Phew it’s been a while! Life has been very hectic with my new job and I’ve only made a few garments lately, which I haven’t had a chance to photograph.

Sewing is still on my mind, though, and none more so than this week when I listened to a podcast about ethical clothing.

I have become addicted to The Guilty Feminist over the past few months. It is a perfect balance of absolutely hilarious and hugely empowering. I would recommend it to anyone, you absolutely must give it a try. Great thing to listen to while sewing!

Their latest episode is all about the fashion industry and the little things you can do to make a difference. I was feeling really happy about the tiny number of garments I’ve bought lately because I’ve been sewing instead. Obviously, there’s always more I can do and I constantly try to improve, but it’s nice to know your impact is less than a lot of people.

Anyway, go and have a listen! It’s completely brilliant. Just a word of warning, I’ve been known to burst out laughing in the street while listening to it 😉

So I’ve been pretty quiet on here lately. I’ve been spending most of my time job hunting and studying for interviews, but I’ve now been offered a job as a Junior Web Developer, which is so exciting! I’ve been wanting for quite a while to move from testing to coding so this is a fantastic opportunity. I’m looking forward to the new challenge and also to getting some time back for sewing and blogging. And what better way to get back into it than to take stock of my fabric stash?

The lovely Hélène approached me last month on The Fold Line to test her new sewing app, Cora. Always keen to combine sewing and tech, I jumped at the chance. Sadly I didn’t get to give it as much of a spin as I wanted to during the main testing period due to the job hunting and a trip to Glastonbury Festival, but I’m now giving it my full attention!

My first impression of the app was that the design was very clear, simple and intuitive. The homepage displays strips (or a grid) of photos you’ve taken of the fabric so you have an immediate visual on your fabrics. Yes, even on the bus you can scroll your way through every scrap of delicious fabric. This view also shows the length and type of the fabric. If you then click through to the detail view there are many options such as a nickname, whether it’s prewashed, weight etc. There’s also a notes section for you to add any miscellaneous information such as project ideas or scratchiness (just me?).

Part of my feedback was that the options for the main fabric colour are limited, which is something Hélène is looking to improve on. I may have made matters trickier by trying to add bronze floral brocade as my first fabric…

What makes this app super useful though, is the filtering. There are loads of ways to filter your stash, such as knit, woven, prewashed or minimum length. You can also sort the list by length, nickname, price etc. Finally, there is a search function, which will search on any field.

You can download Cora from the app store and add five fabrics for free and then it’s a one off charge to upgrade to unlimited fabrics if you like what you see. It’s on 50% sale at £3.99 until 15th July, so get it while it’s hot! Sorry for posting this review so close to the deadline 😦 Better late than never? Android users, there is currently no app for you I’m afraid, but I believe Hélène is open to the idea of writing one if the iPhone one is a hit.

Worth noting that I received a free unlimited fabric upgrade for testing Cora, but opinions are my own and I wouldn’t have written this review if I didn’t genuinely think it was fab and recommend it wholeheartedly. Get your stash under control 🙂

Hi everyone, how has Me Made May been for you?

I’m very pleased to say I’ve kept up with my daily photos so far!  Follow me in Instagram if you want to be kept up to date. It has taken much of my blogging energy sadly, but I’m hoping to catch up with that soon enough. You might spot the odd spoiler here, but I’ve been keeping them to tantalising glimpses, haha! Without further ado, here’s my May in outfits so far:

As predicted, I found it a lot easier than last year with my much more handmade-heavy wardrobe. I’ve filled many wardrobe holes such as tops and jersey fabric. The photos have highlighted the lack of variety I have in my cardigans. I wear that blue one to death and I really need to make some in other colours. I have the Seamwork Wembley and Oslo cardigan patterns in the stash, so I just need to look out for the perfect fabric.

How excited are you for Sewing Bee on Monday?! Can’t wait 😀 Haven’t spotted any bloggers I recognise from the promotion photos, but I’ll be looking out for any new ones I need to follow. If anyone’s looking for a discussion forum then you should head over to The Fold Line, which is a great website if you haven’t heard of it. I’ve been looking there for all my Sewing Bee gossip 😉 They’ve also just released a GBSB guide for all the info you could possibly need.

For the rest of Me Made May I’ll be trying to dig out some items I haven’t worn in a while to make sure I get full mileage out of my me made wardrobe. I’m just too damn pleased with my Hawthorn Dress to take it off…