The Plush Breakfast Tradition

For some reason, the poor steak doesn't have a face.

Every year, there are several occasions where giving a gift to my husband is appropriate. For example, most husbands have birthdays; then there are days like Valentine's Day, one's anniversaries (dating & engagement & marriage), and Christmas. Before you know it, there are like, ten different celebrations where one is supposed to be giving presents to commemorate the day! However, my husband and I are both fairly low-maintenance people when it comes to gift-giving; I would probably be angry at him if he ever filled our apartment with roses or splurged on a diamond tiara. But! It would also be sad to not give an indication of remembrance for such important milestones! So one of the traditions that has evolved in our relationship is that I give him plush breakfast items as little gifts.

I actually got re-started in sewing when my sister began making plush toys out of fleece. She hand-sewed these little guys for me to decorate my classroom when I first started teaching. Her creations were so ridonkulously cute that I had to try my hand at it. 

From left to right, top to bottom: a camole, a wedge of cheese, a leptin mouse, a The Cheat sponge, a used tissue, and Watson, the self-proclaimed terror of students who don't do their work.

My first plush breakfast item for my husband was a pancake and pat of butter. See, according to the Myers-Briggs test, I'm a Rational, an INTJ. And my T is the letter I most identify with. This has caused issues in my relationships, as most of my friends are F's and don't understand why I have to always be so mean. I, on the other hand, have trouble understanding why they're such touchy-feely-wishy-washy-emotional-wrecks...j/k. But in all seriousness, my husband has really done a lot to help me get in touch with my inner F, buried deep as it may be. It's like when you first take a pat of butter out of the fridge and it's rock hard and you can't spread it on anything, but when you put it on a warm pancake, it slowly melts and starts oozing everywhere. Okay, so maybe the analogy is a bit belaboured, but hey, it was 2008 and I was in the first throes of young love.

This picture was taken with a webcam, long long ago.

Anyway, as time went on we discovered our mutual love of bacon, so for Valentine's Day I made him a pack of plush bacon, along with a list of reasons why he was even better than bacon (in bacon font, no less). This tiny collection eventually gained a slice of toast, steak and eggs, and a mug of coffee.

Well, this year, for his birthday, in memory of our one-year anniversary trip to England, I made him a...well, can you guess what it is?

Some context food to help you out.

That's right! Black pudding! A pretty good resemblance, huh?

In case anyone is interested in how I made it, here's a fake-torial:

1. Cut a 7"x21" rectangle out of black fleece. Fold it right sides facing, hot dog style, and sew the long side closed to make a cylinder. 
2. Flip it right side out, then sew a gathering stitch on one end to close it up. Pull the thread tightly and and tie it off to make the sausage-y end. 
3. Stuff the pudding with poly-fil or scraps of fabric/yarn. Do not actually fill with blood, or oats, or anything edible.
4. Sew another gathering stitch at the open end and tie it off, then stitch the two ends together. 
5. Massage the pudding (now that's a phrase I never thought I would type) a little bit to distribute the stuffing and make it look better now that it's all rounded.
6. Use the lint roller to get the cat hair off. Done!

Happy birthday to my husband! He has made all my dreams come true -- what an enabler! Because of him, I have wall-to-wall bookshelves (I've always wanted to live in a library), a fourposter bed with curtains (so romantic!), an adorable, smooshable cat, and we got to take an amazing trip to England. Haha but besides all the superficial stuff, as I told him this morning when I gave him his "breakfast," he also enables me to be fully myself and encourages me to try new things. Like black pudding.

Sew Weekly: Nautical-Inspired Dress

Look at that hideously uneven facing and waistband. Ugh.

Sigh. What a dressy mess. What a messy dress. I'm actually surprised that there even is a dress to show for all my work, given the issues I had with it. Especially since I hate going back to fix mistakes (this has been a problem my whole life, whether with writing essays, painting, or anything, really); I'd rather just do it right the first time, and if it's not right, too bad. Unfortunately (or fortunately), this approach doesn't work with sewing since if I don't go back to fix my mistakes, oftentimes I won't have a wearable piece of clothing. So I am slowly learning to bite my tongue and just make the corrections. Who would've thought that sewing would turn into character development?

