Dye - Licious!

It's very well-known that I love to dye things. I have a big collection of various dyes and accessories for any mood that I may have. I've passed this gene on to Khloe, it seems. She's a tye-dyeing freak and will add color to almost anything that sits still long enough. My first project to share is this:

The dress is the Ballet Dress from Dixie DIY. I've seen several versions around the blog world and wanted one for myself - and the pattern is remarkably affordable. I used a white jersey sheet and am very happy with the way this dress feels. It's like a big tee shirt. When I make it again, though, I will lower the waist a couple of inches. To dye it, I accordion-folded it lengthwise and tied it with yarn (because I didn't have big enough rubber bands) and gently squirted blue, purple, and wine colors on. Unfortunately the wine separated, so I put pink over the orangey spots. I really like how it turned out. This second project is all girl child. She watched a couple of tutorials on you tube and did it all herself - I just stood by and watched.

I love how they look. She is planning on adding another layer of the dyes to make them brighter. Didn't she do a good job? I have a couple more white sheets to sew with. Is it crazy to plan my sewing projects with the dyeing in mind? Speaking of projects - I've joined another sewalong! I'm doing the Fall For Cotton with Tasha and Rochelle. My plan is to use one of the patterns from my aunt with some polka dot cotton that I got last spring. When I get my zipper and buttons figured out I'll show you. If you're interested in sewing along, it starts September 1. There's a flickr group to share projects and ask questions. I'm kind of nervous about using a pattern that's nearly 70 years old - what if I mess up the pieces? I plan to trace it out and not cut from the original pieces, but things happen. I'll have to keep reminding myself to take it slow and relax. (I can't figure out how to add the button to my sidebar. When I do, you'll see it top right.) Finally for today, there's another heat wave going on in this part of the country. If it affects you, please try to stay inside and stay hydrated. I want you all to be healthy!

Kind Of Treasure Chest

A few weeks ago my aunt called. After some rounds of phone tag we finally got to talk to each other and she asked if I'd like some vintage patterns that she'd acquired over the years. I said yes, of course. So the next week, after a very crappy day that was just part of a crappy couple of weeks I came home to a box on the porch. Yay, my brain cried. I quickly opened it and found

a whole lot more than I was expecting! I have taken pictures of each one individually (there's over 50) and am slowly but surely putting them on a pinterest board if you'd like to see them or have any information about the year. So far only about a third are there because it's boring but now that school has started I should be able to finish soon. I plan to take pictures of the patterns that I've gotten from etsy, too. Have I mentioned that I hate Google Chrome? Kristen told me where to fix pup-ups but - guess what - this chrome apparently doesn't want to be screwed with and likes pissing me off with pop-ups. I absolutely hate that some websites will only work with some browsers and it does affect what sites I will go to. I also hate disqus. It makes it impossible for me to comment on many blogs that I'd like to comment on. I refuse to sign up for an account because, honestly, I don't see the point of it. Supposedly I can use my twitter account but I can't - it tells me that I have to sign up. I've emailed some bloggers to let them know about the problem - because surely it's not only me. Hopefully disqus will become less of a pain or will disappear. I'm not the only one who feels this way - my tweet about it got many favorites and retweets. Well, since the kids are at school I need to dance around the room a bit and enjoy getting back to my peace and quiet. I'll be back soon with a couple of finished projects and a plan for another sew-along. Have a great day!

What Do You Think?

I finished my Billie Jean dress! It needs a few adjustments - my zipper looks like crap and the armholes are a bit tight, but I like how it turned out. I have an idea for a full-skirt version after I finish up a couple of other projects. The only problem I had was with the skirt. I have short legs and have to shorten every pattern. This one didn't have any "lengthen/shorten here" lines, so I had to wing it - and still had to make my hem two inches, which erased almost all of the back vent. School starts next week! My boy will be a freshman in high school. He almost didn't make it, but he's so happy to be moving on and taking classes of his choosing. The logistics of getting everyone where they need to be will take some getting used to, so I think we'll all be a bit crabby for a week or so. Khloe is a cheerleader now. I plan to take some pictures when the games start so you can see how great she looks. Maybe I'm biased, but I think my girl is gorgeous. She's been getting some grief lately about her eyebrows - she has my full, dark brows and apparently everyone she knows thinks she should wax the hell out of them. I've been encouraging her to keep them the way they are complete with showing her pictures of models...I should get some shots of Brooke Shields and her great early modelling days. (I'm very much a Brooke fan, don't know why that wasn't my first thought!) If you're a friend of hers on facebook or instagram, please help me in my encouragement. Finally for today, do any of you know how to block popups in Google Chrome? I've been looking and can't find the right settings and it's very annoying to be bombarded with fat-loss ads every time I want to write a blog post. That's all for today. Have a good one!

Sewalong Fail

Today is the last day of the Billie Jean sewalong and I am far from done. Part of the problem is that I've been sick. I have rather chronic sinus problems and last week they decided to head into overdrive. My face feels like it's going to explode and I haven't been able to sleep or even move much without feeling sick to my stomach. Unfortunately I've been too broke to go to the doctor and get it taken care of. The other problem is that I'm having a hard time understanding some of the instructions. I've looked at the pictures on her blog and still don't get it. I'm going to have to either find other instructions or finagle something on my own. My dress will get done...it just won't be in time to try for a prize. Drat.