Fall sewing

It never ceases to amaze how when I sit down to sew something kinda hard how easily my sewing comes together.  And when I sew something that could be constructed in my sleep I end up ripping out seam after simple seam.  Why is that?

I have a very simple tunic for Ella that I have given up on (no photo).  It was meant to go with these legging.

The leggings turned out darling even though I was really starting to hate this fabric.  They were no joy to cut out and sew but I love those ruffle legs a bunch.  The tunic is a darling owl print.  Ruffles and owls.  It was going to be cute I tell you.  For now I am going to put the tunic down and walk away. 

My other successful project this week was a pair of cute corduroy winter shorts for Soren.  She loves to wear shorts over thick wool tights or leggings with boots in the winter.  So she requested a pair for back to school.

Excuse my lint!  What a joy these were to sew.  The pattern is from Japanese Pattern Book ISBN 978452904163.  I wouldn't say the pattern was easy to understand but in true Japanese style all the pieces did fit perfectly together.  It just took me a bit to puzzle through the construction. 

There is a problem with them however.  Too short!  I think my fix is going to be to take off the narrow leg binding and add at least a 1.5 inch binding...maybe 2 inches to be safe.  Soren loves them so much that I will make another pair making sure to adjust the length.  I also think this would translate really well into a skirt.  That's on the sewing list too.

Happy Sewing!

Sonja

33 Days~One Colossal Road Trip

So some people might say driving around the country with 3 children and one largish dog is not a vacation.  For me this was not only a vacation but a mental welfare trip.  Yes, there should have been concern for my mental welfare as this first winter living in the Pacific Northwest was brutal.  BRUTAL!!!  I needed sun.  Lots and lots of actually sunny summer.

For the first two weeks my lovely husband was with us as we camped at Yellowstone, explored Mt. Rushmore and then landed safely at his family lake home in Wisconsin.  Much water play, boating and frolicking in the sun ensued.  Jon flew back to Washington to continue funding our travels leaving the rest of us free to further explore our beautiful country.  And yes-oh-yes Ms. America is a beauty indeed. 

 

After leaving Wisconsin the kids, dog and I headed for Taos New Mexico.  We visited my parents and played in the land of enchantment.  Once again, the sun baked us to a dark golden brown as we laid in our mountain stream to cool ourselves.  At this point I hadn't cooked a meal or cleaned a house in a good three weeks.  I was one relaxed mama!

After about 10 days there we packed up again and headed for Colorado to visit with my brothers family in Monument for two nights.  Then we all travelled on to Steamboat Springs for a bit of summer ski town life.  We all fell madly in love with Steamboat.  Can't recommend it enough as a family vacation spot.

 

 

Whew!  Another day and we made it all the way back to Washington.  33 days, 8 mountain passes, thousands of miles, countless adventures, one speeding ticket and I managed to keep all three children alive!  I'll take my mother of the year award now.  Giggle Giggle.