current projects and other news

i haven't made time to post in the last week and a half, but i did finally finish hemming the last dress i was working on, and i used my blind hem foot, which was a first for me! it turned out well, but there were several spots that didn't catch, so i went over it again. i think it looks pretty good, but i haven't worn it yet.

and then i made this top, based on the sewaholic alma, lengthened by 2 inches, with modified sleeves, a lower neckline and contrasting bias binding. it looks cute in the photo, but i haven't worn it either. and the teal bias binding matched the centers of the little dots in the print. i wish the fabric was softer. i do like the print though.

anyway, so i wasn't super pumped about the final results of those projects. they turned out well. but i don't gravitate toward wearing them. if i saw them in a store i wouldn't buy them, probably wouldn't even try them on. so i'm hoping to sew something that i would snatch up if i had seen it in a store. something that i really love and get excited about wearing. am i asking too much???

so i'm using this striped fabric from fabric.com that i almost sent back. i do love the colors of the stripes, but the feel of the fabric was not at all what i expected. that's what happens when you order fabric online and don't know much about fabric. but hey, i'm still learning, well trying to teach myself. the description said ITY knit. i've heard that term mentioned before on other blogs, but still didn't really get it. when i read "knit" i thought soft knit fabric. what i got was slinky fabric that feels like it could almost be a swimsuit.

maybe i should've just made a swimsuit? i should've looked for a cotton knit. anyway it was cheap, so i thought it'll be good to play with. and who knows maybe i'll end up liking it? maybe i'll end up loving it?

so i used a RTW tank top and dress to help draft a dress bodice, tank top style. i decided to just make it easy on myself and made the front and back pieces exactly the same. this fabric is super stretchy. it's also slightly see-through in the white and yellow stripes, so i fully lined it with the same fabric being very careful to match the stripes. this also solved the whole problem of how i'm going to bind the edges. yes i planned that.

i'm super proud of my stripe matching and yes the other side looks just as good =) in that photo the shoulder seams are just pinned, so i need to finish those and then attach and hem the skirt. i have enough fabric that this could be a maxi dress. or i could make it knee length. and i'm running the stripes vertical on the skirt, just for fun. what do you think? maxi dress or knee length?

in other news, we added a new member to the family last saturday! we had been talking about this for awhile, and we finally took the leap... and adopted a dog!

we named her Ella after Ella Fitzgerald (my husband picked it) and she's a rescued dog. she was found lost or abandoned on the side of a highway. at the shelter she was hiding in a corner, scared and shaking. she's a little beagle mix, about 5 years old, they guessed. she's also undergoing heartworm treatment. who knows what else she's been through.

but she's adorable and we're in love with her. she's very sweet, but very shy. she's making small progress every day. here she is curled up in my lap. (note to self: go pee before holding the dog in your lap because after she gets comfortable and falls asleep, you won't want to move her.)