Sewing, or at least trying to!

July has just flown by! The heat is really annoying, saps my strength by the time I get home each evening. I've been spending WAY too much time in front of the computer, but there's a ceiling fan above it and the breeze feels so nice!  The sewing room still needs work, mainly to get stacks of scrapbooking paper and even finished pages put where they need to be. But, I wanted to get sewing again so the machines are set up again. I finally got to sew something last Sunday - I turned a pillowcase into a drawstring bag For Erik to carry his pillow and blanket in to camp. Foldover edge, stitch casing, add drawstring. Ten minutes tops! He gets home later today, so we'll see how that worked out.
Last night I decided to use up some stash for this worthy cause, making little boy shorts. I pulled out my trusty KwikSew Sewing for Children patterns and a living pattern weight appeared from nowhere! 

She's such a silly cat, doesn't want to be held or cuddled, but wants to be right there in front of me. She fell asleep on the pattern too! Right now I'm trying to type fast because at any moment she'll be sitting on the mousepad, demanding my hand be scratching her head. Then the dog wants in the act, practically climbing into my lap. Oh, no, I spoke to soon! Later!  

The Week that Was...

Well, I did not get those sleep pants made or even cut out. Pre-washed twice is about as far as I got. I did, however, finish listening to the audiobook of FlashForward. VERY interesting! Lots of similarities to the TV series, but enough different that it won't spoil the TV season I think. I loved the "picture" they painted of what the world would be like in 2030. Two things that really stood out is Microsoft had gone bankrupt and the US had not yet elected a woman president, just as VP.

Right now the annual science fair project is consuming the energy in the household. Well, not really using electricity or anything. Erik has hit a snag in the procedure so an alternative one had to be found! Hopefully Plan B will work, as the data are due Tuesday!

The week ahead...

I finally finished the third pair of flannel sleep pants for me and one for Erik. These all got pockets, at Erik's suggestion. For the cell phone, of course, and sometimes the iPod. I still need to pre-wash the flannel for the Christmas sleep pants for him, my nephew, and my niece so I can get those cut out. That's my goal for the week, so maybe Friday night I can start the sewing. I still haven't decided what color T shirts to buy from ACM to go with them. Or if I'm going to embroider penguins on the fronts or just applique a penguin cut out from the flannel.

It's gonna be a busy week - two 4H meetings (one with a party), soccer practice, holiday pot luck at work, gifts to wrap (and in some cases finish making!), dog obedience workout, holiday cards to get into the mail. I'm going to have to be extra careful to not over-indulge in the food department and to get enough sleep. I need my bus commuting for knitting, not napping!

Wannabe Quilter

I picked up this magazine the other day while waiting my turn to have fabric cut at JoAnn's. There are several projects I'd like to make, and bought fabric for the "Curve Appeal" tote for me. I love quilts, but I'm not a very precise sewist so I have trouble with points and corners not matching. Strip quilts, rag quilts, and other simple shapes are right up my alley so this magazine definitely appealed to me. Who knows, a few may end up being gifts in the near future?

Sewing Tip for Today!

for my sewing friends...

When was the last time you cleaned under the feed dogs and bobbin case? Be good to your hardworking sewing machine(s) and give them some TLC today. Only takes a few minutes and if you've been sewing flannel and fleece holiday gifts, you'll be amazed (and maybe horrified!) at how much link collects under there! Your machines will thank you!

Sewing mojo returns!

Yes, my sewing mojo has returned, thanks to a doll clothes swap I just participated in. I love sewing for my AG dolls! They aren't picky about the print or the fit, and never ask if it makes them look fat!

Yesterday I hit the After TG sale at JoAnn's both on the way to work and on the way home (the new store is SO conveniently located!) and picked up lots of the flannel on sale for sleep pants for DS and DH. Not many prints for teen boys or men unless you are into sports, but I did find a few. They are on the second round of wash-dry to pre-shrink as I type! The pants for DS I'm going to put an extra deep hem in so when his legs grow another 3 inches before spring I can lengthen them more easily!

