Mood:  accident prone

Sorry for not writing yesterday - absolutely nothing happened worth writing about ! I didn't even manage to go get Dearest Son's photos. We'll be up there Friday anyway...

After trying to find doll shoes for Aria on eBay, I decided to make them. After failing at the first pair (utilizing a book of patterns I bought last year and felt that's older than our marriage), I decided to look around at online stores. Much as I hated to pay $7. to ship about six ounces of shoe, I went ahead and ordered about what Aria will need - pairs of white and black flats, a pair of sneakers, a pair of brown lace-up boots. Satisfied, I tried the felt shoes again. Aria's pulled her skirt up a bit so you can see them...

Went better the second time. The first pair might have gone better if I'd actually followed any of the directions in the book (Lyn Alexander's Make Doll Shoes !, vol. I). I admit, I don't have much patience for letting glue dry for three days. I modified her pattern (scanned and reduced it via the printer), moved the uppers seam from the side to the back, and machine sewed felt soles to the uppers, eliminating three layers of cardboard. 

While even the good set doesn't look great, they're not that bad. After the modifications were complete, making a pair only took about a half-hour. May make another set or two out of the two shades of brown felt I have - which is also about eleven years old. There's also some sparkle felt I bought a few months back, and all that UltraSuede... Truthfully, though, I'm still sorta cheesed at Playmates for selling a doll that doesn't even come with shoes that fit her right.

But I don't regret shelling nearly $30. for the four pairs I bought. They're quite nice, and it'll be great to have stuff I don't have to futz with for Aria. These will probably become bedroom slippers or something when they get here. Still, now that I can make 'em in felt, I will probably try other fabrics while I wait for those to come in. With the Winter weather and holiday shipping crush, it'll be a few weeks for them to arrive. 

We were supposed to get our camera today, according to DHL, but we didn't. Darn it. Maybe tomorrow, but I doubt it - we're supposed to get around four inches of snow. i can hear sleet hit the windows as I type. So I may have plenty of time to sew tomorrow - because it's safer for Humanity in general if I stay my can't-drive-in-snow bottom at home in bad weather. From what I understand, most of the local grocers are about sold out of milk and bread...glad we already have a whole half-gallon and half a loaf of Rye.

Posted by dorriebelle at 7:54 PM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 9:49 AM CDT

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Mood:  a-ok

Almost zero doll time today - about all I did was sew snaps on the backs of some of the stuff I made this weekend. I save that part for the time I wait for  Dearest Son to get out of school. I have to be there early, or I'm waaaaay in the back of the line. So I can get there a half-hour early, or sit there for nearly an hour afterwards. Long as I have something to do - like sewing fasteners - I'm fine with the wait. At least by taking the 'early' option, I don't have to keep the engine running.

Today, it was one of the few times I got to sit down ! By the time I was done with helping Beloved Hubby and picking up groceries, it was time for lunch. A few household jobs later, pick-up time. Then it was time for therapy, and Hubby was home. I fell asleep on the sofa after dinner, and I wasn't even aware I was that tired ! 

My retiring friend loved the simple gift I made her. I think it was more that I remembered than it was the jar itself, those are really easy and not very time-consuming. It was nice to have something I made appreciated. But heck, if I found it at GoodWill in six months, I wouldn't be upset. A gift, once given, is gone.

Hubby got his Christmas gift today - the chair he's been wanting ! I'm so glad he got it. He's been wrestling with buying it the way I've been twisting around about that pattern book I want. The book which he now insists I get. :) He looks so comfy and happy in his chair. Wish I could describe it, but I'm not sure what it's called. So I just call it Hubby's Comfy Chair, and I'll leave it to your imagination what that probably looks like !

Family's decided we're just gonna gather and eat on Christmas. No gift exchange. Fine with us ! Son has a few more gifts coming, but it's not gonna be the blowout we've had in years past. Went through one box of toys - out of six ! - and eliminated a bucketload of broken cars, odd pieces, and the occasional still-fresh-looking McFrench Fry. One down, five to go.

