Dang you Fabric.com and Hot Patterns!

I caved this morning. It's all due to stinkin' Fabric.com, too. They're having this 12 Days of Christmas sale and the first day was 60% off the Vera Lavender Collection. I've been eyeing several of those fabrics for some time so I pretend shopped and filled my cart with a few things knowing I probably wasn't going to buy anything. Then the next day I check my emails and I've got one from Fabric.com. It basically says, "Hey wait, you have stuff in your cart and you forgot to check out! Here, we'll give you and extra 15% off if you come back and buy up this stuff you don't really need!" How the hell do they know I put shit in my cart and didn't check out?! Creepy. So anyways, I go back to Fabric.com and see what all I put in my cart. Some of it is mysteriously gone, btw. Then I see that patterns are on sale today with the frickin' 12 Days thingy and I sink out of my chair and onto the floor (well, not really. I just said that for dramatic effect.) 'cause now I'm doomed. There are several Hot Patterns that I want so I added a few to may cart and used my coupon (which was ABAND2009....can you believe the nerve of these people! They said I abandoned my cart, for cryin' out loud! Oh, poor cartie baby, I'm sorry!). I got this, this, and this. I bought the last two because I loved Debbie Cook's versions. (Okay Debbie, now it's all your fault! heehee). You know I just had to order more than $35 to get the free shipping. So, there goes Christmas for the kids. Just kidding....

Sorry no pictures today. I do want to thank everyone for their super sweet comments about my coat! Sarai liked it too so that was truly icing on the cake!

Have a good one!

Colette Patterns: Lady Grey...in red!

Finally I got some pictures of the pattern I tested for Colette Patterns! It has been gray and dreary so I gave up on sunshine and just went into my kitchen to take the pictures. Alas, they aren't too whippy and you'll have to forgive my mom jeans. The red was hard to photograph and my camera just sucks. I think she's dying, to be honest.

Anyway! This is the Lady Grey pattern and, I must say, I love this coat! It has a gorgeous shape and I think it's very feminine and flattering to my curves. This is a wrap coat with princess seaming and topstitching. It ties with a long belt and also has one button on the outside and one on the inside to secure it. The collar is wide and just waiting for your favorite brooch. The hem is full and it flares out just right over the hip. Just for reference and for all my sewing peeps, I made a straight size 18. No FBA or nuthin'! The only thing I did was trim the sleeve cap down a bit 'cause it was poofing up and not in a good way.

Here's the back. You get a better sense of the hem. You can't really see it but there are two belt loops in the back.

Here's a close up of the front without the belt so you can see the button closure.

And a closeup of the back. There, now you can see the belt loops!

I made this from a wool gauze that I got from Fashion Fabric Club. It was like 5 yards for $35! It's a little bit lighter weight than what is suggested but I love the drape and it's really soft. The lining is a polyester.

All the new Colette Patterns are up for pre-order here! Check 'em out!

My new favorite shampoo!

A little side project that has been ongoing for me is making my own bath and body products. In an effort to reduce the toxic chemicals in our household I've turned to using more natural products. One of my favorite things to make is shampoo and it's super easy to do. You might have to make a trip to your health food store to get some of these ingredients. I don't live in a large area and was able to find all of them locally. Amazon.com is a great source for the liquid castile soap!

I've been playing around with different formulas and I want to share a couple that we really like. The first is one that I use the most and the second is one I make up for the kids. Each recipe makes about 4.5 ounces.

One thing I would like to mention before we get started is, while I am an 'independent student' (since I'm learning on my own from books) of aromatherapy and the different uses of essentials oils, I am by no means an expert! Please use caution when handling these oils as they are very potent! If you're unsure if you can use any of them consult a handbook (or even your doctor). I have a couple of books by Valerie Ann Worwood which I really like!

Okie Dokie! Enough of that business, let's get cookin'!!

Lemon Rosemary Shampoo

1/4 cup Distilled Water

1/4 cup Liquid Castile Soap (I use Dr. Bronner's unscented)

2 TBSP Dried Rosemary

2 tsp Sweet Almond Oil

1/4 tsp Lemon Essential Oil (I prefer using essential oils but you can use fragrance oil too)

5-10 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil

Some sort of container (I use a glass bottle that is for oil and vinegar. Got it for $1 at the Dollar Tree and the little spout is the perfect dispenser. I have also reused old shampoo bottles. Just be sure to rinse them well first.)

