Blog Voices… This is ME…

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Voice Meme

I did it- after a little encouragement I have posted my “Voice Meme.”  Tanit-Isis did it on her blog a year or so ago, and it was  brought back yesterday by the lovely Lady Katza. After hearing Leila of Three Dresses and Seeds of Three I thought I would give it a whirl.

First, I would like to say I HATE being on camera. (So funny coming from a girl who majored in Theater when she went to college.) But it is true. I felt like a big old doofus… BUT I did it anyway. Secretly I kind of liked it! Shhhhh…

A little background on me… I was born in Hawaii, spent 2 years in Australia (first 2 years of my schooling) and have spent a majority of my life in California with a brief stint in Texas when I was 18. I am very interested in listening to how others say these words and answer the questions- which are as follows!

List of Words:
Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

List of Questions:

What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you change the TV channel with?

And let me know what you think!? Do I sound like all the other Californians out there?

-Laurie

Vintage Pattern Loveliness

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dress, easy sewing projects, fabric, Fall for Cotton, patterns, sew exhausted, sewing, sewing vintage clothing, Vintage, vintage dress, vintage patterns, vintage sewing patterns

I LOVE Vintage… There is something about certain bygone eras that speak to my soul. The 1920’s, after World War 1, when everything seemed to change. From music, to dancing, to the fashions! Everything seemed so “relaxed” and fun in the 20’s. Like “Darling, throw on your dancing shoes and long beads and lets go kick up our heels and dance the Charleston!” And did you know that “flagpole sitting” became popular in the 20’s?

The 40’s and 50’s are the years I am drawn to the most. I love how feminine and classy the women were during these years. If you look at any movie star pictures from this time period you see glamour and style. I love the full skirts, the fabulous bright colors that became popular in the 50’s, and did you know this decade brought about the evolution of the bikini! (Although it did not become popular until 1963- but that’s a different story!)

The 60’s and 70’s brought about a much freer and easier feeling. Short skirts, gogo boots, bikinis, and later in the decade (and on in to the 70’s) the hippie movement introduced bell bottoms, batik and tye-dye, and a decidedly more “bohemian” look. I really like that look as well. There is something about those long flowy dresses and drippy sleeves!

That was actually a pretty brief overview of fashion. VERY BRIEF! There is SO much more about fashion and trends that happened during these eras, but if I discussed them all I would not get to share my pattern loveliness with you! So, here it goes. 🙂

I have lots of vintage sewing patterns. Way too many to put into a post. So, I pulled what I would like to make over the next year. (And with my Sewing ADD- which I KNOW is an actual malady, the patterns in my queue can and probably will change)

I recently picked up 8 new patterns from Vintage Martini for EXCELLENT prices. If you like Vintage patterns you NEED to get over there as he has marked ALL of his prices down. I snagged a few 60’s patterns for $1 each!

The 2 on your left are from VM… the other 2 are mine. But I’d really like to make these for my middle daughter Holly. She would look GREAT in them and enjoys this era.

I have to make several more “jammies” for myself before the year is over as it was one of my resolutions. I really like this nightie, the short sleeved one on the left- and am hoping to make it in a soft lace and cotton lawn.

This dress is a 1940’s pattern. I love the clean lines and the detailing. I actually had a dress very similar to this in the 80’s in emerald green with gold buttons. I would love to try my hand at making this in those same colors.

This little 50’s pattern is one I will hopefully make for next Spring/ Summer. I love everything about it and every article of clothing pictured. The blouse, skirt and shorts are all on my list! They just want me to make a picnic lunch, lay my quilt out on the grass, pour myself a glass of lemonade and relax under a tree with a good book. I see gingham and florals and red or blue in my future!

Here is some more vintage loveliness… and another dress pattern I would like to tackle for next Spring. I love the tiered skirt and simplicity of the bodice. This one will take some grading up but I plan on attempting SewBrooke’s method. If you have not read about her experimenting with grading and ratios you should definitely hop over. You will learn a lot!

And this is my all time FAVORITE pattern that I just received (again from Vintage Martini and for just $6!) I want to make it NOW and will most likely use this one for the new just announced Vintage sewing challenge “Fall for Cotton” put on by Rochelle from Lucky Lucille and Tasha of By Gum By Golly.

I hope I can find the RIGHT fabric to go with it. That is always part of the challenge when sewing up a vintage garment- well, any garment for that matter! Because the challenge is to use 100% cotton, I should have quite a bit too choose from! There are cotton sales all over right now! (Fabric.com has quite a selection for $4.95 a yard!)

