sewdistracted

2008-10-18T22:54:12-04:00

Two weeks have passed and nothing....no sewing. In fact, at the moment I have even seemed to lose the incentive. I know it will come back eventually, and I am still thinking of things I want to make, perhaps even more so than usual as I am looking at my wardrobe and saying, "I need this" or "I really like that but it would be perfect if it was just X, Y, or Z". So I know will sew again.

The sewing room just sits and waits:

The bias slip was cut out on Monday and that was after the pattern sat on the cutting table for a week. Now it is draping over the cutting table and the ironing board, rendering each one useless for other projects, and I still feel little incentive.

I had planned to make the slip to wear with the maroon skirt to dinner tonight for our 22nd anniversary. But it didn't happen.

I did have the foresight to try on the maroon skirt on Friday, which proved to be a good thing as I needed to take it up again. So much for all that effort in June. The skirt just sat on the cutting table waiting for me to make a slip and now I need to alter it again. This time I remembered to put a lining in the skirt, even though I had to cut a new one, construct it, and attach it as I had long since ditched the original lining.

Actually I had thought that I could use one of the bemberg slips that I had used to make the slip pattern. I have a couple of those commercial slips and I don't wear one of them often. Since it was all finished I thought I could just sew it in at the waistband instead of making a new lining. No go. The slip was considerably too big, which means that the slip-draft sitting on my cutting board is also going to be too big. Bummer.

Still, I did manage to get the skirt into a wearable state, with lining, and get to the NYS Sheep and Wool festival today, so I really have no reason to complain. Why do I keep getting myself into corners like this and finishing projects at the last minute?

And this all points to at least part of why sewing is not at the top of my wish list right now. I am determined to knock off a few more pounds, and even at 1 or 2 pounds a week, it makes a difference. My sewing time is limited enough that by the time I finish anything it is not likely to fit, so why bother. It is not that I am rich -- I am not -- but I would rather spend money on basic things to get me through than spend my precious time, and at this point the time is the far more treasured commodity.

At the moment dressing is an exercise in frustration. The jeans that fit perfectly last month are not so great now. I should have realized when I put them on this morning that if they were loose right out of the washing machine they were going to be downright baggy after a few hours. An outfit I loved two weeks ago seems hopeless today. At the same time a sweater-set that seemed dowdy and outdated in August looks fabulous today and was just pulled out of the donation bag. So there is good and there is bad and I just don't want to waste my time, not that there is that much of it right now. For the moment though, that time seems better spent reading, or exercising and dreaming of the things I am going to make when I reach my goals.

Where it will end up, who knows? But by then I will have a list of projects at the ready.

A few accessories for the transition from summer into fall

2008-10-02T16:42:05-04:00

Thank you for the advice on the bias slip. I am going to go ahead and make it. I have wanted to copy this slip for some time so there is no doubt that I will use it, and my opportunity for that quick project is now passed anyway.

The cutting table was occupied yesterday while I sewed up a sweater. Although I didn't spend all the assembly time in my sewing room, just when I was sewing in the sleeves, when I needed a large flat surface, I may have exhausted my allotment of personal project time for a day or two.

Anyway things are a little more scattered today and the CO is a little more agitated so it is best to lay low and out of the sewing room for now.

Since sewing progress is slow, I have decided to entertain you with a few accessories that have been making my heart sing now that the weather has turned cooler.

I picked up the two long gauzy cotton (or whatever they are as I took the tags off) scarves on sale at Macy's over the summer. As the weather has turned cooler they have proven to be the perfect thing to wear with a simple sweater or tee and jeans. It is not quite time for woolens yet and these bridge the season perfectly.

It wasn't long ago that I would have said the long gauzy scarf was just not me, and I would have denied that I have any inclinations toward the romantic/boho/gypsy whatever you want to call it style. But I think I was just deluding myself. Anyone who is familiar with my penchant for large statement jewelry, sometimes of the ethnic variety, would probably have had to stifle their laughter to hear me talk about conservative my clothing choices were.

Not this year. As I have mentioned before I have been letting myself go and embracing my style this year with little regard for other's opinions.

The horn necklace is another recent acquisition, procured in a late night pity party. It is huge. It is also very me and the day it arrived it pretty much came out of the box and went right around my neck. Although I love big statement necklaces, really big beads are often difficult because I can't get them to lie right around my neck, or I can't just can't get them to work in actual outfits. But this one has been just perfect for me, sitting just right on my neck and making friends with many other garments in my closet.

