The kids are both old enough now to appreciate holiday traditions. They remember doing some of these things in years past and look forward to doing them again. As you can see, pumpkin carving was a big hit with them.

Sam and Claire cleaned out the pumpkins as best they could and directed the cutting of the designs. I, of course, was in charge of sharp implements. Sam chose an elaborate spider design. Claire was happy with a goofy face.

Our jack-o-lanterns garnered compliments from the neighbors!

Of course, trick-or-treating was the most exciting part of the holiday. Their dad and uncle took them around the neighborhood and they came back with an unbelievable amount of candy. I guess our neighbors were suckered by how cute these two kids are (I know I would have been!)

More holiday photos can be seen here.

I had hoped to finish my orange jacket in time for trick-or-treating. I had imagined attaching some black felt cutouts (only temporarily) to make it look like a jack-o-lantern, but I just plain ran out of time. I did finish it the next day and am very happy with it.

I think I managed to save it from looking too “clownish.” Cutting down the sleeves helped a lot. It’s not something I can wear all the time, since that neck is deep and wide. It looks best when I wear a turtleneck or crew neck top underneath it. Also, the wide neckline allows the cold in. My next jacket is going to be less “stylish” and more practical. Even though I disparaged the material a lot in the past, I’m eager to sew with fleece again. It’s easy to handle and makes perfect outerwear for the damp weather we have around here.

More details on the McCall’s jacket can be found in my pattern review.

I’m excited. I finished my first lined jacket and learned so much from tackling this challenging project.

I’m also annoyed because it doesn’t fit as nicely as my muslin suggested it would. It’s too snug across the chest. I’m uncertain if this was caused by poor sewing or if the thicker fabric and lining naturally reduced the amount of ease.

All is not lost though. I had my petite sister-in-law try on the jacket and it fits her perfectly…and she seemed to like it, so I gave it to her. It’s one thing for me to like the results of my sewing. It’s a completely different thing to have someone else excited about wearing something I made. In fact, it’s such a wonderful feeling that I’m almost glad it didn’t work out for me!

As if trying to get a woven blouse to fit me wasn’t enough of a challenge, I’ve decided to try a lined jacket. I’m starting with this basic corduroy jacket from the 2/2006 Women’s Ottobre:

I’m determined to work through the fitting challenges in a more orderly fashion than I did with that dratted shirt. So, for starters, I worked up a muslin with the only alteration being one for my sloped shoulders. Here’s how it came out.

I should probably make a narrow shoulder adjustment. Do you think I’ll also need a forward shoulder adjustment?

Swayback alert! Good thing there’s a CB seam. That should be easy to take care of.

I also think I’ll need to make the hip area wider, do a FBA and lengthen the sleeves a tad.

Any other thoughts?