Bad Blogger!

...meaning yours truly, not the Blogger platform. I seem to be one of the few that seldom has any issues  with it. I think it's due to having an Apple. Anyway, yes, it is me who's been a bad blogger this month. Only 4 posts, and mighty slim on pictures.

Sometimes it's just that way, folks. September and October are busy months in ABQ, even though I didn't attend the State Fair or Fiesta de Santa Fe, and it's unlikely that I'll be at Balloon Fiesta. I was out of town this month at DH's army reunion in Las Vegas and I've had weekend classes. You know about the ribbon class, but DH also signed me up for a women's gun safety class. He's still working on me to take a motorcycle class--that would be a no, sweetie.

I actually did sew something this month, TSW Mimosa Pants. I even wore them to work. Meh. Not my favorite so I'll be setting them aside. I have a pair of TSW Quincy Pants cut and ready to go--I think the styling is a bit more current than the Mimosa, with narrower legs. So hopefully, results on that soon.

The container garden is still putting forth tomatoes, basil and mint although all of the plants are looking rather worse for wear. Especially the tomato plant, which looks like a weed. However, it does have 5 or 6 tomatoes on it so I'll keep watering it as long as it keeps producing.

OK that's about it for now. Thanks for reading and I'll try to be a better blogger going forward.

Seasonal Changes

The cooling trend continues, and my little container garden actually seems to enjoy the cooler and slightly wetter weather we're having lately. There are several little tomatoes on the vine, not enough to preserve in any way but they're nice snacks. The beans are coming back slightly too. And of course, I continue to enjoy the basil and the mint. Not a particularly successful garden debut, but everyone is saying what an oddball year it has been. So I'll accept what it is and hope for better next year. Meanwhile, I have at least another month or so before there's frost, so garden goodness till then.

The seasons are also changing in the Girl Cave. I made my first fall project last weekend, another long sleeved TSW eShrug from some sweater knit I found at JoAnn's last week. Yep, a quick turnaround project. I'll put up pictures soon, I promise.

And tonight, I cut out a pair of TSW Mimosa Pants. These are pretty conservative for Sewing Workshop, but I think they'll be great for the workplace, with their faced waist and invisible side zip. I'm making them from a 50/50 blend of tencel and rayon that's been in the stash for a very long time. So here's hoping they'll go together quickly and well so I can share those too.

I've also been doing some reorganizing of my space. Nothing major, but it's time to put away the summer patterns and put the cool weather patterns front and center. There will be jackets, and soon.

Labor Day Weekend

This weekend has been relaxing and enjoyable so far, particularly since the weather has cooled a bit.  I recall seeing 100 degrees on the car thermometer last weekend while running around. This weekend, it's in the 80s and much more moderate after all the heat we've been having.

No sewing this weekend, although I stopped back at the liquidating JoAnn's Friday afternoon. What a difference a week makes! The place looks like locusts have been through it. No Coats and Clark threads left (although a good bit of Gutermann, figure that one out!). The pattern cabinets are empty, except for a few Burda and Simplicity patterns. They'll go fast at $2 each, now that the 4/$1 patterns are gone. As for me, I bought zippers. I want to make a TSW Quincy Top for fall and it requires a separating zipper for the closure. It seems that I never have the right one when I want to make a zippered project, so why not stock up now? The cashier called me the Zipper Queen. Oh honey, if you only knew...

I also took some time out to do some clearing in the Girl Cave. It had become something of a dumping ground with all the free fabric acquisitions and other flotsam that found its way in there. I guess I was in the right mood, because it was actually kind of enjoyable.

I have been working on jewelry this weekend. Not anything wildly creative, mostly just repairs and refashioning. Working on stuff like that is a good way to see how things are put together in case I decide to create from scratch. Plus, it's like getting new stuff! I can definitely see jewelry-making becoming another crafty activity. I like wearing baubles, and it's almost instant gratification. These are some that I worked on, using some jewelry I had and some stash items that I uncovered during my cleaning.

