WIP Wednesday: Winter Things

Tags

clothing, cross stitch, embroidery, Heidi, refashioning, sewing, swears, WIP Wednesday

WIP = Work in Progress

Content Warning:  Contains swears.

Happy Wednesday!  In the mood for some random–yet colorful–bits and pieces today?  ‘Cause that’s what’s been happening over here.

First, my honey and I spent last weekend in Bellevue, a suburb of Seattle.  He spent Saturday on his bike (of course), and I spent it with my bestie, the lovely and talented Heidi (I clearly got the better end of that deal).  She presented me with the Amaryllis bulb above in its cheerful red wax coating.  I’d forgotten how nice it is to have something growing (and hopefully blooming) inside in the winter.  That little green shoot has doubled in size in just the last few days . . . .

Among other things, Heidi and I went to the Columbia City Gallery for an exhibit of art made from old Eileen Fisher clothing, and I bought myself a couple of new Xmas ornaments for our tree.  Then we went next door to the EF Renew store and admired the pieced clothing made from old, worn out items.  You’d better believe there was some inspiration happening!

I can’t decide if the felted wedgey thing is the cross-section of a planet or some sort of extra-terrestrial fruit.  Cool either way.

 

Also, I wanted to show you how the Pusheen top refashion turned out.

If you recall, this was the sad, sad before picture:

Can I just mention here that I hate hate hate ribbing?  It just always feels too tight on my wrists and comes up too high on my neck and is just generally terrible.  My mother calls sweatshirts with ribbing at the hem “potatoes” because she says they make her look like a potato.  I know I’m not glamorous and sexy, but I feel like I could probably achieve something better than “potato,” you know?

So off came all the ribbing, the body and sleeves of the shirt were shortened, and I added hem vents, a slit at the neckline, and binding on the neck and hem.  I also took in the side seams at the bust and upper arm a little, as the arm pits of the shirt were weirdly low.

For the neckline, I got some help from this book I picked up when SCRAP closed.

(See here also for more recent Mary Mulari sweatshirt-related creativity.)

Lots of good ideas in this book, though this is probably not one of them:

Just say no to epaulettes.

THIS, though, is something I would totally do.  Reverse applique and cowl neck!

Oh HELL yes.

So here’s what I ended up with:

Yep, I cut the sleeves a little too short.  It actually worked out well, though, because I don’t like a lot of extra fabric at my wrists.

Split neck technique from the book.  I machine sewed the binding, as I suspect I won’t get too many years of wear out of this not-super-amazing fabric.  A bit wonky, but fine.

I definitely had my doubts about how this was going to work out, but I’m very happy with the results.  I only wish it was a little warmer so that I could wear it more often!

And, finally, I am working away on presents.  I’ve set the wall quilt aside for the moment, as my partner assures me that late is perfectly fine for his sister’s present.  Two others are in process, but I finished this one today for my sister:

This was my first cross stitch in about 8 years, and it was so fun!  Pattern is here.

I was working on the backstitching this morning while waiting for my mother at her physical therapy appointment, when an elderly woman patient asked me about it.  I wasn’t sure what kind of response I’d get, so I hesitantly said, “well, it’s pretty rude . . . ” and showed it to her.  She just laughed and laughed!  I mentioned that it’s for my sister, but my mother won’t approve.  Her response:  “Well, that’s okay, it’s not for HER!”

Have a most excellent week, friends, and I hope you enjoy the season you’re in and the people you’re with.

STH

Sunday Sevens 03-14-16

Tags

Bellevue, Bellevue Botanical Garden, Heidi, Howard Amon Park, Oregon, quilting, Richland, sewing, Splendid Sampler, Sunday Sevens, Washington

Sunday Sevens is a weekly (or occasional, in my case) series in which we share some pictures from the parts of our lives that aren’t covered in regular blog posts.  The ever-fabulous Natalie from Threads and Bobbins is the one who got it started.

