First SWAP item completed!

Feeling pretty good about this. The goal is at least one garment per week, and here it is the end of the first week of 2016 and I have one garment completed.

This is for capsule #1. Grey wool flannel slacks.

These are a pair of unlined medium weight wool flannel slacks. The fabric was purchased from Stone Mountain and Daughter in Berkeley the end of  January 2015 as a birthday present for myself. 

I don't generally line my slacks because I prefer to wear a "pant slip" underneath. These should work for 3 seasons in Northern California and who knows how many in New Mexico, but at least late fall into early spring. 

I used my TNT pants pattern, self drafted from Don McCunn's "How to Make Sewing Patterns" class and books. I made my waistband finished width 1 1/4" and did a Hong Kong finish on the inside of the waistband as per my usual. The inseam pockets were done with the instructions from David Coffin's trousers book. 

Interfacing for the fly and fly shield is Fashion Sewing Supply Pro tricot deluxe fusible.  I used a piece of Ban Rol for the interior waistband stiffener, and a button for the waistband from my stash. 

These will go into rotation immediately!

I'm working on a muslin for a blouse using Bootstraps pattern #54469. It's a very nice looking blouse and was a free pattern. I'm not sure why it was free, but I didn't question it. That will be my second entry for my SWAP. Once that is complete, with my previously made grey jacket, this will be my first capsule.

I hope a lot of you that read this are participating in SWAP 2016 too. There are many participants, with lots of different aesthetics, and it should be a wild and crazy collection. Even if you don't finish, or decide not to start, it's really a lot of fun to watch. Check it out here: http://artisanssquare.com/sg/index.php

More soon!

First one of 2015

My very first garment of 2016. A knit cardigan in shades of grey and indigo. A winner I think.

It may be that this becomes part of my SWAP, but it may not. It wasn't on my original listing, but I fell in love with the fabric even though it was an impulse buy. The grey and indigo fit well with my SWAP, which is a grey grouping and a navy grouping. We'll see how the time goes.

I do such good pictures, I think I should be a fashion photographer/model! LOL

Even though I used a TNT pattern, Petite Plus Twin Set cardigan, OOP, I changed it up a bit to make a different look. Generally I just do a doubled piece the length of the front, and serge it on, which makes a nice flat front. With this fabric, I used the uneven, semi-fringed  selvage edges as the front facing and placed the raw edges on the outside. Fabric is from Girl Charlee (see prior post) purchased in November. That's unusual for me to sew something up so quickly, but we're having VERY unusual weather in Northern California, currently below freezing when I get up, and some days into the very low 50s, but mostly 40s during the day. I needed a cardigan!

My good friend asked about my prior post and questioned what I meant when I said I wasn't very good at change. A partial quote: "What would that be? I know I sometimes face change with anxiety or maybe it would be more accurate to describe it as an overall amorphous feeling of malaise. But that would be me projecting my feelings onto to you." She went on to say: "So in some ways I think that your physical self will be rejoining your spirit self. "

As always, she makes me think in more depth. I had to really contemplate what it was I was thinking and meant when I wrote that statement. I love the idea that by changing my actions and reactions to things, letting go of stress, and allowing my life to flow in a more organic and natural way will allow my spiritual and my physical self to once again conjoin and make the correct decisions based on what works for me.

My response: "It’s not a feeling of malaise because I’m frequently excited to do something new. I think it’s more of a frantic and frightened energy. Like if I get out of my routines, I won’t know who I am or what I’m supposed to do. May be why I’m so uncomfortable when I’m in a group of people I don’t know. I don’t know the behaviors and the reactions I’m supposed to have, so I feel panicky that I will do or say something wrong and no one will like me."

I think many of us spend our lives being the "employee" the "wife" the "mother" the this or that and don't think about who we are. I've worked since I was 16 years old, and my "self" was always wrapped in my career. For the last 20 or so years, if you ask me who I am, I would say "The Appraisal Lady." But I think there is way more to me than that despite the fact that is my major role at this point in time. Now that I'm getting ready to let go of that title, I need to find a new niche that I fit into well. Hopefully something more rounded with lots of interesting and diverse ideas, roles, and functions, enterprises, and undertakings. We'll see how that goes as the year continues.

Back to the sewing blog... I've started my grey wool flannel slacks for my second 2016 garment. The darts are in the front, fly zipper is installed, and I'm starting work on inseam pockets. Wish me luck. I'd like to have those done by the end of the week! They'll be a welcome addition on my lower parts!

More later,

It's a new year, and a new life!

I thought a lot yesterday about a phrase from my youth. How many of you remember hearing/saying "It's the first day of the rest of your life." It's particularly appropriate to me as this year is the beginning of a new phase for me. 

210 days and counting. I spent a lot of "background time" yesterday while I was cleaning and labeling files, getting receipts and records put together for 2015 taxes, and getting my files labeled and put together for 2016 thinking about my new life and where I'm going. What I want to change, and what I want to keep from the past. I realized that I'm not very good at change. And I am excited by change. Quite a dichotomy!

