What wear on a hot @$$ed Day? M6556!

Peace Y’all,

It has been is hot as Satan’s scrotum lately. The funny thing is you would think the south would get all the hot weather and everyplace would be cooler. But surprisingly no. Seems like everybody is getting slapped upside the face with heat. There have been days my inlaws in upstate NY had higher temps than we did. It makes it difficult to dress 3/4th when it's hot like that. I mean I could stay home and be naked, but this Earth has people to see and things to do!

M6556 was almost the dress that wasn’t. I cut this joker out at the beginning of the summer to teach another Earth how to sew. Since it really only has 2 pieces (once you tape them together) I thought it would be a good teaching experience. Unfortunately she got lost cutting it out. And folks who claim they want to learn to sew don’t necessarily mean it. And her mother sews!!!!!

I went through 3 different planned fabrics on this too. The green gauze was my original intention. I hate when I go through hell just to start back at the beginning. I swear this dress didn’t want to be made. I t was impossible to cut on the table so I had to cut it on the floor. Just crazy reasons NOT to make this “dress.” But I persevered and here it is. Shall we?


I don't know what I was looking at.

Pattern Description:
M6556 Misses Dresses. But this is not a dress unless you are under 5’ tall. I had to wear it with a skirt



Pattern Sizing: 12-20

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Actually it did

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Very

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
It is a very unique top. But for some reason the front neckline is a bit wonky. I had to readjust it while I wore it. I think the weight of the right arm fabric kept pivoting it.

Fabric Used:
Cotton gauze

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I added 2” to the top trying to get it to be a dress. And that didn’t work. The package said the finished garment should be 41”. And had that been the truth then the additional 2” would have allowed it to cover the exposed knee. Any longer than 2” then the hanging part would have dragged the floor when my arm was down

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
I doubt I’d sew it again, and I do recommend this to others if you like this style. But be forewarned it’s a top and not a dress.

Conclusion:
Cute and different top.


Peace

Dillon!

Peace Family.

I sort of had a vacation last week. Sort of… The office I work for was closed for an entire week, but….. I came in on Monday and Thursday, had a funeral on Tuesday that took all day and Wednesday I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t come in on Friday because my coworker and I are not allowed to be alone together (it’s that serious y’all) and Friday is her day to come in the office since we are usually closed on Fridays. Mix in the FACT that our AC went out at home on Wednesday and the temps have been over 100* of late means I didn’t get much sewing done. But I did get something completed.

Behold……





This is a baby quilt for my newest nephew. Dillon Benjamin, though I’m not completely sure of the name. I want to get his name embroidered on the blanket but my people have not confirmed the spelling of his name. You know how we can be…. My niece and I are 1 year apart in age. When her sister started having babies, I made blankets for her girls. All 4 of them. This started me the tradition of me making blankets for the next generation. My niece even asked me if I was making a blanket for her son. You know I had to say YES! Besides, this niece has been sickly all her life and never expected to have a child. He was a blessed surprise. We are all very geeked.

I kind of cheated on this quilt. I made the 1st square 3 years ago. A fellow Earth was baring and I volunteered to make her a quilt. I had made another Earth a quilt when she was baring, but it was a group project. This Earth and I were cool at the time so I agreed to make her a baby quilt and allowed her to choose the colors. You need to understand. I don’t like to quilt. But I will make a baby quilt if the squares are large enough that I don’t have to make that many. And I have to really like you to make you a quilt. And I never allow the recipients to dictate the colors unless I’m not quilting but teaching someone how to quilt.

