Thanks for all of your supportive comments in response to my last post. I also appreciated all the suggestions you gave me for creating a work wardrobe. Keep the suggestions coming! Love them.

I’m still reeling from how crazy last week was. On the same day I sent the kids back to school, I had to figure out daycare issues; find transportation to and from work; schedule soccer practices, piano lessons, PTA meetings, my husband’s social and work commitments…and how to put dinner on the table in a timely fashion.

I want to bury my head in the sand.

I’m sure things will get easier with time. If not, I’m running off to Antarctica to huddle on the ice with penguins.

So, not much sewing was accomplished. I laundered some fabrics. I traced off a pattern. I did finish one dress though and love it!

This is Simplicity 4074. It’s a great pattern. I’ve made a knit skirt once last year and decided to try the dress. It worked out great! I’m contemplating another. The only problem with it is it requires more yardage than I typically buy for knits. So, while I have a ton of knit fabric on my hands, I can’t use much of it for this dress. I’ll have to go shopping. Bummer…not!

What’s next? I have no flipping idea. I can’t decide whether a better use of my time would be to make dresses or to work on separates. I could use both. Right now, I’m just going to (try to) take a deep breath, relax and work when inspiration hits.

Vogue 1250 has taken the sewing blog world by storm in recent months, and for good reason. It’s constructed out of three pieces of fabric, goes together easily and looks great on everyone. You can see how it flatters a variety of figures by looking through the reviews posted at Pattern Review.

This is the perfect dress to whip up when you decide–at the last minute–that you need a new dress for a special occasion. That’s just what I did. My husband and I had a date to celebrate eleven years of marriage. While I have lots of nice things to wear, nothing spoke to me. I’m glad I pulled this pattern and fabric out of my stash! It was instant gratification and my husband actually appreciated something I made (he’s generally oblivious to fashion). In fact, he teasingly referred to me as his “trophy wife” and said my dress looked really “pro.” I don’t think this dress is really a showcase for sewing skills and I think his appreciation was more due to how body-skimming the dress is–but still, the compliments were good for my ego!

I like it better with a belt.

Many PR reviewers didn’t alter a thing on their dresses and they all seemed to fit great. I wasn’t content to do things the easy way, so I cut a size 10 at the shoulders, a size 12 at the bust (as a sort of “cheater FBA”) and a size 14 for my hips. I also shortened the bodice by 1/2″, because I apparently have a petite upper half, despite being 5’7″ tall.

I had considered making McCall’s 6069 instead, since I think the back on that dress is really pretty, but I had read that it tends to slip off shoulders. Since I already have problems with regular clothes slipping off my shoulders, I didn’t want to fuss with that. The back on the Vogue dress is plain, but there was never a problem with slippage.

One more photo, just for fun! This is my attempt at a sulty super-model look, lol.

P.S. We went to Village Sushi for dinner and it was ah-may-zing! Very, very good food, lovely environment and excellent service. Afterwards, we went to Giggles, a comedy club we had visited years before. Way back then, it was kind of seedy, but the entertainment was good. Apparently, it had turned into a strip club for a time and then reverted to a comedy club. It’s even seedier than it was before (the lap dance area was the kicker) and the acts were crass. I like dirty jokes as much as the next person, but they never moved on from low-brow humor. Despite that, or maybe even because of it, Robert and I had an excellent time!

I feel like a new person!

Even though I’ve used a lot of styling product in my hair, it just won’t do the cute “messy” look I was trying to create. My hair is too fine and straight. That’s ok, though, I really like how it looks and am happy I tried this. It’s refreshing to do something new every once in awhile!