MOT #1, 2

There hasn't been much sewing going on this month... it's been pretty busy at work and no working sewing machine.  I started two Simplicity 2601 tops, but I'm waiting on my sewing machine before I can finish it.

I wanted to contribute to the MOT sew-a-long hosted by Faye so I did what I could... serging and hand sewing.  I used T-shirt Makeovers by the Sistahs of Harlem.

I made two tops from this book... a one shoulder tank and ruffled tank.  Here are the book versions of the tops.

The ruffled tank took some hand sewing, but it wasn't too bad.  The instructions are pretty straight forward.

I'm wearing the one-shoulder tank with a long-sleeve, which I don't think I'll pair together when I actually wear the tank.  Instead of doing the "ribbon" I cut-off the bottom of the shirt and serged it to the top of shirt.

I enjoyed refashioning my t-shirts.  I think I'll try a few of the other tops in the book as well.  Overall, the book has a lot of great ideas, but I don't think I could pull off a lot of the tops... some of them are backless and/or very cropped.  I like some of the ideas, but I'll have to re-work them so they are less skin revealing...

*Please ignore the white spots on my head in the photos... I'm not sure what that's from and I didn't want to edit it.

New Glasses

I worked at an optical for a few years in college and loved it... I loved picking and fitting frames that were perfect for the customer and had a wonderful staff to work with.  I still go the optical I used to work at, which is Eclectic Eyewear.  If you're into frames and are in the Austin area, I definitely recommend them.  They have a very friendly staff and a great selection of frames and they also have good optometrists.

For my last visit, I bought a new pair of glasses and I LoVE them!  While working at an optical, I feel in love with two frame companies, ProDesign and Lafont.  I have 3 pairs of ProDesign frames (including my new ones and wear all of them) and 0 Lafonts.  (Lafonts are on the higher end of frames... one of these days I will own a pair.)  Here are my new glasses.

I loved ProDesign so much I even thought about being a sales rep once I graduated... but I don't think I would make a good sales rep.  I would definitely recommend ProDesign frames... their quality is good, look fantastic, and have their own trademark look!  I can pick out a ProDesign frame any day.  :)

Simplicity 2603 Cardi Wrap

I made the Simplicity 2603 wrap cardigan a couple of months ago.  I've already worn it a few times, but didn't get a chance to take any pictures until recently.  (This is the cardigan wrap that is the DKNY cozy knockoff.)  There are many ways to wear it, but these are my favorite.  Hahaha... I think my poses are awkward... oh well.

There are a ton of reviews on PatternReview.com here.  I LoVE this cardigan, and I will definitely be making it again.  I love the bold colors in the DKNY spread that Adrienne found... I just need to find the right colored drapey knit.

Some things I changed from the pattern are not adding the elastic at the neck and not hemming the edges.  Next time, I will make the sleeves full length... I tried to attach the bottom part of the sleeve but the seam was too bulky.  I ended up cutting it out.

Engine 2 Diet

Over the past several years I've struggled with weight.  There were times when I would get very depressed because I was so unhappy with it.  My eating habits have changed drastically since I first started working at Whole Foods Market.  Even with the change in my diet, I didn't lose any weight.  I grew up being pretty active, and I knew I had to exercise along with eating right.  At the beginning of this year I set out to be healthier, and to date have lost 25 pounds through better eating and exercise.

Now onto the diet I was on for the last 4 weeks... The Engine 2 Diet.  One sentence synopsis of the book:  Eating a plant-based diet will lower your cholesterol and help you live a healthier life.

Image from The Daily Spark

It is low fat plant-based (vegan) diet.  I don't like trying diets that I know I can't make a lifestyle change with since I know I'll gain more weight back after the diet's over.  I wasn't sure if I could make a lifelong commitment to this diet since it involves no animal-based products and cutting out as much oil and fat as possible.  Your choices are seriously limited when you go out.  At least in Austin there are many restaurants that offer vegetarian and even vegan options.  Also, it was easier for me to stay on this diet since I work at Whole Foods Market and our landmark store is right underneath me.  :)  Although I didn't think I would make a lifelong commitment, I decided to try for the following reasons:

1.  I would at least cleanse/detox my system by the end of the 28 days.
2.  I wanted to see if I could really not eat animal-based products for 28 days.

