totchipanda

The start of a weekend always feels so hopeful. Most of the time. Boss and coworker wanted to go to the Oilers store near the arena and I tagged along for funsies. It was hopping! But when we got back and I checked my phone, there was a message that my partner in crime N's dad had passed away not long before. He was admitted to the hospital the day before and eventually diagnosed with an obstructed bowel, but the doctor was not hopeful AT ALL that he'd even make it through the night. The family was hoping to buy enough time for a cousin to be able to make it in to say goodbye. He lived about 10 years longer than anyone thought he might, and he will be dearly missed.

Hockey game went to a second overtime period. I fell asleep before the second one started and woke up an hour later to find that the series is now tied. Game 3 tonight in Florida, obviously rooting for my guys! And I won't fall asleep again hahaha. Thursday is game 4 and M and I are going to the watch party at the arena. Gonna be fun.

On Saturday I said YES I am GOING TO CUT OUT TROUSERS. And then cut out a dress instead whoops lol. While opening bins for bottomweight fabrics, I found the massive chunk of chambray and said yes, this is perfect for a swooshy ruffly dress! I got the bodice all assembled but for lack of bra rings/sliders to finish the straps, and ripped all of the panels needed for the skirt. An unfortunate slub in the warp had me rip a long section vertically D: Not a complete waste of time/effort, it was sufficiently almost centered to be used for the back panels. I calculated the length of the hem and then divided by the width of the material to get the panels to be full-width rather than cut and having a loooooooooooooooooooooooooong leftover strip, plus then I didn't have to finish edges by using the selveges.

Aforementioned lack of bra hardware. The straps etc. are of course inset before the lining is done which means I can't really continue on that until I have them. But it was OK because the zippers arrived! So the green dress is now all done minus a hook and eye at the back neck. Photos to come bc so far I've only put it on my dress form and the background items are horrid lol.

Sunday I decided to work on the skirt. It was exactly as boring as 9x 44" wide panels can be. I thought that I'd rather try out the ruffling foot before stitching a gajillion gathering rows, so out came Jenny the Janome and the modern (c. 2011) ruffling foot. First test was quite tight, and second test was inconclusive bc the little blade that controls the ratcheting motion snapped off! GDI! FINE well I have two more, one older than the other. Honestly not sure which one I grabbed, but only one small adjustment had the gathers pretty much perfect. Charm helpfully included the gathering ratio of 2:1, and it was 3 and 6 panels so. Pefect.

Did the lower tier first, and then the second, which got squirrely at the end bc it wasn't gathering anymore. I shortened the stitch length which did work but I wasn't assed to do the entire last panel AGAIN and ehhhh it's fine. I'll fudge it along. That ended up being just as annoying as it sounds, and the gathers (which are tiny pleats, really) still needed some fussing to lay properly even when the foot was working well.

Probably would have been smarter to do the hem before everything was attached but... whatever. That worked out just fine too even if by then I was running low on the main thread colour and could have avoided that entirely by doing it first lol. Would have cared less what colours were in the seams as they wouldn't be visible.

Even busted out the serger to finish raw edges galore, who is she!! I've been wanting to move it from its home to be closer to where I do most of the work, and it still needs some adjustments to the stitch length and ratios as I STILL get skipped stitches, but it was fine for this. Probably needs a new blade too, it's been probably 18 years since it had a new one.

But for the upper gathering, which I WILL do the "regular" way, the skirt is done. I am considering a line of navy rickrack along the seams ala the pattern photos (which is piping) and that would be easier while it's all still separate. Just holding the skirt up against myself, it's delightfully fluffy. Very excited to wear it.

So tonight, being game night, will be the usual round of dishes and dinner while I listen. I need a singular can of coconut milk to make my planned meal, which is a Thai curry soup. I got kale and bok choy in my veggie box this week, plus with the carrot and peppers and onions I've gotten in the previous boxes will make a fine soup indeed! I pulled out a length of teal twill for the trousers but am, of course, doubting that as the best choice. Also waffling on sizing bc trousers don't fit like skirts do! I really ought to make a mock up first and I'm so tempted to just #yolo it but if it's WRONG then its WASTED. Thanks brain, for that unhelpful line of thought. Jury is out on that for the time being.

