Halloween (almost ready)

Saturday morning I seriously thought the opening line for this was going to be: All the costumes are done and are excellent.

Instead I find myself with this horrid fact, the purple princess costume is nearly done, needing only a final check of the hem (long enough without being too long) and a crown, but the Glenda costume continues to plague me.
Glenda it seems is a snug fitting costume, the size 6 barely fitting my size 6 child. If that were not all, she claims the sleeves "hurt". So now Glenda needs to have the sleeve seams ripped out, sewn back in with less seam allowance and then have bias tape sewn over where the netting and fabric meet--because this I think is the main cause for the "hurt". But my Glenda daughter has a lot more in the way of "sensory issues" than her purple sister. Oh and yes, I still need to put all the appliques on Glenda too--Although I did a test and feel like I could safely glue the stars onto the netting with my hot glue gun (i.e. it didn't melt my swatch). And then I guess there is a crown for that too.
I didn't want to put up pictures until halloween, but on "fitting day" I took a few pictures:



I am having trouble deciding what to do about posting their pictures here, I generally make their pictures friends/family only on flickr (follow the link on a picture and add me as a contact!--If I recognize you I'll add you in the friend category). But after all the talk about the costumes, I feel like I need to post the finished things here. I'll figure something out.

On the knitting front, I'm having a massive case of starteritis, as cold weather is upon us here in Michigan, and I feel the deep need to be warm. I have plans for felted slippers and a sweater, not to mention that someone should slap me for thinking this, but I'd like to knit the kindergarten teacher and her aide a scarf or hat or both for Christmas. Anybody out there have any ideas for good head/shoulder covering type stuff that will look nice but not set me back more than $20 per gift?

more progress

I meant so much to write an entry before a week had elapsed. I even opened a file that I called "yarn store funnies", but I have no idea what I was going to write about.
Well, maybe I was going to write about how I took my girls to the yarn store with me, and these girls who will barely wear the sweater or socks I made for them were insisting I make them hats, socks, and purses. I am also a softee, because I figured I could make them each a felted purse. My pink girl wanted a "real" green. Purple girl insisted on a soft purple. I have LOTS of purple feltable yarn in my stash though, so I only bought green--well that and none "met her expectations about softness."

So when I knit this weekend--Friday through Sunday this is what I managed to get done:


You'll have to trust me that it is purple.

I did manage this week, to get nothing done on Glenda--although I'll be doing some hand sewing tonight during Heros because I found my Thimble. I also managed to get the zipper in on the purple princess. All I have left on that is the sleeves and the crown! (I also got some knitting on my socks done, funny how the debates have been great tv knitting time--and the irony of knitting purple during this debate is not lost of me--since I think most of the country would look purple if we could get every township to be either red or blue depending on how they voted)

We need to go and buy the materials for Glenda's crown , as I have just been informed that the crown is necessary. The crown for this princess is throwing me off--it calls for buckram and then gluing fabric to it--is there any reason I can't use double sided fusible interfacing?

another week

Seriously, after Halloween is over, I promise I'll update more often than once a week. I may even start before that, who knows though, just get through this week has been my mantra for about a month now. My life has just been so crazy busy lately, but after next Saturday it should ease up some.

I did finish something (sort of). I finished one of the purple striped socks I was working on for me.

When it is not on my foot, it looks really weird--and you can kind of tell from the picture that it is a little snug. I din't want to give up the stripey though. I have enough yarn left over on each skein to make some shorter socks and I'll most likely do that with a few more stitches or something. Maybe bigger needles, I don't know... I love the stripe. I've cast on sock number 2 and am almost past the toe.

I still have done nothing on my lace scarf (kindergarten knitting) but am seriously thinking about what it might need-- right now I'm leaning towards slightly larger needles. I'll get back to that as soon as I finish... The costumes!

Glenda: I did most of the appliques, in that you needed to fuse interfaceing to sequin fabric, cut them out then glue sequins along the outside. The pattern calls for: one flower, two butterflies (one in each of two sizes), and 14 stars. The stars are supposed to be "randomly placed on the overskirt" but I used tulle with glitter and designs on them, so I made the executive decision that she only needed 7 stars (I didn't buy enough sequin trim). Sunday when I was away from my machine and had some time on my hands (ahem) I managed to get everythign done. So really they just need to be tacked on the dress. Go me! because it took almost two hours. I do still need to sew (or glue) them on the actual costume.

Purple princess: I started this and got as far as the collar this week before I was stymied by the instruction to "understitch as far as possible." I googled understitching, thought I had the answer (from here by the way) and went downstairs to the machine and stared at it for a while. Eventually I did print out the page, and next time I deal with the sewing room(probably right after posting this), I'll take that with me. It looks really cool and is really starting to look like an actual lcostume, that might actually get done! I am encouraged that the zipper addition (on tap for possibly later this week) will go smoothly too.

weekly update...

Another week has gone by , and I have little to show for it. Well, I did get some sewing done--even though I have no pictures. So, let's do a listing on the projects at hand and see where they are.

Glenda: I have declared Glenda done for the moment. Oh she's not done done, but I do have the zipper in (what a pain that was, let me tell you) and the collar done (ditto). The zipper I actually sewed in 4 times, because unlike a *normal* pattern, you put in the zipper almost last, meaning that I kept sewing it to the bodice. I also stepped on my portable sew table and broke it in three pieces. I did glue gun it back together, but man was I mad at myself.
Glenda, still needs a hem, and some appliqués.

Purple Princess: This is costume #2. I cut out all the pieces this week, and fused the interfacing. I need to read the directions carefully on this one, because I'd like to put in a zipper instead of the lacing and don't want a repeat of the glenda zipper fiasco. After I finish this, I'll start sewing.

Knitting
socks for me: I started a pair of purple striped socks. I did decide that I should use the size 1 needles, and decided to make them a little smaller than the gauge/size said they should be. It fits great (love love love toe up socks), and during the debate this week, I did the heel. Now it looks long and skinny and quite funny. I did start to say they, but I'm only doing one at a time.

Kindergarten scarf: oh my--I set this in my bag so it would be out of the way and did not pick it up all week. Part of my problem is that I think I need to be using larger needles as my result does not look anywhere near the laciness of the picture. I know blocking will help, but right now it would need a LOT of blocking. Am still thinking about how to proceed. Contrary to past events, I really don't want to finish it and then decided to frog it and start over. Speaking of which...

All that yarn: Is now wound into center pull balls and waiting for me to get done sewing and swatch something.

Speaking of sewing... I promised I'd only write until 10 am and that is now.