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So that was Christmas..
Dec. 30th, 2011 02:34 pmIt feels like such a relief that Christmas is over, this year. It was great! I have a four-year-old. It's hard for Christmas to not be great when there's a kiddo that's so excited about everything. But, for us, Christmas has been going on since September and that is just way too long. By the time it was actually time to get excited about real Christmas, it was just sort of hard to maintain the enthusiasm. :) Santa brought a Lite Sprites doll (which Mommy thought was pretty goofy but it was one thing that she had seemed really interested in at the store) and a Wii game and a Squinkies wedding castle. I also think that Squinkies are overpriced, annoying toys, but E so rarely asks my opnions on which toys she would like. ;) Imagine.
As for me, I got a new sewing machine, which is a Brother CS6000i. I picked it out based on a recommendation from... actually, I think it was linked to on pinterest. My sewing machine was a cheap Singer from Walmart, It's been just fine... most of the time. We bought it before I was interested in sewing. My dear husband was exploring the life of a SAHH, just after we moved here for my job and before he found a new one, and decided to get into quilting. This plan might have worked if he had not tackled an appliqued wall hanging as his first project. He got it assembled but then he came to the part that was all "applique!" and "embroider" and "embellish" and he was all "screw this!" And it's been in a box ever since. However, we didn't regret the purchase of the sewing machine anyway because it's something that I think a household needs. Three years later, I pulled it out and learned to sew when I was about seven months pregnant, and then ended up making -- would it be an awful pun to say this? -- a crapload of cloth diapers and whatever else has come to mind. I go in phases with sewing, as with all of my crafts, but I have actually come BACK to it several times after a few months of not sewing, which is way better than my normal patterns. (Anyone remember when I used to tat? Or knit? For example.) Anyway, my old sewing machine works and all, but it's not very exciting, and it has had a few issues lately that make me think that it won't be around forever. I haven't yet gotten to do much sewing yet on the new one but so far there are some definite improvements over the other one. I can see the bobbin while sewing so I don't have to guess how much thread I have left! Cute decorative stitches! Neat, precise-looking stitches. Aaaaand, there are a few things that I am just not used to and maybe a few that I don't like as well--we'll see, after I've broken it in. It seems to have a harder time handling curves, and I am not used to the way the reverse stitching works. Once, it basically wouldn't let me backstitch and I've no clue why. I guess I'd never really considered that a new machine would be a new learning curve. :) So, I'm working on a stack of cloth wipes. I can sew them in my sleep and they're not exactly something that needs to be fussy, so hopefully I'll get used to it quickly and then I can sew something more fun.
After Evie stopped wearing diapers, by the way, I kept the wipes around because they're so handy. At some point when there was illness in the house, I got them out to use to dry our hands in the bathroom and I have had them out since. We have a towel on the wall but I only use it when there are no wipes left (or when I put them away because we have company. They're pretty ugly by now.) I've been idly working on this wipes project for a while now, partially because we need to to supplement our stash in the bathroom--we're always out before the laundry is ready, even though I know we have six dozen of them, at least, but in large part because I am determined to use up some of my fabric stash. I bought lots of flannel in my baby-sewing/cloth-diapering stage, and I almost never use it for anything now. They're somewhat boring to sew--no serger here, so they're individually cut, sewn, turned and topstitched--so it's sort of my default sewing project, when I don't have anything else to do. Whatever burns through the stash, right?
My sprained ankle is still in kind of poor shape. It was improving, but then I did a lot of Christmas shopping on it, and it got pretty bad again. I didn't do a whole lot in the days following Christmas, but yesterday I got up and cleaned my house because I couldn't live in a pig sty anymore, and last night, I was regretting that plan. To my surprise, though, it feels better today than it has in some time, so... I should be working through the pain, maybe? I was expecting it to pain me through about Christmas, but now I'm ready for it to be done with.
As for me, I got a new sewing machine, which is a Brother CS6000i. I picked it out based on a recommendation from... actually, I think it was linked to on pinterest. My sewing machine was a cheap Singer from Walmart, It's been just fine... most of the time. We bought it before I was interested in sewing. My dear husband was exploring the life of a SAHH, just after we moved here for my job and before he found a new one, and decided to get into quilting. This plan might have worked if he had not tackled an appliqued wall hanging as his first project. He got it assembled but then he came to the part that was all "applique!" and "embroider" and "embellish" and he was all "screw this!" And it's been in a box ever since. However, we didn't regret the purchase of the sewing machine anyway because it's something that I think a household needs. Three years later, I pulled it out and learned to sew when I was about seven months pregnant, and then ended up making -- would it be an awful pun to say this? -- a crapload of cloth diapers and whatever else has come to mind. I go in phases with sewing, as with all of my crafts, but I have actually come BACK to it several times after a few months of not sewing, which is way better than my normal patterns. (Anyone remember when I used to tat? Or knit? For example.) Anyway, my old sewing machine works and all, but it's not very exciting, and it has had a few issues lately that make me think that it won't be around forever. I haven't yet gotten to do much sewing yet on the new one but so far there are some definite improvements over the other one. I can see the bobbin while sewing so I don't have to guess how much thread I have left! Cute decorative stitches! Neat, precise-looking stitches. Aaaaand, there are a few things that I am just not used to and maybe a few that I don't like as well--we'll see, after I've broken it in. It seems to have a harder time handling curves, and I am not used to the way the reverse stitching works. Once, it basically wouldn't let me backstitch and I've no clue why. I guess I'd never really considered that a new machine would be a new learning curve. :) So, I'm working on a stack of cloth wipes. I can sew them in my sleep and they're not exactly something that needs to be fussy, so hopefully I'll get used to it quickly and then I can sew something more fun.
After Evie stopped wearing diapers, by the way, I kept the wipes around because they're so handy. At some point when there was illness in the house, I got them out to use to dry our hands in the bathroom and I have had them out since. We have a towel on the wall but I only use it when there are no wipes left (or when I put them away because we have company. They're pretty ugly by now.) I've been idly working on this wipes project for a while now, partially because we need to to supplement our stash in the bathroom--we're always out before the laundry is ready, even though I know we have six dozen of them, at least, but in large part because I am determined to use up some of my fabric stash. I bought lots of flannel in my baby-sewing/cloth-diapering stage, and I almost never use it for anything now. They're somewhat boring to sew--no serger here, so they're individually cut, sewn, turned and topstitched--so it's sort of my default sewing project, when I don't have anything else to do. Whatever burns through the stash, right?
My sprained ankle is still in kind of poor shape. It was improving, but then I did a lot of Christmas shopping on it, and it got pretty bad again. I didn't do a whole lot in the days following Christmas, but yesterday I got up and cleaned my house because I couldn't live in a pig sty anymore, and last night, I was regretting that plan. To my surprise, though, it feels better today than it has in some time, so... I should be working through the pain, maybe? I was expecting it to pain me through about Christmas, but now I'm ready for it to be done with.
