Finn's Rag Rug

My fabulous nine year old assistant Finn has a real eye for style!

He came up with this brilliant idea for a rag rug hat - which I might just have to steal.

See the video below of Finn making a rug - which proves just how easy it is!

Thankyou Finn.

x

Rag Rug Tutorial 2

The second part of my rag rug making tutorial.
You can either make one big rug - or sew together lots of smaller ones.
Ideal for kids!

Let me know how you get on!

maryjanemillinery@hotmail.co.uk

Upsize a leather skirt the MJ way!

Whilst visiting Edinburgh this weekend I picked up a great bargain from one of my favourite vintage shops -  Armstrongs in the Grassmarket. I purchased a red leather thrifted skirt. It cost me just £10.

There was just one problem.

It didn't fit!

Two choices: alter it or diet.

I say NO to diets!

Well, the skirt fitted well on the hips, but the waist was tiny. I just couldn't do it up. It had also obviously been worn by someone a little bigger beforehand, as the waistband was warped. However, it was such a good bargain, I felt I just had to buy it and give it a go. I considered taking it to be altered as it was leather and I wasn't sure I could manage the job myself, and then I thought: 'come on MJ - call yourself a make-do-and-mender? What are you doing? You should absolutely do this job yourself. It's not as if you're run off your feet at the moment - and besides, an alteration will cost twice as much as the skirt itself!'

It didn't look an easy job. As well as having a fair few seams, the skirt was lined and had a fitted waistband with a button. I measured my waist and the skirt waistband. Ahem. There was a good 3.5 inches difference. There was no way I would find enough leather at the bottom of the skirt to add to the waistband, and besides, with the number of seams, and the zip, it would be far too complicated.

And so...I decided to remove the waistband altogether, and see if there was some way of expanding the waist without it. I used a stitch unpicker, and in fact, it came away really easily.

I realised that without the waistband, the leather was actually quite stretchy, held firmly by the lining. I decided to undo the lining from the top of the skirt, trim it down slightly, fold over the top edge and tack it down. Then I would be able to slip the tacked lining back underneath the leather edge of the skirt, turn the leather back on itself by half an inch and hopefully stitch it all down again whilst skimming the top of the zip. That would certainly make the waistband bigger, but would it be enough? It's not easy to pin leather but I had a go, and by doing so was able to try the skirt on. And it seemed to fit pretty well.

Using a leather needle on the sewing machine and by taking it very slowly, I managed to stitch around the top edge fairly neatly. The leather stuck a bit to the plate beneath the machine needle so I had to guide it through carefully, especially over the bulky seams.

I then added a hook and eye at the top of the zip to stop it from coming undone.

Here you can see the inside. It's not perhaps a couture finish, but dear reader, it works!

Here you can see just how much bigger the skirt is now.

And by George - it fits pretty well!

Tah dah! Fitted leather skirt £10. Leather needles £1.20. Hook and eye around 10p. Total cost £11.30. Plus I feel really pleased that I managed to do it myself. Satisfaction guaranteed.

XX

Beachcomber Grotto Pot

I'm currently living up in the town of Montrose on the North East coast of Scotland. There is a beautiful beach here and when the tide is out, you can walk for miles. I'm always on the look-out for interesting things brought in by the waves - shells, pebbles and driftwood for instance. Last week when I was feeling particularly low, the sea gave me a really generous present. Washed up on the sand were lots of broken plates and bits of crockery. I didn't have a bag with me, but nonetheless, I gathered them all up, grateful for the unexpected gift. 

It's the one and only time I've seen this sort of stuff washed up in Montrose, but elsewhere I've been luckier. A few years ago I stayed on Tanera in the Summer Isles on the West coast of Scotland, and was always finding broken bits of china and sea glass along the shoreline. I remember making a mosaic mirror frame with the pieces I found, and I decided to do something along the same lines again.

Once home, I washed and dried the crockery, and laid out lots of old newspaper. Then I  wrapped the ceramic in an old tea towel so that I could smash the pieces up one by one. Very theraputic. I also used tile nippers to give more shape to the pieces as I worked and to remove the sharpest points. ALWAYS WEAR SAFETY GOGGLES when smashing up and shaping your bits of china. You might also want to wear protective gloves. When you've finished breaking up the bits put them onto a clean bit of newspaper and carefully wrap and throw away anything you don't want in the old tea towel. Clean any surfaces with damp kitchen towel.

As well as the china I found on the beach, I added in a couple of charity shop plates bought locally for a couple of pounds. I needed a bit of brightness for the mosaic.

