The girl I left behind me...

Yesterday was a holiday, so I spent it at home despite it seeming like everyone I knew being out and about for various celebrations. No thank you, I am an indoor cat and I was still quite tired. I did do my laundry though. The room had a note that they know about the flooding issue, but the access area is currently blocked off for the alley reconstruction. It will be addressed ASAP, in the meantime use caution in this room, or use any of the other 7 rooms on site.

Speaking of alley reconstruction, I did not see them on Monday, but they did work yesterday, so my morning and part of the afternoon was spent listening to various grinding noises and beeping. They should be done soon, the scope of work was to take about 4 weeks and they're coming up on that pretty fast.

I did not even touch my library book, so that's going back mostly unread. Oops.

Nautical dress is done but for a hem, and it is ridiculously cute. It is, sadly, far too hot right now to wear. Yes, this heat is nothing like what Europe is experiencing right now, nor any of the southern states, but we just aren't used to it. The summer lovers are having a blast. The rest of us are imitating starfish.

On to the next project! Of course, I have no idea what it is right this second. The heat makes me want to work on something summery, like linen and sundresses. I could do the culottes. I could do a lil jacket to make said sundresses more work-appropriate. I could do a lot of things, as long as I pick something and do it!

Another weekend, another night of a 3 hour nap. Why does my body hate me so? Partly I think it was because Sophie decided to curl up on the bed with me, which she never does, so I slept lighter not wanting to disturb her. Alas. I woke up at 4 am and decided it wasn't worth my time to try to sleep again, but hoooooo boy do I have regrets right now. Thank the holy stars that coffee exists.

Friday, My boss kicked me out an hour early because I had one hour banked from when I was sick in March. Twist my rubber arm! I got straight into the car and went to the auction house (I had won a 12x18 cutting mat), and then to Walmart for groceries. I forget why I wanted to go to Walmart specifically, as I didn't get anything I couldn't have found at a different store, but whatever. I popped into 7-11 for a Slurpee too, and got home about 10 minutes before the sky opened up and there was a river running down the street woohoo!

Most exciting though, my pattern arrived! EEEEE! There were no English instructions, only French, but it was complete and factory folded as described. The lack of English instructions doesn't bother me at all, the illustrations are clear enough. My French is severely lacking, one day I must fix that.

On Saturday I pulled out the poplin and started cutting out the dress. It took a good long while because the kittens were stage 3 clingers and spent a goodly amount of time sitting on my fabric. I had to make sure everything would fit first, discovered one piece that I thought was poplin was a different fabric entirely, cut the skirt side/back first (the pictured skirt with the top is from the Liz dress, which I do not have, but I do have a gathered gored skirt pattern that I like), with Calcifer's "help", and I started sewing not long after. I even changed the serger threads from white to black and finished edges, who AM I?

Dinner was mashed potatoes and creamed kale (basically an alfredo sauce) which was tasty. Earlier in the day I had made granola, which was also tasty.

Yesterday I started sewing up the skirt as much as I could, and then it was time to do something about the collar situation which I had not prepared yet. I cut it from the bedsheets I'd salvaged some years ago, again with feline help. Pinned on the first layer of bias tape and decided to do a second as well, partly because there was a stain on the upper collar that would then be covered by it, and also because the collar is a statement itself, the double row of trim just makes it even more so. Later I cut the knot tie from a scrap of red silk and hand-stitched it. Currently it is just pinned in place but omg it's so stinkin' CUTE. Sleeves are up next, I just didn't want to uncover the serger again. Plus I need to run a whooooole bunch of gathering stitches, which should be perfect for my very tired brain tonight.

Also yesterday, I decided to start a new audiobook while I was sewing, and I am enjoying it SO much, I spent most of the day listening to it! The book just came out and I'd been eying it in the bookstores M and I had gone to, and when I logged into my audiobook app to finish a different book I remembered that I had credits, so I used them! (The credits were purchased earlier this year, but since that was 3+ months ago, using them now meant the books were "free". Girl math!) And wow it's a good read. When I took a break from sewing to contemplate the stripe trim of the collar, I knit a few rows and kept listening. So good.

