Frankenstorm Preparedness

Washington Post image

Phin and I are hunkered down and watching storm coverage. At times like this, I'm glad we live on a hill.

Yesterday, while Phin was checking that the flashlights had batteries and the lawn furniture was put away, I was moving my sewing machines away from the windows and making sure that the lids of the sweater boxes that house my fabric stash were securely fastened. If a window in the Craft Lounge (which doubles as a guest bedroom) breaks, I'm counting on the bed to act as a giant sponge, since it's between my sewing machines and the windows.

Is it odd that I would rather replace a queen size bed than any of my sewing stuff? Or is it a sign that, as a sewista, I have my priorities straight? 

Anyway, I hope that if you are also in the Northeast that you are high and dry and have a good many projects to keep you busy while we wait out the weather! I'll be knitting away and tracing my kimono pattern.

"Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first."

Wise words from Ernestine Ulmer.

I meant to do a series of posts about my various bday month projects - sewing, baking, knitting and general indulgences. But so many indulgences left little time for blogging. So, belatedly, here is a wrap up and also what I ate on my birthday:

Thank you, Dorie Greenspan!

I know. It isn't cake. But you have to admit that birthday Gianduja Pudding served in a champagne glass is pretty awesome. I keep a folder of recipes that I've ripped out of magazines and newspapers. This recipe was inspired by Dorie Greenspan's Chocolate Pudding. The only real change was that this version, by Sara Dickerman, incorporated hazelnuts for a nutella-like flavor. MMmmmm....

I've been on a pudding kick lately because of running. Drinking a tall glass of chocolate milk is actually one of the best things you can do for yourself to recover from a hard workout. So, it really wasn't much of a leap to chocolate pudding for post-run refueling, and from there to making my own from scratch. And from there to making this truly luxurious version.

Not jello pudding.

This pudding is an all grown up and no skimping on the chocolate and egg yolks version. If, like me, you grew up with Jello Pudding with Cool Whip on top, this will be a revelation to you. 

The Wrap Up
My first indulgence was to participate in K-Line's lingerie shop along. I'm happy to report that all my new lingerie fits beautifully, especially the Passionata set from Fig Leaves which is even prettier in person. It arrived from the UK in a speedy 10 days. Bravo, Fig Leaves!

I've been celebrating in waves all month - dinner with Phin on my Bday, dinner with my parents the weekend I gave my mom the Victory Socks, running with Mar Mar and an Oktoberfest party with my family... And now, I am at the start of my Kimono project -  sheer indulgence. But all things must come to an end. My last Bday festivity is tomorrow - a visit to a Haunted House and drinks with some close friends. And, ladies and gents, I will be wearing my completed leather jacket.

So, tune in on Monday! Have a great weekend!

Lace (swoon) and My Kimono Project

File this one under new vices, right next to silk and cashmere.

On Tuesday night I attended a seminar at Mood on lace, lead by Susan Khalje. The hour-long talk covered the different types of lace, how to use them, best techniques for working with each, and tips for buying. Best of all, Susan brought lots of sample garments - many of which were recognizable from Threads - to illustrate her points. What's clear to me is that prior to Tuesday, I didn't even realize how much I didn't know about working with lace. Every few minutes, there was some new revelation.

A "white shirt"

That is not to say that the class was overwhelming in the least. It was not. At one point, Susan made a Cinderella reference (to the Disney birds that help with the sewing) and from that moment on I could not help but think of her as every sewist's fairy godmother. She has such an encouraging and calm manner, that with a little "bibbidi-bobbidi-boo", I feel like I could make something spectacular out of lace.

Would you just look at that corset!

Anyway, I thought  it was just the right intro to lace and definitely got my juices flowing for my upcoming kimono robe project.

Burdastyle 07/2011-124 - Kimono robe

Speaking of which, after hearing about luxe guipure, delicate chantilly and gorgeous alencons, I'm somewhat  bashful to confess that I'm going lowbrow with my fabric choice for the kimono. I need a project with fabric that I'm not worried about ruining. So, I'll be using a very fun and inexpensive animal print lace that I bought on a whim at Chic Fabrics a year or so ago.

I'm trying to decide what color silk to use for the lining. I tried a bunch of fabric from my stash just to test the color (none are actually fabric that I'd use for this).
 

 At first I thought about a pretty rose color, but I think it just looks too 80's retro and, well, tacky.

I tried a light blue, also. Oddly in this photo it made the lace look brownish. It's black.

And then I tried an oyster color. It's the best of the three, but I would love some input. At this point I'm leaning toward a metallic or neutral-ish color - silver, oyster, champagne... Given my general mental state in the morning (ie: murky until after coffee), I think a robe that is too bright will hurt my brain. Any thoughts for a color or color family to pair with this black animal print that I haven't thought of?

Thanks for the input!

Leather Jacket Lining: Facings and Bagging and Sneak Peek

This weekend, I tackled the leather parts of  lining my jacket. Here's a preview shot.

Look! A jacket!

