Happy Friday + Randomness

 

crockpot

Happy Friday! K is down with yet another fever and general malaise, and she’s missed a couple of days of school this week. The prospect of trick-or-treating is looking a little dubious, much to her chagrin. I’m feeling some wooziness myself, though I’m fighting it with all my might.

When we picked up K’s costume elements last week, I spotted a Crock Pot for a good price, and remembered several friends telling me how much it can save time and money. My mom never used a slow cooker (though she went through a passionate pressure cooker phase), so I’ve been curious…

Of course, it’s still sitting in its box, awaiting the perfect comfort food recipe. And right about now, with all these flu-like symptoms zipping around, comfort food sounds wonderful. I’ve been Googling “best crock pot recipes” and Adobo chicken seems to be a thing when it comes to slow cookin’. I don’t know…I’m in the mood for something vegetarian, though I’ve got nothing against poultry. Anyone have any recommendations?

Must go make some more lemon-honey tea for K and me. Have a restful and healthy weekend, all!

Floodings, colds, oh my!
It’s been a rough week so far
Time for extra sleep

Ginger Skinny Jeans Revisited

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When we last left off with my Ginger Skinny Jeans adventures oh, a mere seven months ago, I had gone down from a size 12 to a 10. And then something mysterious happened and although all my clothes are fitting just the way they always have, I recently attempted to shave the muslin down to a size 8, and they’re still too big. Could this be the result of the denim somehow stretching out over the months of neglect?

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In my craziness of sewing up samples for the book and moving my supplies helter skelter, I’ve lost fabric and pattern pieces for my original muslin and am thoroughly confused. At this point I figure I might as well go back to the drawing board and start fresh. I’m now happily assembling the pattern pieces, anticipating more progress this go around.

A few weeks ago, I had the enormous pleasure of meeting Heather in person, and the woman is a dynamo. I love her. We perused the essential pit stop for all fabric and sewing aficionados — Drygoods Design, naturally — and she kept me in stitches over lunch. Fiercely intelligent, wildly witty and full of gorgeousness, you could practically see her brain pumping out ideas every nanosecond. Once again, I’ve discovered how easy it is to transition online friendships into face-to-face ones, and it makes me believe in the power of the internet for good.

So of course, when I finally found my own brain again, I wanted to resurrect the sewing of the now desperately necessary pair of skinny jeans (I’ve patched and patched my last surviving pair from 8 or 9 years ago, and we are reaching a point of no return). I’ve learned not to promise anything, but maybe, just maybe, I might be sporting a brand spanking new pair next week…

Here’s what gives me hope at least: I may let projects languish, but I rarely entirely give up on them. There’s a chance that I’ll be enjoying senior citizen discounts by the time I finish a successful pair of skinny jeans, but I will get them done, and they will be awesome!

Monday Outfit: Superhero K

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Good morning! It was a weekend of highs and lows — shall we start with the lows? I had been looking forward to large chunks of sewing time, but it was not to be. Much to my dismay, I discovered that our basement was flooded and spent my allotted sewing time moving a large number of plastic bins and wiping down the the floor. Not fun.

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On the bright side, however, our basement is now sparkling clean and I managed to finish K’s costume in time for the school event. We even got our photo shoot squared away in record time.

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Remember her instructions? My one rule was that I wouldn’t buy any fabric for the costume because I simply cannot add any more to my already excessive pile, and I’m happy to report that I abided by my own rule with flying colors. The top, shorts and cape are all from my fabric stash, and I drafted them all myself.

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K is in love. We hauled ourselves to Fred Meyer (sort of like Target here in Seattle) and found the mask, belt, boots and fingerless gloves. I had actually been planning to make the gloves, but at $1.49 a pair, handmade gloves seemed pointless.

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M conceded to model for the photo shoot as well. They’re so funny.

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I had to redo the tie to the cape twice because the sparkly ribbon I used initially was too itchy, and then I found the perfect strip of faux leather and it was a done deal. This is a virtually no-sew cape made out of some shiny black knit and I watched this youtube video to construct it (the sound quality of the video isn’t great, but his instructions were very clear and I had a cape in 15 minutes).

