The store is OPEN.

The first group of my convertible necklace/bracelets have made their way to my etsy store. There are more to come (along with other random bits when they come about).

BrocadeLion.etsy.com

The twins from my kitchen window.

Had to come to work early this morning. As a consolation, I got to watch the doe and her twins from my kitchen window for a good 10 minutes. They're getting so big!

Okay then.

I've given it a couple of days now, and based on the combined experiences of my first art festival and the previous blog post here, I at least have an iron-clad response when people squee at me "you should SELL your stuff!" -- not only can I not sell anything, I can't give the shit away.

Heart It Forward

Now that I'm almost caught up after the last couple of weeks, I can finally post about this.

A couple of weeks ago, awesome plexi artist Tonia Davenport made a Heart It Forward post on her blog. This is her take on feeding a circle of kindness and giving, wherein she makes available an object she has made, free for the taking to the first person who pledges to do the same. My near-obsessive RSSing paid off, and I was the first to lay claim to this fantastic "bliss" bracelet.

In less than a week, it arrived at my door, packaged almost as beautifully as the bracelet itself. I am always taken by such great attention to detail. I've worn the bracelet a few times already, and it's absolutely weightless. It's already become one of my favorite things.

Now it's my turn to play my part in this hopeful little cycle. I initially wanted to make something as beautiful as Tonia's, but I'm just a person without all that much pretty in her. So instead, I'll go the SFLAG way.

This bracelet is a duplicate of one I made for myself during the (slightly frazzled) weeks I was producing necklaces for my first-ever attempt at selling. I put mine on more than a week ago and haven't removed it once since. It's clunky, contrasty, a bit noisy, and seemingly indestructible -- in other words... me.

I will happily pass along the spotless and new rendition of this bracelet to the first person who comments -- publicly, as if -- on this post and agrees to heart something forward him- or herself. That would be, of course, anything your little heart desires.

The PAF has been postponed...

The People's Art Festival at the Russell has been postponed due to weather. The new date is Sunday September 21 -- that's next week, people. Another week for me to stress out. Woo!

More deets on the People's Art Festival.

I was at work from 9am to 2.30am yesterday, then I got right back at it at 9am this morning. It wasn't until just now that I could finally eat a sammich and relax for a second... which gave me the opportunity, of course, to stress out again about the art festival this Saturday. Well, stress probably isn't exactly the right term. Let's just say nerve up. I'm a little nervous, just because I've never done this before. But I've been to thousands of similar events and I have no doubt that the people I'm sharing space with are going to be fun and friendly and excellent and all that good stuff.

Here's the official website for the People's Art Fair.

We are going to be in booth 74, which looks like a pretty good location, if anyone wants to come say hello. I'm planning on getting there at set up time (10am), but I am probably going to leave by 2pm (or whenever I sell out, whichever happens first -- lookit me, I'm an optimist!). I'm very happy to say I just got a pair of tickets for the big PBR event in Grand Rapids, which is also on Saturday, including VIP party passes. Yes, I'm serious, stop laughing! Unfortunately, I don't have time to make a dress out of this fabric. Wait, maybe that's a good thing.

People's Art Festival

I'm abnormally busy lately, but if I don't post this now, I won't do it until after the Festival.

I was invited to participate in the People's Art Festival at the Russell Industrial Center this Saturday. This Saturday! The 13th!

I've never participated in anything like this. I never sell my stuff. But really, it was an offer I'd be stupid to refuse. So I did something else I almost never do -- I produced en masse. That's not entirely accurate because ultimately almost every one of these necklaces is different in some way, but there is an undeniable theme. A theme that doesn't photograph well, clearly. They are large, colorful, chunky necklaces that I really like -- the whole series started off as a green and black deal I made for myself. I've test driven a couple of them and have gotten very positive (unsolicited) responses to them every time.

I wish I had time to take more/better photographs, and hopefully I will before I go to the festival itself. If nothing else, anything that doesn't sell will, I'm sure, get a loving photo session on its own (to go straight to etsy). There is one other picture in my flickr stream that I can't fiddle with to post right now. More later.

On love, connectedness and the skull cha-cha.

I saw my grandma this weekend and was the happy recipient of some Grandma Stash.

Gram is a stitcher/quilter/beader/crafter from way back. I'm sure when she started learning these things from her momma, my Granny Daisy, it wasn't "crafting," the leisurely activity as we think of it today. It was Women's Work. It was necessary and important. And normal. I don't know my father's family, and it's easy to credit my grandmother -- the Taylor bloodline -- for any bit of creativity in me. Any drive to make. In any case, if there's a genetic component, it seems to have skipped my mother. And all my siblings. I do have a maternal aunt, though, who is never ever without some fiddly project in her lap.