Burda instructs you to attach the facing pieces to the lining pieces during the construction process. Back at the outset of this project, I foolishly listened. Then when it comes to lining, you bag the lining/facings as one piece (this) into the shell (this). Not that there is anything necessarily wrong with this method, but it makes grading and turning the edges where leather facings are sewn to leather shell more cumbersome and challenging, IMHO.

It would have been easier to work with the facings on their own, finishing all the edges around the collar and zipper. Then I could have dropped in the lining with the facings and jacket edges neatly turned and finished. Live and learn, I suppose.

Anyway, to start getting over this challenge, what I did was machine sew the front edges of the jacket to the facing pieces, stopping at the facing/lining seam line. Then, I obsessively trimmed the seam allowances and turned the facings/lining to the inside, pressing carefully while making sure that the seams rolled slightly to the inside. This was challenging.

There was a lot of bulk at the shoulder seams and along the lapels. The jacket  is topstitched underneath the lapels so the stitches are not visible from the outside, a necessary step. The back collar is also topstitched. I actually had a lot of trouble top stitching these bulky areas and (shame!) had to rip out and re-do the collar stitching when I got a bobbin nest there.

To prep the rest of the jacket for lining, I turned up and pressed the hems of  the rest of the shell and put a strip of 1/4" leather tape close to the turn. This way, my hems are set, but with lots of allowance to work with. So, now I can move forward with hand stitching the lining to my hems.

Hem - turned and taped.

I did this to the sleeves too. 

Here are a few tips that I've picked up from various places that came in handy:

• Leather is bulky, but it doesn't ravel. Grade your seam allowances carefully and trim the ends at places where there will be bulk (Sunni did a good  post on this).
• When you grade, the side that you want the seam/seam allowance to roll toward is the one you should trim (ie: the fabric/seam will roll to the shorter seam allowance). So, in general you will usually be trimming the lining or facing seam allowance so the seam rolls to the inside. I intuitively knew this, but only recently saw it confirmed by someone else - new-to me-blogger Madalynne.   

Graded seams. Sorry for the dark splotch caused by my hand I think.

I didn't really talk about sewing on the silk lining fabric, but I know lots of sewists worry about sewing silk or others fine or slithery fabrics. So, here is what works for me:

• I prefer a microtex needle for the job. It has a very sharp, fine point that does well on sheers and thin, slippery fabric.
• Back stitching or using your machine's "fix" or "stop" functions at the beginning or end of a seam can pull a fine fabric into the throat plate. Instead of backstitching, sew to the end of the seam, leaving the needle down and raising the presser foot. Turn the fabric 180 degrees, lower the presser foot and stitch in the direction you came from. The result is the same as back stitching, but there's no pulling into the throat plate. I have absolutely no idea why this works.

Just turn and stitch in the opposite direction

Alright, enough for now. The jacket is just some hand stitching away from being finished. I'm planning to hand sew in the evenings this week so that I can wear this jacket to a birthday/Halloween do with some friends on Saturday. Stay tuned!

BWTF!! Or Are We Now Yelling BS at Burda?

Warning: This morning I had to get up at what one of my friends dubbed "the ass crack of dawn". It is a darker and bleeker hour than the crack of dawn, where even the bright side is unlit.  You are forewarned.

Somehow yelling "BS!" when Burda Style messes up isn't as satisfying as yelling "BWTF!?!?" back when it was Burda World of Fashion.

Did anyone else receive this helpful email from the distributor of Burda Style in the US early this week?

We recently mailed the Burda Classics Fall/Winter 2012 issue to you. In the meantime the publishers informed us that sizes for some models are shown incorrectly in the magazine. Effected Models and correct sizes are: Page 6, Modell 0005 A Burda sizes 34-48 Page 8, Modell 0007 B Burda sizes 36-50 Page 10, Modell 0004 A Burda sizes 36-50 Page 13, Modell 0006 A Burda sizes 34-44 Page 30, Modell 0004 B, Burda sizes 36-50 Page 31, Modell 0011 B, Burda sizes 34-44 Page 33, Modell 0014, Burda sizes 34 - 46 Page 33 + 35, Modell 0016, Burda sizes 34-46 Page 35, Modell 0015, Burda sizes 34-46 The Sewing Instructions are correct. We hope this helps.

This doesn't actually affect what is in the issue; they just misstated the pattern sizing.  I probably wouldn't complain, except that I found the whole Classics issue a bit disappointing to begin with. Both FehrTrade and Diary of A Sewing Fanatic reviewed the issue with very different points of view. My cranky complaint is there are only about 12 unique patterns in this slim issue and the rest of the "patterns" are just minor variations, like different hem and sleeve lengths, or different pocket options.

I wasn't quite over the $10 sting of the Burda Classic issue when I received another email, this time about Burda Style Creative.

 
This special issue will be published twice a year (first in Nov) and cost $20 for the 2 or $13 for just November from the US distributor. On the cover it says "From interior design to wrapping, from knitting to styling, from cool to comfy. Seasonal and timeless ideas so you can delight in feeling at home." This issue seems to be Christmas themed (ie: "create advent calendars", Christmas wreaths and decorations, seasonal needle crafts...).

