Shorts

I made the first pair of shorts EVER that fit, look polished, and were made from scraps and cost me next to nothing. I really like them. I used a cotton plaid from my stash as a muslin and sewed them over a couple of weeks. It wasn't that they are that hard, but I really was putting in crazy hours at work and had to do what I could do in the time I had available to do it. I think they look pretty good. I have a royal t-shirt that works perfectly with the plaid.

The pattern:  Simplicity 1808.

My First Teddy Bear

I joined an online site called Pattern Review. Sewers of all levels share their love of sewing from all over the world. It is amazing to me how much so many different people have in common. I am quickly becoming addicted to the website.

Anyway, they are currently running a contest titled One Yard Challenge. The idea is to sew an item using more than 1/2 and no more than 1 yard of fabric. I decided to make a teddy bear though I have never made a stuffed anything in my life. Here's my final result:

I used fabric scraps from my scrap bag. I had 1 piece 22" x almost 45" and a second double scrap of 7" x 12". The free downloadable pattern came from an online website. I chose to not add the 1/4" seam allowances, making a slightly smaller bear than the pattern was designed for. When I almost had him completely done, I realized that I ran out of fiberfill. To stay with the" use up the scraps" theme, I took apart an old pillow to have some of the fiberfill.

I think he needs something else, but I can't figure out what that something is. A bow tie, t-shirt, or vest might be a nice added touch. I can't decide. So I put him up on the top of my plant shelf to watch him for awhile. I know the right accessory with come to me, I just need to step away and quit thinking about it.

I wore my tunic today!

Here's my Butterick 5644 tunic. We went to an outdoor wedding today and I decided this would be a perfect look. Very comfortable and causal.

Currently, I am having a horrible time. I started a pair of shorts using Simplicity 1808. To start, the pattern was improperly printed and very difficult to make any sense out of. Second, I had to make several adjustments. I used a size 14 to fit my hips properly (based on the finished measurements) but that made the waist too small. Rather than adjust the waist and leave the pleats in, I opted to take the pleats out. Unfortunately, I forgot to make the same adjustment on the belt and the facing. I cannot believe how totally stupid I can be sometimes!! Then, when I finally got to the part where I could put in the elastic and actually do some fitting, I didn't have the right size elastic. I had every size you could think of, but not 3/4".

So, I opted to begin a teddy bear made of scraps. I finished the head last night and started on the body today. The arms were really difficult, but I finally figured them out. I started to stuff the body and realized I didn't have enough polyester fiberfill to complete the project. I'm going to have to go back to Joann's tomorrow and get some more fiberfill.

Maybe, now that I have the elastic I could at least run it through the casing a call it quits for tonight.

Sewing Stash

It has been forever since I last blogged. As you can guess, my sewing plans derailed last year. I quit a job, started a new job working night shift, and continued my consulting on the side. Hours were long; sleep was fast, and there was little time for sewing or doing much else. Now, I am back on the day shift, working banker's hours (sorta), and starting to sew again along with a dozen other activities.

My first major accomplishment has involved the WOC Nurse Society. I became a member last July and will be attending their national conference in Charlotte, NC this coming June. I am really excited since this is my first national convention with this organization. One of the vendors is sponsoring a walking activity, and I decided to participate. Since Feb. 22, I have walked over 1.1 million steps and have earned a couple of prizes. I am so proud of myself--it hasn't been easy. I had tendonitis and nerve impingement in my left foot when I started, so I began slowly. The contest ends May 18, and I know I won't win. Currently I am in 6th place, but that's OK. Better 6th than not at all.

I have re-organized my sewing storage closet and realize that I have a ton of fabric. Now I know I should get rid of most of it, but I originally bough it because I like it and guess what--I still like most of what I have; I just have too much. I have decided to sew up my stash. I have made 1 shell, 1 tunic, and 1 sundress for a total use of 5 yards of fabric!! Unfortunately, I bought 3 more yards of knit yesterday to make outfits to wear to the convention. I promised myself to sew more of my stash before buying, but the fabric was so pretty and a pattern/ fabric currently in style. I could not stop myself!