Grandma has given me some nice fabric recently which has integrated into my own stash, but this trip was all about beads. Using small beads can be a challenge in the best of times, and along with the creativity, I'm quite certain I've inherited my grandma's arthritis. The fingers of my right hand have never been straight, and they certainly aren't getting any better. (At least I don't need my knees for beadweaving.) When Gram let me at her bead supplies cabinet, I was hoping to find some more of the old glass that she'd held on to since Daisy's time. There was some of that, but also, wonderfully, dozens of tubes of beautifully varied seed beads.

Seed beads are either the love or the bane of your beading hobbyist. Working with seed beads is actually what started me "crafting" in earnest. I love large square stitched pieces, with the geometric precision of woven cloth and the sheen and endless color options of glass. In my early beadweaving days -- already in my 30s -- I would sit in bead guild gatherings with my little tackle box of colors, doing my OCD best to get the cheap and sloppy Czech 11/0s to align properly, unable to justify the expense of the hyper-precise Japanese beauties. The other guild members, almost uniformly over 60, would peek across my work and gawp, "How can you WORK with those teeny things!" "It's not easy," I'd tell them, "but I'm going to keep doing it while I can."

I still can, but haven't lately. I've fallen to the allure of the quicker gratification of the stringing project. Or, actually, I've become more focused on apparel sewing for the past couple of years. That may seem a strange choice seeing as I have, at this moment, more than 300 linear feet of mostly ready-to-wear clothing currently hanging in my house. (Yes, I did just measure.) The bigger joke there is that I refer to my dressing room as the Monument to My Self-Loathing.

After getting home Sunday night with my scooter trunk filled to the brim with beads and findings and fabric swatches and sewing widgets and books, I spent a good couple of hours sifting through one of Gram's old tackle boxes, filled with semi-sorted beads of all types. And what a great way to spend a Sunday night, so close to Zen. Shall I sort by color? Size? Shape? Material? Ultimately I stuck with the system Grandma had already started and went by color, moving the groupings from their little plastic cells into the small clear zipper bags that I prefer (a fistful of which she had also sent home with me).

As a rule, I don't feel connected to much. I don't think, in my life, I've ever really understood the concept of home. On those rare occasions when I can talk to my grandma, though, in a room full of people who are related to all of us, and we can speak in words and terms and concepts that no one else really seems to understand (or care to), I get a little bit of a notion of what it's like to "belong" to something. And when she tells me that I'm a good granddaughter -- which I'm not -- and that she's proud of me -- which I have no reason to disbelieve, but still manage to -- I kind of get that this is what it feels like to be loved.

Anyway. One of the things Grandma gave me was a cha-cha bracelet blank. I was surprised she had one at all; it just seemed anachronistically modern, especially when I thought of the one bracelet I've made with the same blank. She, of course, said, "Take it, take it!" I tried describing to her the version I made, a few years ago now, and she just made faces at me.

What can I say. Of all the things I inherited from the Taylor bloodline, my fascination with skulls was apparently not among them.

A moment.

I had a long walk through my neighborhood tonight, under the threat of very large and flashing storm clouds. I knew there was a high chance that I'd wind up under a downpour, but it seemed worth it to meander through the cool but heavy darkness, surrounded by the flicker of fireflies and the booms of toads. I never exactly forget how beautiful my neighborhood is, but there are definitely times I ... feel it more than others. Those times when I'm a little awed that this is my neighborhood. I live here. I made this happen. It makes me simultaneously proud and lonely in a way I can't describe.

After (silently but literally) counting off the 150 paces from my driveway entrance to my doorstep, I made straight for my bath without turning on any lights. When I started the water, I realized it was probably going to be a long one, so I launched a playlist I hadn't listened to in a long while. I settled in and, thanks to the iPhone Remote application, kept a casual eye on what was playing. You know it's a good playlist when every song makes you think "ooh I should play this whole album. I'll wait to see what's next. Ooh I should play this whole album!"

I was several songs in when a long, low intro started to spool out. I knew it was something I liked, something I hadn't heard in a long time. The very moment my mind was grasping the tune -- "Tinseltown in the Rain" by the Blue Nile -- fat raindrops started plinking down on the metal awning over my back porch, next to my open bathroom window, as if the word "rain" in my head had invoked the waiting shower. I laughed, really taken by the moment in a rare and wonderful way.

Blueberry Bomb, or Why I Didn't Miss My Prom

On Saturday, my friend Michelle threw a 1980s prom at Small's. It was a star-studded, gala affair. Well, some of us were more gala than others.

