It's been a long time

I've been absent from blog posting for a couple of weeks which disappoints me because I was starting to get on a roll. But, as I'm sure all of you bloggers out there can attest, life sometimes gets in the way, and if you don't make it a priority, it doesn't happen.

Good news is, I have no shortage of entry ideas, but they pop in my head throughout the day, and I have no time to get them out. I should really work out some sort of system for that.

There are a few good reasons why I've been neglectful:

1. B is back in University and working at a job that requires him to be there at 6:30 am. We are not morning people, and I usually roll into work at about 9:30, so it's been an adjustment. We are a one-car-family and his work is on a bus route that would take at least a half an hour from our house (vs. a 5-10 min drive), so I drive him just after 6:00 (in my fuzzy pajamas) after which I come home, work out for 45 min, get ready and go to work. All of you out there who regularly get up this early are giving your computer screens a sarcastic glare, but the point of this story is that we are SO TIRED, that all I can do at the end of the day is watch TV and try not to have a nap so I can fall asleep at 10:30. I know...wah—I will not get any sympathy from you.

2. We both auditioned for The Producers which is being put on by our local theatre company. B and I both have music degrees (which means that we both had to go back to school to get a real job and sing/perform as a hobby in our spare time). We were both cast in the show: B as the German (Will Ferrell character), and myself as Ulla (Uma Thurman in the movie). I am super pumped!! Auditioningtook up a lot of time. I'll probably be sewing for the show as well—not sure what yet, but I doubt there will be any posts as I get busier.

3. For above mentioned role, I am challenging myself to loose about 7 lbs, so I've been lowering my caloric intake a little (smaller meals more frequently) and watching what I eat (no chips!) which means that I've been going through carbohydrate withdrawl which has contributed to my overall lack of energy. The first week is the worst for this and I've been pretty steadily hungry all the time, but this next week should be better. I'm just finishing up a round of Chalene Extreme/Turbo Fire and am thinking I'll try Insanity just to see if I can do it. Normally, I'm pretty happy at the size I am, but I'm going to need to feel comfortable in the equivalent of a bikini on stage in front of 300 people every night. You had better believe that after the last show I'm going to Fudruckkers and downing one of their giant cinnamon buns. It's going to be awesome.

Despite all of my excuses, I have actually been working on some projects. I did finish those purple pants, but I will not be wearing them. The fabric is horrible, and waist band is not really what I would call "good". I need to figure out how to take pictures of them in my dark house so they don't look like a dark blob attached to me at the waist. I did alter the pattern, lowering the rise and adding a normal waistband, changing the shape of the front pockets as well as flaring the bottom of the legs which has been documented on film—I just have to sort through it.

I moved on from the pants to this:

Don't let the ridiculous ruffles on view B make you run screaming—view A so far is a dream.
I fell in love with this sheer a while back and coveted it every time I went to the fabric store for like... months. Finally, it was crazy-sale-day so I picked some up. At the time, I wasn't sure what I was going to make with it until the was another crazy-sale-day on patterns and I picked up about 6 which will eventually make their way into posts in the future.

Here is said fabric:

Here is the top so far (front and back constructed, sleeves and hem left)

I did make a muslin (sort of) in a size smaller than I should have and sewed the shoulders, sides and one sleeve together. I found it snug and went straight to cutting one size larger. The sizing on this is dead on—you don't need to adjust for extra ease in the pattern. I also didn't bother with a broad back or prominent shoulder blade adjustment because of the pleat in the back. I've been sewing french seams and got hung up on what to do with the set-in sleeve seam. I could just serge it, but I didn't want to disrupt the beauty of the french seams inside and found this online: 

Sunni also posted about seam finishing on her blog. This false French seam will work out great, and I don't mind a little hand sewing. 

After that, a couple of polo shirts are in the que for B. I'm going to use another 70's pattern I picked up for .50 cents at the Salvation Army store. There will be some altering of the collar and placket so it doesn't look so clowny, and I'll need to use one of his old shirts to compare measurements (that worked really well for getting his tiger shirt just right). 

Can we have a close up??

Ummm... gross.

I got a couple of knits (one grey, one olive and brown) in the discount section (of course), and I have coordinating fabrics for the collars from my stash. There's something about sewing for B that is less stressful than sewing for myself, and these 70's patterns are so simple. There's only one cut line, so no tracing and the instructions are extremely clear. I'm excited to sew these up!