It looks so normal from the front!

And then when I turn around, you see the off-kilter collar and waistband.

Not quite a full circle, but still good enough...

Anyway. This dress is largely unfitted because I wanted it to be a whip-it-up-quickly deal. The bodice is just a T-shape with no darts or seams. Obviously, this only works because I am relatively flat-chested. The collar I "drafted" (in the loosest sense of the word)using Tuppence Ha'penny Vintage's tutorial. It was challenging to think through what the order of construction should be once I got to that point. I've never attached a collar to anything before. I ended up sewing the shoulder seams of the bodice, then sandwiching the collar between the spread-out bodice and the facing. Yes, I made a facing! I'm thinking that they aren't actually that bad -- I probably was just scared away by one bad facing pattern. The waistband is just a rectangle that I measured out and attached, and the circle skirt was drafted using some basic math. I really love the flowiness of circle skirts! I decided not to attach the white bias tape to the bottom since I was mentally so over this dress, but I think it's okay. The hem is just my normal baby hem.

...for some crazy twirling action!

Details:
Fabric used: Thrifted not-quite-navy-colored poly-cotton blend bedsheet, thrifted white bedsheet for collar and waistband.
Notions: Navy invisible zipper, black grosgrain ribbon
Pattern used: None, and it shows :\
Time required: Too long, for an unfitted dress that has no sleeves to set in or darts or any kind of shaping! It took me one evening to cut out all the pieces, another day of sewing and tearing my hair out to assemble, and another evening to bring myself around to ironing and hemming. 
Total cost: ~$5, and $3 of it is the new zipper and ribbon...I do so love using thrifted materials!

Things I've learned: I need to pay more attention to seam allowances, especially when I'm not using a pattern. A quarter of an inch here, an eight of an inch there, and it all adds up to a section being an entire inch off. Always measure and try things on as you go, and don't assume that a tiny mistake won't make a difference. Do it right the first time. Also, a small bust does make bodice-making easier.
Final verdict: Maybe it's the subtle influence of Comic-Con, but this looks a little more costume-y than I'd planned. I think it's still acceptable to wear out in real life, but just barely. Fortunately, my husband likes it. He also swears the back is not all that bad, and only I or another seamstress will notice something so minor...but considering that he's said this about every project I've had issues with, I don't know whether I believe that panacea anymore.

This week's Sew Weekly challenge is to make something western-inspired. While I have the perfect thrifted 70's pattern for that, I don't know if any of my stashed fabric really fits. I may have to pass on this one in the interest of not buying anymore fabric. That doesn't mean, of course, that I don't have other projects planned!

Walnut the sea monster sneaks up on an unsuspecting Mardi Gras rubber duckie.

This is what that silly cat did after the shoot. He burrowed himself into a little wrapping paper cave. Probably embarrassed about compromising his cat integrity by wearing a little paper hat.

The Ondine's Curse Dress

Now, I am aware that the Ondine's Curse is another name for a truly horrible genetic disease (congenital central hypoventilation syndrome), and I'm not trying to make light of the tragedy of that disorder. But truly, sometimes I feel like this nautical-inspired dress has been cursed by a vindictive water nymph. And I'm not even done with it yet! Let's make a list of all the things that have gone wrong, shall we?

