Out & About November 2017

OA feature

One of the advantages of living on a boat is that Sarah can go to different places, moor up and cycle into the nearerst town with examples of her creations. “I love making bags – tote bags, peg bags – something useful, which can have its own individual stamp or motif on it.

Sometimes I’m searching for something because I’ve been asked to make a skirt or a top and I know what sort of fabric I’m looking for – the colours, style etc – but other times I’ll pick an item up randomly and just know I can turn it in to something.” Sarah gets many bespoke orders and prefers making adult garments, even though her daughter is usually kitted out in one of her designs.

Sarah has set up a small work area for herself in the middle of the boat and explains that the one thing she can’t do so well in the space is highly- tailored clothes. “It’s partly the space, but also it’s the difficulty of pressing them. “Irons are a bit of an obsession of mine and I experiment with all sorts of vintage ones.” She gets out a tiny 1950s travel iron, which feels surprisingly heavy, certainly more so than many of the modern irons you can buy today. “This is my favourite. It is so compact and neat, but it works a treat.” What’s more, the electricity she uses for the irons and any other items on the boat is provided by solar power for eight months of the year. In the winter months they hook up to a generator. “I might be sewing away and then I realise that it’s a lovely bright day and get some washing in the machine.” When she’s sourcing her

“I’ll make those and sell them at vintage fairs.”

“I just love making skirts and dresses and tops. I’ll sell them at vintage

Sarah also keeps a blog of her activities. “I enjoy writing and so I thought it would be fun to

fairs or in individual boutiques

write about my life as a floating seamstress. “I get really good feedback and I think people like to hear about my experiences on the water. It’s such an

in the area.”

inspiring environment and I can happily lose myself hours sifting through fabric, sewing and writing.” You can find Foxy Lady creations on Facebook and Twitter or follow her blog http://foxyladycreations.blogspot.co.uk/

fabric does she have a design in mind, or does it depend on what she finds?

“It’s a bit of both really.

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