I guess I will get back to finishing up my UFO’s so I can start sewing some of these babies up. Hopefully I will see you soon with some finished lovelies!

~Laurie

My Anna that Broke the Rules…

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Anna Dress, Anna Pattern, By Hand London, dress, fabric, ITY Knit, sew, sew exhausted, sewing

I made an Anna dress! And I couldn’t be happier. She is a bit of a rebel… but there is nothing wrong with that- after all, rules are made to be broken, right?

But let’s start at the beginning.

Recently the Anna dresses started popping up all over the internet. First I got a glimpse of ONE of Sew Busy Lizzy’s. (She has THREE fabulous ones) And then I read all about The Amazing Taracats two…  saw a few more here and there, and they looked so stylish and sexy and swingy- and, well, all the things you have to love in a dress! And I wanted one!

By Hand London Anna Dress Pattern

The Anna pattern is the newest from By Hand London. So my pattern winged it’s way across the ocean and arrived Thursday. It is BEAUTIFULLY packaged and definitely a pattern that is meant to be treasured.  I wanted to make one right away but I was not sure if I had any appropriate fabric in my stash. And I could not afford to buy any more fabric right now- so it was stash or nothing.

And that is where the rule breaking came in. The suggested fabrics for the Anna are lightweight woven fabrics and cottons. But, I have had this knit and it has been TRYING to make it’s way in to a Maxi for a few months. I have gone from one pattern, to another, to another, and decided on Saturday morning I was going to turn the Anna pattern in to a pattern for knits. She turned out mighty pretty in my opinion. 🙂

Look! I had help from Milo tracing and prepping the pattern

I tried to give Milo his own pencil but he seriously just wanted the one I was using!

I had to SQUEEZE this dress out of 3  yds of fabric.. And honestly, this knit cost me $9.00 total. In the end I had to cut off 6 1/2 inches in the length so if I had known that prior to starting I would not have had to worry at all.

I finished most of it Saturday morning before heading to the beach for a bonfire.  On her blog post Lizzy said it was a quick make and she was right! Then on Sunday my daughter asked me if I was going to wear it to my sons company picnic so I sat down and focused on finishing it up. I hand stitched the neck facing, used a double needle to hem up the sleeves, and ran out of time. I wanted to hand stitch the slit- (ooo- I LOVE the slit!) So, I did a quick basting stitch to temporarily hold it and will hand stitch it after I write this post!

I love the fit of the Anna… I love the way it swirls. When you wear it you feel very girly and feminine. Nothing wrong with that!

Like I said, putting this together is very easy. Just pay attention to when you are putting your skirt panels together. I got a little excited when the bodice was done and didn’t pay attention, so I “mis-sewed” one and had to switch it to the other side. I  did not put in a zipper- I did not need to because it is a knit. And I did not hem it because my machine does not like to hem knits, although my sleeves turned out nicely with the double needle. I also overlocked this one because #1 Kerrielee’s overlock machine was at my house for some hip hop pants making (thanks Kerrie), and #2 because I did not want to add any bulk from french seaming the knit.

The neckline is lovely. I chose the v-neck for this dress. Mine is a bit of a rounded V- I believe due to the fact it is a knit. But I like it anyway.  I did the obligatory spin and ended up on the ground. But trust me, Anna swirls quite nicely!

Did you notice my knee was a little red in that picture showing off my slit? That is because me and my Anna dress went on an adventure. At my son’s company picnic there was a mechanical MAD bull, and I thought I could tame it…. I realize these photos are DREADFUL, but I have become a much braver person so I will share them with you!

I lasted a whole 8 seconds. (That’s PRO status right??) BUT, I can now say I have ridden a bull… and I’ve lived to write about it. BTW- Anna held up quite well, and my children were VERY impressed that I even made it ON that bull. As a matter of fact they all now have blackmail videos on their phones.

Here we all are- having fun. I love it when my kids are all together. It makes my heart happy. ❤

And that is my Anna dress. 🙂 Very highly recommended! All my girls want one. Kadi is all set to run out and buy me some fabric for hers. She wants a black one- and because she likes to change everything, she wants me to add a lace cutout to the back of hers. Honestly, I can’t wait to get started on MY next one!

Oh, and I think I want to make a short red denim jacket to go with this one for when the weather gets a little chillier. 🙂

~Laurie

 

Those wild kids of mine showing me how it’s done.

