Happy Halloween!

Katherine returns from the grave (er, couch)!

I have been feeling much better lately and sewing fairly regularly. But I thought I'd better do a little catch up and show you the things I managed to complete this summer when I wasn't feeling to well.

Two more Santa Monica tees.

 I just love this pattern.

Two more of my T'n't knit skirts. 

These are both scuba knits.

Just for today, I'll call this one the Ghost skirt

My IRL friend Cynthia asked what pattern the skirt is :

Its interesting that there is only one pattern piece. The front and the back are exactly the same. Apparently my front and back are too, because I  wear these skirt in either direction.

Lucky my top half isn't' like that!!

It's scary how many times I've used this pattern.

Even scarier is how neat that drawer is!

I made my husband a shirt.

 This is an Islander shirt pattern. 

And a hat to match. This picture looks a little Washington Irving doesn't it?

The Afghan

Finally, I made this afghan for the sewing room Futon. All those crosses should keep Dracula and other Devilish things out of the sewing room. If only I had finished it before I started that Style arc Violet Jacket!

The New Room for Sewing

Dear Friends, Its been a long time since my last post. A lot has changed. I am feeling much better. I have a new neurologist, new meds, a CPAP machine and continue with my psychotherapy. Though I really don't know which of these things has made the difference, I do know that I fell about 70 percent better! Praise the Lord!

And I have a new sewing room. Unlike my last sewing room in the basement which I shared with the washer, the dryer, the furnace, the water heater, the freezer, the pantry, and the floor drain. My new sewing room has windows and a closet.



Let me show you around,

I need frequent breaks!

My husband made this table for me. Serger and sewing machine on top, bins with notions underneath.

The most comfortable office chair ever! Its a Serta.

Curtain fabric from Ikea.

Lots of room for books and embroidery hoops...

Custom made 36" x 60" cutting table.
Patterns in bins underneath.

Main fabric hoard in bins in closet

More of fabric hoard on hangers in closet.

Did you know you can hang fabric on those felted hangers you see everywhere lately and it won't slip off?

Roller blade wheels make great pattern weights.

I am so happy to have this room as a retreat to sew, read, watch Netflix, listen to podcasts or music, and to just take a nap. I am grateful to my husband for all his help making this room happen. Its the greatest gift ever, from the greatest husband ever. I love you, Dean.

It was all a big lie!

The room for sewing was never a room at all. It was a half a basement. Although it was conveniently close to the washer and dryer, it didn't have any windows or ambiance. And it was a constant challenge keeping my chair from sliding into the sewer drain. I imagine there's about a million pins in in that drain now.

I've had some bittersweet news. The bitter part is that this person who's been in the next room from me now for 26 years is moving out to a place of her own. The sweet part is that I get to move my sewing room out of the basement into her bedroom. It's bit smaller than the space I have now but it has windows! And  a closet!! I'm really excited about the change. We are painting, and I even bought a little futon so I can take a nap in the sewing room.  I'm sure it'll be a lot nicer to work up there than in the basement.

On the health front, I've got what I hope is good news. I have sleep apnea and will be getting a CPAP machine. They've had a theory for a while that my headaches are caused by chronically poor sleep. I pray this is the answer.

And I pray for less hate in the world.





 Dear Jane:
I have every confidence in you.
And some advice:
Don't drink too much.
Don't spend too much.
Love yourself.
Make a difference.
Love, Mom.

I Sewed Something!!

Its too tight!

Its just right.

This is my granddaughter Ruby. She just turned two. As you can see, she is quite a character. Her mom asked me if I could make her a sunbonnet for her birthday. I said yes, but then I wondered where I'd get a pattern for one. Are those Daisy Kingdom patterns still around?

Well, I had recently bought a stack of these magazines at an estate sale for a whole quarter:

And I found this in one:

 
If you can make it out, the first line of the article says " Sunbonnets are in again!!" Really? 1977?
I was in high school and I don't remember anyone wearing one. But it was a public school!

So anyway, its not much, but I did sew something. I'm still depressed and I still have a headache everyday, But there is something super exciting happening in the Room for Sewing soon!

Please don't stop following me

It's a comfort to me just to know my world is still out there waiting for me to rejoin it.

Again and Again

I saw potential in this Vogue (1467) pattern when I made it up the first time last month. I thought it would look nice done up in black ponte. I was glad to find I had enough Black Sophia in the hoard to pull it off. Then I received the challenge from one of my sewing groups: lace insertion. And I thought, perfect! I got the stretch lace from JoAnns, freestyle cut it out, zigzagged it onto the back then cut away the extra fabric. So now I have this cool jacket that makes me feel like a bad ass and I have a new dust rag.

I've also made up two more Santa Monica Tees. I am not tired of it yet. Not even close!

I'm Rich!!

No, I didn't win the lottery, but I do have a lot of patterns. I ordered some new ones from Style Arc (4), which I'm really excited about, and in the meantime I couldn't resort some new Vogues(5) on sale. That means 9 new patterns will be joining the 280 I already have.
Poor me though, I only have 83 pieces of fabric.

2015 recap

It's January 14 and high time I finally did my 2015 year-end recap. I've been putting it off because, frankly, 2015 was not a good year for me. I spent way more time in the hospital or going to doctor appointments that I did in the sewing room. I spent a lot more time laying on the couch thinking about sewing and crafting than actually doing either. I did manage to make four cardigans, 10 blouses, a wall hanging, some whales, two pairs of pants, a dress sloper and a dress, three jackets, five skirts, a dressing gown for my daughter, pajama pants for my husband and 11 T-shirts. My favorite make was this orange top, ironically the last thing I made before I the terrible thing happened.

And of course, I love all my Textile Studio Santa Monica tees. That is my Pattern of the Year.

Looking ahead to 2016 I have a couple things finished that I need to photograph and post about yet.  What I would really like to do this year is combine my love for textiles with jewelry making.

I have had a pretty complete recovery from the stroke but still have issue with almost daily headaches. So whoever it is that had the little Katherine doll, please take the pin out of its head. Thanks!!