One of the things I was thinking about was how when we put our intentions out into the Universe, they have a way of coming true. Our words have meaning and resonate with our unconscious mind, helping us to achieve our goals with little effort. My nieces are wont to choose a word for each year that has meaning for them and the things they want to accomplish in their lives at that point in time. I decided that would be good for me to do as I'm embarking on a whole new life that I have no way to chart out and plan. So being an overachiever, I have chosen two words. My words for 2016 are adventure and exploration. . I want to move a little out of my comfort zone and do things that are slightly different, challenge me as a person, and excite me. So that’s where I’m going this year. 

I also am going to try to make a conscious choice each day to live without anxiety and stress and just to work calmly and efficiently through the day  in order to let go of things I'm not pleased with, and be happy with what IS. 

I have thought long and hard about SWAP this year and think despite my work load, I may be able to accomplish the 11 garments in the four month period. I have my first planned garment fabric, a medium weight grey wool flannel prepped by washing in Eucalon and hanging on the shower road. It just needs to be pressed and then it's ready to hit the cutting table. 

While that was prepping, I started on something else. One of the goals this years is to do something sewing related each day. It calms and centers me like mediation. My first garment of the new year may or may not be part of my SWAP. It would work, but it's not in the plan as yet. It will probably be held in abeyance unless it is necessary for the appropriate number of garments. It's a light weight cardigan in a grey and indigo fairly loose boucle style knit. Lovely fabric I got in my recent mini-binge at Girl Charlee. Here's their fabric swatch as my photo isn't good color wise. 

They call it a Hacchi sweater knit, and it's still available here: http://www.girlcharlee.com/violet-blue-black-boucle-stripe-hacci-sweater-knit-fabric/famous-designer-p-11580.html?cPath=90_126

I'm using a TNT pattern for the cardigan. Petite Plus now evidently OOP. Today I'll finish it up and hopefully post the finished garment tomorrow morning. 

I hope your 2016 New Year's Day went well and perhaps you had a little time for your own creations! 

More later,

Last outfit completed in 2015

Pretty basic for me. The Style Arc Pants repeated in a navy ponte from Marcy Tilton I believe, and a Pamela's Perfect Tee in a grey and blue sweater knit from Girl Charlee.

Nothing new, just a very usable wardrobe staple. Sorry for the picture. I didn't realize my shirt was up on the side, and you can see where I'm getting files moved out to storage so there will be room for the 2016 files. 

I had fully intended to spend 2015 sewing and blogging, but obviously, that didn't happen. It was much harder than I thought to have a year alone after being with to my best friend 24/7 for the last 14 years. So not nearly as much as anticipated got done either here on in Las Cruces. 

Now 2016 is starting, and I'm on the countdown. 210 days until retirement. Sounds like a big number, but considering I've been working for almost 52 years, it should pass quickly! LOL

I've stuck my toe into the SWAP 2016, and hopefully will be sharing lots of new outfits over the next few months. I've also got a new men's shirt pattern bought from Bootstraps new collection that almost fit perfectly out of the envelope. I either measured the chest wrong, or European Men's patterns fit much more closely than the US. I had to add about 1 1/2" to the front from shoulder to hem, and that's it. Dale should have a new shirt or two for his birthday in April. Maybe now he'll actually get his Dia de los Muertos shirt he's been asking for since his heart surgery!

BTW, if you happen to see this, and have been wanting to try a "made to measure" pattern, PDF only, Yulia has them on sale for New Year's for $1.19 each! Other than the PDF and the taping, I've found these to be great patterns! You do need to have probably intermediate skills to sew them IMO.

Happy New Year, and I'm wishing you a year filled with creative experiences!

More later,

For whatever holiday you celebrate, best wishes from our home to yours.

A relatively productive weekend.

Kind of a fun weekend. I've been having lots of issues lately. The computer is giving up the ghost and I've been sick with the nastiness going around. So this is the first weekend in several weeks that I've felt like doing anything at all.

My new computer got here yesterday, thanks to Amazon, I've spent about 8-10 hours since noon yesterday getting it set up and ready for work tomorrow, but in and around programs loading, I did get some quick sewing in too.

It was nice to have time for sewing. And nice to have some palette cleansers of easy projects too. I got a new pair of Pilates pants made, and finally got my Maria Denmark Kimono sleeve tee made up. (It's a free download from her site if you sign up for her newsletter and she goes from a size XS to a 4X.) Check it out, especially if you wear dresses.

http://www.mariadenmark.com/

The Pilates pants had a few alterations in the muslin phase. I lengthened the body of the pants as I don't like low waisted pants, and I actually lengthened the legs too  by an inch, which is odd, because I'm only 5' 4" tall. I'm not sure what the width of the waistband is supposed to be as I just did a 2" waistband. I've found it's best to do the waistband 1:1 with the pants waist, and then shorten the elastic by about 4 to 5 inches less than your waist measurement depending on the stretchiness of the elastic. In that way, the pants stay up no matter what you're doing. The fabric is a ponte de roma from Girl Charlee bought 11/27/15 on sale. It's called Black Charcoal Broken Chevron Feathers. They have it in a couple of other colors too. Lovely to sew and a nice weight too.

