided that the Wilder Gown and this beautiful, floaty rayon would make a perfect match. I am 5’ 3” in height and although I absolutely love the look of the full length dress, I decided that, for my first…

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    Sally Gauntlett 2 Comments

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    DIBY Club Emmeline Dress

    DIBY Club Emmeline Gathered Dress Pattern Review

    March 5, 2020
  • Pattern Reviews

    The Florence Blouse by Size Me Sewing – A Pattern Review (in collaboration with Makerist.Com)

    January 6, 2021 /

    Before Christmas Makerist kindly asked me if I would like to try one of the patterns from the designers they were featuring in a post Christmas $2 sale.  Makerist have an amazing selection of craft patterns including sewing, knitting, crochet and embroidery, you can visit their website and view their vast collection here. Flicking through all of the lovely sewing patterns on their website the Florence Blouse caught my eye.  I loved the relaxed style of the blouse and the shirring detail at the cuff.  I thought this would be a make for my wardrobe that could be dressed up or down so I knew I would get a lot…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments

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    DIBY Club Emmeline Dress

    DIBY Club Emmeline Gathered Dress Pattern Review

    March 5, 2020
  • You Tube

    VLOG – Sew a Tilly & the Buttons Billie Sweatshirt with me…

    December 8, 2020 /

    Hello everyone – I hope you’ll enjoy this ‘sewalong’ video in collaboration with Becky from Notes from the Sewing Room where we’ll both be sewing up a different version of the Billie Sweatshirt by Tilly and the Buttons. Happy watching! Sally xx

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  • You Tube

    VLOG – How to – Sew a little girls jersey dress

    October 10, 2020 /

    Today I’m sewing a jersey dress for my daughter using a T shirt pattern I already have and adding a gathered skirt. I talk about how I plan to resize the pattern pieces to adapt them to make a dress, fitting the jersey neckband and how to measure the skirt depending on how much gather you like. Thank you so much for watching. If you have any questions about the making process do let me know in the comments below. If you haven’t already subscribed to my channel I’d love you to consider subscribing for more sewing and making content. My normal upload day is a Saturday morning. Lots of…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments
  • Uncategorized

    Five mistakes I made as a beginner Sewist – who is very much still learning…

    June 5, 2020 /

    If you’re thinking of trying out sewing or dressmaking but are worried about making mistakes, don’t let it put you off! We’ve all been there and I for one am very much still learning… Here are five (there are many more) mistakes I made in the beginning which have helped me to learn and hopefully might be helpful to you too if you’re thinking about starting out on your own dressmaking journey. Trying patterns that were beyond my skillset as a beginner It’s all too easy to be tempted to sew that beautiful dress that you’ve seen and fallen in love with but so many times in the beginning of…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments

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    Beginner Sewing Project Hair Scrunchie Tutorial – easy ‘make in an hour’ project

    April 14, 2020

    Five of My Favourite Sewing Tools

    April 24, 2020
  • The Fabric Guys

    Sew Over It Ava Skirt Pattern and Fabric Review with The Fabric Guys

    January 31, 2020 /

    THE PATTERN I have wanted to make a Sew Over It Ava Skirt for ages and when I saw this super pretty needlecord on the Fabric Guys website I knew it would be perfect for this pattern.  I have a similar ready to wear skirt in corduroy and it’s just perfect for the autumn and winter months. I chose to make the mini version of this skirt without the pockets.  Leaving out pockets was not a decision I took lightly because we all love a pocket don’t we but I didn’t want the inseam pockets to interfere with the silhouette of the skirt in this fabric. I made a size…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments
  • Christmas Stocking Tutorial
    Tutorials

    How to Sew a Lined Christmas Stocking with a Cute Pom Pom Trim

    December 10, 2019 /

    You will need: Wide paper of any sort to draw out your pattern – you can use wrapping paper, newspaper, greaseproof paper or anything else you have lying around. Main fabric for the outside of your stocking, I’ve used this beautiful gold glitter star print cotton from Minerva which is available to purchase here. Fabric for your lining, you can use anything you have available, I’ve used an inexpensive plain white polycotton but you could make it fancy! Scraps of fabric for the cuff of your stocking. The amount of fabric you require for these parts will depend on how large you would like to make your stocking. Pom pom…

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    Sally Gauntlett 0 Comments

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    Beginner Sewing Project Hair Scrunchie Tutorial – easy ‘make in an hour’ project

    April 14, 2020





secret_life_of_a_seamstress

✂️ Sewing, knitting and Craft Blog & YouTube Channel
💝 Handmade Gift Shop @poppy_and_primrose
🌸 Mum to 👦🏼 👧🏻 🐶
Links to everything below👇🏻

Sally
✨GIVEAWAY✨ I’m so excited to have teamed up ✨GIVEAWAY✨
I’m so excited to have teamed up with @bygraziela_fabrics for a fantastic giveaway!! 

The winner will receive 1.5 metres of fabric of your choice from the @bygraziela_fabrics website and there are so many beautiful designs to choose from.

To enter you simply need to:
1. Like this post
2. Follow me @secret_life_of_a_seamstress and @bygraziela_fabrics 
3. Comment tagging a friend below. You can enter as many times as you like - one comment equals one entry.

Open to residents of the UK only! 

Giveaway closes at 10pm on Saturday 24th April. The winner will be chosen at random and notified soon after.

I’m wearing a @tillybuttons Billie Sweatshirt with 3/4 length sleeves in this cute navy and grey heart print sweatshirt fabric which is so cosy!! 