Tomorrow's gonna be busy, too. I get to pick up Son's photos and get rid of soda cans and packing materials. I bought fabric to make new pillowcases for Son's bed, too. Yeah, I could just buy pillowcases, but these won't be identical to what he already has. And there's more toys to sort and a living room that's in chaos right now. But I'm hoping somewhere in there, I'll get to do something doll-related. Hope springs eternal, ya know ! 

Posted by dorriebelle at 8:59 PM CST

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Mood:  don't ask

Not much doll stuff to report today. Dearest Son got his new bed today, and that required lots of work - sheets to find, bed to assemble, furniture to move around. There's still lots to be done, but Son just can't wait to go to bed tonight !

We briefly thought of getting him a car-shaped bed - they make 'em for twin size mattresses now - but figured he would still outgrow it soon. So he now has a nice 'Captain's Bed', the kind with storage drawers beneath. The center one has been dedicated to Cars toys, the other two are socks and undies. And a brand new mattress set. It should be more comfortable than his old set.

To top it off, we got Cars sheets, of course. What I hadn't counted on was how difficult those would be to find ! First two stores were sold out, so we called a third. 

And I got yelled at by some belligerent...person. The Customer Service Manager had told me to go to the side of the line, she'd be by in a second to give me the phone (I'd stupidly left the cell at home). I did just that, and this...person started bellowing 'Who are you ? Huh ? What makes you think you can do that ?"

I looked around to see what the problem was. Person was yelling at me ! Well, I rarely back down, especially when it's some...person who has no idea what's going on and it's none of their business anyway, so I used the Projecting Voice - "I'm using the phone ! I'm waiting here because that's where the CSM told me to go ! If you have a problem with it, take it up with her !". Person raised his hands in surrender, but didn't apologize. CSM was already there, and she also said loudly that she'd told me to do this. Person ! I'm standing there with Son, and I was nowhere near line-cutting, I was off to the side. What made Person think it was his affair is beyond me. I hope he can harness his outrage somewhere - because it didn't belong with me. Person didn't even apologize, just sat down with everyone staring at him. Hmpft. Hope he learned something. I learned to double-check to make sure I have my blasted cell phone next time I leave the *&^%ing house !

At least we got the sheets at the next store. I need to let it go. Son is overjoyed with his new bed, and soon his room - and our living room - will be in order. It's nice, though, the way we have it now.  

I'm gonna go through all of Son's toys, one box at a time. While there won't be an overwhelming load of toys this Christmas, we do need to clear some space. After all, if he can't find it, he can't play with it !

Came home to a call from the company we'd ordered the camera from. They needed to speak to us about it. Oh, dang. I just knew they were out of stock, and I dreaded calling back, but I did. No, our order was fine, it'd go out within 24 hours. But they wanted to sell me some packages to go with it ! Grrrr. I just told them we'd emptied the account to buy the camera - true enough, there was just enough to get the sheets in there - so we couldn't take advantage of this wonderful offer. It started out at $79., then $39., then $19. I hate it when I have to say 'no' so many times. But I did. You could say after the Person problem, I was primed for it.  

So it's been a hectic day. Tonight I have to finish the personalized Mason candy jar I made for a retiring friend, as it goes to her tomorrow.  I'll be glad to get the chance to loaf on the sofa for a while ! 

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

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Mood:  celebratory

It's true I don't get much computer time when Beloved Hubby's home, but I get lots of time to sew ! And I finished Aria's 'Tour the Kingdom' outfit !

I couldn't find the right shade of blue in the stash - which is amazing, considering how much fabric that is ! - so I decided to make my own version.

The bodice was supposed to have a 'v' at the bottom - which it does, I had to sew it in, the pattern had a flat edge - and one at the top. That one I just ignored. Maybe next time, when I do a 'canon' version, I'll futz with it. I had enough going on with the lining, darts, and making the bottom 'v' !  This was made from a Mart remnant, and while it shows mostly grey here, it's actually a lovely green.

The skirt took two tries - the fabric, while drapey and soft, is a bear to work with. I've learned curved hems, although I'd prefer to add lace than gather, so I printed up a 1/2 circle skirt pattern. Well, thes oft, drapey fabric eased a lot during the process, and was soon too out of shape to use. Oh, well. Went back to basics with the same fabric, just this time working it as a simple gathered rectangle sewn to a waistband. Much better, although DSD had me cutting a 12" long piece when I only needed about 9", so I had some hemming to do !

