Barriers to Blogging

I used to sometimes hear blog posts in my head.  I'd be thinking about something and it would turn into a conversation of sorts.  They were words I needed to get out of my head so I could move on to other thoughts maybe.  It really was the push to blog at times I probably shouldn't.

It doesn't seem to happen much lately.  Maybe because I'm happy.  Sounds strange but I think most songs are about something sad or challenging.  When we're struggling, we often have more things to say, more feelings to sort out.

That said, I am sewing.  It's wonderful to have new clothing to wear.  You know a few days I wore entirely me-made outfits last week?  Having two pairs of self made pants is certainly extending my wardrobe.  And last week I made a denim Hollyburn skirt.

I should be eager to blog about all of them but man I suck at taking pictures.  I was frantically hemming the skirt on Saturday so I could wear it to my nephews first birthday party (CRAZY, they can't possibly be one already).  First birthday, you'd think I'd have a picture or two of me in my self made brand spanking new skirt.

Nope.  I know pictures were taken of me but go figure, all the ones I have seen are of my nephew.  I mean really, there was a new skirt to show off, someone should have taken a picture of it (we need a sarcasm font or something).  I should have asked Mr. Lina to capture the skirt in all it's non-shiny denim newness but I didn't.

And then I washed it and wore it to work on Monday.  Granted, I left at 7:30am when Mr. Lina was in the shower and I got home at 7:30pm because I have limited time management skills, but in theory I could have taken outdoor pictures yesterday.  Spring HAS arrived (although I'm still skeptical it is here to stay).  But no, I decided having dinner and buying groceries was more important.

Oh and how is this for weird?  I was at a client this afternoon that happens to be near a Fabricland.  The car went on autopilot and the next thing I knew I was parked right in front of it.  Strange.  But stranger still, I didn't buy much.  I actually reminded myself I have fabric and home and bought things like interfacing, lining, and a little piece of fabric with grippies on it so I can make my hand knit slippers last a little longer (I swear my feet eat through yarn).  Nothing even to show off.  Every time I touched something I was reminded of some other piece of cotton sateen or poly-knit in my fabric stash.

I like making patterns twice.  You figure out what works and doesn't.  Let me tell you Hollyburn runs long on me.  The "above the knee" but not short (view B) is below my knee AFTER I cut the length for size 0 and then cut an additional 3" off the bottom.  I will sew it again but it will be cut 4" shorter (to be above my knee) and from a softer fabric.  I do like my light weight denim version (fabric purchased from Len's Mill denim ends, it's so dark it's almost black) but it the denim has enough body to float away from me.  My mom said I looked "youthful".  When I mentioned being ready for the sock hop Mr. Lina agreed.  I have some black linen in my stash, just washed it for a second or third time last week.  That could be nice for summer and while it won't drape like a chiffon, it will fall down instead of out.

Trips & Travels & Pants

It's been quite the month.  Mr. Lina and I were off to Germany and Austria for a little film fest and vacation.  It's the third year in a row that Mr. Lina had a film accepted into the same Landshut film festival.  Every time we meet people in the film industry and reinforce friendships.  I swear, my Facebook page is half German now.  If I knew in 2012 that I'd be back to Germany 3 times, I would have taken a conversational German class.  As it is, we are getting pretty good at "menu-German".

Opening night, cloned skirt made in February.  Black photographs so well.

Did I mention I dyed my hair?  Wearing Renfew top with cowl.

Again, it was a good festival and his film "Oh Come All Ye Zombies" was well received.  It won it's block of films and came in second for audience favourite by a very narrow margin.  Year after year, their programming is just phenomenal.  He's up against some amazing films and we aren't exactly stacking the audience with cast members.

Mr. Lina at the film fest!

Same Renfrew as above at BMW.

Landshut is such a pretty little town.  Even going three times, we still got to see some new things.  The festival arranged a tour of the BMW component factory for us.  They don't hold back on the tour, I got to see engine blocks being poured and carbon fibre bumpers being made.  The also added a film maker breakfast, weistwurst (white sausage), bretzel (big soft pretzel) & beer, a traditional Bavarian breakfast.

That's a radler - beer (lager) and lemonade of some sort, very refreshing.  Pretty sure I have self-made pants you can't see.

We decided after the film fest we'd go somewhere new for a few days.  Vienna, Austria ended up being the winner, it's close enough to be cheap and yet still new to us.  I liked Vienna, it's very beautiful, compact and walkable.  We rented a one bedroom flat through AirBnB.  It was great, we could make breakfast at the flat, if we at a big lunch and just wanted nibblies for dinner, we could do that.  After being in a tiny hotel room in Landshut, it was nice to have a little more space.

Long day of walking, corduroy pencil skirt I made last year.

 The first full day we walked a crazy amount.  Through the old part of Vienna, over to the amusement park, went for a ride in their rather famous Ferris Wheel and Mr. Lina decided we should have lunch at the Donauturm on the Danube, sort of like their version of the CN Tower).  We didn't quite realize how far away it was and ended up walking 20 km that day alone.  Above I still had a few kilometers to walk to get to the flat and I needed to just sit for a bit.  Thank heavens those shoes are comfortable!

Did I mention it was windy at the top of the Ferris Wheel?

We did a day trip to Saltzburg.  It was pretty overcast and damp that day so I can't say I got the best impression.  We walked up to the castle that overlooks the town.  This is the area that The Sound of Music was filmed in.  It wasn't until we were taking the train back to Munich for our flight home that I really saw the alps clearly.

Walking to the castle in Saltzburg, never been so happy to be at the top.

