Curtains and Things

I'm not one for superstitions.  I don't throw salt over my shoulder for...wait, why do people do that?  I never wore the exact same configuration of clothing to soccer games or track meets to keep a winning streak.  Mostly because my teams were never any good and never had any winning streaks. Anyway, I started thinking that the last time I made curtains when I was this pregnant, I posted about it and the next morning my water broke like crazy.  

I didn't make these curtains from scratch, but I did hem them, and I was nervous all day about going into labor as soon as they were up.  They aren't even for a nursery or anything.  Mostly I'm just nervous about going into labor any day now.  I'm still not due until 5/13, but I'm 4cm and feel like baby is going to fall out with each step that I take.

So here are the before pictures of the windows/curtains:

LONG!  These were 108" long curtains that I found on Overstock.  I think they were either thermal and/or blackout.  

I got them crazy long, because I needed some extra length to make short curtains for these little windows over our bed:

What?  You thought I was going to be all trendy with those stupid draped curtains that pool on the floor?  Gawd, I hate that.  How are you supposed to keep them clean?  Dust bunny heaven is what that is.  Blah.  It was bad enough that these were hung up for months before I finally got around to hemming them today -- I was so worried that the cats would puke on them.

And here they are all finished up.  Forgive the lighting...the room is blue like the photos above, not greenish.

 And the little window:

Ugh.  Don't look at how off center the bed is against the window.  Stupid radiator encroaches upon my feng shui symmetry.  Blah.  I would love to get a radiator cover to act as an end table so that I can fix this problem.  

And check out my new rug:

 

Another item from Overstock.  Love it.  We're hoping that the big area that it covers will help reduce the cold factor of our bedroom in the winter.  That's also why we got these heavier curtains.  It's a drafty room.

In other news, my sewing machine came back from the fixers.  There was a lot of lint and some needle damage to the bobbin and things.  They had to sand those pieces down.  It cost nearly $180.00.  It made me wonder if that was worth it for a machine that probably only cost $250.00 about six years ago, but it's better to fix things than to chuck them in landfills, right?  Plus it sounds great.  Seriously, it hums now...or should I call it purring.  It purred.  It was lovely.  And no more "Psycho"screeching.

Okay, well that's it for now.  Let's hope that I don't go into labor as soon as I hit Publish.  

Vintage Patterns

Along with the old lady stash that I found at the thrift store, I also came across a ton of vintage patterns.  I'm such a glutton.  I bought almost all of them.  I didn't take pictures of all of them -- just some favorites.  I don't even know if I will be able to use any of them, because who knows what size I will be after this baby.

Without further ado:

Circa 1973, Simplicity 6161, Size 12, Bust 34:

I love the red and white striped shirt with the tie in the front.  

Circa 1978, Simplicity 8698, Size 12 or 14 (there seems to be some confusion on the pattern envelope and I have not yet explored its contents):

Again with that bow tie thing in front.  I really like that.

Circa 1973, McCall's 3542, Size Small, bust 31 1/2 to 32 1/2:

This will never fit me.  It's more a dream pattern for my future teenage girls who will love vintage as much as we do.

Again, dreaming of what my girls will someday let me put them in.  If this lady can put her daughters in these outfits (seriously, that neckline irritates me) or this shrug (how does she stay warm with that neckline?), then maybe I can dress mine as a young Sally Draper:

Circa 1967, Simplicity 7370, Size 10 Girl, Breast 28.

No date visible on envelope, Simplicity 5052, Size 16, Bust 36:

This is a good candidate for my bust, but not the hip...

Blah.  I'll have to figure out vintage resizing on the hip portion.

And how could I resist this Hubba Hubba pattern:

Oh, yeah, check out those dudes.  Circa 1979, KwikSew 1003, all sizes (I think).

And here's a list of the other patterns I found:

Simplicity 6299, junior Size 9, Bust 30 1/2, One-piece dress with simulated smocking, Circa 1965

Simplicity 6578, Size 16, Bust 36, One-piece dress, Circa1966

Simplicity 6651, Small 10-12, Ponchos, Circa 1966

Simplicity 7485, Size 12, Bust 34, Jacket/Blouse/Skirt/Pantskirt, Circa 1967

Simplicity 7684, Size 12, Bust 34, Pantdress/Pantjumper, Circa 1968

Simplicity 8256, Men Medium, Robe, Circa 1969  -- this will fit my husband

McCall's 8666, Size 14, Bust 34, Two-Piece Dress, Circa 1967

McCall's 4557, Sizes 10-12-14, Dress or Top

Butterick 6216, Size 12, Dress/Top/Skirt/Pants, No date visible on outer envelope

Old Lady's Stash

My sewing machine is still in the shop.  I dropped it off on a Thursday, with the understanding that the repair fella picks them up on Fridays.  Wrong.  He had been by that same day, so it had to wait at least a week before he returned.  Did he return?  Who knows?  I haven't heard anything.

So, machine-less, I have been at a loss.  I tried starting some hand sewing projects, but the swelling in my feet was pretty bad.  The water retention was so bad that it started to impact my right wrist.  I think it's some sort of pregnancy-induced carpal tunnel.  By the end of the day, I could not chop veggies for dinner or press soap out of the dispenser.  Ouch.  There seems to be some relief over the last two days.  I'm not sure why.  Perhaps my water intake has finally flushed some of the bad stuff out.  

Where am I going with this?  I haven't done anything crafty at all.  However, at my last OB appointment, I stopped by the thrift store and picked up some vintage fabric.  It was packed up in little bags, so I wasn't even sure what I was getting.  I picked three bags up and I chose those specific bags, because I was interested in a piece or two in each bag.  After getting home and opening them, I came to realize that they had all come from the same lot.  I think some little old lady croaked and her family donated all her fabric.  

Behold:

Dotted Swiss, hearts, florals, etc.  Nothing too exciting and the pieces are not huge.  Plus they need a good washing.

Spread throughout my three bags were these pieces of fabric covered in flocking on the flowers.  It was kind of neat to find them all.

I don't know how this stuff will hold up in the wash.  

And then scattered throughout the three packages were little gems of fabric:

Look how fun that is.  There is not very much of it at all, but it's so nifty and not something I would ever buy.

Pretty!  Again, there's not much of this.

This just makes me laugh:

Do I need to make a doll dress?  If it didn't have those lines on it, maybe I could find a use for it.

This is one of the fabrics that drew my attention when it was stuck in the bag:

It's the front or back panel of a half-made pencil skirt, though, so it's a bit limited.  I'll find something for it, because it's lovely.

Not so lovely, this:

This fabric is hideous.  These are a pair of half-made shorts and the seams don't line up at all.  Blah.  Maybe I should just do this a favor and throw it out.

Oh, the last piece of fabric is just about a yard, so there may be enough for a shirt.  It has a lovely drape to it.  I never really knew about drape when I first started sewing, because my sewing teacher never explained that to me.  My first skirt was made out of quilting cotton, then my next dress was okay, but the next thing I made was a shirt out of the stiffest stiffest fabric.  She never explained to me that it wasn't going to work. In fact, she encouraged me to use it.  Nutty lady.  Anyway, here's the fabric:

Just some little flowers and dots on white, but it's nice.  It needs a wash.

That was it.  Well, there was also a wrinkled scarf and an ugly, polyester doily, but they're going back to the thrift store.