Voile infinity scarf and cotton/bamboo/silk socks

Made a few other things I though were worth showing. First off - the sewn voile infinity scarf. I picked a bold floral print on one side, and understated, grey geometric one on the other. Really like to wear this over drab winter clothes to will the spring to come sooner.

I also knitted a pair of socks in the cotton/bamboo/silk blend yarn following a mystery knit along pattern. They turned out pretty nice. I like the geometric lines on the cuff.

Blind hem

The hem on one of the legs on my favorite pair of dress pants loosened in the wash. I noticed too late this morning, so I used safety pins to keep it hemmed throughout the day. It wasn't the best solution. I could totally feel the weight of the safety pins pulling down one leg. Plus, you could totally tell I had safety pins on. I'd get a flashing glimpse of the tiny needles when I walked. I know, my life is so dramatic.

Booh!

I decided I'd try to do the blind hem myself. I had a brief lesson on this a year or so ago, but I had to reference the internet for a refresher.

It's really not hard once you get a hang of it.

I was successful. The stitching could have been a bit less sloppy, but you couldn't see it because it's a blind hem. See for yourself.

A week ago, my hubby paid $75 to hem five of his dress pants. I don't think he'll have to do that again. I got skills!

Tuesday and Wednesday happenings

On Tuesday I met with three friends from graduate school. We went to Cosi Cucina, a wonderful Italian restaurant, where we got to catch up with each other, and talk about puppies, work, school, and vacations.

Emily, Ann, and Lisa - three pretty awesome gals

On Wednesday I cleaned up my arts/crafts/guest room. And I made these:

Pretty pillow covers to go with the room

I love how they turned out. And it wasn't even that hard to do. I really love my new sewing machine.
My chair transformed in the matter of minutes.

Birthday presents, 2010 edition

1) A reversible crochet tote, made by my mom. One side:

The other side:2) Cool bookends and a book by Nietzsche from my cool cousin Budo.

3) Gift cards and cash from my lovely sisters, sister-in-law and grandparents-in-law.

4) Swiss chocolate from cousin Budo.

5) An adjustable size dress form, patterns, and sewing tools from my mother-in-law.

6) Books from my wish list gifted by my dear hubby.

And here is my dress form, who I have to name yet (any suggestions?), wearing the back of my cardigan-in-progress.

Busy, busy Saturday

Normally I reserve Saturdays for relaxation, but today, it was all about getting things done. Without going into too much detail, here is a brief recount of tasks accomplished...
I took my sisters to our parents' house this morning, where we were greeted by our cousin Budo, who often comes on the weekends to visit. We then talked via web conferencing to family back in Bosnia and Switzerland. Technology is sweet.
My hubby, meanwhile, went and got our new water heater. Our old one is dying, so we are reaping some tax incentives to upgrade our digs.
My mom asked me to turn her expensive, square table cloth into an oval shape, to better fit her kitchen table. I felt honored that she'd trust me to cut and sew into this pretty cloth, so I did my best. Hope you like it, Mom!
Here is a zoom in of my work. I think it looks good.
And then in the evening, I made a beautiful rosemary artisan bread, and finished reading two books: "The Piano Teacher" by Janice Y.K. Lee (meh - I am a bit weary of WWII stories) and "Bright Lights, Big Ass" by Jen Lancaster (hilarious).
Next, I am watching SNL and drinking wine. Yay for Saturdays!

I like to make things

I've been on a kick lately - making my own clothes and accessories via knitting and sewing. First, let me show you the cozy ascot I knitted to wear around my neck. Super soft and simple and cute.
I also sew a baby doll top for myself - the second garment I produced with my own two hands (and a fancy Viking sewing machine).
Here is my project in its full glory. I am still amazed that it actually fits me.
And it looks good! In the pic below, my hubby made me laugh (or angry, sometimes I can't tell the difference).
Oh, and one more view from the back. :)
I am pretty happy and proud. Looks like I have a knack for it.

My first legit sewing project

It is done! I actually finished sewing a pretty little baby dress. And the best part is, it turned out better than I expected it to. In the process, I learned basting, gathering, blind hemming, finishing, button hole sewing, zipper sewing, casing, etc. I just love it!
Can't wait to start on the next project - which is going to be an adult size top. Maybe even something I could wear. We'll see.