Oh right, this is a sewing blog isn't it?  And I mentioned pants!  

Thurlow Trousers, lunch at the Rathaus in Vienna.

Yep, I made pants.  Since February I have made a black skirt and 3 pairs of Thurlow trousers.  The first were a wearable muslin where I figured out that the leg is just too wide for me.  I'm drowning in them as drafted.  Above I'm wearing the second pair, black twill that is shiny on one side that I put to the inside of the pants.  It means they slide nicely on my skin when I'm walking (which led to me being unable to sit still after too much beer and coffee).  This pair is a bit loose in the waist, but that makes them perfect for travelling and great for bowling.  I have full range of motion but feel put together.  I actually wore that exact outfit to work yesterday now that I look at it.

I made a third pair in grey, it's got some stretch and pile to it, but it's not quite corduroy.  After this pair being a little big, I trimmed them down further but I had such a problem getting the bum right.  Oddly enough I'm not quite as happy with them as the second pair.  I've also got a little post-vacation weight on me so I'm hoping some of that sorts out the fit.  I did wear them on vacation but the days I wore them Mr. Lina only seemed to take pictures from the waist up.  Perhaps he isn't as keen either.

On the adoption front, we're one meeting and an evening training session away from being "Adopt Ready".  I thought the meeting was going to happen today, but our social worker isn't quite ready for us to sign off on it.  He has reviewed our home study with his supervisor and I gather they are really eager to have all the i's dotted and t's crossed and working with an adoption worker to place kids with us.  So soon.  Soon.

Silly & Random

My thoughts are a bit muddled as I puzzle something out at work today.  I think it's time for a list while the other stuff filters through.  This is going to be a truly random list but it's a start...

• Tasha & Friends had it's premiere last weekend at Buffalo Dreams Film Festival
• I couldn't go, I had already committed to helping my mom at a craft show, pout.
• It won Best Short Comedy and Mr. Lina got to meet his idol in independent film, Lloyd Kaufman
• Toronto folks can see Tasha at Blood in the Snow, I'll be at the 2pm showing on December 1st at the Carleton Theatre, the Saturday show sold so fast they booked a second slot for the short films
• Which is a good thing since I'm going to see Great Big Sea on the Saturday night
• Last weekend we went to see The Drive By Truckers at the Phoenix in Toronto
• The day of the show I woke up WAY too early, didn't nap and by 1am my feet were killing me from standing through the show
• You'd think I'd learn that the Phoenix requires comfy shoes even if I look silly
• On the drive home, I fell asleep
• Not remarkable in and of itself, but I started singing to Mr. Lina
• At least, that's what he told me, I don't remember, I was asleep
• I altered the words from "You are my Sunshine" to "You are My Snuggle-Mr. Lina"
• Which does flow better with his first name
• Good to know I'm cute even when I'm sleeping
• Thus bringing the silly part of the blog title
• I have had a bit of a rough week - migraine, a sad day (but just one day) and perhaps a little too much time to myself
• Work has been busy and occasionally contributed to the overwhelmed feeling (notably on my sad day), highlighted by leaving work at 8pm on Friday night
• I needed people to leave so I could get my own work done and Mr. Lina was already in Buffalo so no rush to get home really
• I am gradually working on the house, but it's a pretty slow pace
• I don't have the love of organisation that others do, packing and tossing stuff doesn't come easy for me
• I did tons of laundry this weekend and a lot of clean clothes are not going back in the drawers 
• I don't want to pack anything that doesn't fit and has no sentimental reason to keep
• I had the weekend to myself, looked forward to sewing, but a migraine put the kibosh on that, I stuck to doing laundry.
• Migraines suck, but it's been a long time since my last one so I'm really thankful for that
• Monday I was still kind of struggling with noises, particularly loud voices
• Sounds odd to cover noise with noise, but soft jazz in my headphones was soothing compared to talking, it's reminded me how much I like jazz from the 50's-60's.
• Yesterday was Remembrance Day
• I heard a poem by Dorothy Jamieson on the radio and after the poem, she said a few words to the audience that stuck with me:  Freedom isn't Free
• True in more ways than her military reference
• Next Thursday we're hosting Bill Bourne, winner of both Blues and Folk Juno awards
• That's going to be super cool.
• I get to make dinner for him.  How cool is that?
• I've already got 21 people confirmed for the show, that leaves about 10 seats and some time to go before the show (let me know if you'd like one of those 10 seats)
• The founder of the organisation for our house concerts, Mitch Podolack, was recognised for his contributions to folk music in Canada at the Canadian Folk Music Awards in Calgary, the CBC has this article on him
• We spent a lot of time with Mitch this year at the Folk Music Ontario conference, I am truly lucky to have had the chance to get to know him.
• To end this on a sewing note, I have a strange itch to make pants. 
• I even bought both Sewaholic pants patterns when she had her Thanksgiving sale
• But it's kind of scary.

Here's a little music so it's not without something pretty.  I like the words to this song.  As much as I'm dragging my heels, I am looking forward to building a brand new house full of love.  :)

WIP - Alma

What a week.  It's flown by so fast it's hard to catch my breath.  I have made some progress with my Sewaholic Alma, I have a few WIP pictures to share.  Not very flattering pictures, but that's what WIP and (hopefully) wearable muslin is all about.  Mr. Lina took these on Wednesday night but I didn't have a chance to post.  I made a little more progress last night but let's see where I was on Wednesday...

