Bridesmaid Dress Redo #2

My sister got married in 2006, and chose a really gorgeous bridesmaid dress for me to wear.  It was so elegant and so flattering, and I held onto it these past 4 and a half years, always hoping I would have another occasion that would call for a floor-length black gown.  Amazingly, that occasion hasn't yet popped up.  You would think I would be attending black tie affairs every weekend, right?  I have considered wearing it to go through the Whataburger drivethru while grabbing some HBCBs though...

Anyway, I decided that although I love the dress as it is, if I ever want to wear it again (and I do), some changes were going to need to be made.  Here's the before:

And one of the funniest pictures of me wearing it at my sister's wedding:

I look totally devastated, but I'm not!  Seriously, I love my bro-in-law!  I was really happy!  And Kelsey is so pretty!

I digress.  Lately, I've been really into the peplum silhouette:  a pencil skirt underneath, flared skirt around the hips.  Kind of like this one:

Salt and Peplum Dress, Modcloth

So I chopped that old dress up and sewed a few parts back on, and here is my after:

And yes, I even had an occasion to wear it to!  I'll show you that tomorrow.

And if you're interested: Bridesmaid Dress Redo #1

Married to Rock

Last night was the debut of Bleeding on Probing--an epic rock band for which my husband plays bass.  Who would have thought that with an audience full of dental students and medical students, things were going to get this crazy?!

That's my man, in the skull t-shirt and jean jacket.  And black wig.

Ah, there he is again.  Climbing on couches.

All four members of Bleeding on Probing.

Steve Dadaian, actual rock guitar god (seriously, he met Slash and Slash told him Steve was a better guitar player than he was)

The bassist and the drummer.

So proud.

Remember our T-Shirt Factory from last week?  Here are the results!

And lastly, before you watch this, be forewarned:  This may actually melt your face off.

One Woman's Sewing Treasure...Is Also Another Woman's Sewing Treasure

As a reader of this blog, you most likely know by now how much I love sewing, even though I actually haven't talked about it in a little while.  A little break was needed after the sewing talk overload that was Me-Made-March, but that break is now over!

What better way to get back into talking about sewing again then with a box I got in the mail that was quite literally bursting at the seams with sewing goodness?!

My great-aunt Heidi had planned to sell all these goodies in a garage sale, but decided to send them all to me instead!  Huzzah!  As soon as I opened up that box, I was getting visions of what I could make with it all right away.

First up, a ziplock bag of lace and trim!  Perfect for an imitation of this dress I've been eyeing at Modcloth.



Next up, patterns!  There are few in here for home decor, aprons, and poodle skirts.  Now, I don't plan to dress up as a sock hop girl anytime soon, but I have been wanting to make a skirt like this one, also from Modcloth--high-waisted, full circle skirt, to the knee.  It's essentially the exact same silhouette as this poodle skirt pattern, just several inches shorter, and without a crinoline underneath.  Awesome!

Also, zippers galore!  You know, for zipping stuff!

Next up, a triple rainbow of bias tapes.  I probably won't need to buy bias tape for the next decade.

Also included:  ribbon (look at that blue ribbon with strawberries on it!), more binding, and ELASTIC.  You may have heard I love a good elastic waistband.  There is nothing in the world more comfortable.  And now I'm set for the next ten or twenty or thirty garments!  I'll have an all-elastic-waistband wardrobe in no time.

Lastly, my mom and grandma threw in some old pillowcases they were willing to part with that Kendra and I have a project in mind for.  It's for a good cause, it's cute, and it's something that's not for us - stay tuned!

Thanks Aunt Heidi, Mom, and G-ma!  I have some incredibly generous women in my family.

The (Hand)writing on the Wall

Kristin at RosyPersonics tagged me with this cute little handwriting game that's been goin' around!

Here are the questions:

1. Name/blog name

2. Blog URL

3. Copy "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

4. Favorite quote

5. Favorite song

6. Favorite musicians/bands

7. Something you say all the time...

8. Friends whose handwriting you'd like to see!

Handwriting is always interesting because it's so unique (and only occasionally readable!).  If you want to do this on your blog, too, go for it!

I'll Love You Til the Kitchen Sinks

Turns out, if you leave the kitchen sink water running because you want to soak some dishes and the drain is plugged up and you walk away and go fix your hair and don't return for a long time, you make a mess big enough that it requires every towel in the whole house and an oscillating fan to clean up.

The aftermath.

The good news?  My hair looks great.

Two Years Ago Today

In a field by a lake, I was told we were taking test shots for Scott's upcoming short film production, and this is what happened instead...

(there's no sound, so don't turn your speakers up!)

Just because...

...my grandpa loves Calvin & Hobbes.  And I love my grandpa.

image via fanpop.com  Calvin & Hobbes written and illustrated by Bill Watterson