tis a wee gift fact'ry

i have strep throat. maybe i just have a sore throat. who cares! the point is, i'm still in my jams, and I have been cranking out the sewn jams today. holla!

I'm proud to say I'm keeping it hella local and indie, too, which adds to the happiness.

this is how you buy the fabric. umm.

and then you cut and make an easy hem...

 1) contract napkins. towel fabric from stonemountain: $18.75 time spent cutting and hemming: approx 1.25 hrs. My friend offered way more than that for these, so i'm going to double her order tomorrow. (love ya, Syl!)

finished product!

2) Cation's dolman sleeve top! I have been eyeing this one for ages, but there are so many things already on the table, especially in the knits area. BUT my bird fabric + Cation seemed like a perfect gift for my fake gf. i left out the back seam to make it backless, cause she's slutty like that. ha!

back view, hanging nicely :)

let's be frank. it doesn't work to just leave out a seam and call it a feature. you know that. So I hemmed the raw edges, duh, and then crossed it over a bit at the waist. 

surprise! 

  

namesake dolman sleeves with neat sleeve bands. 

 it's kind of a long top, and i didn't figure she'd want her jeans/pants hanging out of her top, so i stitched the lower section closed about 3 inches up. see, up close: 

 then i rolled the top center corners in, a gradual hem that went from about 1/4" to 2' at the top.

sneaky tip top

that made the draping more effective...then i raised the top inner corners up a little and trimmed about an inch off the top, again for draping. i'm so intimidated by those drape drape books, but somehow not so intimidated that i won't just make it up myself :)

full frontal 

pretty neck and crossover feature showing from the back. 

i love how sewing combines fashion and math and spatial problem solving. and creativity, and colors and cool people.

Now back to the cutting board for mama's present (s)!

what are you making?? and should I make ornaments for the children??

ufo attack

well, just the one. but as usual, thanks Sunni for a grounded approach: I am tackling a few UFO*s for mental health. Step 1: I just spent 2 hours watching Planet Earth with my baby and tearing out the zig zag and topstitches of my referee tee.

the girls tee in progress: love this fabric!
girlcharlee is good for stuff that looks fun online, and then you find out is really better for the kids. 

Then tomorrow i can whip out the girl's tee (unblogged? doh), and call my foray into knits happily closed (for the moment) so that I can finish the boy's duvet cover. Did you know that's what I'm doing with my quilt blocks? it is. surprise! did you know sashing and finishing a quilt takes FOREVER? it does. now you know so many things. :)

quilt top + pins + flannnnellz

happy thanksgiving, friends. i hope your cocoa is warm and sweet as mine. and that your antidepressants always contain anti anxiety components, too.

xoxo
bex

*a UFO is an unfinished object. they're like gremlins, which breed whenever water is present. side effect of a shortage of time and overabundance of wardrobe wants!

potholders for mein herr

oh my goodness it's sewing geek out day and i am so happy.

foldy pocket! no slipping. 

here are some potholders i made for my man. he loves to cook but only had this tiny kid-crafted one. full of love, right, but not so safe for the fingertips. also it's strangely slippery and kind of a gross texture.

hanging loop!

masculine! insulated! handy foldy pocket style! FTW

his n hers

COMPONENTS:
some marc jacobs home dec weight fabric from the sew weekly meetup this spring + flannel leftovers + insulbright + black extra wide vintage (but who cares) bias tape. stash to the max!
i made it up all by myself, tracing a book that seemed like a comfortable size, and drawing my diagonals with chalk. good times. so basic.

happy saturday, loves!
r

didja ever move and leave your sewing machine behind?

hello tiny pocket tank. you are wonderful to wear. 

i wanted to sew a few more seams on this darling tiny pocket tank take 2, so my sewing machine is still set up in my old place. with my thread, cutting implements, and no fabric or patterns. AAAH!! I have been lurking the blogs more than usual as my own projects are so stymied. hi guys!

back with (sheer!) lawn inset

but truly, it is a tragedy. i owe you pictures, lil blog, of my top and the boy's flannel robe. and, ok, i cried today (well sort of) about wanting to sew, i think the bf is tuning in. we'll set it up this weekend, if i have my way. fingers crossed!

so much piecing! i like it. 

this is my bootleg seam finishing technique. 

xoxoxoxo
r

things to do

1) write press release about racism & inequality in the US. UGH
2) apply for financial aid oh wait that requires
3) do taxes UGH
4) get the damn mouse out of my house BLECH
5) replace upholstered furniture. RILLY?!?!? how?!?!?
6) do a huge pile of dishes
7) get more sleep (how????)
8) oh yeah, exercise
9) read that book! it's so good. it's also overdue. UGH (but omg getting that link led me to this yay!)
10) make a coat! that's so much more fun. And hence my current zombie state.

humpday!
xo bex

see that ugly widget?

i used that ugly green widget down there to recycle two vacuum corpses earlier this month. that thing is great! hint: BEST BUY takes your e-waste, no matter how big, no hassle. (#win?)

the little green widget doesn't tell you what the people on craigslist want (guitar yes, "midcentury" stereo cabinet no) or what the people in your neighborhood will pick up from the yard (stroller base yes, despite dirt, grime, and age; crib bumpers no, despite excellent condition and designer label), but maybe you can figure that out on your own.

Reduce! repurpose! recycle! sorry, i'm weird from sewing all day. R

the mulch

I need to document The Mulch, which took over much of my mental space, a lot of my lung capacity, and a fair amount of the boy's vocabulary for about 3 weeks of last month. I requested it (free! delivered! too good to be true!) to mulch the berries.