I'm always up for a good costuming, but believe it or not, I did NOT make myself a full formal in the 24 hours leading up to the big dance. I managed to find a choice number at a local resale store -- bright blue, floor-length, puff sleeves, sweetheart neckline, that weird pointy-bottom bodice... A true relic. With the addition of a 20-foot long strand of faux pearls (yes, literally 20 feet; I know because I strung the whole damned thing), I was a thing to behold -- a Disney Princess, as Michelle described, only perhaps slightly debauched.

It's funny how much dressing out of one's norm can alter one's behavior. Normally I don't dance. Normally. But the combination of bubblegum music, vodka and irony was overwhelming to all but the most stoic. There was much joyful jumping about. And sweating. Ohhh the polyester.

Very near the end of the night, a couple of friends and I decided to hit last call at another joint nearby -- a joint that just happens to be a fairly scruffy gay bar on Michigan Ave. As our contingent included me in all my melting blueberry glory, our glittering prom queen (who incidentally was a 6-foot man in drag) and a former-Marine on a half-pint of absinthe, who could imagine a better place?

I'm not sure I was the only woman there (probably), but I was certainly the most visible. Right away I found myself in conversation with a couple of young men who were quite envious of my finery. "THAT is what I need for OUR prom!" one fella told me.

"Oh I think you'd look smashing in it!" I told him. And after a quick sizing by eye, refined by years of resale (no fitting room) shopping, I made him the offer. "In fact, I'll trade you for it."

"Trade me what?"

"Your clothes!"

"You wanna trade me outfits? Really? Where? How would we do that? When?"

"Oh come on, there's a bathroom here..."

So off we traipsed. In exchange for my only slight beer-soaked poofy wonder, I received an old t-shirt and paint-spattered cargo shorts. Oh, and a belt that looked like it had been used to pull a trailer. "I think I got the better end of this deal!" he said. "Well, obviously!" I responded. And it was totally worth it.

I didn't get a picture of myself in the dress -- I always forget to do that. However, I think this photo is even more precious... and sums the night up quite nicely.

Whose brain is this?

Special props to whomever can identify what is actually in that glass.

Further testing the iPhone.

Goofy
Originally uploaded by shefightslikeagirl

I already know I like taking photos with my iPhone -- my fifth now, for the record -- and I use it for a ton of stuff pretty constantly (in addition to taking stoopit pics of myself). Today I am having a look at how it works as a mobile blogging tool. I'm sure technically it's not going to be any different. But I gotta say, I'm well below my normal typing speed of around 120 wpm or so...

Skulls-n-Roses Mark II Finis!

It's a coincidence that I've made two Skulls-n-Roses dresses. I swear.

I never work with blue, though. If you asked me, I'd probably say I don't especially like the color blue. But something about this particular print appealed to me. Then when I found the plaid that melded so well, it was pretty much unavoidable.

I took a little bit of a risk with this sewing pattern -- Simplicity 3745, for the record. I knew there was a high risk that it would not look quite right on me. And I'm not sure how I do feel about how it came out; that is, how it looks on me. As always, it's better on me than on Heddy -- definitely less hausfrau-ish. Still, I'm undecided.

Now, if I wear this one out and get complimented walking down the street, well. Asked and answered.

The love of my life on a sunny Saturday.

Skulls-n-Roses Mark II

I haven't finished this yet, but I had to show off the fabric combination. Do you think they'll like it at the ro-day-oh?

Bat Glass Finale

I was so happy when I made this glass -- an etched bat glass, perfect for me (and my new love affair with wine). But alas, it came to an early, and shardy, end.

Farewell, dear bat glass. You were loved in your time.

Blue-Eyed Squid

Here's one from a couple of months ago which I hadn't posted.

During the time my bathroom was being given the workover, I was often "trapped" in the house on Saturdays. Sometimes it was an effort to find things to keep me busy... and it shouldn't come as a surprise that often that meant just finding something to make.

On one such Saturday I occupied myself improvising this squid for a friend who was one his way out of town for a couple weeks (although I doubt the squidlet went with him :( ). It's a lil bit Grimpoteuthis (dumbo octopus) and a lil bit Vampyroteuthis infernalis (vampire squid from hell). I can think of fewer combinations which would remind someone of me.

It's in a fleece with a strange print -- all those different patterns are all printed on the fleece, it's not pieced together. The printed buttons look to me like false eye spots -- you know, to fool predators. Its real eyes are stacked buttons in blue (like his).

Here's one for the people who know me.