For the Maria Denmark Kimono top, I know she has directions on how to do an FBA on the website, but I didn't use hers. I did the lazy way, and just laid my TNT tee shirt over the pattern, and used my measurements as per that shirt. I used a size larger than my measurements indicated, because I don't believe a woman of my age and size need tees with negative ease. Just doesn't leave enough to the imagination IMO. I did rotate the dart I added down to a French dart as the Kimono sleeve with a dart right at the armpit was too close. I also lengthened the sleeves on this one by about 4", decreased the neck circumference a bit, and shorted the length of the top by 4". I like the fit quite well, as it gives me moving around room, and in this minimally stretchy knit, I don't think it would be comfortable if it were any smaller.

I found the Maria Denmark draft to be an excellent product. All seams line up well, and it was a quick and easy sew. If you don't need an FBA, I would think this could be done in an hour or so start to finish. I find the design very comfortable to wear, and like this one a lot. I used a mesh knit without a lot of stretch that was very old stash... I think bought in the 90s or so, maybe later, and used a lightweight stretch silk scrap cut on the bias for the neck binding. The fabric is what I think of for golf shirts. The binding is the cream, aqua, and beige remnants from the sleeveless top I made earlier in the year. It's nice against my neck.

Other news...
I'm definitely on the countdown to retirement and my new life. If all goes well with my apartment managers, I'll be signing a six month lease the end of January, and that will be it. I'll be on my way to my new home by the first of August! Can't wait for the new and exciting life to come.

As to the house, Eileensews asked about an update and I spent some time writing it only to have it disappear. I expect my post is circling the moon now. :-)

It is coming along. Dale has different priorities than I do, so hasn't done much with the inside yet. As a matter of fact, he just hung curtains last week (there were some there, but yukky cheap sheers) as it's getting cold, and he finally decided the lined curtains I'd sent might help keep out some of the cold. LOL

We have had some unexpected items crop up, and as Dale says, the house tells him what it wants next. Since I'm not sure what I've said in the last 10 months... he got a riding mower aka tractor for Father's Day last year. It's been a real blessing in getting the weeds knocked down and kept down. He still uses a regular lawn mower in some areas, but the two acres told him they wanted a riding mower.

All but one of my roses survived the move, as did the fig tree and the pomegranate tree. We got an unexpected bonus in that one of the "stumps" that we thought was dead turned out to be another fig and grew tons of figs when it got some water. We have three pecan trees too, but they need some attention from an arborist and I expect some sort of fertilizer. We're just glad they survived at all.

We've done a lot of what I'll call "infrastructure" upgrades. Despite what we were told, there was much that needed to be upgraded/repaired/replaced. Some we knew about, some we didn't.

First up was all new waste lines from the house to the septic system. I won't go into detail, but it was apparent when he had Roto Rooter out twice in less than a month there was an issue. When the trenches were opened up, it looked like someone who #1 had no idea how to run waste lines had done them, and #2 that they were falling down drunk when they laid it out. The fall was just wrong, and they had several 45 degree angles in them for no discernable reason. New lines were run from the house to the septic tank, and no problems have arisen since.

Around the same time, we also got new water lines, and new electrical services. Dale's taken care of the roof where some of the flashing was incorrectly installed and had odd leaks in some of the atypical thunderstorms this year. Not that thunderstorms are atypical, but like most of the world, the weather there is changing dramatically this year and they're getting El Nino weather patterns, which is rare.

We've got the rear steps that were crumbled repaired with a nice landing at the bottom, and added steps and a landing at the slider on the side. It still needs the trim around the slider installed. He's working on the exterior, and for now, is just patching and painting the cracks as he can. No time to figure out how to make and apply adobe just right. Hopefully next summer for that!

A huge unexpected project was when he started on the garage/shed roof. The shed part, approximately 12' x 28' had rot throughout the rafters and interior and he basically rebuilt it from the inside. At this point, I just about have him convinced that will be my new sewing studio! It does need a floor, as it is currently dirt floored, will need good lighting, and an electrical upgrade, but it's coming! We did have a roofing company do the actual roof, but he's going to do all the gutters too.

We've just replaced the heating system, the duct work,  and swapped out the evaporative coolers for what we call central air in California, and they call "refrigerated air." The evaporative coolers are not very effective in high humidity, and this year as it rained almost every day, Dale wasn't too happy with them. He's now a happy camper. Along with this, the gas lines got rerouted, and I'll have a gas line to the kitchen for a dual fuel range, and another to the laundry area so I can actually use my dryer.