You'll notice the left and right don't look the same.  I (clearly) am not a small busted Sewaholic pear shaped model, a rather sizable FBA was needed.  Based on high bust measurements I cut a 16, but thinking about Myrna cutting a different size for front and back, I actually cut the size 14 for the back to see how that worked.  I added my FBA (can't remember how much, 1.5" maybe?  I think I needed about 3").  The thing is, I did a crappy job of lining up my darts.

What a mess.  My darts are way too low, there is extra fabric to pinch out and the lower darts aren't lining up with my bust.  I was rather disappointed but I could at least see where to start. 

So I marked my bust apex, redrew my darts and moved the waist darts to under my bust point.  (Side vent, after the terrible shaping above, I wanted to verify the right angle for bust darts and reference after reference would just say "and redraw darts to the correct place", and that correct place would be...?).

Don't I look perkier?  Not perfect but so much better.

Coming back to the top picture again...

On the right side I've pinned where I want the new dart to go under my bust (purple circle that looked far more noticeable when I added it).  The arrow points where the dart is.  When I did the FBA, I didn't think about how the lower darts would also need adjusting.

Last night, I fixed up both sides - tweaked the darts, gave them a better press and I based on the little sleeves to get a better sense of it without pins.  I didn't want to take it off.  I think I'm going to like this pattern. 

One question for those who have made it.  When I basted the side seams to check the fit, I started by leaving the zipper side open, but it seemed loose enough so I sewed it shut.  I don't need a zipper to get it off and on.  Am I leaving too much ease?  Is this normal?  Or is the zipper more important for the full sleeve options (I'm doing cap sleeves)?  I'm going to sew up the sides but I'd like to hear if there is a reason to add the zipper I'm not seeing.

So not much left to do.  I have not looked at the back with a critical eye, but it is not the obvious disaster that the front is.  There is space between my lower back and the blouse but I think it suits the style.  I think the most I'd want to do is end the back darts a little higher.  The sleeves need to be added on permanently and finish the side seams properly.  A quick hem and I believe this will be a truly wearable muslin, possibly even this weekend.  I don't think the pattern pieces will be going away prior to cutting out another one.

Is it the weekend yet?

Oh and not much to update on the FET.  I had some communication with the clinic about medications etc.  I will have 3 doses of Humira prior to transfer (so May 9th AND May 23rd - I'm going to need to buy more, $1,730 was for 2 pens not 3).  May 13th (Day 21) I'm in for blood work & ultrasound to see if I ovulate (doubt it) because that determines if I take Evil Provera or not.  Until then, I'm doing really well at taking my metformin, vitamins, (even flossing!) etc and making wiser choices eating.  I had some pretty bad PMS bloat going on with that period, I've lost 6lbs this week and I am quite certain that is not fat.  It's a good start that I'm aiming to build on in a very healthy way. 

You must read Falling Through Your Clothes today, it's exactly what I'm thinking about right now.  I'm not counting calories or following any stupid restriction (I am consulting a nutritionist, good timing for my work to offer up free access to a nutritionist for 6 months, no?).  I am simply paying attention to being hungry (which I have not been this week) and picking foods that are good for me.  I'm not happy at this weight, it does not feel comfortable.  My comfortable weight is higher than most charts, but it's a spot I can (generally) maintain and feel good.  That's what I want.

Weekend Review - Creativ Festival

Kay at Gently Down the Seam (side note, I think this is my favourite sewing pun for a blog) sent out a little note to people who participated in the Toronto meet up that she was going to both days of the Creativ Festival, was anyone else going?  I didn't even know about it but it seemed my Saturday was free and I welcomed the opportunity to strengthen some online ties in person. Kay, Adrienne, and Debbie have already posted about it.

Picture from Debbie, myself, Kay, Debbie and Adrienne.

I have to say that without Kay pointing it out, I wouldn't have thought twice about it.  So often the focus is on crafts I find interesting but not me.  Like quilting, scrap booking or beading.  I was pleasantly surprised by the titles of the workshops, there did seem to be garment sewing content.

The  web site was a little challenging to find what I wanted.  At one point I thought I was on their web site but it was really the blog.  I read something about advanced group tickets and the cut off for that was Monday and this was Thursday, I assumed that was the same for advanced tickets.  I was busy at work and not looking too carefully, I thought I would just buy my ticket at the door.

One session I was really keen on was at 9:30 - Make Bra.  Sounds right up my alley.  Imagine the frustration when Debbie and I got there at 9:15 (she with e-ticket in hand) that the door sales didn't start until 9:30 and I couldn't get in until 10.  Their reasoning was that it was incentive to buy in advance.  I get that, there was a draw for $900 to spend at the festival open to Debbie and not me, that's a good incentive.  Letting people in to shop the booths early, also incentive.  But starting seminars before it opens for everyone?  It felt like punishment to me, not incentive to them.

Debbie is interested in tatting and I've always been a little curious about how it's done so we went to a free intro-to-tatting lesson.  Half an hour is not enough time to learn much of anything but I got the concept of what was involved so I'll appreciate the work that went into tatting I see in the future.

The main stage had two sessions that were a blur of clothing and sales pitches (and lunch for us).  Some of it was kind of interesting, but I found them a bit of a whirlwind.  The focus seemed to be:

1. It's okay to eat cookies, just sew with elastic (that session was titled .Comfortable Clothes that Camouflage, but I could have used more camouflage and less "insert elastic here!")
2. Sewing is easy, cut a circle in a square and you have a skirt.
3. When in doubt, add embellishment (jewels, metallic, etc) but not the sleeves, you don't want to overdo it.