Dorion by Bruce Beasley
Originally uploaded by Kaldoon

I discovered this photo today by Kaldoon on Flickr. It's beautiful, and the filter/effects used make it very unreal/otherworldly -- but it is, in fact, a real sculpture in a real place.

Not only is the piece quite interesting and the picture itself stunning, but those who know me will understand, in particular, why I found it so moving. (And it's not just because of the resemblance to a Klingon battle cruiser.)

Some fun facts about tractor ownership!

Did you know that it costs the same to replace the transmission in a 2006 Craftsman lawn tractor as it does to buy a new Craftsman lawn tractor? (For scale: Craftsman tractor $= Macintosh laptop $= computerized sewing machine $= week for four at Disneyland...)

Did you know that it costs approximately 3 times as much to have the oil changed in a 2006 Craftsman tractor as it does for a 2006 Honda Civic?

Both of these things -- and more! -- are upcoming, as my tractor is seriously illin'. I'm not complaining exactly. I love my Lawn Stud and am committed to keeping him spry. I'm just mildly surprised.

I've also been lately contemplating the possibility that I've inherited my mother's anti-magnetism.* She's one of those mythical creatures who can't seem to wear a watch without it dying within a day. I've never had adversarial relationships with technology -- quite the opposite -- but the past few years I've noticed something interesting.

My new 2004 RX-8? Failed dead on the road 4 times two years of ownership.

My new 2006 Civic which replaced it? Overnight in the shop several times, including a completely dead 2-year-old battery, and replacement of both front struts within the first year.

And let's talk iPhone. I got mine in October of 2007. Well, I got my first one in October. I'm on my fourth one now. #1: DOA, #2: Speaker failure, #3: Case separation, #4: Starting to act fishy.

These problems have always been quickly and warranty-edly handled by their manufacturers, dog love 'em, but it makes one wonder: Am I technically accursed?

No, it can't be. My dear Nigel has served me faithfully with very few problems (which I could not fix myself) for 5+ years now.

Oh crap. Quick, give me something wooden -- and without a battery -- to knock on!

*This may also explain the oft-puzzling nature of my interpersonal relationships.

Bat Glass

Bored, burned out and generally disgusted, "making" is such a part of my routine that if I go too long without, it just makes me feel worse. When I can't get my shit together to do much of anything else, sometimes the best thing to do is something quick and easy, just to get my hands involved.

Acid glass etching is very satisfying. Out of my cheap set of wine glasses, I wanted to set one apart as mine. So now I have a bat glass.

Why make a batik surgical mask?

Because.

I'd show the pleated details, but it's much more interesting in context.

The return of Spring.

The return of mild weather means the return of outdoor photos and the return of the Saturday Dress.

Oh this one was a treat to try to photograph. Have you gone crosseyed?

I've never worked with gingham before -- and maybe someone can tell me the proper name for this fabric with the little poufs of thread ends dispersed regularly throughout -- but I'm a sucker for patterns and this one was calling my name loud and clear from the clearance rack. It's light and flowy and in a dark enough navy to pass for black.

This was Friday after work. I had Saturday evening plans (which may or may not have involved a mechanical bull), so I picked up a couple of yards, surprising myself that I managed to start planning a whole 12+ hours in advance. Time to wash, dry and even iron the fabric before getting started Saturday early afternoon. (There is no such thing as Saturday morning at House of SFLAG.)

Sewing has made me a fan of dresses like nothing else could. I chose a pattern I already had, Butterick 5030 (view C), a pretty little number in a shape I think flatters me. I didn't realize initially that it's a wrap dress, but that's a good thing. Gives me a little flexibility in the chest region. I love the fluttery sleeves and the gathers across the front shoulders.

I'd say I got started around noon and finished the whole thing sometime before 9. It's a very simple dress, but as I've said before, I'm not the fastest stitcher. I don't rush myself, so there are a lot of breaks, a lot of screwing around, some singing and dancing, 50-90 emails, glass after glass of iced tea (leading to glass after glass of wine, typically). But get this: I did no modifications. What's wrong with me? I made the dress just like I was supposed to, according to the directions. (Except the lower hem. I skipped encasing the top edge and just folded it up and sewed. But look! No bias tape!) So I don't really have much else to say about it.

I did wear it with the red belt shown in the photo, along with black footless tights and metallic silver ballet flats. After a night that turned out to be, blissfully, a lot longer than I expected, both the dress and I survived.

Christopher Hitchens

Just in case there is anyone left whom I didn't tell... I met Christopher Hitchens last week.

