2nd Trimester and other stuff

Hey there. Guess what? I'm still alive. And I'm doing well. Work (yep, I'm working right now), baby prep, house stuff and general life have taken over any blogging time. But I've found a moment or two to write, so here I am.

So, I'm now about 8 weeks away from little Peter's due date, which is exciting and stress-inducing at the same time. The second trimester was a breeze, with only minor annoyances (like heartburn, finding it more difficult to bend over to put shoes on, and snoring). In fact, it was actually pretty fun to have people start to notice the Peter bump and comment on its cuteness. Flattering. The attention, I won't lie, is fun.

Oh, and feeling baby move is fun and interesting. These days he fights with me over resting things on my belly. Not even heavy things, just pieces of paper, or the edge of my laptop. He pushes back. Such a resistant little fellow. He also tends to be elusive with TC. When I tell TC to come feel Peter move, the little guy typically stops. We figure he doesn't like being a prank monkey and so out of spite stops moving. Our doctor says it's probably because TC has a calming effect. 

I now have an intense desire to eat exactly as TC does. I can't get enough chocolate milk and cookies (which is a staple in TC's diet). And just to show that this baby is indeed part Argentine: I crave meat. Good thing we are going to Tucanos tomorrow night for all you can eat meat. That should satisfy the dude.

I bought some maternity jeans and a few tops and have just been creative (or not so creative) in putting outfits together. TC bought me a few cute dresses for church, and I have plans to sew for myself, but I haven't felt motivated to do so. Oh, and, in case any of you are wondering, I am still wearing heels most of the time, unless I have to walk a whole lot, in which case I wear flats. Today I am wearing these:

Also, it's warm. I kept thinking, back in January when Utah had three continuous weeks of snow and ice and freezingness and mucky skies, and then a short break before more snow and muckiness, that I would never have this baby, since he's due at the beginning of June, and by then it should be warm and sunny and lovely. But now, there is evidence that eventually it will be warm, and this baby will come. Whew! No chronic pregnancy for me.

Our house still has not taken material form, but we are hoping to apply for building permits in the next few months. Everything is designed and engineered and awesome. 

I have been sewing for Peter, and if I ever get around to it I'll post the projects here. I do have, however, for your viewing pleasure, some gifts that he has already received.

A pair of shoes (gosh I hope he inherits his parents' love of shoes):

And a very fitting onsie for our super baby:

Are you just, gaining weight?

My tummy is beginning to protrude, and I haven't really bought any new clothes, so I'm currently experiencing the challenge of making my old wardrobe work. I think, for the most part, I've succeeded in finding things that fit without looking frumpy. For The Most Part.

The other day I must have been wearing something frumpy because a well-meaning older neighbor lady asked me, in a crowded place no less and in a loud voice that caused everyone around us to hush, if I was, "...just gaining weight?" My response: "Yes I am gaining weight, but it's mostly because I'm pregnant." And she was happy and excited for us. And it was joyous.

What I didn't say but kind of wanted to was, "It's also partly because I'm constantly hungry and only certain foods sound appealing, and it's never salad that's at the top of my list."

What an awkward way to ask about a lady's growing gut! It made me laugh, luckily. I could see it going the other way, so I'm happy it just made me chuckle.

To answer the burning question on everyone's minds, yes, I am showing. But in my mind it's that inelegant waistline weirdness that doesn't represent itself clearly as a baby bump. It's more like, "Whoa girl! You ate a lot of meatloaf!" But every day it looks more and more like a baby, and less like meatloaf, so that's good.

And belly shots? Not on this blog. Sorry kids. But here's a fairly recent picture of me.

My face is quite a bit rounder than normal.

Oh, and check out those boots! They are Aldo Dannis and guess where we found them! In Honolulu. And can you imagine that they were marked down from $130 to $25?!?! I scored big time, but what in the world were those boots doing in Hawaii? I'm not complaining. These are comfortable, warm and cozy and fun to wear. A two-year-old friend of mine likes to pet them. Honestly, so do I.

Vogue 1241, A Copycat

I have this habit. 

