A New Beginning

I have woven grosgrain pink, purple, and green ribbon of different widths to make the bodice for Jenna's Easter dress this year.

This is the fabric for the rest of the dress and the lining.

Some of you may remember Kellen's Easter dress from last year. Jenna really like Kellen's so this year I'm making her a similar dress. Jenna's will have teeninsy itty bitty buttons rather than pearls. I'm not real sure about the rest, but the plan right now is to make a smocked sash for the waist line. I really didn't realize how much the colors and fabrics were when I bought this the other day, but Jenna's will be mostly pink whereas there wasn't any pink in Kellen's. Also, Kellen's bodice was all one color and Jenna's isn't. So, I guess they won't be THAT much alike.

It's time to sew the buttons on.

"The Lord's Given me the knowledge.........."

of what I've done. Carvings are personal, not part of a ministry." This is a quote by a gentleman who is in the nursing home right down the hall from my mother. I talk to him every day. This is from a book about him.

This is the cover of the book, An Old Man Has Visions.

Inside are photos of the remarkable wood carvings he has done during his life. There are lots that are not going to be in my post, but that are just as incredible as these.

Here he is at work.

More photos of his work.

His most famous work of art. Yes, this motorcycle is carved out of wood. It is life sized. He carved it from memory! It is absolutely one of the most remarkable creations I've ever seen. Now, he can't even sign his name. I'm going to try to catch him on a good day and let him give a try to autographing this book, though.

There are so many people with fascinating stories at the nursing home. There is an Army Sergeant, an Airforce Pilot, School Teachers, a Voice Teacher, a Social Worker who worked with abused children, etc................

Ta Da..... I have Kellen's dress finished. I took it apart, cut it down to her size, lined it this time (originally it wasn't lined), shortened the collar a little, reinserted the same zipper (the one I bought wasn't made as well as the one that was in it originally), and ta da....... it's done!!! I sure hope Kellen likes it as much as she thought she did earlier.

Random Garments That I've Made in the Past! And other Ramblings!

Actually, these first two are not things that I made. My mother wore this as a Halloween costume when she was 10 years old. So that makes it a little over 75 years old! The lady who made it was one of a whole bunch of kids who lived in a house near them when my mom was very little. Her family was going to move way out into the country so my grandfather talked the parents into letting Annie live with them so she could stay in school. I always thought of her as an aunt. She lived with them until she got married. She sewed, as you can see, for my mom. I may have told this story on here before. It is sounding familiar as I type it. I guess I could look back over my posts to see, but I am feeling too lazy for that, so if you've read about this before, please forgive my forgetfulness!

My middle daughter made this poodle skirt for herself when she was in, I think, 5th grade!!! It would be about 20 years old. It's pretty wrinkled, but you can tell that she did a great job on it.

This is a close up of the bodice of the confirmation dress that I made for my youngest daughter when she was about 12. This is about 15 years old. I always did like that trim treatment that I did on this collar. I made the little ribbon "tabs ?" for want of a better description, from a length of regular narrow ribbon and the roses from different widths of the same ribbon.

All of these clothes have been hanging in a closet smooshed together, hence the wrinkles. I am feeling lazy, as I said above, or I would have ironed them for this photo shoot. Lol
My oldest daughter was in a show that she needed a Pink Ladies jacket from Grease. This is what we came up with. This jacket is about 16 years old.

This same daughter needed a white formal for the same program (so about 16 years ago) and for another program at school. I sewed strings of pearls by hand on the outline of each and every flower on this lace that summer. There are also dangling teardrop pearls embellishing this gown. The sleeves are what I think you call tulip sleeves, where the front overlaps the back in a crisscross fashion. This was actually made using a wedding gown pattern. My second daughter also wore this dress three years later. She really didn't want to, but I pretty much told her she had to, because at that time I didn't have time to make another equivalent to this one and I thought it was pretty. I think my 2nd daughter just wanted one of her own and one that was more up-to-date, since styles change so drastically every year. I still feel kind of bad about this. I hope she doesn't harbor ill feelings about it still.
Front

Sleeve

Back

Front again. You can see that I have it on my guest bed that has the really old chenille spread on it that I love. The wardrobe that some of these garments are hanging on was part of the first bedroom suite that my husband's grandparents bought. We are using the whole suite in this room.

This is the dress that my oldest daughter wore to her 8th grade "prom". Those rosettes were fun to make. This would be about 20 years old.

Boy, I really should have ironed this!

This dress was my 2nd daughter's Easter dress one year. Can you tell that it was in the early 90s? Hum... I think this one is about 19 years old.

Oh now, this is my pride and joy! lol This is the bridesmaid dress that I made to wear in my sister's wedding. I was 16 at the time, so that was 41 years ago. The fabric is crepe and over the years it has become very stiff! Weird! It really is a cute pattern. I don't know how well it shows up in the picture, but there's a little belt like thing attached at the empire waistline. Otherwise it is a simple a-line. This was a very popular style! I had a short hot pink velvet version of this, too.