He debated his brother, Peter, at the Fountain Street Church in Grand Rapids (and what a place that is). At the book signing after the event, Christopher was fairly intrigued by my name (which I'd written on a Post-it so he could personalize God is Not Great with the correct spelling) and gave me his best doe-eyes while the stranger in line behind me snapped this photo for me. (Actually, this picture was taken after the one where Hitchens is kissing my cheek. Ahem.)

Honestly, I could go on and on about the event, but I'm betting that most of the good people who read this blog wouldn't really care to hear it. (Although there is a post in the offing about the custom iron-ons I made for the shirt I am wearing in this photograph. A little more this blog's speed.) Unless you DO care to hear it, in which case email me, and I'll prattle happily.

Or, if you prefer, you can watch the simulcast of the event on Youtube, without my uneducated commentary.

Hmm. I'm considering whether I need to retouch this photo a little. I look quite red in it, but I think I actually WAS quite red in that moment. Christopher Hitchens had just kissed me after all.

New website things!

I've been putzing around with Google's features/tools -- several of which I use daily -- and have decided to integrate a couple of things into SFLAG. The one or two people who read this may or may not have noticed a couple of new things in the RH navigation pane: First, hopefully, you've discovered that I have my own domain now (and yes I am master of same). Beyond that, the newest additions are "Things Happening" which takes you to my (public) calendars and, lower down, my "Things from the Aggregator" which are items I've flagged for sharing from my RSS feeds.

That's it. Just working on my nerd cred and doing my best to make shefightslikeagirl.com your one-stop SFLAG shop.

Infamous Light Shade

Infamous Light Shade

This is one of the photos from the auction, by the way. If anyone has a 24" version of this pattern lying around, I can take it off your hands for you. As long as you PACK IT properly and ship UPS.

Screw FedEx

This is completely off the topic of most of my posts here, but I gotta get this off my chest (and into the public).

I've been in the unfortunate throes of a small bath remodel which has become a monster. After many problems and disappointments, one thing I splurged on was a pair of vintage channel glass light fixtures which I found as new old stock on ebay. They are big and beautiful and in a great color for my (overwhelmingly) green new bath, and there were TWO of them, which was significant. I was so enthusiastic (for once) that I went the Buy It Now route and paid the full asking price, because I wanted to make sure I got the pair.

After about a week and a half, I was delivered a big box of shattered glass. I was heartbroken. I had already been convinced that this project was cursed, and this certainly didn't help. My only comfort was that the shipper had insured the package for the full amount. Because of this, I went ahead and had my contractor move the electrical boxes from their over-the-mirror position to the lower side spots appropriate for the new fixtures. Because I knew this was going to be resolved. It was INSURED after all.

I called FedEx to put my claim in motion. The recipient of the package can't make the claim. It doesn't matter that I'm the one who paid for the broken item. Or that I received it. The only thing they could do for me was allow me to make an appointment for FedEx to come and pick up the box of shattered glass to confirm that it was, indeed, a box of shattered glass. Which they picked up, inspected, confirmed and REDELIVERED to me.

The seller is being uncooperative. He is now not answering the phone. The insurance on the package apparently makes no difference, except that the SELLER can make a claim against it and get my money twice, I guess. FedEx is doing nothing on the claim. As far as they are concerned, it's "closed" since the seller/shipper is not responding to their requests for contact.

Long story short (too late!) I will never voluntarily use FedEx. Not that I did THIS time either, and not that I can say that UPS would behave any differently.

Oh also? Ebay and PayPal have been equally useless. Ebay's dispute policy is apparently to send a finger-shaking email to the seller exhorting him to get in touch with me. PayPal? They give you 45 days to file a dispute, and when you do, they say "make sure you give it enough time!" Not only did I do that, I gave him additional time because, in the early days of this dispute, he claimed to be looking in his stock for another glass shade, which he was going to send as a replacement. (What he did send me was another box of shattered glass -- of the wrong size -- which I received last week. How stupid of me not to jump to the immediate conclusion and call out the dogs IMMEDIATELY.) It has now been 55 days since I paid.

Now it escalates to my credit card company. Two years ago when my wallet was stolen, Chase handled it like professionals. We'll see what they do with this. (I'd have called THEM today, too, but, uh, my wallet is in my other jacket. Seriously. And yes, Jim, I'll have that $6 tomorrow, I promise.)

And then the tentacles come.

Sometimes everything just seems to be going wrong.

And then you make a squid. :)

Then you take a kind of terrible picture of it on your poor cat, vow you'll take a better picture of it tomorrow, accidentally blow the levels out in Photoshop, decide it looks kind of cool, then post it anyway.