Been getting out a little bit here and there, so I have some better pics this week.

Will you just look at this plump little guy!  I took a walk in Howard Amon Park the other day and a couple was sitting on a bench surrounded by birds and squirrels.  This one ran off with his treat and ate it sitting in a tree nearby.

I was having a particularly bad day recently and decided I needed to buy myself a present.  Quick trip to Tuesday Morning for some fat quarters ensued.  Happy colors!

Which then went into some more Splendid Sampler blocks.

My partner and I drove the route for the 300k ride coming up this Saturday.  This is in eastern Oregon, but it looks a bit like Scotland to me.  We saw many cattle, some sheep and deer, but very few cars or people that day.

This past weekend, my honey had a 200k bike ride in the Seattle area, so we headed up on Friday evening and I got to spend a lovely Saturday with my friend Heidi.  This is the Bellevue Botanical Garden.

Ferns growing on trees!

And flowering trees!

Have a great week, everybody.

STH

 

 

 

The Heidi Bag

Tags

bags, embroidery, Heidi, sewing

Yep, I’m still alive.

Just skipped Sunday Sevens this past week because we didn’t get home from Oregon until Monday afternoon, and the post probably would have been Tuesday Sevens, and that wouldn’t do at all, now would it?

I do have a new bag to show you, though, a birthday present for my BFF Heidi.

I had wanted to make her a bag for her birthday, but played it safe and asked her earlier in the summer what kind of bag she’d like.  It turned out she had been thinking about a new bag to replace the little cross-body one she uses for her camera and other essentials when she travels.  She had definite ideas about how big it should be and what pockets it should have.

And she wanted it in a neutral color so as not to draw too much attention to it.

Um . . . what?  NEUTRAL color?  SUBTLE color??????

So I looked and looked, through all my summer travels, for a heavy-weight, sturdy fabric in a subtle color that was as cool and funky as my friend.

I don’t know that I found it, but my first thought when I saw this fabric was that I’d seen her wear all the colors in this, so it must be her kind of thing.  Plus, it was a home decor fabric–so super sturdy–but also washable, an essential requirement for purse fabric, as far as I’m concerned.

(Will you LOOK at the stripe matching here.  I didn’t even have to break a sweat doing it, just cut the large piece for the front, then sliced it into two so that I could put the front pocket zipper in there.)

To compensate for the SUBTLETY of the exterior of the bag, I went with this very cool and colorful batik for the lining.

And I added a fun little pocket inside, just big enough for an ID or a tube of lip balm.

Close-up:

(The embroidery pattern is from Craftsy.)

I think the zipper technique in this tutorial is my favorite (so far), so that’s what I used here.  I wanted the front pocket lined and nicely finished, too, so I basically used the same method for that zipper as well (minus the tab).

I put an ivory ribbon and a small stone bead on the pull of the main zipper so that it’s easy to find and grab without looking.

And, no, there was no pressing of this with the iron–the home decor fabric has a weird rubbery sort of finish to it and I was afraid the iron would do nasty things to it.

Happy birthday, Heidi!

STH

Sunday Sevens 05-04-15

Tags

bags, Heidi, Kirkland, Lake Easton State Park, sewing, Totem Lake, travel, Washington

(Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series in which we share some photos from our week.  The ever-fabulous Natalie steers the Mother Ship.)

A busy week and another weekend away!

Monday, I took on my least favorite household task.  Behold this magnificence:

The good news is that I’ve finally found a pattern to make with that white embroidered cotton.  The bad news is that it involves this mess:

Partner asked me for a new cycling bag in the hope of having it for the weekend’s bike ride.  He likes to keep his brevet card, ID, cash, and phone in a simple zippered bag that he can grab when he gets off the bike to go in a store or restaurant.