But it all came together, with the blouse I made yesterday, and I'm quite pleased with it. It's a bit above ankle length, the photo angle makes it look nearly to the floor.  Had to scrounge for shoes for her, I don't own a single pair of doll shoes that fit her.  Yup, as detailed on the Home page, not even the shoes she came with work. So I get to practice doll cobblery soon.  Maybe even tomorrow !

Even made her a little hair bow, although it's difficult to see. And her basket holds her latest find, a Snow White doll ! I love giving my dolls dolls ! So, aside from shoes, Aria is well-outfitted.

Oh, and I forgot a few things over the last few days. We don't have the new camera yet - it should arrive Friday or so. And Dollar Tree had some new Barbie-size clothes out, two different 'brands'. They sort of look like Fashion Fever pieces - probably because Fashion Avenue is too 'yesterday' to copy anymore - but I didn't find anything I liked. About all I bought is a plastic shoebox for Aria's burgeoning wardrobe !

I'm glad I got that done. Tomorrow's another busy day - Dearest Son will hopefully get his new bed ! It's nothing major, but he gets Cars sheets, and we get to rearrange the house and living room ! So I doubt I'll get to sew much. But I'm about ready for a break anyway. It's been a sewing machine weekend, definitely ! I made it through 'Buy Nothing Day' again without making any purchases, and I actually made stuff instead. Wheeee !

Hope your weekend  treated you well. And that tomorrow is fantastic !  

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 9:48 AM CDT

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Mood:  happy

I tell ya, with all this time off, it's easy to get days mixed up. I've gone through most of the day thinking it's Saturday !

I got to tackle something new today - gathered sleeves and cuffs ! Made the blouse that goes to Aria's 'Tour the Kingdom' outfit, and it went very well ! Since Doll Shop Deluxe doesn't have directions, I kinda played with it until it worked, but I knew about how it'd have to go. Wasn't nearly as hard as I thought, so I'll do that more often. It's an elegant look.

Beloved Hubby came home early, and Dearest Son and I got to keep him company while his truck got new shocks and an oil change. Then it was time for Son to head to his Grandparents for some fun. I got to work on the second bodice pattern, but didn't have time to sew. For some reason, we're both tired, and it's bedtime !

Such a nice holiday weekend...and it's still just Friday ! 

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

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Mood:  celebratory

We had a nice Thanksgiving - hope you did, too ! Posted a new Aria photo on the Home page, her dress wasn't quite what I envisioned, but it's still cute.

Over here at Chez Insanity, we mostly lazed around. Beloved Hubby slept all day, Dearest Son watched Cars twice. He loves it when the closed-captioning is on, and it might just help his reading skills. 

Not a lot happened. I decided to make Aria's 'Ariel Tours the Kingdom' dress next, and studied some photos from The Little Mermaid. Blouse and skirt are easy patterns from Doll Shop Deluxe, but the black over-bodice was one that we didn't have access to. So I studied the one that couldn't print - 'cause we didn't pay for it - and sketched my own. 

Did you know there's tons of printable coloring pages on line ? I even found some for Dearest Son - Cars, of course ! Anyway, there's the 'Kingdom' dress, and on top of the skirt and dress, in a lovely floral print, is the new bodice. It's incorrect, much too big, but I tweaked it to fit so I wouldn't have 'wasted' the time. I still have to put the little 'v' in the front, and decide if I want to resize it correctly, or just tweak the next one like I did this one ! 

I also need to decide if I'm going with canon movie colors - that shade of blue's not something I have already - or just go wild. After all, I'm sure it'd look good in other shades, and it's a pretty design. I may do the black bodice in UltraSuede - that, I already have - and I have white for the blouse. I defy you to find a sewist who doesn't always have some white cotton around !

Oh, and this may be one of the last photos you'll see from our old camera. Beloved Hubby bought me a new one last night, and oh, is it ever nice ! I just hope I can learn all the features. Hopefully, you'll see better doll photos here in the next week or two ! I'm really excited. Dearest Son has already claimed our soon-to-be old camera, he's quite the six-year-old shutterbug. I like to see what captures his fancy in photos. 

