It's been a long, long, time!

Haven't been writing much, but the SG 20 minutes a day group has me inspired! I've been trying to get things done for my Autumn 6 Pac before we go to Oregon for our Sure Fit Retreat the first week in October. And before that happens I need to make several new bras, so I wanted to  have everything else as close to finished as I can. I have promised myself September is Undies Month! LOL

I did get the tan cardigan done with a sleeveless shell to wear underneath. It is very light weight, and will be comfortable through at least October with our typical "Indian summer" weather. Overall it checks the boxes, but I'm not sure how well I really like it. The pattern is a combination of my Self Draft and the Petite Plus cardigan. Fabric is a rayon-linen jersey purchased on sale at Fabric Mart. I love those sales. Cardigan and shell total cost $7.00. Just makes me so happy to be able to have clothes I want in my fabric and color for those kind of prices!

Tan tank & flutter sleeve cardigan

Since I liked that style so well, went ahead with another cardigan for my Autumn 6 Pac. I absolutely love this one and have already worn it for work a few times! I'm not sure when I did the chocolate brown Margarita top for this one, but it really looks like they are perfect together. The pants were made for my 2013 SWAP, and they're a bittersweet chocolate pinstripe twill. The fabric for the cardigan was the absolutely opposite of the last one. It's a Christine Jonson rayon/lycra knit and was NOT on sale. Much more than I usually will pay for a piece, but I fell in love with the look on line and knew it would be a perfect bridge piece for my collection.

 

Since in the US, September 2 was a Holiday, I had a three day weekend. I made an executive decision to allow the work sitting on my desk, to wait until Tuesday to be completed. I want, need, and deserve a little time for myself. The Butterick top I've been promising myself for over a year now (maybe two or three?) finally was started. It's #5616 and looks like it's still in print. Here's the line drawing:

 

 

Mine is a sort of combo of several of these views. I started with view B, then decided on a  much longer length, definitely no band around my hips, don't need attention drawn there, and there are no pockets. I went with the 3/4 sleeves. I found what I think may be Microsuede in my stash. It's so old I don't even remember when I bought it. But it's a color I wear a lot, kind of a tanish-beigeish and will do well for either a light weight jacket or a shirt as we go into Fall. Since the color is very similar to the first Cardi and shell, it should fit in.

 

This shirt jacket made me question my skills and my sanity. I evidently got a bad spool of Gutterman thread. Used a micropoint needle as I had read the sharper the better for Ultra Suede, and this has the same texture. I went through absolute hell trying to finish this one. The sleeves were installed three times, the back armscye was altered after stitching and topstitching to get it to work correctly. Another good reason to be sure my muslin includes sleeves. About half way through the spool of thread, the thread started shredding and breaking. Doing the buttonholes it broke three different times. Can I tell you how much I hate having to tear out buttonholes and redo them?

 

But it's finally done and I like it quite well. It's a nice addition to my Autumn 6 PAC and I'm sure will be worn a lot as the weather cools. Until this week we were into the high 80s and 90s, but yesterday it did cool down a bit. Thank goodness. It will help with the wildfires hopefully. In my mind, it kind of looks like a painter's smock all buttoned up. It looks less yellow and more taupe in real life than it does in the picture.

 

 

The bras have been started. I think I have the pattern altered to fit my current size, and while looking for the fabrics, realized that I am a bra kit hoarder! I have about 30 or more bra kits with enough fabric to make matching panties. I expect to have lots of new undies by the end of the month! And it always makes me feel rich, wanted, and loved to having matching bra and panties, or knickers for all of my international friends!

 

Hope you're getting a lot of sewing done too! More later...

 

 





Just a few minutes to post, but catching up

Well, I haven't moved on to the pants draft just yet. I wanted to work a little more on my bodice and see what I could get accomplished. I need woven tops badly, and I think they are pulling me away from my quick and dirty, (and instant gratification) tee shirts. But I do need to get some of those done form my Autumn 6 Pac also.

I am tweaking each garment as I go along. Each time I make a garment, I can see somewhere else that needs a little tweaking. But that’s okay as I can generally wear the ones I have made, even if they’re not yet perfect.

I have unpicked the collar, sleeves, and shoulders on the seersucker one I did first, and will recut it to fit. I am thinking I can make a “wedge” (possibly on the bias so it looks like a design feature) to add into the shoulder to increase the width and fix that sticking out sleeve. Then I do need to recut the neck on that one also, and I have enough fabric to make another collar and will probably add a piece of bias along the inside edge of the collar as it’s going to fray ~ I can tell after one washing. 

