Ch-Ch-Changes...

The Pandemic has caused many changes in my life since March.

o I work exclusively from home now with no return date to the office in sight.

o I stopped getting dressed for a couple of weeks because it was difficult to deal with the quarantine.

o When I found my style again, I sewed some things that I won't be able to wear until 2021 when hopefully I will head back to the office...

o I learned that I like wearing those big full maxi dresses at home, so that's what I'm making and wearing.

o I realized that trying to work full-time in my sewing space wasn't happening and I needed more space to live in.

o I had a cancer scare in the midst of a pandemic which was considered elective surgery so I had to wait for things to reopen before I could be tested.

o I had surgery...found out I don't have cancer...just precancerous cells in my uterus...

o So my Dr. scheduled a hysterectomy for me this fall.

All of this caused me to look at how I was living my life and how I wanted to live it differently. At 61, I have more years behind me than in front of me and I NEED to enjoy the life I have NOW.

So I'm moving...

Yes, I rented an apartment about 10 minutes from where I'm presently living with a walk-in closet (Gawd how I've missed a walk-in closet) and a sewing loft. I'm coming out of the basement, y'all. I'm 5 minutes from one daughter and 15 minutes from the other. My home can be a hangout for my grandchildren which I want more than anything. But most importantly, I have more space to sew and create.

I move in September 1st so it means that I'm packing up the sewing cave during the next three weeks.  Posting will be scarcer here for a minute because PACKING THE WALLS OF FABRIC!  

My daughter and granddaughters helped me empty all of the fabric shelves and move the extra bins of fabric out of the sewing cave...

I packed the majority of my fabric in garbage bags because I'm not moving far and it's a whole lot easier to swing garbage bags than it is to tote boxes! I have NO idea how many bags are here...but it's a lot!

I will be back in a little bit and will definitely share pictures of the new sewing loft because I've bought all new furniture (except for a cutting table). It's also a much larger space!

...as always more later!

 

      

A New Title - Janome Maker!

I've been having conversations with Janome America for several months. As you know I am a loyal and faithful Janome sewing machine user. I've written several blog posts about them. I love the machines and their ease of use.  So I was thrilled when Janome America invited me to be a member of their Maker Team!

Now I don't know if you've read or heard about the resurgence of sewing in America due to how much time we're spending at home.  Not only have we started to cook more but we're also crafting, sewing and knitting since we're home a lot more. Because of that sewing machines in both beginner and more advanced models sold out in the early days of quarantine...and it took a minute for them to be restocked and for me to receive my new machine.

Y'all I did a jig yesterday when the UPS truck dropped off my new Janome 9450QCP sewing machine...even though I was in the midst of packing up my sewing cave...and since I'm packing we took it out to ooooohhhhh and aaaaahhhh over and then I packed my machine back into it's box.

A Few Pictures ~

Taking the Styrofoam out of the box!

Sitting on my current sewing table

Showing the pieces to the granddaughters

The grands sharing the pieces for the gram!

Holding the cover and the extension table

The 9450QCP also comes with a knee length, 3 different needle plates, 23 standard feet, plus an extra large foot pedal and separate thread cutter. This is the evolved version of my 8900QCP and I can't wait to explore the upgrades!

I really wanted to devote this post to my new Janome sewing machine and becoming a member of the Janome Maker Team.  My next blog post will discuss a few changes that are coming to my life...so stay tuned!

....as always more later!

Apples and Oranges and Lemons ~ Oh My!

My TNT version of the Myosotis dress has been my go to this summer. I've made them in chambray, stretch cotton, linen/cotton blend and shirting cotton and each one has been worn for zoom meetings and grocery store runs. Gawd has Covid totally affected everything!

I have nothing new to share with this one. I bought the fabric back in February during a Sewing Weekend at UrbanSewciety in Westfield, NJ, a local fabric store. We had a weekend of sewing with raffles. I won one of the prizes, a gift certificate, so I purchased two pieces of fabric with it.

I actually thought that I would have sewn the knit before the rayon print but Covid changed that. Anywhoo, I purchased 4 yards of this print because I knew it would make a fantastic Myosotis and it does. It's so stunning that I'm thinking about rambling through the collection to find more rayon fabric to make another one.

The buttons are made from 3/4" covered button shells. I used the lemons in the fabric to cover the buttons. I really wanted yellow buttons and didn't have a dozen in the button stash. But I own dozens of covered button shells so I made 12 of them. I love that they match the fabric perfectly.

That's all I have to share about construction or notions. So how about a lot of  pictures. Once I got my daughter involved in taking the photos, you know she glammed me up. Then since she was taking the pics, I got a lot of good ones making it harder to choose, so I decided not to.

Since it's the first week of August and I probably won't be going back to the office before January 2021, there will be more of these. To me it's the perfect dress to wear at home.

...as always more later!

A Bold Floral Maxi

It's hot here.  It's August and we've recently gone through several heat waves.  August in the Mid-Atlantic states mean heat, humidity and high temperatures. With that in mind, I made the Lafayette 148 V-Neck Maxidress again.

Now even though I'm working from home, I still get dressed for Zoom meetings and for trips to the grocery store.  Plus I'm a little more nonchalant and slouchy at home with easy to throw on pieces getting the most wear. This is why I repeated this maxidress. It's comfortable, easy to wear and perfect for the heat!

I went deepstash for this one. The floral rayon fabric is from GStreet Fabrics in Rockville, MD. It's about 9 years old and it's from the last time I went to a GStreet Fabrics. I think this was in the first incarnation of the store and while it had nice fabric, it was not like the original GStreet of old. It was part of a fabric road-trip with Shams & Peggy in April 2011.

This piece of fabric was on the expensive side for me at the time - $12-15 a yard. I bought 4 yards of it. The tag only had GStreet Fabrics on it and the yardage. I remember loving it so much I just couldn't leave it. Otherwise everything else from that trip was from the $2.97 tables.

I used the pattern pieces that I'd altered with the changes described in my original Lafayette 148 knock off post.

The notions for this version are:

24" white invisible zipper

Design Plus Bias Fusible Stay Tape

Self made bias binding

The things I changed on this make:

o Made bias tape from the fabric scraps to bind the armholes

o Added stay tape to keep the neckline stable

o Omitted the neckline facings and used the self made bias binding instead

o There are no pockets in this one either

How the way the fabric drapes and moves makes this a favorite look!

The best thing about sewing repeats is that it's just about the sewing. I don't have to worry about fit or if pattern pieces go together because they do. I've already made it!

These photos were taken by my daughter too. Normally she travels in a group but today only one 9 year old little girl came with her. Of course she got in on the pictures too...

I have a couple more pieces to share before the month is out so they will be coming to the blog soon.

...as always more later!