Huge Disappointment

Well, I finally called Hancock to see where the heck my camo fleece jacket is. If you recall, I won first place at the store so they mailed it to corporate for the national contest, which was back in February. They assured me they'd mail it back by the end of February. I finally figured out I could check the website for the winners. So disappointing that my jacket wasn't pictured there! But my, isn't this some original work? I can't figure out how the bathmat is made of fleece - it looks like a rag rug. And what the heck is a goat coat? I guess there are some swanky goats running around in Louisiana (bet they don't have welt pockets!).



Oh well, I'd much rather have a jacket I can wear on a campout than a new bathmat. That is, if they can find the jacket and get it back to me...I wonder if Dean paid them to quietly "misplace" it!

Kwik Sew 3813 Says War Eagle!

So this is quite the versatile jacket pattern! Here's the Auburn version, which will be worn proudly at the National Championship on Monday night by my mom.



We made it extra-large to accommodate the Auburn sweatshirt and other paraphernalia which might be underneath (there's room for pom-poms, a cowbell, a giant foam finger, you get the picture).



It might even fit Cam Newton, if she should run into him and trade it for an autograph or a picture, perhaps.

Next up, MIL's pants muslin is getting fitted this weekend - wonder if she'll let me get her picture for the blog!

Look Ma, No Glue!

Well the year is off with a bang! I sewed all day yesterday and actually FINISHED my camo fleece. Shocking! (And I did actually eat with the family, though that was about the extent of my family time till about 8 PM.) Now I have to say that I don't know what I was thinking when I bought this material. Sure, I think it's cute and snuggly, but I wasn't thinking about where I would wear it. I was going to do a neutral nylon overlay, but then I realized this purple fabric was not blue - I got it to go on my mom's Auburn fleece - so I decided to use it for my jacket. Yikes - should've gone with a dark gray.



I think it would be nice to wear to an Outdoor Woman weekend for sure, though I wouldn't want to skin a deer in it. Maybe if we go eat at David's Catfish House...or Longhorn Steakhouse...or definitely the restaurant in Bass Pro Shop.



But this time I overcasted all the raw edges and this didn't ravel nearly as bad as the other stuff. So the inside looks better plus there's no scratchy glue. Junior, we can still trade if you like this one better! And I worked out the elastic cuffs as you can see. I attached the casing to the sleeve and left an inch opening to insert the elastic like you would for a waistband - much easier for me.



So today I got my mom's fleece started with a navy blue twill overlay on orange fleece (I'm all about obnoxious fleece, huh), and I even whipped Lucas's fleece pajama shirt together in 10 minutes. Alas, that was the pattern with the neck that is way too big, so it'll take some creativity to rescue that one. Let me just say that gathering a neckline sure is pretty, but not very masculine... especially when your fabric is covered with sweet rubber duckies. This may have to mysteriously disappear.



Here's to continued productivity in 2011!

Waiting for the Glue to Dry...

Hooray - she's all finished and the Fray Check is drying! Because when you start out like this:



you are going to need some serious Fray Check. I may actually try the woodworking tool that Robbie suggested on the next one. This is what my elastic sleeve looked like because I was unsuccessful at easing it in the KS way.



So I just ripped it off and realized the non-elastic way was going to have to suffice this time. (Kind of looks like a fabric jellyfish.)



When the glue dries I'll take some action shots, because guess what? Sandra Betzina is having a fall coat contest! (And the winners are drawn randomly- even better!)

I'll leave you with this cotton on a truck...just because I like cotton and it's what we grow down here.


My dad pulled off the highway one time and let us pull a thing of cotton (would that be called a boll?) off a cotton plant in Sylacauga (would that be called trespassing and theft of property?), and I kept mine for a long time trying to think of something to make with it. I wanted to make a Barbie shirt, but you can't really make clothes out of a handful of cotton. Every time I see cotton fields around here I want to pull over and let the boys grab some...maybe I'll just pick some up off the side of the road so as to avoid incarceration.

Would You Like Elastic With That?

Hey Junior, do you want elastic sleeve cuffs or not? I'm taking a break from the Fray Check fumes (thank you Robbie, that's what I was trying to think of), so you have time to think about it. Here's a picture of each:



Here's a closeup of your non-elastic cuff...



and your elastic one.



I hate the way Kwik-Sew does these - that's why I sewed one cuff on without inserting elastic yet - it's just too hard to stretch an 8 inch circle of elastic while enclosing it in the casing then attaching it to the sleeve. There must be a reason they do it that way (and I bet I'll find out when I try inserting the elastic my way).

And you didn't think I made this jacket without my standard zipper problem, did you? It calls for a 26-inch zipper which is supposed to fit perfectly according to the drawings and instructions. Well, mine was 2 inches too long! Of course I have to lop off the top, and you know what comes next....I forget to sew new zipper stops and zip that sucker right off the track. But here's the beauty of separating zippers - you only have to thread one side back on - hooray! (Don't worry, the zipper stops now, Junior.)