We still have fencing and several other big items to complete. I think next up is the concrete floor and getting the "shed" livable, and then all new windows. He's pushing for a wood stove as the power went out for a few hours recently, and he figures anyone "in the country" needs a wood stove in case of power outages. We were hoping to do a prefab Kiva fireplace, but have decided it's not practical and with a price about three times the wood stove, it's kind of settled.

Once all that is completed, the kitchen and master bath will get some attention. It's a process, and we knew that going in. But as things become more livable and look more like a home, it warms my heart. We're building our future one day at a time. We've had a few people from the neighborhood, and the Realtor who listed the property stop and compliment him on the upgrades since we bought it.

That's all for now. I'll hope to be back soon!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I've been doing a little sewing as well as a lot of planning. Finished up a jacket from Butterick 5647 that I like quite a bit. Excuse the wrinkles, this was after a long day at work!

I added welt pockets as I like the look, but didn't even think about the jacket being unlined. Had I used patch pockets instead, (it has flaps for pockets but no real pockets which I need and want!) it would have been done quickly. I love the look of this jacket. Even altered for a curvy figure, it retains a lot of curves, and is very flattering. Shawl collars are one of my favorites.

Now I'm working on a muslin for some exercise pants. One down, probably a few more to go. I'm taking a Pilates Reformer class, which is designed for rehabilitation of people with injuries. I need exercise pants, but don't want the negative ease in commercial patterns for this body. So it's taking a while. First used my Barb pants pattern, which has too much ease the way I altered it. Next got a pattern from McCalls 6350. Again, too much ease the way I did them. Third one coming up though. Hopefully three's the charm.

Today I'm cooking for our Thanksgiving, and giving the house a quick once over. Hope you all have a very enjoyable day, and if you're in the US, a Happy Thanksgiving!

More later!

Dreaming and planning

Have to say, this week and weekend when I haven't been working, has been mostly spent in a dream with me fondling fabrics, playing with patterns, and putting together my initial plan's story board. 

It has taken ALL of  my time and all my concentration this weekend! LOL 

To give you an idea, I'd decided I was going to do navy, grey and red this year. I wear a lot of navy and grey, and love red so much, but haven't had the inclination to wear it for a few years. Getting back on my feet literally has given me a huge surge of creative energy. 

First I pulled out a few items in blue that I though might make it into the SWAP. 

Hmmm... since I need three color groupings this year, that might be a few too many. Pulled out some grey and some blue, which I didn't photograph. It's a little embarrassing to have more fabric than a small store! I am intending to do all of my SWAP from existing patterns and stash fabrics. It is easier to move clothing than 30 or so bins of fabric IMO.  

Anyway, I've folded, and fondled, and measured and plotted, and planned. At this point in time, my preliminary plans are these:

Grouping One:

Simplicity 4278 Grey Wool jacket completed June 2015

Burda 6810 Blouse Grey paisley rayon shirting

Self-Draft Grey wool flannel trousers

Grouping Two:

Simplicity 1920 Navy ponte knit jacket

Vogue 8689 Blue rayon print

Self-Draft Navy wool gabardine trousers

Grouping Three:

Pamela’s Perfect Tee Shirt, red and cream rayon jersey

Pamela’s Perfect Tee Shirt, red and navy rayon jersey

Self-Draft Black wool gabardine trousers

Combo Pack;

StyleArc Stacey Jean Jacket Chinese Red Faux Suede

Hot Patterns Plain & Simple Princess Shirt blue linen print.

Here's my first try at the story board for this year:

Since I have all those other fabrics out already, perhaps I will do some preliminary sewing to fit in with my SWAP. I could have a cohesive collection by the end of April, perhaps!

More soon!

AWOL a long time, but hoping to correct that this upcoming year!

Well, I’m sorry I’ve been AWOL so long. It’s been a most interesting year. I thought that it would be easy for me to get through a year and a half with my husband about 1,600 miles away, but it hasn’t been so easy. I miss him a lot! 

Despite being widowed for more than 5 years before I met him, we have been married for 13 years. I’ve gotten used to his presence in my home and in my life. It’s a little lonely without him, I have to admit. Add to that I’ve been working very long hours this year trying to build up a slush fund for all the repairs and updates we need/want to do, and I haven’t gotten nearly as much sewing done as anticipated. I was picturing myself as I was during the first years after I was widowed, sewing many hours a day. That just hasn’t happened, although I have done some sewing this year. Not blogging about it, but sewing did get done.

Fitting remains the challenge, and with the help of some wonderful people, I’m actually getting better at it. Thank you Mrs. Mole. Learning HOW to start was a huge help. By learning to measure my body separately front and back in multiple areas… including shoulder to bust, shoulder to waist, width between apex, and similar things on the back area, I have cut my muslin process down from as many as 8 to many less. Jacket I’m working on now, just took two tries to get it right! HOORAY!