Boil the water and then sprinkle the Rosemary over top. Let steep for about 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile, pour the Castile Soap in your bottle. Add the Sweet Almond Oil and your Essential Oils. I find using a funnel is most helpful for all this. Once your Rosemary tea is done you'll strain the leaves and discard. Pour the tea into the bottle and swish it all around to mix. In the shower, be sure to shake before each use since the ingredients will separate. Lather, Rinse, Repeat!

This fragrance is fresh and uplifting and makes my hair shiny and bouncy. It isn't thick like the stuff you get at the store so you will have to pour a little over your head. Otherwise, you just use it like you would normally. The castile soap make lots of fluffy lather and with the essential oils you get the benefit of aromatherapy! This type of shampoo is also gentle so you will probably need to rinse and repeat. The oil in the mix makes conditioner unnecessary! Yay!

The next one is very kid friendly (smell-wise) and the easiest to make. My daughter helped me make up the last batch which was fun. Anyhoo, once all the kids' store-bought shampoo ran out I wanted to make them something they would like. The Lemon Rosemary Shampoo is wonderful but a bit herbaly and more astringent smelling. Let's just say, my 5 year old son wasn't a big fan. This one smells really yummy and makes my hair look and feel really good. My daughter has super duper thick hair and it works great for her, too. It also has the stamp of approval from Mr. Picky.

Creamsicle Shampoo

1/4 cup Liquid Castile Soap

1/4 cup Distilled Water

2 tsp Jojoba Oil

10-15 drops Vanilla Essential Oil

10-15 drops Orange Essential Oil

5-10 drops Tea Tree Oil (optional)

Bottle

Pour all ingredients into your bottle and swish around to mix. Shake before each use. Lather, Rinse, Repeat! See, I told you it was easy!

This is the Creamsicle Shampoo. Oops, looks like I need to make some more!

I'd like to maybe make this a regular feature to my blog. What do you all think? If any of you out there make your own b&b stuff too let me know. I love to try out new recipes!

My official We Love Colors and Sock Dreams review!

Holy crap! Can it really be December already?! So, did everyone out there who celebrates Thanksgiving eat too much? I did! I went to the pool and swam my laps yesterday morning so I feel a whole lot better!

Anyhoo, on with my review! I know Andrea was curious how the We Love Colors tights worked for me. I have to say I'm on the fence about them. I didn't get any pictures because I wore them to a funeral and didn't get a chance. I will try to take a picture of me in them next chance I get!

First the good: The colors are so great and super saturated. Even after putting them on they were pretty much opaque. They fit well in the hips and tummy and were very comfortable.

The bad: They have pretty much zero recovery. They're more like leggings with feet. I wore them with boots and when I took the boots off the fabric was all scrunched at my ankle. And, yes, they were huge in the foot! But this is a plus if you have a very wide foot. The knee didn't seem to bag too much but I couldn't wear these with a shoe because of the ankle issue.

I'm pretty much going to just chalk these up as a great pop of color when I wear skirts with boots. So, not bad but not perfect either. I guess I would grade them a C+. Next time I might try the Nylon/Lycra as I'm sure they will have a better fit. They are also $6 more per pair! Yikes!

Okay, now for the Sock Dreams!

Seriously, I love these socks! They're both great! First up is the Wavy Lace Over-the-Knee sock:

Above is a picture of the sock pulled up as far as it can go. On my right leg you can see it does in fact come up over knee and not terribly uncomfortably, either. It cuts in a little as you can tell. The left leg is scrunched slightly and pulled to just under my knee. This is where I have been wearing them and they truly stay put! The foot is loose but not too much. They are just really comfortable! Below you can see them really scrunched which is a cute look too. These are just above mid-leg on me here. If you have a narrower calf the scrunch would be all the way up like the photo on the website.

Here are the Ribbed M Stockings:

Oh boy, these are nice and toasty! I've been wearing these around the house in the morning when I'm still in my jammies and robe and they are perfect! These have a really heavy rib and the foot is thick and soft and slighty loose like the Wavy Lace. These do come sort of thigh high on me. On the right leg you can see it's wanting to roll a bit. I don't have these pulled as high as they will go but rather how I normally wear them, just over the knee. This way they're a little slouchy.

