March

We're having a real, honest-to-god thunderstorm tonight. It's March. Eleanor is tucked between me and Nick, who is sleeping through it. I ask him if he wants me to turn out the light and he mumbles, so I leave it on.

Rain makes me long for summer, and the South. I miss sleeping during midnight storms, or walking through a shower on my way home from work in Savannah. I'd carry my sandals in one hand and my umbrella in the other. One time I splashed through confetti from a store opening. It had drifted into the street and I remember walking on it, noticing how it glittered in the puddle. I remember how lonely I was, just me and a kitten, but also how alive I felt.

March is a turning point, where days get longer and temperatures begin to rise. I can shed layers and cook lighter. March is when I know we'll be okay, because winter is waning. We'll make it another year. The cherry blossoms bloom, the magnolia blossom, and I'm somewhere in the middle of it all.

Project 7: Wiksten Tova

Again, a Wiksten design.  I cut them both out last week and figured why not sew them up in the same weekend?  Well, maybe my ambition is a bit too much on weekend late-nights, because I was so annoyed with this top Saturday night that it gave me really bad stress dreams.  I woke up Sunday morning traumatized but ready to take on this SOB and show it who's boss.

Wiksten Tova

Pattern Description

Wiksten Tova top, which is a tunic with an inset.  The pattern also contains pieces for a dress.

Pattern Sizing

XS - XL.  This is a large with modified seams.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the envelope when you were done with it?

Yep!

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Okay, so.  The instructions were apparently easy for everyone but me.  Seriously, I Googled the hell out of this pattern, thinking someone, somewhere, could help me, but all I could find was praise for how easy it was.  Not cool, guys.

The inset really screwed me up.  I couldn't tell from the picture what was being pinned and how it should be done, especially with the placket pinned together.  I gave up Saturday night (thankfully, never a stitch was sewn) and got back to it Sunday afternoon.  I finally went with unpinning the placket, pinning one side at a time to the front of the top, and then sewing the bottom of the placket last.  I don't think it made an impact, but good Jesus, it was painful.

Oh, and then I sewed all the side seams wrong (so it was a crazy, diagonal mess when I checked the basted size) so that was a great time.  Oh, and I think the sleeves are in backward.  Can you tell?  Please say no.

Props to Nick for the cellphone picture

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

Again, the publicity--it calls to me.  I'm a sucker for popularity.  I also like that it's a simple top that looks good with jeans or shorts and can be thrown on.  I dislike how much stress I caused for myself.

Fabric used

Navy and white gingham from Denver Fabrics.  I think this is 1/4" gingham, but it might be 1/8".

Pattern changes or any design alterations you made

I didn't serge, first of all; all seams are zig-zagged except the side seams, which are French.  Also, the side seams are 5/8"--I need the shaping.  I probably could've even gone to 3/4" but I didn't want to go too crazy.

Man, way to clean up the apartment, Emily.

Would you sew it again?

So here's where I'm torn.  I really do like it, and I like that everyone is making them so I have a steady stream of inspiration to flip through.  But I'm going to need to wear this a few times before I decide to make another.  

Conclusion

I love gingham.

The next project on my table is the Oliver + S Class Picnic blouse and shorts, which I cut out last week.  I also have three Simplicity 2215s in Lotta Jansdotter staring at me, as well as some Nani Iro begging me to buy it for a skirt.  Phew.

Project 6: The Wiksten Tank

These Wiksten patterns have been blowing up on blogs--I hadn't seen a Tova until right around Christmas, and suddenly, there were so many variations in my Google Reader that I was practically forced to order these patterns and make my own.  The problem with me is that I'm impatient and I enjoy instant gratification--if I can't click a PayPal button and get this ball rolling, I have a hissy and an anxiety attack.  I get this from my dad, except on a much less expensive scale.

Anyway, I got these patterns in January and was waiting to grab some tracing paper.  I didn't dare cut up the hand-drawn pattern--yikes!  I traced last Tuesday, cut out Wednesday, and finally started sewing Saturday night.  It felt good to get back in the swing of things.

