Skirt Redo

I wore the same skirt this week to Church that I wore last week, but I sewed the "gores" closed, leaving the bottom four inches as pleats, and cutting out the extra fabric. Changed the entire sillouette, from pouffy to pencil. Lots of compliments. Felt good. Lady-like instead of frumpy. I never would have tried on a skirt this shape--I've always bought the flowing, lots of fabric options because I worried how they would fit. And fit makes a huge difference in how things look. Hard when your size is going up and down having children and experimenting with dieting/exercising. My challenge has been to go through all my clothes and take photos to help me decide if it is a flattering outfit, or a fail, and either change something or get rid of it. Declutter that wardrobe!

AFTER

BEFORE

Now What? Decorating Dilemmas

My husband grew up in a home where things were decorated, once, and the furniture stayed in place for years, decades...

My family moved every 4 years or so when I was young. And my mom liked to experiment, change things. I remember my bunk bed in three different places in our San Jose house, and it couldn't have been me moving it by myself?

Part of cleaning a room, for me, is seeing if things would fit better, or look nicer, or be more convenient rearranged. John has learned to turn on the lights before walking through a room, in case the couch is no longer where it was the last time he sat down...

And it isn't always me on my own changing things. Gifts, sharing bounty creates new "problems" to solve. New raw material to play with and create a new environment. Always in the pursuit of beauty/comfort/function.

I have a sweet friend who is a collector/antique-admirer. She gave me this fireplace surround/mantel. Oak under dubious white (lead?) paint. Wash your hands often. There is a beveled mirror that fits into the middle frame. This is waiting for a good cleaning and paint peel. I love the history of this piece, the detailing, the grandness!

(My friend also sent me home with these nifty chairs, enough to make a no-more-waiting for "Elijah" chair for each of my seminary students...either a Christmas present or early Passover gift? I will get them involved in this project and post finished pictures!)

I had just finished gluing on these blue stones to our brick fireplace surround. Cover them up with oak antique? Or take the saws-all and just put the top third of the mantel on top of my existing woodwork mantel??? Secure it how? It is top heavy to begin with, and massive, would need more support below...There are some engineering questions to figure out before I can do anything else with this project.

Finished this zebra pillow for my chair (once an Emma skirt), and then found a great curbside freebee chair...In my perfect living room, there are enough comfy chairs for all of us, sitting around a round central table. That means getting rid of the couch, or putting it in another room...

Do I recover it to match the rest of the black & white & turquoise decor in the living room? Embrace the purple? Start over with a clean slate?

Frivilous problems, these decorating questions of mine. It all has to fit within a budget of use-what-I-have-spend-nothing. SO it is all about rearranging. Editing. Choosing.

A Soft Spot for Swatches

If you have a few minutes, check out SwatchSpot. You can lock in colors (but the lock only lasts one additional shuffle. If you really love that color, lock it, then unlock and lock again to keep it in the mix.) I discovered a pattern of triplets, three colors that I LOVE together! After hundreds of random swapping, saving the pallettes I think are beautiful, I can articulate what I like. And it suprised me a little, to be analytical about my reaction to color.

Do these look like me? Can you see the color I have been ignoring, that completes the triad? Yes, orange IS my favorite color most days, but the turquoise and PURPLE combo thrills me! Every single one of the choices I saved had a version of these turquoise & purple-orchid colors---and several were missing the orange.

Food, Glorious, Yummy Food!

It had been since 2004. It was time.

If you have never had a colonoscopy, it can sound like a horror show. Spare you the details?

Let's just say, this time, it was near perfect. Thanks to some good tips from the Colon Club. Three days before, I started soft foods only. Lovely, lovely homemade applesauce. Rootbeer float. That kind of thing. Liquids on day two: miso soup, chix soup, gaterade, a whole 2 liter of cream soda for the calories. And the over-the-counter prep went like a breeze/sneeze. Investing in baby diaper rash ointment helped, too.

I love my good Jewish doctor! I told him this morning in Bible Study class we had talked about Abraham & Isaac. I asked my 13 year old son to lie down on the center of the two tables pushed together. He had his pillow & blanket, kept his eyes closed, dozed. Great attention grabber for the story of a father's love for his son and willing sacrifice (Isaac could have run away, over-powered his old dad. It could have been a much different story.)