For my base I used a cheap terracotta flower pot and then bought a tub of all-in-one tile adhesive and grout. Using half an old clothes peg as a spatula, I stuck the broken pieces onto the pot one by one. I probably used a bit too much adhesive/grout to start with. It's better just to blob and stick the bits on one by one I think. As I worked, I also added in a few little ceramic favours or fèves that I found at brocantes in France during my Mobile Makery trip in the summer. These little figures come in all sorts of different designs and are hidden inside the Galette des Rois - a traditional cake brought out to celebrate the Epiphany. The person who finds the favour inside his or her slice of cake gets to wear a crown and make a wish!

As you can see, the pot looked a little rough and ready after the first 24 hours of drying - a bit like a crazy Christmas cake with too much icing! But then I grouted it carefully using a damp sponge, gently scraping back some of my over-enthusiastic gluing. I'm really pleased with the final result below, and it's a lovely momento of my walks along the beach in Montrose. A great idea for your own holidays.

XX

Mollie Makes Extra

A  big thankyou to the team at Mollie Makes magazine for the lovely feature about my Mobile Makery which was published on 4th February in issue 63. Hurrah! As a huge Mollie Makes fan, it's a real privilege to be in the mag itself. Also a round of applause and a shout out for Caro Weiss who took all the lovely photographs. If you're getting married this year, then do check out her website. She does AMAZING wedding photography too. Also thanks to Fiona Guest and Giles Laverack for letting us use their beautiful Scotia Seeds farm as a location. They are the UK's premier producer of native Scottish wildflower seeds and do incredible work ensuring the continuation of these species. I hope you enjoyed the magazine feature. Here are a few extra photos to give you another peek at my upcyled Mobile Makery - aka Bambi!

Remember you can book Bambi for your own events or book me to run a workshop for you and your friends in Bambi.

Contact: maryjanemillinery@hotmail.co.uk

xx

Immersed in making in my Scottish hideway

Since I began my Scottish sojourn (let's call it my maker's retreat) I've been busy coming up with ideas and projects for my new book Vintage Vacation based on my travels in the Mobile Makery. It sounds idyllic I know - far away from the madding crowd - cutting, sticking and stitching. I  realise you won't believe me but it does have its drawbacks! It's chilly and a bit lonesome and I'm not quite sure how long I can afford the luxury of not earning day-to-day. I'm lucky in that I have a very kind brother letting me stay with him for a while. But, I need to sort out the cash flow - fast! 

My 5am starts for shifts on the foreign desk at the BBC in London seem a long time ago already, but I miss my friends and colleagues enormously. The day-to-day dramas, deadlines and banter do give you an energy and focus that you can lack when you're working on your own with no reason to hurry. It's all too easy to become disconnected from what's going on in the world. For instance,  I've not been listening to the Today programme at all. Shock Horror! It used to be my regular wake-up call but now I switch it off if my brother puts it on. I've come to realise that being hit with bad news on a global scale every morning isn't necessarily the way to stay upbeat and positive! I'm not saying you should cut yourself off entirely, but pick and choose your moments, curate your listening, viewing and reading. Too much information can be a bad thing.

But onto more creative matters....!

Here below is a sneak preview of some of the makes I've been working on. I'm using largely recycled materials to create a host of projects that I hope will please both stylish nomads and home-loving hoarders!

Anyway - time for lunch so I must be off! Food is always a deadline worth sticking to ! x

Mary Jane's Mobile Makery - How to Make: EASY PEASY Vintage Pillowcase Top

Whilst in France I've bought dozens of vintage 1960's pillowcases in bight bold florals.  Many of them are the old bolster-style pillowcases which people don't use any more. These tend to be open at both ends and just simply hemmed.  They cost as little as 50p each, and are lovely and soft after being used such a lot. 

In this little tutorial I show you how to make a very easy top from one of these pillowcases creating your own pattern first from newspaper. Don't worry - you don't need to be an expert pattern draughtsman or woman - it's really easy! My cunning time-saving tip is that if you position the pattern at the top and bottom of the pillowcase, you won't have to bother hemming your top as the hem on the pillowcase is already there for you to use. Hey Presto, no tricky hemming! This pattern will work for a size 10 - 14 (UK) - it'll be loose and breezy on the 10 and a little more fitted on a 14. For your info: I'm a 14 so you can see how it looks on me. If you need another size you'll have to adjust the pattern a little.  

Hope you like it! Please send me pics when you make yours! maryjanemillinery@hotmail.co.uk. If you don't have a vintage French pillowcase to hand (and why should you!) you can just use fabric of course. Recycled is best! GOOD LUCK!

Mary Jane's Mobile Makery - How to Make: Vintage Pillowcase Top Trailer!

Coming Soon! How to make a fabulous vintage top from a recycled French pillowcase thrifted on my travels!