101 Thingees...: Some things stay and some things go

I have been on a sewing kick lately and it has been great. Unfortunately, this means I don't have time for the baking frenzy. I am trying to come to terms with the fact that a person who works full time and commutes 2 hours each day, who has two kids and a house and is active in her church just can't do everything. I get to pick one hobby/obsession at a time. I would prefer to bake all of our bread and snacks, and I can do that, but then there is no time to create other things. So I will have to trade in and out to balance all my domestic desires and my need to be artistic in other ways.

This weekend I accomplished sewing a dress that is entirely hand stitched. I used a robe I bought at a thrift store. I am pretty proud of myself because I didn't even have a pattern. I don't know that I love the dress. It is snug across the behind and that makes me feel a bit immodest (and creates a dirth of problems finding the appropriate underpinnings).

(please excuse the way I look. I don't know why I always take these pictures when I look so blah)

I will wear it on a day when I don't feel the need to be particularly appropriate or impressive and see if I grow to like it better by the end of the day. In any case, I am sure I will at least wear it about the house. I have been doing more handsewing lately and it is very satisfying. Plus I can do it in bed or in the kid's room or the living room. When I sew on my machine, I am tied to the spot and usually with one kid stuck to either side while they stare and insist (despite my pleas) on helping by jabbing hands dangerously close to the machine-gun fast needle.

I also made Zelda a dress.

She has been asking me to make her something. I had a dress I bought at the same time as the robe. I used part of it turned inside out to make the trimming for the neck and sleeve of my dress. What was left over was still an adult sized dress, but I was able to size it down for Zelda and add some of her design ideas...like the Z.