I need to reorganize my sewing room and am looking for a smaller table on which to put my machines. I'm using one of those 6 ft plastic banquet tables and 1) I prefer to have my machines in an L shape, 2) I can't sew at full speed because of the vibration and bounce, and 3) that extra space just gathers clutter. I probably won't get around to it until after the holidays, so that gives me some time to plan how to arrange it all. I just have too much furniture in there! Well, and bins of fabric too (sheepish grin).

Sewing!

I am happy to report that I really did sew this week! Yippee! I was home sick with cold and allergy symptoms on Tuesday and the rest of the week DS was home with me, with his own version of whatever nasty virus is going around. I managed to hide in my sewing room a couple of times, and the urge to sew for my dolls hit! Never mind that there is a stack of fabric for sleep pants for DS and some for me. Doll clothes are easy to cut out on the table space I had available and no fitting issues LOL! Nothing's done yet, maybe tomorrow I can post a picture.

Happy Independence Day!

OMG, has it really been since April since I last posted? Good golly, you must have thought I'd fallen off the face of the earth! Actually, I've just been overwhelmed with too much going on. My limited computer time has been on Facebook, mainly playing Farmtown! There's something relaxing about the plowing and planting and harvesting and rearranging my farm!

I have been sewing a little bit at least. I participated in the ASG national service project to sew kids' pillowcases for Ronald McDonald Houses across the country. Our neighborhood group made 136 as of June 6, and of that I made 29! I also donated about 75 yards of fabric from my stash! The local paper sent a reporter to our meeting, and the article is here.

We also got a boat! A 17' Boston Whaler, just the perfect size for Kurt and Erik to take out fishing this summer while I toil away at work, and big enough for the 3 of us to have outings too!

We also adopted a kitty! But that will have to be a separate post! Sneak Preview:

I sewed for me!

Underpants! Really, I did! I've been wanting to try for a couple years now and finally got up the courage (and got tired of my drab lingerie drawer). I have yards and yards of the VS stretch Satin and lingerie elastic from Kathy's yahoo group so I can perfect the fit. This was a Stretch and Sew pattern I picked up at Joann's with my 50% off coupon over President's Day weekend. The fit is fairly good - I'll need to make some adjustments but they look fairly simple. I wore them today and they were very comfy!
I will need to work on sewing this fabric, though, but I think I'll be getting lots of practice!
And no, NO pictures!

Making Sewing a Priority

This week (and last week, since I really started drafting this post last week!) almost every morning instead of making my cup of coffee and sitting at the computer, I've gone to sit at the sewing machine. Even if it's just a seam, it's a step forward toward completing something!

I finished another flannel rag quilt. A flannel pillowcase for DS. Another tote bag. Hemmed a pair of pants for me (have I ever mentioned I have short legs?!). Finished a long lost UFO smocked dress for my AG doll Julie (pictures to follow - she wants to have her hair and nails done first LOL).

Not only am I racking up the projects completed, I'm using up stash! I need to update my sidebar tomorrow - I keep track in my sewing room in a week by week calendar.

I also am cutting up the flannel scraps from the various sleep pants I've made for DS into 6 inch blocks so I can put them together in a scrap flannel rag quilt. The stack looks pretty cool growing on the shelf!

Streak stopped at 4

Well, I only made it 4 days in a row of sewing for 2009. Monday I didn't do a speck of sewing. Not only was it back to work, I spent most of the afternoon and evening at DH's school judging science fair projects. Then when I got home I had to be the homework police over DS. I collapsed in bed and was likely asleep before my head hit the pillow!

Tuesday I took no chances and sewed half a tote bag up before I went to work! Good thing, as that's all I got done sewing wise. The evening brought more science fair judging.