Of "window shopping" online.

I love everything.

I cannot buy everything. 

So I save photos of things that I think are spectacular.

And then I go back and look at them and drool. It's my own personal pinterest.

This week I went back to look at my awesome clothes folder, and look what I found from June 2010:

Adrianna Papell Ruched Cotton Sheath Dress ($118)

I fell in love with the pleating at the neckline, the split neck, and the ruching at the sides. The print is pretty fabulous too. I can't find this dress online anymore, but here's a similar style. 

Then I came across this picture that I saved in April 2011:

Betsey Johnson Leaf Crepe ($178)

What I loved about this dress was the print, the combo of black and grey and royal blue. And again the ruching at the side fabulous.

So I saved these photos ages ago. And forgot about them in my conscious mind. 

In July 2011 I bought Vogue 1241, loving the split neck, the pleating at the neckline, and the ruching at the sides. Are you seeing a theme here?

Line art for Vogue 1241

And also in July I bought this fabric especially for V1241.

Printed Peachskin Fabric, from Fabric.com

And together, they made this:

Funny that Adrianna Papell (my inspiration dress) and Kay Unger (the designer of this pattern) make such a similar dress. And that I found a print so similar to Betsey Johnson's crepe dress. And even funnier that I didn't remember that those two dresses were in my "repretoire"and effectively recreated the look.

So here is the dress on:

Front

Back

I added 3 inches to the skirt, added cap sleeves, put a button loop and button at the top of the split neck, and added a white lace modesty panel in the split neck. 

The reason for the button at the neckline is that without it the neck gaped horribly. And without the modesty panel, there was a whole lot of cleavage and bra-age. I think the reason for that is that I should have made an adjustment for a larger bust, and I didn't. Also, I think I messed up on matching the left and right pieces of the bodice, which means that the two pieces are farther spread apart than they should be. The combination means gape-age.

Regardless of my foibles, I really like this dress. It's a print (yay!), and it's got a flattering fit. I tried wearing it yesterday with grey hose (you know, for warmth), but I'm not convinced that's the best way to wear it. So perhaps this is not a cold weather dress, but come spring I've got a fun dress just waiting for me.

The shoes are Vince Camuto Momas, purchased at the Nordstrom rack last month. I have fallen in complete love with all of Vince Camuto's leather shoes (remember these?); the leather is buttery soft and smells like leather. So TC saw these, pointed them out to me, and well, yada yada yada, they are now mine.

These shoes have ruching on the heel. So charming! 

Vogue 1220: Everyone else is doing it

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you my newest creation: Vogue 1220, a Donna Karan Collection pattern. Now I'm one of the cool kids, just like so many others.

I bought the lavender stretch poplin I used with this specific pattern in mind. I loved the pattern art,

which shows the dress in grey, and was so tempted to copy it directly, but I encountered two problems:
1. I couldn't find a shade of grey that was right for me.
2. I found lavender, which is a color I do not have in my wardrobe.

I really wanted a cotton sateen, but I found a poplin and went with it.

Now a little problem that I encountered was that the pattern only gives yardage for 60" wide fabric. And my lavender lovely is only 45". I guessed on how much I would need and bought 5 yards, which ended up being enough, plus quite a bit. All of the pieces fit on my narrower fabric, except for the sash, which is got across the grain and is super long. I ended up having to cut it in three pieces and sew it together. Not a huge deal, and it really makes no difference in the look of the sash.

Here it is on my dress form.

I think it's pretty spectacular. On me, I think it's also pretty spectacular. I really like this dress!

I added 3 inches of length, and I'm glad I did because the dress would definitely have been too short without it.

And it has pockets! They are shallow, but awesome for having something to do with my hands when I get nervous. 

I encountered one little problem in the instructions which say something completely incomprehensible (to me anyway) about the pleats that hide underneath the sash. I read them, reread them, slept on it, discussed it with my mom, reread them, and ended up just doing what I thought was best, which was just matching up the circles and sewing a line down the middle. There might have been something in the incomprehensible part about tacking them down or something, but I suppose I will never know.

