When the Roommate Gets Mad...

For some reason, I have a lot of sunglasses.  Actually, I know quite well why: I'm a fair-haired, blue-eyed human who's lived most of her life at high altitudes or in very sunny places, or both.  Skin & eye cancer are both worries, so I always wear sunglasses.  However, I never pay more than $8-10/pair (honest, guv!), and sometimes even less (i.e., free Bike To Work Day specs!). 

But where to keep them has always been a problem. At various times they've lived on top of shelves, in a small table by the front door, or in a cardboard box in a shoe cabinet.  I have scoured the web & Etsy, looking for one great idea, and typically only found something that stored 2-3 pairs (haha!).  My last try at organization was this hanging shelf/hook/bin combo, no longer available at Crate & Barrel, which is pretty great and worked okay. Except trying to get one pair out usually meant 2-3 other pairs fell out; not the best way to have a smooth entry at 6:45 a.m. And there are hooks underneath those specs, which go to waste.  Plus everything was unstable, so the slightest flounce of a raincoat or scarf often meant a cascade of glasses, scaring the cat & irritating the Roommate.  

(This is all in the mudroom, BTW.  We have almost no storage by our front door, so it would be even messier if I tried to move them out there.)

Which brings me to the Roommate.  He rarely makes any type of negative comment about something I'm doing (I really have to be doing something bad or ridiculous), so when he became quite irritated last week & said, "Well, it wouldn't be such a problem if you didn't have so many. And we can't even use the hooks!"  Which is a reasonable comment.  So I got to thinking about what I could make that would fit all my sunglasses, but not take up too much space and would work with the hooks on the bottom of a mirror we already have there.  

I had some heavy duty interfacing (possibly for a smocking idea), so decided to use that, plus scraps. At first I was thinking I'd make narrow pockets.  But I ran that idea by a coworker who suggested grosgrain ribbon sewed at varying widths and angles. I don't have any grosgrain, so decided instead to make strips, also out of scraps.  I'm so glad I got her opinion (thanks!).  

You can see it here, on the left.  I made a little strap with a snap to go through the triangle-shaped hangers that were on the mirror when we bought it (I've never figured out what they could be for), so it didn't make a new hole in the wall.  

It's not super pretty, but I just wanted to use up stuff, so wasn't worrying too much about matching.  I also suspected (and I was correct) that once I got all the sunglasses on it, the mismatched fabrics wouldn't show.  

As you can see, it's got plenty of work to do! When I showed the Roommate, he was super impressed (he always is--enthusiasm honed from years of being an elementary teacher).  

Now they are easy to find, easy to take out and put away & there's plenty of room for more!  

Best of all, the original organizer is more useful, now, too.  We're making good use of the hooks and the pockets, as you can see below...  

One Yard Wonder: Lunch Bag for Roommate!

This lunch bag was a quick project because the Roommate often leaves his lunch bag at work...so I decided to make another.  I haven't figured out what I'll do when he leaves both at work, though!

The pattern is from One-Yard Wonders by Hoskins & Yaker, 2009.  It's a great book to use up bits of your stash, the patterns are fairly easy, and there are plenty of ideas inside.  

I used Heat 'n' Bond Iron-On Vinyl on the pieces, inside & out.  I may try running it through the washer, on gentle, just to see what happens to the vinyl.  Have to work up my nerve first!  

Inside is lined with printed kente from Ghana. 

This was only a partial stash-buster because I bought a yard of fabric for the outside (I couldn't help it...batiks were on sale at Hancock!).  But I did use scraps from other projects for the lining.  

I have had many comments when I blog about fun shirts that "my boyfriend (or husband, or significant other) would never wear that shirt!"  I suspect that those guys wouldn't carry this lunch bag either!  Remember, the Roommate teaches 3rd grade, so has no qualms about being a bit wacky.  Just another reason his students love him (and so do I).    

3 Long Skirts, Upcoming Reveal, & It's June Already?

How did that happen?  1/2 way thru 2013 almost!?  

