So, How'd I Do?

Well, it's that time of year again. Time to cast an eye back to the past 12 months and see where I've been. So here are the highlights:

* This year, I sewed up 96 garments - everything from fully tailored suits to tank tops.

* I used up 162 m (177 yd) of fabric in my garment sewing.

* I took second place in the Timmel 2008 SWAP Contest, with my Jackie Kennedy inspired wardrobe. I still can't believe that I was chosen in amongst so many beautiful entries.

* I am the master of the bound buttonhole due to the above SWAP - I could make 'em before, but now I own them.

* I survived a severe loss of sewing and blogging mojo and I am on the road to recovery.

So, it's time to look forward to another new adventure...Hello, 2009!

Beagle Overload

The past few days I have been wasting my time in the most wonderful way. I simply cannot tear myself away from the puppy cams at ustream.tv. There are golden retriever puppies, dauschund puppies, miniature schnauzer puppies and Havanese puppies, among others (just search for "puppies" and you'll get quite a selection. However, my favourite, hands down, are the beagle puppies (imagine that)!

In the beagle theme, here's a photo of Simon and I suiting up to go for a walk. The temperature around here lately has hovered around -8 Celsius, so warm hats are definitely in order. However, Simon seems less than enamoured with the choice of head gear I have made for him!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

Not like we have a choice!

Okay, so we get nailed by Mother Nature on Wednesday - 10 cm of snow. Then yesterday, she sticks it to us again - 20 cm of snow. Now, we're bracing for another 20 cm to hit tonight into tomorrow. To the left is a photo of Simon navigating the snowy backyard - he has always loved snow ever since he was a pup!

The only good thing about all this is that I am now off for Xmas break - two whole weeks of vacation. Besides the obligatory holiday stuff, I am planning on making my sewing machine sing. I already have a back log of finished sewing projects to post about - 3 skirts, a top and a cardigan. I'm also almost finished a pair of pants and another cardigan. So, stay tuned...

And the Winner Is...

Not me.

I came in 5th of 5 blogs in Round 2 of the Canadian Blog Awards. However, I am consoling myself with the fact that placing 5th out of the 15 original blogs from Round 1 is nothing to complain about. I'm amazed that I did as well as I did. So, a huge congratulations to the winners and a heartfelt thank you to all those that voted for me. Maybe next year... ;)

P.U.

A small rant.

If I can smell you before I see you, you have applied too much perfume.

'Nuff said.

Fabulous Fifties

ETA: She has changed her project. In her own words, from her blog, My Decade Year, "As of December 15, I've altered the project to include the 60's, 70's, and 80's. Read about it!"

My Original Post:
This morning I was reading the blog, Life of a Jersey Girl, and came across a post about Marzipan Jones. Marzipan (a pseudonym) has decided to live the life of a 50s housewife for one year. She started this experiment on September 1st, 2008 and she documents her daily trials and tribulations on her blog. She has vowed to cook, clean and take care of her husband and child a la June Cleaver and she will do all this while dressed the part.

I quickly came to realize that she feels much like I do about the 50s:

"I've been both enamored and repelled (ha!) by the 50's for as long as I can remember. I think it began with the music and of course, the fashion....Everyone always looked so wonderfully put-together and there seemed to be a quality of innocence that pervaded everything said. However, I also knew about the terrible conditions the cultural climate held for people of color, gay and lesbians, and for women. So, I had a love/hate relationship with the era..."

I am completely awed and amused by this little experiment and I can't stop reading her blog. I am hooked and I will certainly be keeping a close eye on her trials and tribulations!

I have always been fascinated with the 50s (and to a lesser extent, the 60s), although I was born in 1970 and never had any first hand knowledge of the era. I adore the fashion, the etiquette, the music and the cars. I long for a return to sophisticated dressing. I could easily step back in time and don a pencil skirt, a sweater set and a string of pearls - no one knows how to dress quite like Grace Kelly these days. However, I can't imagine what it was like to live in a time of such rampant sexism and racism - being anything other than a strong-willed, independent woman seems foreign to me.

So, dear reader, what is your era of choice and why? What fashions make your heart go pitter-patter? Who is your style icon?

Wow!

Well, check me out! I made it to Round 2 in the Best Activities Blog category. How unbelievably cool is that??

Ode to Thread

I love thread. There, I said it. I know that claiming to have a passion for thread is neither perverse nor earth shattering, but I do acknowledge that is is a little weird. I can't help it, though.

I love seeing all my spools of thread lined up in their storage drawer, like tiny soldiers, ready to be called into service at a moment's notice. The neat wrapping of the thread on the spool, creating a distinct crosshatch pattern is soothing to my eye. The colours entice me and cause me to dream of what could be.

I use 100% polyester Gutermann thread almost exclusively in my sewing machines. I know other sewists swear by Mettler or Coats & Clark, and I have tried both of those brands, but something about the Gutermann colours and the packaging spoke to me. I have never had any problems with Gutermann thread shredding or creating excess fuzz to gum up my machines, so I stick with this brand.

I used to buy my thread at my local chain fabric store, for an exorbitant price (100 m for $1.84 and 250 m for $3.75; or on sale, $1.00 and $2.00 respectively). Then, one day I discovered a better source.

Cleaner's Supply is an online store, specializing in all the products necessary to run a laundry and/or dry cleaning business. Although much of the inventory is of no interest to me (hangers, tags, packaging, etc), the Pressing and Tailoring sections are wonderful.

The Pressing section was where I found my sleeve board, which my husband has put through its paces with his dress shirt ironing. They also carry pressing mitts and vacuum boards (which is extremely drool worthy).

The Tailoring section, however, is where I spend most of my time. Here is the place for metal tailor's rulers, zippers, buttons, machine needles and exceptionally good seam rippers, among other things. My favourite notion in this section is (not surprisingly, based on the title of this post) the Gutermann thread. The price cannot be beat. See below for a comparison:

Local chain fabric store: $2.00 for 250 m or 0.800 cents per metre, if bought on sale
Cleaner's Supply: $3.63 for 1000 m or 0.363 cents per metre, no sale necessary

Based on the rate with which I go through thread, the savings are substantial. Not to mention, the larger spools are so much more convenient - I never run out of thread part way through a project anymore.

Unlike many online thread sources, this company sells to Canada (just be sure to click on the Canadian flag to get Canadian prices), not just the U.S. Additionally, they offer free shipping on any order over $100 and only charge $2.83 on any order under $100. The shipping times are reasonable - I have never waited more than three or four business days for any order. The customer service is great too, letting you know when the order has processed and is being shipped.

Cleaner's Supply carries 360 different colours of thread, in every shade of the rainbow. To facilitate my thread buying, I have purchased the Gutermann Real Thread Chart (which is a sturdy fold out booklet with actual samples of every thread available). This chart allows me to match thread to my fabric exactly.

At this point, I am the proud owner of 67 large spools of thread (see photo to the right). Ultimately, I would love to have almost every single colour they offer.