Speaking of the veggie box, this week's "mystery item" was no less than THREE heads of garlic. WTF am I going to do with three heads of garlic (before they go bad) lol. I recall a recipe of some sort of basically baking them in oil. That shall be a project for my looong day at work doing... not much.

I basically didn't sleep last night. My list of grievances is long, including ambient lighting thanks to low clouds full of moisture (it was starting to snow when I left the house), my neighbour's porch light shining in at JUST the right angle to not be blocked by the blinds and in the direct middle of the head of my bed, AKA prime Face Shining Into spots across the entire thing, hot flashes and shedding of clots, my hair and every little bit of fluff touching me, my bedsheets being Too Wrinkly, and my pillows being Too Tall and Fluffy. It is going to be a very, very, VERY long day.

I first wrote Saturday bc Wednesday felt like Saturday! Did all my driving about, and our friends got a new puppy!! They had one dog, Darcy, left after Charlotte passed in September, and he is 11.5. They thought he was lonely (he probably was, he'd been part of a pack for the vast majority of his life) and the universe said hello, would you like this doggo? His name is Watson (as in Dr John Watson), he is 10 months old, and he is a Cavalier King Charles spaniel just like Darcy! His family had three kids, the youngest being 3.5 years old, and they were on the go a lot and felt like he needed a home that better suited his energy levels and social needs. From everything my friends said, the family really was trying their best! The kids were sad, but the parents had explained to them why Watson needed a new home and they wanted to find the BEST home for him. I guess they had talked to a few other people, but when my friend called, they talked for 5 hours. She has a home-based business and is home all day all the time (summer might be tricky with the markets she does, but that's a future problem), they have a Cavalier already, and if that wasn't enough, Watson's birthday is three days before hers. It was SO WONDERFUL to have a puppy in their house again! He was already taught some excellent manners and they still had all the BarkBox toys that the older dogs just weren't interested in. Watson had been there for a whopping 48 hours and he was a little unsure of us to start, but took everything in stride.

Yesterday I lumped around the house, including "pangolin"-ing in an effort to not spend my *entire* day trapped under the kittens. Ended up cleaning off the table so I could tape together some patterns not on the floor. I tried to knit but every time I just picked up the bag, suddenly they were RIGHT THERE. I am SO ANNOYED that on a row I counted three times, I had 2 extra stitches so I increased 2 less on the next row, only to get to the end of the section and discover that I'm now 2 stitches short. Played video games for a bit. Had a nap, RIP my sleep schedule!

In the evening I cut out a mock up for the Redthreaded Regency stays, in the short version to start. I definitely need to make them for real, because I have precisely TWO spiral steel stays in precisely the correct length for the seam they're meant to go in. I started with an XL body and XXL bust gussets, and while I like the gusset depth, I will need to make the L body as the XL just touches in back without me putting in grommets or proper lacing, held over a tank top and overshirt. The long stays will need more finagling particularly through the waist, and I didn't want to fuss with that just yet.

Very glad today is the only day left in the week and I have very little to actually do. The brain power is non-existent.

I sat down on the couch on Friday and... took a nap. I was SO COLD. When I woke up, I moved to the bedroom and buried myself under layers of blankets. I'd eaten my snacks at 4pm and by then I wasn't really feeling like eating would help, so I didn't.

Saturday I woke up with a migraine. Possibly bc I was hungry/dehydrated. GEE I WONDER WHY. Took some drugs and went back to sleep. By the time I woke up at 1pm I was feeling sort of ok. Tried plain toast with butter and a cup of tea but stayed in bed all afternoon, and by the evening I was feeling stable enough to wash some dishes and make cream of mushroom soup. Still tired though, so I moved my stool over to the stove so I could stir while it cooked hehe. It's not silly if it works!

Sunday feeling much more like myself. I tried to make a cup of coffee, but the Keurig made a funny noise and died. And perhaps had a burning smell? It is living on the floor until I can take it out. It was a $250 machine that I paid $20 for, so it served me well over the last 16 months. But now I need a new machine, and I think I'd like to get a full on drip brewer, a little 5-cupper if possible. In the mean time, I have other options (French press, v-cup drip; trying to use the Keurig basket with boiling water was a complete waste unless you like to chew your coffee).

