Nostalgia

 Ah blogs...... seems like they have mostly died. Except recipe blogs; those are still alive and active. tho you have to scroll FOREVER to get to the recipe.  

Still on etsy selling things. It mainly bags and wallets, but i still sew clothes for me and my family.

I now have an instagram for my etsy shop/sewing things. Check that out here. 

There's also my shop's facebook page here. A lot of the content is the same, but i appreciate any likes/follows i get.

The world is pretty heavy right now. I may come and do a full journal post that i can look back at. Those are kinda fun.

Anyway, stay safe out there.

Time keeps on slippin'......

....into the Future!

Seems like I started this a lifetime ago, when it's only been 7 or so years.

My son is now 7 years old, and growing into a pretty awesome kid. He's into Pokemon, and has kinda dragged me into it (I don't mind, gives us something to do together).

My doll obsession has faded. I still love American Girl dolls and will accept a sewing commission for them from time to time, but my interests have moved on.

I actually got rid of a lot of my nail polishes (don't worry they went to good homes). I found that I didn't like the process of painting, chipping, removing, and re-painting.....especially when it happened every 3 days. I switched to Jamberry wraps, and have been pretty satisfied. I was a consultant for a while, but got out of it before the company switched to M Network. If you're thinking about trying them, DO IT! The application takes a little while to get right (cuz everyone has different nail shapes, different body chemistry, etc), but I can get at at least a week out of a mani (if not 2)!

My Etsy shop is still up an running. I've been making some kick-ass wallets and purses. I've started making book buddies too. My shop has free shipping for the winter holidays, and if you "heart" something before buying, I usually send you a coupon too.

As always, the struggle to balance work and family life rages on. Added is the desire to work for myself, with the trials of figuring out how to turn my passions into income without hating it along the way (kinda why I moved on from doll things, and why I'm no longer with Jamberry).

Well, Until the next time I remember my log in ;)

I think i have a doll addiction.......

More specifically i LOVE fixing dolls that have been abused well loved, and customizing dolls to be unique. Like this little lady

And this gent (yup, I love making boys too!)

Sometimes, the finished dolls don't fit in at my house though. So some of them end up being sold (re-homed?). If you are interested in buying one, check out my ebay listings HERE! I will consider requests to customize a doll you already own. You should email me at velez[dot]lynnette[at]yahoo[dot]com. Looking for clothes for your doll? Check out my Etsy shop HERE!

Otherwise, I will post new pictures talk about doll/sewing/polish things as time permits. However, my life feels jam packed. My son is now 4 and going into pre-k, i am working 2 jobs (retail at a fabric store, and sewing for a college costume shop), as well as trying to run/promote my etsy shop, and make time for family. My. Life. Is. INSANE sometimes!

Until the next time i have a free 15 mins (and something cool to write about!)
-Lynnette

Ouch!

So Tuesday night was interesting for me........

We were having a small party at my house, and it was warm in the back room where everyone was hanging out. So trying to be helpful, i tried to open the window. Tried being the key word here. Instead of using both hands and lifting from the bottom, i leaned with my left hand and tried to palm it open. Big mistake. I ended up breaking the window and slashing open my palm. A "quick" trip the the ER (only 2 hrs, not 4), i came home with 7 stitches and 2 spots of glue.


WARNING not so pretty hand picture coming up
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Told you..... yucky.
At least it's my non-dominant hand, and i just cut thru the skin. The doc said that if it had been deeper, i would have hit muscle and that would have been hand surgery. I can still sew, just really carefully with frequent breaks.

Ok, off to spend my 3 days off healing and sewing (I have shop orders to fill!)
-Lynnette

The sweet hum of the sewing machine......

While i may not have sewn a stitch of my SWAP, i have been sewing. A lot of stuff for the hubby (who came back from out of state with 1/2 of his wardrobe somehow), and recently 18" doll clothes. It started with my eldest niece, who showed an interest is sewing and has 3 (!) dolls.

In fact, i have re-opened my etsy shop to sell them. Here, take a peek:

This is so far my best seller! I think the biggest problem is sourcing fabrics that look right, but are play-friendly. I do make my doll clothes machine washable, because you never know what your doll will get into!

Right now, doll clothes are keeping me busy. My hubby needs another chef coat, so that will go into the queue sooner rather than later.
Check out my shop (there's a link in one of the sidebars), follow, like, share, spread the word! I'd love for sewing to pay my bills!

Until next time!
-Lynnette

SWAP 2014

It's SWAP (sewing with a plan) time again and i'm joining in the fun! This year it's an "algebra SWAP"; the equation is expressed this way:

3 "3 packs" + 2 "wild cards" = 11 garments.

