It’s always nice to see family, but when you aren’t expecting them it throws me for a loop. My uncle was in town over the weekend and he stayed with us. We had a lot of fun, but I didn’t really get much productive done. The good news is that because I’ve been working too many hours, I have today off (I have to flex my time rather than getting paid overtime)! An entire day to myself. I started the day off by sleeping in and now I’m drinking some tea and catching up on my blogging - again. Just as soon as I resolve to post to my blog every afternoon something happens and blogging goes by the wayside. Ok, enough whining. Sheesh.

We watched Shooter Saturday night and I took the opportunity to work on the very neglected Undulating Rib sock. The second one hasn’t been getting a lot of action and I need to get it finished so I have time to send it off to my sister for her birthday on August 3rd. Translation - I need to get off my lazy butt and work on it. I managed to turn the heel and make some progress on the gusset during the movie and then I’ve worked on it a little bit more this week.

I’ve also been working on the muslin for the dress. I’m learning a lot about the way clothes are put together because this dress has been hard for me. Right now I’m working on getting the sleeves put it and thank goodness I have experience with set-in sleeves from knitting or I’d be lost. And thank goodness for my Vogue Sewing book or I’d be in a world of trouble. Fabric is not exactly like knitting. I’m easing the sleeves in and the basting makes it work pretty well.

My plan for today is to catch up on my blog reading (it’s bad, I promise you) and work on my sewing for a little while. I’m sure I’ll have to watch a little bit of television, so the sock will get some attention too. Have a great day.

Well, despite my lack of blogging I have been busy. And I’ve been doing some of nothing to counteract the busy times. Sewing is satisfying and faster than knitting, but still time consuming and requires attention to detail. When you’re not that skilled in a particular craft, there’s a lot of ripping and re-doing - just like knitting. However, in this case my persistence and analness paid off.

The pattern is the Plain & Simple A-Line Skirt from Hot Patterns. The fit is very updated and the pattern is well drafted. I had some trouble getting things put together, but not because of the pattern itself but because the directions assume you know what you’re doing and know how to sew. There were times I wasn’t sure exactly what I was supposed to do, but when I looked it up in my new Vogue Sewing I managed to get things put together nicely.

The fabric is Embroidered Cotton Voile and it is lined with Italian Cotton Batiste.

I had nothing but wonderful luck with Gorgeous Things. The customer service is outstanding and Ann was extremely helpful. I love the selection of fabrics she has - so many wonderful things to choose from. I ended up with a lot of left over fabric - mostly because I was able to lay my pattern pieces out side by side. I really don’t mind having the extra fabric because I love both of them and I’m sure I’ll find a use for them down the line.

I made the size 10 and ended up taking a little bit out of the curve of the hip on both sides, but otherwise the pattern fit me extremely well. It always makes me happy when I can take something out rather than adding more ease. I added 2 inches to the length, which is no surprise - sometimes being tall is a pain in the ass. And I used an invisible zipper rather than the regular one the pattern calls for. I just think the invisible zipper looks better and I think it’s easier to install.

Next up on the sewing list is the Hippy Chick Dress in some funky black and cream jersey. Keep your fingers crossed - I’m going to need a lot of help with that one.

I had drug school again for 10 days the week before last and the beginning of last week and let me tell you, being out of the office that much makes for an interesting return to work - even if you only work part-time! The good news is that I learned A LOT at drug class. I can honestly tell you that I’ve led a sheltered life. I didn’t even know a lot of that stuff existed. And now that I know I’m not sure I’m better off. Oh well, what can you do. Besides drug school I’ve been busy. I’m not exactly sure what I’ve been doing, but I’ve managed to fill up the hours of the day.

I’ve been knitting on the Undulating Rib socks. The first one has been done for a week or so.

The second one is about 4 inches into the leg. I need to get these socks done by the 19th so my mom can take them to my sister when she goes to visit. I’m going to have to stop messing around if that’s going to happen.

I’ve also been spinning! Shocking, I know. I actually pulled out my spindle and have set it in the living room. When I have a minute I pick it up and spin a bit. Thanks Carole for the great suggestion!

I’ve also been sewing. In fact, I may be a bit obsessed with sewing right now. Spinnerella will be happy to know that I’ve made 3 pairs of pajama pants for Christmas gifts. I still have one pair to make, but I’m quite pleased with myself on that front. So, as a reward I bought some patterns and fabric for projects for myself. First up is the simple a-line skirt from hotpatterns.com. I ordered fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics (fabulous stuff and wonderful customer service!), but it isn’t here yet. In an effort to get a skirt that actually fits me that I like, I did what everyone is always telling me I should do, and I made a muslin.

Ok, so that’s actually a really cool thing. I ended up taking in the hips just a bit - taking out a little bit of the curve and it’s a lot easier to do that on fabric you don’t care about rather than on the expensive stuff you really like. Go figure. The “real” fabric should be here today or tomorrow and I’m ready as soon as I can wash it. I’ll let you know how it turns out. And depending on the outcome of this project, I have plans for a dress next. Oh, and the lady at the quilt store gave me a dress form. For Free! They had it in their basement and weren’t using it! I had to wash the cover because it was really dirty from years in storage and the cover shrunk, so I need to figure out something else for a cover because it’s really hard to get things on and off it with the t-shirt I put on it. I also need to figure out a way to pad it just a bit. It’s perfect in some measurements but an inch or so too small in the hips and the bust. Anyway, it works pretty great for free.

Happy Monday.