Good luck 💗

This giveaway is in no way endorsed by Instagram. 

Fabric #gifted by @bygraziela_fabrics.
Sneak peek (or not so sneak peek because you can s Sneak peek (or not so sneak peek because you can see quite a bit of it here 😂) of my latest make in some beautifully soft sweat-shirting fabric from @bygraziela_fabrics. If you’re still loving the cosy as much as I am at the moment then stay tuned I might have something super exciting relating to this fabric to share tomorrow 👀🤗😍
Fabric: @bygraziela_fabrics #gifted
Pattern: @tillybuttons Billie
My latest Minerva Ambassador make is now up on my My latest Minerva Ambassador make is now up on my profile (link in bio). I made this little loungewear set for my daughter using this super cute doggy print fleece backed jersey. I have it on good authority that it’s very cosy to wear 😊
Anyone else from the 80’s remember when we used to call loungewear sets jogging suits btw??? 🙋🏼‍♀️🙈🤣 
The patterns I used for this set were the Jasmin Sweatshirt by @ikateecouture and the joggers were from @madebymepatterns.
Pulling my best ‘I don’t feel awkward at all’ face 😆 
___________________________________
Here’s a full view of my Carolyn pyjamas and I love them so much! I’m all for a speedy sew but sometimes it’s nice to have something that makes you slow down, take your time and that teaches you something new along the way (piping, well bias binding in this case). It’s also nice to have some very fancy pjs in my nightwear wardrobe to replace all the scraggy looking jersey I have!
___________________________________
PS. Does anyone actually have a real nightwear wardrobe because I would be all for that if we could fit one in the bedroom 🤣 
Pattern: Carolyn Pyjamas by @closetcorepatterns 
Fabric: Floral viscose @abakhanfabrics
•Spring outfit plans• Absolutely nothing handm •Spring outfit plans• Absolutely nothing handmade to see here! I got these dungarees for Mother’s Day but I haven’t worn them yet because I’m slightly unsure and wondering how old is too old to be able to pull them off 😂 💗
My new Carolyn pyjamas... 💗 Anyone else go to My new Carolyn pyjamas... 💗

Anyone else go to bed planning their next sewing projects and then lie awake thinking about them all night 🙋🏼‍♀️ So. Many. Ideas....
Also anyone else get nervous posting again after a little break 🙋🏼‍♀️ (it’s been 5 days)!! 😂 
Pattern: Carolyn Pyjamas by @closetcorepatterns from @minervadotcom 
Floral viscose fabric from @abakhanfabrics
I’ll let you into a little secret, I wasn’t su I’ll let you into a little secret, I wasn’t sure about the colour combination of these cuffs while I was making this Linden but now it’s done I quite like it. Sewing is all about experimenting sometimes isn’t it 😉 xx
Spring and summer sewing planning 💗 Spring and summer sewing planning 💗
I made another Linden!! This time I decided to use I made another Linden!! This time I decided to use different colours for all of the cuffs and I really love how this has turned out. How many Lindens is too many? (Asking for a friend 🤪)
Pattern: @grainlinestudio Linden Sweatshirt 
Fabrics: Ecru sweatshirt fabric from @abakhanfabrics green ribbing from @sewisfaction coral ribbing @minervadotcom
Hooray!! My first article for @thepatternpagesmaga Hooray!! My first article for @thepatternpagesmagazine is now up on the blog. If (like me) you’re not quite ready to give up your comfy clothes just yet pop over and have a read for some comfy spring/summer lounging and working from home sewing inspiration 😊 🧵🪡 
(Link to blog post over on the @thepatternpagesmagazine bio)
•Tiger Tiger• Last one of this dress (for now) •Tiger Tiger• Last one of this dress (for now) I promise but I took SO many photos of it!! Too excited for the challenge obviously 😆🐅😍
I hope you have a lovely Good Friday xxx
Forgive me if I milk photos of my #frugalfrocks202 Forgive me if I milk photos of my #frugalfrocks2021 dress for a couple more days but y’know it’s the Easter holidays and not a lot of sewing will probably be happening for a week or two especially with a birthday for a super excited soon to be nine year old happening in there too!! 
________________________________
I’m ashamed to admit that this is actually the first of my rather large stash of free @simplysewingmag patterns I’ve actually sewn up and it turned out much better than I was expecting (I don’t know what I was expecting) 🤣 It was so lovely to see everyone’s entries yesterday- we have such an amazing sewing community here on IG 💗
Pattern: Evelyn Dress
Fabric: Tiger print viscose from @abakhanfabrics
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Recent Posts

  • What I’ve been sewing in March 2021 – Vlog description… April 18, 2021
  • VLOG | My five favourite beginner jersey sewing patterns… March 29, 2021
  • The Rowan Beatrice Beanie by Lisa Richardson – a knitting pattern review March 24, 2021
  • VLOG | Crafty catch up, new fabrics, sewing plans, knitting and news… March 22, 2021
  • Sewing my first coat | A review of the I Am Merlin Coat by I Am Patterns March 17, 2021
  • VLOG | #frugalfrocks2021​ Free pattern and fabric choices | Help me decide what to sew… March 8, 2021
  • Five reasons why I believe crafting is good for our mental wellbeing… March 4, 2021
  • What I’ve been sewing and making in February… March 1, 2021
  • My (first) three versions of the Billie Sweatshirt by Tilly and the Buttons – a pattern review… February 25, 2021
  • Vlog | Playing the ‘ask me anything game’, answering questions about sewing and life… February 15, 2021

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