kauricat: (Default)
Tonight I watered the poor lawn. I think all my phlox and three of my hostas are just gone. It's sad. I did not realize that as the sun changed position over the seasons I would end up with quite a bit of sun against one half of the front of the house. Now I know. Next year I'll fill in the other (shady) side with more hostas (the ones there are sooo happy), and I'll find something that likes more burninating sun for the other end.

I think tonight I'm going to take the first steps toward sewing a top hat. Or two. I really need to get off my duff if we're going to have cool stuff for the con I want to attend.

The one thing holding me back was thinking "What if we finally get lucky and I end up pregnant?" Well, even if that happens at this point, I won't be huge and miserable at that point. Maybe miserable, but probably able to fit anything that I sew right now. Totally good to travel, okay to do lots of walking, etc.

So there is no reason to put it off.

My poor grass. It's looking so sad. Better than lots in this town, but still suffering. I soaked it tonight and will do so again tomorrow, maybe as soon as tomorrow morning now that Pres Man is out of school for the Summer (W00T!). We celebrated at Umi tonight and it was delicious.

I am so, so proud of him. He's awesome. He volunteered to go help people he did not even know, for hours and hours, to move their belongings. He did not have to do that; I was careful not to volunteer him. That's just the kind of guy he is.

And now he has found Netflix's Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies, which is the perfect way to end this evening.
kauricat: (steampunk)
Tonight I went to Hobby Lobby, got two of their last cheap plastic baroque mirrors, got some blue Krylon, a decorative metal thingy to hang on the wall (because I had been thinking, "you know what that group of pictures needs? A round thingy above them" and then I saw one), an oval frame to properly hold an oval picture of my parents that has been looking crappy in a rectangular frame since my father died, and some glass beads that were on sale. I think I am going to ask Siliver Dragon to put them together into a necklace for me. They are coppery and greeny and I want something that will go with my someday Copper Steampunk outfit.

Oh, and I got some clear stuff that comes in two tubes, and you mix it together in a disposable cup, and then you put it over stuff that is in something bezeled and voila! You have a lens or something over whatever you had in your bezel dealie. What's the word I'm looking for? Resin? I think so.

I have some of these already and I got them because I was thinking of making something like this. I already have sculpey and eyeballs somewhere.
kauricat: (steampunk)
My boots are here. They fit my feet, but not my legs. As I feared.

At least instead of feeling like a fat cow I instead feel like boots are not made for real legs. I guess that's something.
kauricat: (Default)
Here is the dress as it looked when I handed it off to her:

Read more... )

So. The hand-off has been made, and I am DONE with this project. I was so pleased with the final product and I think Kiwi was too, because she gave me hugs. I hope she gets lots of photo requests at the con (even though she isn't all the fond of having her picture taken!). I think she'll be the belle of the ball.
kauricat: (Default)
It's been a challenging few days. I went home from work sick on Friday morning and didn't feel human again until the next day. I missed D's flower-making party (for her daughter's wedding) and I teared up about that. I really hope that they had fun and got a lot done.

Saturday afternoon I perked up a bit and started working on Kiwi's costume. Putting the facing and trim on took a lot longer than I had hoped. Cut, pin, sew, press, pin, sew, press, hand-stitch....I also fixed the zipper where it had looked a little wonky.

During a break, I chatted with Koganei and, uh, got a little forceful about the necessity of having Kiwi meet me at a local bridal shop so we could acquire a petticoat. I had called them and found out that they were open until 5:30, and they had petticoats on hand (I specifically asked if they had petticoats for sale in their store). Kiwi was due in town around 5:00, so I figured that we would have time to grab a petticoat before they closed.

Koganei met me instead, since Kiwi had had a Very Bad Day and was not going to make it in time. We found out I had been given some bad information; the store only rented petticoats. If we wanted to buy one, they would have to order it (WTF? I'm wondering what the person on the phone thought I had asked). BUT, the rental was only $30 and Koganei paid it. So we departed triumphant.

Pres Man, Kiwi, Koganei, and I went to dinner at Denny's. After that, we were going to have the game, but Kiwi really needed to work on her project for Otakon and I really needed to work on the costume, so we watched HP 6 instead, since Koganei couldn't remember seeing that one. And then we played the party version of Star Trek Scene It. I didn't really play much; I was alternating between the dining room table and the spare room while sewing, but I did manage to get a couple of answers in.

By the end of the night I had finished the neckline, done lots of the interior handsewing, and we tried the dress on over the petticoat. It looked pretty awesome. I marked and cut the cuffs, I marked the top of the place where the "swoop" will go in the skirt, and I marked the hem line all the way around.