I’ve been lurking, watching most of the blogs I follow, adding a few more throughout the year, and checking in on Stitcher’s Forum at Artisan’s Square at least once a month, and lately about once a week or more. As we got closer to the release of the rules on November 1, it became a few times a day! I’ve been watching the palpable excitement over the discussions of SWAP 2016, and even more so at the announcement of the rules.

As we all know, life can get in the way, but I’m sticking my foot into the water and anticipating going for a full SWAP collection this year. I don’t anticipate any big life changes like I’ve encountered in the spring the last few years, and am very hopeful we have a very uneventful 2016.

I need new clothes, and the rules fit into my lifestyle well. My lifestyle will be changing over the next year, as I am starting the countdown to my retirement, with (for now) an anticipated move at the end of August 2016. In the interim, I still need to have workable clothing that looks business casual and is easily laundered. So it’s going to be a mish-mash of a year for me sewing wise.

I’m thinking my retirement looks like gardening, continuing with remodeling and updating our home, sewing, perhaps a bit of quilting, walking, and biking, a comprehensive exercise program and some exploring of the amazing country we’ll be living in. I’m also anticipating a bit of volunteer work, and getting involved with the community. Perhaps a foray into a new and different part time career to keep me interested.

So far, the photographs and the visits have convinced me that New Mexico truly is the “Land of

Enchantment.” It will be my first time living outside the State of California, and I’m anticipating a bit of weather shock when I first live in an area with four seasons, and a bit of culture shock too. It’s exciting to start thinking and planning my next phase of life.

I’ll be sharing my ideas about the SWAP as I get my planning put together. 

More later!

At Last ~ Here I am again!

Well, things are moving forward and time is flying. I’m in my apartment in Fairfield, CA and Dale is in Las Cruces, NM. Well, more or less. There are still a few boxes here needing sorting, and he’s not the A type I am so he has lots and lots and lots of boxes all over! LOL

I’m having to be more creative with space, so my “sewing room” is more spread out here than it was at the previous house. The cutting table and drafting area are in what would normally be the dining area. The sewing machine is in the living room, and the serger is in the 2^nd bedroom which is also my office.

Today I hope to get pictures hung so it feels more like my space and not so amorphous. I think having my pictures hanging and all of my items around will help it feel more like home for the next while.

Finally having things more or less put together and a long 18 months stretching in front of me, I’ve definitely got my wheels spinning about what I want to do sewing wise over the next year. I had thought to do SWAP 2015, but I am rethinking the idea. There is much I want to sew, and most will follow the lines of SWAP, but I don’t want to restrict myself to a set number of garments that will ALL work interchangeably. AND I have bathrobes and pj bottoms that need sewing as well as the Granddaughter’s wedding quilt. 

I did get my "pre SWAP" pair of jeans made, and at some point I'll post those pictures. They're my usual trouser jeans, and are super comfortable and have already got tons of wear! 

The quilt is going to take a front seat, as they are getting married in August and I really need to have it done in time to send out for quilting. I’m trying to convince myself that 45 minutes a day on the quilt will enable me to spend an hour or more on my garment sewing. I’m going to have to see how that works out. I find quilting pretty boring despite the fact that I love quilts!

I also have found a marvelous pearl grey herringbone wool in my stash that I don’t even remember buying, but it must have been a 1980s or 1990s purchase because that was when I was doing outside sales and would have been in my mind for an outfit for work. That’s going to be my first garment. It will be a very casual jacket for my current work as it’s been pretty cold for here. This is the first winter in a long time that a light weight jacket hasn’t done the trick. The wool with a lining will be just about perfect IMO.

Yesterday was my birthday. I met my daughter in Berkeley for brunch, and just happened to wander into Stone Mountain and Daughter ostensibly for buttons for the jacket. Well what do you know? I found just the exact amount of pearl grey wool left on a bolt for a pair of slacks and a matching knit for a top. So I am excited about that as my first new outfit for the New Year. The colors aren’t true in this photograph, but here’s the three pieces together. I think they’ll be a great work outfit.

 Hmmm… perhaps that knit fits in with Jungle January?

Well, I hope to be posting and sewing much more regularly this year.

I am wishing you all a fun filled, sewing bonanza this month.

More later,

It's FINALLY happening. First truck is here today, and I'll be crazy moving for a couple of weeks and then expect to be sewing my heart out in my new apartment.

I hope you and yours have a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year filled with fun, joy, love and many pleasant surprises!

Wishing you all a wonderful Holiday Season and a Fabulous, Prosperous and Creative New Year!

I know I've been missing for a while. We're still hanging in limbo over the house purchase. Two steps forward one step back. At this point, we're 10 days past the "closing date." Still packing. Hoping to close in calendar year 2014. We might squeak by.

In the interim I've been doing some instant gratification sewing... pj bottoms, sweat pants and things along that line, as well as an almost completed new pair of trouser jeans, which will be the first item in my 2015 SWAP, sewn prior to the official beginning.

