Smudge Update, Day 5

Another dressing change today. Smudge continues to heal well, so our next visit is over the weekend. Yay!

One good thing that's coming out of this is that Smudge is getting over his fear of the car and the cat carrier. When I picked him up today, the vet tech said he was asleep and didn't wake up when she moved him to the carrier. He continued to sleep almost all the way home. Granted, this is a short ride, but he used to yowl and wet. So this is a huge improvement.

Another plus today. In spite of the bandage, Smudge is starting to hold his tail high. Those of you who are owned by cats understand this--it's the normal, "happy" tail posture. So the boy is feeling very good!

Smudge Update, Day 3

A quick update on the little man.

Smudge went back to the vet today for another dressing change. Good news! He didn't have to have the debreding done because his skin is healing and looking better. He's feeling more like himself too--starting to fight back a bit when I give him his medicine. This is a Good Thing.

We go back again on Wednesday, that is, if the dressing stays in place and doesn't get wet.

Smudge Update, Day 2

Smudge managed to slip the dressing off his tail sometime last night. It still looks bad, but better now that it's been cleaned up a bit. He's also handling his tail a bit more normally now, moving the tip around, etc., so it must be more comfortable. Most of the fur has been shaved off, so it looks a like a lion's tail with a tuft at the end.

After the first round of meds this morning (oral antibiotics, painkiller, antibiotic ointment for an unrelated eye problem), we headed back to the vet's office for a follow up exam and dressing change. The vet was pleased with how the tail looks and was even able to put in a couple of sutures to help hold the outer edges of the wound together. Tomorrow we go back again. Although there appears to be blood flow to the bone and muscle, he's still concerned about the skin. He'll probably debrede the margins tomorrow (yuck!).


For now, Smudge is sleeping in the corner of the living room, which is probably for the best. He's still having trouble navigating with the collar but seems a lot calmer than after yesterday's visit to VCA West Mesa.


I also did a little sewing today, completing another Simplicity 9505 View E. This one, and another one I'm making, have been problematic for no good reason. Because I sewed a front facing onto the back of the gown (on both gowns!), there are keyhole openings at both CF and CB. The front opening is functional but the back one isn't. This doesn't affect the wearability of either gown in the least, but it's irritating to make such a dopey mistake, not just once but twice, and on such easy projects! I'll post pictures when both of them are complete and write about what, if anything, I did to fix the gowns.

The Big Patient

This time, it's Smudge. When I woke up this morning, I noticed blood on his tail, so I took him to the vet. It turned out that he had a cut almost completely around his tail, to the bone. Ugghhh.


The vet said it was likely caused by having a door shut on his tail. I know it's not something that happened at my house--He would have yowled loudly if I'd so much as touched his tail with a door! He does go outside and wanders among a small number of backyards in the neighborhood. It disturbs me to think one of my neighbors might have done this to him. I just hope it was an unfortunate accident and not deliberate meanness.


Poor boy, he's very unhappy with all this. The collar, the dressing, the medicine, the shaving of his tail. It's all a bit much for him, and he's majorly p.o.'d.





The prognosis is uncertain at this point. The vet wants to see how it looks tomorrow before he stitches the wound up. If there's no blood flow, Smudge will become a bob tailed kitty.

First Wearing Recap: Tango A

I wore the new Tango A skirt to work on Monday. Uh oh, too much ease. When you have 10 gores, sewing 1/4" seams vs. 3/8" seams really makes a difference--2-1/2" to be precise. Why do I do these things to myself??

So the past couple of evenings, I corrected the skirt by making deeper seams along several of the gores. It's now back to where it should have been all along. Dang, I hated ripping out that Loes Hinse method waistband! No, I didn't take out the hem, I just blended the new seam into the old one. All in all, it didn't take that long, but it's tedium.

However, that's how you learn, right?!?

A Quick "Dance"

I cut, sewed, and completed yet another Loes Hinse Tango Skirt this afternoon, this time View A, the shorter flared skirt. The finished result is above, and the top shown with it is from Talbot's. I've decided that I need to make at least a little time for actual sewing, as it's a right brained activity. Work tends to be so analytical, or left brained, that I have to have an activity that balances out my mind--a release, if you will. Cooking serves the same purpose but sewing yields much more positive results, know what I mean?

I've made this skirt several times, even more than I've blogged here! This time, I just wanted something new to wear that would match these shoes:



Has that ever happened to you? Making clothes to go with accessories? I've actually worn these with the brown tropical outfit at the suggestion of J, my fashionista 20-something co-worker, but it's nice to have something that's a more traditional match. The colors in the print are somewhat of an unusual combination, aren't they?--navy with accents of light blue, slate, green, tan, and lavender? But that's what keeps things interesting!

The pattern envelope states that 2-3/4 yards is needed for this view, I had more than enough, even though I had only a scant 2-1/2 yards of 45" wide rayon to cut the skirt from. I have almost a yard left! I think Loes is a more than a little generous with her fabric layouts. Needless to say, having more than one copy of the pattern piece was very handy and saved me some grief.

The fabric is one of those mystery pieces that somehow found its way into my stash without being logged. That seldom happens, but every once in a while it does. I think it came from Hancock's last year, but beyond that I don't know.

If you've been reading my blog, you probably know I'm not a big one for step by step tutorials, usually because I think "this would be helpful to others" right after I finish the step!! Anyway, here's a photo of how I lay out the pattern pieces before sewing all 10 gores together:

I don't fancy cut any of them, or at least not yet! But I do take the time to lay out all the pieces and plan how they're going to go together. This enables me to break up the print so that I don't end up with a giant blob of one motif or color not quite closely matched across the front or back of the skirt, like this example.

This skirt is a prime example of why we sew TNTs. Once you've figured out the basics of a pattern, it's so simple to recreate later.