 Here is my pink cotton top made from Simplicity pattern 2938, I liked the sleek look on the pattern and really envisioned this to be a dress. However, once cut out and basted together, it doesn't resemble the pattern at all. The have to have cut it smaller or clothes pinned the back to make it that snug. I found it to be baggy, so I tapered the shoulder seams and center back seam to fit me better. As a top for Texas summer, I think it will be a winner--tucked in as a blouse it's a loser, being way too loose and baggy at the waistline. It is a stash buster, though and I used up 1 1/2 yards of cotton without purchasing a thing!!

My second and third projects are hits. I made Butterick 5644 in a tunic first and then as a sundress. I like it! The tunic is a maroon and cream cotton interlock. I know I brought this fabric with me from California over 20 years ago. I have looked at it a dozen times and could never find a pattern that I felt would work with the non-stretchy and limited quantity of the fabric I had available.

This tunic really looks nice with capris and belted. It's very slimming and the waist gathering is just enough to create an illusion of a waistline without bunching or adding weight at the abdominal area. This is certainly a keeper.

Liking the tunic so well, I used a cotton woven piece and lengthened the pattern to make a sundress/ beach cover up. You can't see the pattern, but it's a cream colored cotton with decorative stitching in orange, green, and yellow. I noticed when I started laying out the pattern pieces that the material was flawed and the stitching colors differed. The top is consistent and the bottom is consistent, but the two are still different. No one on the planet would notice except for me, and I rather like it. I had a hard time running the elastic because it didn't want to feed through the layers where the front overlapped. It took 3 tries to get it right, but the finished product is great. I coupled it with an orange/brown woven belt and absolutely love the look. This will be a great item to wear on the flight to Charlotte.

Today, I will cut out 1 yard of a light pink knit for a tank or shell. Haven't decided which yet, but there is time. I'll post the next project when I am done.

Sewing Again

Well, so far my sewing experience has been a bust. I wanted to make my own clothes but never could get the patterns or fabric to work for me. Thank God for daughters. My eldest put me back on the right track without any effort on her part (and total effort on mine).

My eldest daughter is getting married in June. Thank God she did not ask me to sew the wedding dress or the bridesmaid's dresses. She did ask me to sew out of town bags. After much research (known as Googling), I came up with a cute idea for black and white bags. I wanted to use up my sewing stash, but did not have the right colors. The idea of "girlie" floral print bags just didn't appeal to me even though I had tons of fabric. So, off to the store I went and came home with 4 yards of black twill and 4 yards of black and white print. I figured I would make 12 bags. Thankfully (subtle sarcasm), my daughter wants 19 bags.

Here I am on Mother's Day sewing bags. So far, I have finished 7--only 12 more to go!!

Too Much Icing for Me

I hate to complain when God blesses me with paid time off from work. However, after being snowed and iced in for 5 days, the novelty is starting to wear off. I am bored, bored, bored. I never realized how much I move around until I am stuck indoors. Since we went back to school in January, I have worn my pedometer to work. I average 3-4 walking miles just at work every day. Some days have resulted in as many as 7 miles! I have not walked here for two days, and I really feel it!

I have been walking in the house with the Leslie Sansone 5 mile walk DVD. After 3 days, I tired of the chatter, and my calves started stiffening up. I walked around and around and around the living room, but that really looks silly!

So, here I sit on a Saturday morning, wondering what I could do to occupy time, burn fat and calories, and truly enjoy. Times up! No ideas. I guess Leslie and I are destined to march the 5 miles AGAIN.

January 2011

OK, so January has come and is nearly gone, and I am just slightly closer to my goals. I started off 2011 with a new calendar. In fact, I got a Daytimer with daily double pages for entering all kinds of stuff. I really thought that logging in the calendar would create some form of accountability that would help me stay on track. Well, the thought was good, but there was something missing with the follow-through.

I do have one goal that I am sticking with: I have decided to walk 2011 miles in 2011. To do so, I have to walk 5.5 miles every day. Though I do try to schedule regular exercise time, I get most of my mileage from "purposeful walking". I define "purposeful walking" as the steps that I take throughout my workday that are above and beyond what I would normally encounter. For example, I park far away from the building so I am forced to walk further into work. I use my old step counter to give me some idea of how far I have progressed. On most "bad" days, I get in at least 3 miles. On the good days, I am around 5 miles, and on the exceptional days, I have logged over 6 miles. To date, I am over 100 miles. I need to pick it up just a bit, but I am really not too far off track.

So, with temperatures today in the 70's, outside I go. Goal for today: 7 miles.