Decided how I wanted to make the pockets on my striped skirt, and then ACTUALLY SEWED SOMETHING!!!! So, the pockets I drafted on VIBES and was very blase about adding the seam allowance when I cut them out. Shoulda drawn it on, alas. They've been pinned with the box pleat for over a week. Did I just turn the edges under? Line it? The book suggested that pretty much every pocket that wasn't a collection of straight lines should be lined, so OK I'll line it. Would I line the entire thing, then pleat it? Or line it with the pleat in place.

I chose the latter. And since I was so "meh" about the seam allowances, I do not have symmetrical pockets, nor mirrored versions thereof as I cut the fashion fabric the same side up lol. The depths to which I do not care. Then I basted the CF because the book gives very clear directions about how to do a slot seam and CF placket. Went to go place the pockets and thought you knooooow I should mount this on the belt for best practices. Made the belt, reached the point of adding in boning and ran out of bobbin thread, so called it a day.

Then I thought I'd do some other things I've been putting off, like getting the screw out of my exterior door jamb so I can use the damn thing and laundry. Got a bag together, got a screwdriver and prepared myself... only to realize almost at the last minute that my friend still has my actual keys, which have the laundry room key on it, and I have the copied set, which doesn't. DAMNIT. Well fine, I'll try and get this frame out of the door to replace it with the glass since it's not cold enough to freeze your Winnebago out. And discovered that I couldn't, because it was painted shut in the summer. I tried to break the line with a knife and bang it out, but she is STUCK. Fine, it is what it is. Didn't even consider that might be a problem, so I probably should have looked at that earlier in the fall! Oh well.

Put a LOT into the cross stitch over the weekend and the new photos are up on Flickr. I reached a point height-wise where the remaining upper fabric, even clipped up, is in danger of being stitched, and I'll need to move it to the right again pretty soon. I did nearly stitch that little flap when working on the flower basket. I also discovered a missing square on the pattern, which was also missing in the PDF version I bought lol. Well, I'll just fill it in as I see fit.

Sometime late yesterday afternoon, my energy started coming back. I feel so much better now!! I even did some chores and made dinner, which I had not managed to do since FRIDAY. Then I discovered a mistake in my cross stitch and I am annoyed because I'm not 100% sure where it was made, but since it was past 10 pm I put it down and went to bed. I'll figure it out later.

I am going to a ren faire next month to help my friend with her booth. I started wondering about what to wear! She sells generic "ren faire" outfits, "wench" blouses and swishy skirts and bustiers, and she offered to dress me in those. I do want a mushroom print one... but I also kind of want to wear my own stuff lol. But all I have is 18th C! Which isn't necessarily *bad*, it's all cotton and linen at least (I will not bring the silk). They've said it's inside so it may not be so bad wearing polyester and cotton may in fact feel just as warm.

What I have:
-Cassandra stays
-Redthreaded stays
-cotton chambray petticoat (blue)
-cotton/linen petticoat (pink)
-curtain-along petticoat (cream, currently not mounted)
-Williamsburg dress (not set for tying up)
-Blue "indienne" print (set for tying up, does this fit me anymore?)
-curtain along Amalia jacket (black; wouldn't this look wild with the cream petticoat?)
-curtain along gown (cream, fits better than I thought it might, it would really just need the front cut back and a stomacher put in. Or not.)
-two IKEA gowns with one matching petticoat, don't know if these fit still
-Pocket to be worn on the outside
-Hats?? I have a market hat and a brain hat
-Caps? the caps I have are generally "fancy"
-neckerchiefs - green linen, white muslin, B&T teal print
-mitts - only the silk ones will fit, I'll save those for a fancy occasion.

Other options:
-start my menswear kit with trousers and a floofy shirt

Sooo many options...

By all things blessed and holy, there are events this fall! (wipes away happy tears) My local group is hosting the ball in September, and then my trip in November was planned specifically to coincide with another ball. The only thing I have made is one single dress that already needs to be fixed (the sleeves are in the wrong spot) and everything else was pre-panini so... I'm pretty much just going to start over.

First decision was: what gender do I want to present. I've been wanting to make menswear for myself for awhile, but I really don't mind womenswear when all the layers are needed, so I am leaning towards a dress.

