Cookies! Yum!

A good day to all! I hope all of you enjoyed your holidays, whichever ones they might have been!

I FINALLY got to making my Solstice cookies myself. It's hard to find time to cook in my new living situation. My room mates are 3rd shifters, so they're sleeping during the day. Thank goodness my sewing machine doesn't wake them up!

So while they went to do their Christmas thing, I got busy in the kitchen. I wore my newly finished "Raggle Taggle Gypsy" skirt, which I will post soon. It has to be the most fun skirt I ever wore. So comfy! So twirly!

Anyway, to the cookies...

My pancreas is going to hate me but someone hand me a plate! :P

It's kind of funny seeing all those cookies and knowing that soon I'll be starting classes to become a nutritionist! I've actually done a really good job not eating them all in one sitting *hides plate behind her back and blushes* and there are a couple boxes packed up for Sir Knight back in Wyoming.

Now that the New Year is upon us, it's time for those resolutions. Mine is definitely to sew more often but also to sew things with much more quality and care. I'd like these garments to last a long while. If I have a daughter or a granddaughter I'd like her to wear them if she wants to.

Another resolution, like a lot of other people have, is fitness-centered. I really need to get back into my yoga practice. If I hadn't stopped I would be so fit by now. Guess it's time to swallow my regrets and just get back on it.

Those are my more mundane resolutions, I usually make my spiritual resolutions around Samhain (Halloween) as it's the Celtic new year. Those are going pretty well, though this move threw a wrench into a few.

Until next time!

Museum Day!

Morning, all. A couple weeks ago, shortly after I arrived home, my best friend April and I had a great day at a couple museums. I hadn't been to one in ages so I decided I was due. So off we went to the Telephone Museum (you know the one from Yes Man?) and Morril Hall.

April being her usual silly self!

I just loved the pin tucks on this blouse.

I'd like to see Super Man try to change in this phone booth!

So cute!

Wow what a difference just 30ish years makes! But then again soon the smart phone will be in a museum too.

That was really fun and we were the only people in there that day so we had the place to ourselves. The nice man there gave us a private little tour. He used to work for the first phone company in Nebraska so he told us all a bunch of stories.

Answer the phone!!

I kept leaning over the rope to see the details of the outfit LOL!

After that we headed over to Morril Hall on the UNL campus. I hadn't gone there since I was a kid and ever since I got here have wanted to go.

The ice on those steps was treacherous!

Aaah! Don't squish me!

Wish we could have seen a show but it wasn't open.

Going there reminded me of my love for archaeology. I actually used to want to be an archaeologist but I knew I couldn't get into college for it. Maybe when I get older I might delve into it but for now I'm happy in my current pursuits.

I always loved the stegosaurus, lol.

The femur alone is taller than me! Yikes!

All in all it was a really fun day! Got my museum fix for at least a month or two :P. How long has it been since you went to a museum?

Operation Remnant Removal is under way!

With my long waited return to sewing, I went through all my remnants, UFO's, and even some finished projects I never wear. One of my missions this year (and into the next) is to sew garments that I love to wear. So I took all my remnants and went through all my patterns and now I have a lot more UFO's :P.

Most of the projects are for the spring and summer because of both print and cut. That's just fine by me. One thing I've never had is a good spring/summer wardrobe! Maybe that's why I could never really like the season, I never had clothes for it so I suffered in the sweltering heat! Especially now that I'm back in Nebraska, I'll have the humidity to deal with.

Anyway, I have several new dresses in the making as well as some tops and skirts. I'm hoping to get those done soon but won't be able to take outdoor pics of them since it's freezing outside. My closet is already starting to get more color!

Wish me luck and I hope you're enjoying the holiday season!

"You Don't Grow Without Change..."

My, my, my! I haven't been able to post in so long! The story is also long, oh great Goddess, what a few couple months this has been!

Well, it all started when I finally put my foot down and told Sir Knight that I'm moving back home for a bit. After the fights about that ensued, we finally agreed that I would spend some well-earned time back home. Then our horrible landlord decided to evict us so the slow stress-free move we both planned so well was dashed completely.

Sir Knight is now moved into his new apartment and as I type this I am safely ensconced in my best friend and her husband's house. No car...no job. I never thought it would be this hard to find a job! I've put in several applications at numerous places but only got one interview so far. I think it went well but I have yet to hear.

