Pillow Covers

This should pop up now and then. I decided that the pillows that came with our living room couches were just too big too be practical. So I will be doing a number of small pillows. These first two pillows were made to fit two pillow forms I already had or had recently purchased. I used some clearance fabrics I saw at Joanne's and zippers I already had and followed an online zipper tutorial to try to hide the zippers. The hiding didn't work too well, but this was my first attempt at hidden zippers, plus the pillow forms were overstuffed while the covers were rather tight, so maybe that is the problem? I'm not sure, but I should have more practice. My plan is to start de-stuffing the existing pillows and using that stuffing to stuff the future pillows I create.

The first signs of insecurity appear

I've re-read my posts and I am already worried how vain and shallow I look. I am concerned that I'm not conveying exactly what it is I want to convey. But rather than give into that and stop the project, I persevere. My last post was about how proud I was to have sold some trinket on etsy. *Ahem* I'll address my worries about THAT post by adding my own comment to it at a later date. But for now I'm going on to my next even more vapid post and will address how shallow I fear I sound in THIS post in another later comment. Anyway, here goes:

I did some shopping today (I enjoy the girly shopping way more than I would like to admit. I love perusing. I love finding a bargain. And as usual my shopping was at an off-price store. But I'm trying to make it something more than a brainless chick shopping trip). Despite being very frugal in what I buy and how often, I still often end up with items I never or rarely wear. Today I bought a few skirts. I'm about 99.9% pants right now, and that won't likely disappear anytime soon, but something about the Mom gig seems to imply I should wear skirts now and then and I enjoy wearing them if they don't restrict my walk or lifestyle (to tight or too short are out of the question).

Both skirts combined cost under $10. I helped justify the purchases becauseI really liked skirt one, and skirt two was so cheap.

Skirt one (this green and yellow number) probably fits as is, but I've decided to make some minor adjustments to the waistline. The fabric is 97% cotton and 3% spandex and has no lining ($9 bucks on clearance if you are wondering). It has a 6 inch yoke around the top which is in one peice in the front half and two peices divided by the zipper in the back (shown). I'm wondering the best way to adjust the skirt in order to make the waist a litte smaller, but keep the hip size about the same. I'll probably check some of my sewing books... maybe a princess seam (is that the right term)? A few little tucks on either side of the zipper in the upper yoke. Then what do I do with the green piping at the top? Ought I remove it, do the seams and then put it back on? (I know I should, I'm just lazy and know my wardrobe enough, that I'll wear the shirt overlapping the hem). Hopefully, I'll get back to you on the progress of this project.

Skirt two is this grey and white striped number. It is 55% linen and 45% rayon shell with a 100% polyester lining. It is a size 1x... way too large as you can see, but at a whopping .49 cents, I decided it was cheaper than buying the fabric alone, so I if I completely screw it up, I can simply turn into into some stuffed animals to sell on etsy for a big profit.

I'm a bit more worried about this one. On initial look, I thought that it had separate pieces for each pleat, but turns out there are two big pieces: front and back and those pleats are sewn in, who knew? (You regular sewists must be laughing at me) So my original plan of slicing off a few of the pleats may or may not work. I'm not sure where to start on this one. But to help myself get going, I will state for the record that I hope to have these in wearable condition (or in the aforementioned stuffed toy sale on etsy) by late spring.

And if anyone has ideas on how to spruce up this skirt or what else it could be done with this style, I'm all ears.

Also, can anyone explain that weird bow-tie like twist of fabric near my outstretched hand? At first I thought it might be an elastic thing for better stretch, but it really is just a small double-twist of fabric on one side of the zipper. This seems really odd to me, but a lot of fabric and or styles in the clearance bin do tend to have those 'special touches.'

Check back with me in Spring/Summer for my progress.

One Small Step, One Large Fuzzy Victory

I am so proud of myself. This is my first etsy sale. OK, It isn't much to look at, but it reflects quite a few of my resolutions for my new life/year. First is to reuse/recycle. This originated as a 'pelt' attached to the outside of some new slippers my parents brought for Thanksgiving. They floated around the house until I finally went to throw them out, feeling guilty for such a waste. But suddenly I realized how they looked like a mini bearskin rug. I trimmed them a bit to define some feet, a tail and a head, and added a few stitches, a couple of knots.... and voila! A mini bear skin rug. On Dec 31, I put it on etsy for a mere $4 (and feeling guilty for charging so much for something I almost threw away, and... ) It sold in minutes! I shipped it off today and am thrilled I turned a throwaway item into something 'useful' for someone and a little extra cash too.

That leads me to my other resolution... following the simpledollar.com blog, I've decided to try various ways of bringing in money. My own little side businesses I can work into my day with my child. This fit perfectly and was definitely worth the time investment and return. No, I don't expect to start turning out thousands of mini bear skin rugs and turn into the doll house rug queen. But I do hope to find ways to turn 'throw aways' into useful items for others and make a few dollars in the process. A win-win all around!

Happy New Year everyone!