Somewhat Cowl, Somewhat Done


Almost there!, originally uploaded by sewwrong.

The end is in sight with this woolly black monster! Due to some extensive car trips (about 20 hours total), I’ve finally made some headway and am now onto the cowl, which has about two more inches to go. And it’s just as well, since the weather is getting warmer and a cashmere/wool blend sweater covering one’s lap is not an ideal situation. It fits so nicely though! This might just be the first knitted sweater that I’ve made that will be acceptable for work wear. It better be, that’s why I’m kntting it in black!

Up next on the knitting agenda: Orangina in pink, or as I like to call it, “Pink-ina.” The yarn should be arriving tomorrow from Hampton Knitting Yarns, so more pictures to follow.

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Got My Diploma!

Just received this beauty today in the mail:

(I blocked out my name for obvious reasons. It’s really printed on there, I swear!)

It’s been a long four years, but hey, it’s all over!

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Fandango Dress and Other Stuff

Well, May went much faster than I anticipated. Mix together some finals, moving home, and apartment hunting, and blend well with visiting relatives and unpacking. So, needless to say, I never got around to sewing up garments for the Mini Wardrobe contest like I planned last month. Two of the fabrics that I wanted were even gone on Gorgeous Fabrics, so it’s just as well. This month I’ve been focusing more on just getting everything back together and preparing for the big move, which will be two months away tomorrow!

I’ve picked out one more summer garment to make this year, and then it’s on to sewing up a storm for fall/winter and also for my work wardrobe.


Fandango Dress
Pattern: Simplicity 3678
Fabric: Knit print from gorgeousfabrics.com

There wasn’t even a question in my mind whether or not to order this fabric, how could I resist? This will be my second time sewing with knit fabric (more details on the first time to come shortly), so I feel pretty comfortable tackling this dress. And it’s a Threads pattern, so it really can’t go wrong. Dresses are so addicting to make! There’s still a few more on my list for warm weather wearing, but they’ll just have to wait until next year.

I also picked up these two Vogue patterns over the holiday weekend; they were on sale for $3.99 each at JoAnn:

Both will be made up in some black fabric for work wear. I’m picturing the long sleeved dress in a black moleskin cloth, since it’s got some good body to it and nice drape. I’m dreading making the pants, even though I love this style, since they are so difficult to fit. My mom is in the process of making some pants for me for my new job, and it looks like she’s going to have to draft a pattern from scratch since it’s nearly impossible to alter the pre-made patterns to fit nicely.

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To the Max

I’m absolutely in love with all the maxi dresses I’ve been seeing for spring and summer. I saw this Alice + Olivia butterfly dress a while ago in an ad in Vogue, and I just found it on Pink Mascara last night for sale

It’s such a cute look, but are maxis more for evening wear than day wear? I feel that if I was to wear one during the day, I might look a bit overdressed. I’ve seen some patterns that would make really nice maxis:

Funny enough, mini dresses are in now as well. From one extreme to the other!

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Anatomy of a Bookcase

Well it’s been another crazy month. Finished college, picked out a new apartment, moved all my stuff back home, and applied for temping work before the “big move” in July. Most of my time has been spent visiting relatives and shoveling the crap out of my room, determining what will come with me or what will be brought up at a later date. The big challenge was this:

(Click on picture for a larger view)

Now, I haven’t cleaned out this bookcase since, oh, let’s say 6th grade. All my childhood picture books, novels, and Nancy Drew mysteries were in that bookcase, along with college textbooks, costuming paraphernalia, and my DVD collection. Now, I’ve trimmed the six-shelf bookcase down to four shelves of books I’m willing to take with me (don’t worry, the others will be donated or saved for, as my mother puts it, “future grandchildren”). From the top down:

Shelf 1 – Misc Books
I didn’t really know which shelf to put these on. Or really, where they would fit since some of them are honkin’ huge, like The Great Book of French Impressionism that my grandpa gave me. Just random stuff, like Suze Orman, some HTML and design books, my Jane Austen anthologie, and my Chicago Manual of Style.

Shelf 2 – French books, other college texts, and mostly Lord of the Rings
This shelf is double stacked. The first layer is primarily composed of all my college French books that I’ve saved since freshman year. I really can’t bear to part with them, even though there are quite a few I remember not enjoying when I had to read them for class. The second row is mostly of LOTR-related books, such as the trilogy, The Hobbit, The Book of Lost Tales, and the Silmarillion.

Shelf 3 – DVDs and Art History books
I didn’t realized until I finally put all of my DVDs together that my collection is getting a bit large. Six of them are Muppet related, and I really need to catch up and buy the last two Harry Potter DVDs. I also am lugging up my Gardner’s Art of the Ages (which I love so much!) and my other French art books. Oh, and my collection of Hans Christian Anderson fairy tales.

Shelf 4 – Knitting and Sewing
These are, without a doubt, non-negotiable books in regards to the space in my car. If there isn’t much room, I will get rid of other books before I part with these! Standard knitting books such as SnB 1 and 2, Vogue Stitchonaries, a sweater designing book, and a book on knitted motifs for color knitting. Other than that, lots of magazines that I’ve saved over the years with sweater I keep forgetting about that I want to make. On the other side of the shelf, after the two books on sock monkeys, come all the sewing/costuming/designing books. Most of these books are on costuming, so I might leave a couple behind to grab later, such as my books on different period garments or books on designing costumes for stage. I went through a year or two where I was convinced that I wanted to be a costume designer, so I gathered a lot of books on costuming during this time.

I have no idea how to fit all of these in the two cars that are moving my stuff in July.

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