Monday, April 30, 2012

Bluestocking

Pin It Bluestocking: a woman with strong scholarly interests

Week 4 of PRP and the theme is inspired by a color.  I chose BLUE.  I chose it because:
  1. I have a lot of blue fabric on hand
  2. Abi loves blue
  3. It is pretty
But then the designing began.  I try to be a true artist and let the fabric tell me what it wants to be.  But I am incredibly practical, so I also tell the fabric what I need it to be.  This is the compromise I came up with for this week. 

The kids need shorts, so all my PRP projects have included shorts.

And Abi styles herself as a "sweet rock-star".  So I need something feminine but something she can add her own quirkiness to.

Then, as the outfit developed, I wanted it to have a theme/ title of sorts and "bluestocking" is perfect.  My Abi is a bit of an academic.  She wants to be a scientist when she grows up (astronomer is her preferred career goal right now).  So here is her bluestocking outfit.








How's that for a vocabulary word?  So we have accomplished all goals:

  • used fabric on hand
  • made shorts
  • came up with an artistic design with a color theme

Friday, April 27, 2012

Celebrating Earth Day with PRP

Pin It Well, I did it.  I did not go to bed until quarter to midnight last night, but I got the outfit done.  It is crazy because it is not like I am really part of the contest, I am just participating in the show-and-tell.  But it does provide great motivation to get some things done for my kids.

Here is my "green" outfit.




The t-shirt was constructed from a men's shirt I picked up for $1 and the pants are made of organic cotton twill (the dyes used are also good for the environment.  Actually, the fabric was a dream to work with and I will definitely be ordering more (http://www.fabric.com/, in case you are interested)

I used an embroidery from http://www.urbanthreads.com/ for the t-shirt.  I love using my embroidery machine to dress up my creations.

The pants have 6 pockets; 2 that are cargo style.  Eli was glad to see so many pockets for his rocks, sticks, and anything else he picks up off the ground.  I am glad he liked them because I put more work than necessary into them.  I had the shorts all done except for the belt loops. I held them up with pride and then saw the pockets were on the inseam of the legs!  AAHHHHH!!  So I got out the seem ripper, took them off and re-did the cargo pockets.  It added about an hour to my sewing time because I had used bar-tacks on the corners so that they would not easily come off.

He picked out the red zipper.  He loves to have input into the clothes I make him.


Next week is color inspired ...  hopefully, I am able to not be working down to the wire this next time.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Green Military Upcycle

Pin It It is PRP week three and in honor of Earth Day our designs are to be "Green".  They have set the parameters by saying that our outfits should be upcycled, recycled, or made of organic fabrics.

I had never heard the term "upcycle" until recently through the wild world of blogging   I am sure all of you already know about this, but for any of you who need an explanation like I did; it is when you take something plain, old, or plain old ugly and make it new.  It is like recycling but with more work.  This is a new concept for me.  I am trying to make my life more and more sustainable, but I don't usually re-do old things.  I give them away (or throw away if appropriate).  And when I sew, I sew from scratch.

In late February, I decided to give it a try.  I had some outdated uniforms laying around (I don't know why I saved them) and decided to make something for my eldest, Abi.
First, I hit the drawing board and started designing.  I have a wonderful cad based pattern software (WildGinger) that I use and I started creating a jacket and pants.  The jacket is a cross between a classic denim style and military look.  The pants I made into skinny jeans with a sailor front.  Both incorporated techniques that were new for me so I was quite excited to get to work.


Next, I started construction.  The jacket was coming together wonderfully... I was topstiching and assembling to my heart's content. 

Then, I looked at a mostly done project and it looked DULL.  I am talking boring.  So, I started taking pictures with all sorts of buttons, trims, and other accessories and sending them to Mc H and M.  I asked for their opinions so I could figure out what could make this thing come alive.  Finally, there was a consensus that shiny buttons, shocking pink embroidery and ruffles were in order.  I mean, what goes better with cammo than pink and gold with ruffles?

