Like many people, when I saw Meg McElwee’s new book Growing Up Sew Liberated  I just knew it had to be mine.  Indeed it has not disappointed, there are so many projects I want to have a crack at and lots of helpful information on things like using knit fabrics, something I’ve always steered clear of.  But Huwyl needed some pj pants and the Sleeping Johns pattern looked ideal.  I shortened the pattern to a 3/4 length for these summer months.  The instructions made it all as easy as pie and in no time at all Huwyl had two pairs of jersey shorts.

The fabric was actually given to me last year by my lovely pal Emmanuelle, so by the time I’d made two pairs of shorts the book was paid for!  Yes that is the kind of economic genius that has made me the powerhouse of mathematics I am today.

There is only one teeny snag with these pants…I can’t convince Huwyl to take them off and only wear them at night.  They are now ‘pixie pants’ and also ‘yoga pants’ which should explain the following photos.

The poses were totally his own idea, even the solemn face which disappeared the moment the camera clicked and he started laughing and insisting on seeing the picture straight away.  That boy of mine really is totally hat stand.

There must have been a bit of a red vibe in the house because my other project today was making strawberry and apple jam.  I made a double batch of plain strawberry last week but came across this recipe for a strawberry and apple version.  I thought the apple might make it a bit more of a set jam (which is the case) but I was happily surprised by how utterly delicious it is.  The apples really do add an extra something and the jam has lots of body and good depth of flavour.  If you’ve got some strawberries to use up I’d highly recommend having a try.

I made a couple of amendments to the original recipe, being lazy I didn’t bother with the whole seeds in muslin thang and just used bottled lemon juice.  My fruits were not really perfect either, some of my strawberries bordered on squishy and the apples had been in the fridge for a while.  From such humble beginnings were born an addictive jam which is rapidly becoming a favourite.  I see a final visit to the strawberry patch in my near future.

Now I just have to find a way to hide it from the children…