(Egads, I wrote a poem for work the other day. Context at the end)

Field Trip

Fifteen. New sunglasses
lost overboard by mid-morning,
sunburn by lunch.
Bloodied by the volcano:
left hand palm sting
sharp
rocky
explosive
unforgiving
the path you fall on.
Teachers dismiss injury and geology.
Some of the perpetrators
you put in your pocket.
Rough pets. Guilty
of losing sunglasses
but finding friends.

Laundry nook: painted!

Satisfaction: achieved!

Farrow and Ball paint: can ... go off??!?

The bog standard decorators white paint bought nearly four years ago - totally fine. The super spendy F&B black bought a year ago had turned into a sludgy stinky mess. Thank goodness we had a tester pot still and managed to salvage a bit of the larger tin.

Did an extreme edit of cleaning products and supplies at the same time, which was useful. Over the last couple of years I've tried to move to refillable and eco products wherever possible. While vinegar and soda might do a lot, they don't do everything and anyone who can clean their whole house with those products has more time and better elbow grease than me. A number of the refillable/deliverable companies I've tried have had sub-standard products, but Bower Collective seem to be pretty good (and they haven't gone out of business yet, unlike many others!). A lot of what we had left was things we'd accumulated through multiple house moves, like silver dip or ceramic hob cleaner; the latter not needed and the former horrendously toxic and almost impossible to dispose of. We popped all of the excess in a box and left it in the lobby with a note saying "free for your spring cleaning". The whole lot went immediately, so we made someone's day!

Gosh, you know you're middle aged when you write a whole post about the standard of cleaning and decorating supplies. I OWN MY DOMESTIC OPINIONS. :D

Offered without context:    

At least one in a dozen stars shows evidence of planetary ingestion

I am SO happy with this shirt. I had lots of fun making it, yes even with easing unforgiving cotton into the armscye. The collar is just *chef's kiss* in proportions and I happily found some lovely brass buttons to give it that "western" look. Even when I had to resort to tailoring topstitching to finish off the sleeve seams for no raw edges, it made me happy to know this shirt had been a labour of love.

And it looks great on me - can't remember the last time a shirt fit me in the sleeves AND the shoulder AND wasn't too fitted or too loose.



Next project is a summer dress for the missus. A viscose/cotton blend print with lots of gathering and I'm going to improvise a lining, continuing my theme of "no I shan't follow the instructions, you can't make me".

Would love to make this shirt in denim or flannel with a contrasting topstitch and yoke, but I'd want it in black and grey and I am tired of sewing dark colours for now.

Tailoring course continues too. Dart-making and shaping on the waistcoat last week and I think this week we start the pockets.

(Bah, whole post got eaten!)

The short version: Two new projects completed.

The ZW shirt in purple viscose came out much nicer than I thought it would. C had the great suggestion to sew up the placket rather than risk puckers from buttonholes and I'm pleased I took her advice. Can't wait for warmer weather. I know what I'd do with this pattern next time, and I can use it as a dress base too.

I remodelled a dated and moth-nibbled 100% wool Vilene shift dress into a pencil length relaxed midi skirt. Managed to remove the full-length lining with invisible zipper so that's tucked away for other projects (too big for me). I used the unnibbled bodice for a waistband and a lined sleeve for a feature pocket, and did a wide elastic waist. I relined it with new lining--ordered "petrol blue" which looked much darker online, but hey-ho, it's not a terrible coloour and it's a cute flash at the back-slit. Exactly the kind of "weekend skirt" you want in winter to wear with tights and a jumper, but being wool it'll work for all but the hottest summer days. With new elastic, poly lining and the cost of the dress the whole skirt came to £13. AMAZING.

I love wool. What an amazing fabric.

Have had no patience to take proper photos (also the light is very bad this week) but here are a couple placeholders below the cut.
( Read more... )

Next project is underway - V1966 western-style shirt in William Morris-style fabric. Being from 1975 the pattern is helpfully constructed so an overlocker isn't necessary - lots of flat-felled seams and self-facings. I think the only thing I'll have to change is the armscye; the pattern has a lining (it's a "jacket" shirt) which hides the raw seams there, but I can either give felled seams a go or use some binding. So much is possible with commerical 1.5cm seam allowances!

Then after THAT I'm making a summer dress for C but she's still deciding on patterns, so if I finish before she gets there then it's a new pair of PJs for me as I have shrunk a cotton gauze PJ top in the dryer by mistake (*cries in BIBA*)

1. Have you ever been the president of anything?

I've been Director (appointed), and Secretary (voted), but not president. There's two academic societies that I think at some point I might stand for prez, but I'm having a few years off from voluntary leadership roles.

2. What do you think is the most important leadership trait?

The ability to sit with ambiguity, because nothing is ever clear-cut. (Including a single-most important trait for leaders).

3. What time period did you find the most interesting to learn about in history class?

At the time (high school) it would have been Aotearoa New Zealand history 1820-1900. We didn't really do "the Romans" or "Medieval Europe" etc. Looking back I wish I'd paid more attention in fifth form when we did 20th century China.

4. What's something you think about doing, but you haven't gotten back into in several years?

I've just recently got back into both sewing and fic writing which I had not done for many years. I've idly been considering rock climbing now I have good upper body strength. I am eternally trying to return to running and eternally stymied by illness or injury.

5. If you could add one more random holiday to February, what would it be?

Halfwaysies (Imbolc/Candlemas etc) - halfway between winter solstice and the spring equinox should absolutely be a holiday involving a nice long walk with a discussion about what crops to grown that year. People should give each other seeds.

Yep I know it's Wednesday. Last week's lot here.

