Brrr, so chilly. I am part woman and a larger part socks, woolies and feathers ( Uniqlo Ultradown). My husband thought that I had overnight put on a few pounds- until he patted my sides, I was heavily insulated by a feather boday warmer under my hoody, plus jersey and vest- I love layers and I feel the cold big time.
I have been sewing, sewing and more sewing and my new best friend, promoted to BFF ( although an alternative meaning made me laugh) is starch. I have always been a little mystified by starch, especially as all I could find in the UK was aerosol stinky white flakey starch, and then I found this, Earth Friendly Spray Starch.
Available in UK at many online stores- cheapest I found was auravita, you can also find it at Lakeland and health food stores and in other countries. It is cornstarch based, lightly and naturally fragranced. I am very sensitive to smell and I find this the only starch I could consider, it is a light frangrance that doesn't linger. So what does it do? It bullys bulky seams into submission, those seams with many layers flatten easily. It also sorts out bias edges and stops them waving and stretching. On slippy fabrics like voile and lawn, it gives the fabric stability. It does't produce rigid shirt collar style fabric like an aerosol just a neat flatness and no marks or flakes. I had tried homemade starch but lack of preservative was a problem and the spray bottle started developing mildew. This is worth every penny and I wouldn't do with out it now.
And a quick mention to Lucy, she made this wondrous version of my Liberty Sewing Portfolio case pattern, not only a beautiful piece of work- the embroidery! But also made when her soon to be born baby was days overdue.
And then on Monday, along came her beautiful daughter Lois. Huge congratulations to Lucy!
