A Sewing Project

My mother was a talented seamstress. 

 She sewed for herself and we three girls always had beautiful clothes created and sewed by our mother.

  She had a little sewing room right off our family room, so she could sit and sew,

 but still be a part of whatever was going on downstairs with the rest of us. 

I sewed a little bit when my kids where little,

 but haven't even had a sewing machine for years

Jim bought me a new sewing machine a few weeks ago,

so I thought it was time to start creating.

Last night my friend Marcie and her mom Kathy came over and helped me

cut out a dress and a skirt, using a dress I had and just measurements for the skirt. 

We started about 7:00 pm.  

 They left at about nine when the skirt was complete. 

 I stayed up til about eleven and finished the dress.

So this morning I have a new dress and the skirt goes to Abby. 

 I'm really excited to have completed this project so quickly.

  Nothing went wrong as I sewed these up. 

 I even put the sleeves in the dress with no problem! 

 Kathy showed me how to make the yoga band for the skirt.

  I really appreciate her help. 

Kathy is my age,

but it was a little bit like having my mom there helping me along my way. 

Fashion on a Budget

I was brought up by a beautiful woman.  She lived in a household full of girls.  They grew up during the depression.  Depression or not, as they got older and started dating they wanted to look cute.  They all learned how to sew.  I have been told by my aunts, that my mom was able to create things out of nothing.  She had a sense of style way back then. 
Then, she married my dad, who loved to buy her the most beautiful clothes.  She was a lovely woman with a sense of style.  Unfortunately she passed that love of clothes onto me.  I rebelled when she tried to teach me how to sew, so I make due with sales, and  her sense of fashion. I've learned how to put things together without spending much.  The last few years, when I go shopping, I mostly look and see how things are put together.  Then I go home and shop in my own closet!  You can always find something there that goes with this or that and make a whole new outfit!

Some of the things in these pictures I truly do own, but the ones I don't I have something similar.  This year I found the yellow wedges and a royal blue on sale.  I actually had old beads that were mustard and beaded them together to make a necklace which I wear with silver.  I love the blue and yellow! 

I got this brown skirt for my birthday.  I've worn it with everything.  It is so comfortable. I have some salmon shoes (unfortunately, not these beauties above.)  But I do wear this skirt with an old brown shell and a white linen summer jacket.  Then add the salmon jewelry. 

The red shoes were also a birthday gift.  I love mixing red with yellow.  Have my old standby white skirt that has served me for about eight summers, a yellow lightweight sweater, (not quite as cute as the one above) but does make the yellow statement I'm looking for.  Add the red beads and there you go!

And of course white is the best for summer.  You can add anything to it and make it a new outfit.  Here is another lovely bracelet I would love to have (I don't), but I have others that serve the purpose.  Add the gold necklace and brown or gold shoes and it's a very fresh and cool outfit.

Remember, nothing has to be expensive.. it is the way it is put together.  Go look in your closet, I'll bet you find all sorts of treasures!!!

And then remember what Audrey says...

"Happy girls are the prettiest"

Audrey Hepburn

Style

 

SUMMER TO FALL

The last days of summer I enjoy sitting in my garden.

Enjoying the sun, reading a bit, but mostly sitting and listening to the last sounds of summer.

It gets dark earlier, so I can't sit out as late anymore.

The summer is coming to an end. I always get sad.

I love the warm summer evenings, going without shoes or a sweater.

But I do love the changing seasons.

