Tuesday is Scrapbook day

I don't know what it is but every Tuesday I seem to want to do some scrapbooking. I recently purchased some composition books with the intention of making journals. At church on Sunday I used the last page in the book I've been using during service and bible study. What better reason to craft than when you really need something?

Boring, but what do you expect for 25 cents??

 

To be used for church

To be used for writing about my weight loss journey and whatever else comes to mind! Aren't these better than some plain 'ol composition book?

Happy Anniversary to me

One year ago today I got married for the first time. It's been great.

The finale -- McCalls 5859

My jackets is done and I must say, it too is a winner. The yellow and black were the perfect combination. I'm still hovering in the "Land of Goth" with my black accessories and makeup.

I'm still losing weight and it has become a problem as to what alterations need to be changed. For this jacket I had adjusted the pattern some time last year. The FBA was much too big now that I've lost about 25 lbs. I forgot all about that and had to take larger seams in the bust area and underarm. I'll put my review up on PR in the next few days.

The home stretch of McCalls 5859

I'm in the home stretch of sewing my jacket. Everything went together easily and my bound buttonholes came out just fine.

The only thing left to do cut and stitch the facing behind the buttonholes, hand stitch the sleeve lining into place, sew on the buttons and give it good steaming. I do have to remove one of the pockets and resew it before I sew the sleeve lining. One pocket is terribly off and I'm not going to try and fool myself into thinking no one would notice!

Lots of progress on McCalls 5859

I'm on a roll and have made amazing progress on my jacket.

Now that I have the sleeves on the and side seams actually sewn, the pockets don't look so bad after all. I've got most of the lining sewn and as I always do, I added some decorative stitching to it. The lining fabric is crepe back satin.

I am going to make bound buttonholes. Here's my practice one.

It's not perfect because I forgot to add interfacing to my "garment" fabric. The fabric I'm using for the buttonholes is some leftover wool crepe from my stash. The buttons are from my stash. Don't know how long I've had them but they were marked with a .25 clearance tag...oh yeah!

Friday Night Sew In - McCalls 5859

What was I thinking. I should have picked something easy for the Friday Night Sew In but no, I had to pick something that will take days to finish.

This is what I have so far. I'm making the pink version but am using piping as in the multicolor version. One good thing about making the longer sleeve version is I don't too much have to worry about fitting the sleeve into the armhole. Since the sleeve cap is gathered, it will be super easy. I think bound buttonholes would add a designer touch but this polyester linen is very loosely woven and would probably give me fits. I'll practice on some scraps first and then decide.

Is is just me or do these seem to be the tiniest pockets on the planet?? Believe it or not I added 1" to the width as I wanted to try to balance them with the FBA I made.

I'm sure I'll be working on this for the rest of the week so stay tuned. Smooches!

Friday Night Sew-In and wire bracelet

Before I forget I want to send a shoutout to Carolyn of Diary of a Sewing Fanatic. After I shamelessly begged for birthday gifts on my blog, she gifted me the August Burda Style! It came today. Thank you, thank you, thank you. There are several garments that appeal to me and I can't wait to try one. What can I say, sewing friends are absolutely the best whether at home or in cyberland.

No sewing for me today but I am gearing up for tomorrow's Friday Night Sew-In. If you haven't already, be sure to sign up. I'll either be working on a dress or a lined jacket.

Last night I did manage to finish up this wire bracelet.

Right now my crafting is all over the place--card making, jewelry making and sewing. There are just not enough hours in a day.

Check out my birthday booty

I can't believe I got everything I wanted for my birthday. I am in exercise heaven. My husband is the greatest. I immediately jumped on my bike, I've already named her Violet, and took her for a spin. The Reebok step is to replace one I'm already using and can be adjusted to 6,8, 9 or 10". I've wanted the Firm Wave for quite some time but wouldn't buy it because I didn't know if I'd like it. I watched the intro video and so far I really like it. Of course I need some new workout outfits to really get my exercise on. Maybe I'll be able to work off the 1 1/2 lbs I gained somewhere that week! I wasn't bummed out or anything because I have gotten more than 4 to 5 hours of sleep for the last few days and when I'm not sleeping it always affects my weight. I've been working out 5 days a week for 45 to 90 minutes. If I'm gaining anything it's muscle. I'm able to see definition in my arms again. Yippee. If I don't lose the 30 lbs by the end of the year, I guess I'll just extend my timeline!