Alas, not very good detail, but the one on the left is a carved monkey bead that I kept very simple. A small bead on the bottom to hold a wire in place, loop at the top of the wire, then a thin leather cord. The earrings are a re-styling job, just the carved bone beads on wires. The original pair was way over the top--beads, plus a woven knot and tassel. Step away from the chinoiserie! The necklace on the right is a fancy reverse-painted bead that has dragons on each side. I used a discarded knot and tassel from the earrings at the bottom to secure the wire, a spacer at the top, and made a loop to attached the silk cord. This one is still a work in process; I'm not totally happy with how the spacer sits at the top of the bead. I'll wear it until I figure out how I want to change it.

Busy Sunday

I hope you'll indulge me with a catch-up post. Weekdays are busy and weekends can be, too. That being said, I've got a little bit of a breather to talk about last Sunday's activities.

I dropped of the vestments at church, which also happened to be a farewell to the associate rector, who took a rector's position at another church. Fortunately, it's also in Albuquerque so I'll be seeing him soon. The church was very full, as you might expect, and I could do little more than drop off the bag with one of the acolytes before I had to leave for my next activity...

...an ASG class. It was out of my comfort zone, since I'm not much of a hand sewer nor do I make or wear a lot of frou frou. Here I am, working away. Obviously, this was a candid shot!

Nevertheless, I enjoyed the ribbonwork class and had the project 90% complete at the end of the class. Just a little more finishing work on it while watching TV in the evening, and it was done.

It's a pin, so it can go on a garment, bag or hat. Still debating what, so it may just end up as a sample piece. However, I did see this cardigan in a catalog recently, and it's a different way of looking at the technique:

I like the tone on tone embellishment and it would be a nice way to dress up a plain cardigan. I'd probably make the flowers as pins so they could be removed for laundering. I'd hate to see my efforts ruined by washing or dry cleaning. This example came from Soft Surroundings.

So anyway, I went shopping after class since I was already in a part of town with two liquidation sales I wanted to check out. One of the local JoAnn's stores is closing, it's smaller than their newer stores and the strip mall where it's located has become run-down so not worth an expansion. I picked up some tools for the sewing room, some supplies, and some patterns. They had BMV on sale 4 for a dollar, so how could I resist?

Vogue 1250: yes, late to the party for this one. But it's been very popular on the blogosphere so I had to nab it.

Vogue 1244: you know, I like Koos in concept but I often find the execution bizarre. I can't say I'm wild about the envelope styling but the basic "bones" of the pattern are good. Love the cowl shell. I think it could be quite elegant in a different fabric. Same with the skirt--not loving the piecing but the shape could be nice.  We'll see. For a quarter, it was worth taking a chance.

McCall's 6112: a simple little knit dress that might work for an upcoming event.

Vogue 8722: is a belt pattern. I can never seem to find RTW belts that I like so I might try my hand at custom.

Butterick 5144: a classic vintage style jacket. I love the draping in the back.

Vogue 8486: a basic little dress with pleat details.

The pattern area was busy, so excuse me for a little ranting here. When at a liquidation sale, do not linger, grab what you're interested and go. You can always put back later. Yes, I got behind one of "those" people, and it was annoying. She lingered over each drawer and positioned herself so no one else could look with her--on each of 4 drawers in the cabinet. Some people.

I went to Borders' liquidation after that, but it was depressing. I didn't have the heart to seriously pick the bones. I ended up with a few magazines, a couple of candle jars, and a 2012 calendar. And checkout person, you don't have to tell me 4 times that all sales are final. Your employer's troubles have been all over the news, and there are big LIQUIDATION--ALL SALES FINAL signs all over the store. It's obvious, ok?

I had more plans after leaving Borders but it was so hot that I headed home. What a runaround day! I'm glad I don't over-schedule like that on a regular basis.

