I’m beginning to think I should start each post with a weather forecast, but it is April at last….and my lilac buds are fat and the crab apple trees in the garden are just waiting to burst out…and whilst I recently had to  misquoted Browning’s ‘Oh to be in England’ putting ‘Spring’ where April should be,[I couldn’t very well put April in March could I?]  anyhoo it now fits beautifully and it is really beautiful here in England in April despite the Arctic winds.  However, [there are always howevers aren’t there?] April is historically known here as the wet month…but I figure that as everything else Season-wise has gone topsy turvy then perhaps we can hope for a dry April.

Sewing wise I am also optimistic. I am drafting and sewing red gingham summer dresses for School for my grand-daughter Carrie. Summer [hah!] term starts in two weeks time and shortly thereafter they  change their uniforms to Summer drill. Perhaps I should line them with flannel just in case. Thankfully we have what a French designer [wasn’t it Dior?] once called ‘the English disease’ – the cardigan. I have just added a couple of pictures of the red gingham underway to show you how I finish as much as I can whilst the bodice is flat. The buttons below are not sewn on, but the buttonholes are done and the silk ribbon trim has been sewn on [bands have also been interfaced of course] and in the second picture just the shoulder seams are done ready for the sleeves and collar to be fitted, still on the flat. In the last picture the sleeves have just been sewn in.

The Moda blouse is finished. It’s nice but I can’t say I am totally besotted by it. It looks best worn outside the skirt as it isn’t long enough for a good tuck in and I hate having to push straying bits back into a waistband, don’t you? Normally I make my blouses just that little bit longer because I have a long waist, but I didn’t have enough fabric this time. In its defence it does look a bit better in ‘real life’ and worn rather than on Brenda – between you and me I think she’s rather losing her charm, but I wouldn’t tell her – she’s too useful.