Most things are packed and awaiting a move to our house or to my apartment. But since we're still waiting, there are still a lot of things needing to be packed that we are using on a regular basis.

I have come to the conclusion as I empty drawers, closets, and all the rest that I MAY have moved beyond fabric collector and am pushing hard against the title of fabric hoarder. It has been nice to find some lovely fabrics I don't remember buying, and others that I thought had been lost for posterity. I have been organizing, cataloging and purging as I've gone through, but I'm only about half way through my stash at this point in time. WOW! I have a LOT of fabric! LOL

I'll try to be better about posting in the New Year. Can y'all believe that we are almost up to 2015. Seems like just yesterday everyone was in a panic about the world as we know it ending at the millennium due to computer issues.

As I close out my year on the blog, I'd like to wish you all:

Whatever your family traditions may be, and in whatever way you celebrate, I'm wishing you all the best. Thanks for being my virtual sewing buddies. I've enjoyed reading your trials and successes in your sewing and sharing mine with you. 

Catching up

Hello all.

I've been holding my breath for a month. If you're a regular reader, you know that in September Dale and I took an "exploratory" trip to Las Cruces, New Mexico to see if we wanted to move there for retirement. We have a good friend there who is a Real Estate Agent, and was showing us around town with the various areas and what was available, at what price, and in general giving us a feel for what it would be like to live there.

Long story short, he had asked me what our perfect retirement home looked like to me. After contemplating for about 1 minute, I said... about 1600 square feet on a couple of acres, "fixer", close to town but with a country feel, and after being here a week, I want an adobe home. After explaining to me why that wasn't going to be easy to find, especially in our price range, we just left it that we had about an year to 18 months before we were ready to buy, and maybe something would happen between then and now.

We got a call our last morning in town and Bill asked if we'd go look at a property with him. His ex was the listing agent, and she would meet us there if it was okay. Little did anyone know, I'd been looking at the property on line for several months, and thought it might be just what we wanted.

We went, we looked, and the wheels started turning. As a real estate appraiser, I'm a quick study when I look at a house, particularly a "fixer" and am able to determine if it can be great. While the house isn't great right now, I think it can be spectacular with time and my husband's skill set. It needs some adobe restoration on the exterior, but it has a new heater, new water heater, new gas lines, and a new septic tank. All good things. Don't know about the electrical yet, but overall it appears to be cosmetic other than adobe repairs.

I knew I'd have to stay where we are for about 18 months before I could retire, BUT, perhaps, we could get the house and Dale could get it fixed up the way I wanted, with frequent visits between Northern California and New Mexico in the interim.

Many weeks of negotiations have transpired, and it appears to me that the Universe is pushing us as hard as it can to New Mexico. We are in contract on the house, at much less than it was listed for, and we should know within about 10 days if it's going to work.

We had intended to wait until the Holidays were over before our closing and the first foray to New Mexico. I was going to stay where I am right now and have over a year to pack, cull, and purge as necessary with Dale coming back every couple of months and taking a small U-Haul with the items that were ready to go. Then we got a call this week that our landlady has been in a major car accident, and is going to be off work for several months. They need to sell our house, and have given us notice that they'd like us out by the first of the year. YIKES!

As it sits right now, we are probably going to close on the property on or about December 15. Dale will head out in his truck, towing a trailer with tools and some basic furniture and personal items. Then get there, unload, and turn around and fly back for Christmas. I'll be moving into a small apartment for the next 15 months, and he'll take a large truck full of the stuff we intend to move to New Mexico with our dogs right before the first of the year. We'll have the carpets and windows professionally cleaned, and be done by New Years if all goes well.

So I have about 60 days to go through an entire house, determining what I need to keep for my apartment, what will go to New Mexico, and what will get sold or donated. And right in the middle of my hysteria, plans for SWAP 2015 were released and it look like it's right down my alley.

Well... maybe. Perhaps. I WILL be living alone, and no one will interfere with my sewing time. Less cooking. Less cleaning. Less interaction required. I can be a hermit and just sew every night for four months. Hmmm... the wheels are spinning. And most especially once I saw BeeJay's gorgeous SWAP plans. I could start and see how far I get. Don't have to submit if it doesn't work out!

I better get busy, I think!

More later....

Wow! I was busy.

Here are a few more garments I've made this month.

Made between August 30, and September 1. A pinstripe twill, denim colored. It may have some linen in the mix also. Fabric Purchased From: Fashion Fabrics Club    Date of Purchase: 05/07/2012

Pinstripe Jeans inseam pockets ala David Paige Coffin

The aqua top prototype. Am going to redo the shoulder and side seams and hopefully get it working correctly. Started 9/2 and worked on it at least a little bit every day until 9/7. As you'll see from the pictures, it needs to be reworked, but I wanted to do quick and easy tees instead of pondering and playing with it. I think I'm going to have to do some top stitching along the front to get it to stay in place too. It's on the list for this week for deconstruction, and then we'll see where it goes:

The grey tee initially completed 9/9 and picture with the neck band removed for replacement. Fabric from Emma One Sock, rayon jersey. Sorry for the picture. It has been piled in the suitcase and then on the ironing board after I removed the band. 