Last week in my spare time I did a sleeveless top from the sloper. I had a piece of French linen I bought a while back in the stash. It’s gorgeous in black, aqua, creamy white, and taupe geometric print. Not something I’d usually wear, but I love it. Only had 1 1/8 yards, so had to cut it cross grain. No collar, no armhole facings. Had to use bias tape on the armholes. But did get facings for the neckline. I had the buttons in my stash which look like they were purchased specifically for this print! I have added a top button. I was debating on it, but the picture shows it’s needed. Not the most flattering picture ever, but it is what it is. I need to work on "fashion shots" for sure! And boy, oh, boy do I need to get some new bras made. Aging and old bras just don't give you that perky silhouette that you used to have! :P}}

 

 

This one I had to take out an inch at the back hip tapering to nothing at the shoulder blades, and I could easily see that the back armscye needed to be cut in for about a couple of inches from the armhole. BUT, I’m not taking all the stitching out and redoing on this one. I don’t wear sleeveless in public, so I don’t think I need to go to all that work! LOL It would be so much easier and quicker if I were patient enough to wait for the retreat so I would have someone who could take a look, tell me what needs to be done and help by pinning out the places that need it, and eyeballing so I would be able to do this easier. Making a garment, taking photographs and then trying to alter by myself is much more time consuming. Although I will definitely wear this top!

 

I have the next garment cut out, and was hoping to get it sewn up tomorrow, but one of my scheduled appointments for today didn't work out, so I have to work tomorrow too. Darn it! But hopefully a short day as all the preliminary work was done this morning.

 

My next garment will be a tan linen-cotton knit, short flutter sleeved cardigan. I think I have enough left to make a matching tee so I'll have a "sweater set" for my 6 pac. And I have a taupe linen-rayon blend from Joann that will be my next jacket. And some charcoal ponti for a Style Arc moto jacket. But I can't decide if I should go for the jackets or work on pants. Who knows what I'll feel like when I get there. It's going to be a surprise for us all!

 

Hope you're enjoying your time and wishing you a fabulous weekend!

 

 

 

 

Pondering the who and what of where I am at this point in time. And then my progress!

Sandra of http://makingitwithhelp.blogspot.com/ posted an interesting query about why people post and how many visitors you have.

Even though I am a statistics kind of person, I don't pay that much attention to who, why, and how many people are watching my blog. Of course, like everyone else, I do appreciate the comments, especially suggestions as I'm generally out here on my own, but that said, this blog is more for me.

I initially wanted to be involved in the blogging world to connect with virtual friends all over the world who shared my interests. Then blogging became an obligation instead of fun. I backed off and did other things for a while. And then I found Stitcher's Guild which fills the void of not having any sewing friends close by.

After I started paying attention to Stitcher's Guild and being able to lurk or connect with sewing friends, I realized that for me, the blog is as much a journal of my progress in sewing, and interests as much as anything else, with my major obsession being sewing and fit.

I would love to be one of those people who have fantastic ideas and can show you in a few words and pictures how to make innovative garments, but I'm just not. I much prefer classical styles in wonderful fabrics that are well made. I doubt I'm a very good teacher as I do my own thing and do things the way they make sense to me.  In my opinion, I don't really contribute that much as I'm just trying to make things that I like, that fit me well, and fit in with my life and tastes. And make my own patterns. As such, I think for most sewing people, I'm probably pretty boring. Although I do a fair bit of fabric shopping on line and as such do have some wonderful places to buy fabrics and may be a resource for that.  :P}}

So that said, if you're here reading this, I appreciate that you find my missives to be engaging enough to read, and I appreciate you commenting.  I will continue to blog as time permits, but I'm not feeling it's necessary to do so on a daily basis.

I'll continue to post my progress and my projects. I might go off topic somewhat sometimes, but as I think Debbie Cook http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com/ said recently, it's my blog and I can write anything I chose. You may run into some stories about my other obsessions, reading, or gardening, or the always hovering food, cooking, healing, healthy diets and weight loss. If you're bored with those or not interested, please feel free to skip those posts.