1. At what age did you discover you had a favorite color?

I went through many years of not being able to choose, and at various points have nominated red, different greens, yellow, and orange (never blue or purple, though I love a true indigo). But then about 10 years ago I realised that actually my favourite colour is indeed black, and I leaned into it. I think as I get older that coin will flip and it'll be white (increasingly my default choice for clothing, home deco etc), mostly because I am vain and look great in white and also like to not look grubby. Those two reasons hold for black as well.

2. What type (genre) of film do you prefer to see in a theater versus one you'd watch at home?

Sound reasons rather than visuals these days. Maybe one day we'll upgrade our tv/speakers? And also when there will be sweeping landscapes. Action films in the theatre stress me out.

3. What's your oldest object or item since childhood?

Being a peripatetic migrant and a navy kid means I have moved so, so many times (25-30 times?) and I have very little from my childhood! My dad doesn't either--my folks were never very sentimental about our kiddie bits and bobs. But I have my christening blanket, some books, the doilies my mum crocheted/embroidered to go on top of my dresser, and I think the only thing that would count as a "toy" is a pair of little ceramic figures called Slug and Pig. Slug wears a jaunty hat, Pig has a monocle, and the two of them always live in a houseplant. They're like the old queens of the household.

4. In what book would you insert yourself as a side character or friend to the protagonist?

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I would give Arthur a stern talking-to at critical moments, and then probz ditch him to go off on my own adventures.

(This question gave me a little bit of an existential crisis about which characters in fiction I actually would like to be friends with!)

5. What's your favorite shape or type of cloud?

Ahhh, cirrocumulus! Nothing makes me feel happier than a blue morning sky with a sprinkle of those guys. I will say as a gardener I'm also happy to see a few rainclouds at the right time, too.

What is it, 2004?

Submitted my candyheartsex story, which I am very happy with, not least because the pairing-I-never-really-considered has ... awakened something ... and given me a whole new window into a world I am very fond of but never felt superfannish about (or at least, driven to write fic). The piece I wrote is part one of something longer, so I'll keep working on it. Love this for me.

I hope I wrote something the recipient will like; they had a couple of blanket DNW that were adjacent to something critical to the character(s), so fingers crossed I veered around that sufficiently while also keeping true to the visions of them in my head.

There's a pinch hit I *think* I could do--at least I could write defo 300 words, as a way into a story that I already have as a vague thing in my head (for err decades) but I'll give myself today to mull it over.

My request hasn't been fulfilled, but heyho, I find myself not really minding so much? I found it so difficult to choose things to request, I think because I have not been *reading* fic while I've got back into writing, and so I don't know what is out there for me to want.

Did grown-up chalking out in tailoring course yday, and also learned a crazy technical method for doing darts in woolen fabric. Finally starting to feel like the course is hitting its stride, so of course it is half-term next week.

Gotta go prep teaching.

EDIT: lol, the pinch hit has already been pinched.Oh well I guess I just have to try internal motivation *looks around for another challenge*

After three separate tries at the waistband (the final attempt involved going from a high waist to a mid-rise to make it all work), and a great deal of eyestrain from handstitching black on black in the evening, the trousers are done. I'm super happy with them. The fabric is gorgeous lightweight wool and they're exactly the style of slouchy mannish normcore trousers I wanted.

I learned so much while doing them, and have become a massive convert to basting rather than pinning. I have a temporary hook and eye on the back zipper until I work out what the final closure will be; maybe a ribbon loop and feature button, but there's no rush to decide.

I would absolutely do this again if I find quality men's trousers in charity shops. The trade-off between retaining some shape, or seams, or even overlocking; and having to work around pre-existing components, is a tricky one, and so I will try to find larger sizes next time in order to just work with the fabric. I think if I had not tried to incorporate the pockets I would have found it much more straightforward.

Having said that I do have another charity shop remodel - a lovely brown/red textured wool check blazer. It's about four sizes too big for me in the shoulder and sleeves, but because the style was fitted, relatively good proportions in the body. I haven't been able to find tutorials that address what I want to do specifically, so I may take it into the tailoring tutor to get her opinion.

I think with the sewing and second-hand exemptions I could probably do the "only buy five new pieces of clothing per year" thing in 2024. As long as it excludes underwear and sports gear, because I need a whole bunch of new knickers and my workout gear is for the significantly smaller me of 2019. Maybe running will help with problem (b) but problem (a) has no reasonable solution apart from new undergruds!

Yesterday's plan to make as much progress as possible on trousers was scuppered when I ran out of black thread. Circe laughed a lot--how could anyone run out of black!! I suppose she is right.

So instead I cut out the fabric for my madras check skirt, no biggie. And today went to the (local independent) craft shop to get more thread. Somehow I spent £70 there -- new Fiskars pinking shears the major cost culprit, but an embrodery hoop and some coloured pencils and other haberdashery also fell in the basket.

Got home, all gung-ho to get going and unwrapped the thread and it is ... thicc. I think it is mislabelled top-stitching thread, or something. Wayyyy too thick for my needle and definitely would be terrible with the trouser fabric. So no biggie, I think, I'll switch to the skirt project. I motor on with for a bit, get the zip in place, try it on and hmmm. I think the fabric just does not have enough drape, or the double-layer construction just adds too much structure. I'm not loving it, which makes me sad because I did have a ~vision~. So I've stopped and will contemplate: whether to continue, or whether to use the fabric in one of the tote bag patterns that lazulus introduced me to.

Sewing does instil a particular kind of thoughtfulness and willingness to stop drop and reconsider. I just did not have the patience for this kind of setback when I was younger - if I couldn't get a project finished in a weekend I lost my mojo so easily. But I feel very chill about this - I haven't gone so far that I can't repurpose the fabric, but maybe I'll rethink it on another day.

Last thing: I came across the Royal Society of Needlework's Stitchbank It is AMAZING!