Snow Day in Atlanta

I've been thinking I should have a blog so at least my family can follow along with what I'm up to. So, since we have a snow day today, this seems like the perfect day to get a blog started!

I bought a sewing machine just before Thanksgiving and I've been teaching myself how to sew. I figured the best way to do that would be to jump right into a sew-along or two. I spent a few weeks trying to perfect the fit on my muslin for the Crepe Dress with Gertie's sew-along, and finally convinced myself I was happy with it yesterday (modifications made: side seams taken in, small bust adjustment, shoulders modified, back waist darts lengthened). Here's Cal helping me lay out my fabric and pattern to start the cutting process last night:


Thanks Cal! So very helpful! The fabric is a linen/cotton blend from fabric.com. It's black with red and white pinstripes and a bit heavier than the really light cottons most people are using for the sew-along, but I wanted something that wouldn't be sheer so I wouldn't have to fuss with a lining.

I'll be starting the Pendrell Blouse sew-along with Tasia this week also. I have my fabric and pattern, but that's all the progress I've made.

I'll be making View C (the sleeveless blouse) with a navy blue and white polka dot polyester charmeuse from JoAnn Fabrics. At this point, I'm keeping my fabric choices on the easy care and inexpensive side. When I'm a bit more confident in my sewing skills, I'll start to branch out to some nicer fabrics.

I've also been oh-so-slowly knitting a cabled cardigan since some time in October. I'm working on the second sleeve, and as soon as I finish that I'll be able to assemble the body pieces and then knit the shawl collar. Here is the back and the two front pieces blocking on a towel on our futon:



The yarn is a bit darker than it looks in the pictures and is Cascade 220 wool. I wasn't sure how I would feel about pure wool, but as soon as it arrived in the mail I was happy with its squishiness and how soft it felt already. Since it's a cardigan, I'm not planning to wear this without a shirt underneath, so I'm hoping my skin will be happy with it.

Other than that, I have spent most of my energy getting over a cold and catching up on things at work last week (annual report, quarterly report, student recommendation letter, internal grant application, running calculations for a collaborator, checking files for a collaborator, reading a paper draft for a collaborator, working on my own research, getting a syllabus and class webpage and first few lectures ready for the new semester, etc, etc). So I feel entirely justified in taking this extra day for myself.

Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, the background picture for my blog was taken at dawn one morning at Lick Observatory when the marine layer had rolled in over San Jose.