No sewing today, have a scrapbook class to go to. Thanks for all the birthday wishes. Smooches!

Happy Birthday to me -- My birthday dress

In case you missed it...today is my 53rd birthday! I love birthdays...mine especially. I am shamelessly accepting gifts of fabric, notions and any unwanted BWOF (as if that's even possible)! And without further ado, here's my birthday dress McCall's 6069.

This dress went together incredibly fast. I guess that's why there are so many reviews of it on PR.

I used the front bodice for View C as my back. I should have given that a little more thought and redrafted it because I have a wide back and needless to say, it's feeling a little weird. Thank goodness the fabric is a knit. As long as you can't see my "back fat" I can live with it. All in all I like it and have something else to wear with my now favorite belt. FYI I added 2" to the length of the skirt and was still only able to turn up a 1/2" hem. I also added 1" to the bodice front and back.

Angela Bassett, Madonna and I

Tomorrow is Angela Bassett, Madonna and my birthday. Just want to give everybody a heads up. I think both Angela and Madonna are going to be 52 and I'm going to be 53. That's right 5 - 3. Don't I make 53 look good?? LOL. If any of you are feeling generous I'd be more than happy to accept your gifts of fabric, notions and especially BWOF! Of course I whipped myself up something for my special day. I can't wear it or post pictures until tomorrow so stay tuned!

Stone Goth - McCalls 6112

I decided to go with the stones and I'm so glad I did. It's a great balance for the skirt. I was attracted to this pattern because of the sleeve slits. The person at JoAnn's tried to convince me that the black fabric is matte jersey...it isn't. Matte jersey is a single knit. This fabric is a double knit--a lightweight one but just the same a double knit.

I went totally Goth with my nail polish, accessories, and lipstick. Why did I even have this color lipstick? The more I look at it the more I like it!

 Guess I shouldn't chew gum while being photographed.

The only alterations I made on the pattern were adding 1" to the front and back bodice and a "cheater" FBA by simply adding 1" to the center front gradually blending back to the side seam.

This dress was quick and easy and a different style to add to my wardrobe. I don't think I'll make it again but you never know!

A sneak peek at McCalls 6112

First to my utter dismay, I didn't lose the 1.6 lbs I was hoping for--instead I lost 3. Yipppppeeeee! My goal was to be down 20 lbs by my birthday next Monday and I have exceeded that by 1.4 lbs. So here's a peek at my "I lost 20 lbs" dress.

As you can see the stones are just pinned on. Keep 'em or get rid of 'em??

A no sew weekend

I can't believe I didn't do any sewing this weekend. Friday I finished my $4 2-Panel dress. I spend the rest of the day riding around the city on my Harley just taking in the sites. I did sit in on an open mic at Borders and picked up a few magazines.

Saturday, after an absolutely killer workout, I cleaned the workout room, the kitchen and the garage. In the garage I had to dig through this mess to find a cone of yarn I just know I had.

I found the yarn but all of the yarn you see was in black garbage bags! I decided it would be easier to locate what I need in the future if I used clear bags instead. So I had to transfer each cone. I was in the garage sweating profusely and working like a government mule. My goal for WeightWatchers this week is 1 1/2 lbs...I'm sure I sweated that off. After that workout I was too tired to even think about sewing.

Sunday I went to a friends house and did some card making. When I got home I thought about sewing but it didn't happen. What did happen is I got an idea for a dress. I found a piece of fabric at JoAnns about a week ago of which there was a little over a yard of. I bought it as a remnant. To celebrate my 20 lb weight loss (I hope, after tomorrow weigh-in), I'm going to design/make a dress to show off my smaller curves with this belt. The pattern is McCalls 6112.

Hopefully you'll be able to have a peek at the dress tomorrow.