May meltdown, but now I’m back at it!

Tags

cleaning, clothing, costumes, dance, daughters, dress, patterns, projects, quilting, sew, sew exhausted

(Kerrielee) Man it’s been awhile! It’s almost like I’ve have dropped off the face of the Earth! I have missed you all so much, reading your blogs, seeing what you have all been up to, BUT I am back!

I have been sewing this month, not as much as I would have liked. The first whole week in May I did not sew a single thing! (GASP, horrible I know) You know sometimes you just don’t feel like it!

But instead of focusing on all the negative this month,(not blogging, totally flaking on me–made-may) I am just going to jump right back in and let you all know what I have going on.

First, for me, how much I can sew really has to do with how I am keeping up on my house. When it’s a mess I have such a hard time focusing on my sewing, probably because of guilt….why should I be sewing when my house is such a mess!? So, at the beginning of the month I said “self, you will clean for at least 2 hours each day!” (Plus just the general pick up you have to do throughout the day and evening, oh and those never ending dishes and laundry!) Now mind you, there are 8 people living in my house, so we can generate a lot of mess, plus I think sewing in itself just makes things look messy, all that thread and fabric scraps laying around! So 2 hours a day really does not get that much done, but it has kept the bathrooms clean, floor clean, living room picked up and vacuumed, my room, and the little boys room cleaned. So the main areas of my house should look nice at anytime if someone drops by. All of those things take 1- 1 1/2 hrs, depending on if I have not quite gotten in the full 2 hours each day (you know life does come up sometimes). On the days that I do have extra time, I pick one of the projects I hate, wiping down the cupboards and walls, windows, dusting, decluttering, cleaning out closets…you know those fun things! All in all, this has been going pretty well and I am sure at any point now the other 7 people in my house are going to catch on 🙂

Now that I have a pretty good handle on that, I think I am ready to get back at hanging out with the blogging world!

Here are a few of the projects I have in the works for the next week or two…..

Shirt for Eleena for one of her dance numbers. This has to be done by Sunday!

Here is another flip flop quilt I am working on in bright colors. I would like to be done by the end of May so it can count as my quilt for the month!

Leggings for a friends daughter. These also must be done by Sunday (picture day at the dance studio!)

The same little girl with the leggings asked me to make her a dress for her 5th grade promotion ceremony. I have till the 6th to get this done!

And then I have a dress for me and skirt for Eleena…just for fun!

           Looks like I have a lot to do. Maybe you all will get to see some finished projects soon!

Happy Sewing

Kerrielee

The Millenium Falcon Dress- Simplicity 2250 Cynthia Rowley

Tags

clothing, Cynthia Rowley patterns, daughters, dress, easy sewing projects, fabric, fabrics, fashion, patterns, sew exhausted, sewing, Simplicity, Simplicity 2250

I just had to call it that- because… well- when I posted THIS pic on Twitter Ann “thought” that was what I was creating. In reality, I was creating a really sweet sundress for my youngest daughter Juliette. But seriously, this bodice piece sure makes you think of the Millennium Falcon!

For 3 evenings I toiled over this little delight. But it was worth every minute spent! She loves it. I love it. I am not sure I could improve on anything! Well, I suppose it is not perfect- BUT the entire inside is lined, I hemmed by hand and did plenty of other hand sewing, the fit is just about perfect. She loves it. I love it!

Simplicity 2250 Cynthia Rowley

In all honesty, I could have redone a few of the darts. It wasn’t till I had done a few that I discovered THE way to do darts- as in no backstitching- Just make a “tail” of thread at the point and hand tie a knot. I love learning little tricks! And this little trick ensures you don’t have any awkward “puckering.” I think learning is always going to be part of the process… no matter how good I get! I am most definitely not there yet! But some day I hope to sew as good as The Great British Sewing Bee winner- Ann. That woman has it down to a science! Patient, steady and fantastic results- Someday….)

I used Simplicity Pattern 2250- By Cynthia Rowley. I actually chose it thinking it would be simpler than the other dress patterns Julie chose but the bodice piece negated that! So much for trying to pick something easy. But decided to forge ahead and tackle each step one by one. Yes, I READ the directions!

I used a piece of fabric Juliette had picked about 11 years ago. Obviously the pattern we picked was not going to be appropriate anymore- She was 5 back then and is now 16. But this pattern seemed perfect for it. I have no idea WHAT it is- must be a cotton w/ some man made poly because of the shimmer. But it has a nice hand and feels soft. I can wash it in the washer too! It will need some iron touch ups though when it gets out of the dryer. I really LOVE the sparkle this fabric has.

I did an invisible zipper. 🙂 I have avoided them since my last catastrophe but with the help of Twitter and 2 tutorials (Gertie and Collete) I made it through! Whew!

I hemmed with some hem lace and stitched the bodice lining closed. I love hem tape. I love the way it looks inside the garment. And This matches but I think using a red tape on a black skirt is eye-catching- Well to the wearer anyway as I assume noone else will see the inside of a garment. But making the inside nice really ups my sense of accomplishment!

