Even more projects--am I crazy or what?

So with the Phillies winning the pennant, I decided that the girls needed a couple of shirts. I found the perfect shade of blue for the girls and need to resize Arianna's since I could only get 4/5s. I also got gray t-shirts as well. Hopefully that will be enough to get them through the series...

I still have not started the costumes. I am severely behind, but since Wayne has not even made an attempt at getting his Shrek cap and ears then his costume is off the list as well as mine. Oh well, maybe next year...

I have at least prewashed the white fleece for Arianna's costume. I just need to trace the pattern. I have to cut the patterm for Angielee's costume. Thankfully, I can reuse the skirt pieces from the Ariel costume. I save time and tracing paper. I am finding that my roll has started to dwindle.

Quilt not done...

I have not finished the quilt yet. I am having serious issues with thread breaking and needles breaking. I switched from all poly thread to poly-cotton to all cotton and all the same results. I suspect that the needle I am using is too small. However, I can't find a larger ballpoint needle. Anyway, the last time I was sewing, the needle broke in three pieces and one piece is in the machine somewhere so there was no way to complete the quilt. However, I do need to start the girls' costumes so I will have to put the quilt on the shelf again. Also, I do not have enough binding material so I need that too.

I had Lisa leave her jeans for me to hem. They are skinny jeans so they should be easier to hem than my jeans. Also, she plans on wearing them inside of her UGGS so just past her ankle will be appropriate.

I also asked her to to leave her shirtdress and board shorts. Hopefully I can draft a pattern from them and find the right fabric for the board shorts.

Catching up...

Hi, everyone. I have been away for quite some time. Actually, my day job ramped up considerably after my last post. I was working more nights than not and more weekends than not. I also had to work July 4th and part of Labor Day. Between work, the fam, and taking care of basic needs, that left little (no) time for sewing.

I did manage to start quilting the t-shirt quilt. However, I was about 2/3s done and then had to shelve it because I had no time to sew. The little bits of time that I had for my hobby were spent organizing my space. I finally hung up my peg board and realized that I needed another 2'x4' panel. Well, I already had white panels but now WalMart only has black. Bummer! However, I think I can wait until they start carrying black again.

I did start a cowl-necked blouse for a wedding that I needed to attend in Sept. Arianna had a perforated eardrum the morning of the wedding. Needless to say, I didn't get a chance to finish the blouse let alone go to the wedding. The top is now a UFO for the time being.

I did make a dress for my MIL to wear on her cruise to Hawaii. She chose New Look 6866 View B. I cut a medium top and graded to a large for the hips. I also had to take 1 in from each shoulder and take 2 inches off of the back width. Another mod I made was to make the front panel a single piece instead of 2 since the bow accent was not going to be used. After struggling with the shoulder construction and the facing, I decided that next time I make this dress, I will omit the interfacing and top stitch the neck line and arm holes. Due to the interfacing and the shoulder seam changes, the armholes ended up being a little snug.

I have been adding to my pattern and fabric stash. I also have another new addition to my sewing equiptment: a Viking Huskylock 936! I found it on Craigslist for $800 from a very nice lady. She bought the floor model a few years ago and only used it a handful of times. She decided that she needed to part with it since she was not using it to its full potential. It serges like a dream and the coverstitch is great. I was seriously considering getting a Janome CP-1000 and some sort of serger to go along with it. I thought it would be great to keep each machine ready to go. But I always wanted the Viking so I went with it. I absolutely LOVE it. I have tried the coverstitch, the differential feed and the 4 thread overlock. I know I am going to love sewing with knits now!

I have to finish the quilt if I can manage to stipple more than a 6-in section at a time. However, I have to shelve it again since I need to make costumes for the girls. Angielee wants to be Sleeping Beauty and Arianna will be a panda. I have all the materials and now, I have to cut out the pattern and the fabric and start sewing. Hopefully I can manage to get them done well before Halloween since I have to make Fiona and Shrek costumes for Wayne and I.

T-shirt quilt status and other things...

Well, I have not completed the quilt yet. As of May 28, I had everything put together and I tied the quilt to at least align the squares front to back. Remember, I am an engineer so I get very anal about random things. Anyway, I was going to try and bind it before I went to New Jersey, but I did not have enough binding material.