Sewing for a Higher Power, Part Five

August has been the month of liturgical sewing. I've been working on the stoles for the red gold set this month, consisting of 3 priest stoles and a Byzantine stole for the deacon. I'm happy to report that they're all done and I'll be delivering them tomorrow!!

I've been asked to do some documentation on this project in case someone wants to attempt this project in the future. There are also bills to submit. But then I'm done, and hopefully out of the vestment business.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not sorry I took on this project and I've learned a lot about sewing silk dupioni. But making 2 sets of vestments is a major project. Each set consists of 3 priest stoles, a Byzantine (deacon) stole, and a chasuble--that's sewing 10 items and all that entails. Plus, I drafted patterns, made a prototype of the chasuble, calculated layouts, and sourced fabrics. It's a lot of work. Now that I've typed it all out, I don't feel bad that this project has taken more than a year(!) to complete.

After all that, here are some results. This round, I was working on the red-gold set. I made the matching chasuble last fall, so these are the remaining pieces. The priest stoles are all the same and look like this:

They are exactly the same style as the green silk ones I made before.

The deacon's stole is the same style but a different pattern than the green one. As I mentioned recently, she didn't like the fit of the green one so I made a new pattern from this stole:

It's a gorgeous piece from our Lenten set, made from hand woven wool ikat with a lightweight wool lining. It was made in France by this company:

I'm not sure if they have a web site, the rector actually found this place by accident on a trip. My version looks like this:

I'll have a few more posts in this series with more details on this stole vs. the green one, some sewing techniques, and a summary of all the pieces.

For my East Coast readers, stay safe and may any property damage be limited.

I'm Still Around, or Still Sewing for a Higher Power

I've just been busy with the gold vestments. And I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. 2 of the 3 priests' stoles are done, and the third just needs a little more poking and prodding to refine the corners before finishing it up.

I also got some feedback from the deacon on her stole. Seems the original version makes her look "hippy", as in "my hips look big" not "I look like I'm from the 60's." So I borrowed a French stole we use for Lent and will make a new pattern from it before proceeding with her stole. Leave it to the French, even their vestments are chic and slimming!!

I'm enjoying working with this project's fabrics. It's hard not to like natural fibers that yield under the sewing machine and iron. More on all that later, but I'm using dupioni silk underlined with flannel and lined with hand-dyed cotton. I'll have to make something for myself soon using the same combination.

My View from the Kitchen Sink

A couple of weeks ago, hostess of the humble bungalow shared some still shots of her kitchen sink and invited her readers to share their views. Lately, my views have been nonexistent since we've been keeping the blinds closed in attempt to cool the house. One recent morning, I pulled them up so you could see what I normally see when the weather is more temperate.

The side yard is in some disarray right now, since last winter's extended cold wiped out all of my Mexican bird of paradise trees. They're putting out new growth but the established trees died and will have to be removed. You can also see a bit of my neighbor's house. Occasionally, wild life will be on top of the wall--I've seen several roadrunners, quail, doves, and even a hawk perched there at various times.

The wine bottles are the D'Aquino wine assortment, DH's family name before being slightly modified. The wine maker is actually a distant relative. The wine isn't expensive, but the bottles are pretty to look at. The family crest is even embossed on several of the bottles.

The figurine to the right of the bottles is a madonna from South America. She's made of recycled soda bottles. I bought her several years ago from a local fair trade store as Christmas decor, but I like her so much that she stays on the windowsill year round.

There's a Mexican ceramic cross to the left of the window. I bought it on a trip to San Antonio. The design features chiles so it's perfect for Albuquerque. Below the window is a tinwork retablo of San Pascual, the patron saint of the kitchen. The picture above was taken with the natural morning light, so the interior details are dark.

This one was taken with flash, not as aesthetically pleasing but what are you gonna do?

This shot also captures the crystal collection that hangs from the sink's overhead light fixture. The largest one is a water prism that shoots rainbows all over the room.

It's a pleasant kitchen with lots of light and counter space. This part of the house has an open floor plan so whoever's cooking isn't isolated.