 

 

 

BEING ELEGANT

 I have always wanted to be elegant.  Always wanted perfect hair, perfect skin, and I hate to admit it, but I love clothes -(for anyone reading that doesn't know this already).  And tell me, who doesn't fall for those ads about makeup~ you know the one's that say, when you rotate your hand just so with their product - you will look 10 years younger. That new haircut will make you look just like the girl in the picture and that new outfit will take pounds off - even if it is a size bigger than the last time you were out shopping.
I tend to get carried away sometimes with how I appear - wanting to be elegant and all.  When looking elegant is different than being elegant.  Coco Chanel said, "Elegance does not consist in putting on a new dress, rather, elegance in personal style requires only that a woman major in the classics:  comfort, color, shape, fabric, value, and appropriateness.  Elegance means that clothes never eclipse the woman within but permit her inner light to shine."  This statement gets me down to what I really want to write about. 
I am surrounded by elegant women.  Women who are comforatable with themselves, who value themselves and what they do, who don't care about color or shape.  Their inner light shines constantly. 
To me, this is true elegance.  I don't live in a big city, just a simple neighborhood.  These elegant women are my friends, neighbors, sisters, daughters, mothers, grandmothers.  Lovely women, every one.  They are kind and good and have talents and are creative.  They share and serve and above all, they love. 
I think most of them like a day at the salon and a new dress. Who doesn't?  But none of them need it to be elegant. They all ready are.

They are simple, graceful, well-bred, they never over-power, but always strike the right note.  They are self assured.  Beauty, grace and elegance cannot be bought.  It is attained by how a person lives.  It has nothing to do with makup, hair or clothes.  It is letting the inner light shine through. 
These women have it!

SHOES AND FLOWERS AND SHOES, OH MY!

Everywhere I look lately, I'm seeing cute bows and flowers on everything!  Especially shoes.  They look springy. (As you can tell, I'm ready for spring).  I think to myself.  I have lots of shoes, and I make flowers.  Maybe I can solve my wants/needs without spending any money.  I'm sure I've got a little fabric tucked away somewhere.  An hour later, I've spruced up these tired old shoes and made them into something kind of fun.

It's good I'm back to taking care of the little ones on Monday.  With my obsessiveness, when something turns out somewhat successful, I am likely to have flowers on every pair of shoes that I own.  I think just this one pair will do just fine.  (Although I do have some mauve shoes that would look lovely?!?).

IS SPRING COMING SOON?

I'm kind of getting ready for spring.  I want to rid my closet of anything that is dark or heavy.  Don't these things look lovely?  Do you think the snow will ever melt so wearing anthing like this is possible?    I'm looking out for some sun and warmer temperatures.  Longer days are in the forecast.  Things are looking up.

He could write a sonnet, about her Easter bonnet

Who's designing your Easter bonnet?

I've always had a great imagination!

I decided to go out shopping today- got all dressed up,
first on the list -get a facial,
hair done and a makeover!

Took off from the salon to some of my favorite stores!
April Cornell and Anthropolgie!
Found the cutest things there.

Went to Nordstrom next- hum,
I just can't decide which of these
winter white coats I want, and I love these
Toms, maybe I'll just have to have both
the red and the silver. Oh well....

So tired after all the shopping, I can't even get the spelling
on my pictures right (excuse me, too sleepy to go back
and correct). Just look at all my lovely things, and I
have had a wonderful day-

(In reality I haven't even
left my house. It was really fun and I didn't spend
a dime)! Oh, there's Jim calling-he's wondering what
I've been doing--

don't tell!

A Week Well Spent

Jake took off with his parents on vacation, so I thought I'd take a little vacation myself. You know, do nothing but lay around, read the papers, goof off, do nothing...

After a day, I decided maybe a little housecleaning would be in order. Not too much. I certainly don't want to tax myself and ruin my little vacation!

But, oh my word! When I got to those closets it was a nightmare!! Everything looked so old, dark and just plain disgusting! So I plunged in. Took everything out of the shelves, off the hangers, threw things into bags, washed old, reorganized and WOW!!!

Look what I pulled together! Without even leaving my house! Without going shopping or anything! What a lovely feeling. Now I can go back and read and watch all the soaps I want! Have fun on your trip Jake, I'm having fun too!!!

Coco says...

A girl should be two things, classy and fabulous.

coco chanel