Current Mood : Successful !
Busy day, so I'm glad it's over. I actually lost sleep last night ‘cause I was worried I'd forget to do something. I got it all done, even though sometimes it was a squeeze and that slooooow train didn't help much, but at day's end (yaaay !) it was a good one, and I got a lot done.
Dearest Son wanted me to go to ‘Muffins for Moms' this morning, a sweet gesture from his school. So he got to ride in with me today, instead of take the bus. For a kid who thrives on routine, he really enjoyed today's break from it ! His teacher thanked me again for the flowers and the badges - I was glad to hear that she liked them.
I was barely back home before I was cooking up two and a half pounds of rotini for pasta salads. Teacher Appreciation lunch. I think it came out pretty well - it's the first non-family ‘vat' cooking I've ever done. It was very gratifying to see the surprisingly large spread put together for the teachers, all by parents and families. Last year, they took up a collection for sandwiches. Either way, we spent about $10.
Once home I had a small surprise - the stitch backing I'd ordered was already here ! Ten yards of it, brand-new on the bolt. You know me, I'll make it last ‘til it rots !
I kinda lazed the early afternoon away, and napped. Made the "#1 Bus Driver" and "#1 Bus Monitor" designs for them today, for their end-of-year candy jars. I should get them stitched out and ready to go next week. While it's nice to have a fairly simple last-minute gift out, it's also a good idea to make it up as early as possible ! I also organized the stitch print-outs a bit better, and it was nice to see what I've made already.
I was deciding which designs to ditch out of Brody's memory, to make way for the new ones, when I saw the clock again. That was only design that I had so many problems with, I tossed it out rather than try to save it. Well, as far as I knew, it wasn't the design's fault, it was my screwed-up, stripped-out, bad-tensioned hoop. But it taught me how to skip stops, and I still liked the design itself, even though it was bigger than I thought. I'd originally wanted it for Barbie backdrops.
Then it hit me. Timey Tell ! Her entire theme was clocks, so why not make it for her ? Like the crab appliqué dress I made for Debbie, I could easily stitch up something pretty for Timey, and finally get that clock worked up, so it wasn't a constant reminder of a crashing fail. So I stitched it again this evening. And it's a heavy, dense one. Took about an hour and a half, with maybe, oh, 150 jump threads to cut. Ten colors - that used four of the new markdown spools, and a never-used one from when we went on that initial supply spree right after Brody arrived. The registration (how the different stitches meet) isn't as tight as I thought, but it wasn't bad at all. And I have a fun project for the weekend. Now all I have to do is find a telephone motif for Hi, Dottie ! Princess Dorrie is probably getting at least one of these ‘D's.
Got to test out the thread rack, too. I only knocked it over once, and with the heavy mini-king spools, it tends to tip. So I chocked it on one side with the pin keeper/tool holder on the sewing table, and with a prototypical Barbie brush on the other. Very nice. Kept everything in perfect order, and it was easy to see what was next. So that 50c has been a good investment.
Sorted out the small wad of fabric over by Brody. Some tiny scraps, some partially used yardages, the cut-up scrapped clothes. Now they're all bundled up and ready for use. One of the scraps is a shirt back - the front was badly stained, and the whole thing was too small for Dearest - that I hope to practice Wall-E's EVE on tomorrow. But tomorrow's a busy day, too, so I never know.
This is sort of funny. When I first got the hang of doing appliqué with Brody, I was thrilled - all those tiny scraps would finally get used ! Um, actually, Brody has generated more scraps, from trimming the finished items into whatever use they end up having. (sigh) But at least I'm using fabric... when I'm not out buying it !
