totchipanda

Absolutely nothing done on the weekend, I was feeling very run down and sitting up on the couch felt difficult, so I put myself to bed and stayed there. A little cross stitching completed over the week, the interior belt is now sewn on to the skirt, and I started a test knit. That's it, that's the post!

Kinda lies too, I have Wednesday/Thursday off, although Wednesday being The Big Holiday (tm) day, I am always running around. Friend is having me look in on her cat, M and I are going to our friends' house out of town, and I'll try to make time for my aunt and family too. But Thursday! Thursday will be for glorious hiding at home and ignoring my responsibilities for one more day.

I was watching sewing videos on the weekend and I just want to sew something. The skirt is boring me right now even though really, it's almost done (needs the waistline covered, hooks sewn on, hemmed, decorative buttons, and an exterior belt). I just pulled a paper from the plastic cup and it looks like Redthreaded's Regency stays are up next!

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.

More snow on the weekend so I didn't get out of the house. I just don't trust my tires (both for air holding and their ability to grip snow, which has always been "zero"), nor could I be certain it would even start (really gotta replace that battery). The downside is that I am down to the literal dregs for groceries; I ate leftover potatoes with eggs on Friday, the last of the pasta on Saturday, and a salad on Sunday (if by "salad" we mean sliced tomatoes and lettuce with dressing. NO cheese, no crunchies, no nothing else). Lunch today is a frozen soup. I did my budget on Friday and hoo boy it is BAD. Whoops. Regardless of how I feel about eating, the cats have one more portion of wet food left so either today or tomorrow, I need canned cat food.

Friday night and Saturday, I sewed a cat doll and her clothes! I skipped all sorts of closures except the waist elastic in the drawers. She is so cute! I perhaps should have started with a less fluffy faux fur, or perhaps no fur at all, as she rather looks like a guinea pig. Still heckin cute though!

Sunday, I trimmed the remaining seams on the Mitchell trousers with pinking shears and stitched the cuffs. Just needs closures now, a button and a hook and bar that I currently have none of. Then I oiled the machine since it was sounding a little loud, including the bobbin race.

I made cookies in the afternoon, taking advantage of gap in the time when the kittens wanted to sit on me, and cut out the Seatoun skirt while I waited for things to bake or cool. The dough was quite sticky, so I put it in the fridge while waiting for the oven to heat up, and that worked nicely. The recipe said "two tablespoons" of dough per cookie, to get 22 cookies, but I think it should have been two TEAspoons. They are quite large, but evenly baked and yummy!

One thing I should have done for the skirt is added a bit more room at the front, as it was quite tight on my first version. I cut pockets and plackets out of the offcuts from where the skirts couldn't lie directly side by side. Just need the waist band yet (will cut once I have the skirt ready for it), and I still have a good chunk of fabric left over. It'll make a great bag.

Spent the rest of the weekend cross stitching. FInished one border box aside from the thread I don't have, then picked up A Summer Stroll again since, as with the summer, the kittens want to be ON me and don't seem to care about the stitching in the same way they care about knitting. I worked a little on a sock and neglected to put it away, where they of course carried it off under my bed. I've decided that this is the last sock I am making this year, as a local dyer hosts a NYE cast on that I intend to take part in. I'll feel better about it if I'm not struggling to finish another pair in time to free up my needles.

It's starting to really sink in that I don't have holiday work this year... I'm less stressed but also what do I do with myself??? I have EVENINGS without stuff to fill them?! What is this!

Didn't sleep last night. Am so very very very tired.