July 2019

[MartySews2]

Finished hemming 2 dresses in which more than 10 inches were cut off of each dress. Also sewed the full length button down front placket on one dress closed so my church member could sit without it gaping. That was precision sewing. I had to remove the stitching 3 different times before I got it right. The other dress was fully lined so I had to hem it and the lining after cutting off 11 inches. Today, I am resting before starting on other sewing projects. Tomorrow, I will embroider the name on a backpack and then sew for me for the rest of the weekend. My next big sewing challenge is to cut a skirt down from a size 16 to a size 6. It is black. My plan is to take apart the center front and center back seams plus remove the waist band and recut the skirt in the smaller size keeping the side pocket details. I will add new elastic to the waist and reinsert the zipper in the front. Am hoping it will work out and look great on her. At age 88, she is still going strong and loves this skirt.
Marty

[Skye]

Great work Marty. I dislike doing alterations so you are a star.
I have had the past two days off work so I have been quilting into he afternoons. Dr Seuss Let's Party. Found the kit in my stash when I had a big tidy up earlier in the year.
I will put the binding on tomorrow. Then I can reconfigure my sewing room and sew for me. Probably cut out a black merino tshirt my ones are starting to get scruffy and then on to the boucle jacket . Winter storm here today so perfect day to spend in sewing cave, especially after spending the morning doing my tax return.

[sewingrandma]

You ladies have been busy sewing. I've been busy with grandsons (18 &14) for a week, taking DH to 2 different doctors and then today we both had check-ups with our regular doc. This was all within the last 2 weeks, and that included a 7 hour round trip travel to take the boys back to their Dad! DH is having surgery on one of his eyes Monday. His cataract surgery last year didn't go as expected and he has had a lot of swelling in the back of his eye, with fluid building up behind scar tissue that has formed because of the swelling. It'll be a year before everything settles down in there and the doc said his vision will never be 100%. Right now he has difficulty just seeing the E at the top of an eye chart.

In between doctor visits I have been cutting out baby gowns and self binding blankets.

Hope all enjoyed the 4th. We had a quiet one this year as the "kids" were all out of town this year and with the state getting strict with fireworks even the neighbors didn't fire any off this year.

[MartySews2]

Right now, I am dogsitting a friend's dog so she could go on a much needed vacation. Charlie is a little terrier mix and is so mischievous. I have to watch him every minute so trying to sew is almost impossible. Also, I am caring for my next door neighbor's dogs as she went out of town to see her dad for a week. Our 4th was quiet ... I think I had another mini-stroke that day as my headache was so severe that I could barely stand it. I've been "off" since then. I have trouble walking and maintaining my balance. Again, I have had several doctor appts so I'm not worried. They really can't do anything right now. I have another EMG scheduled for 7/19 and will have a full pulmonary exam on 7/17. My regular 3 month check-up was fine as were all of my labs. On Monday, I'm embroidering a name on a backpack for a friend. Then I will start on the skirt. I figured that if I take 2.5 inches off the center of the skirt in the front and back. That will be 10 inches in reducing the size. I will retake her hip measurements tomorrow so I can be sure of the correct size. Should not be that complicated.
Marty

[MartySews2]

Doing a little mending today. I removed the cap sleeves (too tight) from a top that I have and will hem the armholes to have a sleeveless top. I will save any other sewing for later in the month when I feel better. Right now, I'm going to study my book "Knits for Real People" and my patternmaking software. Would love to read about y'all's sewing projects.
Marty

[sewingrandma]

I'm sewing my usual baby items. Had to step up the number of sleepers I make as they go fast in the kits we give out. Lots of tote bags ready to stitch. Yesterday I was pinning burp clothes front/backs together getting them ready to stitch. I have someone who doesn't sew cut them out for me now so my production rate has gone up.

Abby finally told me who/what she wants to be for Halloween, Everest from Paw Patrol. Had to look that one up. Looks like I'll be able to get her all decked out easily this year. A beanie hat and a vest.

[Skye]

Made 2 dog leads yesterday used nylon webbing and stitch braid ribbon on both sides. Really pleased with how they turned out. On my tablet and cant copy the link if you want to look a photo on Flickr Sewingskye.

Going to make merino t shirt today and hopefully cut out a cardi.

Marty ready your other post - get well fast

[MartySews2]

Skye, I ended up in the hospital on July 8th and was there for a week with severe bleeding as my blood was not clotting after so many blood thinners. No sewing during that time. My cardiologist told me that I had a mini-stroke. I now have a slight droop on my right side of my cheek and my right eyelid. Changes in meds and more follow-up doctors appts are in my future. The EMG test showed no neuropathy in my left arm so that was a plus. An eye exam showed that I lost a lot of my vision so I have new eyeglasses ordered. I pick them up today. The MRI showed some multiple bulging disks in my neck so I have started decompression treatments. I am slowly recovering but I tend to bounce back after one of these episodes. I feel good and am expanding my sewing ministry.

Sewing wise, I had my all day Sit & Sew this past Saturday in which I completed 3 baby gowns (just needed detail work) to finish. I taught one young lady how to use her Singer Featherweight (computerized model) sewing machine, meaure, cut and hem a dress plus how to use a serger. We had fun with that. Then another lady had bought an old Singer serger at a rummage sale for $10 several years ago. I showed her how to clean it, set the tension and get it running for a 3 thread overlock. We were able to use it to add a patch of color to some yard pants that she had. We were not sure if it would work or not but we got it running. If I had some serger thread with me, we could have done more. However, 6 ladies came that day so we had a fun gabfest and spending time sewing on various projects together.
Marty