Cake!

My boys both have birthdays in June within 8 days of each other. While we have always combined their parties into one, I do make each boy his own cake. The rule for birthday cakes is that I have to be able to find a cake pan for whatever they're wanting. We have had a fire engine, Lightning McQueen, a puppy, a pirate ship, an octopus (!), a guitar, and a Darth Vader head. This year Daniel rather randomly chose Bugs Bunny (he's not a big Loony Tunes watcher) and Nathan chose a golf bag because he's going to golf camp this summer and is excited about it.

I know Bugs is suppose to be light gray. It was late when I was mixing the frosting with the gel food coloring and I accidentally put in too much. I thought it would lighten up when it set but nope. Nobody cared. My star frosting tip got bent out of shape by the time I got to the insides of the ears so they look rather messy close up. Nobody cared about that either.

I had to run to the cake supply store the morning of the party to get a new tip and my sister kindly helped me finish frosting this one as our other few guests arrived. Nathan turned nine and Daniel turned seven. They were both excited about their cakes even though Nathan looks rather annoyed in the picture below. He's my introvert and doesn't much care for the spotlight and being sung to. Daniel's face is priceless. He loves me so much.

A peculiar listing on etsy

Anyone remember when Selfish Seamstress Elaine did a post about idiots on the internet? Reader Irene just alerted me to the following listing on etsy, and I found myself in the same predicament:
 

Can you believe that?!! I wonder if this has happened to me before and I just didn't know about it. As you can see in the light green highlighted area, I have reported this seller to the Marketplace Integrity team, so hopefully they can get it taken down quickly. I've had nothing but good experiences from purchases I've made on etsy (mostly bows). Do these crooks really make money off unsuspecting people wanting custom dresses?

I particularly love the "85% refund if dress does not fit you" statement. It seems so authentic, right?  People taking advantage of unsuspecting individuals via the internet makes me so angry.

Update

Howdy! So, it's been over a month since I last posted anything because I have had a TON of wadders in a row. Like 5 or so, including a knitting wadder (those are the worst!) I then decided to make a TNT pattern just to get some confidence back and while that has been finished for over 2 weeks, I haven't seemed able to get a picture of me in it. When the time changes next weekend I will be overjoyed to have some evening hours with my photographer! And all this week I've been spending my spare time at a hospital because my 81 year old father has a severe case of pneumonia/low blood pressure and I had to take him to the ER on Sunday. (They expect him to make a full recovery.) Whew! I have been looking forlornly at my half completed dress and longing to spend some time on it but just don't have any at the moment. 

And since pictureless posts are slightly boring, here's a shot of me with Rachel and my dad last Thanksgiving. He rarely smiles for pictures and I think he looks so charming here. 

Vogue Patterns magazine torments me + a fun indulgence

Last week I received 2 fun things in the mail on the same day and squealed with joy. The first was my copy of Vogue Patterns magazine February/March issue. I love this magazine. They have awesome articles, new sewing techniques that are explained through pictures, input from other sewing bloggers, etc. It's also relatively inexpensive and that makes me happy too. However, check out page 90 from this new issue:

Does this fabric look familiar to anyone? It is none other then my favorite silk charmeuse of all time that I sadly turned into a wadder as seen here. Thanks alot Vogue!!! If only you had published this picture last spring, I would have made that exact dress up and totally loved it. I still might salvage the skirt portion for a simple bias skirt this spring.

The other fun thing I got in my mailbox was a zipper color card from Zipperstop.com. I have ordered zippers from them in the past but have always guessed on the color I wanted based on my computer screen. I have ended up with some colors that didn't match what I bought them for. SO, even though it was definitely a splurge ($34.95 + very pricey shipping) I bought it anyway in order to get the exact colors I want.

There are over 500 colors to choose from, although most of their zippers come in certain stock colors and you can't get the other colors unless you order 50+ zippers of that one color. But I have found that I can find one of the stock colors that matches the fabrics I have.

Get your own here or look for it on Ebay and pay slightly lower shipping.