Here’s his old one, which I made maybe a year ago:

He decided he wanted a black one out of a fabric with a little more body.  We found some in the stash and I used the tutorial that Beth recommended here.  I changed the dimensions and added a phone pocket to the front and loops for him to attach the nylon cord that he uses for a shoulder strap.  I used plain white broadcloth for the lining so that it would be easier to find things inside.

I would have liked to take more pictures, but he immediately grabbed it and stashed it in his bike stuff somewhere.  He and I were both very pleased with how it turned out.  Many thanks to Beth for the very handy tutorial!

On Friday, we headed to Kirkland (a suburb of Seattle) so that my honey could do a 400k ride on Saturday morning.

I am fairly certain that the fact that this “art” in our hotel room was bolted to the table is not the reason I didn’t sneak it into my purse and take it home with me.

Saturday I met up with my BFF Heidi and we spent some time wandering around Kirkland.

PLEASE enlarge these pics–you totally need turtles and baby ducks on a Monday.

On Sunday, we headed home, with a quick stop at Lake Easton State Park to check out their campground.

Yep, I guess that’ll do for next month’s camping trip.  😉

Have a great week, everybody, and get outside for a bit if you can.

STH

Spring Sewing Ideas (a.k.a. POST FOR HEIDI)

Tags

cats, Heidi, sewing

So I have been informed by my bestest BFF that she requires MOAR SEWING PLZ.  And I know I require something a little bit more fun after yesterday’s super-icky post.

So here’s what I’ve got cooking in my brain regarding what I want to make next.  I don’t think I want to use the word “plan” for any of this, though, as I seem to fall in and out of love with sewing ideas pretty quickly.  I make a plan, then I have an idea, or I see a nifty new pattern, and there goes the plan.  So I’m calling this a bunch of ideas, which may or may not happen sometime in the future, unless I get distracted by a shiny object . . . .

THIS one I know is going to happen, as I’ve been working on it all week.

I saw this pattern last fall and grabbed it immediately.  The fabric is a gauzy crinkled cotton with embroidery.  Nice weight and drape for a summer top, but not as loosely woven as most cotton gauze, and it’s been in the stash approximately forever.  I’m making the pleated version with the collar, but with the straight hem.

Then I want to make a sleeveless shirt with this kelly green “linen look” fabric.

I think the little tucks in this pattern just look great in a solid color fabric.

I made this pattern last summer out of a cotton pique and I really like it.  What I’m thinking about doing is making the facings–front, collar, and collar band–out of the contrast fabric so that you just get little peeks of it.  I’d also like to make the armhole binding with the contrast if there’s enough of it.

I also may use this seersucker to make a shirt with the same pattern.  I’m not sure, though; I’ve got 2 yards of this one, so I have more options . . . I do like the idea of using this super-goofy fabric (it reminds me of the flowers in “Yellow Submarine”) to make a serious tailored shirt.

(Cripes, I was in a hurry to take these pics before my camera’s battery died, and I’ve managed to get the camera cord in two of three pictures so far.  Now that’s some quality photography.)

Then there’s this stuff, more embroidered cotton, that I bought last summer.  I’m wanting to do something like this with it, but with short sleeves if possible.

This is one of my older patterns–for almost 20 years this has been sitting in the stash!

The sun came out and I was able to get a better shot of the embroidery on the fabric.

(I have no idea why I have all this long gray fluff on all my clothing.  It’s a mystery.)

And finally, I want to make a simple top with this chiffon-y stuff I bought in Seattle.  The one I have in mind is the black and white one in the drawing, basically a loose tee with a wide neckline and split sleeves.  I went for the simplest style I could find in order to show off the huge, gorgeous pattern (and also because I haven’t sewn with this kind of fabric before and I’m expecting it to be a challenge).  I have a similar fabric in the stash that I’ll use for a muslin to practice on.

So what do you think?  Do you have other, better ideas?  Tips for sewing with chiffon?  I’m pretty sure that’s polyester, though I’ll do a burn test on that and the green stuff to try and pin it down a little better.

STH