I spent the day organizing my sewing stuff, and have listed a ton of fabric, patterns, and finished reeancting garments over here on the other blog, as, well, they're taking up space and I'd like to pass them on to somebody who could use them. If you see something you want, head on over there and leave a comment.

I finished the green plaid fan-front that I've been working on in time for the reenactment this past Saturday. You can read my review of the pattern that I used right over here.

I decided to organize my fabric yesterday with the start of Spring break and a motivation to get some spring cleaning done now that I have the time to do so. Anyways, I have a shelf in my closet that I've been throwing my fabric into for a long while, so I finally got the idea to organize the stuff better and my solution in doing so was to get canvas bins and then group them based on fiber content. But first I had to take the fabric out of the closet.

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We're more than halfway through February and this is my first post! Apologies for lack of updating. Lately I've had a lot of significant real-life things to attend to (like declaring my major and applying for internships for next quarter and summer study abroad programs simultaneously) which have taken up a good chunk of my time.

Anyways, with a little over 2 months before my first event of the year, I've decided to update my wardrobe and fill in some long-overdue gaps, while taking a breif hiatus from modern sewing. With that in mind, here's my to-sew list:

-Finish my purple wool coat
      - I've had this project since, oh, 2007 and worked on it in bits and pieces. But, I have the entire coat cut out and mostly sewn, and all that's left is attaching the velvet trim, sewing the sleeve lining, and attaching the sleeves. Oh, and closures.
-Green plaid fan-front dress 
      - I adore my Neopolitan dress that I made last year, but I've been in need of a good basic wool dress for a while now. With that in mind, I think this one will be perfect to either dress up or dress down depending on the event. I got some gorgeous green plaid in the remnant section of the Pendleton outlet that will be perfect.
-Quilted Bonnets
     - I've been comissioned to make a silk quilted bonnet for my dear fake auntie based on an extant bonnet in the museum's collection, and in return I'm getting some lovely silk taffeta from Renaissance Fabrics to make my own! I'm using this lovely silk and I think I might make a bonnet with a longer tabs in the front.

And last project is a new silk apron for myself. The event is, afterall, called "Sowing to Sewing" and I'm planning to sew in the parlor. I'm using turquoise silk taffeta from the awesome fabric.com sale a year back:



Oh and the wrinkles are because I've been working on this project on and off for the past year and I just took it out of the bag it was folded in. I do have a lot of half-finished projects, which actually makes sewing faster. Well, when you finally get to them. ;)

In no particular order:

Matilda by Roald Dahl
Totally love one of the morals of the story that just because you're born into adverse circumstances doesn't mean you yourself can't be great or have a great life. Plus, the movie adaptation was fabulous.

The Boston Jane Series by Jennifer L. Holm
Okay, if I was actually a lady in Washington Territory in 1855 this would be my exact story. I would leave my comfortable Philadelphia home to follow my older and good-looking fiancee to Washington Territory, all the while falling in love with the tall, dark, and handsome sailer who worked on the boat that I took my journey on. Once I landed and found out what a traitor my fiancee was, I wouldn't feel bad about having made out with the sailor. It would be rough learning how to live and survive on the frontier, but eventually I would manage it.

Until Angels Close my Eyes by Lurlene McDaniel
Fun, modern girl falls in love with an Amish boy who wears a top hat and drives a buggy. Need I say more?

I've always had older tastes in books (reading teenage books when I was a kid and adult books when I was a teenager), so I guess that's why I'm lacking in really "little kid" books in this list.

It seems like every single blog I read had a new post today. So I suddenly feel the need to post, as well. ;)

I had a lovely 3-day weekend. Hardly any homework, so I got to spend time relaxing, sewing (almost done with my trench coat! I did marathon sewing on it Saturday and then sort of lost my energy and didn't do too much on it afterwards, so I plan on picking it up again this next weekend), and me and mum went on a gorgeous walk at the wildlife refuge. I also watched the first episode of Downton Abbey and it is absolutely fabulous. Gorgeous costumes, the story is so intricate and interesting to watch, and it has so many people from other period dramas I love and adore.

I know it seems like I haven't been posting much sewing content, but I have several long-term projects (both in regards to period and modern/vintage sewing) in the works right now that I hope to reveal soon. One is something that I have been contemplating for a while and is finally happening, and another set of projects is an inevitability of having too much fabric and being in a hobby where my outfits get a lot of wear and need replacing. But that's all I'm gonna say right now. :)