Lack of sewing progress and Spring patterns

Last Wednesday I was able to finish school with my boys early, and when they went outside to play I sat down at my sewing machine. It is a rare thing these days for me to get any sewing time during the day, and I was excited to get something accomplished. My machine had other ideas. It would not sew a stitch, and I spent the next hour and a half troubleshooting to find the problem. The thread kept getting all wound up in the bobbin housing. I took the metal plate off and blew out all the fuzz balls. I changed the needle. I re-threaded the machine multiple times. I turned it off and back on. Finally I threw up my hands and decided to have it looked at. After all, it's been 2 years since I bought it and could probably use a tune-up and oiling anyway. So, it is out of commission until Monday or Tuesday and I am left to twiddle my fingers.

Actually, I've been busying myself with cutting things out. I'm trying to finish up winter sewing, and have for some reason saved all my skirts for last. And they are mostly all plaid. There is a reason I cut things out one at a time and sew them one at a time. It's tedious to cut patterns out! Especially if you have to pay such careful attention to matching plaids.

As I have nothing new to show you, I thought it would be fun to blog about the new patterns I purchased last week. I'm not sure when Simplicity put these new Spring ones up. This may be old news to some of you.

I'm sure this first one is going to be popular. It is the cutest sundress I've seen in quite awhile, and people seam to gravitate towards the designer patterns as well. I already have the fabric picked out - an awesome border print cotton I've been saving for the perfect project. I am salivating to make this up, but will wait until the weather gets a bit warmer.

I saw this next dress and knew I had to make it. These diagonal seamed dresses have been in the department stores for awhile, and I've always loved the look, but this is the first pattern I've seen that copies it. Justin wants to attend the Celtic Women concert at the Majestic Theater in May, and I'm going to need a fancy-pants dress to wear. I'll probably make the shorter version, only maybe a few inches longer.

Y'all know my affinity for jacket patterns, right? I like empire seaming and double lapels on the top right view.

I need a tan skirt in my wardrobe, so am planning to copy view C of this next pattern, only with dark brown leather trim instead of black.

I get cold in summer a lot, and am always toting some type of cover-up around with me to restaurants and such. The cardigan with cuffed sleeves looks like a simple and easy piece to serve as a cold buffer, and would be light enough to throw in my bag as I'm running out the door.

We are off to spend the afternoon bowling. Fun, fun! I love to bowl. Have a great week, and I hope to have something new to reveal soon.

2010 Recap

I always love doing the yearly review. It makes me feel so productive to see it all tallied up.

This year I made:

Tops - 7
Dresses - 7
Jackets - 8
Skirts - 4
Cardigans - 1
Vests - 1
Kids clothing - 5
Maternity dresses - 1
Knitted garments - 3

That's a total of 37 garments completed! The year before I made 45, but of course at that time was not making baby clothes.

My favorite item from this year was my plum wool military jacket:

Surprisingly, I've made a number of things that I'm just not crazy about. The knit twisted bubble skirt hits me right at the bottom of my thigh muscle and makes my legs look extra wide. The Cynthia Rowley border print skirt poofs out unflatteringly in the tummy area because the fabric I chose for it is a bit stiff. I like the fit and design of my pink zebra print knit top but the fabric is of cheap quality and has already started to pill at the underarms. I also like my white sweaterknit cardigan but it doesn't seem to go with anything in my wardrobe since it's so thin. However, I'm holding on to most of those items for now. They are well made and I'm thinking they might fit differently once I get rid of these extra 10 pounds.

By far, the biggest What Was I Thinking garment was my yellow linen jacket:

I have tried and tried to style this jacket in a pleasing manner. It cannot be done. The sleeves are atrocious! I may decide to redo them at some point, but for right now it'll be living in my "needs attention" area of the closet.

I set some lofty goals for myself last December. Was I able to meet them?

1. Enter at least 1 contest at Patternreview.com.
No, I did not do this. I am going to stop setting this as a goal since I've yet to follow through with it. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure what I think about PR lately. I kind of feel like I am wasting my time writing reviews there. So few people even look at my garments anymore. Are they seeing them here instead? I don't know. I still always look there before I start a new project. But, I digress.

2. Make at least one jacket each month.
Well, I did make 8. That's not one a month but still is a pretty good number. I got a little tired of making them. Some months I was excited to make one and some months I felt pressured to fit it in. I did make more jackets then the year before, and that was really the goal in the first place.