I do have a tendency to grab an idea and run far and fast with it. My wonderful husband is getting more used to it after 12 years, and he just always agrees. LOL His previous wife was a drama queen, who made his life a living hell most of the time, so he just figures it's easier to agree than to make waves. My latest thought is fulfilling something on my bucket list. Mary http://kf-biblioblog.blogspot.com/ kind of gave me a mental nudge, and the thoughts have been growing and growing until they have become a semi-plan.

Complete change of plans. We'll stay where we are in our current residence for the foreseeable future. I have kind of made a 5 year goal to work really hard, save up all our money, then buy a trailer and truck and see all 50 states a little at a time, stopping to really see, get the sense of the place, talk to the people, see the sights that we're interested in, and then move on to the next place. There is so much of this great big fabulous country, and we don't know that much about so many places. I figure it will take at least a couple of years to do, and then when we have decided we're done, we'll decide where we want to live out the rest of our lives. I figure by that time, we'll have grandchildren scattered all over, and can decide where we want to live based on proximity and closeness to all of them.

I have seen much of Hawaii, parts of California, obviously as I live here, and parts of several other states. But not an in depth visit where I get to go and wander and meet people and figure out who they are and the for lack of a better word, the tempo of the place. It kind of fills me with a great sense of adventure and wonder that we can actually do something like this. I contemplate my grandmother taking a vacation with a couple of babies in a covered wagon from Oklahoma to Arizona, and think that there is a huge sense of adventure lurking beneath the boring surface of my anatomy!

So now, back to the Sure Fit and where I am.

The last post left me with needing to add to the shoulder width. Which I did. I also fiddled with the neckline a bit more. And made another muslin. Then realized that it was STILL too long in the back. So I pinned out another fold, and it seems to be much better. Glenda did see my post on SG, and wrote me a nice email saying that she thought the fold should be further down at the mid dart level instead of where I put it.

Well, to be honest, I'd already done my first tee shirt draft and just left that where it was. I needed some instant gratification sewing. For my first tee shirt draft, I pulled out my flat pattern books, looked at what they thought you needed to do to change a sloper from woven to knit, ignored it; looked around on the SFD site a bit to see if I could find the directions to change from woven to knit, even looked in my dress kit instruction book to see if I could find Glenda's comments, (no go) and being my impatient self, just used the woven draft to make the first tee.

 

After making this first one, I decided the shoulders were too wide, and I took the armholes and sides in by 5/8" all the way around. This fabric isn't one I would ordinarily choose, but found it when I was on Marcy Tilton's website a while back. this was an "end" piece, only 1 1/2 yards, and it's an Italian viscose/lycra jersey. The aqua caught my eye, and the taupe-y purple and greens work with my wardrobe, plus I figured I could wear it with black pants. I'm super glad I bought it as it's a fantastic fabric, feels like silk against my skin, was easy to sew, and drapes wonderfully. So this was my altered version.

 

 

Onward and upward. I love that garment already and need to get some more stuff going. I'd like to try to think I can do the Autumn six pac over at SG, and to that end, have generally chosen to use grey and browns as my "core colors." But, since I don't like boring, and got really tired of wearing plain solid colors after 20+ years in the corporate world of suits, blouses, hose, and heels, I'm adding a bit of color to my six pac. I have generally navy, brown, grey, and creams in my wardrobe. That's what I wear daily, and this one will fit in with multiple garments. It's from the same Marcy Tilton order... just looked in my fabric book and it's from last November. This one is a German fabric, 94% rayon, 6% lycra and it was a 1 3/4 yard piece. I have enough left over for matching undies! LOL

 

 

 

I did take in the armholes and side seams 5/8" on this one too, but I think I need to rework my draft a little bit. The 5/8" at the hips makes it a little tighter fit than I like, so I'll do some revisions before my next draft.

 

Now I need to move on to pants. I'm debating. I still have my old pants draft that I made via How to Make Sewing Patterns, but I've changed a lot and need to do a remeasure and re-draft. BUT I have the Sure Fit pants kit here too. I just don't want to get too far ahead of myself as I'll be doing the Retreat with Glenda in October. But I'm impatient. I need pants, and I'll probably go ahead and get moving forward with that.

 

I'm sure once I get to Oregon, my imperfect drafts will be critiqued and tweaked to fit better than they do now, but I don't want to spend the next two months not sewing just because they're not perfect yet. VBG

 

Because I did 7 appraisals last week, very unusual, and way too many hours invested, today is my day off. Unfortunately, I've already used the morning for other things than sewing. Better get a move on so I can get started on my next garment.