Now for the pants.  These silly things did not go so well.  The only good thing I could say is that I learned how to make a sailor style button front.  They fit Abi horribly and she hated them.  So I ripped out the side seems, let them out, and added cuffs.  They still fit Abi horribly and she hated them more.  So, after wasting several days on these crazy pants, I decided they had to be salvaged.  I cut them off at the crotch and made them a skirt!  I had some pink fabric that was a near perfect match of the thread I used for the embroidery on the jacket so I cut out a large rectangle and gathered it to fit what was left of the pants.  I then made a longer skinny rectangle, folded it in half and ruffled it.  I then attached it to the bottom of the skirt to create a ruffled hem.

Abi wore them both the next day at school.  That is the best test of whether the kids like an outfit; is it wear the next day worthy.  This outfit took way more time and endurance than I am used to but I did learn a lot.
  1. shinny buttons can bring a dull outfit to life
  2. sailor pants are fun and pretty easy once you learn how
  3. I am a "make it from scratch" kind of gal.  I don't think there will be too much upcycling in my future.
But, now I am faced with upcycling again.  In preparation for this week I ordered some organic fabric.  But the material for the top is out of stock and the rest arrived only yesterday.  So I am adjusting my plan for this week.  I am using a t-shirt I got for $1 on clearance for my "upcycle" and the organic fabric that arrived to make shorts and a t-shirt for the boy.  This gives me two evenings to sew it up, take pictures, and post to the PRP site.

Can it be done?  

To be continued....

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Rooting for crows

Pin It I'm rooting for the Crows....

We see a lot of eagles here at our home.  They look so majestic, they soar high above us, looking like they own the sky.   But because of their beauty I think that we forget that they are the top of the food chain, the top predator in our lovely area.  So whats a little bird to do when one of these fearsome giants flies by their home? 

Chase him away of course....


I watched these crows send this big guy away. They dove and attacked, I saw them hitting the eagle on his wings... Go eat somewhere else Mr Eagle...

So who is the giant predator in your life?  Do you hunker down and hide?  Or do you go on the offensive and attack that giant at great risk to yourself?

So that's why I am rooting for the crows.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Springy Sports Wear

Pin It "It is so pretty!" said Abi.

Ahhhh, the sweet sound of success.  It is week two of Project Run and Play and I (Major Moma) have been frantically sewing in order to have something for the Sew Along by Friday.  This week, the theme is "Sports Wear"  which, in American fashion, is typified by separates that can go from day to evening with great versatility.  Well, my eight year old does not yet work and does not have a lot of evening engagements, so I interpret sports wear for children as clothes that can be dressy enough for church, but easy to play in. 



I made three pieces ... a peasant top, burmuda shorts, and a quilted vest.  (The pants are a modification of an old Lizzie McGuire/Simplicity pattern, the shirt is adapted from Create Kids Couture's Marilyn's Slim Fit Peasant Dress, and the vest is my own.)  The spring and summer here can be chilly at times, even on sunny days.  So these clothes will work well as the weather changes day to day or hour to hour.



Part of the versatility of these clothes is the fabric I chose.  I uses a double faced crepe back satin made of polyester. (eeww, I know but the fabric really does feel nice)  On the pants I used the dull side with the shiny side as an accent for pockets and waistband.   For the shirt, I used the shiny side.  The vest is made of a double sided pre-quilted fabric.  It is perfect for reversible outerwear.  I used french seams so it looks good on both sides and just used a colorful binding on the outer edges to give it a finished look. 

So now Abi can wear the pants and shirt either together or separate and she can reverse the vest to suit her mood.  And the fabric is wash and wear ... no ironing or special care! That seems like good sports wear to me!

Monday, April 16, 2012

sewing insanity

Pin It
I am a bit insane.  It was Thursday afternoon and it dawned on me that on Saturday my kids were going to go to an Easter Egg Hunt and they did not have matching outfits!  Oh the horror!!!

So since we had plans for Friday night, I had to quickly get busy that evening.  Of course I still needed to finish work, go home, eat dinner, and take care of all the household needs too.  But in my insanity I had an adrenaline rush and I was able to knock out two skirts and a pair of pants minus the hems and insertion of elastic.  I went to bed at 11pm that night satisfied that I could finish the rest Saturday morning.  Since this was a last minute project, I had to use what was available in my fabric stash.  I had some lightweight corduroy that my mother had given me a few years back that was perfect.  There were actually three coordinating fabrics:  One bright green with large colorful lady bugs, one with stripes that matched the lady bug colors, and a light blue solid.