Something’s missing…

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clothing, minion blimp, Paleo, Paleo Diet, Paleo foods, patterns, project, sew, sew exhausted, sewing, Simplicity, Simplicity 2215, Vogue, Vogue 8577

Laurie here… again… finally… My week off was wonderful. How could a week off not be? I relaxed, I walked, I sewed, I hiked, I sewed, I went to the beach, I sewed, I watched Justified and Suits and the rest of my Fringe episodes, I sewed, I ate Paleo foods all week, and I sewed… 🙂 I did not want to return to work EVER! But alas, no one else will pay the bills so I HAD to go back to work.

Here is just a sampling of what I ate all week. I felt really good so I have actually continued eating like this. Paleo is EASY! Fruits and vegetables- preferably organic, and grain fed free range meats. It is also called “The Caveman” diet. I am finishing up week 4! (The tomatoes in the lower right are from my garden. 🙂 )

I invited Kerrielee over to sew and she showed up for several of those fun filled days. Hopefully she will blog her makes soon! I should NOT be blogging mine… because… well… they aren’t QUITE complete!! For some reason- after I completely finished the skirt- I never fully completed the items I was working on!

The first project I started on I actually completed. This great skirt (90’s era!) with a lovely challis. Oooo, I love challis. I love the way it flows and I really enjoy working with it. I like the skirt a lot. The gathering on the sides of the yoke though add a bit of fluffyness I could really do without. But I think I have a fix for that. I am looking for a solid purple to make a blouse and then I can throw a black sweater over it. I think the hardest thing will be finding that solid purple to match. Seems like whenever I want to match something it turns in to a difficult process.

The rest of my projects? I am not sure what came over me. I STOPPED before they were finished! Why? I would like to say I did not find the perfect buttons. (In actuality I didn’t find the buttons I had in my head BUT I did get buttons.) So the truth is, I had buttons to put on… but… well… they just have not made it yet!

I made this super great little blouse out of a piece of fabric from the oh so special Anne at Pretty Grievances. I used Simplicity 2215- a Cynthia Rowley design. (Kerrielee has made the dress for her daughter and it is CUTE!) This fabric is a chiffon type so I sprayed it with starch and ironed prior to cutting and sewing. It makes it so much easier and I highly recommend you do so when you struggle with slippery fabric! The below pic is closer to the actual color of the fabric. I really really like it- and I don’t normally wear pink! One thing though- gotta add the buttons so I can wear it!

So, I skipped the buttons and started making my coat. You remember the adorable coat pattern I mentioned in my last post that I got from Katie at Kadiddlehopper. Sigh… Also unfinished. I think that MAY because it is summer? Or, because I still have to find the right buttons? Or maybe I am just making excuses here and I was just “not in the mood?” But here it is in it’s unfinished glory…

I actually have the lining in now- and just need to hand stitch the sleeve lining in. Then add the buttons. Look at the BACK! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the back of this coat. It also has a “kick pleat” (not sure what you call it on a coat) that I have not un stitched yet…

I promise when I finish I will take GOOD pics on me- so you can see the pleat, the lilac lining, and the buttons I end up with. (You think I should go with black buttons or cover my own?) I want to wear this coat with a hat.. yep- my kids are gonna die but I am going to do it anyway. A cloche hat I think- like this only in black!

Two unfinished items! Only, ummm… I am not done yet. I am ALMOST finished with my Vogue 8577. Let me just say these pictures do not do it justice. It is a FABULOUS dress! It has LOADS of pattern pieces and I almost put them all back in the envelope but decided that was silly. I am on vacation! I have LOTS of time!

This dress is FULLY lined. That means it was like cutting out TWO dresses … and all those pattern pieces! I lined it with a red broadcloth. The “khaki” is a broadcloth as well with a touch of stretch. I can’t remember where I got it but it is perfect for this dress. (Other than the fact I will have to iron it!) This one gets RED buttons… and red shoes. 😀

All I could think of when I turned this wrong side out was if I had used RED as the facing the dress would have practically been reversible! What’s left to do? The armhole finishing and … the buttons. Sigh… Again, well, when I finish I will photograph it!

I made 2 simple knit dresses for Kerrielee’s daughter and my youngest. But they are not photographed. And I managed ANOTHER pair of hip hop pants for my eldest daughter. Overall it was a pretty decent sewing week.

I also went to the beach and kicked my feet up and read a good book… This is Moonlight Beach… And there was a dolphin pod frolicking around out there!

Saw the Minion Blimp…

Minion Blimp over Oceanside Pier

Early morning walk…

Overall, a fabulous week off… Now I need another so I can FINISH what I started!

xoxo

~Laurie