My non-quilt sewing plans for 2026

March 16, 2026

Last week for the second year in a row I shared my quilt plans for the year, and as having a focussed list worked well for me I’ve decided to take a similar approach for my non-quilt sewing, which isn’t that catchy a phrase is it, but I think it’s better than ‘other makes’ - I guess as I grow into this and settle into what it is, a better name may present itself.

So what’s on my list?

It’s long (no surprise there!) and varied and covers the expected pouches, plus some garments I’ve had on my mental list for a while, some things for around the house and a bag or two. But really, the opportunities are endless, as it seems, is my list…

1 Pouches

You knew these had to be on the list as I’ve not hidden my love for them. I’ve already made many and I will make more, but this year I want to make:

smaller pouches to hold jewellery, both for storage and when travelling,
more project bags, I have a lot of projects and ideas for projects which will benefit from being stored together,
new styles and shapes of pouches and
generally just more pouches!

2 A ‘take to’ sewing case

One of the things about going to my sewing and patchwork groups is the need to remember to take the right stuff, which sometimes I manage but quite often I don’t. So one of my specific makes for this year will be to make myself a ‘take to’ sewing case to hold the things I need, and for that to either have duplicates of items, or specific spaces for things so it’s easy to work out what I need to grab before I go.

I saw the kind of thing I was after in an email newsletter some time last year. I knew it was a project for me as not only did I print the pattern and buy the supplies I didn’t have (which have been patiently waiting for me to get started), but I also planned how I could customise it to work for me, that’s likely to include at least another pouch, and potentially a thread catcher too.

I have the perfect material, and even better it’s already in my stash - it came from India, and seemed to fall into my basket when I was buying some printing blocks, like these things do!

3 A bag or two, or more

While I’ve plenty of those now seemingly ubiquitous canvas tote bags, sometimes I want something just a bit nicer to carry with me, so tote bags are on my list for this year and no doubt in a variety of sizes.

Alongside the totes I’ve also a few more specific ideas on my mental list, these include:

storage bags for our garden cushions, though this could be a mammoth task as the number of cushions to store appears to be ever growing (plus I think I may need to make some more cushion covers as well),
that drawstring bag for my Essex Linen kisses colourwash picnic rug,
a better sized pie carrier,
something to store the jelly strainer and associated paraphernalia that’s prettier and more practical than the cardboard box it came in.

4 Experimental and sewing for fun

This comes from an observation from my sewing last year which was very structured and dominated by the ‘stretch’ project and mystery block of the month quilt, and also from a quilt show and stash sale I went to where permission was granted to ‘sew for fun’ and for there to be ‘no set rules.’ I’ve no real idea where this will take me by the year’s end, but initial thoughts include:

testing new blocks, processes and materials and hopefully making something with whatever I make - actually I’ve already been playing with this, so look out for a post hopefully later this week,
picking up again my ‘insect and gauze’ embroidery and finishing that - the name will become clear when I share more, I promise!

a slightly wacky idea for using my ‘leaders and Enders’* - though I’m sure this will be much later in the year, as I need to build up ‘stock’

*these are the pieces of fabric I use to start off sewing when piecing patchwork, which just make sewing more continuous than having to cut the thread each time.

5 Patchwork design boards

These may not involve a whole lot of sewing, but they will help me layout my patchwork blocks so they can be moved more easily. I also think they should be easy to do, so I’m not sure why I haven’t done these yet - apart from the fact that I’ve managed to store what I need for these outside of my craft room, so I think it’s a case of out of sight, out of mind.

6 Some practical household items

I know, but I’m hoping these won’t be as dull as I’ve just made them sound - on this list is recovering a headboard and making a doorstop from sample fabric.

7 Wearables

Now this is a big one, and I’ve squeezed it into a single heading which may come back to bite me when I come around to my regular updates, or maybe it won’t - we’ll see.

It’s also lengthy, and while I did make a dress last year I haven’t made many clothes, as yet. I do however keep buying material for clothes as if I’m an exclusive fashion house, so the sewing needs to start.

On my list to make is:

more versions of the dress I’ve already made, so far I’ve fabric for two denim dresses and one corduroy one, so that’s likely to keep me busy alone. But on the plus side I’ve already made one, so hopefully that will speed things along once I get started, and I do enjoy wearing the one I’ve made.
some wide legged culottes - at least one pair, especially now I have an invisible zipper foot after a sourcing saga.
a summer-weight dressing gown for both me and MOH using saris. I have the saris, and I’ve even cut mine out, I just need to get brave and start sewing.
I’ve a sundress pattern I want to try, as well as a dress with a frill - plus a more structured linen fitted dress, for when my skills have advanced.