So I allowed this woman to choose her own colors… blue and lavender. Since it’s hot here in GA, I don’t always use quilt batting. I back the quilt with fleece. I find that’s usually enough to make a solid baby quilt. Anywhoo… As I was building with the Earth…. Who KNEW I was making her a quilt…. Waits until the week before her shower to tell me she doesn’t want a quilt from me but something else. Apparently, she went through her guest list and decided what certain people should contribute. The shower was clearly intended to be a gift receiving venture. She didn’t even stay in the room with her guests or participate in any of the games. I didn’t buy her what she asked for and was planning not to attend the shower. B.U.T. she made the shower coed and invited my God to said shower who did purchase what she asked for and put both our names on the gift. To this day I am still waiting for a thank you card….. So…

I used the same fabric for my new nephew’s quilt. Luckily my niece isn’t picky doesn’t know the story nor does she follow my blog. Even though I’m pissed how the story unfolded, I’m thrilled with the out come. It is a 16” block. I made 4 with a 2.5” strip of white in the middle with another red piece. I think it’s really cute. And once I got rolling, it wasn’t hard at all. In the future, I will spring for a quilting foot. I broke 2 needles! I will only quilt baby quilts on my machine. Anything bigger gets sent out.

The quilt square is called “A Mother’s Life.” If you look you will see a red square of love in the center and arrows going out and coming in to represent a mother’s love in how she loves others and they love her right back. Here is the link to the website.
http://www.quilterscache.com/M/MothersLifeBlock.html

I hope Dillon Likes it. It is very different from his cousin’s blankets. You can see how my skill level increased through the years. The oldest niece is 15 now. Her blanket was one of the ones that you make maybe a few stitches here and there. Grand-niece 2 & 3 got quilts and #4 got a crocheted blanket. I was in my crochet phase then. Each of the girls still keeps her own respective ‘blanky”.

Yay Dillon!!!!!



Peace

A little help please......

I have a fresh dilemma and I wanted to take it to the 20 of you. I want to make a floral blazer! But I’m scared.

Here is the fabric. I am obsessed with light blue this summer. I don’t know why. But I scored 4 yards from Wal-Mart of this fabric. I love it. You can tell I love it because I paid full price for it.


The pattern that I want is V1296. The pattern itself says that it’s hard. And it even requires some boning! It was even hard to cut out. I have B5619 It calls for 41/8 yd of fabric to my 4 yards, but I can cut the facings in a different color if I need too.



Here is my dilemma…. Should I go ahead and try to make V1296 or should I just go with the safety of B5619?



I suppose a muslin would help…. I hate doubling back, but I hate wadders too….

Damn!

The God Laughed!

Peace Y’all,

My God sometimes reads this blog. He agreed that I needed to have a sewing space separate from my reflection on my life as Earth. He made a suggestion that I blog on my nail habits. Since it is part of my refinement. Wow. Even after years together, this man surprises me!

When I was a small child, I had 3 wishes: long hair, straight teeth and long nails. Well weaves supplemented me until I went natural. Now I have locs and you know locs will grow. So I checked off Long hair. I checked off straight teeth when my braces came off in the 11th grade. But the nail thing was tricky.

I have soft nails. Really soft. They will fold as soon as they grow past the fingertip. That folding causes cracking and loss of the nail. These nails are just like my mother’s nails. Skinny and sharp. As thin as they are, they are like razor blades and used to tear my skin up when I scratch. That is actually a big problem for me because I suffer from eczema. I have tried every hardener, every vitamin, every damn thing that reported that I could grow those long beautiful thick and strong nails. Even my toenails are thin and are prone to grow inward.

When I was 22, I went to a ball hosted at my dental school (I managed to graduate with long nails. I have the graduation pictures to prove it!). I decided to get some acrylic nails. I have never looked back. I have had some sort of acrylic on my nails since that day 19 years ago. Acrylic nails make life easier. When I get my nails ‘done,’ I’m done. Meaning I feel put together and since polish doesn’t chip off acrylic nails like it does natural nails, I don’t have to worry about my hands until my next nail appointment. That is a huge relief. Before acrylics, I would have to paint and repaint my nails every 4 days. That’s a HUGE inconvenience because of all the down time it takes to dry. It was like and additional hair washing day. And y’all know how long it takes a Black woman to completely wash her own hair from start to finish!