Now as my weight has changed, I appreciate knits and elastics, but some of it seemed beyond slapdash and into magic wand territory.  I am not a couture sewer at all, I'm just not in that stage of my sewing career.  Let's focus on me getting one thing done rather than soaking 30 hours of sewing into a winter coat.  But even I found this a little much.  You would think that if you went to the festival and you chose to join that session,  you have some knowledge of sewing already.  So why focus so much on making sewing look like magic because it's so easy?  And from a fashion perspective, well, it wasn't overly inspiring either.  I'm not interested in bejewelling my clothing and when I did see something I liked (lightly padding a lapel on a jacket that was puckering at the seams) it was so fast I didn't really have a chance to absorb what she did to make it work. 

Interesting though, I have found myself thinking about these two sessions a lot and what it means in the wider sewing world, so maybe my review is sounding harsher than it should.  This was like the opposite of Myrna Giesbrecht who will muslin many time to get what she wants and savours the process of getting there.  Or K-Line with her many muslined Spring Suit project.  But, there were times when I thought Myrna would like some of the embellishments (maybe not the Cirque du Soleil foiling).  I seem to remember a comment about using threads to add detail, something I know she would like.

As others have noted, the fitting session with Lorraine Henry was really awesome.  Half an hour was not nearly enough time.  I had traced out the Alma blouse prior to the show and done a FBA but still feeling a little insecure with it.  After sewing a few tents and potato sacks lately, I'm feeling hesitant.  It was great to see her discussing a FBA specifically, it really made me feel more confident that I'd put the extra space in the right spot. 

And while the session on sewing machine & serger maintenance with Joanne Brousseau sounds pretty dry, I spent a good 45 minutes cleaning my machine on Sunday.  Clearly it was inspiring.  Looking at the machine closely, I noticed the arm is a little pink.  I think the red ponte for Tiramisu has rubbed off.  I'll have to be careful when I wash it, maybe put one of the dye catchers in the wash.

If I had gone on my own, I'm not sure I would have enjoyed it.  I would have sat through a few sessions (probably skipped the machine maintenance), felt overwhelmed by the people and the frequent sales pitches (I was starting to expect the as seen on TV kind of lines of "but wait, there's more!" or "with three easy payments of...") and left.  But with the ladies, I was open to any of the sessions, it was lovely to talk (and laugh) and break up the knowledge soaking that went on.  My brain felt full when I got home.

Both pre-washed, striped shirting on the right has been cut.

Sunday I ended up with a bit of a hang over (oops) and Mr. Lina had people over to record voice work so I had to be quiet, the microphone will pick up the sewing machine and foot steps two floors up.  But I felt the itch and interest returning through my headache.  As well as the machine cleaning session, I pre-washed fabric above, ironed 3m of one of the shirtings, cut out the Alma and started sewing the darts/stay stitching.  This morning I popped into my sewing room to get something and noticed one point from the V cut in (I'm doing View A) was curling a little and I started ironing and adding a little strip of interfacing to the seam allowance.  I never sew in the morning.  Never.

I take this as a very good sign.

Puttering

Thank you all so much for the comments on the last post.  I think writing that out was good for me, things have definitely improved.  I did take suggestions to heart and made sure to take my vitamins and stand at the window when the sun came out.  Some of it was just putting my foot forward on smaller projects to get the ball rolling.  I am still having some foggy brained moments, but it's not as bad as last week.

We didn't have much planned for the weekend, just dinner at a friends house on Saturday, 4 couples and a child.  Mr. Lina is clearly still popular with the 2.5 year old crowd.  As much as she was asking where I was, it was Mr. Lina who needed to read her books and fix the play oven when the rack wasn't going in easily. 

This did lead to some baby-sad moments on Sunday.  Mr. Lina was equating time with our favourite 2.5 year old like drugs.  You feel this great high at the time.  The good feelings carry over for a while when you think of how good it felt to have them singling you out as someone special or snuggling close.  And then you realize that it is gone.  She's gone home and it's going to be a while before you can get that feeling back.  It's why I don't go to baby showers and I'm hesitant around babies.  It feels awesome at the time but sometimes the crash isn't worth the high.  I think there will be another crash when Ripley's Kittens are adopted in the next couple of weeks.  Most of them are over 2lbs now, it won't be long before they all meet the 2 months and 2lbs for being adopted.  Those kittens have provided some very happy distractions for both of us.

One of the great things about this weekend was my use of time, a balance of relaxing and productive.  I slept when I was tired, watched old movies and crocheted, transplanted my aloe into a larger (and heavier) pot (Note to Self, next time I move that aloe plant I should wrap it in a towel, my forearms and hands look like I tried to bathe a cat).  It started as a 10" pot from Home Depot, it's now 7 plants and about hip high on me in the new larger pot.  As happy as it seemed being pot bound in it's second plastic pot, it was pretty tippy hence the move away from plastic pots.  I did loads and loads of laundry, I think I washed every towel in the house. 

Stash fabric from Jan/12, rayon on the left, ponte (Tira?) on the right

It was a bit of a 3 Hours Past weekend as I made my own laundry detergent, watched Sabrina and pulled out the pattern pieces for Tiramisu and a few knit fabrics (red ponte above maybe?).  I did a little tidying in my sewing room, no firm decision making or sewing, but I refolded a few fabrics (including those pictured above and below, that navy modal is soooo soft) pulled out a few patterns, put a few things away.  I also went through my bra findings to figure out what I have and what I need (stretch needles!).  I won't say it was a hugely productive weekend, but I puttered.  I thought.  I took care of quite a few small projects I had been ignoring.  It felt good.