Here is a recap of what I experienced:
I bought 1 yd. of this really cool Kaufmann fabric and 1 yd. of black and gray dot fabric along for the sashing strips and a black scroll fabric for the binding. I couldn't decided on the outer border so I just put that on the shelf. Keep in mind that by my calculations, this quilt will be 76 in x 76 in. Well, I cut the sashing strips and realized that I had enough to join the blocks left to right and then join the resultant strips. HOWEVER, I did not have enough to outline the shirts on either side. I had to go back to JoAnn and get the appropriate fabric. Thankfully, the Kaufmann was still there, but the dot fabric was gone!!! I also had to get the outer border fabric and they finally had a charcoal gray solid so I picked up 2 yds just in case.

I got home and wasn't overly thrilled that one side didn't have the uniform sashing, but I wanted to get the quilt finished since it was supposed to be a Christmas present. Anyway, I made a design change and finally finished the quilt top and back.

I didn't get it basted until Memorial Day and I was able to tie it minimally before it had to make its journey to New Jersey to meet its owner. Lisa was happy with it and I told her that I wanted to quilt it a little better than what was there and I also had to make the binding after I got more fabric.

Uncle Sonny saw the quilt and he said that he is saving his shirts now...

Arianna's birthday party went well. We also had a little gathering at my mother's house for Angielee and had all our friends and their kids over. It was a zoo, but a whole lot of fun. Now I am planning birthday gifts for a couple little girls that are turning one this summer...

I have not been able to work on anything since I have been very busy with work. I have been working at night and can't seem to make it into the sewing room. However, that does not keep me from visiting JoAnn's. I picked up some shirting for $2/yd and I am not sure what I want to make. I haven't shown it to Angielee 'cause I know she'll want something out of it. I need to really get all the fun fabric I bought washed and dried so that I can work on something! I am going through some withdrawal and with so many great ideas out there, I don't know where to start!

In other news, a friend of mine had a baby a week ago and I would like to make something for him. I am sure that she has blankets, burp cloths, etc coming out of her ears, but she may be getting another set of things...

Wayne doesn't really want anything for Fathers' Day or his b-day which is Monday other than going out to dinner. I am taking him to Hen of the Wood in Waterbury, VT. The chef there has been named one of the top 10 new chefs of 2008 for Food and Wine magazine. Being the Foodies that we are, we certainly have to try it out.

Speaking of Foodies, Wayne and I went out to dinner with Lisa and Joe while we were home and went to AOI on 12th and Walnut in Philly. Although, we enjoyed the all you can eat sushi for $20, it paled in comparison to Morimoto, which is on 7th and Chestnut. Then again, dining with the young and fabulous of Philly in an Iron Chef's restaurant is quite a treat. We did have reservations for Bobby Flay's restaurant but cancelled them for Morimoto.

T-shirt quilt

I started the quilt on May 5th. I have not had time to blog about it then since I have been really busy working on it. I started cutting the shirts apart and cutting the interfacing. As I suspected, I did not have enough. I needed another 7 yards.



In addition to the Pellon 911FF, I also had to get Fusiform Suiting interfacing since there wasn't enough of the Pellon. I fused all the shirts and cut them to 16x16 squares. I had to get a piece of plexiglass cut to 16x16 in order to get a template for the shirts. I also have all the applique patches fused and cut out.



I have the sashing fabric all washed and ready to be ironed. I picked 3 different black-based fabrics since there are white, black, navy, red, green, gray, and burgundy shirts. I wanted more of a charcoal color, but I couldn't find what I wanted. Now the dilemma is the outer border. I don't want it too light or too dark since the sashing will be dark. I was looking at possibly polk-a-dots, but I haven't decided. All I know is that Lisa does not want animal prints (cow) or pink.



I had to go to the store yesterday to get stabilizer since my sample applique effort showed that there was too much stress on the shirt panels. I was all set to start at least applique-ing the shirts and cutting out the sashing strips, but I could feel myself getting sick and decided that rest would be the better option.



Tonight, I will have to iron and cut the sashing strips. By the way, I LOVE my new cutting mat. I got a 24x36 mat for my cutting table. I was hoping to get a 24x48 since that is how big the table is, but I didn't see one at the store. Also, I found some measuring tape stickers that I can use to make a grid on the cutting table so that I can square up fabric later on. But I digress...



In addition to that, I will also have to do as much of the applique as possible so that I can start the layout process and sewing the blocks together. Hopefully I can get the border on by the weekend and then start quilting!

Just a little progress...

I have another outfit for Angielee knocked out. I sewed the shirred dress over the weekend. It wasn't terribly difficult, but it is something. The hardest part was turning the straps!

I still have not started the quilt. I had them sorted by how big I wanted the squares and Angielee came along and totally mixed up my piles. I hope that I have enough interfacing. I am thinking that one side will have 12" x 12" squares and the other side may be 18" x 18". I still have to figure out what the sashing and outer borders will be. Lisa wants to have a really puffy quilt so I will have to make sure to get the batting while it is on sale at JoAnn. I plan on starting tonight since the Flyers are in the playoffs, I have some time to get started.