Folks act like this is an expensive venture. As soon as I hear that nonsense I KNOW it is coming from a place of frank ignorance. A full set is $20 here in GA. Fillins run between $12-15. I get fillins ever 2-3 weeks. For some reasoning the winter my nails grow more slowly. So there have been the occasional months where I only fill once. That’s maybe $12-25/month. You waste more than $25/month.

The thing that made the God laugh was all the rules and regulations I have set up for myself with regard to shapes and color. Nail techs think I’m crazy and I’m not far behind them in that appraisal. When I get a fresh set, I go with round nails and light colors. More than likely some sort of American. I won’t cut them down until my own nail grows back in. As my nails get longer, I will have them shortened to the actual nail but cut square. The reasoning is this… I prefer round nails, but they have a tendency to separate from the natural nail. That leaves sharp snags that cut me, pulls my hair, ruins stockings, etc. So as soon as the natural nail grows in good, I swap round for square. Square makes my fingers look longer. I have really stubby digits.

I will NOT wear frosted polish in the spring or summer. I just won’t. Makes me look ashy and looks like something that should be worn around the holidays. The ONLY exception would be for a special occasion or if it is a sparkle and not a frost. Meaning like a top coat with those big sparkly pieces in it. Pastels and bright colors for spring and summer only.

In the winter frosts and dark colors abound. After the autumnal equinox, that’s when I’ll entertain, browns, deep oranges and reds. I don’t think red looks good on me. But I will rock red and gold at the winter solstice. Just seems like the right time to do it then. I will only wear Black or dark blues in the fall/winter too.

On the toes, anything goes. I don’t generally tip my toes. I will admit that there has been the rare occasion that I have put tips on my toes. I don’t generally do this because it is uncomfortable to wear closed toe shoes. Don’t judge me. But I will wear ANY color on my toes I fancy at any time. I just feel that way about feet. I DO NOT like for my finger nails and toe nails to match. Nope. Don’t like that at all. It bothers me and I don’t know why.

I rarely do nail art. I feel like that’s for kids. I’m grown. I don’t need flowers and swirls on my fingertips or toes. I might add a sparkle color to the top of my color but that’s about as intense as I go. I pay attention to colors of the seasons. I bet you didn’t realize that nail polish companies come out with spring and fall lines of color. I know. I was blown away when I found out. But that’s why it’s hard to find a color that you always wear if it’s not in style. Those colors come and go.

So that’s my build on nails. You can call me vain… excessive…. High maintenance…. Whatever. But just know when you do it, my nails and hair will be perfectly on point while you’re talking.



Proper Education Always Corrects Errors!


My toes in Tiffany blue and my nails done "Stiletto" style.

B5709

Peace,

I like this pattern. It is a good mojo starter. I know I have been sewing a lot lately, but this top is what I needed. It is a “grown woman” top; meaning it’s not from Old Navy. It’s not knit. It’s is in my favorite color purple. Most folks don’t realize that purple is my favorite color because I don’t wear it. I don’t think lot looks good on me. But this top does and I love it. And lastly, it is printed! I have been doing the knowledge to indigenous Original cultures; and have come to realize that Original people love print and color. It’s in the blood. And you can recognize a person’s culture based on the prints they wear. I’m doing prints until further notice.

I have been desperately searching for a peplum pattern. V8815 isn’t in the stores yet and NL6130 can’t be found. I was getting a bit desperate. Shall we?



I have to stop making that face. I honestly was smiling and the moment I stopped to answer a question, she took the picture!

Pattern Description: Misses' Top and Belt

Pattern Sizing: 16-24. I cut the C-version of a 24… you know, for Cocoa and Puff. But I could have easily cut a 20. It’s very loose. But I like loose, despite what my mother says….

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes it did!

