Wednesday, May 25, 2011

WIP Wednesday

Things I am working on:

1. Getting a second job. This has made progress, and I have an interview Friday afternoon! For another place in town. It's still part time, but almost full time- from 9 to 4 Monday to Friday. SO that kind of blows, but it pays better and will be so much easier than my busser job. I am still deciding if I want to keep working at the restaurant and how much I want to do so. I can make both, but a day would be from 9 to 4 and then walk to next job (eat while I walk?) from 5 to close, usually around 11 or midnight.

2. The big blue and green quilt. Stalled because 1st I wanted to work on dress patterns and then I am just stalled. The last two days, I've had work, before that parties and tired and I can only squeeze in sewing time after 10 pm until it gets too noisy.

3. Stop stressing out. Hard when I have a lot to stress out over, in that poor post college kid way! I was freaking out about my roommate and all her crap still lying around for WEEKS now. Seriously. Three to five weeks. I can't deal. My boyfriend thinks it won't help any to freak out, she'll just "look down on me" but I am about to go freaking crazy. Okay. I can't even start talking about it again. phew.

4. Dresses! I have the muslin for the Simplicity junior halter pinned and marked after first fitting but not refitted. I have the fabric for it! Did myself a small indulgence and bought a few fabric clearance items plus notions and thread. It was from fabric.com, which gives free shipping over $35, and I spent $37 and change. Not bad if you figure I probably would have dropped at least $20 on a NICE dress that fit me. The fabric for the dress is royal blue poly satin, and it -is- a bit cheap feeling, but as long as no one touches my dress or peers too closely at my clothing I think it'll be fine. I am a little scared of how much it'll pucker in the machine!

5. Grad school. Sent email reminders to professors around May 18. No response from one, JUST got a response today from the other saying he'll get it in the mail... ugh. But maybe I'll still get into LaSalle. That was not my first choice, though.

In other news there was a super cute little Asian or hapa girl at the restaurant (I think her name is Avery), I am pretty sure she's been there before, and a TINY two week old baby girl. Named Emory and seriously TINY.

awww.

claudia

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

It's been rainy and I've been sewing!

I've been scheduling a couple of hours of sewing after Dan goes to work and before I decide that it's really late and I ought to sleep. I haven't made sleeping early that much of a priority this week, since I don't have anything planned for the daytime- good thing too since it's been so rainy- until Commencement on Friday. And that doesn't really involve any effort on my part, just watching and cheering! It may be rainy, so I might be watching it on a screen in a room somewhere other than the auditorium/gym, unfortunately (I didn't ask for tickets from my friends, since that should go to their families). Friday night there's a party.
On to the sewing! Also, a blog I read- way more popular than mine and for good reason- is Adventures in Dressmaking, who is hosting a giveaway! So if you've stumbled on my blog somehow go check that out:
http://www.adventuresindressmaking.com/2011/04/new-sponsor-giftcard-giveaway.html

So far, after unearthing the Simplicity Juniors pattern that I made once in high school- just the tissue, no instructions or pattern envelope- and tracing that pattern onto the back of gift wrapping paper, I've made a muslin from part of an old bedsheet. This bedsheet has been used up for scraps, once to strain chicken broth, and once made into an entirely different dress- that I loved, but only managed to wear once and grew out of. It was tight even then, and had been hacked together from a pattern that was MUCH too large for me.

And yet.. it fits! I'm not the size that it says a Junior 9/10 is, and while it has ease it's kind of weird how well it looks like this is going to fit. The only problem? The bust is HUGE. comically huge. Dan said it looked like something his mom might wear. Note that his mom had and nursed four children. We don't have the same body. She is a very lovely woman but she is not a Junior size 9/10! What's funny is the bodice back seems like a totally normal fit, from side seam to center back. So Simplicity was planning on teenage girls with melon-ball implants, or something!

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Today was a varied internet day.

