Still sewing

Yes, I'm still sewing. I scored big at the fabric store. The boss brought in rolls of interlock that had been in his basement--lots of nice solids and several cute prints. We measured off 3 yards lengths and marked them $3 for the 3 yard piece. So, naturally, I had to buy some! I bought two of the prints--bright pink and bright blue with white flowers--solid red, purple, and two drab greens (one was ribbed). Plus I got two shorter lengths of a red and a blue that were the ends of the rolls and were dirty. Hey, I can wash them... T-shirts, here I come!

Slow, slow, slow

I don't know why I am so slow to post. It's not like I'm not doing anything to post about. I think I am hung up on the photos--I just don't take any. I am working through my pile of to-do's. First up was a cover for my husband's leg pillow out of an old fleece throw--he has a bad back and feels best if his feet are elevated. The crummy thin poly cover was irritating and cold. The fleece is warm and cozy.

I also made cushions for a Shaker rocking chair. The chair is lovely--made from a kit by my husband about 30 years ago. Unfortunately, it is not very comfortable--very straight, hard back and stiff seat. So I used the rest of the shower curtain fabric (the brown flannel) and covered cushions--one for the seat and one for the back. So much more comfortable. And I coordinate with the chair when I wear my shirt!

I finally finished the pullover-to-cardigan sweater refashion. What a project--took much longer than I thought it would. I had a couple of false starts. First, I was going to pick up stitches and knit on button bands and an edging. That was a disaster! Then I thought about knitting separate strips that could later be sewn on--that just didn't seem too appealing. Finally, I settled on crocheting an edging. The above photo shows the sweater before I zigzagged down the center, around the neck, and just above the ribbing on the bottom edge. I used Paton's Kroy sock yarn which just happened to be the same blend of wool and nylon as the sweater. Below is the finished sweater! The crocheting took forever--I am not an expert crocheter and am slow. I thought I'd never finish. Once the crocheting was done, I blocked the edging so the sweater wouldn't look bunchy. Then, I finished it off with grosgrain ribbon over the picked up stitches to give a nice and neat inside appearance (See below). I sewed on buttons that had been in my stash for about 12 years and called it a day. I am very happy with the end result and should get lots of wear out of the "new" sweater.

I gave up on an unfinished shirt project. I redrafted the sleeves and reset them--they were fine. But the shirt is just plain too small. And I am out of fabric. Arrgh. I love sewing, but I hate fitting. Has anyone used Petite Plus Patterns? They sound wonderful and seem like they would fit me. I'm dithering about buying one or two.

In other news, we--I, my husband, son, and daughter--seem to finally have kicked the plague-like cold we had. Seems we were sick forever. We are having better weather which makes us feel better emotionally anyway! But winter in Albany is fickle--some days it is nice, sunny, and warmish--other days it is so cold and windy that my teeth ache when I go outside. I am so looking forward to spring.

Time flies

Oh my gosh, I can't believe February is almost over. I just wish winter was almost over, too! I have been busily sewing and knitting. I am grateful for my stash of fabric and yarn. We are on a tight budget here and I am avoiding new purchases--a challenge given I work in a fabric store. I unpacked a box the other day and found three unfinished projects! I finished up two of them--a polar fleece vest that only needed binding and jammie bottoms for Kate that were cut out. I have half a blouse to work on--though the thing fits bust and hips, the sleeves are really tight. It's odd, because the sleeves didn't appear to be that slim on the pattern package. I have extra fabric, so I'm going to redraft the armhole and sleeve, using a favorite blouse as a guide, and reset the sleeve. If it turns out ok, I'll use that as my master blouse pattern. I hope to get some photos soon.

I am also getting ready for the second meeting with the women's group. I finished up the baby quilt and have made several small quilts in different techniques to show them. Those little quilts will go to Petsmart for the shelter kitties.

Shower Curtains Redux

I obviously own too many shower curtains. There is a logical explanation for this. When we first moved into this house, we used shower curtains for window curtains. Some of that has changed, so I have several shower curtains in my stash. My favorite are two brown flannel shower curtains. One has just become a shirt for me. I am proud of myself in that I fitted the pattern to an existing well-fitting shirt and I only used things from my stash. The other curtain will become cushions for a rocking chair. More on that to come...

Honey, I shrunk the...

No, I didn't shrink the kids. I shrunk the shower curtain. In its defense, the label clearly said "Dry Clean Only". But I just couldn't handle dry cleaning a 100% cotton shower curtain. So I washed it and shrunk it about 12%! I managed to iron some of the shrinkage out and then inserted two strips of pieced squares to lengthen it. I think it turned out quite nice--the blue squares brighten things up.

A partial quilt

Here is a photo of a baby quilt that is not quite finished. The top is pieced from black quilting fabrics. The backing is a lovely soft fleece and the binding is the peach fabric. I just need to pin the layers together, machine quilt over the seams, and attach the binding. Then it will be ready to wrap around a wee baby.

A good time

I gave a quilting/sewing demonstration/lesson this morning to a small group of women who are interested in making blankets for charities. I met the group leader at the fabric store one day and we got to talking about quilts and ways to simplify the process. I gave her my number and, sure enough, she called. I had a wonderful time with this nice group of people. We covered two types of easy quilts--4.5 inch squares sewn together in a 10 square x 10 square pattern and then machine quilted to fleece or flannel backing--and a quilt with a "pillow" panel for the center with strips added around it until it is the desired size. We also talked about some tips for easier sewing and cutting. I advised them to try to do a good job, but not to get hung up on perfection. I'm going back in February for a second session.