3. Make more knit/casual dresses.
I made 4 casual dresses in 2009. This year I made 3. Boo.

4. Make more pants.
Ha! Now this was just poor planning. I knew I was pregnant in December when I set these goals. What was I thinking? Oh, now I remember. I thought I would find a TNT pants pattern in January and sew several more pants throughout my pregnancy using it. That did not happen.

5. Continue learning new knitting techniques.
Finally, one that I actually completed! I only made three knitted garments this year, but I did indeed learn new techniques with 2 of them: making an I-cord and short rows.

Overall, though, I did not meet my goals. I really should have gone back to that post throughout the year to remember what was written there. Sigh.

Okay, onward and upward, right? Here are the new goals for 2011:

1. Sew more casual knit dresses.
I love to wear these during the summer. It is effortless style, IMO. Throw on a knit dress and some cute sandals and you are ready to go!

2. Make pants.
At least one pair. I mean, really, what am I so afraid of?!

3. Continue making lots of jackets.
I love the put-together feeling I get from wearing a well fitting jacket. However, I'll not be setting myself a number goal this year.

4. Learn some of the sewing techniques included in my new book The Party Dress Book.

5. Continue learning new knitting techniques.

Thanks so much to all you wonderful people who have taken the time to visit my humble blog. It has been such a joy these past two and a half years to be able to share my love and passion for sewing with other like minded individuals. I may not always get back to each question asked, nor have the time to respond to you personally, but please know that I appreciate each comment left. Alright, enough cheese! Have a wonderful, productive and dream-fulfilling New Year!

A crafting Christmas gift and a funny story

A couple of weeks ago Beth from SunnyGal Studio did a post on her fabulous new corduroy jacket. She used a velvet board (a.k.a. needle board) to do her pressing so the pile didn't get crushed. I had never heard of a velvet board, and since I have several cuts of velvet/corduroy in my stash that I am afraid to use because of pressing issues, was immediately intrigued. I hunted around the internet and at local fabric haunts. They are hard to find and super expensive. I did find one at Manhattan Wardrobe Supply in NYC that looked decent and was half the cost of the others on the internet, but still pricey at $75 plus shipping. Then when Justin asked me if there was anything sewing related I might like to have as a Christmas gift, I gave him the link. A week before Christmas the package came in the mail. Here's what they sent me:

Um, WHAT?!!! It's a piece of black velvet glued to a board. I suppose one might use this for displaying jewelry or something? It wasn't what I wanted at all and not what they had pictured online. But wait! Since it came in a paper envelope, it was bent. We paid $83 (with the shipping) for a piece of velvet glued to a bent piece of cardboard. And they don't take returns!!!

I called the company immediately and the salesgirl at MWS was really sweet and apologetic. She said I was shipped the wrong item; that they did carry a velvet pressing board and it is never sent in a paper envelope. They rushed me another one which arrived the day before Christmas:

It looks pretty fabulous, right? I love useful tools, no matter if they are power tools or sewing tools. Keep a lookout for some velvet garments coming soon.

Anyone else have a funny holiday story to share?

Bad fabric choices and other random things

I've nothing new to show you as I've been experiencing a string of wadders these last few weeks. I still love both designs and will make them again in different fabrics, but it is so frustrating to waste time and money.

First I attempted vest 123 from the October 2008 Burda:

I found this lovely shade of quilted polyester taffeta at JoAnn's and thought I'd struck gold. It was a gorgeous fabric, but too stiff to be made into such a high-necked garment. It feels very choking to me. Also this was my first time putting in this kind of zipper, and for some reason it is wavy all along the edge. Is this my fabric or the nature of plastic zippers? I don't know, but the next go around with this pattern will involve a metal zipper. (Possibly this was user error as well.)

Then I spent 3 days sewing time tracing and cutting out each individual piece for the Claudia Strater jacket, also from October 2008. I have been in love with this design for 2 years and finally got around to making it.

Except the houndstooth I picked is too big to show any of the details that make this jacket special. See this welt pocket? I spent practically all of last night trying to get it perfect, only to realize it's invisible unless I stick my hand in. Not to mention the fabric is too light a weight for a jacket and raveled like crazy. Sigh.

So, to cheer myself up from all these mistakes, I've decided to make a little dress for Rachel. We'll just see how Simplicity's XXS measures up. It's suppose to fit up to 7 pounds, but I'm hoping to get at least small enough for a 0-3 month RTW size.

