So, here’s my life lately:

[adult swim] swap: Rocking my world! I’m done with 1 item, half way on another and just need to settle down and get started on the rest. I plan on mailing my taxes and my swap items on the same day. My Partner? She’s awesome! She loves the Monarch too. Match made in heaven.

Sock Wars III: like a rolling stone! It all starts May 2nd, the build up is killing me! If that doesn’t the socks I get in the mail will. I’m signed up and SUPER excited. I hope I remember how to knit a sock, it’s been years since I’ve turned a heel…

Carly Smithson: is a stone fox! Normally, I avoid American Idol like the plague.. but I managed to catch Carly singing and fell in love with her. She’s so talented, cute, and different. Maybe it’s because she’s like my alter ego, but she seems like someone I would want to be friends with… she seems so sweet and nice. And she sang Total Eclipse of the Heart.

Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls: is the most rockin’ thing ever! I know… Rock camp?! Some say true musicians don’t go to rock camp. Well, I’m not a true musician! I fell in love with a $60 guitar because it’s robin egg blue, and the first song I’ve learned to play on it is Rod Stewart’s “Reason to Believe”(which is quite simple, by the way). But Rock Camp isn’t just for 18 and under girls, the camp does a fundraising Rock Camp for Ladies. For $350 you can learn or get advanced instruction for Voice, Guitar, Keyboard, Bass, or Drums. I’m thinking of signing up for the October session. My choice is voice. I’m a bit rhythm dyslexic, I do fine for awhile then accidently switch it. And trust me, just because you’re good at Guitar Hero doesn’t mean you can play guitar (See the Rod Stewart bit above for proof) I’ve always wanted to ROCK! And at the camp you even learn songwriting, promotional stuff, and you perform a song at the end. Sign me up! I’m totally gonna rock!

Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls has been featured a ton of times on NPR now, but it is totally something I wish they had when I was younger. They have a documentary out and about. You can learn more about the movie here.

Rock and Roll, Chickadees!

So, I’ve been a busy little bee! I’ve been working on my new wardrobe, which I have ALREADY started to put to good use. I am AWESOME! Not only that, I’ve started working on items for my etsy store. They’ll be up soon… I think.

So this jacket is made from a dark pink-red color jersey using McCalls Pattern M5398. Totally adorable and warm. A few changes I made, which really aren’t that big of a deal was using just normal interlock knit instead of rib knit for the sleeves and collar. I actually have good reason too! I, personally, prefer the clean look of interlock for sleeves on patterns like this on. I really feel that rib would take something away considering the proportion of the sleeves to the rest of the jacket. Also, I’m tall (5′10) so I have to adjust patterns quite frequently to fit my gangly proportions. On the cover of this pattern, though, they show the sleeves slightly pushed up to be 3/4 length sleeves. I LOVE 3/4 sleeves! So I made the sleeves slightly shorter. Also, because I opted to not use rib knit, the sleeves aren’t as stretchy, so longer sleeves would not be as flexible.

I just adore this jacket! I’ve worn it several times already, and gotten lots of compliments on it. Also, this the first knit item I’ve successfully made where I haven’t stretch out the seams all strangely.

On another note, I took a trip to Ikea last weekend and picked up a coffee table and this fabulous shelf for my fabric. I love having a selection of fabric visible and out of bins in my closet. You even get a sneak peak at where I sew. Sadly, this picture was taken at night, so it’s a bit dark.

Well, back to the grind stone!

Have a Super Great day!

So I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about SWAPs (Sewing with a plan). I think the benefits of a pulled together look really make a statement! One of my goals with sewing has been to have a wardrobe that is both comfortable, looks nice, and fit my personality (which is sweet, fun, and very wacky).

First off, I’m not a high maintenance dresser. Most of the time, I forget to put on makeup. And for jewelry, I own a bunch, but most necklaces don’t exactly match t-shirt and jeans. I want a wardrobe that pulls together my casual nature and looking polished. So, here comes the difficult part:

Back in September, Gala at galadarling.com did an 8-day wardrobe boot camp. The first day starts here. Such a great idea! Usually I go through my clothes once each season to see if I can part with anything. This time, I did it with a plan! I’m at the point now where I have really cute clothes I refuse to get rid of. However, I either don’t wear them (”I love this top, but have nothing to go with it!”, or overly wear them (as in my shirts and jeans). I love the comfort of my everyday clothes, but am sick of looking like a slob!

