Well,
the best laid plans. Hah!
Based
on a typical tax season, I was sure I’d be able to work through the In House
Patterns Kayla fitting class this year. And then a perfect storm hit.
The
Company I had been working for decided to implement a new “Business Model,” with
complete new software systems for everything from incoming telephone calls,
appointment scheduling, to tax preparation, all Beta programs no less, being
used on an insufficient band width to handle the load; and insufficient testing
and tech support. We had software outages as much as it was up and running,
sometimes with no notice, and no idea when or if it would be working again. In
addition, we lost two of our most experienced preparers to health issues; another
one died due to Covid; his (less experienced but still with a few years) spouse
moved across the country due to his death; we got a semi-experienced preparer
from another area of the country completely unfamiliar with our culture and
unique set of circumstances, leaving us with two full time preparers instead of
the usual four, and two part timers instead of the usual three. And to top it
off, I’m a stress eater! So, my initial measurements came nowhere near close by
the time I put my muslin together. Shoot!
I
still have all my work waiting to be readjusted and done and will be
re-starting the process when my brain recovers enough to do in-depth calculations
and fitting! Luckily, Alexandra leaves the information available forever for
her students.
After
tax season ended, I was lucky enough to get to fly to California to meet my new
Great Granddaughter, help celebrate her first birthday, be there for one of my
other Granddaughter’s engagement and party, and relax with my oldest daughter’s
family. It was lovely.
I
have to admit, it took a good bit of time after I got home to get back into the
sewing room. I set up several raised bed planters, have tomatoes coming in, and
am learning rapidly that many plants will not survive in full sun in New Mexico.
Most days it was 90 or above at our house in June, and it has continued in July
with many days in the triple digits. Before next year I hope to get several
shade trellis’s set up to shade the plants and me.
I
have returned to the sewing room for a few “quick and dirty” items which have
become my summer six pack. I used my favorite colors of blue and red, and my
now TNT patterns~ the In House Patterns Lila for three tops, two sleeveless
where I bound the armholes with bias, and one with sleeves. I also took the
Loes Hinse Oxford pants pattern, cut it into shorts, and made three pair of
those with the hopes that by the end of the summer, I can shorten the waist
elastic. We’ll see about that.
The
heavy dark linen (a little hard to see on the right of the photo) for one pair of short is old stash and I used every bit and
had to cut them cross grain to fit on my remnant. The lovely flowered top is a viscose crepe from Sew Much Fabric purchased last August. The light blue is also old
stash and is either linen or a linen rayon blend. It’s a much lighter weave and
comfortable even when it’s scorching. The third outfit makes me smile because
in my head I call it the “blue bird of happiness” outfit. It is a red background with blue flowers, blue and yellowish birds and yellowish green leaves. The fabric was
purchased in March of 2010 from Denver Fabrics.com and looks like it was a bolt
end because I got a 5 yard piece for $17.50. It’s a poplin shirting, 97% cotton
and 3% lycra.
I
also found a lovely new shop in town that opened in May 2022 and was thankfully able to
hold on during Covid. It’s called Thread Bear and is a quilting and yarn shop
that offers lots of in store classes. I signed up for two. One was knitting socks.
Unfortunately, I realized I don’t have the manual dexterity to use three, size
2 double ended needles, and so that was a bust. The other is a quilt class,
which I am enjoying and is timely as another Great Grandbaby is due in a few
weeks. The quilt won’t be done when it's born, but hopefully soon after. We’ll
see.
I’m
also working on a Dr. Seuss themed alphabet wall hanging for the first Great
Granddaughter. Their family has just purchased their first home, so it will
adorn her new bedroom.
Hope you're enjoying your summer and the scorching heat hasn't affected you adversely. More
later!