1. I accidentally hemmed two(!) of the shoulders instead of the sleeve openings. I ended up cutting the hemmed part off, thereby shortening the back. Which was fine in the except it was a really dumb mistake to make in the first place.
2. I thought I was being smart to use some leftover-from-a-gift-wrapping grosgrain ribbon for the collar trim. Well, it turns out I was short about five inches. So I made a trip out to Yardage Town to get more, only it turns out that while they have 1/4" and 3/8" wide ribbon, this mystery leftover ribbon is 5/16" wide. Which means I just had to buy all new ribbon. So much for being green. 
3. While laying out the bedsheet to cut out the circle skirt, I discovered two random rips, possibly from Walnut, who makes it a habit of sleeping on and digging in my fabric. I had to do some maneuvering to avoid the rips, which meant that the skirt is not actually a full circle. 
4. I attached the white waistband piece without measuring the length of the bodice. I don't know what I was thinking, but I continued with adding the skirt and zipper without trying it all on, leading to trying on an almost finished dress with the waistband hanging around my hips. Thankfully, I'd only basted the zipper on. It wasn't difficult to fix, just time-consuming when I'd already spent too much time on the dress. Also, on second thought, I probably should have interfaced it.
5. Changing the length of the bodice meant changing where the waistband closed, which led me to discover that at the place it closes, the white band is slightly larger on one side. Yaarrrggghh. 
6. After giving up the waistband for lost and attaching the zipper, I found that the two sides of the top of the bodice somehow ended up half an inch off. A quarter of an inch I can deal with, but half?! I ended up taking it in at the top where the facing attached, which resulted in...
7. The facing on one side being much longer than the other. It's on the inside, so nobody will see it, but still! 

And then after all this, I realized that the dress is actually very low-cut. Thankfully, I don't have any cleavage to speak of, so it doesn't look that risque. Also, my shoulders look huge. I guess this is what happens when I don't use a pattern and think that I'll "just whip something up." I think I've learned that I am not at the whipping up stage yet. I don't know enough about how 2D shapes translate to a 3D body to be able to accurately predict what my finished piece will look like, so I end up having to make all these little shoddy adjustments to make it work. Maybe Tim Gunn would be proud, but I'm not. Now, if I were at home, I would run to my mom and have her step in and magically fix everything with her miracle seamstress-ing skills, but I can't do that in San Diego. Well, I suppose at 27 years of age, I'm too old to have someone else swoop in and solve my problems for me. Bother.

I still need to attach a white bias strip at the bottom of the dress and hem it. Knowing how things have been going, I'll probably end up sewing the bottom of the dress closed or something equally horrendous. I've probably just jinxed myself, huh?

If you're reading about my string of mishaps and you've ever had a similar, seemingly-cursed project, please tell me about it so I can feel better :(

Blackcurrant Pastille "Dress"

When I was in elementary school, I used to hate Christmas and the end of school, but not because I was some stick-in-the-mud who hated fun. I used to be painfully shy and the twice-yearly recitals that our piano teacher required us to perform in were like torture for me. Put on pantyhose and then sit in a cold brick room, while your fingers get stiffer and stiffer, waiting for my turn to be the center of attention? No, thank you very much, you can have it back. The one bright note (no pun intended) in these recitals was they were the only time my mom would ever let me have the best candy in the world: blackcurrant pastilles, aka Frutips. Seriously, these are the best things ever. Sweet, complex, blackcurrant chewy goodness, sugar-coated for a pleasing crunchy textural contrast...mmmmm. Anyway. She would secretly pass them to my brother and I as the recital went on, keeping us mollified and enabling us to perform in a sugar-trance.

Close-up of the fabric.

Last week, when I was cleaning up in preparation for my in-laws' visit, I realized just how much random fabric I have stashed away. The problem with storing all my fabric under the bed in large plastic bags is I forget what I have. Well, I found these two knits that just went so well together, but I was thinking that I should make more separates...so I decided that I would go ahead and make a separate top and skirt, but wear them together as a "dress." The white knit of the top has a beautiful texture that totally reminds me of the sugar coat on the pastilles, and the rich purple of the chiffon knit is like the blackcurrant underneath. And, of course, this outfit would be perfectly appropriate for a piano recital (minus the lack of pantyhose).

With such disproportionately small hands, it's a wonder I can even reach an octave.

To make the top, I sketched out a t-shirt shape, then thought that I should make it a bit more finished than I usually make knit tops. Rather than leaving the edges raw, I drew and cut a yoke. I've never done one before, but I think it turned out okay...just don't look too closely at my wonky topstitching! Thankfully, the knit's texture is pretty forgiving. The skirt is just a rectangle folded in half and gathered to a black elastic waistband. Although I've gotten better with sewing on elastic, I still find it exceedingly tricky to keep a straight line. Good thing it's hidden by a belt :\

Unfortunately, it was pretty overcast today, hence the especially bad pictures.