As I said- three days later it was ready to be worn. If you remember Juliette was the one daughter I had not really sewn for- she is a trifle quite particular and needed to play a part in the process. And that is A-OK with me! I am happy to have her pick patterns and fabric, make sure everything is a good fit, and see her wearing something she is happy to be in. 🙂

Simplicity 2250 Cynthia Rowley

And that folks… Is The Millenium Falcon dress.

Last week I lost my Sewing Mojo… I did 30 minutes.  I hit the Fabric store yesterday and hope that will help us get back to business this week! We will keep you posted!

-Laurie

Me Made May 2013

Tags

challenge, easy sewing projects, fabric, fashion, Me Made May 2013, MMM13, patterns, projects, sew exhausted, sewing

We pancaked- I mean waffled back and forth on whether to do Me Made May or not to commit. It wasn’t that we don’t fully support making and wearing our own clothes. We do! (I have not purchased a single item of clothing since I made my Seamless Pledge.) It is just that because we have just returned to clothing sewing we did not feel we had enough to make it through the month! Frankly these kids keep us busy. “Would you make me a dress?” “When are you going to make my skirt?” “Mom, how come you didn’t make my shirt today?” “Is it done yet?” It is enough to drive you mad!

Our US sewing is constantly interrupted and as a result I know I do not have enough to make it through an entire month. BUT we wanted to participate, and so we came up with this. Our PLEDGE for Me Made May 2013.

We, Kerrielee and Laurie of Sew Exhausted, pledge to have ourselves or one of our family members sporting something made by us every day through out the month of May.

I think this is something we can handle! Even though, to be honest, most days I am dressed in yoga pants and a tee. Actually, this Me Made month is going to be difficult for me. I work from HOME and start at 5 AM… Some days I don’t even brush my hair until 2! This means I have to actually put on some clothes and brush my hair so I can take a pic!

But for The Cause, I shall persevere.

Both Kerrie and I started the month out right yesterday and dutifully posted our pics on Flickr. I confess I am sitting here this morning still pondering what I am going to put on today!

I wonder how many things we will whip up this month the night before in desperation? Well, if anything that in itself will help us grow our Me Made wardrobes!

Laurie and Kerrielee

“Panty Round-Up” and WHOA- Look at those Hours!

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challenge, easy sewing projects, free panty pattern, panties, patterns, projects, Rosy Lady Shorts pattern, sew exhausted, sewing, sewing knickers, sewing panties, sewing underwear, SOZO panty pattern, undies

We did it. Not to the extent we would have liked BUT we have a nice start on refilling those “drawers” for Spring. In total Kerrielee made 8 pairs of knickers and I made 7. I confess I was imagining 21 pairs… but alas, I did not even figure out my sewing machine settings until mid month. I was in complete and utter despair after my first pair was completed. They were a MESS! My zigzag does NOT like knits and was constantly skipping stitches. Instead of being the researching sewist I should be I put the machine on straight stitch and made them that way. And it worked! And they still had enough stretch! YAY!

For my foray in to panty making I used SozoWhatDoYouKnow’s pattern and really liked it a lot. It was easy and quick and the fit was great! Side note- even though I have an overlock machine I did not use it!) My first pair was this one. Yes! I have a matching skirt… LOL… I just wanted to use up my scraps and this knit has such a soft feel and a nice amount of stretch.  And anyway, who doesn’t want a paisley pair of knickers trimmed in orange??!!

I left that pair half done forever- what I am not showing you is that one leg has been finished with a messy zig zag stitch- and the other leg is my nice neat straight stitch. I suppose I SHOULD take out the zig zag and re do it… But I don’t wanna!

All in all I highly recommend this pattern! It is free for you to use! (And you can even buy her a cup of coffee in thanks!)

Kerrielee used the Cloth Habit Rosy Lady Shorts pattern.

This pair was also quick and simple to make. They are comfy and “stay where they are supposed to stay” if you get my meaning! (Nothing worse than a pair of undies that journeys to places it should not be! 😉 )

And check out this striped pair. (SoZo’s pattern) Kerrie has a matching top- another “scrap” that didn’t go to waste!

All in all, although we wanted MORE, we are happy with what we got made. Pretty much one Saturday and we each had 6 new pairs in pretty prints and laces! And we spent a whole lot less than we would have if we had gone shopping instead. We will both make more. From now on when there is a leftover scrap from a worthy knit, it will be made in to a pair of undies!

Speaking of Saturdays, and sewing… Look at our HOURS total for APRIL!!! I made it! 102.5!! And Kerrielee- well she put up a valiant effort and in all honesty she accomplished something greater than me. She has so much more to do every day with those 5 kids, caring for her mother (which currently includes pic lines and administering meds after her recent surgery), and cooking meals and a hubby… She ended up at 92! Very impressive and my hat is off to her. (I better step up my game!) We will blog about our HOURS challenge and share with you all the grand stuff we made in a few days! 🙂 And Guess what- We are gonna do it again for MAY!

Take care friends and happy sewing! ~Laurie and Kerrielee