Lantern Embroidery!!

I tried my hand at a little embroidery for the very first time last night... and I loved it! I ordered a few patterns and supplies from Sublime Stitching and got right to stitching in the little free time that I could find. It was a good de-stresser, but now i'm looking around my apartment thinking "hmm, what in here could I embroider?" haha.

The patterns that I am now the proud owner of are:
- ChinaTown
- Tiki Freak
- Krazy Kitchen
- Tattoo Alphabet
- Dia De Los Muertos
- Craftopia

I used three lanterns from the Chinatown pattern sheet to embroider my pillowcase.

The comforter on my bed is patchwork that's supposed to resemble a rice bag, and I have little paper lanterns hanging above my bed as well, so I thought that these colorful lanterns would tie in my plain-jane pillowcase nicely.

Not too shabby for my first try, eh? I'm pleased.

Now does anyone have suggestions on things that I can embroider for dudes?

The Slippery Pepper

My boyfriend and his crew like to get together and cook something wild as often as they can. It can get out of control. And now they have started a blog to chronicle those events and tasty, tasty meals! Their first post is very down to earth and subtle for them, but if you have any interest in reading about mind blowing cuisine in the future, I'd suggest you check it out!

A little update...

I have been mind-bogglingly busy lately between finishing up the semester and job-hunting, and haven't been able to get any sewing in, but I do have a few small updates:

I had an interview this morning for a position in a clothing and gift boutique called Francesca's, and I wore my bird-swing dress for good luck and confidence. I think it went very well!! I have another interview this weekend at Delia*s, and I think I might wear this dress for that one as well. This dress is definitely getting good wear And good feedback :)

I also received a surprise package in the mail today from my parents in appreciation of all of my hard work in school. And inside was an awesome unique bike bell, some candy, and...... some limited edition cheetah print Gingher 8" dressmaker's shears!!!

They are absolutely gorgeous and cut though fabric like butter!! It was the perfect pick-me-up that I've been needing.

My herbs are sprouting like it's nobodies business! It's too cold here to put them outside for some sunshine (there is STILL a frost warning for this weekend!), but they seem pleased as punch in the windowsill. There is something so satisfying about something electric green and full of life springing out of a minuscule dry seed.

I hope to have something summery to show you soon!!

The calm before the storm

I kicked off the week to a good start, even though I fear it is going to be a perilous week none-the-less (as the semester winds down, the professors realize they haven't taught us anything and really pile it on). It was a gorgeous day in lower Michigan, and my wonderful housemate and I seized the crap out of it! Even though I live right next to Grand Rapids, I rarely go into the city. But there is an amazing (and cheap!) Mediterranean grill called Parsley that has good deals for students, so we decided to head to the big city for a late lunch. It felt so nice to sit out in the sunshine enjoying good food and people watching. It was almost like a little vacation :) We went for a good walk around the city and stopped in an awesome little bookshop (If I hadn't accidentally left my debit card in the pocket of the pants I had worn the day before on the floor at home, I may have purchased everything in the store!).

We still hadn't had enough sunshine when we got home, so we plopped ourselves on our front landing and chilled. Julie was hard at work on her many "lists" of things and I took the opportunity to pot some herbs. I have never grown herbs before, so here's to hoping I get at least one little sprig of something to grow! I planted some Lavender, Greek Basil, Parsley, and planned on some Sweet Peppers, but can't seem to locate the packet of seeds, so I'll have to run out and find some more of those. I was going to leave them out on the landing for some fresh air last night, but took them in and put them on the windowsill last minute... boy am I ever glad I did because we had outrageous storms all night and half of the day so far today! They would have been washed right away!

I also inherited my mom's old "rootbeer" bike that I was lucky enough to bring down with me. It's from 1982, but is in perfect condition. It's a rust-orange-brown color (hence the "rootbeer" bike) with fenders, a nice big seat with springs, big handlebars... the whole bit! I love it, I really do... all it needs is a nice big wire basket on the front and maybe a few silk flowers for decoration. I'll post a picture of it when I get those things. Of course there is rain in the forecast for much of the week so I can't really cruise around that much, but it's a blessing in disguise because I have too much on my plate as it is...

I also found a little bit of time before I went to sleep to cut out a new project, Simplicity 2654, view A (the pants).

I have a job shadow and some presentations coming up very quickly and need some snappy new dress pants. This is my first attempt at ever sewing pants, so any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!! They don't look very complicated, which makes me even more worried, hehe. I hope to have them done by tomorrow evening since I have a job shadow on Thursday, so wish me luck! I'll keep you posted on the process.

P.S.... isn't there something so Zen about cutting out a new pattern to the sound of a thunderstorm and pouring rain??

A little birdie told me...

that I finished another dress!

I finished this little birdie summer dress today! I think it is my favorite so far, and it fits me to a tee! It's made from Simplicity 2588 with the flared skirt, designer tabs, and neckband options. On the skirt there is a center front pleat, two more on each side of this pleat, two back pleats, 22" zipper, princess bodice seams, and back bodice darts. It went together rather quickly and nicely, until I accidentally cut a big hole in the skirt with my pinking shears. I had to patch it up, but it hides in a fold in the back of the skirt.

Here's a little close up of the green buttons on the tabs:

It was one of the first beautiful days of Spring here in Michigan, so my housemate suggested that we head over to Grand Haven and have a walk on the boardwalk. What a perfect opportunity to break in my new dress!

We took a stroll to the lighthouse:

And then we decided to climb some big rocks down to the beach... which I was not properly dressed for, but conquered anyway:

Unfortunately for the pedestrians around, it was windy and I was bent over maneuvering throughout the rocks. I had to try and tuck my skirt between my legs, but to no avail:

So my new dress went out on an adventure not even an hour after it was completed. I really recommend this pattern to anyone looking for something cute and simple for summer. Its a project runway inspiration pattern so there are a ton of options including a slim skirt, a few different types of sleeves, and a yoke that will suit anyone!