A few of my favorite things

On Sunday I made these whole grain morning glory muffins from Tosca Reno's Eat-Clean cookbook. I've been eating them for breakfast every morning. It contains lots of good things, including oat bran, dates, walnuts, banana, apple, etc. This is a muffin I don't feel guilty about eating.
For homework this weekend, I sew a collar and the facing on the dress. It was challenging, but it looks great.
Here is a side view of my awesome new collar.
I felt so inspired, I went and added a few fabrics to my collection. Can't wait to see what these will turn into.
And of course, I could not neglect my first love - knitting. I enhanced my stash with Rowan calmer yarn which I am using to knit a cozy ascot. Can't wait to show it off.
So there... it's been a rough winter, but I am keeping busy with my creative hobbies.

And then there were sleeves

It is just my luck that on the day we were taught how to do the hardest thing - capped sleeves - my trusty little Crofton sewing machine started NOT working. I struggled with it the entire time, and finally the instructor came to check up on me. She tinkered with it herself, and finally said: "This is a piece of crap (ouch!) - you need to buy another machine."

I left the class since there was nothing I could do, and headed over to Joann Fabric store to see what they had. Unfortunately, the rep selling the beautiful and mighty Swedish Viking machines was not there, so I would have to return to the store tomorrow.

Once at home, I decided to play with my good old Crofton and I got it to work. It is a little hesitant, but it does things after some pleading and petting.

Luckily, I have a photographic memory of the demonstration the instructor did in class, so I was able to recreate her steps and make my own capped sleeves - unassisted.
And I thought the zipper was hard. This was not easy at all. I struggled and struggled, but I finally got a hang of it. Feast your eyes on my unfinished little baby dress bodice with brand new sleeves.
Being anal that I am, I must admit that it REALLY bothers me that one of the sleeves is slightly more scrunched than the other. Grrr! I am afraid I might tear it apart till I get symmetrical pleats on both sides. I'll try to live with it... for now. Actually, I am going to go and try to fix it.

Zipping through the sewing class

Taking a sewing class is one of the best things I could do for myself this year. Tonight's lesson was to sew in a zipper. It is one of the hardest things to do as a beginner, and our instructor wanted to get the hard stuff out of the way. After many tries, I finally got it perfect (I am little bit of a perfectionist). The zipper is straight, centered, and tight. I am so proud!
And it's totally functional. I zipped it up and down many times, and it hasn't broken yet. :)
Next week, we are setting in sleeves on this baby (dress).

I'll trade my MBA homework for sewing class homework any day

A few years ago, my parents bought me a sewing machine that I played with occasionally. I really wanted to learn the craft so I enrolled into a sewing class for beginners. My teacher is a petite, no-nonsense, skilled seamstress who told us, in all seriousness, that our first project is going to be a baby dress, and we will start this dress by sewing in a zipper. I love a challenge.
Our first homework was to buy a yard of cotton woven fabric, sew the cut edges, wash, dry and press the fabric, and then pin the pattern. I was pretty excited to get the machine set up and ready for class. Check out my creative corner that my husband set up for me in the guest room. He is a doll.
My stitches look good, even though my line is not quite even. I am hoping to have more control over that with practice.
I made sure to lay out the pattern right (the instructor demonstrated this to us at the end of class). I had no idea about grain line, selvage, and cross line - key to getting a functional garment. These are the small details that I couldn't have learned on my own. So I am really glad I am taking this class. We will see how it goes with the zipper next week. :)

Craft night

Last night, I got together with my sisters to start our weekly craft night series. One day of the week, we will get together, and do different sort of crafts - whatever floats our boat.

This first night, we taught ourselves to thread the sewing machine and do a straight stitch. Then I showed Z how to increase and decrease stitches, and helped M cast on. It was awesome. I must add, we spent hours at the fabrics store, deciding on different fabrics for our first project, but ended up buying some cheap remnants at the last minute - we didn't want waste pretty fabric with our (yet) unskilled hands.
I must make a note that while my sisters and I spent our time acquiring new skills, my super-mom took my car keys and deep-cleaned my car. She is a champion of cleanliness and order. I don't think my car has been this clean since I bought it. Thanks, mom! I'll try to maintain it.

When I got home, I decided I will turn my husband's unused study desk in the guest room into a craft corner. Can't wait to get it all organized. That's my Crofton sewing machine (it's a mystery manufacturer - I believe an Aldi private brand), which I received as a gift. It works pretty well so far. It's been tested by various seamstresses in my family, and they all gave it thumbs up..
I had a $10 gift certificate to Borders, so I got this book by Lotta Jansdotter. It has simple, cute, IKEA-like sewing projects for home. We are starting our sewing "class" with placemats (with pockets).

And then I also found this gem: a zine dedicated to various crafts - knitting, sewing, crocheting, building stuff out of things lying around the house, etc. It's absolutely fascinating. And the projects are pretty nifty, too.

I'll definitely be devouring this one. Maybe we can use one of the projects for our next craft night.