I can't wait until I live somewhere with non-white walls.

Pattern Description

The Wiksten tank.  The pattern has pieces for both a tank and a dress.

Pattern Sizing

XS - XL.  This is a large with modified seams.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the envelope when you were done with it?

Yes, I think so!

Pocket, with marking tools to demonstrate its storing ability.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Yes, very.  Only beginner skills are needed for this pattern, and I think I could've easily completed it last year when I first started sewing.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

Obviously, all the press!  I liked the simplicity too--I can throw this on with shorts in the summer.  The versatility is also appealing, in that I can make it with different fabrics for different seasons and never feel like it's too much or overdone.  I also really liked the back length, and I think it'll look cute (again) with shorts.

Yep, that's a 12-pack of Cottonelle behind me.

Fabric used

Cloud9 Fabrics Nature Walk Moss in Ocean.  I bought this last spring and it's been sitting at the bottom of my stash ever since.

Pattern changes or any design alterations you made

I took in the side seams another 1/8" on each side.  For busty girls, 1/4" is sometimes all you need for some shape!  I also did two rows of stitching on the pocket.  One didn't feel sturdy enough.

Booty and doughy arms

Would you sew it again?

Yes, it's actually a great stashbuster!  I think I may use commercial bias binding in the future, because it just looks neater and it takes less fabric--I could probably squeeze this out of 1.5 yards or so if I didn't have to cut bias binding.

Conclusion

Okay, I get it--I'm a tank convert now.

My biggest problem, it seems, is that I make all these things and never wear them.  Then again, I'm at the breaking point with my closet, where it's bursting and I have all these things I never wear.  I think this is the worst part about living in a place with seasons (besides icky winter)--I have double the wardrobe due to temperature fluctuations.  How do I deal?  And please don't tell me to throw more away: I have four shopping bags of donations awaiting a trip to Goodwill!

Some Film Photos

Yes, I still use film.  It is outdated, you're right, but I like the patience it instills: I have to trust myself that the picture came out, because I'm not going to see it for a while (almost a year, in some cases).  Plus, with expired film, you get a dreamy, vintage feel, which is something I can get behind.  Give me detail when it comes to tutorials or textbooks; otherwise, I want art.

Here are some pictures I recently got back from the developer.  All were taken with expired slide film in New York.  (I got back some from the South and from here in DC, but Blogger can only handle so much.)  Unfortunately, my slide scanner gives everything a slightly reddish tint, so in order to get it back to the original I had to retouch with my computer (using Mac Preview!  Hardly a photo finishing software).  Sorry--this is a picture-heavy post--just a heads up!

Busy-ness

Two nights ago I traced three patterns, and last night I cut them out.  All of them.  They're sitting on my sewing table right now, as I'm at work.

I like to keep busy.  I don't like to be stagnant and I like to have things weighing on my mind--if I have an obligation to something, anything, I know I'm doing alright.  But I tend to worry that I have too many obligations, that one day, they're all going to fall off and tumble around me.  And what if I let someone down?  What if I let myself down?  I don't even like to feed Eleanor late; something much larger than a half-can of Friskies could fail and it would be my fault.

So I create projects.  I buy fabric, paint, embroidery floss.  I create lists and spreadsheets.  I blog (sometimes) and drop off film.  I promise gifts and volunteer for potlucks and assignments, knowing too well what I already have on my calendar.  Just stay busy.  Don't stop.  Don't sit.  Work.  Keep your head down.  Be quiet.

I wonder what it's like to be able to create your schedule, to have more than three hours a day not devoted to work or sleep (true story).  To have a garden, to have a dog, to see sunlight in the middle of the day on a Wednesday.  I wonder what it's like to go out to dinner or have friends over.  But I don't wonder for long: there is dinner to be made, a shirt to be sewn.  There are things to do, and I must do them.

I'm doing alright, don't worry about me.  In the small moments between projects, I have a few minutes to wonder, to think about what the future holds, and I make my plans.  I don't know if they'll hold true or if they'll change before the time comes, but for now, they keep me busy.