Playing at Being a Graphic Designer

Going off of yesterday's post, I often wonder what my life would be like if, instead of choosing the approved-by-Chinese-parents path of being a science major, I opted instead for something like, say, graphic design. Or costume design. Not that I knew, ten years ago, that I loved these things. Actually, I still don't know if I love these things. After all, I have no idea what a real designer's life is like. I just pretend to be one when the opportunity arises, like last year, when I made my own wedding invitations.

Making maps was so easy with this strategy.

I found this graphic of a couple doing chemistry, which I changed to look like us, in our colors, for our thank you cards.

I really enjoy coming up with a theme and then designing paper goods to match. Even when I was teaching at my first school, some of the projects I was most proud of were the AP Chem, Chemistry, and Biology lab manuals that I wrote. There's a weird pleasure that comes from compiling the best labs for student learning, designing the appropriate diagrams, and putting in thorough appendices.

Anyway, for the last couple of days I've been prepping like mad for my husband's combination birthday and farewell to San Diego party. If you've ever played the Days of Wonder's amazing board game, Ticket to Ride, you know that it is a fantastically fun game -- accessible to all ages, different every time, educational -- that has beautiful graphics. Set at the turn of the 20th century, with a theme of railway travel, it definitely has some steampunk elements. The characters all have an old-timey look, and the borders actually have little gears! This board game is definitely a staple in our marriage (enough so that we named a table at our reception after it); we've had nights where we play five games in a row (it's only about 20 minutes a game with only two players)! So when my husband announced that he wanted a Ticket to Ride-themed event, with a car rally/scavenger hunt to mimic building trains to connect locations, I got super excited about designing the program/booklet that gives people their tasks.  I've been working on it for the last couple of days, and it's coming along swimmingly. It's not quite period-accurate, but it all has that historical feel. I can't wait to have these printed up and handed out to everyone on Sunday! I'm pretty sure most people won't be as excited about or even notice the details that I put in, or how everything coordinates, but it makes me happy inside to know they're there.

In a Sewing Rut

After finishing my Precocious Kid's Art Project Dress, I felt a brief moment of elation that I had 1) sewn my first vintage pattern, and 2) there were no exposed fabric edges in it. That moment quickly left, however, and I tried to figure out why. I'm beginning to think it's because I didn't attempt anything difficult with this dress. For my Ondine's Curse Dress, I had to draft a collar. For my Blackcurrant Pastille Dress, I had to do a yoke in the top. For the Nothing But Blue Skies Dress, I did a weirdo back design and gathered pockets. For my Bellatrix costume, I sewed with leather and put in grommets. For the Betsey Johnson Floral Explosion Dress, I did a hand-picked zipper. So the fact that there were no new techniques, however easy, on this last dress made me feel stale and uninspired as a seamstress.

I realized, in a conversation with a good friend about Strengths Finder, that it's because I'm not learning and being stimulated by new things. Strengths Finder is this quiz that you take to, well, find your strengths. My husband and I originally took it as part of our premarital counseling. Produced by Gallup, it presumably tells you what you do best, what skills come most naturally to you, what makes up the core of who you are. I was skeptical at first, and admittedly I am still a little ticked off that 4 out of 5 of my top strengths seem to be the same thing, but it does more or less fit who I think I am. According to the printout that they spit at you after a hundreds-of-questions-long online quiz, my top five strengths are Input, Learner, Intellection, Individualization, and Deliberative. So, the summary is, I really like collecting knowledge and then thinking about it. Oh, and I see everyone as an individual. But the main thing is that if I'm not learning and assimilating new skills or knowledge, I feel stale. This is why I've dabbled in so many art forms, including, but not limited to, sewing, letterpress, graphic design, upholstery, glass fusing, lampworking, weaving, crocheting, jewelry-making, wood-burning, painting, and drawing. I really want to learn how to do everything in the world. So when I'm not doing new things in sewing, I get bored.