I’ve also got a longer term wish to make myself a quilted jacket, but my list is already long and time is short, so who knows how far I’ll get. I most likely won’t get anywhere near to finishing this list, but then again the accountability a list gives me could be just what I need - along with some sewing bravery - hopefully once I start I’ll build some momentum.

I hope you’ll hang around to see how I get on as I share progress (or lack of) throughout the year.

Unearthing great gardening gear

March 13, 2026

* I was invited to the Garden Press Event, a one day show which connects garden product suppliers with garden media, therefore I’m marking this post as 'Ad’ though as usual my views and opinions are very much my own.

I always find this single day show a great event, and a good one to catch up with contacts and suppliers and to see what’s new and coming to garden centres near us this year. This year was no different though it was slightly surreal to arrive to hear the actor who played Carson in Downton Abbey pulling raffle winners, though on a par to having Jekka McVicar join where I was sitting last year to eat lunch.

But anyway, here’s some of the things that caught my eye this year:

HOZELOCK - WITH AN IMPRESSIVE METAL ‘TWIDDLY BIT’

I thought Hozelock’s development of adding a metal ‘twiddly bit’ or more boringly the function selector to a multi-function spray head was a great idea. It’s the bit that gets the most use, and I know it’s the bit that we most often replace through wear.

I was also intrigued by Pro-Grow’s Rockdust. Not only is it a great name, it’s descriptive too as the product does actually look like rock dust.

PRO-GROW’S ROCKDUST LOOKING LIKE ROCK DUST

It’s not just about the new products though, there’s plenty of inspiration on show from the sector’s big names - and on a dull February day it’s great to wander among such gardening displays, and be inside at the same time!

I saw plenty for my own garden too, and these Hex smokeless fire pits are top of my list. I love a firepit - they’re great to sit around, but I’m not so keen on the smell of smoke, or constantly having to move to avoid being in the direct line of said smoke, which always seems to follow me! We have a firepit but it’s larger than we need, so we were looking for something smaller.

I like these as they take real wood, rather than gel which we’ve seen before, and are small enough to be able to fit into a relaxed seating area. The only downside of these for me is that the patterned tops aren’t available in each colour. I preferred the design of the black top, but probably wouldn’t opt for that colourway. I’m not losing too much sleep over that at the moment though, as I think I’ve more to do before I get to firepit stage, but they are lovely and on my wish list.

This standalone solar standard exterior light on the Dobbies stand is also on my list. I like the idea of having an outdoor lamp, though of course it’d need to be pretty robust to withstand the wind on our patio, though with more planting we might be able to tame that a bit, or I’m hoping so anyway.

I also fell in love with the dinnerplate Dahlias and was promptly reminded to add dahlias to my ‘to plant’ list. Our nearest Dobbies is most probably Chesterfield or Derby, and we haven’t made it to a store yet, but in the hunt for that light that may just happen, and I may also just happen to wander past these at the same time.

The final thing that caught my eye as I wandered around this show was this vintage inspired metal seed chest. It looks great, is lockable and you can store it in a greenhouse or shed as it’ll keep your seeds safe from pests too. The compartments are seed packet sized and the month dividers are a whole lot more professional looking than my ‘old CDs with the month written’ on versions (though mine can also be repurposed as bird scarers if needed!)

I’ve a feeling that once I get my new greenhouse in place I’ll be hitting the Crocus website for some of their storage ideas, as well as the seed trunk above they’ve also got a compartmentalised wire bench top storage unit which looks right up my vintage inspired street.

Trying out Monty Miracle at home

One of the products I’d read about before the show was the Monty Miracle Outdoor Cleaner which launched in this smaller size, which covers up to 4 square metres, at the show. I was keen to learn more as the blurb said it could be used on any outdoor surface, including the coloured Indian sandstone which we have (which is the same as we laid in our London house and were keen to avoid in our new house, but never mind!) and which needed some attention after winter.

MOH cares for our patio and it’s a never ending job. This winter seems to have been especially bad for leaving black marks and for generally making the slabs look neglected, despite them being cleaned regularly (though obviously not over winter). Jet washing is a balance as it can be harsh on the surfaces, and so he too was keen to see if this lived up to the promises of being fast and effective. It’s claims are to be eco-conscious, and child and pet safe after rinsing, I think that’s the paving slabs not the child and pets to be clear.

As with trying any new product it’s always worth trying it out in a discrete area - luckily one of the corners of the path around our house is just that, and also pretty filthy. It’s also on MOH’s route out with his bike and he’s been saying how slippy it’s getting so it was worth a try. The instructions say to water any plant life before and after application, but as our test spot was next to the last remaining lavender that needed cutting, having missed out at the end of summer last year, it was a good prompt for me to give that a trim too.