Soft modal

With my parents in Florida, it's a good time for online shopping and have it shipped to them.  I found a great card fabric for Mom's luggage tags.  I emailed to ask if she would like that as I would find something for myself and order them together.  Amusing thing is she wanted that and 3 other fabrics as well, her bill came to more than mine and qualified us for free shipping.  I have ordered 2 pieces of fabric that I think will work for Alma.  They are stretch wovens (mostly cotton), Alma doesn't require stretch but 10% stretch might work well for my first go at the pattern.  If the bust adjustments aren't perfect the stretch will be more forgiving and being cotton they will be at least 3 season wear.  We will see what they actually look like in March when my parents return.  I still find shopping for fabric online strange, I miss the tactile sensations. 

There is a lot coming up, February is a busy month.  This Saturday we're hosting Richie Newton and Rosie Stearns (video below).  We're trying to do a head count on attendance, it's a bit frustrating to have so many maybes.  We might have 11, we might have 23 (I'm hoping for 23 myself).  But that's true with every show, I should know that by now.  We have Valentines Day to plan for (more on that later).  There is a bowling fundraising dance on the 15th, our annual chili cook off on the 17th, off to Mexico on the 24th... lots to look forward to this month.

Lost & Found

I seem to be having some issues of misplacing things. 

I could have sworn I took the charger for my cell phone with us in Montreal just in case my phone died.  When we returned I looked through all the bags.  No luck.  I was starting to think that I would have to upgrade my phone (I am due for a new one it just seems wasteful when this one still works well enough for me) because I couldn't charge the damn thing.

Mr. Lina asked to take the little camera I generally use for my blog with us to Montreal.  Given that I'm the last one to use it 99% of the time since he bought the fancy one, I really should know where it is.  Couldn't find it.

On Wednesday night, while snacking at the dining room table at the house concert break, I saw something plugged into the wall on the other side of the table.  We don't often have anything plugged in there so it stood out.  But with people around I made a note to check later.  Sure enough, it was for my cell phone.

It's getting chilly and to get our runs in, we're running a bit late mid-week.  I bought some stretchy gloves and wicking undergarments on Monday night.  I was searching high and low for the gloves on Thursday night and while I did not find them, I did find the camera sitting on the stairs to upstairs. 

So the benefit of me finding the camera?  My blog is not text only!  Yay!

I mentioned that I got a little twisted around when I got off the subway and went the wrong way on St. Hubert.  I didn't appreciate that the first place I went to had prices well labelled and you could see the fabrics.  It still felt like a lot of polyesters or I didn't care for the prints, but the notions were pretty cool.  The elastics were $1/m and his measuring was by the arm and rather generous, my 4m of strapping elastic measures out to 5m.  Aren't those zippers kind of cool?  I am not one to do exposed zippers but I thought at 50 cents I'd pick up a few, you never know and they sure look neat.  The bottom fabric is a remnant piece, very stretchy, soft.  A bit like tricot.

What I thought was really cool was the bra elastic.  This is a heavy elastic, satiny on one side and fuzzy on the other.  The kind you want for bra straps.  It's something I generally order from www.sewsassy.com in standard black and white.  Sewsassy charges $0.60-$1.05 per yard for strapping elastic (plus shipping and the really low prices have a minimum of 10 yards).  $1 per very generous metre is a pretty good price.   To find it in an ice blue and mauve/purple was surprising.

I walked and walked before deciding that for sure I had walked too far.  Sure enough, just the other side of Jean Talon, every third store had "Tissues" in the window.  Honestly though, by this time my legs were rubbing a bit, my feet hurt and I was hot.  I didn't have the patience to lift bolts of fabric and harass people for the prices and fibre content.  This would have been more fun with other people to work as a team to identify prices and fibres.  Still, I found two pieces of fabric that caught my eye.

 

 

This is a pretty heavy fabric, cotton sateen with a little synthetic to add a bit of stretch is my guess.  It can't be much synthetic, it didn't bead up when I burned a little.  I've put a little penny to give some scale to those dots, the penny can cover the dots pretty much perfectly.  I thought the cream coloured background was really nice.  It's a bit stiff, not a whole lot of drape to this fabric.  I think it would be lovely as a Cambie dress, the A line skirt version.  It's way too heavy for the full skirt.

 

Now this fabric has a nice drape, see how it folds nicely where I opened it up?  I asked about the fibre content and he didn't seem to be totally sure but it does feel like there is likely some rayon in this woven and it doesn't feel like polyester.  I burned a little and it flared up like rayon and there was a tiny bit of beading by the dark purple stripes so maybe there is a bit of synthetic there but it mostly went to ash.  I love the shades of purple and there is a little bit of green woven into it.  I don't like wearing green so I know this seems lame to others, but it's a stretch out of my normal range of colours even if it's 90% purple.  I think it could make a nice Alma blouse, but I'm open to suggestions.  I have to say, the place I bought this had the strangest way of cutting.  He actually just brought a wooden yard stick to a table full of bolts of fabric and cut it on top of the bolts.  Weird, no?  There was not a single spot in this store that was not covered in fabric, not even a cutting table.

 

So I didn't go wild and crazy, but I have a few nice pieces of fabric to remember Montreal by. 

 

Now, to find where I put those gloves...

 

 





Friday Ramblings

Time to sit down with some caffeine of some sort and put a few thoughts together...

