World Craft Week 2017: Sewing

This week, for World Craft Week, I'm having a look at the crafts I have done over the years. Today it's sewing.

When I was little my mum had a sewing machine in one of our main living rooms, housed in its own special work table. The sewing machine collapsed into the table and the workspace folded over to take up less space when it wasn't being used. I assumed this was normal and am very disappointed that my living arrangements do not have enough space for such a thing - my sewing machine is kept in a sewing machine bag in a corner of the living room and if I want to sew I have to clear the dining table, and as a consequence I don't do very much sewing!

I learnt to use a sewing machine when I was very young. My mum was always happy to let me play with her scraps and I was constantly improvising bags for me and clothes for my toys. Over the years I learnt to do appliqué, which I loved, quilting, which I didn't love and eventually moved on to making garments for myself.

Applique curtains for my son

I'm pretty tall (5 foot 10) and one of the joys of making things for yourself is that you can adjust the proportions so that the item actually fits! I made evening dresses to wear for my prom and balls at university, and several day dresses; I made my bridesmaids dresses and even considered making my own wedding dress (until I realised quite how long that would take!). These days my sewing is limited to curtains and project bags, although I do have plans to sew a summer dress for myself this year. As soon as I had children finding the floor space for pattern and fabric cutting became a bit of a battle and I still haven't found a solution to that, but when I do (probably when my children are bigger) I will spend a lot more time sewing.

Project bags in quirky fabrics

Do you like to sew? Do you have a solution to my lack of cutting space?