It's been a while...

It has been a while since my last post.  I've been constantly fighting with my depression, but I'm hoping that it will soon be less.  Here is a round up of recent events.

I've been dating again.  I'm met a few people on OkCupid... some great, some not that great, some really nice people but I have no chemistry with.  The point is, I'm getting out of my house and going on dates.  This time last year, I was too depressed to even try.

I finished a few knitting projects... and now I'm confused on what I want to knit next.  Granted I have several works in progress: I need to finish my central park hoodie, make the second half of my fetching mitten, etc.

I got a new job.  Hopefully I will start sometime over the next 2 weeks.  I feel that no longer being unemployed will make my depression a lot better.

Lacy Sweater

I have finally finished my Lacy Sweater (Ravelry link) for little E's 1st birthday.  It was made in Berroco Comfort DK in a red cherry color.  I loved working with this yarn!  Here is a picture of my FO and my notes.

First off, I made this on a size 8 needles instead of a size 6. The only reason for that is due to the fact that I thought I was using my 6 but was actually using my 8.

I didn’t like the reverse stocknette, so I did it in regular stocknette. I added a 1 row purl border before the flower and 1 stitch on each side (17 stitch flower motif).

I didn’t like the lace bottom. Originally, I was going to skip it totally and added an extra eyelet row. My sweater ended up too short.

So I added a row of leaf edging which I found here.

I also did not add the eyelet row on the collar or the sleeves.

I love this project so much that part of me wants to keep it... if only I had a little girl to dress.

You can also find my project via Ravelry here.

Reversible Toddler Skirt

One of my dear friend's daughter, E, just had her 1st birthday. I decided to make her some cute clothes. I am a fairly new at sewing, so please share any tips of tricks you may have.

Here is my tutorial for a reversible toddler skirt in size 18m-2yrs (yes, E is growing fast).

What you need:

- Two pieces of fabric cut 20 inches by 11 inches.
- 18 inches of 3/4 inch elastic band
- Coordinating thread.

I decided on two fabrics, a "suit gray" and a festive cherry blossom print.


Cut the both fabrics into 20 inches by 11 inches rectangles.


Next, pin the two fabrics together right side facing each other.


Sew both of the long sides of the fabric to make a long tube.


Turn tube inside out so the "right side" of the fabrics are showing. Iron the fabric flat.

Top stitch both the bottom and the top of the tube.


Measure 1 inch from the upper top stich. Sew another top stich at this mark. This will become the elastic casing.


Put elastic through the casing. There are many techniques for to do this. I personally pinned one end of the elastic in place, then pulled the rest of the elastic through with a crochet hook.

Sew elastic in place with a zig zag stitch.


Make a French seam. There are many tutorials online on how to make a French seam. I sewed the "wrong side" of the skirt together.


Then I trimmed the seam allowance to 5mm.

Next I ironed the seam flat.

Finally, I sewed the "right sides" together using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. (sorry my pics of these steps did not come out well)

Here is my finished work:

Festive side:

Festive side with French seam:

Suiting side:

Suiting side with seam:

Feel free to leave any comments :-) If you make one of these skirt, I would love for you to share the link.

Depression

I feel like a failure at life. I once again have let me depression get a strong hold on me. I created this blog to help me get up, get dressed, and be as fabulous as possible. But right now my depression is beating me.

So now I am back to baby steps. Today I got out of bed and took a shower. Now I must continue to take baby steps back to the place I want to be.

Free Stuff for Aveda

I wanted to share with you guys some free things that Aveda is giving away.

January Monthly Challenge

In a previous post, I spoke of Knitty Mamma's monthly sewing challenge.  This month I have decided to work on

Butterick's B4443

So far I have all the pieces cut out and I'm attempting to put together the lining.  I also have remembered how horrible I am at princess seams.  

Thank God for Gertie at Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing.  Her article on princess seams can be found here.

I will update you on my progress over the next few days.

OkCupid

I haven't dated for a while... ok so more than a while.  After a horrible break up with my fiance, I decided to spend some time focusing on the most important person in my life; me.  Now it's been several years since the break up and I feel like I'm in a place where I can enter into a new relationship with out my own two feet strongly planted on the ground.  I met my ex through an online dating site.  I've also met some of men who I have become close friends with through online dating.  I heard talk about OkCupid, a newer online dating site that is free.  You answer questions in order to find the best match.  Sounds great; maybe I can meet a few new people.


However, I forgot to mention that I'm a redhead.  Being a redhead means several things: you have issues with anesthesia, you bleed more, etc.  It also means that you are a magnent to freaky people.  


So here are some of my favorite okcupid messages I have received:

Do you want to have children?

Call me old fashion but I like to say hello and know your name before we talk about our potential children.

lets hang out and go for a drink! I live in [nearby] Square, where are you?

Again... hello is nice.  Introducing yourself is good.  Do people really just go to a bar with random people?

.... --- .--. . / -.-- --- ..- / .-.. .. -.- . / .-. .. -.. -.. .-.. . ... .-.-.- / - .-. -.-- / -...

I don't even know what to say to this one.

And my favorite:

hahaha, you’re hilarious, and I can attest to this reality, I have a redheaded gf (friend that’s a girl) and omg, they’re ridiculous! In her case, its that she’s an absolute nympho, which I find endearing. I kinda wanna touch your hair:)

No.  No you cannot touch my hair.

So I will continue to field the crazy emails in hopes of meeting someone that would be a good match for me.  Wish me luck.