In other news, I just purchased 3 Oliver+S patterns from Fabric.com at the recommendation of Amber, and some fabrics to go with them. The patterns are on sale until Nov. 9, in case anyone else is interested. (Plus I found a 15% off coupon code online.)

Here's a picture of baby Rachel. She's now 10 weeks old and has started smiling. And sleeping for 10 hour stretches at night, which makes for a great night's sleep for me!

Silk chiffon is not my favorite

If there's a more difficult fabric to work with then silk chiffon, I've yet to encounter it. It's paper thin, drapey, but has a mind of its own and is difficult to get to lay properly. Oh, not to mention almost impossible to cut out on grain. Now add to that 1/4" bias binding around the neckline, armholes, and back closure, and you've got a recipe for ripping your hair out.

This is dress 130 from the December 2008 Burda issue which I loved the moment I laid eyes on it nearly two years ago. I bought the fabric just a few months later, but it's been languishing in my backlog ever since because I've been too darn intimidated to cut into it.

I cut this out a week ago and have spent an entire week sewing just the top part. This fabric is so impossible to work with that I can only take it in short bursts. But I've finally gotten all the horrid bias bindings done, and can now start on the skirt. I was so unsure about the top working out that I didn't even trace or cut out the rest of it. That way if it turned into a disaster I wouldn't be wasting my beautiful navy wool crepe.


Anyway, that's what I've been up to lately. No baby yet, just swollen feet. Oh, and somebody posted a comment about wanting to see what I look like lately. (Sorry! - I'm too lazy to go back and find out who it was.) Here's a picture from my baby shower with my girlfriends who hosted the event. Dang! The camera adds at least 10 pounds, right?!

An Update

Hello! Even though I last wrote that my boys would be out of town for an entire week and that I had a few sewing projects lined up, I sadly have nothing new to display. The purple dress turned out to be a wadder and I've learned I absolutely hate to sew with stretch velvet. I next attempted a plaid skirt out of a thinnish polyester. Even without the fit issues that I'm experiencing, the fabric is plain cheap looking. It could probably be salvaged but I just don't like it enough to bother with any more attempts at fixing the issues.

Oh, and I think I've caught a horrible disease called Pregnancy Brain. This is when you cannot figure out the solution to the smallest of problems. I feel like I've had a stroke and cannot do simple things that use to come easily. Like math. Or zipper insertion. Not a good illness for a seamstress.

On another note, Butterick came out with some cute fall offerings that I'm excited about. The first one is 5519, a fitted dress with interesting construction details. I plan to use this for some gorgeous charcoal wool doubleknit recently obtained from Denverfabrics. I want long sleeves, but don't care for the pleated cap sleeve version.

Up next is 5521, also with really neat construction lines. This design is a dead ringer for Vogue 8614, which I almost bought in the last sale at JoAnn's until I saw this pattern. Vogue's does include a jacket, but not one I was too eager to make.

And lastly is 5522, a knit dress with super fun patternworked sleeves. I'm planning to buy the pattern only for the sleeves, then using a fitted sheath dress for the bodice and including a full lining.

So, not a very exciting post, but I wanted to update you lest anyone be thinking I'm off having a baby or something. She is not due for several more weeks, unfortunately for my poor swollen sausage extremities.

June happenings and a sneak peak

June has certainly been a month of busyness. My boys have had swimming lessons for the past two weeks which have eaten up every morning. By the time I drive the 45 minutes to the swim academy, wait around in the heat for the lessons to wrap up, run an errand or two, serve lunch and get everyone into bed for naps/quiet time, I'm completely bushed. Whew! Being pregnant in the summer is kicking my behind!

Also in the month of June, both my boys have a birthday. And a birthday party. Thankfully they mostly have the same friends, so I can get away with throwing only one party. This year each had a specific request for a fancy birthday cake. Nathan - turning 6 - wanted a CARS cake, and Daniel - turning 4 - wanted a "Cookie Dog" cake. (Cookie Dog is his much beloved and somewhat mangy stuffed dog that he carries around everywhere. Don't ask me why he named it Cookie Dog. My kids went through a faze where they named stuffed animals after food.)