I made this LOVELY cape when I was a senior in high school (40 years ago) for my 3rd year of home ec. I also had a mini skirt out of this same fabric that I wore with it. About 2-3 inches of the skirt showed beneath the bottom of the cape. I thought I was really something in this get-up!!!

I did make bound button holes and welt(not pockets,but) slits for this cape.

It is lined. I actually learned some tailoring techniques making this cape. Our next project was to make a suit or a coat that was tailored. Mine was a red wool full length (well full length to the bottom of my short dresses, anyway) dress coat. I made a dress to go with it. I wish I still had that outfit. It really was my pride and joy. I loved it so much that I wore it to a UT football game. It was the first UT game I'd ever been too, and I didn't know better than to wear red to Big Orange country! How could I have been so dumb! Anyway, it got too hot so I took the coat off and laid it on the bleacher beside me. Someone dropped a cigarette on it and burned a hole on the inside of the collar. I cried. It didn't show, but I knew it was there. I don't think I ever wore it again. I'm glad smoking isn't allowed there now. I'm also glad that girls don't dress up like that for football games anymore. They really did back then, though!!!

I won't bore you with any more. There are a few more things still around that I made, but the grand daughters have played with most of them as dress up clothes and aren't in good enough shape to photograph.
I started thinking about all of these when I started taking apart my dress to remake for Kellen. I have it all washed, taken apart, ironed, and I have the pattern pieces ready to cut out.

Today is my father-in-law's 81st birthday. We bought Kentucky Fried Chicken and made rice, green beans, bread, and bought a cake for him. My girls know how much their Papaw loves KFC, so they will know how much he loved it. He was complaining just the other night that he hadn't had any good fried chicken in a long time. I thought about frying it myself, but I knew I couldn't come close to his KFC, so I didn't.
My mom is having very few days that she's not confused lately. It is so hard to see her REAL SELF going before her physical self is ready to go. I guess that sounds awful, but it is very hard to watch some days. I have to laugh at times, though. Yesterday, I asked her what she had for dinner (I went at lunch time and back last night after dinner). She said she had Mongoose and snow cream. I'm laughing as I type this! Tonight, she asked if I had a change of pajamas since I was going to the hospital to sit with "the father of your children" because he had hurt his back when a chair hit his chest. I guess this isn't funny. The sad times are when she thinks she's been talking to her mother and sisters and she thinks something really bad is happening. She thought a building had collapsed yesterday, and that no one would tell her about it because someone had been hurt, and we just didn't want her to know. But, when I go tomorrow she may just be herself! I hope so!

Redone Scherenschnitte for one of my blogger friends.

I promised one of my blogger friends a gift as a thank you for a very sweet and generous gift that she sent me, a long while back. I had one scherenschnitte done that I was going to send to her, but once I learned to do the portraits, I realized that I could do much better. So, I actually put her profile picture in my iphoto( I hope she doesn't mind that I did this. Since it was the back of her head and she isn't identifiable from the photo, I thought it would be ok. I deleted it just as soon as I was through), made it black and white, and played with the contrast. Then, I made this new scherenschnitte. This is done with only black and white with a background of tan. The color doesn't look just right here, for some reason. This is actually a reverse of her profile picture.

Since this reminds me of a cameo, I decided to look up "Cameo Role" in my "Why You Say It" book written by Web Garrison. This is what he says, "Seashells and gemstones often have several layers that include two or more hues. Long ago, artisans learned to take advantage of this factor by carving in such fashion that a raised central figure or figures is of different color from the background.
A cameo engraved in this way doesn't have to be rare and costly in order to be beautiful and prized. Many that are hawked on the streets of Rome and other European cities are inexpensively exquisite, though tiny.
Transferred to the world of entertainment, the name of small but lovely jewelry became the term for a bit part played by a notable performer. On the stage, in the movies, and in television, many producers vie for viewers by including cameo roles that feature persons with famous names."


The words, "beautiful" and "exquisite" remind me of this blogger. So, the term is very appropriate for this post.

Next Project - Easter!!!!! A New Paper Portrait

When my grands were here back in the summer, they were playing with clothes that I had hung in one of my spare bedroom closets. I have my daughter's old prom dresses, one of my mother's childhood Halloween costumes, and all sorts of random garments. This dress, which was one I made in about 1970 -72. My cousin was in the Navy and stationed in Japan. He brought this beautiful raw silk to his sister and me. I think there was only one yard, but I was tiny back then so I was able to make this dress. It was really short! Note the long pointy collar! That was really "in" back then. I wore this while I was in college. There is a bad stain on one of the sleeves that you can see in this photograph.