The cream tee completed 9/10. Fabric an eggshell rayon jersey from Christine Jonson purchased 3/31/13. It will be so useful in my wardrobe! It's been packed, so needs washing and pressing, but here it is! Doesn't look that great over my jeans, though! 

I also hemmed a couple of pair of Levis for Dale before we took off. The sewing machine was running a lot over the first two weeks of the year! 

More later!

MIA? Not really.

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted. I have been trying to wear Me Made clothing everyday, and I think I've succeeded, with the possible exception of a day or two in pjs all day. And most of those are me made too! Unfortunately I had a computer melt down and lost a few things right before we were to go on vacation. So I will be posting SOME pictures, but not all.

We did a wild run driving almost 2,700 miles and had 5 days in Las Cruces, where we will be retiring, hopefully sooner rather than later, but at any point, I anticipate being there hopefully by New Years of 2016 in our new house whatever that may be. I did wear me mades every day we were there.

For our vacation, I lost my mind and decided I needed some new tee shirts. I went on a tee shirt binge, and got several completed. All are from my very altered Pamela's Perfect tee shirt. A blue print with 3/4 sleeves, a teal short sleeved, a white short sleeved, and a grey with a vee neck. Unfortunately, the grey fabric was a light weight rayon jersey and the neck binding just didn't work. So last night I took it all off and will redo it after adding some stablizer around the neck. For some reason, I don't have the pics of the aqua shirt, the grey tee, or the white tee. I'll try to rectify that soon!

The 3/4 sleeve blue cotton knit. It's from old stash, and it may look a little bit familiar because it was the left over fabric from one of the dresses I made for my daughter for her birthday. It was completed 9/08.

Teal rayon tee. Fabric purchased for this year's SWAP. Purchased April 7, 2014 from Emma One Sock. Completed 09/09.

The aqua top just isn't there yet. I'm going to be changing it out because my idea, while good, wasn't quite the ticket. I have large folds running from the shoulder point to the underarm. After much contemplation and rumination, I have decided that I didn't make the sleeve area deep enough, and that will be unsewn and corrected, hopefully. It's also huge in the body, so when I'm doing that, I'll take it in a bit. I will get some before and after photos of that one too!

Hope your month is going well and you're making good use of National Sewing Month sales!

More later!

It's National Sewing Month in the States starting today!

I'm going to try to sew at least a little every single day no matter what!

We're even going on vacation and I'll be taking my little Pfaff Passport "portable" machine with us so I can keep up the promises. As part of it, I'll be doing a daily "made by me" also. They may not get posted daily, but I'll try to get pictures every day!

Catching up.... The silk topper. I am just not sure about this. I had thought about using a silk organza interfacing, and then after fiddling with it, decided it was sufficiently opaque that the regular interfacing wouldn't show through. Obviously I was wrong. There are still some minor issues with the top, but I'm pretty sure they are fabric related. Please weigh in with your opinions... I'm thinking about trying to add a white lining underneath to the body only (NOT taking the buttonholes out of this fabric!) so the facings won't show. But I'm honestly not sure whether it is worth the additional work despite the fact I like the fabric. Here's a pic:

I also wanted to show you the revised Sangria top. I took about 4" out of the center at the bottom, and I think it looks better despite the fact that I've gained a few pounds since I started my "diet." :P}} 

It's being worn with my latest pair of Style Arc Barb pants. Black Karl Lagerfeld rayon/nylon/lycra ponte from Marcy Tilton bought specifically for these pants. I added pockets to them! 

I finished another pair of "trouser jeans" this weekend too, but unfortunately, I didn't inform my photographer to take pictures of those specifically, so the pics will have to wait for another day. 

This last week, I got the urge to purge, and started in on the back of my closet where the really old things that I didn't want to get rid of reside, despite the fact that at the minimum they are 2 to 3 sizes smaller than I am, and some quite a bit more than that! In the process, I unearthed a blouse I thought had gone quite some time ago. 

I made it back in the 80's or 90's, when I was probably a size 8 or 10. It was a very unusual blouse for me because in those days, I didn't wear patterned tops, didn't wear these colors, and the majority of my blouses were long sleeved to wear under business suits. This particular blouse had a hidden button placket that just showed the top button on the outside, and some little kimono type cap sleeves. I've been wanting to remember how I did it for several years now, and wanted to recreate it to wear now. Well, for what it's worth: 

The Inspiration Piece

Long story shorter, I took my basic bodice, and overlaid the neckline and shoulders of this top, figured out, (I hope) how to make the hidden button placket, and have a new pattern made and cut out. I haven't started sewing yet, and that's going to be my 20 minute task for today. I'm using an OLD stash cotton-silk blend woven in an aqua. I figure worse case, it will be a wearable muslin. Best case, I have a nice new blouse for summer and Indian summer. 