Don't ask me why I'm so nervous about the new camera's learning curve... 

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 9:47 AM CDT

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Mood:  bright

But it's only Wednesday. Dearest Son's off from school 'til Monday, and Beloved Hubby got to sleep in for a while, too. It was nice to have some time together.

Then I ran around, paying bills, keeping the Dollar Tree visit promise I made Son, and grabbing some lunch. DTree had the cutest pull-back Mach 5 and Racer X cars in - Speed Racer is kind of a running gag with Hubby and me. So I got him the Mach 5. Son wasn't interested. They had Cars markers and stickers in boxes, waiting to be placed, and that was more his speed. 

I got a plastic shoebox to keep Aria's clothes in, and that was all. Don't really need anything much these days. Looked through all the Black Friday ads on bfads.com, didn't see anything that's gonna get me into that mess ! Even the Cars sheets that Target has on sale I can either get online, or just pay $4. more for the set Son prefers at W-Mart. 

The next outfit I'm making Aria is another shift dress like the one on the Home page, but in white, topped with a short, fluffy green gingham skirt. Made the gingham skirt today, and the pattern's ready to go for the white shift. I might get to work on that tonight after dinner. Or tomorrow.  After that, I'm gonna make her some shoes. Playmates Toys never got back up with me about the ones she came in - I didn't really expect them to - so it's up to me !  They'll be clumsy, but they'll fit and be flat !

I just love my new glasses ! But I'm gonna take 'em off for what I gotta do now - dishes, ugh. We're down to the last clean fork, and there's only one set of clean plates left, so I gotta get on it. I just put it off for as long as I can !  

Posted by dorriebelle at 6:29 PM CST

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Mood:  special

 They make me feel soo pretty ! I actually got identical frames, one pair with the prescription without a tint, the others are sunglasses. I was lucky that Beloved Hubby was able to get some time off work to help me pick them out ! 

Where I wasn't lucky was, I got almost all the way back there, to pick them up, when I felt a sudden weight and a pull at my hair. Tuna ! That darn cat had gotten into the van, rode all that way with me, then suddenly jumped on the headrest - while I was driving ! Grrr. Luckily, the glasses fit, so I had enough time to take her back home before I had to pick up Dearest Son. Who immediately crowed, "Mommy got new glasses !" on seeing me. :)

While I was in the area, after my eye exam, I stopped by TRU. And discovered they had nearly zero Cars toys. Yikes. They did have one of the Big Two Son wants, the Mack Truck playset, so I went ahead and got it. Came home, and found that it was the #1 toy sold on Amazon.com ! Lucky I found one ! 

Not much doll time. I've got an idea for a dress I want to make Aria, and printed out the pattern. Oh, and I found out something else when I visited Office Max. They don't do the 'old ink cart = new ream of paper' anymore - and I got completely ripped off on that ink cart. The one I was talking about that printed terribly despite the printer saying it was half full ? We paid $28. for it - it was an Office Max refilled cart. I went to see if it was the 'moderate printing' refil - and it was. I basically paid $28. for a refilled cartridge that had less ink in it than the $33. Lexmark one. I paid $28. for a used one, the same thing that Lexmark sells brand-new for $20.

Well, we won't be doing that again ! And add to this - they had laser printers at the front for $120. I talked with the manager, saying my husband might be interested in one, so she might see me tomorrow. Found out tonight that that exact printer goes to $70. for the Black Friday sales. Manager didn't say a word. I know, she's not obligated to, but shoot. I doubt I'll be visiting Office Max again any time soon. Least, not without some bad eggs...

And that was my day ! Son's happily playing with some Play-Doh, I'm plotting out doll clothes, and Hubby's on his way home. Happy ! 

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

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Mood:  lyrical

Busy day today ! 

Did the grocery shopping - I don't know what it is, but let it be cold two weekends in a row, and I start laying in supplies ! You can't get a lemon wedge into our freezer, it's so packed, and the pantry, small as it is, had to be completely redone to accomodate everything. There were sooo many good deals this week, I took advantage of as many as possible ! Even our fridge is full of food. For some reason, I take comfort in the abundance. 