• Went to get that warm beverage and got swarmed with people.  Apparently my day is full of work now.
• Running is going okay.  Mr. Lina has a faster gait than me which leaves me either pushing too hard or him wondering where I went.
• We're going to get new shoes for me tonight because I don't think mine are doing me any favours.  They never really felt right for my feet.
• Mr. Lina is doing quite well with the weight loss competition.  The people who are starving themselves are not losing weight anymore (surprise, surprise) and he is losing about 2-3lbs a week.  He's not in the lead but he's feeling good about it and that's important to me.
• We had a guest with us this week.  A friend of the musician we'll be hosting next week was taking an art class in the area.  She was awesome and a good guest.
• I spent a little time in my sewing room on Wednesday tidying it up.  I need a little more elbow room for it to be a productive space again.
• I was showing our guest some fabric and the Sewaholic Alma and Cambie patterns, I think the two pieces of fabric I bought in Montreal will work for each pattern.
• A-line Cambie in big black polka dots with a cream background?  The fabric is too heavy for all the gathering of the full skirt but I think it will be great in the A-line version.
• With a black shirt underneath and black tights it would wear in winter well.
• This weekend is about filming.  Tonight is set up and prep for filming tomorrow.
• I'm in charge of "craft services" aka food for about 10 people.
• I keep hearing it like "Kraft services" like all the food should be Cheeze Whiz, bbq sauce and Miracle Whip.
• Hmm, I can't eat any of those products as they all contain mustard.  We'll have to stick to Jello, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft peanut butter.  ;)
• I'm going to take my crochet with me this time so I can be quiet and productive.
• Dinner (roast chicken) is going into a slow cooker so it can cook quietly too.
• Hopefully they get it all done on Saturday.  After having a guest from Monday evening until this morning and sleeping over for filming tonight, I want to be home alone for a while on Sunday.  I need some snuggle time with Mr. Lina.
• I hate 9am meetings.
• I generally get to work somewhere between 8:50 and 9:20.  My employer is not too fussed as long as I arrive before 9:30 and get my work done.
• Somehow, knowing I need to be there for 9 makes it that much harder to get there for 9.
• Looks like I'm going to be doing some training in late October.  3 hours with a client that is not one of my regulars.  I'm looking forward to it.
• I think I'd rather talk about what I do than do it.

Okay, speaking of work, time to actually do it.  Have a great weekend, folks.  What are you up to?

My Mother the Enabler

Let's get back to sewing for a bit, eh?

I have mentioned my mom also sews and she sells her work.  One of the things she sells is luggage tags.  This is a picture of a new fabric she was hoping for help on naming so they don't have the tags on them yet but you can see more on her Etsy site as well.

Mom has an incredible assortment of luggage tags.  She makes 12-24 of each print and moves on.  She has multiple shoe boxes of these things done at any given time.  Some of the prints take a little while to find a home but it makes for a great assortment. 

Someone recently inquired for a larger purchase.  A bridal party that were going to Vegas so they wanted a bunch that were like one she sold on Etsy a while ago.

Last one.

She dug through her bin to find no more finished tags and no more fabric.  She had to say no, but it brought to light a "theme" that was missing in her stock.  Guess what I'm on the hunt for now?  She's checking all the Fabriclands near her, I'm checking the 4 that are easier for me to access. 

Let's just review a few facts...

• I haven't been able to sew much with all this restrictions on moving and feeling crappy
• I haven't gone shopping because I haven't been walking all that much lately.
• I also have tried not to go shopping because I have enough stash to sew through.

But here I am going from one Fabricland to the next on a wild goose chase for any fabric with cards or dice or vaguely gambling themed.  Two down and no luck, I've got 2 more stores to visit.  It's like sending an alcoholic into a liquor store to buy a gift for someone else. 

What did I find?  Silk noil, 45" wide, regularly $20/m on sale for $5/m.  All solid colours, I bought 4m of it in black.  I have not worked with silk noil before so I'd be happy to hear from any of you if you have and suggestions on best uses.  I was thinking it could be a nice dress but in purchasing black, I was also thinking maybe light summer pants?  I think it would work well with the pants blocker that I worked on with StephC.  I did not take a picture of the noil, you know how black photographs.  Good reviews may result in me going back for something a little brighter, they did have about 8 bolts in colours other than black.

I also bought 2m of a cotton print, sort of a buff yellow background with red poppy like flowers.  Mostly because the red matched the capris I was wearing at the moment and I struggle to build an outfit with those pants so it will fill a gap in my summer wardrobe.  It might be a good one to try the Pendrell blouse.  I bought the pattern when I got Renfrew but I haven't tried it yet.

Prior to "bad things happening", we were in Toronto with friends from Vancouver.  I happen to have ended up with a "Renfrew Action Shot".  I wasn't drinking so most places I was asking for some form of bubbly water or club soda and a lime.  At the Irish Embassy, I ended up with a poorly cut piece so it was really two wedges that weren't cut through and I was a bit excited as I really like limes.  So for the next round, our friends asked for LOTS of limes for me.  They delivered.

May I say I love my Renfrews.  I know I've gone on and on when I made a bunch of them, but it's good to revisit after the first excitement of something new is gone and they have hit the wash a few times.  I still love them all.  I have found they fit in lots of situations.  Above, I'm wearing stretch velvet pants so it's all fancy for a nice dinner out with friends.  The fabric has washed well, no pilling yet.  Same with my black short sleeve version.  My original blue/brown/black/white bricks has a bit of a stain on one of the white bricks.  It's not overly noticeable but it's held me back from wearing it as much as the others.  Still, total win of both pattern and fabric.

Silk noil?  Any horror stories?  Watch outs?  Love it because...?  Should I buy more?

The Addiction Continues

I did have time to sew this weekend and I enjoyed every minute of it.  What did I sew?  Renfrew, nothing but Renfrew.

