totchipanda

My current ball and chain...

Only had a couple hours yesterday, in between playing with the kittens and visiting friends. But I closed up the leg seam that didn't get finished when the sewing machine's likely-antique drive band broke, pressed and hemmed it, and then made a waistband with interfacing to test it with (that's part of the method but... I was feeling v lazy. And then tried to use a faced waistband instead of the proper one, and let's just say it was less work to do the proper one lol.

One change I had to make: taking out like THREE AND A HALF INCHES in the back. The size 18 spanned my waist from side to side with no issues! The size 16 back, the same size that my mock-up was cut to, was MASSIVE. Correspoindingly, the legs also needed to be taken in quite a bit on the side.

I pinched and pinned and released and sat (or bent over to simulate sitting) and analyzed... I think I need a bit more depth through the front crotch. I kept having weird puddles around my knees. I tried to take up length at the thigh -- nope that didn't work. I tried (A) to find that (B) became worse (like attempting to raise the sides, to find that the CF/CB pulled too much. What is the solution!

Turns out... maybe too much height in the rise/outer hip. I YANKED the legs up high to get them to lay nicely (and so that I didn't need to pull them up when sitting), and with the waist in place, I had huge folds in the leg joint. Pinched that out and... oh. Oh. Maybe that's the solution.

I made my pattern adjustment and I'd like to cut one more mock up just to be sure since it changed the grainlines, particularly on the back. Further thoughts to follow.

PS: the kittens have discovered they have LEGS and BALANCE (mostly) and they are boing boing boing! Until they get too tired, and then they nap just as hard as they were playing. Smallest of the bunch Calcifer tires out soonest, and then Sophie was playing in my lap before taking a nap there (MY HEAAAAART) and after she left for lunch at the milk bar, I was laying on the floor. Calcifer woke up and came to join me, playing with my shirt, and then Sophie and Chihiro came to join him and for a little bit Wrestlemania was happening right under my chin! (Chihiro then leapt at my face to play and actually drew blood with her needle claws) They are just the cutest!

I made it through a few hours of work yesterday, and then went home to lie down. I had also made an eye appointment at a time/location I could get to from work, should I make it through the day, because the night before I had a new phenomenon of lighting zappies in my field of vision. The process was very cool, they took photos of my eye and tested all of the things, and my eyes are just fine aside from a small clot from a nearby vessel, likely because i was puking my guts out with every last ounce of force my body could muster. It will go away eventually. The zappies were not a sign of a tear or retinal detachment. Clean bill of health.

I picked up Roomie M from work and we went to Costco just to get fries for dinner. Once home, Roomie J put a movie on that was really funny and I discovered how much it hurt to laugh! All of my soreness and inability to stand up for long was because I totally wrecked my abs lol. I ate a good portion of my dinner -- first solid food that wasn't crackers in almost 4 days! -- and rested. I am feeling better today, if tired because hormones have dictated that it is time to make the babies so no sleeping is required.

All caught up on my work and it's no longer balls to the wall crazy (for me), so lots and lots and lots of time to noodle about whatever. I hardly know where to start.

Wardrobe

I have got to make myself pants. I put one of my store bought pairs on last week and it immediately slipped under my belly and would not stay up unless I was sitting down, and even then it was dicey, so I got home and put them into the pile for donation. The other pair were worn for longer than I like to wear them for, because it was shark week and they would need to be washed anyway by the end, and they are no better than the pair that were donated. I wore black jeans on Thursday (and they also need to be washed now bc fucking shark week and my fucking uterus that can't hold onto its load for more than 45 fucking minutes) and planned to do laundry on the weekend to have the black pair back in rotation. HA! So I woke up yesterday and was like wtf am I gonna wear for pants, I have literally nothing. Except the pair of scuba knit leggings! that I hate! They are too tight on the legs! They are too big on the waist! They fall down a lot too! But I am CHOICELESS right now, so they are being worn. Pants are just such... UGH WHY.

Clothing in general! I got to work and was like WTF IS IN MY ARMPIT because SOMETHING was going on with my bra. It's my only bra. The other one is too wide and tall and digs in. This one really isn't the best one either, as I was able to pinch up about an inch of fabric in the top of each cup, but it least it sits underneath the way it's supposed to. Whhhyyyyyyyyy.

We had our monthly meeting last week, and even though I am not really part of that role anymore one of the things we covered was dress code. Our dress code is somewhat lax in that it's not full of dos and donts, but it does have some stipulations like being professional and presentable because... we are the first people many visitors and staffers see. They want us to be ourselves and dress in a way that reflects us as people, but also in a modern office. It's really complicated esp for gender non-conforming people who aren't built for RTW ;)

Alright that was a tangent. I need pants. I need shirts to go with the pants. Wardrobe. Yes.

Tudor Summer

Not that this is a formalized thing or anything. Like I said before, I randomly decided 2 years ago that Tudor summer needed to happen, and then would go around singing "it's a tu- tudor summer" to the tune of Cruel Summer bc that's how my brain works. And then for whatever reason I got into German images of the same time period and the rest they say is history.

