Moving Day! Are you coming with me?!

My blog is moving to a new domain!

Want to keep reading? It couldn’t be simpler. Pick the option that works best for you from the below list:

1. Press this button immediately to follow the new blog on Bloglovin!

You don’t even have to go look at my new style blog first (though you really should).

2. Search for almondrock.co.uk in your reader: Feedly, Digg, StumbleUpon, etc and update to follow the blog at its new address.

3. Click through to almondrock.co.uk and subscribe by email using the form in the right hand pane.

4. Add the url almondrock.co.uk into your WordPress reader so it updates to follow the blog at its new address.

5. If you follow via the twitter or facebook links I post, then you’re off the hook! You won’t have to do anything but keep clicking on the links I tweet or post to my wall to keep reading.

I really want you to move over with me to my new blog. My readers mean a lot to me and this would be a terrible way to lose you all!

I’ll even try and make it worth your while….

I’ll be back in a few days with a potential reward for all those of you who have moved with me, as well as helping to lure all those slow pokes who haven’t switched over yet.

Please please update your settings, I beg you. I’ll be devastated if my readership dwindles because of my passion for teaching myself a new skill.

I’m looking forward to taking you all with me!

What could make this Sunday better? I know, a Giveaway!

Hello Everyone! I hope you’re having a lovely weekend. Mine has been full of good food and drink, library books and some sewing.

A Raspberry beret for the lady, two red stripe for the gent.

New Look 6886 bodice awaiting skirt attachment.

The velvet photograph cover of Daniel Vosovic’s lovely book

Final touches to my Sassy Librarian Blouse.

There is also some good news to share. Last week the lovely people at Simplicity got in touch.

They actually offered to send me a couple of their patterns which I was over the moon at.

I generally find that New Look patterns fit me straight out of the envelope and Simplicity patterns only ever require a few tweaks.
… Vogue, McCalls and Butterick are *ahem* another story.

I picked two favourites out of a short list of many and I literally ripped open my parcel in glee when the patterns arrived!

I’ve mentioned to a few people lately that I’m interested in making a shirtdress. This seems like the natural progression of my desire to conquer blouses. I chose the very popular Project Runway 1880. Ami’s version really made me believe this was the pattern for me so I requested this as my first choice.

For my second choice I went with the Leanne Marshall 1755 party dress. Oh yes I’m making the lace version.

I want this to be my Birthday party dress. I have a lovely maroon lace with maple leaf pattern and I’m eager to try a pattern where the instructions actually help you create a lace overlay, rather than trying to wing it alone.

But wait! The good news doesn’t stop here.

Simplicity also gave me two of their amazing fit patterns to give away — 1800 (sizes 10-18) and 1652 (sizes 6 – 14).

Two dresses with princess seamed bodices and a variety of skirts, sleeves and special features to bring together and create your perfect garment.

I’m actually kind of jealous one of you will get to try the cool cut out back of 1652.

And hang on, there’s a little bit more!

I’m also throwing in a lovely Sylko bobbin head button badge!

When I saw these lovely badges I just had to get one and I picked out a second just for you my lovely readers.

One reader will win both amazing fit patterns and the badge.

All you have to do to win this lot is to leave a comment saying what your favourite Simplicity or New Look pattern is.

I also think it’d be worth your while following Simplicity on twitter – @SewSimplicity – to gather inspiration, hear about other giveaways to enter, and laugh with them about some of the crazy pattern envelope imagery the company cooks up.

The competition is open for a week, until Sunday July 7th at Midnight BST.

Good luck!

Backstitch Giveaway: winner announcement!!

I’m so happy to be announcing this giveaway.

I was amazed at the number of entries,  53 in total! And there is a good variety of ways people are following.

It was selfish of me but I really wanted to know which platforms my blog is mostly being viewed on, and now I do!

Without further ado….. the random number generator calculated the winner was commenter number 4!

So our lucky winner is….
Sabs

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

Sabs is also known as Mini and Merky if you follow on social media.

She has some fantastic sewing skills so you should check out her blog. Her turquoise washi dress is gorgeous and makes me eager for summer to get here.
Plus she has the cutest pair of cats! I love their little faces!

If you didn’t win then not to worry, there will be more giveaways in the near future! And I’m really glad you entered.

The Sweetheart Dress (oh don’t get all soppy on me)

Last week I showed you a dress I hadn’t blogged about but it went down quite well so I here are the details.

I wanted to make the Colette Truffle bodice into my go-to dress bodice block as it was so close to being perfect on my Christmas party dress.

I made a rub off pattern from a lace dress I love and then combined this with the Truffle pattern to make what should have been a perfect fit. It’s sooo close to perfect but not quite as the neck gapes a little, though it seems to suit Beryl.