Yay squid!

In case you're wondering, the body is giant-inspired, but the fins are more Humboldt. I also realize that the eyes should be oriented 90° around the collar, but I like it this way, so thanks for not mentioning it.

The Hood

If there's any question why I (still) live in Michigan, this should provide at least part of the answer.

This is literally my neighborhood.

ETA: Not that I'm all that fucking thrilled about it either.

Caution! Wild Animals!

This is a project I am very proud of, even if it did take me months to complete. Granted, several of those months involved the shirt being forgotten under a pile of other projects...

Some time ago, I bought this pattern, Butterick 4188. As much as I like it, for some reason, I decided to modify the front. (Something to do with a genetic inability to do things the way instructed.) I scanned the tissue pieces and voodooed the front panels in Adobe Illustrator to allow the insertion of -- you guessed it -- a zipper. I found a very nice dark teal woven (which the cutter at Joann suggested be my "signature" color because apparently it goes well with my coloring) and, uh, some King Kong flannel in the children's department. Oh who am I kidding? It all started with the King Kong flannel.

I cut all the pieces out and then somehow they wound up under my "mend" pile. I think I was afraid to build it, actually, because of the huge modification. But then the Dirty Show was coming up and, as usual, I decided the two rooms full of clothing I already had simply were not good enough. With that mend pile as high as it was, I dug through it to see if there was something I could finish rather than starting something new. That's when I refound the shirt.

As usual, the coloring in the photo doesn't do the piece justice. The zipper is a pale lavender and that lettering is a nice bright orange.

After a couple of dedicated evenings, it all came together. And amazingly, it fit. But the resolution brought with it another question: What exactly does one wear with a teal King Kong detailed shirt? Why, a teal King Kong detailed skirt, naturally.

This one was a lot easier to figure. I started with Simplicity 5914, a simple gored skirt, and decided to insert Kong-patterned piping to pull it together. Of course, I've never made piping, but part of the pleasure of sewing, to me, is building the skillset. I know that I could sew for the rest of my natural life and never reach the limits of the techniques other people have mastered for centuries. But I love the learning, so wherever plausible, I like to add to my repertoire.

Turns out, piping is pretty easy. In fact, I see a lot more piping in my future.

I wore the outfit to the Dirty Show with a pair of tights which were a slightly lighter shade of teal and black ankle boots with bows. (I almost wore dark red patent leather heels for the contrast, but was talked out of it at the last minute.) This time I think the testimony to the success of the outfit is the fact that very few people mentioned it. I makes me a little paranoid when people immediately ask me "oh did you make that?" Why, does it look like some hack stitcher sewed it?? This time around the couple of comments I did get were about how cute the Kong detail fabric was. So I was happy. Naturally, today's pictures are after I've worn it, so it looks a little wonky on the dummy because of the creases and whatnot, blahblah excusescakes.

Sally and Syd

Over at craftster, stitcher Aixbelle tells the story of two cute little monsters, Syd Delicious and his friend Sally. Syd was on his way to his new home in Seattle, when they stopped to take some family photos by Puget Sound.

That's when the seemingly unthinkable happened.

A rogue wind rose up and swept the two friends out into the Sound. At least, that's how it appeared. We all prefer -- and choose -- to believe that Syd and Sally simply had too many adventures left in them to settle down, and so broke free to make good their escape. Syd even looks to be hopping away in that last photo.

Their story inspired from me The Ballad of Sally and Syd.

Sally and Syd were loverly beasts,
The first ones invited to all the best feasts.

Syd's big red heart could hold the whole world,
And Sally's droll little mouth was oft wrly curled.

To their friends they were lavish -- and none was a stranger.
They set out to teach us that not all "monsters" mean danger.

"There is too much to see for us to stay in one place,"
Sally whispered to Syd (whose ears dwarfed his face).

He silently nodded and -- quick! -- looked around,
And when no one was looking, they jumped into the Sound.
Yes hand in stripey hand, they splashed into the Sound.

Custom Leather Gratification

Here's another example of a project I may not have posted at all because it was so simple, but I like how it turned out. Not so much with the pictures because the colors are all wrong, but the theme of this post is instant gratification, so I'm not going to fuss with it. (The leather is a nice warm greige and the stitching is bright orange. For the record.)

Recently, a coworker gave me a 15 gallon bag full of leather scraps. These "scraps" ranged from credit card size to almost a half-hide, so I was thrilled to get 'em, even though I'd never really worked with leather before. I've wanted to, I just... didn't really know how. Or what.