 

Until later!

 





Quick update

I went ahead and made a blouse out of the sloper as it was with a few modifications that I thought would cure any problems. What it did, was to make me more aware of what was going on with the draft. I had a hard time understanding and seeing the issues in that plain old muslin without ease, and not being something that I would wear.

When I got the blouse completed, something I WOULD wear, I could see the issues glaringly. So with the blouse, I could see that there was an serious issue with the shoulders. I kept taking out in 1/4" increments at the neck line as it was obviously too close in, but didn't think that I had originally had the right shoulder width. DUH! The parts that came out of the neckline needed to be added to the shoulder point. So that's one fix.



You can see the wrinkles around the back armscye



Shoulders glaringly obviously too narrow



Neck edges wrong causing wrinkles back neck to shoulder point

I still believe I have a little extra across the shoulder blades, but don't believe it's related to the length anymore as I have changed that a couple of times. After I cut the most recent muslin, and told my hubby that I'd taken 1/4" additional off the neckline and added it to the shoulders, he looked at me and said "you need at least another 3/4" at the shoulders. AFTER I cut the muslin! LOL So back to the drawing board! Unfortunately, I have evidently deleted the rear and side photos of this muslin, and can't find what I did with the actual muslin. It may have gone into the garbage already. Too bad as I was saving all of them.

Shoulders right without any seam allowances... Big Red Flag!

My granddaughter was in from Bethesda, Maryland this week, so we took a day off and ran over to have brunch and visit with my daughter and grands for a few hours. With the 3.5+ hour drive round trip, I took a day off work, and now I have to work the weekend. Being self employed is SO MUCH FUN at times! LOL

 

So now I'll be on to the next muslin hopefully sometime this weekend. I do have to catch up with work, so am going to try to be very focused and get that done early so I have ME time this weekend.

 

Hope your week is fabulous!

 

 

 

Still working on the muslin

Getting closer. Need to redo the neck and shoulder area.

BUT, I'm starting to have withdrawals. I can't get on the Stitcher's Guild website. It just tells me I'm not authorized.

Anyone else able to get onto the website?
Let me know please.

Close, but no cigar!

Getting closer. I think I'm going to go with this for a little bit until I recover from the brain drain of trying to get it perfectly right. I can use the sloper to draft a woven blouse as is, as it won't have any back darts anyway. BTW, I know the bust darts are low. Wearing the bra that is only used when the rest are in the laundry. The good bras make them higher! :P}}

I know there is some wierdness at the back, but not sure how to correct it and need someone other than my wonderful hubby to help. I tell him what to do, he tries, but really is much better with wood than with fabric. :P}} I always ask if it took the folds and wrinkles out, and his standard response is "I don't think it will get any better than this." Which means he doesn't want to play anymore. LOL

So here's what I have now. I may send Glenda another email later in the week and see if she has some suggestions. I have done another 1/4" off the shoulder at the neck tapering to zero at the shoulder, which is after this picture was taken.

Have a busy week overall and the "real" machine went in for an overdue servicing this morning, so probably won't have much time to play with it until next weekend anyway.

Hope you're having fun, and as always, more later!

 

Getting closer.

Muslin #2. I think I have the front good, but don't understand the back floppiness. I will send off pictures to Glenda and see if she can give me suggestions. As I look at it, I AM seeing some forward shoulders, and a sway back, and perhaps the beginning of a dowager's hump. Dang, getting old sure messes with things! Looks like I need a little extra length in the front too.

Comments if you like. I don't mind at all when people tell me where they think my fitting has gone wrong. All help appreciated!

 From the side, the bust dart looks relatively correct, the front slope from neck to bust looks good, and other than the short front, I think that's okay. The sleeves are fitting much better and now are comfortable.

 I still see a lot wrong in this picture. Too much weirdness from the mid back down and under the arms. Don't know if I need to extend the darts up, but I think I need to cut in the back armscye a bit. Looks like I could shorten the back a bit too.

Overall I'm pretty pleased with this other than the front length. Excuse the whale belly sticking out. I think with a length extension, this would be okay for a woven blouse.

Next iteration coming up soon!