I like that this brand will fit a wide variety of sizes and their website has so many styles! Everything from fun, funky, everyday socks to fetish worthy stockings. I'm thinking Christmas gifts here, too. My grade for the Sock Dreams is definitely an A!

Well, now that I'm obsessed about cute socks, I'd love to hear if you all have a favorite!

Busy weekend!

Well, as my previous post stated, I finished up my Colette Patterns test sewing! Yay! But before that, on Friday, a milestone was reached for someone very dear to me....

My little man turned 5!!!

I can hardly believe it! Love you sweetie!

Next, I want to (finally) show you all the lingerie set I made for my daughter a couple of weeks ago!

I used a vintage Kwik Sew pattern and this is the fabric and stretch lace from Elingeria.de. It's a super cute cotton knit screen printed with hearts and 'love', etc. I love how it turned out! She just adores it and wants to wear it all the time. This feels pretty good to me since most of the stuff I make her these days doesn't get worn. She's at that stage.... *sigh* It's all about skinny jeans (gasp) and Converse! I didn't sew for her very much when she was little and now I'm wishing for those days again. She is in desperate need of undies so I can always do that. I also realized over the weekend that she needs some lounge wear! Of all things! That should be easy to throw together. I have some great Jalie patterns that will work perfectly.

Lastly, I want to give you that sneak peek I promised....

Have you all been good...hmmmmm?

Oh well, even if you haven't here it is!

Alright, that's all yer gettin! But don't fret! The new patterns are available for purchase this Friday! Yipee! So be sure to keep your eyes on the Colette blog. I wanted to point out how well my seams matched up. See how pretty? This is always a source of joy and satifaction for me. I just love when that happens!

Next up for me is the HP Uptown/Downtown dress. The pattern is all laid out on my big table waiting to be traced! I keep seeing everyone's amazing creations and I just can't wait to have one of my own!

P.S. Today I'm wearing my fuschia We Love Colors tights. I'll give a review on them (hopefully tomorrow) and the socks from Sock Dreams. I've worn both of those and, let's just say.... well, you'll have to come back and find out!

Hugs & Stitches!

Colette, my love...

Just a quickie update. I finished the test pattern for Colette Patterns today and got all my feedback sent to Sarai like a good little girl. I'm tellin' ya...I love this li'l coat! That's all I'm sayin'. It's late but if you're all good I may give you a sneaky peek tomorrow!

Is the curiosity eating you away.....

Teehee!

Oooo, Friday the 13th...

Mwuaa ha haaaaa....

I didn't even realize it was Friday the 13th until I saw it on another blog..... Usually, I'm the one telling my husband "Ooooo, It's Friday the 13th...mwuaa haa haaaa" first thing. Well, that just confirms that I'm a dork. Now I need to go call him a make sure he knows what today is. Tee hee.

Anyhoo, on to other stuff...

Who else, besides me, is loving the super bright tights everyone is wearing?! I just think it's sooo cool lookin'! Well, I get an email from the Lingerie Post everyday and one mentioned these snuggly thigh high socks to wear with your nighties and such. I really liked the M Stocking from Sock Dreams that they highlighted so I headed over their and picked up a black pair and also some gorgeous wavy lace, over the knee socks.

The lacy socks are sooo soft and feel really good on. The ribbed are super thick and should keep me nice and toasty! They're both made from recycled cotton and have minimal packaging. From what I could tell, most of their products are made from recycled cotton. Cool! All those groovy socks got me to thinking about the bright tights that I've been seeing, and loving. I remembered finding a link to We Love Colors some time ago so I mosied on over to their website. The great thing about them is they also carry plus sizes in a lot of their styles. Yay! Seriously, they sell rainbows! I mean, I think they offer like, 50 different colors or something! I picked up Scarlet, Purple, Fuschia in the solids. The 'Splash' colors are #7001 & #2312

Unfortunately, the colors are really washed out in the picture above. They're actually quite rich and vibrant. They feel soft and stretchy and the only thing I found was the foot is really huge! There is no shaping or tapering and it's basically straight all the way down. Even though I'm a curvy girl with 17" calves, I have smaller feet with a tapered ankle and narrow-ish heel. I can even wear some narrow shoes so we'll see how it goes. I'll be sure to give you all my thoughts on both brands.