I think I am going to pass on it.  I'm just not into crafts or home dec. But let me know if you get this issue since I am curious.

I think the next Burda Special issue ought to be one of my own invention: Burda Costume Disasters. It could come out for Halloween and would compile Burda costumes from over the years. AND there would be a whole section in it called Burda Edible.

"This children’s Tomato Costume is so dramatic and adorable. It will for sure have them enjoying vegetables." - BurdaStyle.com

You know you'd want in on the Burda Broccoli Sew Along. And just in case you decide not to buy the whole fictitious costume issue, you can download the broccoli pattern from Burdastyle.com, the US Burda site. (Seriously)  And it's free! Creative sewists could even turn the broccoli pattern into a bunch of asparagus with a simple modification to the headgear. 

OK, I just snorted water out my nose from making myself laugh about the broccoli. Overtired rant over. Back to our normally scheduled programming...

Sleeves, Solo: Arm Warmers Reveal!

It's turning out to be a very knitty week in the Craft Lounge. (Fear not, sewing friends, my jacket is coming along slowly but surely.)

While I was working on socks during my commute, I was simultaneously working on a pair of arm warmers while hanging out on the couch with Phin in the evenings. The socks were complicated and required presence of mind; the arm warmers could be knit with little thought - just knit, knit, knit. 

LOL - 80's big hair glamor shot. Hum a Whitesnake song for full effect.

I rarely wear long sleeves, and when I do I have a bad habit of stretching out the wrists by pushing the sleeves up to my elbows. Yet I'm the first person to reach for gloves in the winter, and at night I usually have a shrug or scarf wrapped around me for snuggley warmth. So, this was a bit of an experiment to see if I'd like sleeves that are unattached.

I love how long I made these.

I used this pattern by Phoenix Bess in a size M/S, but added 2-3 inches in length. Really, my arm warmers are just a tapered tube with a thumb hole and some ribbing. The yarn is a wonderfully warm and soft 80% merino, 20% cashmere blend, but it's bulky weight yarn, which is thick.

Action shot: Blogging with arm warmers!

Compared to my intricate lacework socks, which outclass any RTW socks in my sock drawer, I can't help but feel a bit "meh" about these. The stitches are so large and the pattern is so simple that I can't shake the feeling that they look home made. Where the socks were beautiful but didn't quite fit, these fit perfectly, but I don't love the pattern. That said, they feel wonderful on, so I've decided that they will be kept as lounge wear. This is good since I had a rough week at PT (another reason sewing has slowed) and am craving soft, warm comfort wear while I huddle in a ball.

This is really how I spent most of the evening: in a ball

Anyway, the upside of PT is that I am recovering and mostly back to life and hobbies as usual. So, here's a shout out to a fellow muse. My excellent friend Mar-Mar recently took up running after a 10 year, 2 child hiatus from the sport. On Saturday, we ran the Rock n Roll NY 10k in Prospect Park together - my first 10K while on the mend and her first one in 10 years. It was a great accomplishment for us. And what fun to run with a friend!

Me and Mar at the starting line

Just to underscore my point about the lack of sleeves in my wardrobe, my half zip pullover was taken off by mile two of this run to reveal a hot pink tank top underneath. If it's near 50 degrees, I run in a tank top.

Finished: Somewhat Victorious Victory Socks

I have very mixed feelings about my V for Victory socks, which I started back in August from a pattern in Toe Up Socks For Every Body.

On the one hand, they are by far the best socks I've knit, in terms of my knitting skills and the end result. The lace pattern is really beautiful, I think. Plus I didn't make any mistakes while knitting, and the cashmere yarn is wonderfully soft and was easy to work with.

I enjoyed knitting from the toe up instead of from the cuff down, as I had done in the past. The method seemed to work out very well for me. The toe looks pretty great as far as I am concerned, and there was no kitchener stitch to do at the end. I always make mistakes with the kitchener stitch. 
 

Pretty "V" pattern and easy to make toe

Additionally, I liked making a banded heel instead of a short row heel. It was easy to knit and came together smoothly and without any holes, as happens with short rows.  Once I mastered the pattern, the second sock came together quickly and easily.

Best heel yet!

 
So, at this point, you are probably wondering why this wonderful pair of oh-so-soft cashmere socks - my best knit socks to date - are only somewhat victorious.

Ta Da!

Well, that's because this isn't me modeling them.

In the end, they didn't fit thru the ankle. So, I gave them to my skinny-ankled mom. Of course, I knew they didn't fit after the first sock was finished. Given the lace pattern, there really wasn't a way to make the ankle bigger without everything looking wonky. So, because I was enjoying the knitting, I decided to persist and that Mom Muse deserved some luxurious socks.

In truth, she seemed pretty tickled with them, which makes me happy. But there is a lesson for me when it comes to socks. Most sock patterns are sized for the width of the foot, and not for the width of the ankle. These socks fit me in the foot, but I'll have to consider whether a pattern can be made larger at the ankle before I start a toe up sock again.