February makes

It’s been another busy month here at Mint Button HQ, so I thought I’d share some of the projects I have been working on!

My first finished project in February was this pair of Named Clothing Ninni Culottes. I’ve made them once before in a woven fabric and I had a sudden brainwave that they would be perfect for my final cut of merino jersey! I was very pleased to find that I had enough yardage, so I popped the fabric in the pre-wash and got cracking. They’re easy-peasy to sew and didn’t take long to make, and I absolutely love how they turned out – super swishy, super comfy and just generally lovely to wear. We’ve booked flights to Australia to see my dad later in the year, so I’m already planning a trip to The Fabric Store in Sydney to stock-up on more merino!

I’ve been on a bit of a bag sewing crusade this month! I started with two versions of the Merchant and Mills Francli Pocket Bag (you can see my denim version worn with my Ninni culottes) and then I made this cute little envelope bag. It’s the second project I have finished from my #MakeNine2026 plans – the Sew Liberated Missive Bag. I had a lovely time playing with my Ruby Star Society scraps to crumb-quilt the fabric for the outer bag, and the construction was really fun too – a very satisfying sew all round! I wanted a little bag for my phone and keys for when it’s warm enough to walk without a coat, and this is going to be perfect.

On my knitting needles this month is the Petite Knit Eva Cardigan. My husband bought me the yarn for this project for my birthday in May last year, and I’m pleased to have finally cast it on! I’ve almost finished knitting the body, then I need to knit the sleeves and the neckband/button placket and it will be finished! I’m hoping to get it ready to wear to The Stitch Festival at the end of March. I visited the Unravel Festival of Yarn earlier this month and bought some beautiful wool for a few more projects, including two more sweaters, so I’m all set for the rest of the year!

I was also lucky enough to take a trip down to Rye last week to pop in and see some of my Sew Over 50 friends on retreat at Merchant and Mills! This is an experience that is firmly on my bucket list, and as soon as the bulk of the work is finished on our house, I’m going to save up and make it happen. I got a gift voucher from The Sewing Space for my Christmas present, so I bought some cotton/linen gingham ready to make another project on my #MakeNine2026 – the Spaghetti Western Willa Shorts – thank you, Claire!

I have now cut into this beautiful stack of fabric and started my Repair Quilt, which will be hung in our hallway once it is completed. I have almost finished making the 16 blocks and I have scheduled in a full day of sewing this Saturday to get the top assembled – I can’t wait! I’ll pick up some backing and wadding when I am next working at Hometown, then I can drop everything off with my lovely long-armer, John.

I am on-track with my reading goal of one book a month, and February’s title was The 30g Plan by Emma Bardwell. After having a frozen shoulder for 8 months last year, I worked with a health and fitness coach for 10 weeks to lose a little bit of weight and build-up my strength again. We increased the amount of protein in my diet significantly and I have really seen the benefits, so I bought this book to learn more about the science behind it. There are lots of fantastic recipes included and I’m looking forward to trying more of them once our kitchen build is finished. On that note…

Work started this week and the dividing wall between the original kitchen and dining room has already been demolished! I’m so grateful for my completely separate sewing studio – I can hide out here away from the dirt and noise while I work and stitch, so expect a lot of finished projects in my March blog post!