First, was for my mom.  So that was unselfish sewing that I haven't taken a picture of.  Mom picked a floral rayon knit.  It's pretty vibrant, but she can pull off bright colours.  Here's hoping it fits.

After finishing that, I got to thinking about my own Renfrew collection.  I love them, but they are too warm (and polyester) for summer.  There was about 20cm of the 60" wide fabric left when I was done with Renfrew #3.  It's pretty fabric and when I came across some thin black knit (quite likely ponte knit but I'm not 100% sure) I thought this could work well.

I tried taking pictures outside this morning, but the sun just seemed to cause problems.  Either I'm totally bleached out like at the top, or it ended up super dark where you couldn't tell where the pine tree ended and I started.  But.. .the bleached out colour is good for showing black I suppose, at least you can see the wrinkles etc.  The above picture is my backyard, this is my front yard.

So the "inside" of the cowl is the same rayon that I made Mom's shirt from, the outside of the cowl is black like the rest of the shirt.  I am thinking now I could have done the arm bands in the same print, I have enough for that.  But maybe this way is okay, it's like wearing a black t with a permanent scarf.

Now under that shirt is my Elan 645.  Honest, post is coming.  I thought I lost the little doohicky that makes the little memory card fit into my computer, but no, Mr. Lina put it away.  I'm just more excited by what I'm wearing today because it's new.  You can see the seam line of the bra at the side. 

The black fabric was a whole lot easier to work with than the rayon knit.  Getting that to fold in half was a serious pain in the arse.  It just kept shifting or clinging to itself and I'd think it was matched perfectly at the selvage but still have wrinkles at the fold like indicating it wasn't quite perfect.  Cutting took way more time than it should.  The black folded nicely, has a little slink to it so the fabric didn't grip itself when folded, sewed lovely.  I am glad that I bought a lot of it.  I didn't remeasure, but I think I bought 4-5m.  Now that I've used it, it will be top of mind. 

As I was cutting this one out, I folded Renfrew back into the envelope.  I will likely return to it to make the scoop neck t at some point, but folding it up will get me to move on to something else for a while.

First Renfrew

Second Renfrew

Mish Mash of Catch Up

What a weekend.  No time at all for sewing, although fabric did arrive.  I'll post about all the great music when I get the picture of Ben and I (in Renfrew) off the camera.  Short version is that the music was all fantastic.
The clinic called on Friday - reception with an appointment time.  I missed the call so I was half listening to the message when I heard the appointment is for March 10th.  8 days from the time they called, that's... unheard of.  Someone lit a fire under someones ass to find an opening for me.  So, I'm going to take that appointment with a huge smile.  I'd rather see my doctor than broken telephone through a nurse, but I wasn't so interested in the potential 2 month wait.  So, we'll see what he has to say on Saturday morning.

And fabric...  My parents came to the house concert on Saturday with my box of fabric in tow.  I still haven't had a chance to really pull it all out (never mind wash it), just enough to get a quick peek and put it to the side prior to guests arriving.  I ordered some denim and it's super dark and a nice weight.  I chose dark because I do wear jeans/casual to work on Mondays and Fridays but I still think darker washes look more work appropriate and while denim may fade to a softer colour, it will never get darker (without help anyhow).  I bought this silk charmeuse jacquard with Pendrell in mind. 

https://www.fabricmartfabrics.com/xcart/CVE1088-Silk-Charmeuse-Jacquard-Floral-45-Wide.html

I don't think I noticed the dots when I was looking at pictures on line.  It's quite pretty but I still haven't pulled the full length of it out to see it all.  The bright colours in the picture are true to the fabric, it is vibrant.  The navy modal and the light plum bamboo jersey felt soft and I like the colours, but I'll have to take pictures at home.  Fabricmart seems to be out of stock on the same skus. 

You know what's funny is that I think I am a different shopper online than in store.  I do occasionally buy solids in person, but it's been driven by people talking about linen or ponte knit and so I buy some wanting to see what the fuss is about not so much because I am excited in store.  In store, I bring home prints like my Renfrews or polka dots like Lekala 5432, or a texture I love.  But online, I mostly bought solids.  I'm not sure that print in person would have really caught my eye, I would have seen more yellow than purple and thought it was too busy.  I am happy to have all of what I purchased, but part of me is looking at the box wondering what I was thinking about when I ordered it.

I have a confession to make.  I may need to enter a 12 step sewaholic program.  I am addicted to my Renfrew shirts.  Because I go to different offices on different days, I can rewear favourite clothing without worrying about someone noticing beyond Mr. Lina.  He likes my Renfews so I'm not hearing complaints.  I literally wore them Tuesday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday.  I did a single load of laundry just so I could wash them and wear it again that night (there were other clothing in the load, I just didn't NEED those clothing).  But no one saw me wearing them twice (of course the down side is now I can't wear them for a week).  They are just so perfect, knits feel casual enough for weekends and with jeans or a fun skirt, paired with black dress pants and heels and they look office appropriate.  Two is just not enough. 

Always Check the Bobbin

I mentioned that I was working on Renfrew #2 but ran into some tension issues.  I thought I checked this but apparently the issue was that I didn't have the bobbin threaded right.  Face to palm.  I really should put this on a plaque by my sewing machine.  98% of the time on my machine it's the bobbin thread at fault.

So, I bring you Renfrew #2 (sorry for the 10pm/comfy pants pictures, I was excited but not excited enough to dress up for the occasion).

This fabric is pretty similar in stretch and weight as the last one, so I didn't change much.  The side seams are more like 1/2" rather than 5/8", but I didn't actually break out the pattern and retrace.  Call me lazy.

