Hi pinups! When I found out my home town Shrewsbury was getting an Abakhan shop, it was the most exciting news about a new shop opening in the town for ages! Finally, something I could get on board with. After shopping online with Abakhan on multiple occasions and seeing the chatter about the physical stores on social media, I knew this was going to be dangerous for my fabric stash (and bank balance). The shop has been open a few months now, and I wasn't wrong!

For this post, I've teamed up with Abakhan to create a Spring sewing project, with supplies from the Shrewsbury store! I spent so long in the shop on this occasion, there are some really gorgeous fabrics in store at the moment, it was hard to choose. Although a few of the fabrics I discovered on the day are still in my thoughts, so I think I'll be popping in again soon to see if they're still there.


At the time, the sun was shining and Spring was in the air, so I've been a bit premature with my Spring sewing (oops). I couldn't resist the Simplicity 8637 wrap dress pattern, featuring the most beautiful looking flounce skirt.

Here's a peek at the pattern:


Whilst I know I've sewn my fair share of wrap dresses, I'm yet to successfully tackle a flounce skirt (I had a couple of issues with the dress in THIS post), and I thought the 8637 would be a great 'round 2'. Paired with a light and floral viscose fabric with the most beautiful colour palette, which I found in the fabric by the weight section in the shop.



Shopping fabric by the weight in Abakhan:

As someone who was new to shopping in the fabric by the weight section at Abakhan, at first I was a little confused as what that meant. I didn't realise you could get the fabric cut to your length (as long as you leave 1m behind), on my first shopping trip I ended up with a rather embarrassing amount of metres, but the price was so good I didn't question it!

1. Rummage around the fabric by the weight section, find some fabric you love and make note of the price by the kilo.

2. Find the scales on the shop floor or at the till point and weigh your fabric to find out the price.

3. Have your fabric cut to length, as long as you leave 1m behind. Simple!



Lets get into the sewing! The Simplicity 8637 is a simple pattern to sew, the bodice is lined which I didn't realise at the time but I prefer to wear a slip under thinner dresses, especially wrap dresses like this, so I decided to create a facing instead. I also wasn't keen on the sleeve options the pattern had, so I switched them for the flounce sleeves of the Simplicity 8608 pattern, which I've pinched a few times as I love them so much. I also thought these would give the dress some balance with the flounce on the skirt.


The sewing on this pattern is pretty straight forward, the only thing that I found confusing was all the flounce pattern pieces for the skirt which resulted in some unpicking as I stitched one the wrong way round! Hemming the flounce took a little extra concentrating too as you're sewing a curve, but with a bit of patience I got there in the end. I started with a rolled hem foot, but I gave up with that pretty quickly and opted to overlock the edges and turn them up. Lots of pins and ironing! I love the result as it's so fun to wear.


I do have some fit issues with this dress which I'm a little annoyed about. With Simplicity, I'm usually the same size every time so I went ahead with my usual. This bodice is a little long in the body for me and small across the bust and doesn't provide me with as much coverage as other patterns. Next time, I think I would just switch the bodice for one I know fits me better at the front or add a little extra to the pattern on the neck edge. Doing full bust adjustment to the front darted bodice would also be a way to solve this in the future. Other than that, this dress is a swishy dream and it's nothing a busy print and a safety pin can't fix/hide!




Overall, I really like this dress, but it's such a shame it's too small across the bust. I'll happily wear a slip underneath like in this post because that skirt is too good not to swish in! I love this pattern and can see myself making it again, but I'd switch the bodice for one I know fits me better/has a bit more coverage. Although I've made a lot of wrap dresses and flounce sleeves recently (I'm obsessed and they're so comfy to wear), maybe I should branch out next though! I've had this dress hanging up in the bedroom on display since I made it, the floral print on the fabric is so beautiful I can't bring myself to put it away in the closet just yet as it makes the room feel like summer!

If you're local to an Abakhan shop or Shrewsbury, come and visit the shop for yourself and find some fabric gems! I love digging through the fabric by the weight sections as there's always something buried in there - I don't think I've ever left the shop empty handed! Check out what's coming up in store at Abakhan Shrewsbury HERE.

Have you ever visited an Abakhan shop? What do you think?

Thanks for reading, pinups!
Abi xo

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Hi pinups! It's time for my second What I've Been Loving... post this year and what a weird month February was. The weather felt like Spring and it completely flew by! I dabbled in some eager Spring sewing and fell in love with the Myosotis dress pattern and plotted some lighter weight Spring knits with some aran weight yarn. I've sure got lots to keep me busy in March and my sew-jo (and knit-jo) is in full swing.

Thanks for reading, pinups!
Abi xo

Hi pinups! Today we're talking all about cross stitch to celebrate the launch of my brand new Crafty Pinup Sewing Machine Cross Stitch kit! I've always enjoyed cross stitch and I thought my sewing machine design (seen HERE as an enamel pin) would translate well into a cross stitch design. Mine's hanging up on my peg board in my sewing space, which you've probably already spotted if you follow me over on Instagram!


In this post, I've written my full 'how to' guide on simple cross stitching to make sure you end up with an awesome cross stitch you'll be proud to hang up!

To buy my Sewing Machine Cross Stitch kit, go HERE or to download my PDF pattern go HERE.

Before you start:

• Each square on the grid represents a single cross stitch.
• Each symbol indicates a different thread colour, outlined in the table below the pattern.
• The arrows on the pattern indicates the centre of the design.

• The thread sorter contains all the thread you need to complete the design. Always put your thread back on the sorter in the correct place, as you may need it at a later point.
• Each embroidery thread comes in 6 threads. but only 3 strands will be used for each cross stitch. Split each piece of thread by carefully pulling it apart into 3 threads.
• To ensure you don’t run out of thread, don’t leave a tail longer than 1”.
• It’s helpful to find the centre of your fabric before you start, to ensure your cross stitch is central. This is indicated on the pattern where the two arrow lines cross.
• Place your fabric between the hoops & tighten at the top so your fabric is pulled nice and taut, like a drum.
• Thread the needle with your starting colour. You will secure this thread by keeping your finger pressed on the loose tail at the back of your work and stitching over it whilst you work your first few stitches. Repeat this for each time you thread your needle.

I hope you've found my how to cross stitch guide helpful. There's lots of resources online about cross stitch but in my post I've broken down my own preferred way to stitch, with what I hope are some clear photographs for you to reference.

If you try out my Sewing Machine Cross Stitch, which is also perfect for beginners, I'd love to see your progress and finished work hanging up in your own sewing space! Please tag me on Instagram @craftypinup and use my hashtag #craftypinupshop so I can see and share your makes.

Thanks for reading, pinups!
Abi xo