My library book is due on Wednesday and I don't think I can renew it as it is also a new release, so I started reading it last night too. I told myself I wouldn't do that this time, waiting until the last day to read it, but here we are. Tomorrow is Canada Day so I will have plenty of time to read.

Re: who AM I? above, I was thinking about how I had to take a break from sewing after CoCo '18 and when I picked it up again almost 18 months later in laaaate 2019, I had started to spiral about if I did X, then I needed do Y and Z and also J, K and L too, and quickly nipped that in the bud. I had decided to consider more about HOW I sew and not WHAT, which meant taking time to do things like basting and seam finishes. That fell off more over the past few years, but I was reminded of it again when I started serging. So I think I will start doing this more again, even when the extra steps seem like so much WORK and why do they even matter. They DO matter. They matter to me as a tiny little way to show up for myself and my work.

Payday today, so I refreshed my memory on this week's budget (since i need to get some groceries) and bleh. It's silly. Then I made some envelopes at work (abusing my access to a label maker and highlighters and blank envelopes) and sorted out the next pay day too. It is also stupid. Maybe I wouldn't be in this position if I'd considered a visual rep to start with but hey. Baby Corn wasn't born yet to give me financial advice.

The "up" side, I guess, is that aside from groceries, I'm doing OK. My cats have food, I have access to get food as long as I'm careful, and I have plenty of hobby-related things to keep me entertained for a very long time.

Since I was partially inspired for a sailor dress from Gothic Lolita fashion, I did an image search for ideas, and I've settled on this one from Beleganty. I like the double line of stripes on the skirt. I'm planning to make this from poplin and I'm not 100% sure if I'll make the collar a contrast colour. I'm also not 100% sure on what colour to make the stripes out of... although I'm very sure I don't have enough pre-purchased bias tape to do as much as I'd like. Luckily, making bias tape is very easy and kind of fun. Black and white is so classic, and I plan to put various knots and bows onto pins so I can change them out as I please.

I was cruising YouTube this am looking for entertainment and found a sew-along video for 1948 Mccall's culottes. Hilariously, they look exactly like Gertie's Elsa culottes. I decided I wanted to save my teal twill for said culottes, so I think it's time to bump that higher on the list. And I really do need some tops. Summer is coming fast and I'll want to be stylish and cool.

Finished cutting pattern pieces and taped them all together, with PLENTY of help from Sophie. She wanted pets, so she was being super duper cute by rolling onto her back and patting my arm with her paw, but she didn't want to sit still for pets so I mostly worked around her. There are plenty of tape spots with her fur trapped beneath them. I want to trace off the pieces to make a mockup before I start on the dress I have in mind.

It's been a weird week for clothing. I do need to do laundry, but I also just don't want to wear anything I currently have, especially pants. I want dresses, but I've mostly made sundresses (not work-appropriate). I want skirts but the one is wool (delicious, delicious wool) and the other was modified two summers ago and is now too big. Plus I'd like to fix up the zipper, it is definitely not my best effort lol. I made it as a dress in 2009, took the bodice off 2023, have since lost a couple inches. I braved the closet today, namely bc its one of the Forbidden Doors and getting the kittens out of it can be real tricksy, and am wearing the top I made a couple months ago and wool trousers. It's OK. Clearly need to be pushing this wardrobe building kick I'm on.

Finally sat down with my Monopoly money last night. Couldn't find any envelopes, but I flung the pieces around and that was fun. I started by pulling my current balance + tomorrow's deposit, and then went through my app and sorted the paper until I had accounted for everything and could see what I had left. It was helpful, actually, bc I had a number in my head that was NOT the number the money represented and now I can act accordingly. I want to find a little toy cash register (or I guess a lockbox would be OK too) to put the money in. Make it more fun for me lol.