This past Saturday, I was loading up my pockets on my way to check out some architectural salvage (does anyone have a pedestal sink they want to move?). For some reason, this time, it made me a little nervous to stuff my iPhone in my jacket pocket with my wallet, even though I'd done it a hundred times before. (Wait, have I even had the thing a hundred days yet? I don't think I have. License!) So I decided to look around real quick for something to use as a case. If all else failed, I figured I could whip up a small pouch out of some spare quilter's cotton, or whatever was around. What happened to be most around was that bag of scrap leather, sitting under my cutting table.

I'm pretty sure it was the first piece I pulled out which happened to be a long rectangle, just a little wider than the iPhone and about 2.5 times as long. I slapped it on the table, laid the phone down and wondered, okay now what? Stitch up those edges, okay, I suppose that would be fine, just kinda seems like a waste... If I could just get the leather to kinda... mould to the phone. That would be way cooler. I tucked the leather around it a little and gave a thought about whether I'd have to get the leather wet for it to shape that way, although it seemed to be perfect as long as I was holding it. Maybe that was the answer. If I could hold it in place...

I brought it over to the mechanostitcher which was already threaded with bright orange (why?), installed one of the leather needles I just happened to have on hand and snapped on the zipper foot. Holding the edges with the iPhone still wrapped, I straight-stitched tightly up one side and then the other. Then I trimmed the edges where the bottom layer was now extending beyond the top layer. I was going to trim it all the way up the flap, but then I looked at those punched holes -- which were already in the rectangular scrap -- and thought the trimmed edges could actually come in handy.

So, five minutes from concept to completion, and back into the pocket. I didn't find a sink, but at least I have a custom leather case now. And I know Nigel can handle it.

Craftster's Best of 2007

File this under "self-promotion" or "easy to make happy," your choice.

The venerable craftster.org this week posted their Best of 2007 list. And what do you know, my skulls and roses dress made the list.

It's one (really awesome) thing to actually get complimented on a project while walking down a street in Toronto. It's entirely another to have it noticed and singled out by people who actually know what they're looking at.

Mephistuffoles Presides Over Beanie Hell

If you have extreme Beanie Baby sensitivities or tend to over-anthropomorphize the inanimate, you may want to look away. However, if you're only mildly sick in the head, you may find this as funny as I did.

I almost never dress up for Halloween because if I were to do a costume the way I want to do it, I would be way overdressed for any occasion I might be invited to. Then I'd either feel like an idiot or like a superior jackass. Either way.

This year, though, I decided to work the pun-as-costume angle, and also managed to work in something I've been wanting to do for years.

I admit, I had done the top a while ago. I was in a second hand store one day and came across this really hilarious devil Valentine plushie, complete with fuzzy red hair and a nice big red flaming heart on his chest. I walked around with that thing for minutes thinking, "What on earth would I do with a stuffed devil?" But I couldn't put it down. So I devised a plan.

He became bisected vertically and hand-stitched to a store-bought black top, with a little bit of padding for his body and keeping his arms and legs free. His giant feet flop around when I move, and grabbing his hands is rather irresistible, if in dangerous territory. ("Watch it, buddy.")

For this year's costume, I decided to take the concept one step further -- well, actually, about 10 steps, as that is how many teeny beanies gave their lives for the project.

Let me tell you, those things are sewn together like crazy. To represent the tortured beanie souls, I picked each one apart, bear-rug style, removed the guts, and hand-stitched them all over a store-bought black skirt. I used red embroidery floss and intentionally made the stitches rather ragged, in an Ed Gein inspired way. And you know, it took me twice as long to sew sloppily as it would have to sew evenly. Damned OCD.

Below that whole mess I wore flame-printed tights and some nice Cenobite buckled boots and became... Mephistuffoles and the pits of Beanie Hell.

No, no one really got it. Even the ones I explained it to. Genius is so rarely appreciated in its own time.

A Tale of Two Footies

Get ready, it's sewing geek time!

I like narrow hems. I hate sewing narrow hems. I like bias tape. I hate basting/sewing bias tape. Specialty foots* to the rescue!

I have a Husqvarna Lily 550, a beauty little quilting machine I've mentioned before, officially named Nigel. ("We're only making plans for Nigel. We only want what's best for him." He likes being sung to.) Being the schmancy machine that it is, I knew there would have to be some awesome life-affirming options available to spare me the infernal drudgery. The company website confirmed this. And ebay informed me that a Husqvarna-approved narrow rolled-foot hem could be had for the low low price of... glurk $25! Plus shipping!

