Winter weight Blue leggings and a baselayer top.

These are the blue leggings I made months ago before my operation. They are to match my patchwork Geodesic sweatshirt. I also made a rainbow pair that are very similar but I nver got round to wearing these ones until now. In fact its my first time wearing them when these photos were taken. Second time wearing for the baselayer top below. I like them, they work.

I knitted the jumper a few years ago after trashing the first version ( which was blue) by washing in a washing machine. Never again will I do that despite the machine apparently has a hand wash function.

They are french terry so very warm for winter next to the usual activewear or cotton lycra leggings. They do contain lycra. Having made several pairs of joggers, children's clothes and dresses from very similar fabric, I am confident they will keep in shape when worn so I finally decided to go for it and make some interesting winter weight leggings.

I actually have a few metres of another two french terry fabrics which I am now considering for a couple of other pairs because two pairs is not enough. I do have a pile of plain black RTW french terry leggings but they are a bit boring when you can have something like these. The black work great for work but right now I am not working so should make the most of it because it cannot go on for much longer. Unfortunately I am not rich so I do need to work. 

The fabric has metallic gold flecks and is quite unusual. Pound Fabrics still sell this so I may have to buy some more. It was a surprise when it arrived because although it is described as gold I never expected the metallic type. I though it would be a browny yellow. Its very nice!

Not sure if you can tell its metalic by these photos. Waistband is just black ribbing and standard sewn in elastic so it won't flip over and be annoying. Bound inside and out ( as in turned over twice) because thats more comfortable.

Hopefully I will get time ( and space!) to cut some new ones out of the French terries I have. Winter has become very cold the last few days. We even got some snow yesterday and today is freezing and frosty.  

As is usual I don't get much sewing time or sewing space to enable sewing for the Christmas break but now New Year is out the way I really need to decide on what I am doing sewing wise for 2026. In all honesty I have been too busy to make such decisions until now but hopefully over the next coming week I will get some time to do this. 

Normally the aims are done around New Year but I really have not had time, though I have a ton of ideas. I do find that having my ideas and aims written down does keep me on track. I made more the years I did a plan, than the years I did not bother, so its something I really need to spend a day or so doing. Hopefully that will be the next blog post. I prefer to do this sooner rather than later. It keeps me motivated.

I have managed one top during the holiday period. I decided this very thin synthetic fabric was perfect for a baselayer and yes, it works as well as a RTW baselayer top I bought which cost 10 times as much (£20 when this cost me about £2 including the thread to sew it up! I used the pixie top pattern I like because its quite close fitting without being tight and yes this works, though my overlocker didn't like sewing this at all. Too thin I think. I left the hem edges just as overlocking but they would be better as a rolled edge next time.

Ignore the broken hoover please. Certain small people seem to want to keep it to play with and my other half allowed it. It was meant to go to the recycling centre before Christmas but we had tears, and its ended up staying in the garden for the kids. Its the upright part only. The rest has thankfully been disposed of. It does no harm, just makes our garden look messy. They will tire of it soon so I can "disappear it" then. 

I have a second top cut but yet to sew  that one, so I might attempt that one using my Janome rather than my Brother and see if it sews easier on that machine. I will let you know how that goes at some point. The fabric was £1/m so very cheap but its perfect for a baselayer. I previously made two nighties from it.

Thank you for popping by my blog. Have a great week and a happy and prosperous 2026.

Take care

Bracken 

French Terry rainbow leggings

When I made my Geodesic patchwork top I also made two pairs of cotton french terry leggings. This fabric has lycra in it. When I first used it to make several sweatshirts and dresses I did not trust this though so I never made leggings. However as time went by I also made some baby clothes and clothes for small kids as well as joggers and I realised they none of them seem to get "knees" in them so the lycra must work.

So, I have decided this winter to see how making leggings from this fabric really works. They are obviously much warmer than normal cotton lycra or performance fabric but these fabrics are all pretty "cold" to wear in winter at least here in the UK where its usually wet and often also freezing. Or at least you feel chilly when you wear these and I am sick to death of tracksuits after being in recovery for the last couple of months so I need a change. I can't wait to be able to comfortably wear something else but that's not just yet. A friend of mine who is Polish told me she hates the rain here. In Poland apparently its cold and damp in winter but rains much less. It did rain when I visited Poland, but since I never lived there and was only there a couple of weeks in the middle of winter, I cannot honestly comment if this is true but it would not surprise me, because we do get loads of rain and I know where my brother lives in Provence he gets much more snow in winter but much less rain and he has very hot summers which we only get occasionally. Actually I would like more snow and less rain!

Anyway these leggings are an experiment. I made two pairs. One in this red colour ( well its red next to the blue fabric!). And one in the same blue I used for the top I made. 

his then gives me a nice new look for winter. The leggings so far are warm. I assume if it snows I will still feel cold but they are warmer than I usually wear. They will be a good base layer under snow trousers too. I tend to store my leggings over winter or wear just under skirts instead of tights so this is a new winter look for me. If these work well next spring I intend to make lots of french terry leggings for the following winter. 

I am not sure if I mentioned I have tried to take a new stance when I sew. I am hoping to make next summer's clothing this winter and then the winter clothes next summer. It really does not work well making things for "now" because by the time I finish them the weather often changes. I am sure it will not stop the odd seasonal make but this is my new way to sew. I will see how it works once I can actually sew again. 

Mind you today for the first time I managed to get a pair of leggings on so that's good news and means I am getting back to normal. I still cannot reach to wash my foot at the end of the operated hip/leg! Its so frustrating! I tried in the shower and in the bath. Just cannot do it!

A friend said recently "its just downhill from here on in". I do hope she is wrong! Mind you some people only see the bad things in life. I am hoping to fully recover. I managed it last time so this should be similar.

Back to this outfit. I have yet to try on my new blue leggings. I made both just before the operation, so never got photos, but hopefully over the next few days I will get some. 

These are just my usual TNT patterns McCall's 6173. 

I have several other leggings patterns but decided to stick with basic for these because I need to know this fabric works before its worth fiddling matching up pieces of more colour-block types of patterns. If they do work then I have a bin liner full of bits to play with later for some real multi-coloured versions. Basic first though. Also this is an outfit and I really like that because I am not going straight back to work like usual, but taking a short break and that means just for a little while I am truly the authentic me. That's nice and not something I am honestly able to say when I am working. 

And these items will work great for Autumn layering:

You will have to ignore the slippers. I am having some problems getting shoes on right now so do not unless strictly necessary.

What I have been up to in place of my sewing is buying lots of fabric online. 

Well what else do you do when you have to sit still for days and days? 

I will try to catalogue it for you soon and show what I have bought and what I intend to do with it. A bit like at New Year I usually have some kind of aims and plans. Well right now my head is buzzing with ideas. 

Though I probably have more fabric than I should have bought but its very nice and I actually bought fabric with a definite intentions this time. Usually I random buy, stash, then try to work out what to make later. This time I sat down with my Burdas and some Knipmodes and I planned. 

I even recorded in a notebook where to find what I want and how much fabric I need! 

Organised or what!

I then made a list and bought specific fabric for what I want to make. Some of this has been on my to-make list for years and I now have the correct fabric types to get this done. 

I will have to do this as a separate post because its going to take me a while, but I do want to share this. There are some lovely fabrics around right now at good prices too. I have waited since 2015 to find some at decent prices so I will get on with this over the next few days.

In the meantime have a great week and thanks for visiting,

Bracken