Slip-Up

2008-09-30T23:57:31-04:00

This is the week that I am supposed to start sewing something for myself. It doesn't have to be anything new, I can just finish up a few UFOs, but it has to be for me. I am tired of sewing things for other people.

My first goal was to make a slip for the wine cotton skirt that I altered in the early summer and never finished after I left the lining out.

My idea was that I would just make a bemberg slip that I could wear with the skirt because I was too lazy to rip out the waistband again. I know, I know, I am probably making a simple project harder. But wait; it gets worse.

I have a couple of a-line bemberg slips that I absolutely love. They came with a wool skirt with cut-outs and the idea was that you could change the lining/slip to have a different color underneath. These slips are fabulously comfortable and they drape really well. Each one is just two pieces of fabric with hooks and eyes at the opening. How hard could this be?

Well, I underestimated the available time and didn't get to this project until after 10 tonight. I had the bemberg washed and pressed, and I had the original lining/slip, but I hadn't looked at it that closely.

Then, when I was about to trace it off to make a pattern I discovered something I hadn't anticipated, although I should have: the slip is cut on the bias. This should have been obvious because there are not darts and it fits perfectly -- duh.

So my simple project is not so simple.

I have never made a pattern for a bias garment before. Do I just trace the slip to paper, or is there some adjustment that has to be made because it has been worn before? How do I account for changes as the skirt is sewn or hangs out? I am not sure I have enough bemberg to make two if I mess up the first one. What kind of seam allowances do I add as all the seams and hem will be on the bias too?

Is this even worth doing? This skirt is a little shorter than the one the original slip was made for. If I make a lining for the maroon skirt, can I also wear it with the wool cut out skirt? Am I putting a lot of effort into a slip for a skirt that really isn't likely to last more than another season?

Maybe I should just use the original lining pattern, cut a new lining and attach it the proper way. It might be faster to just redo that waistband than fiddle with this new idea.

It might be even easier to just forget the whole lining thing and just wear the skirt with a slip since I don't think I will alter it again, or probably wear it beyond this fall.

Whatever I do, it isn't going to happen until tomorrow.

Another One Bites the Dust

2008-09-23T23:45:22-04:00

I've had this photo of a dress by Narciso Rodriguez on my computer for some time.

It was from the spring collection, and I think it was shown more like a light coat, but I think of it as a dress. More exactly I think of it as a fall or spring dress, but definitely not a summer dress.

It has been on my mind a lot lately, and I was thinking of making it. In my vision I see the dress with a little more structure than the original, which seems gathered and soft, where as I am thinking of a more dramatic flared line in the skirt out of something with a little crispnes like a doupioni or shantung.

Today DH saw he photo on my monitor and told me I can't wear that because I would look like a Cardinal (as in Rome). Now I can't look at the dress without imagining it as a Cardinal's robe. Too bad and I like the color combination too, and I know it is the idea of a black dress with a wide colored band at the waist that has captured his imagination.

What do you think? Could I pull it off with a crisper hand, in a more stylized version? Perhaps I should skip the black and go for a deep blue-green with a lighter band at the waist?

Well, anyway, it appears to be off the "must make" list for now.

Please just finish something

2008-09-23T19:52:53-04:00

Would that I had gotten my sewing room as organized as the sewing room closet, also known as home to the turtleneck collection, the sweater collection, and the boot collection as well as some fabric. At some point during the summer I had shoved all the UFO's into that closet hoping to consolidate them and go through them, perhaps even finish a couple, but I haven't gotten to that yet.

Now they are all on the cutting table, a mountain of reproach, a testament to dreams unrealized. The weight of unfulfilled promise is crushing.

How can I begin something new when each new project gets started and abandoned, only adding to the pile of "could have beens".

My short term goal is to finish a UFO (or more) a week. And also to finish every new project I start. I cannot add to the mountain of regret.

My determination has been strengthened by the completion of another project, albeit one that is non-sewing related with the exception of a few pattern drafting/alteration. Who knew that pattern paper was so useful?

Presenting the new landing at the top of the basement stairs. I take no responsibility for the landing, which was created by removing the door at the top of the stairs (edge by first blue step) and putting in a new door (out of sight at the bottom of the photograph).

