This Weekend's Project--Yippeeee!

I'm really excited about this weekend's project, so before we get to it, let me show you some stuff about which I am not quite so thrilled. First, that linen jacket. To refresh your memory, should you have one (unlike those of us who do not), it looked like this on Thursday:

Matronly and hideous. I removed the pockets, ironed them flat, rounded them off, and sewed them on with raw edges. Now I'll stitch over them. I had the idea to do a donkey on the back. For some reason, I think of this as a "barn coat," although it is not. That's what it reminds me of--some Barn Coat thing from LL Bean or something. And in hearing that name in my head, I thought of a donkey. I have a stuffed donkey from when I was a baby and a carved wooden donkey from when I was in college, so I like donkeys. And I wanted a simple sketch to turn into an appliqué. Like a kid's drawing. Loose and sketchy.

That is, as some of you may have guessed, so, so hard for me. My donkey turned out looking like nothing so much as an ad for the Democrats, and as soon as I ironed it on, I hated it. Did you get that? "As soon as I ironed it on"? Because, yes, indeed: I got that far before I realized how horrid it was and stopped and asked myself, "What were you THINKING? Goodlordalmight, woman!"

I peeled it off in a fit of pique. Well, actually, when I reached up onto the shelf and knocked down something I finished months ago but haven't done anything with in the way of figuring out a way to hang it on the wall. For about five minutes I thought this would make an excellent appliqué until good sense asserted itself and reminded me that it's padded with acrylic felt that is *not* going to hold up in the wash, and that it's thick and bulky and stitching it in place would be a pain. Literally. And attaching it with snaps is not going to happen--been there, hated that. But this is more what I had in mind, never mind that I had completely forgotten I had done this and was quite amazed and charmed to see it. Such a cool thing; I wonder where it came from? Gah.

So, by now thoroughly disgusted, I did this, below. I had to do something because I couldn't removed the residue from the ironed-on Donkey From Hell.  I picked out some floss and then just set the whole tight-assed, nuclear, matronly thing off to the side until I feel better about it. I love the jacket--it's comfortable, it looks good. It's just so not me in its present incarnation.

I'm hoping some boro-style stitching will save it.

So I decided to go work on something totally loose, something I couldn't control or obsess over. But wait! First, here's something I told you about a while back: dyed suede. This little shrug was the same color as its lining, and now look at it. I LOVE this!

I have no idea if I can fix it up so I like it enough to wear it, but that's OK: it was given to me to play with, and I'll take it back and show them what I did with it. Even people who have no desire to alter their clothes are interested in seeing what's possible. And it's So Great knowing suede will take this dye (Procion MX from DharmaTrading.com).

And then here's something I spent way, way, WAY too much time on this week. I am, in case I've never mentioned it, Snap Impaired. I have more trouble than should be humanly possible sewing on snaps. The placement, the sewing, puckering, knots. This started out as a wrap-around with ties, a style I do not like. Especially in windy West Texas, where it could so easily blow apart. I have altered several wrap skirts, though, and it's a color I don't have in my other skirts, and it was less than $2, so I got it. And I started with the snaps, and I swear I had to take every single one off at least once. And it's still wonky. But I give up. It will have to do just like it is:

OK. So my current Weekend Project started with this, a pile of t-shirts.

The one on the left is one I dyed a couple years ago and wore--I had half a dozen or so and wore them all for a while. They're kind of short to wear with jeans, though. Kind of stomach-baring, which is OK if you're 21 but kind of tacky if you're not, even if your stomach is covered with a lovely floral tattoo. Still tacky. The pile on the right is leftovers--from the Alabama Chanin skirt and other stuff. Some were bought (79 cents at Goodwill on Sunday) the way they are and some were dyed.

Here's where I am right this minute:

 I am totally loving this project, even though I have no idea if I'll love the results--I keep thinking "figure skating costume," even though The EGE scoffs and says it's not at all. It's loose--no measuring--it's all by hand (no fighting the machine), it's organic--I cut and trim and piece as I go. Just totally good for Anal-Retentive Me.

As you can see, I have a TON more stitching to do, and this is when I reallyreallyreally wish for a group of y'all to meet me at Starbucks. We'd sit around doing whatever handwork we do, talking and laughing and sharing ideas and inspiration. We buy lots of coffee so we'd be welcome (unlike those people who come in and get a cup of water and use the internet for an hour). Maybe someone who likes to write would take notes, capturing the ideas for us. Maybe someone would take photos or video, if that were their thang. But whatever, it would be fabulous, and we'd get a TON of stuff done. As it is, I'm at home, and I get distracted:  things to do (pre-washing a load of stuff to be dyed), cats to wrangle (they like to lie by me when I'm stitching, but when I get up, they take over the warm spot, so I have to keep moving all my stuff from room to room to find a place to sit where I have enough light--there's one in every room, but moving is a pain; I am loathe to move them, though, once they're settled in, even if they did steal my spot; we also had to clip nails this morning, always a chore: Clarice is getting better but absolutely loathes having the fur under her tail trimmed--we have to try to help her keep clean, and her fur is so long she has a really hard (and comical) time trying to bathe. Her fur is so long she has to tilt her head all the way back when she's bathing, and even then sometimes she can't get it off her tongue and we have to help her. I've never seen a cat with fur this long).

Anyway--you get the point. When I'm at home, there's always something else to do. Like this right now: sitting at the computer instead of stitching. So when y'all get to Starbucks, someone give me a call--I'll come meet you, and we'll get busy!

XO