I pulled out my project from my sewing class and tried it on Rylie and it does not fit too well. I think I may have to seriously retape myself and then make the arms detachable. It is hard to put things over the shoulders. I can't slip things on from the bottom because of how the stand is.

I got another person out to give us an estimate on windows. The last guy gave us a $6500 estimate. I was a bit shocked and Wayne thinks it is outrageous. He is seriously considering doing it himself. Saving $3500 on labor sounds pretty good to us. I was a bit surprised at the labor considering how simple windows are to install based on the literature that I have seen. Also, my friend who is a builder says that it is really easy.

No Progress...

I was planning on getting the T-shirt quilt started this week. However, when I returned from my trip, I was exhausted. I ended up going to bed early for the rest of the week. Also, work has been busy so I was catching up on that stuff.

Tonight, Wayne has poker night so the girls and I will be home. I am planning on getting something started tonight. I am as well-rested as I will ever be so here's hoping I get something done.

Wayne is going to change my tires over to summer ones and do an oil change. We will drop him off with the car and the girls and I will check out the Kohl's sale. We most likely won't make it for the early bird stuff, but we are just looking for sneakers and a spring jacket.

I had someone come out to the house yesterday to give us an estimate on new windows. We were wavering between replacement and new construction since we are planning on residing the house. However, based on my discussion with the guy, we may be going with new construction. I did not realize that all they will do is take the sashes out of the frames and put the new window unit in the cavity that remains. So any air infiltration that we have currently due to the window frames no longer being square won't be fixed. That is not an option since I know we have a lot of problems with the frames now. I am just hoping that it won't be overly expensive... We may end up having to do that ourselves as well. We are going to do the siding as it is. We figured that based on the two estimates that we got, it would be cheaper for Wayne to take 1 week off wihtout pay and do the work himself. We would end up saving a lot on labor. My friend, who is a builder, thinks we could save up to $3500 on labor. Not bad. He also told us that windows were very easy as well so that could also be something that we could do if the labor is astronomical. The only good point to the professionals doing it, is that if the windows fail, we call them and they take care of it and any other damage that occurs.

Onto more positive news, I have been trying to lose weight since I weaned Arianna. I am down 12 lbs. I was hoping to be down 20 lbs by May 1st, but I had trouble with milk production when I started dieting that I had to shelve it. Anyway, I think 15 lbs. would be reasonable by May 1st. Here's hoping that I can keep it up. I need to add exercise to the mix, but if I can sleep an extra 15-20 mins, I usually take that route. I am hoping to do more walking at lunch with my co-workers. I am not sure when I will fit in the strngth training part though...

Another one down...

So here is the Cinderella dress up outfit that I have been working on. I probably could have made the top another inch or two longer, but it works for now.

I am hoping to start the quilt this week. I have a business trip today, but will return tomorrow night. I am thinking that I may not have the energy to cut 20+ shirts, but I will try. I have to get that quilt and Uncle Sonny's memory quilt done before May 30th. I work much better with a deadline so I am sure I will get it done.

I have been looking at Rylie and I think I may need to remake her. The measurements are way off. I can't believe that 5 lbs. would make such a difference in all the measurements. When I measured last night, she was 3-4 inches bigger than I am at all points! I was thinking of just making slits and taking her in here and there, but Wayne says that she looks so much different that it may be worth retaping.

Angielee was sick over the weekend and had to stay home for the 24-hr fever free period. We went to the doc and she does not have strep. At least the quick test says so. I will find out the real test results tomorrow. We went to JoAnn's for the Daffodil Dash and I picked up a tailor's ham and a bunch of the Tutti Fruitti fabric for $1.99/yd. Angielee picked 2 more sundress patterns for 99 cents each, 5 yards of burgundy fleece for the blanket Wayne has been asking for and 5 yards of muslin for various purposes such as making muslins for myself. I am hoping to make a blouse for Arianna's party on May 31st.

I have also looked that the links from StacySews and there are a couple of things I would LOVE to make for the girls or my friends' kids. We'll see how much time I have...

Finally done!!!

I finished the Ariel costume on Saturday night. I had to pin it and hem it by hand. I was going to do a narrow hem, but figured that it is big on her now so I can let the hem down as she grows into it. The bodice is a bit big, but I couldn't think what to do before we went to the party. She told me that her chest was hanging out, but with 15 mins left before we had to leave, there wasn't much that I could do.

