A few weeks ago I bought this dress pattern from Patterns Pretty Please on etsy.

I think it was the scalloped neckline that made me buy it, but I also really like the bow on view 1.  The pattern only calls for 3 yards of fabric!!  Most shirtwaister style dresses from this era take 5 yards, which is a lot when you figure good quality fabric is about $10 a yard!

I’ve decided to make view 1 first….I’m a little worried the neckline on view 2 will be too wide, so I want to get a feel for the pattern before I tackle changing it.  I need help though…I’m really stumped on what fabric to use.  I think I want a small print (I’ll do a larger print for the second dress), and I’m thinking spring colors.  I want to be able to throw a cardigan over it and pair it with flats for a casual spring day, but I also want to be able to dress it up with heels and fun hair for Sunday’s.

Are their any fabrics you’ve seen lately that you think would look great in this dress?  I like blue, grey, pinks, some greens.  Please send fabric links!!  As soon as the machines get their tune up I want to start sewing this (figure if I start now I might have a chance of finishing it by Easter!).

It is amazing what you can accomplish or rationalize when you are procrastinating something you don’t really want to do.  Some scenes from my Wednesday.

My favorite place to read in the house.  The chair isn’t all that comfy, but I love reading with my feet on the footstool in the afternoon sun.  I totally get why cats sleep in the sun!

My “new” lamp came in the mail!  My grandmother was downsizing and I claimed this lamp, she graciously sent it to me and it arrived without any damage (kudos USPS!)  It lacks a shade…in honor of full disclosure I will tell you that never in my 34 years of life have I ever owned a lamp that needed a shade (well, except for my daughters irmi lamp).  So….any suggestions on how and where to buy a lamp shade?!

I usually eat lunch out and about or pick up some frozen thing to reheat.  I hate making lunch.  Sandwiches (unless they come from SACKS) do not appeal to me.  But, something came over me and I put the effort in to make lunch for one (procrastination).  Hot lunch at that!

My Thursday was a bit better on actually working towards completing the project I am procrastinating.  When I wasn’t sucked into Pinterest I mean!

A $5 long sleeved t-shirt from Target + fabric scraps + heart shaped cookie cutter + steam a seam (and some top stitching)=

inspired by this Boden shirt.

Tuesday brought the arrival of my spring mini boden catalog.  I flipped through it while waiting in the car for the kids to get out of school and I SWOONED!  oh heavens, this spring collection is just so fun, a clean and classic feel to it.  The best part was, as I flipped through the pages I kept saying to myself, “I could totally make that!”  So, I set about proving it!

I adored the sweet simple and fun lines of this knife pleated skirt.  I used my pleater/gathering foot to attempt the pleats and I just couldn’t get them the right size so I ended up gathering instead.  I also only included one flap pocket, as my daughter is two and won’t be using them anyway!

I used some of the DS line from JoAnn’s, this print just screams spring to me.  I love the bright flowers.  You can see that I did a cheater hem with (home made) polka dot bias tape.

Next, I really liked the simple sleeveless ruffle tank .  It looked really simple, but I don’t have a lot of experience with knit, so I was a bit unsure about making it…

I used one of her knit t-shirts as a guide to making this shirt.  It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be!  I recommend using a double needle for the top stitching, it looks so much better!  I am TOTALLY tickled with how the top turned out- even my rarely excited husband was impressed!!

Thanks to Boden, for the inspiration, my daughter is now ready for spring!  My seven-yo wants this shirt, and I also have plans to make this blouse and this T-shirt.  That is after I take the machine into the machine shop, its been running funny lately.  What are you spring sewing plans?

I read this quote the other day and it really resonated with me.  I typically have little patience with Philosophers and even less with Existentialist (I’m talking to you Camus), but this Kierkegaard guy…hmmm, I think I might  read a little more from him!

Every time I visit Texas (for the last 10 years) it rains.  I always feel lucky, since rain is such a treat here in these parts!  My long weekend trip was no exception- there was even flooding!  I took my almost 7 year old with me this time, the trip was to celebrate her birthday and my mom’s birthday (happy birthday mom!).

Yes, she wore the crown everyday of our trip…even on the airplane ride home!  You’re only seven once I say- so live it up!

My only new years resolution this year (I’m not a fan of new years resolutions in general, I feel if you notice something in your life that needs adjusting you should take care of it right away, rather than wait for some silly day to start! ) is to keep track of all the books I read (my mother suggested I quantify even farther and keep track of how many pages each book has).     Today is the 11th and I have already finished 2 books (hooray!).  I’ve decided to keep track of them over here- on a page devoted to books!  I’d love to hear from you, add a comment and recommend a book, or tell me what you thought about one of the books on my list.