 

Next attempt coming up

Not sure whether I measured incorrectly, or my weight has changed in the interim. Got my first bodice done, and needed to do some alterations. Front neck is surprisingly high for some reason, need the typical for me sway back, and bicep alterations. I usually do my sway back adjustment at my waist, so figured I was okay there. Not. From the pictures, it appears I am getting a much more forward neck than I've ever had before, and slightly rounded shoulders which I also didn't have before. Think it's time to start doing pushups every day. :P}

First set of pics...

 

 

So the next iteration is on the drawing board. Dropped the front neckline and took 1/4" out of the shoulder at the neck, tapering to nothing at the shoulder. Did a 1" sway back adjustment about mid lower back, above the dart, but below the arms. I also added 3/8" to the back side seam because that looks a little tight. Increased the bicep by 1" ~ even though it looks okay, it feels a little tight. After the next draft I will look and see if I need to cut the rear armscye in a little from the shoulder all the way down.

I have the draft redone and the back has the darts sewn. The front is cut out but not marked yet. Too bad I have to work today. I'll try to be really focused and get work done early so I can move on to my second muslin and see how that works. I'm quite encouraged with this as it's the best "first" muslin I've ever come out with. Can't wait to have it fitted well and get to making clothing!

More later!

 

 

Some pictures.

First the kits I bought, dress, shirt and pants with the videos, booklets and stylus.

Next the bodice front and my completed bodice front

 

The bodice back and my completed back

 

 

 

 

 

The sleeve and my completed sleeve

 

 

 

 

 

The only actual alteration I made other than the ones indicated in the manual for full bust and full bicep is my standard back neck adjustment where I remove 1/2 inch from the center back neck tapering to nothing at the neck edge.  

 



I do have the muslin cut out. It's on a gingham that will help me with grainlines and balance. After work today I anticipate stitching it together, and hopefully I'll have a full front bodice sloper with sleeve.

 

 

More later!

 

 

 



The down & dirty on the Sure Fit decision.

Well, time for true confessions I guess. If you've noticed, I post pictures of my garments, but not of myself in them, or at least rarely of myself in them. It's because at this point in my life I am not happy with the way I look.

I have been working with various "professionals" for the last six years or so trying to get my health issues straightened out so that I can eat normally and not continue to gain weight. My favorite was a Nutritionist that promised to help, and had me eating more and more and more whole grains, at the end even including wheat berries, which actually led me to someone else who was able to diagnose me with Celiac's, which is gluten intolerance. That was a 30 pound gain over about 3 months that hasn't gone away yet. I have had multiple promises of a fix, using "their way", spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars, with no results. But I think I now have a handle on all of the issues, and will be working through this myself. Seeing what Shams was able to do has given me a new outlook and even though I'm not going Vegan, I am hoping for some results.

I have taken flat pattern classes at college level, and given enough time and patience, I can totally draft patterns for myself. In fact, I took Don McCunn's pants class in person in San Francisco many years ago. I have drafted a few hundred pair of pants by now I expect. I haven't bought any RTW pants for at least 10 years other than in emergency situations...on vacation and the weather wasn't what I anticipated, or moved and clothes weren't here, nor was my sewing machine, patterns, fabric etc. Partially because RTW clothing doesn't fit me. Hasn't since I was in my 30s and a perfect size 8.

The problem is not in the drafting. It's the fitting. Well, and to be honest, I probably haven't had the same measurements two months in a row in the last ten years, so it's the never ending redraft. I have some health things, and I hate to sweat, but love to eat, so yadda, yadda, yadda. I am once again on a new program that is supposed to help me get to "goal" and stay there. Unfortunately, that's about 85 pounds from here. That's a huge sigh you just heard. And I have passed the mid point of my 60s, and frankly, things are falling! LOL

So long story, but I generally make all of my clothes, with a few exceptions. I kind of giggle at the Me Made Months that everyone gets involved in because I expect I do me made years. :P}} We live in the greater San Francisco Bay area, so I don't make coats. I have a rain coat that's probably a London Fog or a London Fog knock off, and other than very rare occasions, that's my winter coat. I generally will buy a cashmere sweater or two in the fall/winter just because I love them and would be afraid to buy cashmere and make it up just in case I lost my mind and messed it up. I have made bras, (again, the pattern isn't my size anymore) panties, tops, pants, skirts, and dresses. Not that I wear dresses any more. I live in self drafted pants, but I'm not loving the fit any more and I'm not sure what's going on and how to fix it.