Now I need to put trim on the cuffs, cut the swoop, cut off the extra skirt length, add ribbon loops for straps, and finish that hem/add the trim. I'm sure it will take longer than it sounds like it will. But on the plus side, I found out that ironing the nylon trim was a lot easier than I had feared.

I had to lock up the petticoat because as soon as Pie saw it, he tried to eat the netting. Silly cat.

I'm trying to decide if I should go to knitting tonight or not. I kind of want to see how much I can get done on this costume.
kauricat: (sewing)
The Cuttening is complete!

I'm feeling a kind of high from getting it done, and I feel a strong urge to begin sewing, but I'm not going to do that. It's late and even though I feel competent, the likelihood of a mistake is too probable.

But yay! My main goal is accomplished. Tomorrow I can put it together. I hope that will go smoothly, as many times as I have sewn and taken apart the mock-up.

Whoosh!

Jul. 12th, 2011 09:29 pm
kauricat: (sewing)
I am kicking butt and taking names over here. I have a few pieces left to cut out but I'm not worried (anymore) about running out of fabric. It looks like I did a decent job of estimating the yardage! And figuring out my own layout.

I'm so hot, though. Why is cutting out patterns exhausting for me? Maybe because it's an unusual posture so I'm using different muscles. I hear now and then about people who have higher cutting tables and I am jealous. But I'm really just grateful to have a table, because this beats the snot out of cutting on the floor. Especially with my helper. He's been supervising me a bit, but mainly he's disappointed that all the action is happening on top of the table where he can't (legally) get at it. Poor kitty. :P

Tonight I listened to The Chamber of Secrets DVD while I was working. I'm considering putting in Prisoner of Azkaban. I may not finish that one tonight.

We tried a new restaurant tonight (I know! AGAIN!). Smashburger was okay, but not our new favorite or anything. Their iced tea was interesting though. It was good, but there was something different about it. I'm not sure what it was, but I liked it.

Back to the grind!

Go Me

Jul. 11th, 2011 10:47 pm
kauricat: (sewing)
I kind of rocked tonight. I typed up all the instructions for assembling the real dress and I took apart the mock-up making sure all my seam allowances were what they should be after the fittings. So now I have my pattern and my instructions.

Kiwi stopped by tonight as a surprise on her way out of town! The phone rang, it was her, and she said "I'm outside your house!" I was glad to see her.

I saw one of Princess Fluffypant's kittens tonight! He was climbing our small tree in the front yard. I kept expecting him to fall and hurt himself, but he was very lucky and pretty coordinated for a kitten, and he did fine. We did not see any of the rest of the family.

It was SO hot today. It was over 100 degrees when I was driving home. So of course Pres Man and I decided to go walking in Aggieville. We thought we would have dinner at Restaurant A, but they were closed for remodeling. Then we thought we'd walk on up to Restaurant B, but we forgot that they are always closed on Mondays. So THEN we were standing there in the heat trying to make our brains work, which was way too hard, so we just went into the BBQ place that we had never been.

It was a lot different inside than I expected. The sign outside makes it look slicker than the inside actually was.

I found that they had a very nice smoke chicken. You could get a whole, half, or quarter. I chose the quarter and I got a nice big thigh/leg. It came with two sides, too. I do not recommend getting their "rub" on your fries. It sounded good when the waitress suggested it, but their rub has rather a lot of sugar in it. I overcame it by drowning them in ketchup (MOAR SUGAR). I think it was a pretty good experience, and that it was good for us since we don't often try new places (we're working on changing that). The one big detractor was that it was about 82 degrees in there (I could see the thermostat). I mean, that was still way below the outside temp, but it was a little warm.

BUT, at least when we went outside it wasn't a complete shock to hit the heat again. We hiked back to the car and made our way home. In the heat. Seriously, the cars' ACs were having trouble keeping up today.

We watched Alphas tonight and I would probably watch it again. I think it has potential. I don't really like Whistler's character that much; he's too soft. But I think the characters are okay for the most part.

We also watched Warehouse 13 and I actually liked it. Normally I don't have much use for that show, which is a shame since it's kind of steampunky. Maybe the new guy made the difference for me. I don't know. It could also have been that I was working on something at the time, and therefore had less brain to devote to watching. lol

I'm hoping that tomorrow I can get the pieces cut out and start putting them together. I have never done an invisible zipper before, but I have read the instructions and I also found a really neat write-up online, so I am pretty sure I get how it's done.