This is why I was so excited when the talented Reana Louise of Curves, Patterns, and Pins announced a new sewing challenge:

Basically, one makes a list of all the techniques that have eluded one in sewing and make a pointed effort to try them. Or something. So here's my list of things to learn/techniques to try:

1. Putting piping into seams
2. Lapped zippers done! 9/21/11
3. Boning done! 10/13/11
4. Strapless bodice done! 10/13/11
5. Peter Pan collar
6. Scalloped edges (whether on the neckline or the hem of a dress)
7. Horsehair braid in a circle skirt
8. Shirring done! 10/17/11
9. Grosgrain waist stay done! 9/21/11
10. Insetting lace
11. Fish-eye darts
12. Pleats
13. Pintucks done! 12/22/11
14. Draping
15. Working with sheers, like chiffon
16. Welt pockets
17. Making a crinoline
18. Bias-cutting to make chevrons
19. Making my own bias tape
20. Quilting

I think I'll end it at an even twenty. There are still so many other things that I want to do that aren't sewing-related, like build furniture and do brass-etching, but having a concrete list helps focus my brain. Most of the time I already feel like jack of all trades, master of none, but this will hopefully help me be slightly more a master (mistress?) of sewing, given that this is the longest I've ever been interested in an art form. Too bad there isn't a job that involves learning just a little bit of everything, but not necessarily becoming an expert in it. Sometimes (like when I'm trying to decide what to do with my life), it seems there's no room in today's society anymore for Renaissance souls. Being a science teacher lets you cover some of it, but not entirely enough for my liking. I can't wait to homeschool my imaginary kids so that I can teach them everything and anything, whenever.

Modified caption for Hyperbole and a Half's brilliant drawing.

The Precocious Kid's Art Project Dress

Husband and I got married last summer, a little before the school year began. As soon as they found out I was a newlywed, all my freshmen girls wanted to know if I was going to have kids right way. Apparently they love babies, and were super eager for me to have one for them to ooh and aah over. I, on the other hand, was like "Oh, no, we're not planning on having any babies. We'll just have five cats." They thought I was serious, gullible things that they are; there was a great outcry, and they immediately began trying to convince me why babies are awesome. You know, they make these adorable wailing noises, create beautiful brown poop, have crusty bits coming out of their noses when they're sick, and need help to do everything. Ummm, no thanks. As I said to my AP Biology kids, they're just like little parasites feeding off of the poor host, i.e. mom.

Don't I look thrilled about the idea of a baby?

No, but really, all joking aside, we're just not ready for babies yet. Financially or emotionally. I've never been one of those girls who gushes over babies and their cuteness (usually, the best I can come up with is that they have incredibly large cheeks), and currently Walnut is the only baby we need. So the closest I'm getting to those tiniest humans, at least for now, is this dress. The fabric is, for once, not a thrifted bedsheet OR a remnant; I bought it new and had it cut at IKEA because I loved how cheerful it is. It looks like a kid took a bunch of crayons and started drawing all sorts of flowers, albeit a really artistically-advanced kid because everything looks really pretty and perfect, and I'm pretty sure most of the kids I know couldn't have produced it. Anyway, the fabric is 100% cotton, so it was pleasant to sew with and easy to press. Unfortunately, I only bought 2 yards of it a year ago, and it appears to be sold out, so things got a little tricky during the dress-making.

I decided to finally break into one of the vintage patterns that I picked up at the thrift store a month ago, a size 10 Vogue Patterns Misses' "fitted and flared, wrap sleeveless dress." It's marked as 9458, but I can't find any references on the pattern or online to the date of the pattern. Given that it's only one size, and patterns began to be dated in the 1980s, I'm guessing it's from somewhere in the 1970s? I was super excited to be sewing my first vintage pattern, especially when I opened up the envelope and saw how different patterns looked back then! I'm sure this is no surprise to seamstresses who are used to such things, but I was floored by the fact that the pattern ONLY COMES IN ONE SIZE.

Click to see larger pic of the measurements.