I will miss Wyoming while I'm here at home but I truly feel that this is where I need to be right now. In Lander, I felt like I was spinning my wheels and going absolutely nowhere. I'm also hoping that I will get a chance to have my own place for a while.

The drive was really long but quite fun with my best friend Karla and her husband Heath. Took us about a day and half but I finally came home and was welcomed so warmly, it totally stopped all feelings of regret. We of course took many pictures:

Karla very comically demonstrating how to hold onto one's butthole :P The truck wobbled a lot.

I have many more pictures to post but alas I must continue my job hunt. More later, dears!

BurdaStyle Chose My Costume Idea!!

I'm very excited to announce that my random comment on BurdaStyle's blog resulted in them choosing my idea for their costume! So cool!

Since BurdaStyle is a German-based company, I thought it'd be really cool for them to dress up like the famous Grimm's fairy tale characters. They chose Sleeping Beauty, and quite a smashing costume they created!

Image from www.burdastyle.com

They adapted one of their dirndl patterns to make it. I like it so much I might make one as well, adapting it for everyday wear. My Little Red Riding Hood costume is coming along very nicely. I have the cape done with the blouse soon to follow (Post on that maybe tomorrow)

Thanks BurdaStyle for choosing my idea! Hope everyone is having a great day!

Little Red Riding Hood Costume...Part the First

Greetings everyone! Hope everyone's October has been as delightful as mine. This weather is making me itch for a trip to a pumpkin patch!

It's also getting me in the mood to start making my Halloween costume. I feel a little nervous starting it just now, but the pattern is pretty easy. I've already read the instructions about a dozen times lol. Speaking of the pattern, here it is:

I love the pirate one too! Might use that one next year!

Obviously making option A. I made a very similar one a couple years ago to make a really pretty gypsy costume. I won a contest that year! Now to the fabric and notions...

Going clockwise from the left:

• White lace that I bought for a friend's costume I made along with my gypsy one. I'm hoping it'll dye to match the red tulle for the petticoat. 
• Red double knit (with not stretch) for the cape and vest. It has a nice texture and weight for both pieces. The only problem is the gal who cut the fabric for me cut a yard less than what I needed! I'm thinking we'll need to go back to get more :(. Luckily the bolt was pretty full so it should still be there. 
• White broadcloth for the blouse. Very simple so it wouldn't take focus away from the vest. 
• Black satin for the skirt. I also have a 7" invisible zipper. It's cool cause the pattern piece is basically a 1/4 circle skirt piece. Cut on the fold, it make a 1/2 circle skirt! Very versatile piece that I can use for many other things. I LOVE multitasking patterns!
• Velvet ribbon for the trim on the vest and cape. 

So there it is. My Halloween costume in potentia! Can't wait to get started! Have you started on your costume?

Feeding My Fabric Addiction Part 2...

Happy October, everyone! Here heralds my very favorite month of the year! Also begins the countdown to getting my Halloween costume done. I really don't want the same disaster as last year, lol.

I also got some new fabric! Not a lot but enough hold me over for a while. As we speak, I'm filling my cart at fabric.com with fabrics for my fall/winter sewing. Anyway, to the fabrics!

I can make a "blueberry" dress/blouse/skirt with this!

I got enough of this to make 2 blouses. Now just to pick which ones!

Already have a pattern picked out for this. It will be known as my "Firefly" dress.

Only one of these is even close to my fall palette but in my defense I purchased these before I made one. I'll post that soon, btw. I'm really excited about my Firefly dress. I chose this pattern from BurdaStyle. I'll probably shorten it as they did with their spring version. The first one, I found at Walmart like its sister (which has already been turned into a great dress!). It was in the remnant bin (2 yards) and was a meager $2.80! I literally couldn't pass it up. I see myself wearing the garments I make from the second fabric much more in the spring. 

There has finally been a change to my sewing area that I'm really happy about. I finally broke down and bought a proper sewing table! I carved myself a little area in the living room and put the folding table I bought there and my fabric bins went under and next to it. I was so happy I sat down and finished a UFO right then and there. I have a new little sleep shirt!

The new Apples of Avalon HQ!

 

That pillow on my chair is actually the first thing I EVER sewed. It was in my 7th grade FCS (family and consumer sciences...I guess they had to call it something less girly than home ec.) class about 12 years ago. I was very excited to find it while Sir Knight and I were cleaning the house. It was actually his idea to put it there which I thought was perfect.

Hope the rest of your weekend is great!