Everyone have a lovely weekend and don't get into any mischief today. Watch out for black kitties and don't walk under any ladders, etc.

Oh, and what do you think of my mermaids? Aren't they pretty? I love mermaids....

I finally caved....

Yes, in a moment of weakness, I have fallen to that temptress Hot Patterns. When I opened my email from Patternreview.com this morning I had absolutely no plans to dump over $40 into new patterns that I really don't need. But when I saw Michelle's cute version I just plum gave in. I watched Trudy's vids on this a couple of weeks ago and it almost sent me over the edge but when I saw it made up and on a real person I just had to have it. I think it'll be so cute with boots and a little jacket for this fall. I've also had my eye on this one forever:

I figured, "what the hell?!" I'm already going broke... Ha! So, I think today I'm going to dig through my stash and find some fabrics that will work for both of these so I can get at 'em when they arrive in a few days.


I did have a productive weekend of sewing! I made my sweet daughter a bra and panty set from a vintage Kwik Sew pattern. She made me wash it last night so she could wear it today so I have no pictures yet. It turned out so cute and really fit her perfectly! Best part is she loves it! I used some fabric and lace I got in a grab bag from Elingeria.de some time ago. When I pulled the fabric out of the package I knew it was destined to be made into something for her. The piece was kind of small but that's the great thing about sewing lingerie for little people, it doesn't take much! ;-D

Awesome Thrift Score, Awesome Pin-Up, and Awesome News

Can things get any more awesome?! Teehee! Well, it is Friday after all.....

I wanted to share a bit of awesomeness that has come my way in recent days. First off, I went to the thrift store yesterday to see if I could find some fabric for a coat I'm making (more on that in a bit). Instead I come across a shoe box of mugs that I thought looked terribly familiar. See, I used to work at a gift shop as their Bridal Consultant, which basically means I just registered brides for all the stuff they wanted people to buy them for their big day. Anyhoo, these mugs looked familiar because they are made by a brand that the shop carried. Okay, are you ready....They're Denby Greenwich! DENBY!!! Hello?! I only paid $2.75 for 10 of them!!! The lowest price I could find online was over $20. EACH! Honestly, I felt kinda guilty because they had no idea what they had. But, here I sit, sippin' my coffee, in my new mug, and it's feelin' pretty good! ;~D hehehe

I also found some clogs that were brand new for $4. The brand is Indigo by CLARKS! For Heaven's sake!

Next up is the "new girl" I drew for my hubby's band logo. I think she turned out pretty awesome:

Lastly, you may or may not know how much I love Colette Patterns. Well, the other day Sarai had a call on her blog for test sewers for her new line of patterns coming out soon. I thought "what the hey" and contacted her asking for a slot. Lo and behold, she emailed me back and said I'm in! Awesome!!! Without giving too much away, I signed up to make a short wrap coat. The line drawing is great and her sample is just gorgeous. I ordered fabric and it's on it's way. I chose a wool gauze in a lovely, deep red and a dark purple for the lining. I just got the email this morning that it had finally shipped. 'Bout damn time! I was getting a little panic-y about not having it here in time hence, the thrift shop run.

Well, that's my awesomeness for the week. Do you all have any awesomeness to share?

Oh yes, the word for today is awesome. See how many times you can use it!

Go ask Alice...

Ta daaaa....

I had a wonderful time last night! My husband's band rocked the house and my feet and legs are killing me from dancing all night. The four inch heels probably didn't help matters either! I got lots of compliments on my costume and was a runner up in the "Most Original Costume" contest.

Right now I'm exhausted and will probably go take a nap soon! Hope everyone had an enjoyable evening as well!

A Bra for Amy

When my friend Amy found out I was making my own bras she asked if I could do the same for her. Of course I said "heck YES!!!" After a few failed fitting attempts I had her try on a bra I had just made myself using the Queen Elite from Needle Nook (see side bar for link). The band was too big but the cups fit fairly well, being a smidge too big for her, and the wire size was perfect. Using this information I traced off the next smaller cup than what I used. I used the same pattern piece for the underwire and shortened the back to basically make it a size 32 band. I made an ivory colored trial bra and I think it fit her really well. I gave it to her so she could wear it and see how it really fit. She said it was a winner so I made her a "real" bra in black. The fabrics and notions are also from Needle Nook. The stretch lace was some I got in a bundle off Ebay. Here you can see it on my dress form:


The cups look all wonky because the bra doesn't fit my "model". It kinda gives you a better idea of what it looks like than if it was just laying on my cutting table. Trust me, I tried this....