Each three pack will be:

2 tops + 1 bottom
or
1 top + 1 bottom + 1 outer layer
or
1 dress + 1 top + 1 bottom

The "wild card" options can be just about anything you like, but they must be "garments" not accessories (hats, bags, blankets, etc.)

I like the first option of 2 tops and 1 bottom the best, and i think my wildcards will be a vest and a dress. My pallet this year will spring from last years colors; Eggplant and Turquoise, with black and navy as neutrals. So far i know what my bottoms will be: black and navy pants, eggplant skirt (McCall's 5523 is signing my name!). I know I want tops out of turquoise and black, but not sure if I should do navy or eggplant as my 3rd top color. I guess it depends on what i make the dress out of. 

I think i'll try for "3 season" outfits; stuff i can use in fall, winter, and spring by layering. Thankfully, i dug my patterns out of storage, so i'm not limited there!

Next update should hopefully include a list of what i'm going to sew!

Butterick 5917

When i first saw this pattern i got really excited and couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I almost bought it full price that's how much i like it! This is my version, and there might be more to come!

I cut almost a straight 16; at the back shoulders I cut a 14 through armhole (mine are always smaller than what the pattern says). Instead of  using the cap sleeve, i cut the long sleeve down to a short. There is embroidery on the bottom of the sleeves, but i couldn't get a good pic of it. I added a 1/2 inch to the bottom of the front bodice (my work around a full bust adjustment). I didn't line the bodice, just turned and topstiched the ruffle in place. I also didn't sew the skirt darts all the way down; once i got everything cut i realized that it might not fit without the little extra.

Overall, this was an easy sew for me. I didn't look at the directions that much to be honest! I will consider making this again, but maybe sleeveless next time.

Until next time,
-Lynnette

Aaannd there goes my motivation for blogging.......

As you can see, i haven't had blogging mojo for a little while. I haven't had sewing mojo either. I did finish my SWAP (but didn't win) and will put it to good use in a few weeks. I have to move, and most of my things will go into storage (including 75% of my wardrobe), so my SWAP is perfect for helping me downsize.

I'm stressed and don't sleep well. Most night's i'm up until the wee hours of the morning, and still try to get up with my little man.

Seems crazy that Orion will be 2 in a few short weeks. As much as i love him, i'm reluctant to plan a party. He wont remember it, i dont have the money for it, and my husband wont be here to celebrate with us.

Speaking of my husband, I'm going to be lost when he goes to Texas in 2 weeks looking for work.

I'm majorly missing my Dad and my Grandpa.

That's about it. I might post, but i prolly won't. Time to go back to packing....got a deadline ya know?

Oil Slick water marble

Finally a nail post after.....well way too long! I have been polishing my nails, just not posting about it.

For this marble I used Sally Hansen Black Tie and Scarab, as well as Orly Space Cadet  over a plain ol' black base (Wet and Wild Black Creme).
Take a look!

Of course, it looks better in real life....i picked some of the worst polishes to photograph. Trying out a new thumbnail shape also. I think I like it, but not sure yet......it almost looks fake (and I'm not sure how I feel about that).

Well SWAP 2013 has been submitted. Those pictures will be next on the blog.
Until next time!
-Lynnette

SWAP 2013 Progress Update

So, with a bit over a month left in the SWAP (sewing with a plan, you know) I thought it would be a good time to update with what I've managed to get done.
First, how about a list of all the things i want to sew?

SWAP 2013

Red group

• Red Sateen -Skirt
• Black w/ polka dot knit -top
• Red and turquoise floral knit -top
• Black with silver skulls knit -top

Indigo group

• Jeans (either made or purchased)
• Blue w/ pink paisley woven -top
• Blue, green, turquoise & tan silky -top
• Solid turquoise knit -top

Linking Garment: Light grey fleece hoodie with an asymmetrical zip.

Ok, now onto pictures!

All 3 of the red tops done...

polka dot knit: I needed extra for the sleeves

Black w. silver skulls: ruched sleeve (though you can't see it here)

Red and turquoise floral

Along with one -almost 2!- of the Indigo tops!

Blue w/pink paisley: Really needs to be on a body to look good

Blue/green/turquoise print: Just needs sleeves (which are out of the print)

Plus I have the grey hoodie completely cut out, embroidered, and the front 2 edges bound.

So what's left to sew?

• Red sateen skirt
• Jeans
• Grey hoodie

Really, not much in my opinion. I might have to add a top to each collection so that i have more pressure, lol! But i think i'll wait and see if i can finish all of this first, then start thinking about adding.

Until next time!

-Lynnette

SWAP 2013

Remeber this post about a new wardrobe? Well now I have a reason to work on those projects and this blog again. It's called SWAP: Sewing With A Purpose! The Artisan's Square stitcher's guild forum members take part in this every year, and there are certain rules for the wardrobe you create. This year the (summarized) rules are 2 sets of 4-5 pieces and one bridging piece that works with everything for a total of 9-11 garments.