Other than that, the dress went together fine. I found parts of the pattern annoying: the pieces are so weird and irregular, there are too many pivot points for my liking (who am I kidding, any number of pivot points is too many), and the button placket is kind of heavy (because I used an interfacing that was too heavy for the fabric).

One other issue is that I have trouble when sitting. The front along the legs wants to gape, and crossing my legs is tricky without showing some thigh. When I wore the dress out of the house I had to sit with my legs folded rather than crossed. It wasn't a bit deal really, just something to be conscious of to ensure I don't have any wardrobe malfunctions.

All that being said, I love the style of the dress, and I'm glad I made it. I'm also glad I'm finished. But I think this will one of those classics that I'll keep around in my wardrobe for a long while.


The shoes, while I'm not convinced they go with the dress, are these:

Guess Candice in black satin. They are cute with their little bow on the toe. There is one unfortunate consequence to wearing these shoes: they rub in a few places and tend to clean rub the skin away. Ouch. There's a clump of thread and glue that's nearly microscopic at the heel of one of the shoes. As small as it is, it is enough to cause pain and open woundage. So these shoes are not for everyday use, which is just as well since they are satin and therefore kind of dressy.

I bought them at DSW in August for around $40.

I haven't decided which of my shoes would go best with this dress, or if I need to be on the hunt for just the right pair. On the dress's maiden voyage I wore Guess Florie, and this time picked a black shoe. Bah. Either way the dress is great.

Simplicity 2257: Who's that lady?

Ever since the first time I set eyes on this pattern, I knew I wanted, needed, couldn't live without view D. I have not been able to keep my mind from wandering to that gorgeous skirt. So I've been on the hunt for the perfect fabric.

Then I found it at fabric.com. 

I cut this in a size 12, which if I were to make again, I'd slim down a bit. It fits, but it's just a bit bigger than I would like.

Here's the skirt on. I'm wearing it with McCall's 4922, which I featured in my last post.

This skirt is adorably full. I don't have anything like it in my wardrobe, so it's a welcome colorful change. I feel so lady-like in it. I want to curtsy and twirl and faint whenever I'm under duress. 

I also noticed that most of my clothing is solid. I have no prints, and this fabric was bought in the hopes that I would begin to solve that "problem." The print is kind of islandy. It reminds me of pineapple tops. And the colors are so refreshing.

This skirt was ridiculously easy to make. Except for a small snafu: I decided I wanted to add pockets, so I took a pocket pattern piece from another pattern, and sewed them in. I was even clever enough to sew in an invisible side zipper along with the pockets. But once I tried it on I realized that I was a moron. (As a side note I have that realization at least once a day.) I had sewn the pockets too far down the side seam, so the pockets made me look like I had the worst saddle bags in the history of saddle baggery, and the pockets were only usable when I hunched down to reach them. The whole thing made me laugh. So I ripped out the pockets and continued on without a hitch. Pocketless skirt.

The shoes are some of my favorites, Jessica Simpson Edith. These were the kind of shoes that when I saw them for the first time at the DSW I gasped. Then I tried them on. Then I asked TC eighty-seven times what he thought: where they too expensive, were they worth it, would I wear them, could I really get them? 

He answered me about fifty-three times before he just started to respond with an affirmative grunt. So I got them. 

That was back in February. These shoes have gotten a lot of use and love and care. Unfortunately they are starting to show their loved-ness.

the Classics: Simplicity 9825 and McCall's 4922

For the third time now I made up S9825. It has become my go-to pencil skirt pattern, and I love it.

This time I decided to go wild with animal print fabric I ordered from Fabric.com. 

I had previously cut this pattern in a size 10, which is now too small (too many cookies), so using the a-line version which I had previously cut in a 12 as a guide, I kind of winged the resizing from a 10 to a 12, and surprisingly it turned out great. 

And now on to the shirt I'm wearing. I've had McCall's 4922 in my stash for ages, years, centuries. And just now I finally made it.