Here are my cake creations. I used Wilton cake pans with directions, which were invaluable. They were both A LOT of work, but my boys were so happy that it was definitely worth the effort.


In between all this activity I have managed to squeeze in a wee bit of sewing time. Here is a sneak peak at my latest project, Simplicity 2724. I borrowed the actual buttoning shirtdress idea from Trena's review, so it looks slightly different than the envelope picture. The top fits great, the skirt only needs a small fitting tweak at the side hip. But there is a lot more work to be done, as I'm lining the skirt, making the collar/collar stand view, and modifying the sleeve to be long with french cuffs.

Wondering whatever happened to my Burda 4-2010-125 red wool skirt? I ended up making a very dumb rookie mistake and cutting the back off grain. I couldn't figure out why the side seams were pulling toward the back and the waist area had stretched out even though I stay-stitched it. Upon closer inspection I detected my error, but unfortunately do not have enough fabric to re-cut. What a bummer! I'll remake it sometime in the future, when I find more red wool or order again from Fabric.com.

Yikes! It's already June 20th and I still have a lined jacket to crank out for this month after I finish the above dress. Why do I always leave that project for the very end?!

NewLook 6802 - Black & white print maternity dress + future sewing plans

This dress isn't something I whipped up in a few days, it was actually an UFO from last June. At that time I found it really poochy in the tummy but thought it might make a nice maternity dress. So last week I found it hanging in my "needs attention" area of the closet, tried it on, found it to be a perfect fit, and finished up a few minor details (the armholes and hem). Ta da! Please excuse my blinding skin tone.

Yes, my pop of color for shoes is more yellow. I am an a yellow kick lately. There is actually a lot more fabric and stretch available in the baby bump area and I hope to be able to wear this dress for a few more months.

This fabric is from my very first order from Gorgeousfabrics.com in August 2008. I've now used up every cut of fabric from that shipment and am quite proud of myself for doing so.

I made several slight changes to the pattern. The front underlay is suppose have a center front seam and be V-necked. I wanted to use bias tape to finish the neckline and avoid the facing. (I'm not a fan of facings in knit garments and always try my hardest to find a way around them.) My solution was to cut the underlay on a fold and make it rounded. In retrospect this is kind of a busy print to waste such a cool knotted detail on; a smaller print or solid color would have showed it off better.

I also used french seams throughout because I am a nerd and like clean insides. This picture is of the shoulder seam and bias tape finish for the neckline and armholes. Since I'm sure to be asked, this is regular "Wrights" brand polyester/cotton bias tape available at any fabric store in a variety of colors. I love it and regularly stock up on it when there's a sale. It works well on knits as well as other fabrics, as long and the seam you are using it on does not need to stretch a lot. Here is the tutorial for binding a seam. I suppose I need to make another tutorial for neckline finishes.

Total costs:

pattern bought with a coupon: $2.39
1 yard fabric purchased but received 1.5 yards: $10.00
bias tape on sale: $0.80
thread: $0.75???

grand total: $13.94 plus or minus



Now, for my future sewing plans:

A few of you expressed excitement at seeing me make some maternity clothes. Well, this might be it. This is my third summer baby, so I already have quite a bunch of maternity wear. Plus I have some really awesome girlfriends that have given/loaned me even more cute styles. And, there just aren't a whole lot of fashionable patterns available. I was all excited to make maternity wear when pregnant with my firstborn, and I did, but most of it turned out looking like a potato sack. That might have been what was worn in the 80's or before, but today's expecting lady does not want to hide her shape behind yards of billowing fabric. There are a few independent pattern companies that have come out with fitted items. I think Jalie might be one, and Burda also who I was unaware of 6 years ago. However, it's just not something I am excited about.

What I do plan to continue making is regular clothing. In fact, I would like to concentrate on making up as much winter stash as possible. This baby is due at the end of August or early September. It takes me about 4 weeks to get back to my normal size, and that makes it October and fall. I might as well sew for cooler weather. I am suppose to be receiving my corrected custom dressform at the end of this week (but am not holding my breath), so will have that to fit my garments on.

Anyone have Vogue 2734?

