I bought a Book: Lovely Things To Make for Girls of Slender Means

It is a testament to my own slender means that it took me a year since this was published to get my hands on a copy. Amazon tells me I bought a copy of Yeah, I Made it Myself back in 2006 it helped me work up the courage to buy a sewing machine and to use it. And it still sits beside my machine. So it stands to reason that I'm a big fan of Eithne Farry's approach but will you be?



Well it depends. Are you the type of person who wants to make something, consults google, sketches a bit and gets to work? Or, like me, do you want to be that person. If mistakes are part of your process and it's more about the joy of making and wearing than having the inside of your outfit look professional then go out and buy a copy now. You'll be making patterns out of newspaper and ripping apart old pyjamas to get the perfect fit in no time.

Daisy variation with giant green button

I use this book to cure me of my own perfectionism ('what's the point of doing anything. I can't be perfect!') but if you don't find the process fun unless you know exactly what you are doing and your end result is flawless then I would stay away. It's all about the joy of making.

Great Big Dahlia 

The projects are separated into four seasons which actually make sense. Spring is about new from old, repairs and flowers. Summer is cute, breezy and easy clothing. Autumn revels in handbags and attaching fake spiders to things. Winter has felted wool and fabulousness. All throughout are the chatty tone and cultural references that make the book more like crafting for the Gilmore Girls crowd. At least in the early seasons where the wardrobe looked more attainable.

Going Green

With seasonality a theme it was easy for me to pick my test drive project. I went out and bought a pack of elastic headbands and a bouquet of fake carnations. Pulling the carnations to pieces I found that I could go from daisy, with one or two stacked up, to dahlia, with three. So I now have two bright red flower headbands and an extra bonus foliage one for when I'm feeling ethereal and wood nymphy. I know. I'm short, fat, and loud: ethereal isn't my thing.

Lovely Things to Make for Girls of Slender Means