I wasn't here because I was there - beach dress and shorts

*** don't expect much sewing related stuff, because, well, SUMMER ***

THERE being BBK Live in Bilbao.

BBK Live is a 3-day festival in Bilbao. We only went the first day and we saw Editors, Depeche Mode and Biffy Clyro -the fact that the latter sing in an adorable Scottish accent doesn't hurt, neither does the fact that they almost always have no shirt on and they look like genuine badboys. (All links go to recordings of their performances on BBK Live) 

3 bands that are absolutely a must-see! And combine great music with a beautiful scenery -the festival grounds are set on top of a mountain overlooking the city centre of Bilbao, sporting a great view of the Guggenheim Museum- and you have a spectacular summer outing...

But I'm not just mentioning the festival because I had a lot of FUN there -Kalimotxo anyone? Trust me, it tastes better than it sounds- I also wore a Me-Made dress.

*** Warning *** There are NO serious pictures of this dress, just pictures of me having fun...

I won't go into too much details about the dress. It's a jersey dress that came together easily, made from a fabric I had in my stash since my London fabric-binge last year, that always was destined to become a summer dress. The pattern is from Knipmode, a Dutch sewing magazine, from a special knits-only issue.

Picture with the least 'dance' moves involved

 

On the front bodice there are five pleats that give the dress an interesting detail.  The hem is unfinished. I asked my husband to cut the dress to the desired length and that was it. I did try to hem it, but couldn't get a straight cut, so called in my helper. If you look closely, you can see he never paid much attention in pre-school, because the cuts are really jagged, but I'll leave it as is, because the hem has the tendency to curl, so it's not really obvious...

THERE also being the Pyrenees in the Spanish Comunity of Aragón.

We went for 4 days to the mountains, and it was breathtakingly beautiful! 

We didn't just hang out by the lake, we also went for a walk in the National Park of Ordesa and Monte Perdido. There are a lot of possible walks there, but we decided on the 14k-walk (7 one way) that goes past a few impressive waterfalls and through a forest of beeches. 

Ever seen a tree grow out of a rock?

 WATERFALLS!

I have always found a rainbow in a waterfall something magical.

And for the sewing part of the journey? 

I made shorts a few weeks ago with summer in mind. I made the pattern before, in a winter version. It is Burda 05/2012/#121A. The fabric comes from the tiniest fabric store in Corales de Buelna, a very small town -if you can even call it that- here in Cantabria. The fabric is a sheer yellow gingham cotton. I used leftovers from Ward's dressy shirt for the facings and the pockets. I added the folds at the hem because I felt the short was too long, they are intended as beach shorts. Because the fabric is so sheer, you really see the facings, which has a really ugly effect... If I ever make them again (and I probably will, I like the shape of the pants) I'll make a full lining, change the in-seam pockets for sew-on pockets and relocate the zipper to the side seam.

These pictures don't focus on the shorts and that's ok, because nothing can beat nature when it comes to awesomeness...

Talking to a tree?

And THERE also being my own town, where the Semana Grande began yesterday. 10 days of music, food, drinks, street animation and other activities - huge fireworks on the beach 24th of July and an ABBA cover band 25th of July amongst other things.

Opening ceremony in front of Townhall

Fireworks in broad daylight? Must be Spain! (Love it!)

Next time there will be more sewing stuff, but one has to know how to prioritize... And right now that is enjoying summer with my family and friends. And watch the live footage of the enthronement of the new Belgian King Phillipe tomorrow.

Do you guys have any fun things planned for summer? How do they celebrate summer where you live?