Tuesday, March 6, 2012

The Hope Of Spring

It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold:  when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade. 
Charles Dickens




Happy-ness is the hope of Spring and all that it brings.  Flowers.  Fresh Air.  Clothes blowing and drying on a line outside.  Skirts and flip-flops worn with a favorite schleppy sweatshirt (which has been my Spring wardrobe for a week or so now!)  Summer in the sunshine; winter in the shade.  May you enjoy your Springtime!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Rrrrrrruffles!

I found this ruffle fabric at my favorite sewing store and decided the Pipsqueak needs skinny ruffle capris.  I found this pattern book, also at my favorite sewing store.  The pattern book is fabulous!  And my requirements for any pattern, book or otherwise, are really very simple:
1.  The pictures have to be awesome.
2.  I need to understand the directions.
3.  The directions need to contain no sewing grammar at all.  Patterns need to have words that I understand.  Also words that make me feel like it is speaking directly to me.  (Read:  dumbed down.  A lot.  For me.)
4.  I need to feel confident that I will use several of the patterns in a book or that I will use the pattern over and over and over again.
5.  Dumbed down.  A lot.  For me.
I love to sew.  I love to sew.  Probably more than kintting.  Which is saying a lot.  But I don't have a lot of confidence because I don't know what "bias" means.  "Basting stitch"?  Why bother?!  I also hate to cut.  I hate to think that I spent money on fabric and before it even gets to the sewing machine, I have ruined it by cutting it wrong.  "Cut on the grain" . . . . . ????  And quite honestly, my method of sewing would make my mother cringe.  I mostly wing it.  I can see it in my head so I usually just skip a lot (A. LOT.) of the steps in written patterns to get to that finished piece.  Not so with the skinny ruffle capris!!  5 steps.  That's it.  (And, since it's me, I did it in 4 steps!!)
It took me 90 minutes.  Including running out to Michaels to find a white t-shirt to applique the cute little heart with the extra ruffle fabric. 90 minutes from laying out, cutting, sewing, running to Michaels, appliqueing to finished.


[Side note #1: So tickled with myself, I took pictures with my iPhone and showed them to everyone at work.  I showed the pictures to one of my favorite friends, Jason.  He is a 35 year old single man, never been married.  Only goes to the grocery store when he runs out of laundry detergent or toilet paper.  Love him to death and have knit socks for him and given him soups and casseroles just because.  As I was showing him how cute (!!!), I said, "I wish they made them in my size!"  He laughed out loud.  Belly laugh.  And said, "Did you seriously just say that you wished they made them in your size?!?!?!  YOU MADE those pants!!!!" *giggle*]
So in love with this outfit are we, I went out and bought more fabric.  Just one more color.  It had to be orange.

(Blurry photo?!?!  Ugh. . .)

[Side note #2:  Pipsqueak is days away from being 9 years old.  I used the size 6 pattern.  She's a . . . well, pipsqueak!  I teased her that she will have Big Bird legs in her orange ruffly pants!  Because, hey!  It looks like legs that Big Bird might wear!  And she said, "The great thing about Big Bird is that he's . . . . . BIG!!!"  Poor little Pipsqueak. . . . ]
Happy-ness is RRRRRRRuffles!!!!!!