As you can see from the before and after photos above, there’s a marked difference in the three slabs that he used as his test area (which was larger than I was expecting it to be). His verdict is that it cleans well, but does still need some brushing (or agitating as it says in the instructions) but that it’s good to see the results so quickly. Now he’s working out just how much he needs for the rest of the slabs we have and if that bottle will do it, or not. I’m pretty sure it won’t be enough so I’ll be ordering a 2litre container later!

Seeds, Rockdust and a crocheted keyring

I wasn’t expecting to leave the show with a crocheted vegetable that’s for sure, but I love my little mustard squash from FRÿD which is an app which aims to be the ultimate vegetable growing app. It’ll help you create tailored planting plans and get reminders when to sow, plant and harvest so could be invaluable for both new and seasoned growers.

I’ve a couple of packets of seeds from the show including some Dill from the new Gourmet Gardener range at Blue Diamond Garden Centres. Each pack of seeds unlocks a recipe online, for Dill it’s a Creamy Dill and Cucumber salad, the intro for this is printed on the inside of the seed packet, which while it makes sense from an eco-friendly point of view, it does mean to see it properly you need to dismantle the seed packet, which isn’t ideal.

SEEDS FROM THE GOURMET GARDENER, TAILORED PLANTING PLANS WITH HELP FROM FRŸD AND THEIR CROCHETED KEYRING, HERITAGE ‘LETTUCE EMERALD’ SEEDS FROM GARDEN ORGANIC AND MY ROCKDUST SAMPLE

The other pack of seeds I’m keen to try is the heritage seeds of ‘lettuce emerald’ by Garden Organic. It seems that I’ll be in good company as a parcel of seeds from the Garden Organic National Collection of Heritage Vegetables are also being grown at Highgrove. King Charles III has had a long association with them, expressing recently how important the work of the Heritage Seed Library is. He became patron of the organisation which later became Garden Organic some 45 years ago, when it was rescuing heritage vegetables because at the time all the old varieties were being thrown away and weren’t considered worthwhile, which to me today sounds a peculiar approach and it also goes to show that there were people, including the King, who were ahead of their time in areas such as these.

And then there’s the rockdust, which as you’ve seen above looks like dust from rock!

It’s purpose to remineralise our gardens and boost soil healthy ‘by adding macro and micro-nutrients that work with soil and compost biology’. It’s made from freshly crushed ancient volcanic rock which is a by-produce of UK quarrying, so it’s a waste product that’s actually good for our gardens.

With a new build garden I’m yet to really discover what state my soil is in, though I suspect it won’t be the most nutritious, but of course I could be wrong. But even so, the soil that’s currently covered in grass (and weeds) is likely to be an entirely different matter to the already existing beds, and I suspect that’s where my garden will get the most benefit. I only have a small sample, so how I use it will be limited but I’m keen to see how it affects my growing, and I’m hoping that it will do wonders as other gardeners have testified when they’ve used it in compost and top-dressing pots, with worms also loving it. It’s a case of watch this space, even if that’s a small space!

I love going along to this event as it covers the breadth of the gardening industry and it’s great to get insights into what’s coming into the garden centres we love to visit, but also to see the thinking and hear about the research and development for the products in the early stages of their journey to market. Plus the inspiration for my own garden and the opportunity to try some products I might not see any other way, and it becomes one of those rare inspirational and educational days I don’t want to miss.

Post Comment Love 13 - 15 March

March 13, 2026

Hello there, welcome to this week’s #PoCoLo - a relaxed, friendly linky which I co-host with Suzanne, where you can link any blog post published in the last week. We know you’ll find some great posts to read, and maybe some new-to-you blogs too, so do pop over and visit some of the posts linked, comment and share some of that love.

Please don’t link up posts which are older as they will be removed, and if you see older posts are linked then please don’t feel that it’s necessary to comment on those. If you were here last week it was great to have you along, if you’re new here we’re pleased you’ve joined us.

This past week it’s been time to say goodbye to our old and well-used sofa. I’d arranged for our local council to collect it and to be fair it was easy enough; we paid, booked a date and then needed to leave it on the boundary of our property by 6am on the day of collection. So that meant hefting it outside just before it got dark the night before, I’m not a morning person and even if I was I wouldn’t want to have missed them by a small margin.

As it turned out though it wasn’t collected until the afternoon, so for the day we were at risk of lowering the tone of the neighbourhood! I’m sure people realised it was out for collection, and I’m glad it was collected as planned, but even so it was a sorry sight and a sorry end for a sofa that we worked out we’d had since 2018, but it’s also now past its best so it was time!

Have a great week.