I saw this pattern on Patternreview.com 6 months ago and fell in love with it. The problem is, it's OOP. I added it to my favorites on Ebay and have waited patiently for it to be listed. And waited. And waited some more. Now I'm wondering if one of you lovely readers has it (in size 12) and want to get rid of it.

I don't have anything to trade but would be happy to pay you for it. Anyone?

Not much sewing going on around here...

So, I'm still alive and kicking, just don't have anything blogworthy to post about. We spent a 4 day weekend in Houston last week. I did do some knitting but that was only to add a few extra inches to the bottom of this vest, not that you can tell much of a difference. When we got home there was a box from Amazon.com waiting for me with 4 recently purchased books inside. I read through 3 of them in the past week. I tend to be a little obsessive about reading and get very little else done, which is why I try to space out my book buying/library visiting. Add to that the fact that it's spring and I bought a bunch of plants that need planting and, well, there hasn't been much sewing going on.

Here's a tunic I cut out before the Houston trip and have worked on a little this past week. It's 110 from Burda's 2/2009 magazine. All I lack is the simple sleeves and hem, although if you look closely you can see I botched the trimming of the bottom hemline. The sides are longer then the CF and CB. I think it will be fine in the end, just a little shorter then originally planned.

This is the first year in a long while that I haven't made myself an Easter dress. Boo. The weather is suppose to be perfect too. Oh well. We're off to buy some mulch and spend the day in the yard. Happy Easter and Resurrection Day to you all!!!

A hard week

Wondering what I've been up to lately? Here's what happened to my husband on his way to work last Thursday when a teenager ran her stop sign and pulled into oncoming traffic:

By God's grace nobody was injured. However, our 2001 paid off Honda was totaled. We are not have-to-have-a-new-car-every-year type of people. It was in perfect shape and would have run for 10 more years. When we get our insurance check at the end of the week, we will start looking for a replacement. Car shopping is not a favorite activity of mine, to say the least.

Then on Sunday, thanks to the keen ears of my husband, a leak was discovered in the ceiling of our kitchen. He turned off the water to the house and the plumber was called the next morning. After several holes in the ceiling were made, the leaking pipe was discovered. These types of leaks are usually found after more damage is caused, and we feel blessed to not have had a ceiling cave in. The leak was fixed, and after everything dries out for a week, we will have the holes repaired.

Oh, and something else was discovered as well. The toilet was never properly installed after we had our bathroom tiled in 2005, and there was a slow leak of sewer water around it. No wonder that area was always a little stinky! It has to dry out, also for a week, and then the plumber will come back and re-attach the toilet to the floor.

In between these two events the food disposal under our kitchen sink developed a hole and splattered food and water all over the bottom cabinet. No picture of that, though. My handy hubby has already put a new one in it's place.

Unsurprisingly, I've been a little down lately. Last night Justin came home with a pint of Bluebell icecream and these beauties to cheer me up. Isn't that so sweet?

So, I actually have been doing a wee bit of sewing. I put the plum wool jacket aside for now and am making a simple little white top. Hopefully it will be completed this week with pictures taken next weekend. In between car shopping excursions. Ug. Pray for us to find something nice in our price range.

Creative block and... more new patterns!

I am currently experiencing an odd bout of creative block. Think writers' block, only in my case I have no desire to do anything creative. I feel out of sorts about this. Making things is such an integral part of my life, and now I don't know what to do with myself. My current project is a plum wool jacket and I'm lucky if I can force myself to sew two seams a day on it. I'm not experiencing any fit issues. Why am I so bored? What is my problem?!

Since I obviously have nothing new to show you, how about my picks of the new Simplicity patterns?

Up first is this very popular Cynthia Rowley design. I heart the jacket very much.

The flared skirt on the model is my pick from 2451 (view B). I love those fun pockets, button/tab detail on the waist, and running stitch for topstitching.

The shape of jacket A from this next pattern is really appealing to me. I also like the bias details along the front center and collar portions. The whole suit is super cute, actually. Maybe I'll completely copy the look only with a different color other then beige.

I'll be buying this next one is for the little shell top. I like the interesting design lines and small neck ruffle. Tops like these are always so versatile in my closet.

I'm hoping to find my sewing mojo soon. There's so many cute garments waiting for me to make them up. If only I could blink my eyes like Barbara Eden from I Dream of Jeannie and have them all materialize on hangers in my closet!