Today was overall a very good day. I have high hopes for tomorrow as well.
kauricat: (Default)
Tonight I did the pattern for the princess seamed bodice, cut the new pieces, and assembled the bodice. Again.

I have it pinned to the papertape dummy, and I think I'm happy with it. I have pinned in the places that need taken in, and it still looks okay. I will probably sew those seams and then go to bed. Or maybe not. Maybe it would be better to let the pins sit and look at it again tomorrow. My only worry is that Pie might notice the pins and help himself.

Tomorrow I will attach the skirt section and hopefully that won't be too frustrating. It will doubtless need to be taken in as well, but that's not as scary as the bodice.

Today was a pretty good day. My legs are a little sore from working out, but other than that, I felt pretty good.

Tonight I had a short period where I felt like I loved everyone in the world. I've had that feeling before without Wellbutrin, so I cannot say that it's definitely the medicine, but it could be. Interesting.

I am having dry mouth, but if that's the extent of my side effects, that would be awesome. And it's resulting in me drinking more water, so that's great.

Wow. Tomorrow is Thursday already. Usually it seems like short weeks last extra long, but apparently not this time.
kauricat: (Default)
Tonight I am having a kidney stone. Let me say that again for emphasis, in case you are just skimming, I AM HAVING A KIDNEY STONE.

That said, it is not nearly as bad as previous times, and I imagine by tomorrow I'll be fine. I'm not saying it does not hurt, but it is bearable. It comes and goes.

In between the painful times, I have worked on the mock-up. I sewed the new darts, decided I hated them, ripped them out, and remembered I had a curved ruler. I have now drawn princess seams and will be cutting and sewing new front pieces based on that pattern tomorrow.

Pie seems to feel somewhat better tonight. He hasn't fallen completely asleep yet that I have seen, but he seems overall more relaxed. Still not as purry as usual, but less tense.

Some of our stuff arrived today, including my white rub n' buff. I am excited to try making a cameo with it. Someday. When this Princess Rosalina costume is done.

Which, you know, could be this week, if the princess seams make me happy. If they don't, then I'm just going to have to do the underbust the way the original pattern did it. Here is the original pattern:

http://www.simplicity.com/p-3060-misses-costumes.aspx

If you hover your mouse over the picture, it zooms in. You can see how they just did gathers under each breast. I really want to avoid that since it's not right for the costume, but I may have to do it. My skills may not be up to doing it any differently and having it look decent.

I saw my therapist for the first time today. I think we'll get along okay. I nearly cried, but didn't. Good for me.

My chiropractic appointment was good. Everything moved well and I had him thump my sinuses and stretch my left ankle. When I do my stretches that are to prevent fasciitis, one of my ankles won't bend forward as far as the other. It hits something hard that hurts in a way that feels like it needs to pop in. So I'm going to have him work on that the next few times. It's not something that hurts me all the time, just something I notice when I stretch, but I'd still like to get that joint as mobile as possible.

Awww. Pie just fell asleep. He's all twitchy and eye-movey. I'm glad he's finally getting his REM.
kauricat: (sewing)
Last night I got a new pattern before the game. It's Burda 7880. I like it a lot, though I do not understand why they did not arrange the back of the skirt better before they took the picture for the pattern envelope. I have seen different versions of this pattern online and no one has exhibited the uneveness that the pattern shows. Also, no one has said anything about having to fix that. So I think it was just sloppy for that picture.

I had some trouble figuring out the pattern initially. I have only worked with McCall's, Simplicity, etc. Burda's are done somewhat differently. Their pattern layouts are on the actual pattern, not in the instructions. They do not begin separate sets of instructions for each piece; the steps are continuously numbered. They begin at "1" for the first step on the first piece all the way through to the last step on the last piece. That's different.

And they way they list the notions is also strange (to me). I could not figure out what they meant by ring tape, rings for slipping, and rings for sewing.

I think I have it now, though. They mean upholstery/curtain stuff! I think ring tape means the fabric tape you can get for curtains. It has little plastic rings sewn to it at regular intervals. The "rings for sewing" are unbroken plastic rings (a lot like knitting markers, and depending on which are cheaper that's the way I'll go) and "rings for slipping" are also curtain items. They are wire (or maybe plastic, but the ones I have found are wire) that has been bent into a circle, but the ends of the wires stick out a bit so that you can poke them into something and then thread it onto the ring. Kind of like a keyring loop (again, I might use that instead), if you're having trouble imagining it.

