Happy Monday!

You know, for some reason Happy Monday... just doesn't seem to match up with the Happy New Year we were saying just last Wednesday Evening! Hmmm, too bad! Cause I could go for that! Every week on Monday saying HAPPY MONDAY! Oh, and yes, I am very aware that the week starts with Sunday! It's just that Sunday doesn't need the kick in the pants that Mondays seem to want. What can I say... it's a bit grey out side and well... I'm doing laundry! Enough Said?

When last you read this blog, this writer was scurrying around like a chicken with it's head cut off (sorry to you vegetarians... and to the chickens for that matter!) trying to complete all her projects for Christmas! I got all but the p.j.'s pants done.... heavy sigh.....! They are cut out, but I must not make them long time UFO'S..... adding to the list of things that need to be done and thus making the start of this new year.... highly pathetic! What a way to start out a new year! O.K. I did get mom's reversible jumper made! Although, I'm none to pleased with the hem! I sent it off to her... longer than it needed to be... mostly because I felt that she may need to take it somewhere to get the hem fixed to fit her! What happened was this... so I altered a jumper pattern... McCall's 9383... pretty much old.... (from my days at the fabric shop, it says it's from 1998!) What I did was make the back of the jumper the same as the front! that way the jumper would be more of a supportive look, plus since it was to be reversible, I wanted to make it without a zipper! So, I made the seams a bit smaller, thus making it possible for mom to just pull it over her head. The idea was right, just not the hem!!! Sorry, I need to elaborate some! Since I made said jumper out of Challis's.... I'm thinking that was my first mistake! Not so if it had only been a normal jumper/dress... just in this case! Oh, the reason I went with such a light weight of a fabric is because my folks are in Arizona right now... and I figure that this way she can wear it also as a Spring/Summer dress. Everything was going well, I attached the bodice together as you would a normal lining, but it had to look good enough so that it could be used from both sides..... No Problem!... (like Theo on "The Cosby Show", used to say to his dad/mom all the time!) Skirt, same thing... it went on without a ton of trouble (top stitching... so, starts the problems!) If you have ever worked with this type of fabric... sometimes it can stretch/slide a bit. Thus.... the problem! Trying to line the fabric's up to top stitch them..... let's just say the seam riper was my friend.... until I finally decided that the only way this was going to work was to turn them inside out and stitch from that direction! O.K. problem solved! Then I started on the hems! If your squeamish you may want to turn away now!!!
Now, I don't have a dress makers dummy... and well I tried the best I know how to do this... I pinned both hems separately. Nope!!! That wasn't going to make it happen! I pulled out all of the pins! I thought o.k., that's just a fluke! I will try again, this time on the ironing board.... measuring every 3-4 inches.... both hems! Great! Things were moving along wonderfully.... until I hung it up to look at it! No Way! How could it not be perfect??? So, once again... I tried re-pinning it, this time while it hung from the ceiling... (I know, your beginning to wonder what kind of a weird sewing "lab" has this woman got, aren't you??? Don't doubt it.... you know you are!) I have this hook from the ceiling that usually I hang dresses that I make for people (I have made wedding dresses that have been a tad bit easier than this project! ) on, and that way I can at least pin the under hems up... before they come try it on for a hem fitting! It says me a little time and keeps them from tripping on all the extra fabric. So, finally the clock is ticking here... (I'm telling myself, I need to finish this project and get it into the mail.... before Christmas!) Finally, I figure alright, I will treat them as one piece of fabric and sew the hems together! Things were going well, it was looking quite nice... you've got it! Until I hung it up again!!! Apparently either the skirts were not hanging equally or they weren't even! Anyway, I took up the skirt a bit at the bodice to even the hems... and it looked a lot better! Although, on hind sight, I think that now if I were to hang them together again overnight, then press a hem treating them both as one... pinning above the hem in a couple places to stabilize the fabric... I could have worked it out better! Why is it that the projects I think will only take a short amount of time... well... you know! Take FOREVER!!! And then I'm still not always completely satisfied!
I know that this post is really long.... but it has been a while since my last post, so I guess it will be longer! Or... I could just continue this next time...... TO BE CONTINUED.........