Today I worked from home and later DS has (indoor) soccer practice. I'll take flannel rag quilt #2 to snip while I sit and watch the team sweat!

Sewing in 2009, Day 4

This morning with my tea I stitched up this tote, from 1 yard of fabric, using the Lazy Girl Designs "With Love" tote bag directions. Our ASG neighborhood group is going to be making these at our January meeting and the group leader had sent us the link to the directions.Fairly easy tote to make, the fabric was from very old stash, and it took me about 30 minutes. I was a "lazy girl" and did not press as I sewed, as that would have required clearing off the ironing board first! I've got 2 more yards of the fabric to make 2 more totes later today. Hey - this is something for me! (for my resolution I was thinking the "for me" would be a clothing item!)

Sewing in 2009, day 3

Rag Flannel #1 done! It really is fluffier than it appears in the photo, and it's super super soft. In the mail it goes tomorrow!
Other sewing today, I cut out a pair of flannel sleep pants for DS, fleece pjs for DS, and drafted a PMB PJ pattern for me!
At Scrapbooking I completed an 11 page pre-made baby boy album for a co-worker who had a baby boy last month. That will go to the recipient this week too!

2009 Sewing Resolutions

I posted these to a sewing list tonight:

Use my embroidery machine more
Make Christmas gifts earlier
Sew one thing for me each month
Find a TNT pants pattern for myself!
Use more fabric than I buy

The first one is easy, as I don't think I used the embroidery machine once in 2008! I will keep track of my resolutions in the sidebar!
Feel free to remind me if I start slacking off!

Sewing for Sleeping

Did you notice the Stash Attack box on the right, how some of the numbers jumped today? the # of yards used increased by 50% and the # of items made doubled! Yes, I've been sewing flannel jammies for DS! 2 tops and 4 sleep pants, and now that DS is taller I sure do go through the yardage!

One pair is from halloween flannel from JoAnn's - black with skulls all over it. I don't let him wear skulls on the shirts he wears to school, but I figured no harm in sleeping in skulls. Unless he has nightmares!

Long "thyme", no post!

Has it really been almost a month? I should say "thyme" flies when you are having fun! OK, maybe not all fun, but "thyme" has flown!

September is my favorite month of the year, but it is also usually our busiest. Besides all the back to school stuff, getting into our new schedule, we have DH's birthday, our county fair, and my birthday! And to make life a little more complicated, I fell on my bad knee and spent a good part of the Saturday Tropical Storm Hanna hit our area (also DH's birthday) at the ER getting it xRayed. Thankfully there was no visible damage, but darn it still hurts! I'm giving it one more week and then if it's not better I'm going to visit my orthopedic again!

We had our county fair a couple weekends ago, and with our heavy involvement in 4H we end up being at the fairgrounds through most of it. This year we bought a hog at the 4H livestock auction - no, not to hang out in the yard with the chickens, but to be dinner and breakfast for the coming year! We anxiously await the call from the butcher shop saying out bacon and chops and ham steaks are ready to pick up! I hope no one is offended, but we always take a picture of what we buy from the 4Hers so we remember where our food comes from and all the work that went into providing us our food! When DH asked what I wanted for my birthday, I said a day to sew! And that's what I got! Granted, I was sewing a lab coat for DH, but it was the process that was important. And I used my Babylock Ellure machine that I bought last year and just have not tried to sew with it much. Now "Ellie" and I are good friends! I'm pleased with the lab coat and DH said a couple of his students want one too! Next lab coat I make for him I will alter the shoulder width as this one drooped off the shoulder too much. And yes, it is very red, but red and black are the school's colors. My day of sewing included a quick trip to JoAnn's, and the TV tuned to football, baseball, and NASCAR racing all day long. DH put a roast on the grill for dinner too!
I also made a fleece blanket from some stash fleece, pjs for DS from stash, and culled out some scraps and UFOs. I'm trying to get into the sewing room, if just for a few minutes, every day. I'm working my way through a pile of stash, layer by layer!