The ring tape and other two types of rings are for making the bustled part of the dress. You gather the top skirt in several places using the ring tape, you use a slip-on ring to keep that tape gathered, and then you sew on the unbroken rings to the underskirt and slip the other rings (that are already holding the gathers) onto those rings to hold the overskirt flounces in place.

I may end up doing it differently than that, because it seems like it would be very handy to be able to mix and match this overskirt with something else, and who wants to sew rings on the back of all their skirts?? Also, based on the pictures I found of the "rings for slipping" I think they might be pokey if I sat on them wrong. Ouch! Instead, I might use some strong tape on the underside of the bustled piece and just sew the gathered fabric to it where the rings would have been on the over/underskirt.

I'm seriously considering seeing if I have enough fabric in the copper/patina stuff that I already got to make this instead of the other pattern. You know what's funny? I always really like dark blues/blacks as a color scheme, and when I Googled the new pattern it seemed like nearly everyone had been doing it like that! So I will have to figure out something different. Maybe something in purples, since I have some of my great-grandmother's jewelry in gold/purple (including a very ostentatious purple and white cameo necklace with matching earrings). Or Bronze/Blue.
kauricat: (Default)
Tonight we worked on the lawnmower. We took the gas tank off, emptied it, took the carburetor off, and cleaned it all. I think the gasket was dirty and that this could have been causing issues. We replaced the air filter and cleaned all the gunk off the tank and around that whole area.

When we were done, we filled it up with gas, primed it and pulled the starter. It started right up! Then it kind of started running rough, but Pres Man surmised that maybe it was just working through leftover carb cleaner that we had let into the gas tank. He's going to test drive it tomorrow and see how it does.

Whether it ends up being totally fixed or not, I'm really happy that we finally did it. We are a really good team and I enjoy doing this kind of thing together.

Also, when I ran inside for another tool, I found Pie in the basement near the window that we were working outside. I seriously think he was down there listening to us. lol Poor Kitty. We should have opened a window for him.

Anyway, the lawnmower is done. I also took the mock-up apart. Now it's ready to be fitted again.

And I got fabric for trim. AND some copper Rub n' Buff. It's Spanish copper, so it may be dark, but I'm still pleased about it.

I tried to pick up my new medicine tonight but there was some kind of problem. They had the prescription but needed my doctor to sign off on something specific. I think they wanted to use a generic version and needed her approval for that. So I cannot start taking it tomorrow, but maybe Friday.

I feel really good tonight. I got a lot done.
kauricat: (sewing)
The upper trim is drafted. I'm pretty happy with it. I still have to measure the hem but once that is done I should be able to get the trim fabric.

I'm tempted to begin cutting the real fabric tonight yet, but I worry that I may be more tired than is good for that. After doing all this work to make sure I don't mess up the real thing, best not to take chances.

I Skyped with Mom tonight and that was awesome. I showed her the dress and got her input, which was "keep doing what you're doing."

Tonight I found my new favorite artist. Someone out there is making lullaby versions of all my favorite songs. And some of my non-favorites, but it's still awesome. Okay, a lot of it is just plain wrong, but it really appeals to me right now. I'm tempted to make my nephew a CD of all my favorites. Hee!

I think I may go to bed a little earlier than usual tonight. Maybe it's the lullaby music. :)
kauricat: (Default)
It's been a pretty good day. I've been doing a lot of work on the mock-up and I'm nearly done putting it back together. I'm a little worried that the sleeves won't fit now; I marked them carefully (I THOUGHT) but now that I have altered them I am afraid they'll be too small. But if they are, I can just re-cut unaltered ones and try again.

We were supposed to get storms or maybe just rain today, but I think we are going to miss out. Pres Man watered the grass so if the rain does not manifest we'll still be okay.

Tonight we might be eating out with Kiwi and Koganei before the game. That should be fun.

I'm watching a squirrel running around in our redbud tree. He's pretty cute. Not like The Grumpy Squirrel.

This weekend is the Country Stampede, a country music festival that takes place out at our lake. So far we have not been directly impacted by it, but last night we heard a LOT of sirens. One right after the other. I don't even want to know.

Time to get back to the fabric.
kauricat: (sewing)
I'm awake and really "up" already, which is unusual for me on a Saturday. It's good, since I have lots to do, but I kind of don't trust myself to do things right for some reason. Like maybe I'm actually half asleep and don't realize it.

So I'm starting slow. I made a step-by-step list of everything I need to do, in order, so that I can hopefully not screw up if I slip into zombie mode.

I may also go shopping today; I think I need more tissue paper and a couple of other things.

