EASTER SUNDAY 2009

CHRIST THE LORD IS RISEN TODAY. ALLELUIA!

SLOPER DISAPPOINTMENT

I could not wait to make up a pair of pants from my newly drafted sloper. I was so pleased with the dress I did last year I was sure the pants would be equally as wonderful but they were pretty bad. So I went back to the drawing board Sunday night and took apart an older pair of slacks that had a good fit. Imagine my surprise when I laid the pants pieces on the muslin and discovered that with the exception of the crotch length they were an exact match! I was sure it was my crotch I measured???but there was a two inch difference. So this weekend I am going to try it again using the pants I took apart. I am so convinced this is going to work I am skipping the muslin and going straight to winter white that has been in the stash quite a long time. I also hope to figure out my new camera software so I can post some pictures.

AT LAST! A PANT SLOPER

I am so excited! Yesterday I finished my pant sloper and met with Debra for a final fit. It is a good fit and now I am ready to make pants. But to be on the safe side I am going to Jo-Ann's tomorrow and hopefully buy a decent piece of twill or denim to make sure I am going to be happy with all aspects of fit before cutting into my black wool from Paris. Although I heard that airfare to Paris is only $250.00 right now it is not like I can just make quick little trip to replace the piece in the event the pattern doesn't work as well as I'm hoping. I used a Dusan system to make the sloper which basically allows you to take your measurements and plot them on a pre-made pant sloper and then connect the dots. To adjust for my large thigh I extended the crotch point 3/8" on the front and back crotch pieces. In the muslin this amount gave me the right amount of ease but it may need to be extened more in other fabrics. I always use a 1" seam allowance so it should not be a problem if I need to add more. I don't deal well with disappointment so I really hope this works.
Now my next challenge will be to find on my computer the pictures I just took of this process. New camera, new software - old brain.

They say, "IT'S LIKE RIDING A BICYCLE."

but apparently they didn't say that about roller skating because it didn't come back to me like I thought it would! Grace's 6th Birthday party was at the roller rink and I was so excited because I have always loved to skate and it was one of the few atheletic things I was good at doing. My sweet Jim reminded that is was 35 years since I skated and a fall could do serious damage. (I think he just concerned that he might have to be the one to nurse me back in the event of injury-- I admit I'm a lousy patient.) I ignored his advise and smugly laced up my skates. I learned immediately that if you want to discover if you still have "it" it may be best to find out the news in private. My first trip around the rink took a good 5 minutes. It was like a B rated horror movie, " inch by inch she crept, ever so verrry, verrry slowly." Half way around it hit me- the floor that is. Smack on my well padded bootie, I think I probably bounced. And then I couldn't get my feet steady enough to get up but thanks to a kind and well balanced stranger I did not suffer in embarassment too long. I made it back around and decided that the problem was not me but bad skates. Sure enough, another pair of skates fixed the problem and I ended the evening skating without another fall and feeling rather proud of myself. I even considerd buying my own skates and making it part of my fitness lifestyle.

That was 3 weeks ago and then this week there was the news of Natasha Richardson and I am now rethinking the skates. It can happen so quickly and even the most seemingly insignificant accident can change your life or the lives of your loved ones in an instant. I know you can't lock yourself up and be safe from everything but rather it is a matter of choosing the things that are really important. So I guess for now I won't be purchasing any roller skates and later if I decide I want to skate I'll purchase a matching helmet.

ANOTHER PLAY DATE

This time it was in my sewing room! And I must say it was time together that we both needed! In many of the sewing blogs I have been reading everyone is talking about getting organized this month. So here are my before and after shots. I admit that showing anyone the before pictures makes me feel vulnerable- like I am standing naked before you. So I want everyone to understand that my sewing room in no way represents the condition of any other room in my home! Infact, in every other aspect of my life I am obsessed with organization. But when I step into that one room it is like a switch is flipped and some other part of my brain takes over, order becomes choas and I don't care! I feel free and inspired, ready to create. But I can't create a masterpiece without my scissors and when I can't even find the fabric I want to use it is time to do restore order. So over a couple of days I went through every drawer, cabinet and magazine. I eliminated two bags of fabrics and about 30 magazines. I kept the magazine articles I thought important and filed them in binders. Patterns and fabric received their fair share of attention and everything has a label. Now I am ready to sew-- if I can find my scissors!

PLAY DATES

We have been home a week now and it has been euphoric. The first couple of days I took to unload the coach, put up all the clothes, groceries and "the stuff" we seem to think we need whenever we go somewhere. On Sunday we had our Nascar obsessed family over to watch The Daytona 500. And then on Monday I had a play date with Grace. She was out of school for President's Day and we made the most of our day together. We played with her new dollhouse, she sketched and colored clothes for her paperdolls and we played dress-up! I knew there was a reason I saved an entire closet of pagent clothes from the late '80's and early '90's. The first dress she wanted to wear is a dark green beaded wool crepe by Carmen Marc Valvo. As she was walking to the mirror she said, "I feel so good!" and her sweet little face showed her true excitement. I used this as a teaching moment and told her that when a girl takes care of herself and pays attention to her appearance it does make her feel good. After a few more evening dresses she was ready to go casual with a cowgirl theme. Then she remembered her makeup and thought she needed apply a little lipstick so she would "really look like a woman". Do you think she likes the camera?

RELECTIONS ON HOME

We have been on the road now for 3 weeks and pretty much all I have thought about for those 3 weeks was going home! At first that bothered me- I kept thinking what is wrong with you? It's freezing and miserable weather at home and you are enjoying warm sunshine and lots of down time. But the more I thought about it I realized I just miss my life- my family, my friends, my home, my sewing room- all these things bring me contentment and joy. Now what could be wrong with that? Nothing, I have decided. Rather it is a blessing to have a life that you long for. Thankfully, Jim was on the same page so we will be home tonight- 3 weeks early! I was also reminded that life does come in seasons. There was a season when I would have been kicking and screaming if leaving for home early was even considered. I must admit that this change of heart in large part may be due to Grace, our six year old grandaughter.
She asked me why we would be gone so long and when I told her we leave for better weather it sounded like a pretty lame reason. And from the look on her sweet face she thought so too.