There are some (very small) pull lines on the bust this time.  I think this fabric is just a shade thinner and I'm wearing a bra with more umph.  This is a ridiculous picture, I forgot the timer wasn't set yet so it just took a picture rather than giving me 10 seconds, but you can actually see a little of the pull just at the bottom of the picture and it's a good view of the cowl.  As I said, another bra would solve that.

Mr. Lina is again a fan.  He has been quite, ah.. complimentary on the first one and for this one said the shape really suited me.  Sadly pictures from the back did not turn out quite so well, this is the best of the bunch.

Something about the other print seems to have a little more trompe l'oeil going on.  I dunno, just looking at the pictures, I see more waist with the other version.  Not that I don't like this one.   I am wearing this version today with my grey cordoroy skirt and purple tights.  Comfy but nice.  I like it.  But... downside of both shirts... 100% polyester.  Wow is this not kind to my arm pits.  It's a good reminder why if I do sew with poly, it's sleeveless or a flutter sleeve, something with air circulation.

And... TGIF.  Time to make dinner and open some wine.  Not necessarily in that order.  ;)

Finished Renfrew

Well that was easy.  There are literally 13 steps in this pattern and that includes all 3 neckline variations.  As mentioned, my brain struggled a bit with the cowl, but that is more my fault than Tasia. 

As mentioned, this knit is pretty stretchy.  It has a nice soft feel and it is actually fairly heavy.  I was wearing a black bra while sewing and I was impressed that you could barely tell in the white bricks.  I made the 12 as is, but I should go up a size. 

As mentioned, I had all but the bands done on Monday night.  Mr. Lina was already reading in bed and I came in wearing it, my first opportunity to see if it fit at all.  I did a little turn and he commented it looked really good from the back.  I think I see what he likes, I know there are some wrinkles there, but I look like I have a waist.  The comment was reiterated last night when he looked away from the video game for 10 seconds while respawning.  He also likes the print, probably more than I do. 

I like a little draping around the bust line, I like cowls (but not a fan of turtlenecks, I just look like a ski slope without well placed necklace to create a V).  But it drives me a little crazy that some look perfectly work appropriate until you lean forward.  Suddenly everyone can see right down the centre.  What's with that?  Now I do have the crazy eyes here (I was giggling and feeling silly taking pictures) but this top is cleavage proof.  Even pulling at the cowl, you don't see any more than you need to.

And even though it's cleavage proof, the negative ease is definitely showing there is cleavage to hide.

So, next version (and yes, there will be a next) I'll go up a size.  Maybe even grade to the 16 around the bust if it's not as stretchy as this fabric.  I like the 3/4 sleeve length, the top is long enough on me as is for jeans.  I think the shoulder seam is in about the right spot, so when I grade up I will try to keep that about where it is.  This version will be fine for casual days at work and I'll probably get a lot of weekend wear out of it.  I will be thinking about a work appropriate version for the cowl again.  I would also like some short sleeved versions in something more breathable, maybe with the other necklines for bowling. 

Well worth the pattern price.  If you have a T&T, I can see how you don't need Renfrew, but it's going to fill that T&T spot in my pattern collection.  And one last Tasia inspired shot.

Procrastination - Renfrew

I remember my first visit to Tanit-Isis and reading:
Sewing is what I do when I'm cheating on all my other hobbies...
She's got a good point.  I do like a few other crafts although I'd say sewing is a primary love and the rest fill needs.  I will make stationary as needed so I've got stamps and blank note cards and paper.  I wanted to paint the bathroom window with stained glass paints so I learned to do that.

But right now, I'm sewing to avoid doing other things.

• Work that didn't get finished yesterday
• Standings for the side pool I run for my bowling league
• House cleaning
• Garbage night
• Laundry (okay, I did do one load so I'd have panties for today, but I should have done more household laundry too)

It is amazing how motivated you can be when you should be doing something else.

Sunday night I felt like sewing but I was tired.  Too tired to trust myself to put channeling into my half finished bra.  I usually do it wrong the first time when I'm awake, I don't have enough seam allowance to screw it up multiple times while tired.  I bought Renfrew and Pendrell from Sewaholic with the free shipping deal she was offering.  I thought maybe I could trace off Renfrew to sew another day.  It's sewing, but not requiring any particular focus as I wasn't going to make alterations for the first try.

Then I went through my box of knits.  Remember the brown/blue/white/black dress I was making?  And struggling with?  I have yet to return to that but I still have 2m of that fabric.  It's probably stretchier than what a "stable knit" implies but I figured in a hopefully wearable muslin, a little extra stretch isn't a bad thing. 

Well, next thing I know, I was cutting View C (cowl with 3/4 sleeves) out.  You know, putting it aside for when I was alert enough to sew.  Good thing too.  I forgot to cut the sleeve cuffs and I only cut one of the cowl pieces, not two. 

Last night, I should have done any of those bullet points above.  I probably could have worked on my bra.  But I was a bit tired, Tasia's instructions seemed more straightforward than trimming seam allowance type sewing and the cut pieces were just sitting there.  So far so good.  Until I hit the typo.  I could not make the cowl make sense to me, why would you sew wrong sides together?  I got frustrated and thought, so many bloggers have done this and tested it, someone would have explained this in a way that made sense and found there is errata for this step.  What did we do before the internet?  The pictures are right, but the text says wrong sides when it should say right sides.  Just as we were heading to bed I sewed up the side seams, so no pictures yet.  I still have the cuffs to do for the sleeves and bottom, but it was enough to see how it fit.  I think I'm going to like this as a top when it's done. 

And a Happy Valentine's Day for anyone celebrating today!