Heart Motifs

Hello!👋

Hope you have been keeping well!

I feel like not a lot has been done this week with the kids being on school holidays, but I have started 2 new projects and finished one of them already! 😀

I made a start on my daughter’s Elsa dress for her upcoming Fairytale Ball at school and she is mega excited about it!🤩

I am using the Elodie dress by Violette Field Threads and I was supposed to lengthen the bodice pattern pieces before cutting them out…but forgot. 🤦‍♀️

The bodice of this pattern is quite short and I wanted it to reach her natural waist, but that is now out of the question because I don’t want to waste fabric and cut out new pieces. I also wanted to lengthen the skirt pieces to reach the top of her feet as per her request, but guess what… I forgot about this too! 😂

Luckily, I had only cut the lining out and managed to just cut extra rectangles to sew on and make it longer. Since it’s the lining, it won’t be visible through the 2 layers of organza. 🙏 

I only have 4 more days to complete this dress, so no stress at all! 😂😬

I currently have half the bodice done and I have added silver ric rac to the sweetheart part. After this, there's lots of gathering to do, hemming and zipper insertion. I hope I can get through this quickly in the evenings as I don’t have much time during the day with the kids at home.

Starting this project is a nice little breather from my partner’s jacket. 😅

And speaking of the jacket, the hardware(grommets, cord  and cord stopper) for it has arrived, but I don’t feel like going back to working on it right now. 😬

I think I will get back to it at the end of June once my #sewbloodpressure24 sewing challenge has finished and I have more head space, or I may finish it as part of the challenge because technically it’s been on my list of things to make for months.

I did cast on another knit project while I waited for some yarn to arrive! 😃

Said yarn arrived on Friday…

But I wasn’t going to waste 4 days, Monday to Thursday, of knitting. I felt it would be too much time wasted with not having anything creative to do and I didn’t want to spend my time scrolling through social media.

Stranded colorwork knitting is something I have been wanting to do for some time and thought it would be best to start with a small project.

So I got the Valentines Doodle 2 Cowl (single sided) pattern from Pacific Knit Co. a few months ago and was eager to get going with it.

I actually finished it all after having spent just a couple of hours on it for 3 days, this was a quick one!

I used all DK weight yarn in 3 different colours, black for the background and cream and rainbow for the heart motifs! 😍 I LOOOOOVE IT!

And with everything else, there are a million and one ideas flowing through my head on what colorwork projects I can do next!! 😂

These ideas will have to wait though because I have been meaning to start a test knit project for RitaMadeThis for the last 3 weeks, so this will need to take priority.

Teacher gift #1 has been completed!

This is the Monster Sweater by KnitStitchRepeat and I feel this came together really quickly! I felt towards the end that what was taking me the longest was weaving in all the little ends, but I so much prefer this version to the first one I was making.

I maintained the same 5 colours throughout the sweater instead of alternating colours every few rows and I love the outcome! Let’s hope that the recipient loves it too! 🤞

Last week during our Sew&Bond get together, I started on a few tote bags too with the intent of using them as gift bags instead of buying paper gift bags for the teachers. This way they  receive an extra gift and they can reuse it!🥳

This is especially good for my stash 🤭 as I can use some bits of fabric that I really wasn’t sure what I was going to use them for.

Not sure when I will actually finish sewing them all up, but I still have a month and a half left until school finishes for the year, so no rush.

I did mention in last week's newsletter that one of my favourite things was getting a filing cabinet!

And let me tell you, this is what my pattern stash has been waiting for!!

I haven’t had time to organise all my patterns, but I have a good chunk of them in the drawers already. 🤗

I have started to organise them alphabetically by designer and it has been so easy to locate the patterns that I want to make…meaning the Elodie pattern that I am making my daughter’s dress in. It took me all of 20 seconds to locate it, instead of probably 30 minutes rummaging through my previous storage system. 🤯

June has now started and I am super excited to see what you all make for the #sewbloodpressure24 sewing challenge!

It was brought to my attention that the platform I had chosen to fundraise on, only allowed a minimum of £5 donation which I understand is a bit steep.

So I have had to choose another platform. The only platform I could find that allowed a lower minimum donation was JustGiving which allows a minimum of £2.

I hope this doesn’t stop you from participating and as a reminder, I have 34 prizes to hand out worth over £600!🎁

Prizes are Janome, Kylie and the Machine, Tammy Handmade, The Fabric Boutique and Cashmerette just to name a few.

(You can find all the sponsors on my Instagram @beesilva.creates.)

The entry rules are very simple:

• Sew a garment that you have been wanting to sew for a while.
• Donate £2 or more to the Blood Pressure UK charity via the link in my bio on Instagram, or I will post it here in my newsletter throughout the month of June.
• Please do leave your Instagram name in the message/comments area of your donation so I can match it up with your finished garment.
• Post your make any time throughout June using #sewbloodpressure24 and tagging me beesilva.creates so I can see your make and add you to the prize list!
• Any work in progress photos, please use #sewbloodpressure24wip. This is to keep the original hashtag free for finished makes only.