For someone who's only ever seen 4-12 or 6-10 or 14-20, it's just weird to think that I had better choose the right size right away, because there's no other option in the envelope! I was hesitant when I bought it, since I wasn't sure about being a size 10 -- the body measurements given on the back of the envelope are definitely smaller than mine -- but I figured I usually cut patterns meant for those measurements and they turn out fine because of the ease that pattern-makers think I want, but I don't actually.

The pattern envelope is pretty beat up, but the pieces inside are all intact and already cut out. There was one missing piece, the front bodice, but based on the layout drawings it looks pretty similar to the back piece, so I was able to recreate it fairly well. The pattern pieces all have these cute machine foot icons indicating where to stitch, as well as lines marked for topstitching. The instruction sheets were pretty clear, and I actually followed them this time since I've never made a dress like this before! I was also pleasantly surprised to find an insert that you can use to subscribe to Vogue Patterns Magazine! I love seeing these snippets of vintage life (and pricing!).

Click to read 1970s ad copy.

Amazing! This form itself is worth FOUR Jack in the Box tacos!

Cutting out the pattern pieces was a little tricky, since, as I said, I only had 2 yards of fabric and the pattern calls for 2.5 yards. I ended up cutting the lining from a white sheet instead of the fashion fabric, as well as making the back skirt piece about four inches narrower and cutting the super long front waistband in some navy leftover from the Ondine's Curse Dress. I think the darker fabric ends up working really well, actually. The dress went together really easily and quickly, and I was the most careful I've ever been while topstitching. I must say, I really love how simple and yet ingenuous this dress is! Also, I'm enamored with the idea of a well-fitting dress with no zipper. Even though I think I'm pretty decent with zippers now (a far cry from a year ago, when putting in an actually invisible invisible zipper was number one on my list of things to master), I still don't like them.

A look at how this dress works. I love how the snaps look!

Giant Carrot Guy models the dress to show how the back piece wraps around.

Putting on the dress is a little weird, since there are no zippers. The whole thing looks like two aprons attached at the neck-ties. The back "apron" buttons in the front (I used metallic snaps, because I've been dying to use some since finding Make It-Love It's tutorial), then the front "apron" comes down over it and ties at the back. The side pieces are low, so I can't wear a normal bra with this dress, unfortunately -- sticky chicken breasts it is! The tie is oddly short, not nearly long enough for a bow, which I guess is okay.

This is how it looks with the front piece down and wrapped and tied.

This is the kind of dress where I am definitely wearing a slip, just in case the wrap decides to unwrap.

All in all, this dress was a fascinating piece of history to construct, and definitely the most unique dress I've made so far! I love the shape of the skirt and the cheeriness of the fabric. At about $12 for the fabric, it's a little more expensive than my usual me-made dresses, but still better than buying ready-made.

Here I am, copying the poses from the envelope. Walnut is significantly heavier and squirmier than a basket of flowers, so I had to use my other arm. Also, that scarf really does not match.

Last Plushie Post, Promise (at least for a while)

Just saw this image from the latest IKEA catalog:

I just wanted to say that before IKEA's TORVA came along, I already had the idea of making a giant carrot friend. For some reason, the last summer before college was designated as the summer of carrot obsession. Friends gave me carrot pens and scissors; while in China with my mom I got a bunch of carrot magnets...all of it culminating in my making a giant stuffed carrot.

With Walnut, for an idea of the scale.

I didn't really know what I was doing at the time, so I cut a rough carrot shape out of cheap orange acrylic felt and sewed it together. After stuffing it, I had no idea how to attach the greens. I ran to my mom, who very patiently hand-sewed the top on invisibly. I'm ever so grateful to her, because I'm sure that as a very busy mom with three kids and full-time job, she had better things to do than attach a carrot top for her don't-you-have-better-things-to-do-considering-you're-going-to-college-in-a-few-weeks daughter. Anyway, Giant Carrot Guy was my body pillow all throughout college, and now he's relegated to modeling my failed Sorbetto in the corner of the sewing room.