The floor however, is mine.

This is just a commercial-grade vinyl, left over from something else. I had planned on glueing the vinyl down to an underlayment I asked the carpenter to intall after he ripped up the old carpet.

Somehow, in my distracted state on Monday, with the carpenters, electrician, pest-control guy, and a very confused and unhappy Mr. Distracted, I managed to let the carpenter leave without putting down the 1/4" plywood. He did trim the opening where the door had been very nicely with molding down to the yucky subfloor which was complete with a few holes. Obviously it would not do.

After I got the DH calmed down from the hubub, and after dinner, I assessed the situation and realized that I could not put down the vinyl floor, that the stair-lift people were coming today to install the stair-lift, and I had a lot of work to do.

There was no way I would take up the molding, put in the floor and put the molding back, trimmed to size. So I had to work around it. Hence the table paper. Since the landing wasn't square anyway, it proved handy.

I had feared that my skills with a saw and would not be adequate for cutting the plywood to the right size and shape. But I managed to get it in just perfectly,

I am most proud of those little notched corners around the opening to the once door. Sometimes any finished project is a great boon to creativity, and there has been a severe shortage of completed projects, on any front -- home or personal -- the past few months.

Now to tackle those UFO's. Well, perhaps I will sleep first.

It was said that she never met a turtleneck that she didn't like

2008-09-19T23:50:09-04:00

I have finally sorted through the entire sweater collection and the turtleneck collection. Despite the overabundance of certain color families -- I seem to have a deep-seated need to purchase every shade of blue-green turtleneck I can find -- there are actually gaps.

Next up: finding something to actually wear.

What do I mean when I say I'm not sewing?

2008-09-18T15:32:27-04:00

I have a friend who would tell you in a moment that she doesn’t cook. Now there are people who really don’t cook – people who eat every meal out of the house except perhaps for a cup of coffee and a bagel in the morning – and I know a few of them. Then there are people like my friend who don’t cook but do feed their families. She doesn’t like to cook, but she puts meals on the table. Nothing fancy comes out of her kitchen, but that doesn’t mean it is not a healthy meal. Burgers, chops, potatoes, rice, salad, simple vegetables. We all know about these kinds of simple meals. In fact the “not cooking” that I have been doing a lot of this past summer is very similar to this – fresh vegetables, steamed or grilled. Meat on the grill. Simple stuff. Not the kind of cooking I love to do, the kind that takes time and attention. But there is a time for everything in life.

When I say I am not sewing, I mean something much the same as when I say I am not cooking. If I said I was not sewing in my sewing room, my serger might say: “if you aren’t sewing why are you rethreading me twice a day?” My Bernina would probably choke on the baby quilt that is sitting next to it and say something like “and what is this stuff you have been feeding through me all day, if it is not sewing?”

Now I know a lot of people who say “I don’t’ sew” and really mean that they don’t sew, that they couldn’t even attach a button and would have to send their shirt to the tailor or throw it out. But when I say I am not sewing I mean that I am not doing any creative sewing, just maintenance, or things for other people. I am not sewing things I enjoy sewing, but then again, I would rather be sewing/mending/altering than be out looking for replacements. The shopping isn’t really an option right now anyway. But taking a t-shirt and making it a size smaller is not thrilling stuff; necessary yes, thrilling no.

There has been some sewing for other people, but I don’t really have control over the design or fabrication of those things. As they really aren’t mine and don’t represent my choices in anything I don’t really see any point in posting them here. I am sewing aprons to help a friend who sells them at craft shows/fundraising yard sale things. I have done this kind of thing before and I always say I won’t do it again. Ha! The apron patterns are cute, kind of vintage, the fabric, kind of country calico prints would not be my choice and I frankly find them kind of boring. This is probably a good thing because if they were in cute fabric I would hate to give them back. I do need a few new aprons, so perhaps that is one more thing to add to my fall sewing list.

Oh, and I have been sewing diapers and diaper covers. Another friend’s daughter has a new baby, and she wants cloth diapers. What did I know about cloth diapers? When I said I would help make diapers I thought they were pieces of fabric you folded and pinned around baby, or at least they were the last time I used a cloth diaper on anyone. But these are cute, and fasten on with little snaps or buttons or velcro tabs and they do actually require sewing up. They look a lot like washable designer pampers, which is I suppose why they are so expensive in the store, and why I am helping to sew cloth diapers.

