Home things: Lacey Divider Curtains May 24, 2008

Hello, everyone. I know it’s been ages since my last substantial post, but please do bear with me. My real-world teaching job has bee taking up a big portion of my time and energy these days. Nonetheless, it’s high time I shared with you another of my works. Time and creativity wait for no one, after all. (Yyyes, this is indeed an overdue post. ^_^”)

Teaching the French has its perks. The month of May gives you three reasons to love them even more: (1) Labor Day on May 1st, (2) V-day on May 8th, and (3) bridge leaves. (bridge leaves are applied for when a certain holiday skips a day before or after the weekend. In both cases, May 1 and May 8 fell on Thursdays. To make a bridge leave, you apply for an ordiany leave on the Fridays that follow after it, and voila! Instant 4-day weekend. Sweet. ^_^)

So, one one of those leaves, I decided to do something productive with the 2 yards of embroidered organza waiting in my stash. (Besides, when you keep your hands busy, it gives you less chances to tear out your hair in frustration over something like, say, a very very overdue broadband installation.) See? Crafting is therapeutic.

Re-ribboning the Not-So-Loli skirt. April 7, 2008

Hello again everyone. Do you remember when I had to replace some burnt ribbon? As promised, here’s the happy news about it.

First off, why did the first hem burn in the first place? Well, let’s just say overzealousness can be hazardous sometimes, specially when you’re wielding a hot iron near synthetic ribbons. ^_^”"” It was a very good learning experience, yes it was.

On the upside of things, it was a good as any chance to try out a set of polka-dotted ribbons I bought from a sale at one of my favorite cloth-and-notions shops. (three semi-full rolls at P50.00 each… not a bad deal, in my opinion. ^_~*) and besides — flowery pastel-pink skirt and baby-blue with white polka-dots: how could it possibly go wrong?

After an hour of painstaking looping into s-scrolls and pinning over and over, I’m glad to say it went splendidly.

Three Panels: The Indo-Tile Skirt April 7, 2008

Hello again, everyone. It’s mostly catch-up season for me updating this blog. It seems the projects have been happening quicker than I can blog about them. There’s work to be busy about and the boyfriend to take care of on weekends, so please do bear with me. (and thank you!)

A couple of weeks ago, I had Saturday all to myself: James had to watch over his dad while his family went off to visit their province. It was an opportune time for me to (1) catch up on my sleep, (2) my chores, and (3) my sewing. I wanted to make sure I could get out as I could of this day, so after a meal and some tidying up, I went right to it.

Find for the Day: Nunodoll.com April 2, 2008

Nuno is Japanese for cloth, as the site educates. Runo is the online handle of a talented Japanese lady whose tutorials on doll-making are quite down-to-earth, yet yield amazing results. What I love about her instructions are how simple and clear they are, and that she provides a caveat for aspiring dollmakers: the success of her tutorials will go as far as the user’s patience and diligence do. That, and of course, to just simply follow the instructions.

click on the terry cloth cats and the suede pig to go to their respective tutorials. To view her doll-making site, click here.

The Galaxia Atari Skirt. February 19, 2008

Hello, everyone.

About three weeks ago, I discovered a quite quirky printed patterned Japanese cotton in an unfrequented shop in SM Megamall. I had been waiting for payday to purchase the pretty, and quickly snatched up three yards of this with my boyfriend. He chuckled over the print, and was pretty much surprised to see this.

The Galaxia Print was screaming to be made into a skirt, Oh, yes.

I had realized after the purchase that the material’s airiness proved to be a double-edged sword: while it was indeed lightweight and cool to the legs, I couldn’t help but feel unsure how opaque it would stay in sunlight, or any bright light, for that matter. but we loves the pattern, and make use of it we will.

So, we find ways.

The Not-so-Loli Skirt. February 1, 2008

About a week ago, I began work on some pink cloth meant for my first Lolita skirt. (To those who confuse it with Nabokov novel, please read here and here for the definition of the subculture. Better yet, do peruse the styles in addition for a visual idea.) Unfortunately, at two yards length and a sixty inch width were no match for my hips. I realized too late that at my proportions, this pattern from the egl Livejournal community required more than a mere two yards.

My predicted infuriation (after the measuring and drafting and chalking on, dammit!) won out, and infuriation of this sort always resolves itself in the most efficient way possible: if you can’t beat ‘em, improvise.

So, I brought out one of my reliable skirts, studied it for a moment, and began working. I modified the pattern’s measurement specifications. After six hours, this was the result.