I really do love IKEA's designs (I actually have quite a few things from them, and an inordinate amount from the kid's section, considering my age), and they can't be blamed for copying my idea of a large carrot friend, considering that this is his premiere online! I have a soft spot for their fabrics (even if my main fabric source of choice is thrifted bedsheets), and my current dressmaking project is actually using the GRONSKA BLOM from a couple years ago.

One more plushie picture, just because Walnut is adorable:

Fortunately, he won't fit into the whale shark's mouth pouch.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The Boston Phoenix says it best:

It's finally here. People count down to this for months. As soon as the weather starts to change, it's fresh in everyone's minds -- the ritual, the camaraderie, the friends and families gathering together, all to celebrate overlarge cartilaginous fish with rows and rows of flesh-ripping teeth. Yes, ladies and gentlemen: it's Shark Week. It's one of those television events that can immobilize the entire country slack-jawed in front of the television set -- sorta like the Super Bowl, but it lasts for six whole days and is somewhat educational.

As a biology major and teacher, I have always loved sharks...their awesome immune systems, their sweet hydrodynamic bodies, notorious inability to breathe if they stop swimming, ridiculous amount of teeth, and sandpaper skin...beautiful. I would never, of course, want to actually encounter one, but they're fun to admire from afar! Very very far.

Anyway, we don't have cable in our apartment, so instead of watching sharks on TV, I opted to celebrate this geekiest of weeks by making a shark plushie. After making a measly black sausage plushie, I felt the itch to make something larger. Grander. More awe-inspiring. At first, I was going to make the ever-popular great white. After all, I do have plenty of gray fleece in my fabric stash. As I was looking through my bags and bins, though, I came across the perfect fabric for making everyone's favorite lovable giant: the largest fish in the world, the whale shark.

[NOTE: Did you notice the high percentage of sentences starting with "A" in that paragraph above? I didn't even do it on purpose, it just happened!]

I feel like whale sharks get the short end of the stick. Everyone gushes about great whites (how could you not? they're great!), tiger sharks are the most dangerous, thresher sharks have that ridiculously amazing tail, even the innocuous-sounding nurse shark is actually able to breathe while staying stationary by using buccal pumps. But whale sharks? They're just large. And they don't even hunt down their fishy prey; they eat plankton. That makes them kind of cute in my mind, just swimming along, minding their own business, nomming through life. Perfect for making into a plushie!

Now, if I'd been a proper scientist, instead of way too excited about this project, I would have done some research and realized that 1) the dorsal fin is much too tall, and 2) it should be set further back on the head. And if I'd been less lazy, I would have put in gills and pelvic and anal fins. Ehh...I'll just use it as a teachable object when I have kids one day, a sort of How Many Things Can You Spot That Are Wrong With This Shark toy. In the meantime, I am enjoying his large, silly face.

He has the same expression as his real-life counterpart!

Look! He's smiling at you! I made it so that I could hide things inside his mouth.

I can also pull out his mouth so that it looks like he's sticking his tongue out.

When I was little, I came up with all sorts of extra-creative names for stuffed animals, like (are you ready for this?) Bunbuns for a bunny, Turtie for a turtle, Cowkie for a cow, and the real winner, Snowie for a snow-white horse. So, going by those standards, would this whale shark be Whale-y? Sharkie? Whale-Sharkie? Or...how about...Spottie? Yikes. Sounds like he has a bad case of acne.

Un-scientifically eating toast. Sorry, I don't have a plankton plushie for you dude.

I ended up having to take all his pictures on our bed because it's the only well-lit place big enough for him. At least our sheets are kind of ocean-colored. It reminds me of how my brother and I would always sail our Lego ships on his bed because he had blue sheets because he was a boy.

Anyway, now that I've gotten the plushie bug out of my system, it's back to dressmaking! Out of curiosity, though, would anyone actually be interested in a pattern/fake-torial for making this guy?

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.