Second decision: dress style. The Bridgerton show had not come out yet at my last ball so I am expecting A LOT MORE SHINY at these upcoming ones. I've done the long column look and I've done some round gowns, and given my new interest in dressing for my body type (theatrical romantic), I want to do a more 1790s transitional look, with a little lower of a waistline than directly under my boobs. (Someday an English court gown, with the side hoops because they are *so* ridiculous, but as my love pointed out, it would likely make dancing difficult lol.) So I am looking at a floofy floofy dress, most likely in white, with a coloured bodice, gown, or sommat over top. It will be FLOOFY and it will be LORG and probably very TALL with feathers (or perhaps not, I found a turban look with only two squiggles of hair at the front, which I could easily do with my natural hair) and hopefully SPARKLY. My only requirement is no train, because that DOES make dancing difficult.

Third decision: New stays! I've been wanting to do this for awhile anyway, so here we go. My last pair was made with Laughing Moon's pattern, which is excellent but as most things for me, too wide on the shoulder. No wait, lies, my last semi-regency pair was inspired by chocolatepot's Cherry Hill stays, which I mucked around with too much and they ended up being too small. And since these bits are all 5+ years old, I'm not even going to bother trying things on.

Options of which I own/have access to/are free:
Laughing Moon remake (long or short)
Cherry Hill remake/similar style drafted from a body block
Bernhardt stays
Corsets & Crinolines (Is there anything in here? IDK, I have access to it)
Saying heck with it and using a later prow-front stay, like Augusta.
I might still have the RH stays pattern kicking around (go ahead and laugh. I'll wait.)

Options I do not own:
There are many more options available now that were not available 5+ years ago, both for sale and for free, and they are easy to find. Go forth and behold.

Of the readily available options, I am most interested in the Bernhardt stays and redoing Cherry Hill. And potentially Augusta, especially if I can repurpose one of the pairs I already made. (If I can even find them.) (Yeah ok, that's not really an option right now.) I was thrilled to get a projector *specifically* for ease of scaling up the Bernhardt. Potentially... it's not the look I want for a 1790s dress.

Decisions 4-7 to make after stays are at least under way:
New shift? (Finish the ones I started which will need some work bc they are WAY too open in the neckline?)
Dress style + fabric + decorations
Over-item style + fabric
Hair and accessories

I think a month should be enough time to get the stays sorted out, so that's what I will work towards. Everything else will come after!

On Friday I got home DETERMINED to do some sewing. I wanted to make another project bag, particularly for the shawl I've just started. The one that I wound yarn for the other day. During lunch I got it up to the point where I would start the decorative elements and it has been living with my sock knitting, so it was time for it to have its own bag.

The absolute irony that I was in the midst of sewing the bag when I thought, I need to get a drink, turned from the machine and found the sock bag on the floor, clearly devoid of the shawl project. "Oh no," said I, picked up my water bottle and went in search of the kittens. Where I found my project in the middle of the hall, partially de-needled, its string leading to the remains of the ball and then the giant pile of spaghetti tucked up against the chair just inside my bedroom door. Quickly scooped it all up and shoved it into a space away from their prying claws (I want to say it was back into the sock bag but I honestly can't remember now). Got my water, finished my new bag, put the mess that was to be a shawl into it, and hid it under a blanket.

Fortuitously, I had another aunt's birthday party the next day where she has dogs but no cats, perfect for trying to untangle the yarn. I arrived at 2:15, and at 4:45 (with a break around 3 for lunch) I finally got the last knot out. I was hand winding it into a ball because there was no WAY I'd be able to use the winder with how much "and now the ball has to go through here..." was going to be going on. I'm going to rewind it soon. Currently I'd like to get the socks pushed through, and also perhaps the other shawl project I couldn't finish due to lack of yardage, which is currently on the needles I want to use. So there's that.

Saturday morning I started pulling apart my stays so I could fell seams down. And overhand all of the places where I cut the tabs to the basting line. Don't do that! It took most of the weekend to get 8 out of 10 panels done, with more bag sewing in between. My zippers arrived so I excitedly finished off the wristlet I'd made the week before, sans zipper, and then a pyramid bag for socks yesterday once the kittens let me up from the couch (they were so cute and sleepy, to make up for the absolute terror they reigned on my knitting).