So, this is where sewing with a plan comes in. After sifting through my clothing again, and taking notes on what I need, I realized I need comfortable basic items to pair my items with. I found this great article on wardrobe planning done by the Mississippi State University Extension Service. This article can help you identify your style and basics every woman should have in her closet! I’m a mix between sporty and dramatic fashion types. What fashion type are you?

I encourage anyone to start on their own wardrobe planning with me! I could be fun. I’m working on my own wardrobe storyboards tonight. So far, I’ve finished my Comfortable Essentials (shown below), and started my fall/winter look.

Much Love!

For more information to help define your own wardrobe, check these out:

• Build Your Fall Wardrobe
• Build a Wardrobe for $1000
• Building a Perfect Wardrobe
• “Sewing With A Plan”
• and if you’re interested: Timmel Fabrics SWAP 2008 contest

First off, Happy Birthday Larry!

Ok, so I worked my tiny fingers to the bone last night. I was up until 1:30 am finishing Mr. Oso for Larry’s birthday today. It turned out WAY cute! (Please excuse the bad lighting, I was taking this picture at 1:30 in the AM after all!)

Now, this bear was a lot more difficult than I expected. Moderate difficulty? Nevermind I’ve never made a Softie before, it should be a piece of cake, right? Well, I made the ears the wrong way in the beginning.I did find, however, that zipping up the sides with a zig-zag stitch saved lost of trimming and clipping time! (Yay Time Saver!) However, it turned out really nice. Part of me really wanted to keep it. Todd, my hunny, kinda wanted to keep it too.

Well, In conclusion, he’s adorable. A side note, making an embroidered Dia de los Muertos skull on felt takes a lot longer than it looks. I want to make a bunch of these. Decorate my apartment with them for November 1st. I encourge other to make one! Not as tasty, as say a sugar skull, but very fun. I loved embroidering the skull… it just took a long time. If you want Dia De Los Muertos embroidery patterns, check out Sublime Stitching here. Get some other patterns while you’re at it. They are fab! I’ve had my eye on the Mitch O’Connell pattern for awhile.

Well, I’m off to spend the night with my hunny. I’m going to be in San Jose all weekend for a Chris Howard Seminar, so it’s our only night together this week.

Sweet Dreams and Happy Tomorrows!

I’m Making a “Day of the Dead” bear for my boss’ husband, Larry’s birthday tomorrow. Now, Larry is kinda crazy, but in a good way. He likes kinda off-kilter things.

It all started with a brainstorming session on what to do for his birthday. I wanted to make something for him (because I’m crafty like that), and I wanted it to unique and kinda wacky. Not to mention, I’ve been wanting an excuse to make a softie. For great softie inspiration, check out Future Girl. Her softies are adorable! The cutest I have EVER seen! So, I skipped over to my local book store, picked up the book, fliped through the book and landed on the Tramp Heart Bear.

However, when I saw this adorable bear, I could only think of Dia de los Muertos. So, with my inspiration in mind, headed over to Joann’s for some felt and embroidery floss. I ended up with some much need rib knit, some McCalls patterns, and buttons for my next project.

I’ll post the finished project at some point tomorrow for your viewing pleasure! I hope to also get a Larry with the Bear photo op.

Have a great evening!

I have so many projects to work on at home! It’s driving me crazy! For example, I laid out all the patters I plan on making on my ironing board. See:

Not to mention, I’m making a bag for my boss for her trip to India. I took a picture of the one she bought, my job is to make bigger… and red. A basic monk bag. Once I get the whole bag made, I’ll try and post a free pattern/ tutorial when the bag is made.

The most important to-do on my list, is to make this blog look un-generic! I’ve been working on figuring out this PHP thing.. I bought a book, but this is WAY more confusing than learning HTML. So, there’s going to be some bugs on the site for awhile. Thanks for being patient!