OMG! My husband just walked in with a plate of bacon, eggs, and toast! PERFECT eggs! He's one of those people who can flip eggs without using a spatula. Amazing man.

So I guess I'll eat my breakfast and get to work. Whee!
kauricat: (sewing)
Tonight Kiwi came by and worked on her really cool project (I cannot really describe what it is because I don't know enough about it, but it is complex and awesome). Meanwhile, I wrapped her in paper tape AGAIN, got a better mold this time, and fitted the mock-up on her. I think I am nearly done with that thing! The last try-on fit decently. I am going to adjust the way the sleeves are shaped to more closely match the character, change one of the skirt panels, and that's it. I'm so pleased.

If the Saturday thing goes well, I could start doing the real thing on Sunday!

It was really nice to have Kiwi over for a movie and crafting (and popcorn!). If her schedule lines up we will probably do more of this. She asked if I had any projects that would need working on for the next month (after getting her dress done). OMG! I have such a list! I will never run out of stuff to work on. Top hats, work shirts, my steampunk outfit, Pres Man's steampunk stuff...

Anyway, it was exactly what I needed this evening. A movie, some popcorn, and some crafting. I'm feeling a lot happier now.

Also, I'm pretty sure something major shifted with our weather around 3:30 and I suddenly felt like I had inhaled swimming pool water. Then my head got amazingly heavy and I felt like it might explode. Strangely, it was not really that painful; it just made me very tired for about half an hour. And I couldn't do math, which was really inconvenient. But I think I'm better now.

I've got stuff scheduled for tomorrow so I should go to bed soon.
kauricat: (sewing)
I'm pretty proud of myself tonight. I have done quite a bit on the mockup. I am nearly ready to reassemble it.

It stormed here again tonight. We got more hail but it still wasn't much. At least we didn't have to water the grass today. :)

My ebay pattern arrived today and the missing page is there! I'm so pleased.

Back to the mock-up. Maybe I can get the bodice reassembled tonight. That would be awesome.
kauricat: (Default)
I'm feeling kind of crappy. It started last night and I thought it was just a "storm coma" coming on. I had already taken some ibuprofen so I did not completely pass out, but my head felt very weird (not painful, just weird) and heavy.

Our grass is looking really good so far. There are some places we'll need to overseed, but overall I am very happy with how it's coming along.

We got some carb cleaner, gloves, and found some instructions so we're probably going to try to fix the lawnmower today.

Last night I tried the mock-up on Kiwi and marked where it will need changes. I was disappointed with the fit, but I DID wrap her up in paper tape so I have a Kiwi2 to work with now. This week I will work on adjusting the dress and hopefully next Saturday we will have a better fitting. And then I can finally put the real thing together.

Kiwi asked about our wedding pictures, so I got out the ones we have and she exclaimed "You were so pretty!" LOL WERE! ;) It was a nice trip down memory lane though. I did love our wedding.

During the game, after my quick-wrapping of Kiwi (who was such a good sport about being taped up in front of an audience during the game), I traced out the top hat pattern. I cannot decide if the bias tape needs to be brown or black. If I can find some that matches the felt really closely, I will get that, but if I cannot find a close match, I am not sure what I will do. Go with black or find an accent color?

We saw The Green Lantern movie on Friday night after a meal of good Mexican food. I really liked the movie. I like Ryan Reynolds anyway, so he was not a detractor for me. I never really understood what the rings did when I was younger, but the way the movie presented it I really liked that concept. After the movie I told Pres Man I could totally be a Green Lantern. Because my will is as strong, my kingdom as great.... lol

Pie's cough seems to have gone away for the most part. I have not heard him cough in several days, though Pres Man said that Pie coughed for him the other day. Pie seems cheerful though and is not doing the "sick cat" hiding thing, so I'm encouraged. He's on the futon beside me right now enjoying the open blinds.

Time to go find some lunch and then tackle the lawnmower. I hope it is not too crazy hot outside.
kauricat: (sewing)
Here are links to the patterns I just got:

Tunic

PJs

Men's Coat

Motoring Ensemble

Ill Arwen

Elizabethan (kinda)

"Tudor"

Undergarments
kauricat: (Default)
Tonight I watched The Crow, finished the mock-up, and found grasslings growing in the yard.

That's a pretty good Wednesday evening.

Of course, now I'm freaking out that the mock-up will be too small, when it's really going to be big (and that's good). I hope that Saturday I can fit it quickly and get it all the way she wants it.

Wow. I am done with something early. Holy crap.

Don't worry, I'm sure I won't make a habit of it.

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