Will you join me in trying to sew every day for National Sewing Month? Maybe we can make it into International Sewing Month! More later!

It all came to a screeching halt!

I was merrily going along, sewing my cardigan jacket, unsewing my blue top at the ruching, and thinking I was going to have several garments done in a weekend. I had even traced off my new Bootstraps Fashion crop pants pattern, (evidently the same as Lekala but at 3 times the price) and another McCalls blouse for muslins.

BAM! The best of intentions... somehow, why I don't know, my Pfaff, that always makes perfect buttonholes messed up on the second one. Yes, the one right at bust level that is impossible to miss seeing. My friend had just had this happen not too long ago, and I had smugly said that never happened with my machine. Wham! Karma bites me on the butt.

I have to say removing sewn buttonholes is one of my worst nightmares even in easy to work with fabrics. This silk chiffon was a whole 'nother story! I spent at least a part of every night for a week trying to tease the buttonhole out of the shirt. In the evenings after a long day of typing numbers it becomes problematic to get my eyes to function.

Yesterday I had a partial day off. I spent one hour and 20 minutes sitting in bright sunshine, 80 plus degree weather with my glasses plus a jeweler's magnifying headband holding the fabric almost against my nose, and a seam ripper, tweezers, and tailor's point scissors, trying to get the entire thing removed without tearing holes in the fabric. I did get a few minor pulls, but I don't think it will be noticeable in this busy pattern, thank goodness. And it's done. But it was exhausting. I MAY have been stressing about this a bit. :P}}

After that, I was kind of off sewing for the afternoon. Did some shopping with the hubby and then in the evening worked a little on the ruched top, sewed a piece of silk for a scarf, and then the day was done for me. I'm hoping to have multiple things to show for my weekend of sewing.

I think I'm going to use a stabilizer on the back of the fabric for the buttonholes. From what I can tell, after sewing the first leg of the buttonhole, instead of moving to the side for the second, the second was sewn right on top of the first. That made it horrendous to take out.

If you read this and have suggestions on buttonholes in silk georgette, please leave a comment.

I'm also going to put together a small tutorial on making custom shoulder pads. If, like me, you have unusual shoulders, custom is the way to go, and it's easy!

More later!

Have to retool a bit, but I like it just the same!

I finished up the Sangria knock off over the weekend, but didn't get any photos until Monday. It's not an epic fail, but it needs a bit of tweaking to get it just right.

Here's the hanger shot:

As I said before, this is a really light weight tissue rayon jersey from Girl Charlee. 

http://www.girlcharlee.com/

Things I love:

1. the color is spot on. This has been lightened a bit to show the insert, but it's a glorious royal blue. 

2. The fit is good. 

3. I love the way the rayon jersey turns into cowl type folds instead of the more staid and fitted look of the original. 

4. It's really comfortable to wear.

Things I don't love:

1. The way the center piece hangs way below the hem line. I really don't need pooling around my abundant and bodacious belly! LOL

2. It was almost impossible to do the hems and make them look nice. If you look closely, you will see that one sleeve hem is done by machine, and the other is hand sewn. 

Thoughts for the next one: stop the ruching about 4-5 inches below the hem, or pleat the interior instead of gathering. Definitely make the seam allowances on that piece wider to give some room to work on it. 

So it has been set aside for some breathing room for a few days while I work on the first version of the cardigan jacket out of the Georgette fabric that I want to use for my summer topper. 

I am contemplating the best way to fix that droop at the front and have come to the conclusion that the only way to do it is to remove the hem, reopen the sewn and serged seams from about 6" up, and remove the final 5 or 6 inches of the ruching, then re-hem. It's not going to be fun to take the stitching out of this as the color of the thread is almost a perfect match for the fabric and it's so drapey that it's hard to remove the stitching without cutting the fabric. BIG SIGH. 

But I believe the top will be worth the work! 

Moving ahead, I'm working on a "jacket" out of a Georgette. Not sure whether it's silk or a blend. It's OLD stash fabric, probably purchased back in the 80's from the old Natural Fiber Fabrics club. I'm using my modified cardigan jacket pattern, and this will be the first "wearable muslin" after all my alterations to the actual muslins. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one. It's the first time I've sewn anything out of Georgette and it's a bear to mark the darts. I'm hoping they come out looking right instead of sideways. :P}}

A sneak peak at the fabric, which will be a workhorse in my wardrobe:

It's got almost every color of my core wardrobe in there. Hard to see in this swatch, but it has navy, dark brown, taupe, black, cream, gray, and even a bit of yellow in there. I'm hoping it will turn out well as it would be nice for a topper over a tee in the really warm temps, and give me the professional look without the typical "glow" I endure from summer through the middle to end of October!

Hope your sewing is going well!