Were the instructions easy to follow? Very easy. The whole thing start to finish only took 3 hours and I paused to cook breakfast

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? The style of the top is very adult

Fabric Used: Rayon. Now this is wear I get mad with folk/ Why didn’t someone tell me how difficult it is to work with rayon? All the ironing… all the fraying… I would have pinked this. I have a bunch of navy blue rayon to use for a shirt dress….. I am very nervous

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: Not sure if this counts, but I tacked the front closed. Otherwise, I’d have to wear a shirt underneath it. In the future, I will add an additional 1-2" to the bodice. The Girls take up a lot of room.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes and yes. I am planning to make the A-version and I have fall/winter versions with the sleeves planned

Conclusion: A TNT top!

I made the skirt too…. Maybe in April? I don’t remember the pattern number. I’m annoyed because here I am thinking I’m stepping out of my comfort zone with this skirt and I had 4 others in the summer trunk in brighter colors. I wear the skirt a lot, but I am very ashamed.


Peace

B5643

This is the dress that I build about in my last post. I like it but don’t like it. The one that's not completely finished because I can't find my 2 missing boxes of hook and eye closures.

Pattern Description: B5643: Very easy jacket and dress. I made the dress.

Pattern Sizing: 14-20, of course I cut a 20. I also didn’t make a FBA. I have been doing the Knowledge to “ease” and according to that philosophy, there should be enough ease in a very loose fitting garment to accommodate Cocoa and Puff. They fit. But it’s kind of tight around the high bust. Not so tight that it interferes with my breathing or ability to move, but enough that I can feel it. Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? No…. I will explain that in a minute Were the instructions easy to follow? I didn’t follow them because I lost them! So I had to make the dress up based on what the pattern pieces dictated, i.e facings went where facings go, pleats got put in where the pattern indicated, etc. I got confused when it was time to connect the shoulder straps, but I got it together. I mean… they are straps! What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I don’t think it is the dress for my body. In actuality I think this pattern is more of a nightgown than dress! It’s essentially a swing dress. It hits the boobs and it’s out. It makes me look pregnant. A belt didn’t help cinch the waist either. And I tried multiple belts! Fabric Used: Floral cotton from Wal-Mart. It was a really pretty fabric and floral is supposed to be “in” this season and according to the fashion experts, my body is supposed to do small print. Whatever… This fabric really should have been a blouse. I had hoped that because it was such a long dress that the fabric would weigh the dress down… It doesn’t. It’s that light. Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: After I was done, I didn’t like the length. I did a longer version than the short version on the pattern, but a shorter version than the long pattern version. I was afraid that the longer version would be too long on my 5’3” frame. It probably wouldn’t have been, but I don’t think I would have liked how it would have looked straight to the ground. Does that make sense? When I finished the 1st version… the way the pattern dictated… it was too short and the fabric is so light that it floated up easily. I had extra fabric so I started experimenting. I have 2 feet that I don’t use much (I have other feet I don’t even know what they are!); a gathering foot and a rolled hem foot. I cut the remaining fabric into 11.5” strips, joined them, and rolled the hem and then gathered them so that it looks like a ruffle addition at the bottom of the skirt. I am not unhappy with the addition and I don’t think you can tell with a just cursory look at the dress that the bottom.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? No I won’t make this dress for myself again unless I want a nightgown. It is just not my style. But I did put in a lot of effort in making this dress. I will add this to my recreational wardrobe because I really don’t want to take it apart and make something else. I have a 15 hour road trip to NYC for Show and Prove coming up. Since the dress is so light, it should breathe and be very comfortable to wear in the car. Conclusion: Not a TNT, but I’m glad I stepped out of my comfort zone. I’ll take the best part. Peace!