Details:
Fabric: 7/8 yard of poly-cotton knit on top, 1.5 yard unknown fiber content chiffon knit on bottom
Cost: ~$5 for both pieces together
Time: One afternoon!
Things I would've done differently: Drafted looser sleeves and a tighter curve on the top. Used more fabric for the skirt. Unfortunately, it was a remnant from a store in Tucson, so I couldn't go out and get more. 
Things I've learned: I don't like yokes.Trying to attach two oppositely curved pieces together seems like an unnecessary pain. Maybe I'll be scared enough to go give facings another try.
Things I already knew: I suck at sewing straight while trying to keep elastic stretched. Also, I am in love with my black belts that go with everything.

Late Sew Weekly: Chase This Light Paper Bag Skirt

And here I am, with my second Sew Weekly challenge ever, late again! Two weeks ago, the challenge was to sew something inspired by a memorable album cover. I don't know how particularly groundbreaking it is, but I personally LOVE Jimmy Eat World's Chase This Light album. When my sister gave me a copy, I listened to nothing else in my car for at least a month. And that's including hour-long-each-way drives to home and back each weekend and one trip to Sacramento. Sadly, until this challenge, I didn't even know what the album cover looked like, but I was super excited once I saw the beautiful peacock feather.

So. Blah.

As I mentioned before, I've just been getting into this whole feather trend, but haven't found any really appropriate fabric. Well, for this project, I had the perfect refashion in mind. I've had this linen/rayon blend empire-waist sundress from a thrift store ($2!) for a year, but it never looked very flattering. The cut of the dress made it just sort of hang on me, making me look shapeless; the tan linen color just looked blah next to me face...but I loved the fabric's suggestion of a peacock feather pattern. What to do? Obviously, keep the bottom border and turn it into a skirt!

Oops, I forgot to iron it.

I used Adventures in Dressmaking's paper-bag waist skirt tutorial as a refresher to make sure I knew what I was doing, then went ahead and cut off the bodice. I turned down the top a couple inches, sewed my two lines, put in the elastic, and done! I love fast refashions. After looking at it a little more, though, I decided I wanted to add some detail to it that would bring to mind the fabulous gold tones of the album cover. I used some gold thread to outline one of the "feathers" on the skirt, and even though you can't really see it from far away, it makes me happy to know it's there!

 So, check off another Sew Weekly challenge! I suppose I will eventually go back and tackle the famous Grace Kelly Rear Window dress, but I'm more eager to do a nautical-inspired dress, especially since I just picked up some navy blue bedsheets at the thrift store! We'll see if I actually finish it on time, though, since I'm already in the middle of another project.

Team Fortress 2 Sniper Vest

Besides Comic-Con, I've also been busy the last week with my in-laws in town. My husband's parents and younger sister live in the outskirts of Philly, so we don't get to see them too often. Since Pennsylvania isn't exactly known for lots of Asian things, we've spent the last several days going to every Asian thing possible -- Japanese markets, Ranch 99, and Vietnamese markets, as well as eating pho, ramen, Thai food, dim sum, wonton mein, and 粥. I think the only thing we missed out on was Korean food, and that's only because KBBQ is too 熱氣. Anyway, while my husband was at work and my parents-in-law were going nuts over Walnut (he's so cute; how could they not?), Ashley and I worked on a sewing project! Having seen my Bellatrix costume, she had asked me before they arrived if I could help her with a Team Fortress 2 Sniper cosplay. She wanted the vest, and, being a teacher, I would much rather teach someone how to do something than just do it for them. (This is my concession to The Selfish Seamstress' tips for selfish seamstressing.)

We went to Yardage Town and bought dark brown and tan cotton broadcloth, as well as two packages of light gray extra-wide bias tape and a package of heavy duty snaps. We began by drawing a pattern based off of a button-up shirt that she had -- easy, since there were no sleeves involved. I love how fast it is to make patterns for relatively shapeless, loose-fitting costumes. No darts and the construction is so simple! The pocket she sketched based on the character drawing, and then the collar was a simple rectangle the length of the neckline.