As noted yesterday, our printer's been screwing up. Hated to shell $30.+ on an ink cartridge - the printer says our current one is still half-full, so it may not be the cart that's the problem. Well, I found a sort-of solution. There's a 'moderate yield' cartridge now, for $20. While the packaging for neither size says how much ink is inside, I figured I'd save the $10. or so, and go for the moderate. That'd tell me what I needed to know, and if we don't get a new printer - Beloved Hubby's looking at laser printers lately - before it empties, I'll just get a full size next time.

And, as it turned out, it was the ink, printer works fine now. Printed out a skirt pattern I hope to work up for Aria later this week. I just think it's a kind of rip that there's two sizes, and no information to compare them. If one is 18mL and the other is 28mL, for example, I'd know what I'm dealing with. But for all I know, I just bought 3ml, there's no way to tell.  At least I can get a free ream of paper from Office Max for the old cartridge. We usually donate those to Dearest Son's school.

In other off-topic news, I have a 9am optometrist appointment tomorrow. By this time Tuesday, I might have new glasses. I have a spare pair that I hate wearing, so I invested $2.28 in some stinky epoxy to try a repair on my much-missed sunglasses. They're drying now, I hope it worked. Probably not, but I had to try.  

Did a little Christmas window shopping for Son. Beloved Hubby and I just upgraded our computer, and we're getting a new TV - and I'm getting glasses ! -  so we're pretty much shopped for already. But we haven't yet decided what the boy who wants everything is getting. He's been vocal about two specific Cars toys, a mountain race set and the Mack truck playset. And more of the individual Cars characters, specifically Guido, the other two racecars, and a tractor (to tip). If everything's in stock, we could finish his shopping in ten minutes ! 

But I don't dare hope. The mountain race set - 'Radiator Springs Mountain Challenge Track Set', to be precise -  has bad ratings for being unstable, but I know our son. He'll most likely use the parts in other ways anyway, even if it is flimsy as pictured. Heck, we played with Lisa's 'Earthquake Manor' (the first edition Barbie Townhouse, it got recalled for falling apart) until her mom boxed it for returns. We liked it better when we didn't know if it'd stand or topple, and the furniture was fun. Here's a leeched image off eBay. Man, I remember this thing soo much, and I didn't own it. 

 I'll probably hit TRU tomorrow, if there's time after my appointment. See what's still out there. I ain't leavin' the house on Black Friday. For one, Son's home, and even if Hubby's here, I just refuse to be caught up in the insanity. That video game system fracas has about turned me off to 'bargains' I have to battle for. I'm better off hunting the specials at the grocery store - those don't hurt anybody !  

I can't believe it, I'm still thinking of 'Earthquake Manor' ! Well, I guess it's the season for memories and musings, of toys and holidays passed.  

Posted by dorriebelle at 11:51 AM CST

Updated: Monday, 2 May 2011 9:47 AM CDT

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Mood:  chillin'

Used the 'barely got it to print' pattern for slacks to make Aria a new pair. Last one, in the photo below, were big at the hips, ballooned when she sat, and the crotch was low. Right after I cut them out, of a difficult to handle black fabric, I got slack, and just kind of threw them together.  Bobbin thread didn't match, I didn't press any of the seams and hems, and I screwed up the waistband.

But...they fit. Beautifully.  There's only a minor change to the crotch curve, and this pair has darts. And they fit, so good. Just can't figure it out.

Didn't have time to sew the blouse again. Dearest Son and I spent two hours putting all his toys away. Five toyboxes - well, actually, one toybox and four variously-sized plastic totes - worth. I hope to go through it all Tuesday, get rid of some broken, never-played-with stuff before the holiday deluge.  

Beloved Hubby has made me promise to call the optometrist tomorrow, set up an appointment and get the prescription for my new glasses. I know I need to, it's been years, I just hate spending money on me this close to winter. But he's already put the cash into my hands. I'll have to let you know what glasses I end up with !

That was about the whole day. Hubby worked, and we had a big chef's salad for dinner. I forgot to have lunch, so I'm kind of hungry, but I'm more tired. Who knew you could break a sweat pickin' up toys ?  

Posted by dorriebelle at 12:01 AM CST

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