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I'm finally on holidays from work (yayayayayayayayay) and the battery is on recharge. I'm doing my best to push myself into some making though because I know in the long term, it helps. A few people commented on my making/buying post that I shouldn't beat myself up about slipping on the making front. My point wasn't that I felt guilty - I totally get why I haven't been making - my point was my realisation that when I let the making slip I lose out on the joy the making brings. This is obvious and yet, somehow, I seem to forget it all the time.

My feeling bad isn't a guilt thing, it's an absence of feeling good thing. A bit of energy investment in making returns positive energy ten fold, and the buying thing returns negative energy tenfold for me. This is something I believe, in an intellectual way, in my head. My post was about feeling that in a really emotional and visceral way. It's not a feeling I'm choosing, it's a feeling that comes from who I am and what I hold dear.

So even though my energy store available for investment is absolutely minimal I'm going to max it out. I'm not promising it will be pretty - low energy making usually isn't the best, but it's something to keep the ball rolling and hopefully enough momentum to get some happy making highs in.

I road tested the Tiramisu dress. This is a pretty design and if I was less self conscious about wearing dresses and close fitting knits I would adore this. It's a great compliment to the design that I bought and made it at all such is my reluctance to frock up. I really like Steph's blog - it's jam packed with great tutorials and info and I like her attitude to sewing a lot so I figured I'd take the risk.

I made it up in some inherited disposable knit (thanks Jo!) before I cut into anything special since I wasn't sure I'd be okay wearing it even if the pattern was great. I wasn't uber impressed to find that along with Steph's noted pattern errata, a few pattern pieces actually didn't properly fit together. I know Steph had a monster time in the production of this, her first printed pattern, so I'm not all high horse about it, and it is a knit so you have plenty of scope for fudging it.

I did a full bust adjustment. The pattern is not only cup size graded, it also has an adjustment line built in so it was super easy. I also narrowed the midsection piece by about half. I lengthened the arm bands for the sleeves by a cm or 2 because I hate tight arm bands. In a future version, I'd also shorten the back of the bodice by a cm or 2 and maybe add a cm or 2 on the top of the front shoulder close to the neck and maybe lower the back neck hold by a cm or 2.

But these adjustments were all minor and easily made. The pattern is essentially very robust, and I am sure would (and has based on the blogging reportage) suit most people. I don't think I could carry it off in too slinky a knit though so I'm now keeping an eye out for the perfect jersey for it. Although I have a large knit stash, I generally only keep 1.5m lengths for tops so I will need to make a special purchase.

In the meantime I am using the bodice and heavily modified skirt from the pattern to trial making myself a nightdress. It will be colour blocked so I don't have to buy anything new (is there a rule with colour blocking over what goes up and what does down? I'm assuming red on top and grey below because the red is 'lighter' and the grey 'darker' but is that even right?). Awesome I know. Sleepwear - the sewing project of champions (refer to earlier comments on low energy sewing). I don't think I've worn a nighty since I was a girl so I'm kind of interested to revisit that. I have no idea why.

Anyway, when I was in Sydney I was suddenly struck by this desire for a silk nightdress. This was in large part due to the discovery of stocks of silk elastine at Tessuti Sydney. I had bought a small amount of this gorgeous fabric in Melbourne and made a half slip last year (this is all sounding very downton abbey isn't it??). I have worn it loads. I bought this length thinking I would make a shirt for work but somehow the whole nightdress thing took hold.

I will make the newly cast pattern in a jersey first to assess it but I'm hoping it will be right for the silk. Or this crazy obsession will pass before I cut into it in a disastrous way.

What else have I been making? Little moments of crochet for brooches for the fete. I'm using scraps of really nice yarns I can't bear to throw away, so it's pleasurable on a number of fronts. No idea whether they will sell but they are fun. I've also cut out the start of some oven mitts for the fete but hard to get too excited about that.

I'm planning a dress from this loose crinkly linen (on the left above) and a T-shirt for under it from this jersey. I love this fabric, so I'm taking my time to really think it through. These loose weaves can pull at the seams in a really ugly way, and when they are shot (different colour on warp and weft) it is even more obvious. So it can't be tight anywhere, and I don't want to lose the crinkle either, but also don't want a shapeless sack! Design challenge!!

I'm also doing the occassional hex. The blanket is now properly in rotation and lives on the back of the couch. A daily pleasure for the whole family.

The lovely Amanda muled me home some silk from her recent trip to supplement the lovely stuff D brought me back from Japan in August last year so a machine knit cardi is on the cards too. Very excited about that.

While I've still been at work and D has been home with the kids they have been doing some making too, using the many boxes of Ikea to fill our makeshift cricket pitch with fielders and spectators. Love it!

Last but not least, my brain has been very actively engaged in the design challenge D's christmas gift to me has posed. I've conscripted some design help, now I'm looking for a good fine line inker - suggestions?