In fact, I didn’t finish any seams, nor did I hem the shorts, so this costume came together ridiculously fast. The part that took the longest was the “K” stencil, only because we had to wait for it to dry.

At Fred Meyer, we got one more thing:

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And yes, K did wear the whole get-up including the wig to the school event. Her friends squealed with delight when they recognized her after the initial confusion.

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To me, she looks like one of those troll dolls, though I think these photos are super fun:

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She’s all set for Halloween 2015! On the actual day, she’s going trick-or-treating with one of her best buddies outside of our neighborhood, followed by a special Hallow’s Eve sleepover. M and I may actually have a date night!

My sweet girl – she absolutely adores her costume and it’s these sorts of moments that make me so happy that I sew.

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P.S. The winner of the giveaway is Ksenia, congrats!

Happy Friday + Randomness

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Happy Friday! Do you like K’s instructions for this year’s Halloween costume? “Tight” seems to be the overriding theme…She’s been into this show called Mighty Med, which is about a hospital for superheroes. As a result, there’s been a significant uptick in the obsession level of all things superhero-related (Marvel comic books are permanently piled next to the kitchen table). I’m a little stumped when it comes to what she wants attached to the velcro strips on the utility belt, but it seems like something doable in 24 hours, right? It’ll have to be since that’s all I have until the annual Halloween-themed, dress-up bash at K’s school.

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Wishing you all a cozy weekend! It’s gorgeous in Seattle, and I’m savoring this slightly-chilly-yet-sunny autumn with multiple cups of warm beverages and walks around pretty neighborhoods. I love this time of year so much.

Superhero K
will rise from the fabric pile
shining mightily

 

Madame Frump No More

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When I was a young lass toiling over catalog page layouts amid the design-y and stylish citizens of Williams-Sonoma / Pottery Barn HQ, I used to spend a lot of time and effort on my appearance because everyone around me sashayed about in beautiful attire. One of my good friends and co-workers — he of the vintage couture connoisseurship and wearer of thrifted Ferragamo loafers — would appraise my daily outfits and give me a thumbs up or down. We had the sort of honest and hilarious relationship that was blatantly modeled after Sex and the City, except I wasn’t as cool as Carrie and he was way cooler than Stanford (though technically, we both wanted to be Carrie). One day, when I was developing what seemed suspiciously like pink eye and generally felt unsexy and un-urban, I showed up to work in a pilled, shapeless sweater and baggy pants.

My friend’s hands flew to his cheeks and he uttered in horror, “Ay Mamacita*, what happened? You look like… Madame Frump!!”

*He was from the Dominican Republic

Fast forward many, many, many years, and I am Madame Frumpin’ it hardcore. I look like that illustration above on a good day. At least that has a sporty vibe and is acceptably like the ubiquitous “momiform”. I did rustle up deeply hidden energy to wear normal clothes on the few occasions I was meeting people for the first time or for special events — it’s always a good idea not to be mistaken for a homeless person. For most of the last six months in particular, though, I’ve been reaching for pretty much the same three t-shirts and stretch pants. The other issue is that in my enthusiastic embracing of the KonMari method before I got caught up in deadlines, I’d vigorously emptied out my closet. You’d think that if I kept only what sparked joy, I would look presentable, but no, apparently dumpy clothes light me up. Perhaps in the chaos of this last year, I yearned for comfortable and forgiving garments with elastic waists.

BUT. No more, I say, no more!

Now that I’ve cleared away most of the bookishness haze and I actually have a manageable to-do list, I’m eager to revamp my handmade wardrobe. Would this be considered completely non-essential? Yes. But I am a staunch believer in the power of clothes and have had a perennial love affair with them. I’ve experienced how differently people treat me depending on how I’m dressed (let me tell you, the dirty tee and leggings combo doesn’t garner a lot of respect), but more to the point, I’m acutely aware of how I feel in clothes. Beautifully-made, well-fitting clothes are inherently uplifting and confidence boosting. And who doesn’t want a more positive and self-assured person around?

Of course, it’s going to take me a bit or maybe a lot to get to the revamped, lovely me-made wardrobe of my dreams, but I’m prepping my fabrics, sorting through my patterns, firing up my sewing machine and iron.

Goodbye Madame Frump, hellooooooo….well, something better, I hope.

Stay tuned.