Stream of Consciousness

This is my neighbor just before his big recital. No, it was just Halloween, but you see I'm not the oddest one in the neighborhood. (You see that, right?)



And a HUGE shout-out to my shoe idol, Sheila, who recommended the Nine West Nuncio to me for pointy-toed bliss. Check out her website, but don't jump out of your chair - she's much more sophisticated than I am and has music on her blog. I love that woman! Sheila, the shoes are divine - wore them to my anniversary dinner last night and they were soooo comfortable and soooo hot! They're SUEDE!



And the fleece jacket is almost finished, Junior, but look at this tragedy. Please note the shiny tip of a needle amid the seamline I'm holding. I broke a needle for the first time in my life - pulled too hard to get it over a thick seam while applying the zipper. At least the machine was fine.



Here's what it looks like zipped - my seams are even! My seams are even! Drew has requested one for himself in blue, and my neighbor (not the ballerina) thought it was a North Face jacket at first glance (probably not at second glance) - could there be a better compliment? I just have sleeve cuffs and collar to finish.



Lastly, in Books a Million tonight I saw the strangest display.



Am I the only one who finds it odd that Justin Bieber is under "Kids' Education" right above Anne Frank and Abraham Lincoln? And I know my sister will be incensed that the Today show is doing a special with Lindsay Lohan's mother tomorrow morning. What up, America?

Getting There!

Only a few minutes till the trick-or-treater's arrive, so here's what your jacket looks like so far Junior.



"I declare," says Mavis, "I know I have that lift ticket SOMEwhere!"



I think you'll likey. Mother's already put in a request and plans to hit the fleece sale at Hancock if it's still going on. All I've got left are elastic casings and zipper - yippee!

Taking a Second for Blogging...

Okay, so I'm 2 lectures down and 3 to go, but they're spread out over the next couple of weeks so I can take a breather. And I'm one den meeting down and a pack meeting to go, but there's always planning that next den meeting. I'm also taking an exercise break. (I don't think walking on the treadmill two weeks in a row qualifies as a habit I'm taking a "break" from, but I'm sticking with my terminology.)

So instead of exercising while Lucas was at karate, I hit Hancock's giant 53% off sale to finally commit to some fleece for that Kwik Sew jacket. The fleece WAS $9.99/yard and up, but I got this red stuff for $4/yard!



And I finally committed to a waterproof overlay, so we'll see how this charcoal-ish stuff goes with the red (it was $4/yard too). I'm considering this my muslin and will send it to my sister for comments. If she likes it, she keeps it and I'll make myself another one. If she no-likey, she no-keepy and can send it back to me without guilt so I can make whatever adjustments are needed. I really can't picture how this will look, so I may be ripping the overlay off and just wearing a plain jacket - we'll see.



We did manage to get in a bit of this last weekend - that's Lucas standing up on the tube and not flying off.



And this is Lucas on Drew's back, but Drew never got up on all 4's for the picture I was planning.



What I was aiming for was something worthy of Cypress Gardens (thanks to RoadsideAmerica.com for the pic), but you can only do so much on a tube.



And doesn't this make you wonder if there were any deaths at Cypress Gardens training camp? How could you fall from this pyramid and not be killed instantly? I guess if you fell backwards. Random morbid thoughts...

Fleece and Gold Lame

I had time to run through Hancock's in Daphne today, but I still couldn't decide on fabric for this Kwik Sew jacket (3813) that I want to make for my sister and myself.


It calls for a fleece with an optional overlay of waterproof fabric or some heavy woven. Well, here are the choices in a neutral fleece that could be worn with jeans in my opinion:




And here are the choices in waterproof overlay:




Do you see my dilemma? The picture shows a cute contrasting fabric, but I can't put any of these together. Again, I have no vision, so if you see something good please tell me. (Don't think I missed the gold lame-looking fabric - I already held it up to the fleece - it said, "Hey Babe.")

And I'm still plugging away on the dress - I got the sleeves put in flat (thanks Kid - it feels better to have permission!) and sewed one cuff up. Plus I cut everything else out but the last skirt front. Yeah, I cut some here, sewed a little there, cut a little more, etc. It's ADHD sewing with plenty of fabric. Look how big this dang skirt front is - this is just one side! Other people cut out some of the fullness, but it's a wrap skirt and I don't want to overdo it on my first try and end up flashing the hoo-hah on a windy day.



This took up my entire cutting table - I had to rearrange the rotary boards! Anyway, tomorrow is karate, Scouts, and apparently now Robotics Club, so I see very little sewing in my future. Wasn't it a lovely Monday? (And I actually did 20 minutes of Pilates tonight!)