I want a good fitting bodice sloper so I can take that and make tops that fit my unique shape and figure. My usual pattern alterations before I even get into the nitty gritty is to drop the center back neck by a half inch, tapering to nothing at the shoulders. Narrow sloping shoulder adjustment. FBB adjustment, which is full bust and full belly. Sway back adjustment, not because I have a sway back, but because I have a round butt and a high hip. Bodacious arm adjustment. Length adjustments. Then I do a muslin and try to adjust the rest of the fit. Sometimes I have wadders and sometimes I have tops that I can and do wear in public.

I'm hoping with Glenda's help, I can do this once, figure out the "major" adjustments I need for this draft, and then as I drop inches, just keep redrafting with the basic adjustments to the pattern.

Today was the first day that I have really taken the time to draft the bodice pattern. I had started before, then realized that I had to adjust both the front and back bodice due to the bodacious arms. So on the front, I had already made a few mistakes that were exed out, so just redid that knowing I had to change a few things. On the back, I just made the adjustment at the underarm and I am good to go.
So as of about 7:30 pm tonight, I have a bodice and sleeve draft ready to start cutting out. I'm using a gingham for the muslin so I can be sure grain lines are right, and that's going to get cut out this week, and sewn together. I'm hoping there will only be minor tweaks, but who knows.

I've been taking a few pictures as I go along, so I'll try to get them uploaded in the next few days.

More later!

Just a few minutes today to write. I'm SO EXCITED! I purchased the Sure Fit Designs dress, shirt, and then subseqently the trouser kit, the video, and the jeans video. The dress and shirt kits came late last week, so they are next in the queue.
I do have a pretty good fitting trouser pattern, but since I also signed up for the retreat in October, I needed to get Glenda's trouser kit too, so that was ordered Saturday.
Working very long hours, but have traced off the bodice front to give myself a little thrill. Back will be next, then sleeves. Not too concerned about the "skirt" part of the dress, but I do want to have the top fitted and soon. Can't wait to actually have a well fitting sloper.
I'll also be doing a shirt for Dale, so he will be happy to have something for him too I expect.

I will keep you posted on progress as it happens!

Things getting more or less back to normal around here. As usual, I’m working way too many hours. Dale is getting back on his feet and has even begun painting again, which is a really good thing. We’re having an on and off again argument about him going back to work. I keep telling him he’s retired, and he keeps saying he needs to feel he’s contributing. I come back with his new job is now to take care of me. He’s not real up on the househusband thing. :P}}

I am finally getting ready to return to my sewing. Thank goodness. Have been piddling here and there with a few things, but no productive sewing has been coming out of my studio to speak of. Did get a new aqua Margarita top done for the hot weather we’re having, but between relearning about sick husbands, high school graduations, parties, and work, I haven’t had a lot of time.

I do read Stitcher’s Guild pretty regularly and keep in touch with what’s going on via my favorite blogs. On occasion, I do veer off into new blog territory when I find something interesting on one of the blog favs or Stitcher’s Guild that happens to resonate with me.

I have continued to struggle with the weight issues and the fitting issues. I have been trying various things recommended by everyone from the trainer at my gym, (who is obviously into wanting people to “bulk up”), to the Internist, to the Acupuncturist, to an attempt to do a gluten free Weight Watchers, and finally threw in the towel and went to a Nutritionist at my HMO. I perhaps see light at the end of the tunnel. I got some good information from her, and some suggestions for “chair exercises” that I can do that won’t further damage my knee.

With the hopes that I will be finally going steadily downward to my goal weight, I have been contemplating how I can continue to stay relatively well clothed while continuing with making TNT patterns, and I'm hoping I can continue to adapt the TNT to my new size as the weight disappears.

I watch and learn from others with the patterns they are using, and have found a few new pattern companies I adore. I already loved Hot Patterns, Pamela's Perfect Tee and others, and have been pleased with Petite Plus Patterns. But finding Style Arc has been a real boon. I love their fresh ideas and styles!

All of a sudden, out of the blue, I have been hearing a lot about Sure Fit Designs. Although they’ve been around forever, all of a sudden, it seems to be the rage, and most everyone using them has been raving about their fabulous results using the system. I read a four page thread on SG about them, and then went to the website and started reading and watching videos.

To make a long story slightly shorter, I purchased the dress and shirt kits, and have signed up for a retreat in October. I’m very excited about the retreat. I expect I’ll have my body blueprint done long before October, but at least I can go and get additional help with fit and styling. Even though I have a good self-drafted pants pattern, I want to do the jeans too, and I’m hopeful that I will be down 25 or so pounds by then, (hoping for 2 a week, which is probably a bit optimistic, but that’s 17 weeks from today, so who knows!)