Overall, I feel cleaner and lighter and know that I don't HAVE to eat meat with every meal.  I also leaned on the pre-hypertension side of blood pressure, but now my blood pressure has dramatically decreased.  I wished I check my cholesterol levels before the diet began, but I didn't get a chance to get it done.  I don't think I would stick 100% to the diet, but I do have a different perspective on the foods that I eat and how it may affect the health of my body.  I'm glad I did it and I will definitely be making healthier choices.  Going forward, I will probably cutout dairy as much as possible and stay with leaner meat options (except for special occasions of course :)).

I didn't want to bore you with any long texts, but it looks like this post is already really wordy.  If you've made it this far and have any questions or would like more information just leave me a comment and I'll contact you.  :)  Thanks for reading!

Anniversary Update

I have been on a low fat vegan diet for the past 4 weeks... more about that in another post.  Because of this, we postponed our anniversary dinner/outing until yesterdat.  Before that we headed over to the restaurant, we stopped by The Steeping Room for some tea.  Then we went to Jeffrey's for dinner.  It was fabulous!!  Here are some pictures from the night.

My entree of Escolar Viennoise

Husband's entree of Ribeye

Yummy desserts...

The food was delicious and we took a picture of everything that came out, but I didn't post all the pictures because I didn't think I could name everything.  Did you notice the haircut?  :)  Here's what it looked like on Friday:

I cut over 12 inches of my hair.  I'll be sending it off to Locks of Love.  If you have 10 inches or more of unbleached hair, please donate to this organization.  Click on the link to find out more information.  Here's an update on my flowers.  There are a lot more open blooms since I first received them... hopefully the last few will open up tomorrow.

4th Wedding Anniversary

Today's our 4th wedding anniversary.  See what got delivered to my
office! The flowers are ginormous and very pretty. I can't wait for the lilies to
bloom. Thanks, honey! I love you!

Broken Sewing Machine

My sewing machine broke this weekend.  I messed up the timing on my bobbin.  :(  Luckily my FIL had a sewing machine that I could use to finish up the last costumes.  He said he would also take a look at it to see if he could fix the timing.  I have faith in him.  :)  Looks like I need to take a break from sewing for a little bit... hahaha... at least this gives me some time to trace Burda patterns.  Any ideas on what to use to trace the patterns?  Should I just use tracing paper?

Burda Magazine

I ordered a Burda magazine from the classified section of Patternreview.com.  I've admired many peoples creations from this magazine.  It's the November 2009 issue.  This is my first one and I'm pretty excited about it.  It seems to be a little bit more work since you have to trace out the patterns and then cut them out, but it'll be a different experience.

Hmmm... what to try as my first Burda pattern?!

New Clutch

I change bags/purses about 3-4 times a week... on days I have classes I use my backpack, on Sunday's I use my messanger bag, and the rest of the week I use whatever bag fits my mood.  With all this bag changing I needed a clutch or something to hold my essentials, which are phone, wallet, and chapstick, otherwise I would end up forgetting something.  A few weeks ago I made a little clutch.

I made some labels, too!  :)

Mihee is my Korean name... it means beauty and joy.  I thought it was appropriate for this clutch and hopefully my other sewing projects.  :) The labels are made from twill tape and printable iron-on transfer.  I had read about it somewhere awhile ago and can't remember where I saw it.  I believe there are lots of different tutorials on the web about this method.

I think I may make some more clutches for Christmas gifts... but I will need to add interfacing and use a different closure... the button is inconvenient and a little annoying.

November Tops

Faye is hosting "The Months of Tops" sew-a-long, and I've decided to join in.  I'm always in need of tops and I haven't made too many of them.  I just cut out Simplicity 2601 in a black silk charmeuse, which is also part of my fall wardrobe.  (However, I've never sewn with silk so this should be an interesting experience.)  Here's the envelope front.

I'm not sure if this counts, but I have some unfinished tops that I plan to finish.  One is the above pattern in an Amy Butler quilting cotton print.  I also need to finish a Butterick 5100 tunic.

Along with all the above tops here are the others I plan on making this month.  (They're part of the fall wardrobe plan, too.)

New Look 6831

Vogue 2980

Simplicity 2756

It looks like I have my work cutout for me.  On top of these tops my youth group is having a musical and I'm overseeing the costume/make-up team.  We need to finish the costumes for dress rehearsal this Sunday... eek!  I hope we don't have too many left... I need to re-tally all that we have.