Sew-a-long spurs housecleaning

The other day, I was reading blogs and clicking links--you know how it is--and I ended up here: a lazy-days-skirt sew-along! Perfect! I mentioned a few posts back that Lucy had a new sweater that needed a skirt, and I'd actually started that skirt following the Lazy Days Skirt free pattern. I thought I'd join up, and it would give me the incentive to finish.



But...

The skirt calls for a ribbon hem. I didn't have a ribbon that coordinated with both the sweater and the skirt, so I'd gone out last Thursday with both in a bag to a local shop and spent ages with the woman working there, trying out each possibility from their extensive ribbon supply. I couldn't find just exactly the right thing, but I was only about 15 minutes from finishing the skirt, so I wanted to just get something and call it done. I picked something, added it to the bag, and then...lost the bag for more than a week. Does this tell you a little something about the state of my house right now? Yeah. Let's not talk about that.

I had thought the sew-a-long would make me find it and finish it--now I had a deadline, after all. But I just couldn't find it. Finally, finally, at the last second, I found the bag buried on the floor of the coat closet. (I know. It's really too embarrassing.) So I finished it tonight after all the kids went home, photographed it in a too-dark house, but hey, it's done just in the nick of time!






I think she likes it.



(Sweater and shoes both from a recent consignment sale.)

Muumuu to Skirt

Before:


At one of the first tag sales I went to this season, I spotted this muumuu peeking out from a box of ugly old clothes. I've been reading a lot of wardrobe refashions lately, and have been inspired to look at fabrics, rather than whole garments. I knew this could be cute, and for 50 cents, I couldn't pass it up!

At home, I studied it a bit closer, and discovered that it was handmade. Perhaps it was already a refashion--a sheet remade as a dress, maybe? I also discovered that it had pockets; bonus! I cut off the top, added an elastic waistband, and voila! New skirt. I love it. Easy, comfy, cute, big pockets...the perfect preschool-teacher garment.

After: