Moving on.
Lately I've got the sewing bug. Have no idea why. Not pregnant (whew! never again - two is plenty and I'm WAY too old) so I'm not "nesting." Not bored. There is NO possible way I could be since I rarely sit down.
Whatever the reason, I feel like sewing.
My first toe-in-the-water project was leg warmers for Ivy and Lyla. First of all, I don't like leg warmers. I had to live through them when they were in style and I don't really like rehashing bad fashion (I stopped using giant shoulder pads in 1994 along with scrunchies). But they seem to be all the craze for little girls now and they don't make their ankles look near as awful as adults' ankles (or cankles). When the kids and I were shopping for Christmas presents this past December, we found a lot of them in those mall kiosks but for cryin' out loud; they were $15 for one pair! Really?? For a toddler?
So, I was just sort of surfing around one day and came across this really easy pattern for little girl leg warmers. I mean REALLY easy. My sewing knowledge comes from a couple of classes in High School and little bit from Mom who used to sew all our clothes but really never taught me. She did help me put in a zipper that I was struggling with once and then the teacher at school violently ripped it out because she didn't want me to learn "tricks" but actual sewing. I was turned off after that.
Then when I was about 20 or so, Mom gave me a sewing machine (I think in hopes that it would direct me to the marriage alter) and it kind of sat for a bit and then I got to use it off and on. Then I actually put it to use when I made Felix a "Dorothy" costume for Halloween when she was three or four. So Mom, a belated thanks for the machine.
I digress (yet again; I do that in my regular life - why should this be any different?)
I was so psyched about these super easy leg warmers that I went crazy and made 10 pair or so and gave half to Ivy and half to Lyla. Ha!!!
Then I stepped a little deeper into the sewing water and found a super easy little skirt pattern. SUPER easy. I'm all about super easy.
I run to the fabric store and realize that there are HUNDREDS upon HUNDREDS of bolts of fabric stacked all over the place. Blues, purples, pinks, yellows, patterns, solid, linen, cotton - Ack!! What's a novice to do? Stick out my finger, close my eyes and make my best pick. I find a lovely daisy pattern (my fav flower) and a green ribbon for the hem. But wait! I see a navy and fuchsia print (yeah, daisy again) with a fuchsia ribbon for the hem. What to do now?? Buy both of course! Ha!
And this is what I came up with:
So freaking cute! And SUPER EASY! I want to make more of them! I'm just sad that Evan, Owen, Max and Ryan are boys; they're not as fun to sew for, ya know? But the boys are fun in a different way. :) By the way, the shirts are NOT homemade - I'm not that nuts and I don't have a surger.
Then I made the HUGE mistake of seeing this really cute pattern for a tiered peasant skirt. I thought to myself, "wouldn't Felix look SUPER cute in this?" ... so I bought it. I brought it home. I showed it to Felix. She freaked out and wanted to go to the fabric store RIGHT that MOMENT. Which of course we couldn't because our REAL life is on a very tight schedule.
Finally after a week of begging, we hit the fabric store, she found a great pattern and picked her own thread and plopped it in front of me and said, "Ok! Here you go!" Darling child.
At this moment, I have two more tiers to sew on and it's KILLING me knowing that I have to get this done by tomorrow (she leaves on a field trip for DC on Saturday) and it's SOOOOO boring pinning and gathering and sewing panels. Ugh. I must have some sort of ADD that I can't stick with skirt.
It will be cute though if I can actually drag myself through it. I even called my go-to Gal for sewing (Love you Leah!!) regarding the word "gathering" and how exactly to do this thing. I'll pop that pic on once I finish it --- I'm sure at 2 am Saturday morning. Heh.