I also drafted an A-line gathered skirt by using the hem and drop measurements from the lace dress and after eyeballing the amount of waist gathering figured out the waist length I’d need. I like A-line gathered skirts more than dirndl because a lot of waist gathering makes me look too wide there. Plus you still get a good twirly skirt from them!

The fabric was from Fletcher’s Fabrics in York and was a birthday present from Mr AR. It’s a popular quilting cotton which has been in stock for years and comes in a variety of colourways.

I did my new trick of encasing the zip with bias tape and I lined the bodice in cream poly lining but didn’t line the skirt… that was my major mistake.

Unlined cotton dresses stick to your tights and I hate this. But I convinced myself otherwise! Now this dress rides up when I wear it. Even when I wear a half slip for goodness sake! I live the dress so I think I’ll retroactively fit a lining. I just need to mull over how….

**Please remember**

You have one day left to enter the giveaway.

Entries must be received by Midnight BST Friday 10th May!

Blogiversary Backstitch Giveaway!

That’s right, one year ago today I started blogging!

It’s gone soooo quickly. I started so I could post about my participation in Me-Made-May. I barely had anything to wear and I was still figuring out how to manage a blog. I was  pretty sure no one out there was reading.

But here I am, a year later with a lovely wardrobe full of me-made clothes and I’ve met amazing interesting lovely people (in real life and virtually) all through the blog.
So to show my appreciation I’m hosting a giveaway.

Up for grabs is a £15 gift voucher to the Backstitch shop!

Choose from the fantastic fabrics available, including Riley Blake, Lizzy House and Liberty Lifestyle.

Or spoil yourself with a pattern from one of the wildly popular indie pattern companies, such as Sewaholic, Victory Patterns or Megan Nielsen.

All you have to do to win is be a follower of the blog and simply leave a comment telling me how you follow. That’s it!

New followers are welcome to enter. The giveaway is open internationally too.

Closing date for entries in Friday 10th May at Midnight (BST).

I’ll draw an entry at random and announce the winner shortly after.

Good luck!

Smile for the birdie button-back blouse and the giveaway winner announced!

First up my giveaway!

Let’s announce this bad boy. Random number generator has chosen…..

Congratulations!! Send your postal address to me at almondrock.wordpress@gmail.com and I’ll arrange delivery.

Moving on. My love affair with New Look 6808 continues.

I cooked up the idea of adapting it to use buttons at the back quite a while ago but couldn’t wrap my brain around the logistics of the conversion.

I finally figured it out last week and realised I’d been so silly over thinking it!

To adapt the back bodice pattern piece I traced a copy, then extended the fold line by about three inches. Then I added the marks for my buttonholes where the original fold line had been, marked a new fold line and I was all set. I also did away with the darts as they would have messed with the fabric pattern.

I used a gorgeously soft, grey rayon I bought at the Harrogate Knitting and Stitching show. It has lines of different bird cages with birds on it! It is rather see through though.

I didn’t line it other than the sleeves which is a feature of NL 6808 I love.

This top uses 8 buttons. It felt like a lot! I made contrast covered buttons from a black twill I had in my stash. It needed to be twill because the white of my button base kept sewing through. Can you get black ones?

The first time I wore it a giant German Shepherd dog slobbered on it so I know it’s popular with the animal kingdom!

What do you think? Hope you like it!

Giveaway time!! (Aka time I stopped winning and started sharing)

I recently won two giveaways. I’m not bragging I promise. Though I am super chuffed!!

The first was the Anise coat as mentioned in my last post.

As soon as I won fear excitement made me immediately book a jacket making course!

I’d mentioned previously the course was a Christmas gift I was lucky enough to receive. Well I’m hoping to get stuck in the world of tailoring with a Chanel jacket and build up to Anise from there.

Next up I won the sew grateful giveaway from Vintage Follies, thanks to the delightful Cherise. She’s great if you’re not aware of her blog. I mean check out this awesome dress she made before including the remaining fabric in my giveaway.

I won a vintage pattern, oodles of gorgeous red buttons and the leftover lingonberry fabric!

Well winning more than one giveaway when I didn’t host a giveaway myself is unbearable to me!!

So here is my giveaway. It’s modest but I hope you like it.

You can win the Kirsty Allsopp Craft book, a vintage simplicity dress pattern (single size 12 bust 34), vogue 8666 dress pattern (sizes 6 to 12), 9 unusual black and white buttons, 9 square mother of pearl style buttons and a cute owl tape measure.

I’ll send anywhere! To win just leave a comment on this post before midnight (gmt) Thursday 28th February.

Good luck!!