Upon learning this, I did what I usually do -- put it off and continued to suffer. And suffer. And suffer some more. Then, while making the foresty party dress, I was stricken with the dread realization that not only did I have all those hems to roll, but I was going to apply bias tape to the neck edge as well. Oh the tedium. But wait! This is an opportunity for research!

Nigel is the only sewing machine I've ever owned, and it seemed perfectly reasonable to me that each manufacturer would have proprietary foots. Turns out... not the case. There are essentially four different attachment methods and basically any machine since 1980 uses the same snap-on method. Well, that's good news! It means that someone else probably makes the foot I want for a less twitch-making cost (especially since I ultimately wanted two). Enter Ultimate Sew and Vac!

Turns out I could get a 6mm rolled hem foot and the adjustable bias tape foot of my dreams for $25 total. With shipping! I ordered them right away (too late for that dress, of course).

They arrived today and I was so excited. And such a dork. I wanted to try the rolled hem first and huzzah it snapped right into the ankle, just as I expected it to. I grabbed a scrap for a quick test and klonk the machine stuttered, startling me. The heck? It's not complicated, and the foot is on... I turned the wheel by hand and discovered that the needle was colliding with my sweet new foot. Dammit dammit dammit! I snapped on the bias tape foot and... that one, too! What the hell! Okay, so, do I send them back or try to sell them on ebay or maybe someone I know wants -- no, wait. Eh, what have I got to lose? I grabbed a small file and went to town.

It actually seemed like a long shot because those little footsies are surprisingly heavy and the metal seems pretty hard. But "Project Runway" was on, so I wasn't going anywhere for the next hour anyway. After a few moments I noticed the shavings and knew I was on my way. Had to move quite a bit of metal, but eventually, clean, snap, test... success!

6mm rolled hem is going to be great for most medium weight purposes. Which, for me, means pretty much all the time. I also tested the adjustable bias tape foot with the skinny and the wide purchased tape and it worked great with both (after the filing, of course). This, I believe, is a foot that is going to get much usage.

Oh geez. I just realized I now have 13 machine foots. Granted, about 8 of those came with the machine, but... I have a sickness, verily.

*We can have the discussion later whether the plural of foot in this context is foots or feet. Actually, no, let's not -- "foots" amuses me, end of discussion!

Holiday Dress

As usual, something possessed me to make a dress for a party about 2 days before the event. Joann was having one of their 99¢ pattern sales, and I am not allowing myself to buy more fabric until I have scoured through all the stash, so the net out of pocket was 99¢.

I wanted something tropical, for some reason, so was happy to find some vintage printed cotton in the stash. I would guess it's from the late 60s or early 70s, but I can't say for sure since I bought it resale some time ago. It also has a strange stain-resistant coating, according to what was printed on the selvage, which sometimes made it slightly slippery while sewing.

The print is so gloriously busy that it's difficult to see all the details, and there are some good ones. It started off as Butterick 5132, where you can see the big tucks across the front and the gathers on the shoulders. Of course, I made a lot of adjustments to it (because why would I ever do something the way it's supposed to be done?), beginning with that infernal rear zipper. As a single woman living alone, I vowed to never again voluntarily install a back zipper if there is any way I can avoid it. (No more rear zippers! Ever!) I thought about going with a side zip, but ultimately decided to do an invisible zipper down the front, with mixed results. I had already intended to wear a big orange flower on the dress (I know, what a seemingly random thing to plan ahead of time) and it's a good thing because there is a big of an awkward gap there. Plus, of course, I used bias tape to edge the neck opening rather than the facing as designed. Part of that was laziness, part of it is my abiding love for bias tape.

I also had to open the arm openings an additional 2", which seems quite a large amount to need to add. Otherwise the sleeves were too tight on my upper arms. I considered skipping the shoulder gathers and just letting the self-sleeves come down a little longer, but when I did a test with the elastic on the shoulders I decided that I really liked it better with the gathers.

If the ties are cinched too tightly in the front, it makes for some kind of sticky-outy action on the hips from the fabric folding over toward the front. Not a big deal, but an interesting complication.

If I were to make this dress again -- and I'd consider it, although I have 5439393 other dress patterns on deck -- I think I'd want to go with a somewhat softer fabric, perhaps a jersey. And I'd recut those damned arm holes before building it.

As it is, it's definitely wearable. I wore it to a friend's holiday party, as planned, but with slim black slacks and a black zip-front sweater. I know, I made a point of making it out of a tropical fabric and then heavied it up with the black, but you'll just have to trust me that it actually looked pretty good that way. I can certainly imagine wearing it this summer without the extra stuff, or hmm maybe with some light green capri-length leggings. Well, there's another project for the list...