The shoes of summer past.

2008-09-09T16:51:27-04:00

I am still thinking about sewing, and thinking about clothes for fall, although it is still warm enough that the transition is more in "feel" than in actual garments. And all this thinking about clothes and sewing has actually inspired me to get the cutting table at least partially cleared of clutter, cleared enough that I can see the surface, and cleared enough that I had enough space to block a sweater. I might even have enough space to cut a new slip/lining for that maroon skirt, which is shamefully still sitting on the cutting table waiting for me to do something about the lining. Luckily, the color is good for fall, and I have more things to wear with it that are appropriate for fall than were appropriate for this past summer.

And the clutter should be a little more confined soon. I really do need to stop that habit of punishing myself when I get behind by piling everything up on my workspace. It is as if I have some mental taskmistress that is telling me I can sew when I get all my chores done, but I never quite manage to get them done. Enough of that!

But back to my current chain of thought. I have been thinking about clothes for fall, and I have ordered a few things that aren't here yet, and I do want to sew several things, including that pleated organza coat (and everything else I have written about here).

Part of the process of thinking about sewing is thinking about what I want to sew (organza coat, wool fused-yarn coat), what I need to wear (very casual) and how to work out some equilibrium between my actual and my fantasy wardrobes.

At the end of each season I do like to look back on what I wore the previous season because it gives me a kind of idea of where my life is. That period of reflection, along with a look at my calendar and my closets helps tell me what I might need or want.

It also always intrigues me that although I love reading the fashion magazines and looking at the runway shows, there is more or less correlation of what I wear with what I see/buy/make based on a wide variety of factors. Looking at all the fabulous clothes coming down the runway now for next spring reminds me of all the things I wanted to make for this past spring. But I have never been consistent about making something and wearing it in its season. Sometimes I wear it in a timely manner; sometimes a garment has to mellow in my closet a year, or even two before it is ready to come out and play. I never intend it this way. I always think I will wear everything I sew or buy right away. But I am too much a creature of moods. So I find "what did I wear?" to be much more interesting than "what did I buy?"

So what did I wear this past summer? I'm going to look at the shoes here as we all know there was little sewing, and you will have to trust me that the clothes were completely boring, basic linen and chinos and an assortment of tees.

As I mentioned it was a casual summer and several old favorites were in constant use. The blue Aerosole wedges shown up at the top have been a favorite since I bought them (how many years ago? 3? 4?) They make me smile every time I put them on. I will be heartbroken when they finally collapse from overuse.

Other old favorites were a couple of pairs of practical "comfort" sandals, which I hope still have a little more style than the average merely functional shoe. But even if they don't, one always needs comfortable shoes for wearing around the house with chinos and shorts. Since I rarely got out of the house except to go to the grocery store or farmer's market these shoes got lots of use.

But it wasn't all comfort and practicality:

I surprised myself by falling in love with some sandals I bought last year but never wore. In fact at the beginning of the season I was considering whether this pair had been a mistake and was contemplating selling them. I should have known better, I make few major mistakes, at least in terms of purchased clothes, anymore. I can't imagine why I thought they were too stiff and uncomfortable last year. This year they were pretty much the sandal I wanted to wear almost every day. Of course it didn't happen, shoes need to breathe and they didn't go with everything, after all.

What didn't go with the bronze sandals more than likely did go with these sandals however and these were the second most frequently worn sandals for this past summer. Oddly enough I didn't wear them last summer either. I thought the strap was too tight across the top of my foot. Do you think 12 pounds would have made that much difference in the size of my feet? I don't think so.

Whatever the reason, they were perfect this year.

One new pair of sandals made it onto my frequent wear list:

I bought these sandals early in the season for an obscene amount of money. I am rationalizing it away by telling myself that I bought fewer things than usual this summer, and I have worn these so frequently and I love them so much I know I will wear them as long as possible, even when they are completely out of fashion. I love the style, I love the purple heel, I love the thick almost industrial buckles at the ankle -- I guess I should have taken a better photograph of those. And I can wear them well into fall. No dainty summery sandals these. I feel tough and pretty and in control.

Gee, that is a lot of pressure to put on a mere shoe.

And although I had little reason or opportunity to dress up this past summer, if I did, I made sure that whatever I wore had to go with these sandals.