😎Confidence Corner:

"Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy." - Dale Carnegie

I feel I grew up as a very shy child.

I remember at school when I was asked questions by teachers, I used to go all red and hot and even cry sometimes. This was my biggest fear…speaking in public.

When school finished, time came to find a job and that was a nerve wrecking step to take as I am sure you have all had to go through that yourselves and know what I mean.

I managed to secure a job as a flight attendant at the age of 18, but here comes the scary part.

I had to move out of my parents' home AND change countries to be able to start this job.

Thinking back to the situation my family was in at the time brings tears to my eyes, I would have rather not left and stayed in the comfort of my home.

But I left anyway.

During the work training process and eventually moving countries, I wanted to return home many times for fear that I couldn’t handle the situations I was facing.

I wasn’t just starting a new job, I was doing it away from everything I had ever known and was comfortable with. I was living with strangers and home life with them just wasn’t good. I used to dread going home everyday. 

Once I actually started the job, my fear for public speaking was still present and if you know a little about working on an aircraft, one of your duties is to address the whole aircraft via an interphone.

For the first 2 to 3 months I avoided that interphone like the plague until I could no longer, since my supervisors were pushing me to just have a go.

I could write a book about my experiences, but let's just fast forward for now. 

From being shy and scared to speak in public, I became an aviation instructor, having to speak and teach classrooms of more than 30 people!

All this to say, even little actions over time instead of none, build up and can help you get to where you want to be or didn’t even know you needed to be in life.

🧵Today's Sewing Tip:

Cutting Sheer Fabric

Cutting out sheer fabric doesn't have to be scary, there are a few things you can do to make it easier.

1. If your pattern piece needs to be cut on the fold, trace out the other half so you have the pattern piece as a whole and you can cut out your fabric on one layer instead of on a double layer when folded.
2. Using a rotary cutter and a mat instead of scissors will help you cut out your pieces without distorting them.
3. Place tissue paper, wrapping paper or woven fabric to help prevent your sheer fabric from shifting while cutting it.
4. Spray starch on your fabric to make it a little stiff which stabilises it for cutting(I have not personally used this method, but I can imagine it working pretty well).

These tricks will help you be a lot more precise when cutting out your sheer fabric.

⭐My Favourite Things This Week:

• Finishing my daughter’s teacher’s sweater!
• Making a sneaky yarn purchase. 🤫
• Completing my first stranded colorwork knit project!
• Kicking off my sewing challenge #sewbloodpressure24

🗓️Upcoming Plans

• Keep organising my Instagram sewing challenge #sewbloodpressureuk24
  (Are you going to participate? Let me know! 😊)

• Start a new knitting project - test knit for RitaMadeThis.
• Continue making my daughter’s princess Elsa dress.

🎬What I have been Watching/Reading:

• Cooking Up Murder:Uncovering the Story of Cesar Roman (Documentary)

In August 2018, police find a human torso in a suitcase. The case leads to Cesar Roman who is an eccentric entrepreneur known as the “King of Cachopo”.

I do enjoy watching crime stories and this one was really interesting. It is in Spanish and English subtitles are available.

• Bridgerton (Series)

Season 3 is now out and is about Penelope enlisting Colin’s help to attract the attention of some suitors.

Honestly, I expected a lot more from this season than what was delivered. It was very short and I felt it lacked a lot of story. I did enjoy watching all the different outfits though as I really like the fashion from that era.

• Mother of The Bride(Film)

A destination wedding turns awkward when the bride’s mother discovers the groom’s dad is her ex. 

It had been a while since I watched a romantic comedy and I enjoyed watching this one.

🎉Upcoming Events

June 2024 - #sewbloodpressureuk24 - Sewing Challenge on Instagram.
This is not an in-person event but a sewing challenge with the aim of raising money for a charity and awareness on the importance of monitoring your blood pressure.

Sew&Bond - Sewing Social Event - 22nd of June 2024 11:45 - 17:15 - in Gatley Hill House, South Manchester.
(5hr30m, an extra 30min than usual)
Email bianca@beesilva.co.uk and quote reference: SEWBOND06
For more information: https://www.beesilva.co.uk/sewbond06/

Sew&Bond - Sewing Social Event - 27th July 2024 10:15 - 15:45 - in Gatley Hill House, South Manchester.
(5hr30m, an extra 30min than usual)
Email bianca@beesilva.co.uk and quote reference: SEWBOND07
For more information: https://www.beesilva.co.uk/sewbond07/

What did you think of this week's newsletter? Your reply helps more than you think! I would love to hear from you!🥰

Thank you so much for reading my newsletter! And if you enjoyed reading it, please tell a friend about it to allow me to reach more people. 💖

Bye for now,
B! xx