This is Killing Me....

Give me one good reason why I should NOT crochet this bikini:

Yeah, I thought that you'd say that. I'll get my hook out...

Here's a link to this project.

It's from Vicki Howell's, Pop Goes Crochet:

Japanese Dress Re-do

Here's the dress that was hanging on the wall in my last post:

minus 16" of width from the skirt;

an inch from the waist lenth (where I had to trim off the ugly snaps);

and three inches from the hem.

Though there's still plenty of room, I like it very much. My daughter told me that I looked like an army nurse. Not sure what that means, but there it is.

Japanese Dress and Slip

I just finished the second of three classes that I'm taking on Japanese sewing.
Here's my first dress:

It's a wrap dress, and it has two snaps inside to keep everything secure.

And I'm proud to say that it's made from a pair of thrifted CURTAINS, which I shamelessly bragged about to my classmates. Anyway, I wanted to show you a picture before I disassembled it, because it's HUGE. It is supposed to be a loose fitting dress, but I could take two friends along with me in this! I like it enough that I'm going to take it apart and take it in the right way.

Here's a slip that can be worn underneath the dress, or over a tee-shirt and leggings:

This was from another thrifted curtain made of cotton voile. I ADORE the bottom of this slip.

I made a mistake by forgetting that the neckline is slightly gathered, so I'm taking this one apart as well to correct it. Am I the only one that never gets it right the first time I sew something?

I'm in love with Japanese pattern books right now. They're really not at all hard to work with once you understand a few basics. The patterns are simple and stylish. I used this book:

I purchased it from this eBay seller (and then ordered two more).

I read a post by Amada over at Little Cumulus and she's also venturing into Japanese sewing. In fact, she's using one of the same books I am. It should be fun to see what she comes up with. She also has some nice links to share if you're interested in learning more about working from these books.

I hope that you have a lovely weekend!

Library Book Bags

This was a simple project, but one of my favorites of the summer. Bags for our library books.

We are hard-core libraryists (Sarah Palin has given me permission to make up that word), but we've never had one place to keep our books and our cards. My girl's bag is made from a blue piece of an IKEA sheet, and some Heather Ross Mendocino scraps.

fabric: Laura Gunn Poppy 

The great thing about these bags are that they are padded with fusible fleece - even in the straps. That's a great feature in the bag that carries things with sharp corners. I used Sandi's book again, Sewing Bits and Pieces: 35 Projects Using Fabric Scraps, as I did in the head scarf project. I added a little pocket to the inside lining for a library card.

I made one for my boy too, but realized at the end that I'd sewed the pocket in sideways, so I had to rip the entire bag apart. I'm good friends with my seam ripper!

Kitschy Summer Head Scarves

I've been a lazy blogger. I have, however, been an excellent reader, napper, popsicle-maker and Twister player. I love summer.

Here's a project for all of us sewing lightweights. Cute, kitschy head scarves.

This project is from Sandi Hendersons new book, Sewing Bits and Pieces: 35 Projects Using Fabric Scraps. I love everything Sandi does and this book is no exception.

The head scarf above is made from the same vintage sheet that I made this dress out of. I made one for me and one for my girl, plus a few to go into the shop. I should be able to post them in a few days.

I have sewing ADD right now. I'm working on three projects for my Japanese sewing class, plus I'm crazily making some great library bags from Sandi's book. Maybe I'll finish them all, maybe I won't...

Hope your days are lazy too!

Memaloose Lake Hike

We had a fun hike yesterday through a beautiful old growth forest. This trail is about 20 miles out of Estacada, Oregon. It's the first full hike we've taken the kids on.

I've hiked with my aunt, uncle and cousin for many years, and I really wanted my kids to experience the fun our little group has when we get out into the woods.

There was so much to marvel over in this beautiful forest, and it was fun to see things through the kids' eyes.

We found a lot of evidence of elusive forest fairies here....

..and lots of streams to cross.

Our destination was a shallow lake filled with Salamanders.

We ate lunch near the lake, and I ate so many of my aunt's homemade goodies that it was a tough hike back to the car.

A memory to treasure.....

Theater Dress Refashion

I'm kicking myself for not having a before picture of this crazy-beautiful dress that I bought at a performing arts garage sale. It was made of this beautiful silk poppy fabric, but like many performance dresses, it was not constructed well and was falling apart when I came across it.

Here's the top I made:

refashioned Eddie Bauer pants
thrifted Mephisto sandals

I'm loving this top now that we finally have some summer in Oregon. The temps were near 100 F today, which was just fine with me.

I used one of my favorite patterns from Diana Rupp's book:

Back Fence Friends

These girls are good friends, but they've never played together without a fence in between them. They remind me of Wilma Flintstone and Betty Rubble on one of their epic gossip sessions.

This a perfectly acceptable arrangement for them, and on nice days they spend hours together.

Sometimes they just stand and talk, or they might pass a ball back and forth over the fence.  I recall a few tunnels and squirt gun fights too. Occasionally, the adults socialize through the fence too.  Zucchini and hand-me-down clothes have passed over the fence.

So I guess that fences can bring people together...

I'm Loving These...

I LOVE summer and everything that comes with it:

Peaches...I made smoothies yesterday and pie today. Perfect!

Goldfinches...there were four at my thistle feeder yesterday.

Marathon Monopoly games...is it wrong to beat your kids?

Meadowsweet...I know that have too much fabric, but I've been coveting this since it came out and it was only $5.50 a yard (quick, there's still some left)!

I hope you're all well. Our family we'll be celebrating Independence Day tomorrow with good food and fireworks.