This month was also the end of the baseball season for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. They missed first place by one game - pretty impressive for their first year! Now I will turn my baseball attention to the majors and the playoffs. Not sure who I'll be rooting for yet!

It's Here!

The new Ottobre Woman fall issue arrived today! So many patterns I want to try, it's hard to decide what to do first! Here are my favorites and not so favorites (apologies to the Ottobre Design list that I posted this to already):

1. LOVE the pintuck dress! Not sure about the puffy sleeve, as I have heavy upper arms, maybe use a longer sleeve.
2. I'd like the denim skirt about twice that long LOL! Maybe I could use it and extend it so it's knee length.
3. tunic - same as #1!
4. plaid skirt - probably not
5. cargo pants - Can't wait to try these, and I have lots of good fabric in my stash for these!
6. zipper knit jacket - I like it, but how would it work in fleece?
7. jumper - very nice, maybe try it in denim and embroider on the yoke?
8. raglan T - must try! again, another one that will help me use up stash!
9. knit cardigan - I like it, but how heavy is wool knit? what else would work - fleece? slinky?
10. jersey tunic - could be a staple in my wardrobe this fall! Might leave the pockets off?
11. tweed pants and 12. tweed skirt - not fond of these, maybe without the cuffs and in a long pants length.
13. Sweet Nelly Wool Jacket - I don't think I have anything in my stash for this so I will have to go shopping! It's just too cute and comfy looking!
14. raglan T with pleats on sleeves - the picture doesn't show this very well, might just stick with #8
15. plaid pants - too small for me!
16. pants for curvy figures - LOL! OK, ya got me there! Maybe a good thing to use some of my stretch denim? Lord knows I need pants!
17. crossover top - I'm with "mermaids" - I could easily make this this weekend!
18. cowl sweater - nah, not a cowl fan.
19. wool tweed coat - Very tempting! I just donated my old wool coat to a thrift shop as it didn't fit me any more. Nothing in my stash, though, so would have to shop first!

I've promised DH to make his new lab coat by his birthday (Sept 6). At least I have a 3 day weekend, maybe I can do the crossover top in a blue tie dye knit I have in my stash first?

Sew Short!

The other afternoon DH called me and said we'd been invited to a 6 yr old's birthday party, the son of a co-worker of his. It had been a long day at work so I told him to go ahead, he and DS go. Gee, that gave me a couple of hours to myself! What do I do? Clean? Watch TV? Laundry? No, I decided sewing would be the best use of the time! Besides, I was still working on emptying that first bin! So, 4 yards and 2 hours later, I had a curtain for the patio door. Not so much for privacy, as it is all woods beyond the back yard, but to keep the sunshine out. Problem is, between the kitchen and the sewing room I lost 3 inches on the length measurement so the finished curtain is too short! Oh, well, I think the rod is up to high so when I paint the kitchen this fall I'll just move the rod! Meanwhile, I can just not look down!

More Sewing! and Lost!

I wanted a fairly simple project for a Lost night, as I just sew on commercials lest I miss a word of the Oceanic 6 or the Others or the freighter people! DS loves his big (27") pillow that is covered in the same flame camo fabric as his curtains and I still had another big pillow to cover so that's what I did! Then I snuck it into his room while he slept - he was thrilled in the morning!

BTW, great episode of Lost, but I'm sad that 1) there's no Lost on next week and 2) only the 2 hr season finale remains! Good thing episodes are on www.abc.com so I can get a Lost fix every now and then until season 5 starts!

What I've been sewing

Yes, I really have been sewing! Unfortunately, I no longer have the evidence. I made 3 play outfits for an 18" doll clothes swap and darn if I didn't forget to take a picture of them! The 3 outfits I got in return I gave to my niece so I don't have those either! It did get me into the sewing mood though, so more sewing posts to come!