Notice the use of the back of wrapping paper and a can of garbanzo beans. This is nothing if not a professional operation.

Measuring out bias tape strips.

The other beautiful thing about making somebody else's clothing is that you can tell them to do the tedious parts themselves. I didn't have to do any of the pattern tracing or fabric cutting, and all those endless seams on bias tape...here! it's your vest! Although, I can see how tricky it must be for parents, trying to make sure that children learn how to do something themselves while resisting the urge to step in and just do it since it will be faster and better managed. Anyway, for having only used a sewing machine a couple times before a long time ago, Ashley did an excellent job with all the topstitching in a straight line on a relatively narrow piece of bias tape. She also put in the pocket snaps herself and attached the collar (straight edge to a curved edge? what a pro!). All I had to do was give directions about what order to sew/iron pieces and then sew the bias tape around the armholes. After three days of sporadic work, we have a vest! And I must say, I think it looks pretty good! She even wore it right away to church; it looks that much like a real vest.

And to think she'd never really sewed before! Amazing!

As a teacher, one of my favorite things is seeing a student learn and succeed and then feel proud of a finished product. As a seamstress (dare I call myself that?), one of my favorite things is thinking through a project and successfully planning how to put a piece of clothing together from scratch. All in all, even though it wasn't sewing for me (me! me! me! See, I'm practicing my Selfish Seamstress mantras), it was a fun and fulfilling project and I'm happy to enable others to sew.

Comic-Con 2011

Lego Harry Potter display! My world, in miniature!

COOOOOOOONNNNN!!! Haha, that looks like I yelled a shortened form of raccoon, not a lengthened form of Con. 

Everyone remembers their first Con. I know I always will, because I just went yesterday for the first time ever. It was really everything wonderful, intense, over-stimulating, and crowded that I thought it would be. For a moment (well, several moment), I felt like I was back in Mong Kok in Hong Kong with all the pushing and shoving and turning around only to find that you almost kissed a stranger. But it was lovely to see all the other fans of various obscure animes and independent artists. The level of dedication of some of the other cosplayers made me slightly embarrassed about my Bellatrix costume. I think I definitely need to make another corset, this time with proper boning and everything. That said, my husband and I have decided that we're going to go next year as a steampunk couple! What is it about steampunk that gets guys actually excited about dressing up? Is it the gears, or the giant gadgets, or the guns? I think it's the guns.

Two of my childhood fandoms in one!

Sadly, we didn't actually get into any panels. This is what happens when all we want to do is see the cast of the Big Bang Theory, but there are already 9,000 people in line. However, we had lots of fun just wandering the exhibition hall floor and seeing all the cool things for sale (I got a sexy d20 t-shirt, a new frosted teal d20, a new set of gold-plated miniature dice, and a Slytherin patch for my cape). And, of course, taking pictures with other cosplayers!

Stormtroopers are hardcore. Wearing that outfit all day can't be easy.

With Kaylee and Jayne!

I found a Severus Snape!

I took pictures with some of the displays as well.

A Lego Captain Jack Sparrow!

Can I take a Tardis to Diagon Alley?

As I was wandering the floor, I also came across the movie costume replica booth, where I found another, real-er, version of my costume. It was really too bad that I had to go with the knee-length skirt for Con, but I didn't want to spend the whole day worrying about people stepping on my skirt. People still recognized me as Bellatrix, though, so I got my fair share of people stopping me to ask for pictures. It's so fun feeling like a mini-celebrity, albeit a C- or D-list one, like the kind that might end up on celebrity apprentice. 

After a whole day of wearing my Bellatrix costume, I think I'm definitely ready to retire it. The wig is kind of annoying and scratchy after a while, and the corset makes it hard to sit on the floor. But it was definitely a fun experience to make and wear! Now I need to get ready for my next cosplay project: The Hunger Games movie!

May the odds be ever in your favor!