I mean, probably because, while I don't have access to it anymore, I have seen the family tree that puts both sides of my family in Germany going way way way waaaaaay back, so it's reasonable to assume that they were there at the time.

Anyway, it's a fun look, and not English Tudor. My QPP and her husband recently joined the SCA with an English Tudor lens, so we'll at least be similar in style if we end up catching up this summer. Plus its just a good excuse to work on stuff that excites me (my therapist would be proud).

Rules: Make something from the Tudor period (1485-1603) in any area of the world. Inspired by, grow your own flax and weave it, whatever floats your boat. I'm doing semi historical because I'm like that, but really, make what you wanna make. Will rename if I find another name for this time period that's as catchy as It's a tu- tudor summer~

Yesterday I unpicked the three thread lengths I'd put into the hemd before my eye appointment, so it's at least detached. I plan to thread-draw the collar area off, leaving a couple of angled seams to deal with. I do think it would make a nice apron. seraphicmachine suggested drawn threadwork since the weave is already looser, and that does appear to be in use at the time. More research required. Torn between a Tudor apron (it would be a "normal" apron and not one of the ridiculous ones I saw on a painting that look like a really terrible pinafore) and an 18th c. pinner apron.

B&T released their pinner apron pattern, much excite! But between vacation and dental and car registration and taxes and birthday extravaganza weekend, I do not have the funds for it at this time. But i DO have Costume Close-Up and am confident about making my own pattern.

OH LOOK THE CURVY SEWING PATTERN PLACE HAS A TROUSER PATTERN OUT THIS WEEK SPEFICIALLY FOR PEOPLE WITH ASSES AND BELLIES. Obviously I'm going to get it. This should finish out my pants pattern collection though, I couldn't possibly require any other patterns after this!

(Famous last words? We'll see.)

I have:

Pants with an elasticated back (wide or tapered leg, full length or cropped, high waist, pockets)
Ultra basic pants (fitted leg, waist facing, side zip)
Ultra basic trousers (waistband, front fly, pockets, narrow legs)
Pleated trousers (wide or tapered leg, high waist, waistband, front fly, pockets)

And this new one would include a drafted-for-curves, includes a full bum pattern piece already made, and a straight leg. Yes please, get in my cart.

On Friday I decided to put in an application to adopt a kitty who needed to be a singleton and was a little shy. And my application was approved! My roommates of course had Opinions (as they should, they have to live there too), but I went ahead with meeting the kitty. And she was super sweet. But if I lived alone, it would have been a better situation for her, so I chose not to go ahead with the adoption. Our house is not the right house for her.

I didn't get much sewn. Saturday morning I put together the pattern (Sew Over It's Ultimate Pants) and then started making adjustments. I've pretty consistently needed extra height at the back, and for sure I have full calves (I can feel pant legs dragging on my calves all the time!! Plus a lot of boot makers have "wide" calves maxing out at 18", and my 20" calves laugh in their faces!), plus the full belly (thanks again for the reminder pages danabren!), so I just started hacking away at it lol. I started with the back, and for the calf I did split it up the leg and did the V and the leaving of hinges... that I then broke, because I needed so much more room that it was pointless trying to rotate the pieces. BUT that was OK because I had to add through the thigh, which I needed to do anyway!

For the front I added 1" of height and whatever width the hinging got me. The pattern I used was good for this because it's literally front and back and two waist facings. That's it. No pockets, no flys, no anything to fiddle around with and complicate by having more lines! Then I cut out the patterns in some really awful 90s polyester and stitched!

Immediate fixes: had to take in the CB another 3/4" (1.5" total) AND deepen the darts by 3/8" on both sides. Result: MY BUTT LOOKS SO CUTE! But I also had to deepen the crotch curve into nearly and L-shape, which did release some of the wrinkles above my calf. I could feel the fabric pulling on every part of my legs and I don't think I could have sat down without popping some seams.

The main problem is the front. I still have HUGE drag lines and pooling around and beneath my belly. I chose not to put the (very smol) darts in the front, but I probably do need them to control the width. I also folded down the top edge like 2"? I'm so confused because I need that extra height, but also I don't? (I see this in RTW pants too, the front is much higher than the back, especially when I sit, and it pulls underneath my belly pretty much immediately but is that because the rise isn't long or full enough to cover my booty and it pulls everything down?) Anyway I haven't QUITE noodled out how to correct that, though I did pull apart my adjustment until the hinged part lay flat wherever it wanted to. It added quite a bit MORE height to the CF.

Never managed to get back into the sewing room. I couldn't decided if I wanted to make another mock-up or just leap into "good" fabric (though I don't know what fabric I want to use). My discord was confident that with my skills I could just go into it, but they don't know that my skills are more about the construction and far less about the fitting lol. Anyway, I'm thinking about it. HAPPILY my copy of the book I loved so much arrived today so I can read and think to my heart's content.