Lots of looking and lots of Liberty

Last week I spent a couple of days in London and although I did absolutely no sewing on train there or back, there was lots of sewing-related sight-seeing and shopping done.

First up was a trip the Wedding Dress exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The exhibition has dresses from 1775 to the current day but alas no photographs were allowed. The dresses were stunning and you could get close enough to see the details. It would have been interesting if the size of each gown was given as well as detail of the fabric and trim composition as some of the waists looked tiny! The exhibition runs until March 15th and there is a two-for-one offer if you travel by train.

Shopping was next on the list – first to Shaukat Fabrics for some Liberty Lawns. I’ve been to this shop before and so knew to expect a courteous rather than a friendly welcome. The staff are keen to offer prompt service which can curtail browsing time and the choice of fabrics is rather overwhelming so I don't think they realise that plenty of thinking time can be needed. I came away with a few half metre cuts from the roll and several of their remnants.

I think I saved the best to last as the final part of my trip was to the Liberty's itself. This was my first visit to the shop and I loved the quirkiness of it (though the words "How much ?!" were uttered on several occassions). Needless to say I spent most of my time in the fabric department and was delighted to find a sewing set in Mauverina, one of my favourite prints.

A couple more half metres of lawn were added to my fabric haul and the final purchase was a colourful Ianthe print notebook from the stationery department.

 Then all too soon it was time to head home with lots of memories and a few purple bags.