I made the girls’ skirts using a very basic skirt pattern from Ottobre Fall 2007 magazine.  But for the baby I added bloomers (in the blue solid).  I just sewed them in at the waist band and used the two fabrics to create a casing for the elastic.  Then, I lengthened the skirt a bit for Abi, the older one.  I used my go-to pattern for Eli’s pants.  It is actually from the book Sewing for Toddlers that my mother gave me when I started sewing kid’s clothes.  She had used it when sewing for us girls and I love that I am using it for my kids.  He got the crazy stripes and since his favorite color is orange, I added orange pockets to the front and back.  They are not shy pants, but my not-shy-boy loves them.
I did not have time to make tops … I frankly think three bottoms in one evening and an early morning was fairly productive.  So they wore what we owned and looked adorable at the egg hunt.  As they were all dressed up, my husband started to sing “Lady Bug‘s Picnic”.  You know, from Sesame Street.  (To help you remember:  http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Ladybugs'_Picnic   )  And that song was in my head the rest of the day; which is not a bad thing, it is a cute song.  But as the day ended I knew that I was not going to stop at coordinating bottoms.  Now that there is a song, and I have lots more of the fabric, I would HAVE to make tops.  So over the weekend I made a red polo for Isa using the ladybug fabric for the collar and placket.
Then … I saw that Project Run and Play (http://projectrunandplay.blogspot.com/ ) had announced the first week’s theme.  It was a PATTERN REMIX....of........DANA'S CIRCLE SKIRT TUTORIAL.  What a great idea!  I can participate in the sew-along and continue adding to my LadyBug’s Picnic line. (YES, It is now a line) I made bloomers out of the ladybug fabric and the circle out of the blue solid.  I then sewed the blue skirt onto the bloomers at the bottom of the casing line.  That way the elastic band would be in the bright ladybug fabric and it would provide high contrast and a very functional waistband.  I was going to use my embroidery machine and embroider some ladybugs onto the skirt and add some appliqué ladybugs from the scraps.  But my husband (he really is the artist in the family) said that would be too much.  I trusted his judgment and only appliquéd one lady bug on the skirt.  A red one.  Just to tie in the red t-shirt.
So there they were. Circle skirt remix and red polo on hangers.  And I say, “Hey, J.  Here is the ladybug skirt from Saturday and it matches the shirt too.”  He replies, “You need to make another shirt then.  You can’t have two bottoms and only one shirt.”

YESSSS!!!!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Who are we and where are we going?

Pin It Why are we doing a blog?  And why would we call it Without Directions?  Four women, each really different and yet similar, a mom and three daughters will be sharing this space.

We are creating this blog so that we have a space to share things going on in our regular lives and to share the things that most interest us.  It will be a place for us to be in the same neighborhood, if only in the virtual world. Our hope is that you will want to come join us and be a part of the conversation; to join our neighborly gathering of fabulous women.  Have a cup of coffee with us and read about what we each are passionate about.
Each of us will post entries.  Some may be about things that we really care about. Often we may chat about things that we spend our spare time on, the thoughts which dance around our head, and the things that we get giddy about. 

 As you read our posts, you will see that each woman has her own unique personality. But as you read, you will also notice significant common traits.  Each one is  passionate, strong, and most of all, loving.  All four of us believe we are a force to be reckoned with. We are from an affectionate and close family.  Home was a place of laughter, dancing, and  silliness.  There has also been some heartbreaking times,  but we stuck together.
We are all grown up now. Each girl moved, started a career, and created her own new family. As we went our various ways ,we were literally scattered across the globe.   But we do draw strength from each other even though we are separate. 

Oh yeah  why Without Directions?  Well, here are  four women who really know where they are headed.  But  three of the four get consistently lost wherever they roam.   So all four need no directions to get where they are headed, and yet need them all the time.
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