This was another sale pair. I do sometimes love the way everything goes on sale right in the middle of the season in which you want to wear it. I think it is stupid, but I don't mind taking advantage.

Besides, it would have been a very sad summer indeed if there was no room for frivolity.

More Coat Dreams

2008-09-01T22:19:41-04:00

So, I am getting my head back together enough that I am beginning to think about sewing again -- perhaps it is all that playing with fabric, perhaps it is just that life seems to be running a little more smoothly at the moment. It is not that I feel more in control, dangerous territory that, but that I feel less out of control.

Specifically, what has immediately caught my attention is this Burberry Prorsum coat:

I am incredibly intrigued and fascinated by this. At $11,995 it could never fit in any conceivable budget. And I think I am really intrigued by the idea of it as much as actually owning it. Or more exactly I want to try do something inspired by this. Creating my own version of this just looks like fun, and that would be something thrilling to wear.

This picture is from the NY Times Style magazine and it is the best picture I have found. On the various runway shots this coat is much to easy to miss. I am surprised that I can't find more pictures or information about this coat. Does anyone know of any better detail shots? Does anyone have any information about the coat? I am not going to get out snoop shopping this year, at least not much, so I guess it is up to my imagination.

I believe it is silk organza. At least there is a silk organza dress with similar draped pleating. I can see doing this in organza. It is light enough that it would not be too bulky and I don't think anything softer would give you that crisp pleated look. That doesn't make this a practical trench, but I am not really interested in it for its practicality.

This coat has reminded me of the lace coat that Burberry Prorsum did in the fall of 2006. I was pretty interested in that one too, but I wanted to make it for spring and I didn't want exactly the same kind of lace. I never found a lace I liked that I could get in a large enough quantity to make that trench, especially since I wanted it a little less fitted and close to the body than the original trench.

So now, after a discussion about lace on Stitcher's Guild, and Liana's link to Lace Mart I have also resurrected my interest in a lace trench, this time perhaps in a more traditional lace although I am now considering dyingthe lace some deeper color and perhaps making a trench with a little more volume. That would make it something I would wear for a long long time.

As neither one of these coats is something I need to survive the winter I can take my time. My question now is it better to just sew quick little things as I find time and inspiration, or should I start a grand project, just putting in bits of time as I find it available. After all I did that for years when I had a very time-consuming job: I just make one or two evening dresses a year, working on them as time allowed.

But before I can sew anything I need to make some sense of my sewing room. It is still the place that everything that I can't deal with gets shoved until I can spare it the necessary attention. And I don't have fabric ready for either trench.

I also have to deal with the "what to wear this fall" issue as I am pretty much in need of some new fall clothes that fit. I think the best solution is just to place an order with J Crew and Banana Republic for the basics, which is really all I need. And yes it is true, I would order from Banana Republic even though I occasionally bitch about the quality. I still like their style and colors.

If I can satisfy my basic wardrobe needs I am then free to sew what ever I feel like when the time and mood hits, be it simple tees, dresses, or even more complicated epic projects. And even if initially I only sew the simple things, well dreaming of tees just isn't as much fun as dreaming of pleated organza coats is it?

I'm still here and I'm still not sewing.

2008-08-28T16:39:43-04:00

That doesn't mean I am not thinking about sewing.

I have started getting a "collection closet" together. It is shared space which will house both yarn and fabric and I have gotten some of each on the shelves. What you see here is mostly new purchases (yes it is true, when not sewing the temptation to buy fabric is somehow that much greater) but also some older fabrics that have been sitting around in my sewing room for some time.

The closet is not going to hold my entire stash, but I would like at least part of it to be a staging area for grouping together upcoming projects. I am not sure how I am going to go about it yet. At the moment I was just happy to get a few things put away.

I have these basket units from The Container Store that used to be in my clothing closet where they held sweaters.

So far, I like the baskets for the knits and I think I will continue to store them here. I have lots of space as I haven't moved that much over here yet. They look awfully pretty, and I can see what I have easily.

I am also going to use some of the baskets for coordinating fabric groupings -- that is whenever I get back to sewing anything. Perhaps dreaming of groupings is pushing it a little too far.

But I still have that taupe grouping that I didn't make this summer sitting right on my cutting table. It is buried under a bunch of other things at the moment but it will eventually be unearthed. And luckily it is a color that can easily take me in toward fall.