I’m working through the weekend, but hope to be caught up by Wednesday, and then I’ll be starting with the body blueprint. (In my group, we call it a sloper, and I believe in other areas it’s called a toile~ Glenda Sparling, owner of Sure Fit calls it a body blueprint.)

I’ll try to record my journey here between the new eating plan and the new pattern progress.

More later!

 

 

 

 

 

 

One helluva couple of weeks!

Well, it was a lovely vacation, but, as always, we were happy to get home, pick up our dogs from the kennel and get back into our normal lives.

My best client had been waiting on pins and needles for me to get back and filled my calendar pretty quickly. I was back to work the day after we got home, and even did a Saturday appointment, which is almost unheard of. I continued working throughout the weekend, trying to get caught up on regular work, accounting, and all the rest.

Monday the 4th dawned, with another full week scheduled. Then on Tuesday evening, Dale woke me up with the news he thought he was having a heart attack, and it went downhill from there. It turned out he had most definitely had a heart attack. We went to "our" Kaiser facility about 20 miles away, and they wound up admitting him that evening.

Wednesday they informed us he needed surgery, and they would be sending him to either San Francisco or Santa Clara, which are the location of the Cardiac units. Wound up, he got to ride in an ambulance with a nurse in attendance in addition to the EMT. But he was disappointed they didn't use sirens. :P}} We were thrilled with the facilities in Santa Clara, but the 90 mile drive one way was a bit of a drag.

Long story short, a Cardiac Catheterization showed he needed a bypass. Next day was a quadruple bypass. Then Cardiac ICU, regular hospital, and a week later we returned home. We're trying to figure out a new routine now that will work for both of us when I return to work on Wednesday. He's always been in charge of his own breakfast and lunch because our time frames are different. No more. He's up with me and we're trying to coordinate our internal clocks to be in sync. I think it will take a little bit of a balancing act for a bit to get three meals a day on the table, still work full time and figure out a time to sew.

I'm thrilled he's okay, and our 11th Anniversary yesterday became a reality. The celebration was a little different than I anticipated, but all the more sweet because we were together.

Please hug your spouse and/or partner and think about how much they mean to you. It was a really big eye opener to remember to let the little things go and celebrate your life together. Also, despite the fact you think you're healthy, to listen a bit to the doctors. Watch your diet and get the exercise they recommend. To take the time to do the things that you enjoy and not worry about the small stuff.

Lucky for us, at 65 he's still doing construction and is in very good shape, so his healing is progressing much faster than anticipated. But we do have a good six weeks or so of recovery, so if you don't hear from me often, remember, I'm here in spirit, and even if I'm not sewing in reality, I am sewing in my dreams and day dreams! :P}}

Now I need to figure out how to make time for everything and let go of some of the external stresses that I really don't need in my life.

A wonderful Saint Patrick's Day to you all!

And we're back!

 

Well, it's been a few weeks since I posted. A busy few weeks in more ways than one. Work, as usual, has been super busy. It's a good thing when I think about it, but does cut into my personal life and sewing time a bit. Initially I was trying to get a little ahead to take care of all vacation expenses including missing income for while we were gone. Fortunately, or unfortunately, whichever way you look at it, it looks like this year will be an amazing year business wise for me. The housing market is starting to pick up, and due to the incredibly low interest rates, some people are able to refinance their loans into lower rates. As a group, Real Estate Appraisers in this area are typically nearing retirement, and I think a few more have left the business as I get calls from people every day that I haven't worked with before. Good for me all the way around. 

Before we left, I finished the rayon batik tee. My TNT Pamela's perfect tee shirt, short sleeved, Stash fabric, not sure when or where I got it. That's been worn several times and is a great addition to the wardrobe.



Brown Batik Tee

I got most of the next tee done, and finished the hems last night, so that's in rotation now. It's a ecru ivory Lacoste cotton mesh knit, bought on sale from Denver Fabrics. I have a tank already from the fabric, and enough left over for a short sleeved tee too. Having three nice tops for $21.50 reminds me why I sew. :P))

The next item is a "wearable muslin" of the Style Arc Franki top. The fabric isn't one that you'll see on me often, but for days off in the summer, it's a happy top IMO. It's a rayon knit that feels wonderful. I've made some panties (knickers for my sisters across the pond) out of it too, and I think there's enough left for another pair or two. Super comfortable fabric for those! There are still some issues with it, but generally, it's okay. Need to figure out why I have lines running from my neck down to the bust line. That's for when I have a few moments to sit and read my fitting books.