So during this routine GI procedure we are chatting about the great prophets. I was comfortable enough that he only used minimal meds, so I was out of recovery quickly, for a nice, lovely lunch-date with John for....(I warned him, what I really, really wanted after 3 days of no food) good guacamole! Heavenly, wonderful tastes!

Lab results in two weeks, but no suprises. Moderate disease, in "remission" symptom-wise, but I still have Crohn's. The ulcers and inflammation show up as white spots. I have pictures, in time for Halloween haunting.

I wish you all healthy guts, and some glorious tasting. Appreciate your bowels and taste buds.

Take a T-shirt

I taught Hannah how to take a t-shirt that she and her sisters weren't going to wear, sew up the bottom hem and cut off the sleeves and cut out the neck to make a great bag...

Or APRON!  Work pocket apron for berries, or tools, you could add pockets (this is what comes from brainstorming with a creative niece!  We had fun!)  Or a super-hero cape!

A princess hair veil, wrist bracelet out of a sleeve...pony tail holder!

Or head kerchief tied under your chin or tied behind your neck it is a snood to put all your hair in like a hair net!  Versatile!

The love bags I brought with me to share contained this ruffle-petticoat tiered skirt, that Roxie has outgrown but wore when she got baptized two years ago, before I added the netting ruffles.  There were 4 ruffled skirts in the bags.  Which surprised me.  I seem to go through creation phases, try something several ways, work out the kinks. 

Domino Decorating

I went to my brother's to pick raspberries and pick up this loan, painted by another brother, David.  Love his artwork.  I moved everything around to give it a prominent, showcase spot in the front hallway.  This shows the front door skeleton decoration alongside it.

For awhile I had auditioned this painting in the dining room, where I have had 4 of his paintings hanging for the last year plus...but I moved two of them into the living room and put up Emma's DC Temple altered quilt. This is the gathering place for the seminary students who come early to drink hot chocolate and talk before class begins at 6 am.  It needed a sanctuary feel, a focus on what I want for them as a goal.

So far, the living room has two of David's paintings hanging by our blonde piano.  I still want to paint the piano orange.  Not this week, but it is in my thoughts...

One change leads to another...

Wardrobe Evaluation: skirts & shirts for work

No matter what my weight, I am boxy-square shaped.  Short-waisted, narrow shoulders.  Thick-wristed, narrow-ankled.  Bigger stomach than rear end (pants would probably fit great if I wore them backwards).

I've been reading some wardrobe self-help books.  How to express your personality, how to find flattering clothes that FIT & Flatter.  I have to add on my own, ones that are modest, and don't cost a fortune...Going through my closet and drawers, this is what I wore to work last week:

#1 in Brown.  Skirt & top thrift store finds.  The skirt was originally a Land's End long sleeve dress with an uncomfortable polo-shirt collar that I cut above the elastic at the waist retaining the awesome pockets.  Stretchy, comfortable.  Empire waisted wrap shirt in vertical stripes.  Long sleeves with cuffs at wrists.   I would wear this again, but not perfect.  Skirt length a little long?  Grade: B-

#2 A line flowered thrifted skirt, solid 3/4 jersey top Sears sale.  Comfortable.  Busy bottom half.  Grade: B

#3 Plum & Polka Dots!  I loved wearing this!  Thrift store top, Sears sale skirt.  Bright happy color, comfortable skirt, like the length (longer than brown #1, hadn't noticed), sleeves cuffed at 3/4 length.  Curvy in right places, slimming.  Grade: A-

#4 Black & White & Gray thrifted top hits my elbows, Target sale skirt looks blocky/frumpy.  I need to wear this top with a more flattering skirt?  Grade B+

#5 Purple Old Navy sale & Light Blue Target sale.  If I had seen this picture before I left the house, I do not think I would have worn this.  Too flowy.  Too busy on bottom.  Grade: C

I might as well use the fabric on this skirt for a quilt, 100% cotton.  What do you think?