New Pattern Acquisitions

I was shopping in Walmart Thursday evening after work and found a couple of patterns that I've been looking for.




I first saw this New Look top on Stitcher's Guild. The original poster was looking for a garment to try an FBA on. While I recommended against using this one since it has a side zipper closure, I fell in love with the pattern and put it on my "to buy" list. I thought I'd probably have to mail order it because Walmart has only one tiny rack of New Look, but I got lucky this time. My favorite views are A (3/4 length sleeve at upper left), E (sleeveless with the wide collar, 2 versions on the upper and lower right), and D (flutter sleeves on lower left). I also like the remaining 2 views, but I already have a TNT similar to View B at upper center. View C (lower center) has a cute neckline treatment, but it's not really my style, maybe a little too retro? I don't know exactly.




This Simplicity "It's So Easy" is a dead ringer for a regular Simplicity I cut out when I was 30 pounds heavier. It's gone OOP so I couldn't buy a replacement. This is the same design, so I picked it up. This line is pretty inexpensive, so Simplicity doesn't discount it. Regardless, a good price at $2.44. I bought it for the capris, which are very close to some J. Jill capris I love.




This one is my latest eBay purchase that I got from seller krysia david. I just fell in love with the jacket. I'm not sure you can really make out the details, but there's a faux bolero (fauxlero?) effect in front that forms the stand up collar at the neck. But...there are also traditional lapels underneath that peek through slits made in the faux bolero. Whew! Making this would be a huge challenge, but you have to admit that it's a cool jacket. M. Givenchy is a genious--this one isn't quite vintage since it dates from 1997, but it's cool. The strapless dress might also prove useful if I ever need one (not likely). I'm thinking more in terms of a pencil skirt.

I've Found a Dress

After doing a ton of brick-and-mortar and internet shopping, I've finally come up with a dress to wear to the wedding next month. This one is from Talbot's, looks great on me, and it has the right combination of formality and festivity. FYI, it also comes in black (I bought the hot pink version). Talbot's is having one of its periodic seasonal clearance sales right now--some good deals over there.

Simplicity 9505, View E Nightgown

I finished up a prototype nightgown from this pattern on Tuesday night. I made View E, which is at the upper right of the illustration.






I cut it out of a JoAnn's remnant about a week ago, then started sewing it Monday, the last day of my Independence Day staycation. This is such an easy pattern, but also comfortable and cute--what a great combination!



I simplified the sewing with liberal use of the serger. For example, the arm openings are serged and turned vs. the application of bias binding. Side seams are serged. The casing edges and hem are serged to finish, then turned and sewn. Sometimes when I sew, I tend to wander in and out of the sewing room and work piecemeal. That was the case this time, so I don't know if the pattern actually lived up to its billing as a 2 Hour Pattern. Probably.


The only major change I made after completion was to add a teensy bit of shaping to the side seams. Because the gown is basically a tube, and I'm not, I ended up with these...wings...under my arms that I just couldn't get rid of. Ugggghhhh!! So I pulled off the gown and sewed a wedge (in effect, a dart) under each arm. The base at the underarm is 1-3/8" wide and the length is 8-1/4". Much better! The wedges are only one step up from basting so I'll have to make a permanent change after laundering the gown. I tested it by wearing it to bed, and it was great!


So yesterday, I made the adaptations to the pattern tissue and cut out 3 more gowns. I've already made the second one. Since Gown 1 is in the laundry, here's Gown 2 that was completed last night:





These gowns are comfortable in the heat, but not too bare. The whole project takes only 2 yards of 45" fabric, so it'll be great for those shorter lengths of cotton prints that jump into the cart from time to time. I can also see using silks (I haven't forgotten, Materfamilias!).


A new TNT pattern! Wheee!!!


Q and A: Anonymous recently wrote to ask about my experiences with the Babylock Protege serger. My experience with this machine was very positive. I used it for 12-13 years before upgrading to my current serger, a Babylock Evolve. I used the Protege a lot during that time, too.


One caveat is this: I'm not sure if Proteges now are the same as Proteges were then. It's kind of like asking about car models, you know?


But based on my experience, Babylock sergers are nice machines that have served me well over the years. HTH!

A Correction

In my last blog entry, I mentioned that the fabric was from Gorgeous Fabrics and that it was out of stock. Ummm, no. I took another look at the site this afternoon and I found it! Impressionist Leaf Print Knit


It's $10 per yard, and Ann has 14 yards in stock! Happy shopping!!

Simplicity 3775

Another garment done! That means I'm 2 for 2 on on PR's Garment a Month sew along. I used this pattern:



The fabric is an acetate and lycra jersey that I bought from Gorgeous Fabrics awhile back. Ann still has some in stock, and she also has many other fabulous jerseys on her site should you be interested.

The occasion? DF and I were invited to a party for our friend Stan, and I felt the need for something new and flirty to wear. I finished this up yesterday about 45 minutes before needing to leave. It's been a while since I've cut things so close when sewing for an event. Whew!!

I made my usual pattern changes when cutting out this pattern, Size 10 through neck, shoulders and armscyes; Size 14 the rest of the way down; an FBA. I also scooped out the neck more so it would be more party-like. I dropped the neck 4-1/2", folks, and it still doesn't look hootchie!!

Is the fit perfect? Well no. The shoulders are a bit wider than I'd like. My guess is that Simplicity moved a bit of the dart shaping into the shoulder area. Also, the bodice is the same for both sleeved and sleeveless versions, so it may be a function of that, as well. Then there's the midriff ruching. It wants to migrate. Of course, Simplicity made no note of needing to tack the ruching in place.

All that being said, I do like the dress and I'll definitely wear it again. I'll probably make some of the other views too.