Unfortunately, there are 2 tears in the skirt. One from her stepping on it while it was pinned and the other from her tripping in the parking lot on the way to the rest room. She enjoyed the party and stayed in her gown until dinner time. I will have to serge the edges of the costume before I attempt to get the chocolate out of it.

I had a great time making it. At least I know that I can finish a project if I put my mind to it. Now I have to catch up on my tv shows and then get started on more sewing. I am definitely motivated to do more stuff.

Wayne and I worked on the basement some more on Saturday night. I had to move Rylie from the pot rack in the kitchen to the basement. Thankfully, we didn't get rid of the floor lamp from his grandmother. It makes the perfect stand. I want to make more adjustments to Rylie and the dress stand. With a little more tweaking, it will be my exact height. Wayne says that the back waist is not deep enough and the line under the bust is not right. I'll have to see what we can do. I got my stash put together and can't believe how much fabric I have collected. Also, I managed to organize my WIPs. I still have more work to do to get the rest of the space organized. I can't believe how much stuff I amassed in the short time I have been sewing.

I had to make the nap mat cover for Angielee. She seems happy with it which makes it worth doing for her. I was hoping to get her Dora blanket edged, but I just didn't have time last night. But now I just have to get going on the Cinderella skirt. It is almost done!

I picked up a bunch of interfacing so I can really get started on Lisa's quilt. I am just a little sad that I may end up wasting a lot of interfacing since I can't piece them together on the blocks. I am thinking of using the t-shirt scraps as some sashing to get all the blocks the same size. I was hoping to figure out what to use for sashing and the borders so that I can take advantage of the cotton sale at JoAnn's over the weekend. Then again, the Daffodil dash is this weekend so maybe I can snag something then.

So much to do...

This post was not posted on Friday as I meant it to be...


I did not make any progress on the Ariel costume last night. The girls and I went to JoAnn's and WalMart to get some fabric for Angielee's new rest mat at school. She initially picked a purple princess flannel and I convinced her that I could make her pajama pants out of that. She settled on a white princess fabric that was cotton. I also picked up gripper fabric so that I can make slippers for Arianna. There are so many projects that I want to work on and not enough time...

I am going back to JoAnn's before I pick up the girls so that I can get some interfacing for the t-shirt quilt (It's 2 for 1), some patterns (McCall's are $1.50), and whatever else I can find that is on sale (notions are 50% off).

I also decided that I need to make a box to hold my meager pattern stash. The best thing that I have come up with is to use a wipes box from Costco. It looks like it will hold a bunch of patterns. Not sure hpow many since I don't have that much. Now I regret getting rid of so many of these boxes. I will have to make sure to save them from now on.

What was I thinking...

I have a new project that I am working on now. Angielee has requested an Ariel costume for the Princess luncheon that we are attending on Sunday. We went to JoAnn's on Friday night to look at some fabric for the bag I want to make and she saw a cute yellow print that she wanted to make a dress out of. We went to the pattern books and saw that patterns were 99 cents. Of course I told her to pick out anything else she wanted. She picked a halter dress with a matching bag and the Ariel costume. She almost wanted the actual mermaid one, but settled for the ballgown looking one. I picked up a pattern to make sewing room accessories and some Insulbright. I looked at a couple of spring looking fabrics from home dec and settled on a floral and stripe. Didn't know how much of each so I had them held. Went back on Sat. and bought the two fabrics plus a coordinating plaid, peltex, and fusible fleece. I went back today to get the fabric that I need for the costume. I was hoping to be able to take my time and get the stuff as it went on sale, but no such luck...

Yesterday, my SiL and I went to a workshop on making duct tape dress forms. We had a really good time and now we have motivation to keep up our weightloss efforts. I definitely need to get the abs back in shape. Hopefully she will have to retape me in July. We suggested that the guys get taped so they know what they look like as well; they didn't think it was such a hot idea. Angielee was pretty excited about them. She may want one. We'll see if she can stand still long enough to get taped...

Angielee has also asked me if she can use my old sewing machine. I told her that when she got big enough, I would get her a machine appropriate for her age and once she was really ready, then she could start using my Singer. Hopefully, she stays interested.

I worked a little this weekend so I haven't been able to make any progress in organizing my sewing corner. I a, not sure how I am managing to still work, but I am. I need to finish the Cinderella skirt and all I have to do is sew 2 seams, some elastic, and hem the thing. I thought I would get it done last night, but I traced the Arial pattern since I may have to make another one someday in another size. It won't be long before I completely go through my tracing paper. I think I may have found a decent substitute: Wilton aisle runners. If you can get over the floral pattern that is stamped on it, it feels similar to Swedish tracing paper and it seems tear proof. It is 36 in wide and 100 ft. long and costs $30. The tracing paper is about $1/yd.

