Sewing

Mending is much easier than sewing from scratch. I love the whole instant-gratification thing: you sew about an inch, and whoosh! you can wear the whatever again. Today, for instance, I took up the shoulders of a too-long tank top, fixed a seam on Jonathan's suit pants, and reattached a button to a blazer. (It was an ugly button which I would like to replace someday, but it works.) Then I cut off a pair of too-short hand-me-down khaki pants, hemmed them, and created a pair of shorts. All this took about half an hour.

Patterns traditionally confuse me, so I've been experimenting. There was the Miami Mod dress, a hot pink and turquoise color-blocked little tent dress for which I figured out how to do a bodice lining. There was the Tilted Layers dress, which took about 11 hours and turned out accidentally Forties-esque, but cute. (Though Mom did ask, very kindly, if I'd like her to show me how to insert a zipper properly. Yes, but unfortunately now we're half a continent apart.) Then over the weekend I imitated a shirt I've got and made a little lined voile bat-wing top out of a very loud orange print.

I'm finally good enough, I think, to try a real pattern.

I've got about three yards of red broadcloth, a chunky zipper, and a pattern for an A-line sleeveless dress. Visions of Kate Spade and J. Crew have been dancing in my head.

So far, I've read through the pattern, looked up three technical terms I'd never heard of, and cut out the pattern pieces I need. At about an hour in, I'm about to unfold the fabric. I have high hopes that if I can make it once I'll be able to make it again... more quickly.