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Los Olivos, California, United States
You can reach me at fool4fabric (at) gmail (dot) com

Sunday, January 15, 2017

BACK FROM A BREAK!



Happy New Year!


Here we are, 9:00 pm on New Year's Eve, in a motel room in Pella, Iowa,
drinking champagne out of plastic glasses to toast the coming year. We were probably asleep by 10...such an exciting life!

We were in Pella for our eldest grandson's wedding, held in the afternoon of NYE. Here's the bride and groom with Dave and me


the groom with his dad, our son


and with his 3 brothers and 1 sister.


And our beautiful granddaughter

She's one strong young woman, growing up with 4 brothers! I wore a vintage
Marimekko velvet jacket in black and silver.
We fortified ourselves with Bloody Marys before the celebration...

The day after we returned from Iowa, our daughter and granddaughter from Salt Lake City arrived for a short visit. As we usually do for our California-born, but now land-locked family, we stopped at the beach in Santa Barbara for a few pictures.


Look at these 3 cuties!


While they were with us, Dave made a yummy Key Lime Pie...I LOVE having a
husband who bakes!


AND...here's that same guy making fresh pasta with the machine he gave me
for Christmas (I should add here that I had had a pasta machine since the '60s, but Dave gave it away at a garage sale. Anyone relate?)


After the visit, I was eager to get back to sewing, but first I had to give in to the
annual post-holiday urge to purge. Micmac availed himself of a growing pile of
soft clothes to sleep on.


Finally, after filling 6 plastic bags, I was ready to head to my studio.

I finished a robe, V9232, that I had cut out before Christmas, but wasn't able to finish.





The fabric was a garnet Minky from Fabric.com

READERS: You are my witnesses...if I EVER think about sewing an article of
clothing out of Minky, faux fur or any other plushy fabric, I've given my friend
Shams the order to come and shoot me. AARRGGHH. My studio is COVERED in
long red fluff as are my nasal passages. 

The robe, though, is very pretty and super soft and comfy. I extended the front zipper and changed it to a 2-way so I can open it to get it on. I changed the pockets to plain patch pockets. It's a little big (I think I made a S), but that's ok with me...it's just more comfy.

A little RTW update...while looking for a coat that would stand up to an Iowa winter (it was actually unseasonably warm while we were there), I found a very
handsome faux-shearling coat.It's by Ralph Lauren, and is not so heavy that I won't be able to wear it here at home.












And why am I gazing lovingly at my shoes? Because they're uber-cool Stuart
Weitzman Zealous Black Platform Studded Oxfords, that's why...


AND I got them for $80 on eBay (orig.$425)!



 And who is this, in his trendy ZenCone? Why it's Teddy, recuperating from a little surgery (neutering, hernia repair). He hates the cone, of course, but it's better than the stiff white one he came home with. 

I'm linking over to Patti's Visible Monday where the cool women go...come on over and see us!

TTYL





22 comments:

  1. That's my bathrobe! Ok, it would be if I had made that pattern by now. I can't figure out what kind of fabric to use for it and I don't want anything even close to slinky:) So now that you have ruled out Minky for me, what would you suggest? The pattern envelope asks for a slight stretch in the fabric--is that really necessary? I really really need a new bathrobe and to give myself a little incentive, I threw the old one out.
    Many thanks,
    Lisa

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    Replies
    1. Hi, Lisa...you could use a fleece (that doesn't make a mess)or a knit terry cloth, or a chenille...I think you could get by without stretch. It's not like it's form-fitting!

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    2. Lisa, I'm making the same robe using fleece!

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    4. Thank you! I think I am still wishing I had the floor length red hooded sweatshirt pullover thing we used to wear in the 60s around the house. Talk about a comfortable all weather/anytime of day outfit! And my sisters and I wore them with those huge furry slippers that the cats loved so much. Shams, are you using sweatshirt fleece or polar fleece? Thank you Margy for keeping the rest of us minky-free!

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    5. Lisa, it's polar fleece. I've posted a blog post about it: https://communingwithfabric.blogspot.com/2017/01/its-all-sewing-vest-bathrobe-and-two.html

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  2. What a fun-filled catch up post. I just love that opening pic of you and Dave! Your family is just beautiful and it was nice that you braved the Iowa cold to attend the wedding. I have the same robe almost finished. I just lengthened and narrowed the sleeves - did you mess with those?

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  3. What a gorgeous family and it looks like a great celebration indeed. And those studded black shoes are WOW-good. Thanks for linking up, xo

    -Patti
    http://notdeadyetstyle.com

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  4. For some reason the sleeves were wrist length on me. I added elastic so I could push them up as necessary.

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    Replies
    1. Interesting! Well, your robe is GORGEOUS and well worth the trouble! Though, remember... you said you'd pay my airfare to come down and shoot you if you attempt that fabric again. ;)

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    2. Maybe you could use airline miles???

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  5. I'm with you on the minky et al!! Never again! Even flannel gets to me after a while. All that lint and fuzz.

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  6. Oh you are funny! But those shoes I'd kill for....FABULOUS...my DH is a baker as well.....so lovely, thanks for the post!
    LAURA

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  7. Oh your family is beautiful. What a great way to spend the holiday. And isn't 9 PM the new midnight? Your robe is so snuggly looking. You reminded me that I have one (from minky) in progress as well. It is currently in a plastic trash bag in time out for shedding so badly. I couldn't handle it anymore. When I revisit it I think I will wear a dust mask. Then I have one more piece of plush pile that I bought for the granddaughter that I think is going to shed. I may wait and cut it outside this spring/summer and shake it good before bringing it in. After that, its never again in this house either.

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  8. LOVE the robe! Ordered the pattern immediately and I'm thinking sweatshirt fabric after your minky warning.

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  9. You find the coolest shoes - definitely worth gazing! I also made a robe out of Minky so I can relate to the never ending fuzz. It was so nice to see all the great photos of your family. Thanks for sharing. Karen

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  10. I was eyeing your shoes -- love them! Nice pics of everything--I've heard others bemoan the hazards of minky. Beautiful robe though.

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  11. I love these newsy catch-ups on both your two and four-legged loves! I mean MicMac cozied up in your castaways! So cute!

    I just finished sewing two faux fur bags. I cut carefully from the backside of the fabric as recommended. The first, a long fiber one, went great...almost no flying fur! It came as a surprise...the second, shorter napped fur was EVERYWHERE...sinuses included, LOL! I love the finished products, but I might never sew with faux again.

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  12. Loved reading this update. What a wonderful way to start a new year with a wedding. Everyone looks lovely! A new bathrobe (beautiful) and Teddy has a new outlook on life. Yes, working with flyaway fibers is no fun, so I put on the surgical mask, have the vacuum cleaner next to the cutting table and after each cut, I vacuum up the fluff. Sewing and protecting the lungs go together. Also throughout my home are handy, commercial lint busters. Recently discovered that I can order them from WAWAK at a good price, so I order a dozen at a time. Removes pet hair and lint from clothing and furniture. Always one on my sewing table and next to the sewing machine. Look forward to your next project. LOVE THOSE SHOES! Happy January 2017.

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  13. LOVE THE ROBE!
    LOVE THAT YOU CAME AND VISITED ME ON THE BLOG!
    I SHALL RETURN!

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