Trying to catch up...

It's been 11 days since I started the blog and I have not kept up with it as much as I wanted to. Work, life, and exhaustion has gotten in the way. I have not spent as much time sewing as I would have liked either. I spent most of my free time watching the back of my eyelids.

However, I managed to squeeze in some more work on Angielee's Cinderella outfit. It's a good thing too since there is a Princess Party in Burlington on April 6. I will have to make sure not to let her wear it until then. Of course while I am working on things, there always seems to be a need to mend something. While I was trying to finish the skirt, Angielee's sleeping bag for school need fixing. I managed to restore the quilting on it, but it doesn't look all that great. I still need a lot more practice with the walking foot!

In the meantime, I have been going crazy fabric and pattern shopping. In anticipation of the DTD class this Sunday, I have been trying to decide what my first project will be for myself. I am not sure if it will be a top or skirt. I wanted to make a whole outfit for Arianna's birthday party which will be on May 31st, but I am not sure that I will have that much time. Work is really getting busy and I have had to put time in at night. Anyway, one of the tops that I want to make is a knit so I bought some cheap knit fabric at WalMart to try it out before I make the real deal. It is the only place open after I drop the kids off in the morning. I also bought a bunch of fabric to make bibs. I tried the Chickpea bib, but since I made it with Therm-O-Web vinyl, it ends up being more of a "duck bill" than a bib. I will try a couple of other patterns before I make more for my friends kids. On one of my AM WalMart runs, I got a pattern for a dress for Angielee. She is so into dresses that it is ridiculous. I also picked up a sheer polyester for $2 a yard along with a smocked fabric to make Angielee a dress for $2.67!

I also need to finish organizing my sewing space. Unfortunately I do not have a whole room devoted to sewing, but I'll take what I can get since we live in such a small house. I am using the corner of the basement which used to house the computer. That has been moved and now I am using the computer table as a cutting/tracing area. However, all my fabric, books, tools and such have been piling up so I have had to pull out the banquet table for cutting and the like. I have been asking DH to help me organize and put up a peg board and other things, but there are so many other projects that he needs to do around here that ther just hasn't been enough time. One of these days I'l get it done.I also have to organize the rest of the basement which has become a disaster. We have been trying to get organized and that has left different parts of the basement in shambles! It has been so difficult to get remotivated, but it'll happen soon.

Intro to blogging

I have thought about blogging for a while and finally decided to do it. Here is my first post!

Currently, I am working on a Cinderella dress-up dress for Angielee. I will post a pic as soon as it is complete. I completed a Dora bib for Arianna. So far the queue for Angielee's requests has been pretty full: she wants a Princess car seat cover for her and Arianna, matching dresses for her and Arianna, clothes and blankets for her babies, and a butterfly quilt. I am trying to get it all done, but working full time makes it difficult for me to sew. Also in the project queue are: a T-shirt quilt, a memory quilt, playroom cafe curtains, and kitchen curtains.

Today, Angielee and I had some one on one time which we haven't had since Arianna was born. We went to an open gym at our local gymnastics center and went to Friendly's for some sundaes. I forgot how good ice cream tastes! (I have been dairy free since December since Arianna was sensitive to dairy. We found out that she was allergic to four of the top eight allergenic foods: milk, eggs, wheat and peanuts. She is not allergic to fish, soy, tree nuts, or shellfish) After that, we did a little shopping at the Christmas Tree Shop and went to the grocery store to stock up on baby food and other staples such as Dora yogurt and a quilting magazine.

I have been going a little nuts with the sewing magazines lately, I bought 3 in the last week! I am trying to squeeze a blouse for myself into the sewing mix, but haven't managed to do more than buy the pattern and fabric. I would like a duct tape dressform to make sure it fits great. However, I haven't found the time to make one yet. I am going to take a class at the end of the month to learn how to make one. Also, I am hoping that there will be a little less of me by then.

Speaking of having a little less of me...I started kickboxing again this week. I am still sore, but I felt great afterward. Now that I don't nurse Arianna everyday at lunch, I can make time for excercise. Kickboxing one day a week is step one. Now I need to add a couple more activities to the mix. I am thinking of joining a gym that is a a couple of miles away from the office, but I am afraid I won't go. I just might ask my kickboxing instructor if he is willing to design a workout regimen for me that I can do at the office using resistance bands.