Something else I added was a power bar. This is a little something new. I've read about it in my bra making books but hadn't tried it yet. Power bars are used kind of as an inner sling to provide uplift. This is especially important to us curvy gals. I really like how it turned out and will do this to my own next time. You can see it here:



Okay, sorry for all the technical sewing gobbledygook. I know a lot of you sew bras too so you'll get me. ;-D This is also an attest to how perserverance pays off. I just want to make sure all you budding bra-makers out there (Andrea, I'm talkin' to you!) don't give up! It can get frustrating for sure but the hard work really pays off. I learned a lot by fitting someone else, too. I really enjoyed the process and hope I can do it again. Hey, maybe this is the start of a lucrative career for me. That would be awesome! Spending all day sewing....and playing with pretty fabric and lace... hell YEAH!

It is Alice!

Voting is closed! Thanks to everyone who took the time to vote. I think this will be a fun costume and definitely something different for me. I usually gravitate more towards the witch/vampire genre for Halloween. I have a few custom items to finish up sewing and then I'll get started. I'll be sure to post a picture or two when I'm finished!

Thanks again!
Heather

Looks like it's Alice!

Just 6 more days to vote! From the way it looks here and over on Facebook we're leaning towards Alice, though. I think she'll need to be a little bit naughty and a little bit nice....kinda like me! ;-D I found the cutest shoes, too:

Women's Queen of Hearts Heel

Shared via AddThis

Halloween Help!

I'm having a bit of a dilemma over here. My husband's band has a gig on Halloween night and of course it's also a costume party. I'm having the hardest time trying to figure out what I want to go as. I was thinking of going with Alice in Wonderland and then hubby said why not the Mad Hatter. Grrr.... SO, I'm gonna ask y'all for some help! I put a little poll over in side bar so be sure to vote! It will end October 7th at 12:01 AM Central. I figure that'll give me plenty of time to sew it up. I have this pattern to use:

I'll be lengthening the skirt so it hits at the knee. I want it a little sexy but mid-thigh is a bit much for me. Another option for me is Simpilcity 2547. We have a Wizard of Oz museum here in town so that always works. If you have any other ideas for costumes be sure to leave them in the comments. I'd love to hear what everyone thinks!
Thanks in advance y'all!!!

I know, I'm sorry....

I haven't updated this baby in a super long time! Ugh! I've just been totally bogged down lately with a big custom order and a sick child. She's pretty much well now but was home from school for almost 2 weeks with bronchitis and a throat and sinus infection. Yuck, poor baby! It *almost* turned into pneumonia and thank goodness it did not.

I'm almost finished with the custom order but I ran out of the ribbon so I'm waiting on more of that. I did make some progress on the bra I'm making for my friend Amy (Hi Amy!). The last fitting went really well, I think. We're getting closer to a good fit.

I finished my black and red Danglez bra and a nude Queen Elite some time ago. I think I've finally got a good fit with the QE. The red and black fits good but I think I need to tweek the cups just a tad. There's just something not quite right yet. I might stop sewing bras for myself for just a bit since I've upped my exercise routine and will hopefully start losing weight again. I joined an aqua aerobics class and I still swim in the morning with DH. I love this class though! It's really fun and everyone is sooo nice. It's at our local community college and I was so worried it was going to be full of cute-n-tiny college girls. Well, I'm the youngest by at least 20 years and there are all sizes. Yay!

I have no pictures of the new bras as my camera is sorta jacked up at the moment. It's dying and just needs to be replaced. I can borrow DD's so I can at least post some pics here and at PR.

Well, I better go and get busy. I rearranged my living room yesterday and just have a few more books to put away and need to vacuum under the couch.

*Oh* I have to tell you all that hubby and I just celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary on Sept. 1st! I cannot believe it has been that long, it's gone by so fast. I've been with him since I was 16! How does he put up with me?!

Have a great weekend!