My oldest grand daughter fell in love with this dress and said she wants one "just" like it. I told her that I couldn't make one "just" like it because I wouldn't be able to get this fabric, etc...... She still insisted that she wants one "just" like it. So, I thought, I would try to make one very similar, and then it hit me, "I can just make her one from this one. I can find a very similar pattern in her size and cut this one down!" It's not like I'm ever going to wear it again! lol There's no since it having it hang in my closet. So, for her Easter dress this year that's what I'm going to do. She'll be 10 in May and is wanting more grownup looking dresses, so that's what she's getting.
One of her aunts says that this is going to be a dress that gets passed down through all of the grand daughters.

Here is a picture of the four year old grand daughter that I took just before Christmas time, when we were celebrating her birthday. Obviously, I have played with it to make it black and white, and to put lots of contrast in the shades of color.

Here's the paper portrait that I made from this photograph. I bought better paper and glue. I think it makes a difference. Now, to get a few more made before Friday so I can take them to the charity center to use as examples for their auction. I will make one for someone who bids the highest. I just hope someone bids. My niece saw this on my facebook wall and sent me pictures of her gorgeous little son today so I can make one of him. He really is a cutie pie!

Finally.....I really finished the auction dress!

Okay, so here's the back bodice. These buttons are just for show. Since it's reversible the real buttons and button holes are for the other side. I embellished this side with rick rack which I love to use!

Here's the front. I see that I forgot to crop this photo. On top of this cabinet is where I store some of the heirloom tea towels, handkerchiefs, etc... I have lots more than this.
Anyway, here's the front of the dress. As you see, it's a pretty simple little dress.


Then, when you turn it inside out, this is what you get. The back bodice is scalloped and piped. I think the flower shaped buttons worked on this dress. The ruffles on the sleeves are actually on the reverse side's sleeves. They just peek out on this side. I have whip stitched the bottom of the sleeves together on the inside, as well as, all around the bottom of the bodices.

Here's the whole back full length. I didn't crop this photo either, hum....? I must be slipping.

And here is the front. I see that I need to press a little better.

Now, I can take it to the center that is having the auction. I am also going to do a couple of paper portraits to take as examples of what I can do. For the auction they can display a couple of examples so people will know what they look like. I will make one for whoever, if anyone, bids on it. I hope that this dress and the portrait will bring in at least a little $$. Mainly because I want to help them and also, it could be embarrassing if no one bids on them at all.

Now, I have seen where a couple of bloggers have posted a list of things that make them happy. I am going to attempt to make my own list. I think it is important to count your blessings every so often.
1. Seeing and talking to my daughters and their husbands
2. Seeing, playing with, holding, and talking to my grands
3. Holding a newborn
4. Visiting my mom when she's having a good day
5. The snow, when I don't have to get out in it
6. A good book
7. A finished project
8. Dreaming of new projects
9. Sewing/smocking/embroidering/etc.....Seeing the look on the face of whomever I have sewn something for
10. Scherenschnitting! What a word!
11. Words, especially learning new and interesting ones and their origins
12. My husband cooking
13. My friends, Old ones, New ones, and Cyber ones
14. Holidays when we are with family
15. Reading other people's blogs
16. Having my own blog
17. Watching UT football and basketball, especially when we win
18. The Colts being in the Super Bowl! I love Peyton!
19. Clean sheets on the bed
20. All of the laundry done
21. Feeling loved by family and friends
22. Gosh! I could go on and on. I didn't know that I had so many things that make me so happy.

Moving Right Along and Frozen Fog!

I just found this new blog, The Works of Our Hands, and thought you might like it too. I'm her first follower , but I'm sure that as soon as other people find her she will have lots and lots and lots.

This is the reverse side of the dress so far. As you can see, I have to hem the yellow corduroy side and I haven't done bottonholes, or decided on buttons, yet. The ruffled part of the sleeve will show on both sides. The sleeves are a little funky because they are two layers of sleeves. The piping was definiely the way to go around the neck edge. I opened up the ends of the piping that goes up the back center and inserted the neck piping into it so that it would be a continuous piece of piping. I think I'm going to hem the yellow so that the floral will peek out at the bottom. What do you think?


This is what frozen fog looks like when it settles on the trees. Beautiful. I wish you could have seen these in person, because the way the sunlight hit these trees, made them look like they were lit up with Christmas lights.




This is my Nandina Bush with the red berries and a little frost.

This is my grandmother's ivy. When we sold her house we moved some of it to my aunt's house when my mother was living there. I then brought some of it here when we moved here. My husband does not like it because it does tend to take over everything, but this is one thing I'm keeping no matter what! I do have to go out and pull it off the side of the house, out of the other plants it is near, and cut it back when it creeps into the driveway. It's worth it. I love ivy. My daughter actually used some of this ivy in her wedding. It is one thing that reminds me of my grandmother daily!!