First of all, I wanted to show you the latest vintage sewing gadget I just got from ebay, a Dritz Skirt Marker, in perfect condition.  See the cork at the bottom (the circle)?  It's for pins!  Cool, huh?  There are a lot of skirt markers out there (old and new) that combine wood & metal, but I wanted this older one, which is mostly wood.  (The Roommate & I have a weakness for wooden items, because they tend to be handmade--and seem warmer/cozier.)  

And to the right you'll see a picture of the Skirt Marker in action, which should get you all excited for the big reveal.  I'll get the Roommate to help mark the hem for the dress I'm copying, and with any luck I'll have a new summer dress to wear to work next week!  

It does seem like summer may finally be here (up in the 90sF this week) so I brought up my summer dresses yesterday (another finally is appropriate here).  I think I brought them up in March last year!  No complaints...it's nice to have a long lovely spring.  

And speaking of Abu Dhabi, when bringing up summer dresses yesterday, I found 3 long (ankle-length) linen skirts I used to wear all the time when I lived & worked in the UAE, Oman & Turkey (detail of the fabric in the 3 photos at the left). They just seemed appropriate there.  

I wore them with sandals, but having my legs covered served 2 purposes:  protected me from the sun (I wore long-sleeved, light jackets a lot, too) and showed some respect for my employers and students.  I never covered my hair (I tried it once at a party and was amazed how quickly I was hot & sweaty), and since I'm not Muslim, that was never expected.  More important was to dress modestly.  I always feel like there's so much of me anyway, plus I do NOT tan, so dressing modestly was never a chore.  

Now, back in the USA...I still dress fairly modestly, but I can't imagine wearing an ankle-length skirt, unless I was going as a gypsy to a Hallowe'en party!  So I am planning to cut these off by about 18".  They are all linen, and the light one and the black one are lined with lovely thin cotton.  

Mohammed made the brown one for me, while the other 2 are Liz Claiborne. (Were these ever sold outside the Middle East I wonder? Hard to imagine a market for ankle-length linen skirts in Europe or the US...)  Needless to say the sewing is quite nice on all of them & that's one reason I haven't done anything with them, though I've been back in the US for almost 4 years:  I hate to ruin someone else's lovely hemming & chain-stitched lining tacks...knowing full-well I won't do nearly as nice a job.  My mom is lucky she doesn't live closer--her handwork is amazing.  All those tiny stitches--exactly alike.  

And here's one example of that amazing work, on a store-bought item: 

And here's Sunni, from A Fashionable Stitch showing how to make a thread chain w/ a machine or serger, though I usually make mine by hand.  

I'll be closely examining my new One-Yard-Wonders books to figure out how to use the pieces I've cut off (each approximately 18" x 60")!  It's lovely linen & of course we love fun prints in this family.  

Music; sorry for the pun, but here's Jeff Beck, Hi-Ho Silver Lining.  

Me-Made May Miracle: One Evening, Three Items

My hapi-coat inspired
summer housecoat &
slipper-socks

Believe me, all of you amazing sewists, who are showing off your creations for all 31 days this month, I am so impressed & following along avidly.  A whole wardrobe of things I've made?!  I'll call that Me-Made-Maybe, A.D. 2045 edition!

A first attempt at copying
a store-bought nightgown.

In the meantime, after spending the day running errands, going to yoga, going to the gym, fighting w/ a sewing pattern (which is what I feel like I do about 90% of the time), and needing a shower, I finally took one after we got dinner ready and just before we ate.  

BTW, We've joined the community garden nearby and our sweat equity has really paid off...the greens & herbs have been abundant, fresh & delicious the last 5-6 weeks.  Rainbow chard, beet greens, spinach, every possible variation on lettuce, cilantro, etc.  Yum!

Anyway, we made an amazing salad, and I got dressed and it just so happened that all 3 items I put on were me-made!  I'd call that a me-made miracle.  It all definitely came together because it got quite cold yesterday, so I needed the fuzzy slipper-socks, in addition to the nightgown (never blogged) and the hapi-coat (not really a yukata because of the length).  