I had read that you should cover your berries with at least three inches of wood mulch for the winter. I thought I could also use it in the front beds...so I requested a truckload. AHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA. it would have been funny, and absurd, if it had been delivered as promised. A truckload of wood in my smaller-than a truck front yard. And the neighbors (all around, not just the special ones) would have noted what a nutjob I am, and maybe they would have taken some of it, and that would be great! But the tree service delivered it to the wrong side of the street.

this photo was taken AFTER about 30 wheelbarrow loads and 500 phone calls. I took it to post the mulch on criagslist for the second or third time, and I am happy to report that it is completely gone thanks to one final gallant effort by those amazing neighbors I mention here and there.

AY MEN

i redid my shower

my house was built in 1940. maybe showers weren't widely used then, and maybe copper was in short supply because of the many wars of the era. i'm not sure what caused it, but the bathroom in my house ended up with a wonderful bathtub with a stingy 6 inch tile border. then maybe along the way someone added some shower knobs, just stuck em there in that plaster wall, and called it a new day showertown.
here you can see the somewhat ineffective 6 inch tile border...

my architectural and american history may be off a little (but just barely i'm sure), but what i was working with, in 2009, was three shower knobs -- HOT, COLD, ON -- that looked as if they were rotting out of the wall. it was less than beautiful. SO since the US gub'ment gave me a big fat refund for being a first time homebuyer single mother red headed professional earning less than loads of money, i set out to improve my situation.

ten days ago a nice man named justin came by and ripped up the wall. oh look, it's plaster and lathe! in the shower? moving on. he took out some crappy (galvanized) pipe and replaced it with COPPER. that's right. like the grown folks use. it looked like this when he was done:

that's about a what, 5 foot hole? um whoops. i only have 3 feet of tile. f it.

right. so...ten days later, after showering occasionally at the neighbors', and generally bein a little stinkier, it's done!

but it's not. i have to call that nice justin again so that he can put the fixtures on.

AND i need to put TWO FLIPPING COATS of paint to seal it. because the point of this was to make a waterproof shower situation. and all of that plaster work needs a good seal. but we went over budget with that GIANT HOLE in the wall and i need to make up the difference with elbow grease, which may have also been an original ingredient in the home. so it's an authentic period remodel, you know.
t
in happy news, the note you see there also lists various "green" resources because my dream of a handyman turns out to be a certified green builder. well hello, nurse.

isn't the design nice? i made it up myself using 50% salvaged tile. gorgeous.

never underestimate the power of a stern email

it took three weeks to get an estimate and two weeks for a contract. after two months of waiting i sent just the right email. only a few hours passed until...


(it's a new window. one that opens, closes, has a SCREEN and is DOUBLE-PANED. it's like "HOTT" for old folks.)

haunted house

i woke up, with a start, at 3:20am, knowing that i really need to exorcise my house. i read for a while and went back to sleep. that's when i dreamt that i and my family had a new house.

it was gorgeous, but kind of remote. and one of the rooms was like a kiva type thing on a fucking cliff above the sea, and seemed like it might get a little cold. we got a good deal, or it was free, or the main house was marvelous or something. so we went for it. i don't know who "my family" means, in this case.

so some people came over (family friends? members?) and then we all went to bed but they seemed to pass out in the pool and oops they drowned. fortunately they drowned on top of the previous owner/resident of the house, so all three bodies were in the pool.

in the morning, with some buddy of mine, i pulled out the drain stopper to reveal the disaster, and all three of the drowned people in the tub awoke.

"oh," i realized, "the cost for this house is immortality." and then kept replaying that 'drowned people waking up' image.

"I hope we have investments," i thought, "because this is going to be expensive."

Postscript:
Lydia came over for dinner the next night and I told her about this dream. And then we went out and bought sage on Telegraph and sage'd the crap out of the house. With an Irish blessing and some Hebrew to finish. It's much better now!

weekend and the future

this is where I was on Saturday:


On Sunday I did "le menage" and had donuts and a crib delivered by wonderful people. Wow. Thanks, friends.

Now I'm thinking about the fun I want to have when I get my house. I want to:

Plant a lemon tree by the front door
Transplant my lavender from its pot to the border by the house
paint up the guest room and make it comfy
paint the "nursery", cut out a door, thicken the wall between it and my bedroom
kill the grass and get gorgeous with herbs and other no-water goodies.

I'll keep dreaming for the next couple of weeks....

my new favorite thing is going home

that's all. it's really nice.

my life in status messages

rebecca g...

drinks chocolate milk like it's water. thank god star6ucks has hormone free milk.

is wondering if she has to cancel her facebook account now that she's gone suburban?

invites you to her New Home! Which is beautiful and warm and only slightly over-occupied right now.

is happy that tonight is the last night of monday evening rehearsal. 6-10pm, you are too long and late for a pregnant lady!

there just aren't enough status forums in my world. unless i start tw1tte3ring. i can't. i just can't.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the house looks good. big, not designed with exactly the right rooms, but workable. clean. standing. gas stove. good light. it's a go.

and "daddy" arrived in town and wants to get together tonight.

AND THERE'S A STEREO IN MY CAR for the first time in 6 months.

I'm supposed to laundry (and my job) on a day like this?????

It's all I can do to keep breathing. Man.

made an offer on a house

WHAT? who is this person whose life I am living? is this a grownup? i was talking to the IRS on my bluetooth as i commuted (publicly, natch) this morning. who is that? i look at my tall, sparkly socks. Oh, it's still me.

so this person who wears the great socks and worries about resale value of her bay area property* AND the earth loving hippie who studied "the envir'ment" in college so long ago are BOTH excited to read this in the new york times (quick clip "As gas prices climb, people who once considered an exurban commute are now considering center-city living."). urban renewal, indeed.

*and no, I don't actually have the property yet. but i (we) might soon!