M6069

Peace. Blogger’s changes are pissing me off. I swear I am writing in paragraph form but blogger is not formatting it like that. Any suggestions? Did y’all have great paid holiday? I did. I danced, told more lies, ate more veggie burgers and drank more liquor than I have in a minute. The troops that gave their lives for this country would have wanted it that way… I meant to sew more than I did this weekend. I wanted to have 4 completed garments to present. 1 for each day of my weekend. But… I just have 2. Oh well. It’s better than nothing. We just bought a new foam bed. It’s really hard to get out of it. I completed M6069 and B5643. Technically, I completed B5643 last week and even more technically, it’s not fully completed. Like 99.5% I need to add in the hook and eye. Here is the thing… I can’t find where I put them. And I have already bought a replacement case (because I misplaced the previous case while moving. They must be with my eyeglasses). I’m not buying a third. So the dress will remain 99% finished until I either (a) find the missing box/es or (b) decided to discard something with a hook and eye so I can cannibalize one. Busters…. M6069 is complete and I have worn it already. Well… complete enough that I wore it out. I have made M6069 before. It’s a dress pattern that I made a blouse/top out of. Where as I still wear the top, even after 2 years, there are things about the top I never liked. This pattern has a cowl n the front and in the back. I believe the back cowl is deeper than the front one. Not a good look if you MUST wear a bra. When I wear the top from this pattern, I’m bra checking all day unless I wear a jacket over it. Under a cardigan or hoodie (yes I will wear a hoodie out, to work, etc. Don’t judge me!) I kind of look like a hunchback because the fabric noticeably bunches up so it requires a blazer to slap it into submission. So when I decided to make this pattern up again, I knew that I needed to make some adjustments. You want to read about it? Here it goes…..

I will admit this is not the best picture. The God doesn't get what I am trying to express when I ask him to take a reflection. anyway, this is me at the parliament building. Pattern Description: M6069: Misses' Dresses and Sash Pattern Sizing: 14-20. Of course I cut a 20, no FBA Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes and no. But it was on purpose. Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, up to #32. I don’t get how they meant to add the elastic. I did add it, but not the way the instructions said. The way I know how. Which I’m certain is NOT the same, but it worked so…… What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I am clear that I don’t like a cowl in the back and it was too short as is Fabric Used: Cotton knit print from Wal-Mart. Yes Wal-Mart. I’m open on them right now. I will ride that wave as long as it lasts. I can buy things that are less expensive and clearly labeled from Wal-Mart or either spend my utility money at Hancocks/Joanns or be lied too at another mom and pop fabric store about what the fabric actually is. I bought this fabric for 2 dollars a yard. I bought 4 yards and still have at least 1.5 yards! What is not to love? The only down side is the print is so playful that I don’t think it’s appropriate for work. My office is closed on Fridays, and casual Thursdays is kind of something that only I do and hasn’t been approved by the boss. But he hasn’t said anything yet. I won’t push it. Even though I think I can get away with it if I add a white cardigan and some white stilettos. Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: OK. This is where it gets interesting…. I have stated, repeatedly, that I didn’t like cowl on the back. Version C of the dress has a plain front with a cowl in the back. I suppose the design feature is the back cowl. Some feature LOL! I used the plain front as a back and used the front of A&B as a front. So I used 2 fronts and no back! Teehee. That’s funny to me! I added an extra pleat on each side of the front piece so that it would match the depth of the shoulder. I also kept the facing. I think it looks neater with one and tacked it down with tailors tacks in a matching inconspicuous location so it doesn’t flop around as facings tend to do. I also lengthened it 15 inches. I’m not sure it’s enough. Who knew? I might be taller than I think. Maxidresses tend to drag the floor. This dress is just long; a mididress. I suppose my ‘parts’ made it rise higher than I expected. I have enough fabric left to nicely lengthen it, but I haven’t decided that I want to do that yet. I do wish I had lengthened the bodice some. Maybe an inch. It’s not a big deal. Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes I would. I really like this dress. I have already worn it twice in 3 days and I am planning to take it on vacation. It is a very versatile and easy pattern. I would recommend it if it was still in print. And I can see myself making the long sleeved version when the weather shifts. It took longer than 1 hour though. I’m not sure who’s fault that was. Conclusion: My 1st TNT pattern!!!! Peace PS: here is another pic of me. Guess which one I am?