My finished Tissura dressmaking project: Liberty of London front zip shirt dress

Summer is the busiest time of year for me at work and this usually starts around spring, so I’m very grateful for everyone’s patience with me posting here. I am happy to report that my one of my dressmaking projects (see previous inspiration post here) is now complete after encountering some difficulties.

Today, I will talk you through some lessons I’ve learned from sewing this project (having been sewing sporadically for 5 years now) and reveal my final design.

Dressmaking project on the go: fit and flare lace gown

It’s been a while since I had sewn anything for myself. After sewing 9 projects for our DIY wedding (you can see all the projects we did ourselves for our 2015 wedding here) and after that, it seemed my friends were all due to have their babies at the same time last year. I was so excited about my friends expecting babies that I was consumed with making handmade toys and clothes for them that sewing for myself was put to one side.

Since becoming vegan, I don’t feel the need to sew quite so much anymore. I’m only the one person and since the OH and I don’t go to formal events that require us to be dressed up much. Added to the fact that I’m trying to clear out all the excess clothing I don’t seem to wear much, I try not to sew too much that I’m not going to get a chance to wear.

Seeing a pattern that calls to you, with a shape that you know will suit you and gives you ideas on what to make, really gets those creative juices flowing. Recently seeing one on Instagram did just that.

Full Scottish breakfast, vegan style: review of BBL

A lot of vegans had recommended breakfast, brunch & lunch (also affectionately referred to as BBL) for their great vegan breakfast, so when my friend came to visit, I decided we had to try and stop by for breakfast while she was here.

In photos: Vegan Connections Festival 2017

Finding businesses to support when you’re vegan is made so much easier with all the festivals and markets regularly cropping up in Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Vegan Connections Festival, hosted by Vegan Connections, was held at The Briggait at the heart of Glasgow in August and brought together a variety of companies, ranging from caterers, drinks to clothing, household goods and animal welfare organisations, together so new vegans can make the switch more seamlessly.

Having been vegan for 7 months when I was at the festival, I was amazed to see the range of products available. I was mainly focused on the variety of food products sold, but I also had the opportunity to chat with a few businesses about their products and to get to know their products a bit better. Below, I’ve tried to show, through photos, the amazing products we can enjoy as vegans.

Vegan sweet delights: Affogato’s vegan waffles and gelato

Exploring the wonderful vegan offerings in and around Edinburgh can be a bit of a minefield, especially if you’re new like me. I’ve only been vegan for 3 and a half months, but I’ve enlisted the help of fellow vegans and bloggers Emma of Vegan Edinburgh and Lucie of Call Me Dumpling to help me explore all there is to eat (and drink) around Edinburgh!

Party of a lifetime! Blogger cocktail masterclass at Revolution Bar

What happens when you put several bloggers together for a masterclass at a bar? A lot of hilarity, bonding and lots of booze getting shaken, not stirred!

The new Scottish Design Exchange department: browsing handmade Scottish textiles

I’m afraid I’ve been a bit slack in the sewing part of my DIY blog. Apart from making baby blankets (see here), about 2 dozen burp cloths (here) and a hooded towel and wash cloth set (here), I’ve been taking a bit of a break from sewing too much.

Exploring Chiang Mai, Part 3: pachyderm rescue and rehabilitation at Elephant Nature Park

If you were offered the choice of visiting a wildlife encounter tourist attraction for a ridiculously cheap price or one which costs more, which would you choose? The only catch is the cheaper option involves animal cruelty and abuse.

This might be a shocking revelation, but all too true in many parts of the world. In all aspects of life, we can make the ethical choice and choosing a tourist attraction that rescues and rehabilitates abused animals was mine. Here is my story visiting the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai.

Updates on my cut out back dress: how to machine sew a buttonhole

I bought a vintage pattern for making a cut out back dress a while ago but I never had the chance to really use it. I hadn’t found the right fabric for the dress I had in mind (see my previous post with inspirations here).

When I did finally find fabric that I really liked, I didn’t hesitate to buy it online. The only issue was it was in quite see through printed chiffon fabric. With the cut out back dress, I would definitely need a lining, but I would also need to work out the logistics on how to hide the sewing on the seams.

Looking back on our wedding: tips for planning your big day

Time really does fly, whether you’re having fun or not! It seemed like just earlier this year that I was planning our wedding and today we’re celebrating our first wedding anniversary!

Your wedding day is one of the most important milestones in your life (including starting university or college, starting your first job, finding your first love, having your first child…the list goes on) and it involves, like with other important milestones, a lot of preparation, stress and high emotions. With all the planning involved, I thought it might be helpful for prospective brides to hear some of what I learned from spending 2.5 years planning our 2015 wedding.