Your mother and mine

 

Since I started sewing, I’ve had several Japanese co-workers and friends say “Oh, you’ll be a good wife/mother (it varies).”  They cite my ‘skills’ at cooking and sewing, and since I’m really not good at the whole self-abasement aspect of Japanese culture, I tend to gloss over it and quickly tell them I hate cleaning.  There’s only so many times you can say your cooking is disgusting, or your sewing is terrible when clearly you made a delicious cake and pretty awesome Marie Antoinette dress.  I mean, I’m willing to point out the actual flaws in what I do, “Oh, this cake is too heavy.” or “I pleated the fabric badly and the hem is uneven.” But saying something I put effort and time into sucks is just hard for me to do in any type of sincere manner.  But I lost the point here.  What’s the point?  Housewives.

Rendezvous, then I'm through with you.

I’ve been gone for a while; I have been sewing a little bit everyday though, usually a line or two of smocking every night.  I was watching an episode of SG-1 last night and was getting ready to smock a little. Even though I don’t need sewing pins for it, I still keep them near by, just out of habit.  And normally when I sew, even though I have a pin cushion, I usually keep one pin between my lips. Just habit and something I do absentmindedly do.  Well, there I was with a pin in my mouth when I laughed or something.  I don’t exactly remember what I did because the only thing that registered was “Crap!  I just swallowed a pin.  What do I do!?”  I immediately seized up and I think I can feel it in the back of my throat, so I rushed to the bathroom to see if I could somehow see it and reach it.  No dice.  At this moment I hear the skype chime that means someone messaged me.  It’s Radish King.  So I video call her.  “I just, like just now, swallowed a pin!  What do I do?” 

Google, ever the authority on all things tells us I should go to the hospital, or eat a banana.  I opted for the hospital (I didn’t have any bananas anyway.)  So I need to go to the hospital, but this is Japan, and it’s 9:30.  I have no idea what hospital to go to, and anyway, I really would need my supervisor there.  So I need to call my supervisor.  Well crap, I can tell you what I did that day in Japanese.  I don’t know how to say “I accidentally swallowed a pin and sorry, but you could take me to the hospital?”  Radish King suggests calling our friend N, she speaks Japanese very well and if I do a conference call she can speak to my supervisor directly.  So phone calls are made here there and everywhere, but eventually my supervisor understands what happens and she’s on her way to pick me up and take to some hospital, somewhere.  Hmm, I have time enough to post a facebook status, right?   

Angels sang out, in an immaculate chorus

 Quest:  Jessie the yodeling cowgirl from Toy Story Halloween costume.

Outcome: It was a long and hard fight, but the beast is dead.

The wheels on the bus (go round and round)

If you hadn't guessed by my blog's title, I don't like to make samplers. I understand their usefulness and why it's good to practice things to become perfect.  But I just have no patience for that.  Whenever I make something I want the end product to be useful to me.  I thought about studying 2D art in college, but I never want to do still-lifes, or practice techniques. I know that doing so would improve my art, but I dislike doing things just for the sake of doing them.  That's why, rather than do samplers, I learn techniques by starting with small projects, like scarves, or baby dresses, or Marie Antoinette style gowns... yeah, I don't really do too many small projects either.

Stealing young girl's hearts

Quest: Halloween Costume, part III

Outcome:  The victor hasn’t been officially declared. I accomplished half my trials, now there is one more party to go.

He never hung his hat up at Kitty’s place

Quest: Halloween Costume part II

Outcome:  The beast gasps its dying breaths

Miss Kitty, have you ever thought of running away?

Quest: A Halloween costume for both a children’s Halloween Party, and for an adult’s dance party. Part I

Outcome:  The battle is yet ongoing but the beast will be slain. It might be a little messy, but it will be slain.

Rock-a-bye Baby

The Quest: Baby dress, bonnet, & sleeper

Outcome: Victorious! (completed and given away)

)

            Dress and Bonnet

·        lavender striped cotton outer

·        lavender t-shirt fabric lining

·        hand-sewn snaps

·        flat fell seams

·        store-bought cotton ruffle embellishments

·        elastic gathered cuffs

           

            Sleeper

·        striped stretch outer

·        lavender t-shirt fabric inner

·        rivet-style snaps

Voodoo. Who do? You do!

My first foray into making stuffed dolls was I think my second year of college. I had an older friend who was graduating and as a gift I made him two dolls from a favorite show of his.

The other day I met a bear (up in the woods a way up there)

I admit that I was quite the geek my first two years in college and most my Friday nights were spent attending the anime club nothing.  So of course my Halloween costume would be something fitting.  In 2005 I went as a character from a show who wears a bear suit for pajamas.  So  I could style my hair and only the anime club would know I was a character, to everyone else I would be a bear.  Clever, no?  

A Knight's Quest!

Blogging is a new thing for me, so hopefully I won’t fail miserably at it.  I’ve been sewing on and off since a college when I started making costumes and different outfits.  So there’s quite a lot of old projects to post.  I’ve had some triumphs, some defeats, and some draws like the time I wore the dress, but the zipper broke so I sewed myself into it.