I am headed south this weekend for an expo, and y'all I am STRESSED about it. I have a fistful of dollahs to my name for the next two weeks and this trip is going to eat up all of them, and more. Why not cancel, you ask? I'm so glad you did.

A: my tickets are nonrefundable (unless the guest cancels, which is still a possibility). That's $176 I'd be out of pocket regardless.
B: I am the driver. I don't want to force M to find alternate arrangements, plus eat the cost of the hotel.
C: Her friend is coming up from Colorado for this. I don't want to force HER to find alternate arrangements too.

M offered to help with some gas costs and I plan to ask my friend who is vending if I can borrow some $$ to keep myself fed. I knew this was going to be tight, budget wise, once I agreed to getting the dental work done and after paying my taxes, but I didn't really have an idea of HOW tight. It hurts. I'll get through it, but ouch.

I had big ambitions yesterday, of unpacking more boxes and getting a few groceries. My body said "the fuck you are" and I took an hour long nap. And then ordered dinner because my tummy was going RAWR HUNGRY but my brain hadn't gotten the memo yet. And then went to bed because I was still damn tired.

And I'm STILL damn tired. The bloody revolution is expected shortly, and I've been waking up with my alarm at 5:40 perfectly timed for the nightly (morningly?) rush of hormones that leave me DRENCHED in sweat. The air quality has been horrible for a week (i think the lowest it's been is a 3 on a scale of 11+). I've been sleeping about as well as I usually do, but after all the fun of moving, I am drained.

This morning I discovered where the recycling and garbage bins are, so I will endeavour to take those out tonight. I would also like to unpack two (2) boxes and make dinner. Start small.

The local community has an event this weekend that they are looking for volunteers for. If it was NEXT weekend I would sign up in a heartbeat. This weekend I need more rest, and time with the kittens.

--

Yesterday, a maker I follow posted the MOST ADORABLE FABRIC that I absolutely must purchase, and combined with tossing out a piece of paper I'd had pre-flood that I'd written bag sizes on, it got me thinking about perhaps starting up the bag-making projects I'd wanted to start before. She factors in "research time" to find her fabrics, and while I was doing this at work, it absolutely should be counted into the financial aspects. (Another maker I follow has built her brand on "hand-selected fabrics from Japan" which means she can write off trips to Japan... mixed feelings about that one.)

I have a cottage license for a particular style of bag for sock knitting (ie: the designer's permission to sell the things I make), and "basic" bag patterns are plentiful. I want to make things in nerdy or "unusual" fabrics, things with themes. I think it's time to revisit that idea. And like, I'm excited by this prospect. Even back then, it seemed hard and overwhelming, and then the flood and the panini happened and it was even worse! But now I'm rebuilding myself and how I want to live my life, and this is something I can work towards.

Unrelated, I saw this quilt kit on FB marketplace and I have a BURNING NEED. (link goes to the pattern only, but the listing was the whole kit, which is only not currently in my hands because it was $250) danabren this one is for you!

Weather continues to be a rollercoaster, with highs of Too Much, smoke blowing in from the west (one of the towns evacuated in early May was evacuated again...) and a couple of promising thunderstorms (that ended up being nothing but rain and some very rude wind).

Saturday I sat outside a yarn store with a friend and we knitted for Knit In Public Day. People were inside knitting, but it was really a lovely day despite the high smoke and wind. After I got home, I was going to work on some sewing, but once I finally decided that I was going to make mockup #2 of the Lora dress and make it in a nicer fabric, I pulled that fabric out, realized it had never been washed, and it definitely needed to be after first coming from my aunt's estate (age unknown) and then surviving my asbestos-laden flood. I then realized I definitely had A Colour I Buy A Lot because there were three other lengths of various fabrics in the same colour family so they all got washed. That was nice at least.

Audiobook got put on while I waited for the washer to finish, and I sewed that tank top from the other day.

Sunday I fitted the bodice with a bra on, and tried it with both my regular one and a bralette that I like. In the end, I liked the fit of the non-adjusted bodice better, with a lowering of the armscye and taking in the sides a lot. Over lunch, I noodled on how best to adjust some of the fit, because I kept struggling with it? And then I had an epiphany. I kept trying to account for fit at the side seams because EVERY GUIDE EVER says that's the preferred way to do it, but that's not where my issue is. My issue is FRONT AND FORWARD. So I made some slices and added both width and length to the front piece, which resulted in a bigger dart but you know what, it f'n WORKED. My fabric is no longer escaping towards the side seams where it thinks it belongs.