I stayed inside again all day today, even though the sun was strong and shining and I really did consider going outside.. maybe finding that park again and bringing the jump rope I just bought. But since I woke up past 1 PM, I felt sort of lethargic much of the day and then it was time to cook dinner. Haha! Excuses! and it's still nice outside, but I have to watch the kitchen to make sure the cats don't eat the food and Dan should be awake soon. 
Today I was on the internet a bunch and read through a lot of sewing blogs, many new to me found through old favorites. I am really into sewing some clothes but, for someone who has so much time in the day, I don't seem to find the right times to sew. The only solution I can really think of is to move my whole sewing table out to the living room. I think this would be a big mess- and the cats!! So it's not really a solution. However, Dan is asleep during the day so I can't sew then and by the time he leaves, I'm usually not up to do any sewing right away, then I get worried that it's too late and the neighbors will be kept awake- especially with less background noise to drown out the machine. But! The other day Dan wandered in to ask what I was doing and said he couldn't hear the machine in the living room at all, so I might try it tonight.
I have a few patterns printed out from Burdastyle online and I unearthed the first commercial pattern (and to date, the only commercial pattern that fit) I ever used, to make a dress to wear on stage for my school's talent show. I wanted to sing Minnie the Moocher and vintage fashion was limited to rockabilly and swing cultures, expensive custom or vintage dresses online that my mother wouldn't have ever let me spring for, and of course, home sewists! I don't have that dress any more (to be honest, I didn't even do a great job and the fabric was some smooth but itchy stuff probably better reserved for curtains), but I found out I still have the pattern- Simplicity 4560. Unfortunately it's a Junior size pattern up to a size 9/10, and while I probably would have fit the Junior size 14 it's going to need some work. I think I can do it though!
I was also inspired by seeing the Givenchy couture Spring 2011 and Philosophy Spring 2011 collections (here: http://www.style.com/fashionshows/review/S2011RTW-PHILOSOP). Very Asian influences.
And I spent several hours reading about what it's like have a baby with a tracheotomy, as well as packing up your whole life only to unexpectedly pack it back again: http://trachties.blogspot.com/
I am also digging the idea of a scallop hem skirt, as well as sewing my own sun hat and a raincoat made of Tula Pink's large raindrop print laminate from her new Prince Charming line, and making little handles or a small pocketed potholder for our new cast iron pan.

Speaking of which! Dan and I walked to the hardware store in Ambler (it's adorably old fashioned) and Dan bought one. I used it for the first time today- the first time I've ever used a cast iron pan- and so far so good! I am excited. It's also the only pan we have now that is safe to go in the oven. So many recipes I put off because you had to go from stovetop to oven.. now I can do! I just can't remember any of them. Haha!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Cough cough quitling

I seem to battling bronchitis (self diagnosed from WebMD). On the downside it means I probably have another week or two of coughing, and these things are usually viral. On the plus side I can stop gargling salt water and I have the hope it will be gone in a few weeks (no insurance and no doctor!). But I have work tonight- if it's not busy I can probably go home early! and yet.. I could use the money.

Anyways I am putting all that worrying aside and doing two things today: cleaning up the kitchen, and studying for my last exam tomorrow. And reading quilt blogs. I pulled out my giant blue and green quilt that I started last year, and have been sewing in little stretches when Dan isn't asleep or I don't think it's too late to sew. This doesn't happen often, but I have found time here and there. I'm pretty bored of the patchwork stage right now, which is too bad since I know piecing is my favorite part of quilting. Also, not being able to decide on a single fabric for the back (and knowing it wouldn't fit in my machine), I have a variety of skinny 1/4 yards that will make up the back. I think I'll have to cut up the batting and quilt rows of the patched squares onto the skinny yards, then attach those to each other. This might be cost-beneficial since 2 smaller packages of batting costs less than one large one (like, two twin size sheets are usually less than one king). My other problem, which I haven't really faced, is that the squares are larger than the skinny quarters. It will take some creative wrangling!