Here are a few photos (sorry they're not the greatest quality), with my own tiny tribute to Me-Made May.  

Enough Already! 4 Pair of Roommate Knickers!

Okay, I finally got the fly figured out!  And I've made the Roommate four pair of knickers now, all using the pattern I got from One-Yard Wonders...

I must admit I didn't figure it out by myself.  I ended up going to one of the open studio classes at Bits of Thread and getting some assistance from Rosalie, who, despite her tender age, has amazing sewing skills.  

The top pair (turquoise/burgundy/yellow) is using up some of the printed Kente we got in Ghana, lo these many years ago, and the bottom pair is flannel; the other 2 pair are actual one-yard pieces I got at a quilt show.  BTW, it's a rainy cool weekend and the Roommate reports the flannel pair were very nice to put on this morning!  

I have many projects in the pipeline, using some fun fabric I just purchased, plus getting some inspiration from a concert we were at on Thursday...but first I must finish up quite a few things.  More on that later!

More One-Yard Wonders: Roommate Knickers v.2

I mentioned I'd found 2 great books in my public library, and ended up buying them both.  You'll see here the 2nd version of boxers from Fabric by Fabric: One-Yard Wonders, which I actually made with less than one yard!  Boy is my life exciting.  If you're interested, the original book is One-Yard Wonders.  Both are written by Hoskins & Yaker.  

I am about to start a 3rd version, with a look to really perfecting the fly, something I've always known was difficult, but I got interested in really trying to get it right after watching my friend Tilly on the Great British Sewing Bee from BBC2.  I have become addicted to Project Runway, so #GBSB was fun because it was soooo different.  (For one thing, much more emphasis on sewing skills, not as much on design...which makes sense, but nice to see a different focus.)  

One of the projects was to make a pair of men's pants...something I will probably never try. But they mentioned how difficult a zipper fly is and I remember that I had done a just-barely-acceptable job on the first pair of knickers for Mr. Roommate, so was enthused to try again.  The verdict?  Well, not quite right, but better.  

I had a lot of fun playing with the stripey fabric on this & if you look closely at the left edge of the photo, above, you'll see that I went all the way to the selvage.  We saw this a lot in West Africa & I think it's a great way to use as much fabric as possible! 

One Yard Wonder Project #2: Cozy Fuzzy Slipper Socks!

These would be great to use up some fabric, if you have any leftover fleece.  Of course I bought the fleece, but you can use up your stash!  They are great & really comfortable.  I had to play with the seam allowances a bit because the pattern seemed to be a bit tight.  But they came out great and I really like them.  

I used Plasti-Dip, recommended on Ravelry, to spray on the soles so I don't break a hip on our slick hardwood floors.  It's spray-on rubber that really stinks, but after a few hours the smell goes away & you've got slip-free slippers.  

One Yard Wonder Project #1: Roommate Knickers!

First up from the One Yard Wonders book I mentioned in the last post...knickers for the Roommate!  They were extremely easy and I used flat-felled seams inside & out.  The pattern doesn't need a separate waistband, so that makes it easy.  I have fabric for a second pair, but I'm out of 1" elastic.  

Do As I Say: Stash-Busting Preacher Tells Others What to Do!

I found two books at the local library which I think you may find helpful if you want to bust your stash.  

Patricia Hoskins & Rebecca Yaker have written 2 books called One-Yard Wonders: 101 Projects You Can Make with 1 Yard of Fabric, and Fabric by Fabric One-Yard Wonders: 101 Sewing Projects Using Cottons, Knits, Voiles, Corduroy, Fleece, Flannel, Home Dec, Oilcloth, Wool, and Beyond. I found them so wonderful that I've now purchased both.  

Each book comes with a huge packet of patterns for all the different projects.  So far I've traced the patterns for some fleece booties & a pair of knickers for the roommate.  

So you're probably wondering what's up with the "Do as I say, not as I do" quotation...well, let's just say that I didn't have any fleece for the booties, so I had to buy some.  And I found such a good deal on 1 yard pieces at the quilt show last weekend...so I bought 4 for the Roommate's new knickers!