I was really REALLY excited about the fabric. It is a woven cotton stretch pique in a great white WHITE color. I bought it from fabric.com more than a year ago. It was one of those fabrics that I loved so much I was scared to cut into it. It's not even like it was expensive or irreplaceable or anything like that. I think I just couldn't stand the thought of me wasting such a classic, lovely piece of fabric. 

At any rate, I finally garnered the courage.

I franken-sleeved it using the cap sleeves from Simplicity 2473. It fits great. I had to take it in at the sides by about an inch total (so 1/2 inch on each side). It's a great shirt to tuck in, but untucked it's a bit unfitted and lame. The hip area is kind of baggy. Could I fix it? Sure. But with the tail hem line it was obviously meant for tucking, so I've decided that it's a tuck-in shirt, and I'm not going to bother with the baggy hips.

 Oh, and I didn't even have to lengthen it like I usually do. 

Now on to the shoes: They are Guess Florie in cream. They are "all manmade materials" which I typically try to avoid, but still pretty comfortable. They were discounted at DSW when I bought them last month. I feel just a little bit "real housewives of NJ" in the shoes and the animal print skirt, but overall, I love the outfit. I think the white button-down grounds the whole outfit in reality? I don't know.

Simplicity 2473: A long time coming

Way back in March TC bought me the awesomest birthday present ever: a dress form. This dress was my first project using the dress form to fit. I cut it out in a size 14 and shaped it to fit. I pinched a little here, a little there, took in the waist to fit me exactly, slimmed down the skirt from a 14 to a 12, and voila! A perfect fitting dress. I also lengthened the skirt by 3 inches, and still, I think I could have lengthened it just a bit more.

I love the rolled collar like crazy. I think it's adorable and a little bit retro. I have trouble with the back of the collar standing up a bit, but luckily it doesn't show up in these photos.

I love to wear a little brooch on the collar. 

Overall I like this dress. The extra effort in fitting really paid off. I finished it in April and it's gotten quite a bit of wear since then, which brings me to my shoes...

Guess Patches in black leather. They are comfortable. So comfortable. and I love wearing them.

We bought them in March from DSW and they have been getting a lot of wear since then.

Bling Pouf Shoes

I've been sewing, and have finished a few things, but alas, taking photos of myself proves to be too difficult for me (or, I'm simply too lazy). So, I have for you some new shoes.

They are Steve Madden Luxe. We bought them from DSW back in February. (I think. Or maybe January.) They are olive green satin with a bling pouf.

These shoes are adorable, and I love them, however I have not found many opportunities to wear them. But my opportunities are about to broaden; I just finished a sewing project that will go perfectly with these lovelies.

By the way, these shoes were ridiculously inexpensive: something like $16, for the BOTH of them. Cheap, huh?

And here are my legs, in the shoes. On the leg on the left is my birthmark. On the other, is a knobby ankle.


And just as a teaser, here's a preview of what I recently finished. I consider it to be my pièce de ré·sis·tance.

Coming soon!

Ugly Shoes

I haven't written in months and this is what I want to say: I had a dream last night. I was really stressed in the dream, but when I woke up I laughed.

The dream was set in the present day, except I was living in the house I grew up in. It was a Sunday morning and I was late getting to church. I looked in my closet for shoes and all I could find were ugly shoes.

There were granny heels (and not the cute kind), 

weird looking shoes,

clunky shoes,

and glittery shoes, like these:

and these:

I was pretty stressed that all I could find were ugly shoes and I was late, and my clothes didn't fit. It was all very horrible. 

And then I woke up. And then I laughed at myself for being so stressed out. And then I told TC. And then he laughed at me. And now you can laugh at me too.

The Friday that is Black

On black Friday, we went shopping. I managed not to buy anything for myself, except for these exceptional boots.

They are Guess Heatherly. And we bought them at DSW. Now I went to DSW with the intention of helping SIL2 pick out some boots for herself. And that we did. But, while she was deliberating, my eyes were wandering, and TC insisted I try these boots on. So I did. And you all know what happens when I try on shoes. 

So, yada yada yada, I have new boots.

'