Busy Busy Busy

I know it's been a long time since I posted anything I've made. I have made a few things too I just don't have time for pictures really. I'm not one of those people who can snap a couple pics and be done with it. It really is a whole production. I am not photogenic. The pics that do get posted are a result of a face full of makeup and an hour's worth of messing with my hair. What I probably should do is take myself out of the equation and let my dressform do the posing. Maybe I'll start doing that if I ever get the time...

My externship is underway. I am learning so much right now. It's taking most of my focus. That and studying for my school's exit exam. It's almost that time. After that I'll be studying for the certification exam. Right now all my sewing time is going toward alterations and custom orders for a few people who still come to me for those things. While I do get to sew, none of it is going to be for me for a while. :( Although I do have Walk in the Wild in June. I plan to go 70s with that. I already have the fabric and a basic design in my head.

So I know posts without pictures are boring so I thought I'd leave you with a few of the things I've been drooling over on etsy:

 

 

By the way if you haven't checked out the swap page in a while there are a few new things there. Take a look!

Do something today that will help change lives

I saw this on Oona's blog. It was so moving I had to share.

click the photo

I wont repeat everything that has already been written, but trust me this is a beyond worthy cause. This group is starting a sewing co-op so that widows in India can support themselves and their families. How great would it be for this grow into something huge and see how many women and children are impacted by it? I would love to see that.

From the group's page:

Life for Widows in India

In India, a widow is the ultimate social outcast. Seen as a bad omen whose ill luck caused her husband’s death, a widow is stripped of her colorful saris, jewelry, and bindi dot. She is considered a burden to her in-laws, often kicked out of her home and left to care for her children with little or no resources. We have two goals: 1) to provide economic opportunity and empowerment to this particularly vulnerable group of women and 2) to support them as they work toward changing the perceptions of widows in Indian society.

 

 

Every little bit helps. Even spreading the word and getting the message out to more people is something we can do.

Good News

I didn't really have anything to say about this until now. Or maybe it was that I wasn't acknowledging that there were thoughts about it in my head other than "Wow that's terrible...". I have been reading blogs and pretty much everyone seems to feel the same: sad, angry, confused. The thing that has been different for me is that I have had no strong feeling toward what happened in Boston. I don't even feel bad for just going about my life. Why is that?

The first of such tragedies that I ever remember where some nutjob caused a lot of people to die was the Oklahoma City bombing. Being a kid I never really paid attention to the news before that. It was shocking and sad and I promise you my mind was pretty blown. (pun not intended I swear). It was the first moment I remember ever thinking that the world was one fucked up place. I had my own issues with being abused as a child, but until then I'd never witnessed evil on such a large scale. And for no reason at all. Not that a reason exists that would justify something like that. Since then how many of these sorts of events have occurred? I couldn't tell you. I can't give you a number. All I can say is that enough has happened that I almost don't care anymore.

You're probably thinking that I sound like a asshole, and maybe I am. Or you might be thinking that if it were me and my family I would feel very differently and you'd be right. But it's not me, not this time anyway. Maybe one day it will be. Maybe one day I'll be at a concert and some crazy piece of shit will start shooting. If I'm supposed to go out like that what can I do? Nothing. Everyone dies. Some people die too soon and in horrible ways. I might be one of those people. One of my kids might be. No one knows what's going to happen. I think it's pretty accurate to say that there's more coming. While we are built with a self-preservation instinct, we are also surprisingly self-destructive.

The good news is that it is also human nature to adapt. Don't worry we can get used to anything.

Help me out?

So my swap page has absolutely no interest aside from one successful trade. I've decided to try and advertise a little here and there. I made a couple versions of a banner for this purpose. What do you think? Which one grabs your attention more? Should I add more information?

By the way I added some new stuff to my page. I will be adding more sometime next week.

New stuff on the swap page

 

I added a few new things to my swap page and also to my wish list. I had more than this but I don't have time today to edit/post them all. This dress is one of my favorite things on there right now. I was testing out an idea for a hidden pocket and it turned out great. Bet you can't guess where it is...click the pic and find out. :)

Also have you signed up for the Thred Up mailing list? Click here!

Thred Up

Anyone who knows me knows I am big fan of not letting things go to waste. Goodwill is pretty much my favorite store. I know a lot of people out there are not comfortable with wearing used clothing, but you would be surprised how many things are donated with the tags still attatched. Anyway since I'm not particular about being the first owner of something, I very rarely buy clothing brand new. So when I discovered this shop I loved it right away. At this time they only sell kids clothes, but they are getting ready to launch a women's section. And they pay you for your used clothes. After my closet cleanout last weekend I filled up one of thier bags and sent it out so I'll be getting a little extra cash back, which I will probably turn around and spend on thier site.

I know this isn't my usual post. I don't normally advertise things, but I do love this shop and especially this concept. You trade the things you don't want and get credit (or money) for the things you do want. Nothing is wasted! And yes there is a little something in it for me, I get store credit for eveyone who signs up for the mailing list through my link here: http://lnc.hr/r0Llq Those who do sign up also get something too, future emails with coupon codes and sales. So if you don't mind paying much less for gently used clothing please take a look.

Reduce, reuse, recycle! :)

Perfect Wardrobe II

So it's been a couple of weeks. Right after my last post I got an order from the parks district so I've been working on that. Yesterday I finally did it. I pruned my closet. I tried to be brutally honest even though some things with sentimental value stayed. I also hung everything backwards (one if the tips I came across online). In 6 months I will go through everything again and items that are still hung backwards will have to go. While I was doing this I created piles: "keep", "donate/trade", "alter/refashion" and for those I was unsure about "try on". The try on pile was one of the bigger ones, but when I put many of these items on I realized that I was hanging on to them for the wrong reasons. With the exception of a few that needed to be taken in or hemmed, most of them went into the donate/trade pile. Speaking of which I will be adding more to my swap page as soon as I get some photos. I've just finished my first swap and scored a bunch of great fabrics in return for one of my reversible 30's style dresses.

I have more of these by the way!

Now that I have much less I can begin to rebuild and find a cohesive style. So it's on to step 2. With the help of the previously mentioned article I have created a list of pieces that I need. These will fill out my work wardrobe. Since I'd been working from home for the last 10 years I have a lack of professional looking clothing in solid (mostly neutral) colors that allow for mixing and matching. I do also have a list of "wants", for days off or for going out.

~Things I Need~

• pants-wide leg, fitted, straight leg, etc (black, brown, gray)
• button up blouses-long and short sleeve (solids and simple prints)
• non-button blouses (solids and simple prints)
• 1-2 pairs of comfortable shoes (black, tan?)
• small cross body bag (neutral color)

~Things I Want~

• Italian silk blazer like this one
• Chanel style jacket (light weight)
• wiggle dress (vintage print) 
• shift dress (geo print or large graphic)
• maxi dresses and skirts (white, ombre, etc)
• tunic length tops (all types)
• shorts (floral, satin, denim)
• leggings (faux suede, floral, lace)
• jeweled bag
• sandals (black, brown)

I'll admit I did spend more time thinking about the "want" list. I figure that where ever I end up working the pieces I chose for the "need" list will fit into whatever dress code. If I keep it simple I can't go wrong. The "want" list however allows me to have more fun. Since I will be sewing rather than buying most of this stuff I get to use some of the fabrics I've managed to collect over the years. I already have some in mind for many of the things on this list.