Yesterday I sewed it all up and tried it on and I am so happy with the fit. I also pressed a few hems that had been waiting, and today I am wearing my BRAND NEW ME-MADE TANK TOP and I actually love it! I was worried about the fit (I made a size too small) and the fabric (this is the most polyester fabric I own outside of various taffetas) but it's super great. The fabric drapes beautifully, so it falls off my boobs and hangs. The smaller chest means it kinda hangs towards the back, but it looks intentional. It doesn't touch so much of my skin that it makes me want to crawl out of it, either.

The beanies have their first ever vet appointments next week. They're so close to being 100% ready to be adopted (teary eyes)

Roomie J ended up working yesterday so we did not see a movie, but we did catch up to what's currently available for Criminal Minds and like. It ended on a cliffhanger and we were very prepared to stay up and watch another ep, but there's no more! It's airing weekly, and is currently on break until the 12th. We have to WAIT like regular TV watchers.

Instead of trying to fix my sweater knit (I dropped a stitch RIGHT on top of a YO increase, so now I have to figure out how to pick it all back up, UGH), I wound up some yarn and started a new pair of socks. I still have to finish the last pair, but that's literally a kitchener graft and they're done, and that just didn't sound like fun, so new pair it is!

On Monday I took myself downstairs! My jacket looks great! I cleaned up my table (not that it was all that messy, really) and said to myself, we are going to fix these stays. I added 1" of length to the front and 1" of width at the bottom front, moved the tab-on-the-side-front-side on the side-back to the side-front piece (did that even make sense?) and prepared a side-back tab/gore/insert with the now-two-tabbed side-back, to match an example in PoF5. I did not CUT the side-back piece, but did cut new front and side-front out of cotton (which could be used as lining, if it worked), and pinned on a zipper to try it on. Without bones and the like, it seemed pretty good, so I cut new pieces. I'm out of the heavier linen I was using on the first two versions so the fronts got cut in a mid-weight. And I haven't gone back to it yet.

At work today, so I can print the pieces I need for the pattern test. I applied for another test, though I likely won't be chosen bc I never have been for that time period.

OH! I also retrieved the corkboard that had the WIP list pinned to it, and I actually did remember most of what was on it. Yay me! I'm still gonna update the entry here, just for funsies. I like putting strikethrough tags on lists, what can I say.

Book book book! I'm so happy it came <3 I spied another adjustment I can try to get better fit through the thigh area, and also reread the pages on belly shapes again. There was a note about including the lower part of your belly if it hangs a little lower (as mine does) when taking the hip measurement, and I know I had seen that online somewhere before but damned if I could find it again! so I will revisit the measurements too.

Not that it well help with this particular pattern. Even though the pattern is numbered to 32, it's still straight sizing. I used a 20 as the base pattern which was mostly OK through the hip and then very little else. (But if we switch over to plus sizing, I'd needed a drafted 12, which pretty much no plus pattern ever comes in, because the plus 14 is almost the same size as a straight 20)

Y'all. This is why I hated sewing for so long. Nothing ever just FITS and adjustments were never taught to me. The only kind of fitting advice we got was to go down one size on the pattern envelope. And I was thinking about maybe this was why I was so comfortable in the wedding dress, perhaps the straps were a little snug (my fault) but not so tight that I was aware of them most of the day, and beyond that everything just fit and stayed where it was supposed to and nothing shifted or pulled or fell down and it was wonderful.

Also on my to-fit list: breast support. I've never had a bra that sat against my chest like they're apparently supposed to (in modern bras, anyway). My current batch are definitely too small, they're soft (no wires) and collapsing at the sides and also too tight in the bad. But do I want to spend the time and $$ on A: commercial bras or B: making my own (which will cost about the same in terms of material, and much more in time) or C: fuck it all and get a binder (and again, do I want to drop the $$ on something that might fit or might be uncomfortable, or making my own, in which case where do I start)

Bodies. Why.