Tan Tee and StyleArc Franki Muslin

I have the Burda top (#2998, OOP?) on the cutting board now. I think the fabric will be super for it. It's a beautiful rayon woven that I've had in my stash for a long time. I think it was initially slated for a dress when I wore them a long time ago. Although the background is black, there are grey swirls, and the beiges, tans, and creams that fit with my SWAP quite well. I also have the next pair of pants ready to go. They're a cotton twill, as usual, in a kind of taupe color. They'll be my standard quarter pocket pants for work.

Burda #2998 top
 

Taupe Pants Ready to Go
 

Still need to get the sleeves copied for my Butterick 5616 top, and it's coming up after these two. And I have the rayon-microfiber chocolate brown pinstripe washed and ready to go get pinned and cut for slacks too. I'm debating whether I want to do those with quarter pockets, inseam pockets, or welt pockets. I think the welts may make the cut this time!

Our vacation was fabulous. 60+ family members all in beach houses in Southern California from Wednesday through Sunday, and a big wonderful, emotional 50th wedding anniversary party for my sister and brother in law Saturday night. Besides Dale and I, both daughters, one with spouse, and 5 of my granddaughters got to visit and be there. My sister has 8 kids with spouses, and most of her 44 grand kids and 8 great grand kids were there. It was one big love fest and lots of laughter, tears, and fun. We're planning to repeat it in 2015!



Blue house downstairs unit ours


View from our porch
 

Relaxing on my porch
 

 



Sunset from my porch at the beach


Another sunset from the porch

 

We got back Monday evening, and I had a pile of orders waiting for me, so needed to get busy with work, so the planned day or two of down time and sewing didn't happen. I don't ordinarily do inspections on the weekend, but I even went and did one yesterday. An unusual property, in the Sacramento Delta. Dale and I went together, and due to the uniqueness and trying to find similar properties spent several hours riding around on various islands and branches of the rivers and sloughs of the Delta looking at houses and marinas, and all the rest. Even though I don't usually work on Saturday, knowing this inspection would take several hours, Saturday was the way to go.

So today, I'm typing an appraisal, running in to Hancock Fabrics to pick up thread and needles, etc., on their big sale, and then hopefully sewing on my pants and cutting out my blouse before I crash. We'll see how much I get done today!

I've added a few pictures not only of the garments, but also snippets of my vacation. It was so relaxing and lovely, I'm still basking in the afterglow!

Enjoy your week and I'll try to catch up and keep posting!

Map the Sewists

Really cool idea. I want to share with all of you! From this website:

http://anothersewingscientist.blogspot.com/2013/02/map-sewintists-goes-live.html

Map the Sewintists goes live!
I had a brain wave yesterday morning while I was supposed to be herding kids out to the car for a road trip to Ontario:  how can sewing and crafty people find each other IRL and never miss another meetup?

I quickly slapped together that post, and thanks to Shannon for pointing me in the right direction, and to Gillian for being my first tester, we're ready to go live!

Here's how to participate:

Open this link to get to Map the Sewintists
Click on the red Edit button on the left
Click on the blue pin on the upper left of the map
Click on your location to drop the pin
A box will open that will allow you to add your name or blog URL in rich text
Save et voilà!

**********update from users:  it appears that you cannot pin if you are using a mobile device / tablet; also, you may need to use Firefox since other browsers may not work; finally, you must be signed into your google account.  If worse comes to worst and you can't pin after trying all this, just comment below with your location and info you want to include, and I'll pin you!

I would strongly advise people to only pin their general location or closest city, since we don`t want creepers peeping in our windows while we sew in our unders, do we?

Gillian and I have also added some fabric shopping locations around the world, so please share your collective wisdom!  I'm going to start spreading the word online.  If you like the idea, please reblog so that we can get the word out to everyone who feels isolated from the "cool kids" in NYC and London  ;)

Hopefully this will develop into a useful resource for all of us around the world.
Again, here's the website. Look how many of us there are already~
http://anothersewingscientist.blogspot.com/2013/02/map-sewintists-goes-live.html