My goals for this SWAP? To make tops that are as easy and comfy as a t-shirt, but look better. There's nothing wrong with a great t, but my closet is full of no-so-great t's. I think I will tackle jeans again and might even try *gulp* a skinny leg jean (I've been resisting for so long, but i think i need to give in for the sake of wearing great boots). For my bridging piece i want to make a fleece jacket to replace the hoodies I've been wearing.

So, by April 30th (the deadline, btw) I will have hopefully made 2 bottoms, 1 fleece jacket, and 6/8 tops (depending on how busy i get!)......Here goes!

Now off to sew!
-Lynnette

Still here.....

I'm still here, polishing my nails, hoarding polish, and sewing. I just haven't had the heart to post about it. Most of my father's affairs are in order, so i suppose things are back to normal. I do miss posting are sharing the manis and sewing projects i come up with, so i'm going to try and get into the swing of things again.

Stay tuned and there should be some cool stuff coming!

Bad news.....

I found out on Friday that my father had died. I'm not willing to go into details here, but I will say that it was a shock. He was deeply in debt, with no money coming in and none (that we can find) set a side for funeral expenses. My focus right not is on getting all the loose ends he left me tied up. I will not be posting here until life has settled back into routine.

To leave everyone with something polish related, here are pictures of my most recent challenge manis: metallic and galaxy (finally! This galaxy wore for most of the week).

Week 36: Tape mani

Sorry if the pics aren't as good as they usually are. These are taken with my camera phone instead of my usual camera. The phone was/is convenient (especially since i can just upload to picasa from my phone), and the quality seems ok on the phone's screen, but we'll see how they look here.

Not really a big fan of using tape for straight lines... I feel like i can do better and faster free hand. I do want to try using decorative scissors to cut the tape next time.
I used Julep Otto, Julep Delaunay (both Trina Turk colors) and Sinful Colors Rain Storm. Not really happy about the whole photoshop scandal, but Sinful makes some great basic colors with decent formulas. All of these were one careful coat!

Nail nubs again :( But the Nailtek is helping a lot!

Well, that's all for now. My "new normal" is working 6 day weeks.....While I may not find time to post, I do make time to paint my nails, sew and vent...just a bit less than before :)
Later!
-Lynnette

Week 34: "Bling" mani

Since week 33's galaxy nails chipped off before pictures (REALLY frustrating), here is week 34's bling mani.

I used one coat of Wet n'Wild Metallica and one coat of Sally Hansen's Showgirl Chic. Love how sparkly this polish is. These pictures kinda show how pretty this polish is, but you really need to see it for yourself.

Please forgive the bit of polish on the side of my ring finger...i'm still on my acetone strike lol.

Next week is "cupcake" themed, but i really don't feel like having cupcakes on my nails, let alone trying to draw a cupcake on my nails.....we'll see what i come up with.

Until next time,
-Lynnette

Anniversary Dress

This is the latest project me and my Pfaff 7570 have churned out. In less than a week, this dress went from dream to reality, and I'm really happy with how it turned out.

I started with Vogue 1086 and 2 1/2 yards of stretch satin (it has a nicer hand than the other satins I can get my hands on for a good price). I usually don't read reviews of patterns, but I'm so glad that I did with this (otherwise this would have been a disaster). The reviews said that the neckline was low, sizing was off (too big in most cases), and that it was near impossible to alter as you sew due to french seams. After some tissue fitting I decided to cut a size 16 (even though my measurements said to cut a 20....so much for vanity huh Vogue?) for everything but the yoke, which I cut at a 14. Yokes have a history of being to big on me and this was no exception.

I skipped the french seams so that I could fit as I sewed...honestly, I really didn't need to follow the pattern's written instructions, the pictures were all I needed. I had to raise the neckline about an 1 1/2 in.-2 in, and I cut down the yokes by about an inch on the shoulder edge, 5/8-3/4in on the neck edge. However the back was still gaping and bowing funny. So I had to overlap it more...I think it was a good 1 1/2in, maybe even 2in......it felt like I needed to cut the smallest yoke I could lol!

I embroidered the yokes and the front waistband before I constructed everything. I loved how rich the tan thread looked with the teal fabric. One of my friends couldn't tell that the embroidery was skulls at first! I usually cut/tear my stabilizer away when I'm done stitching the design, but I used it as interfacing to make those pieces a little more "beefy". This gives some structure to an otherwise shifty/slippery fabric. The design is skull array from Urban Threads, my favorite embroidery site!

Overall, I love this dress, and had a great time wearing it. I think I need to make a casual version of this (now that I know what needs to be changed, construction should go easier).

Now to go soak in the tub until I'm prune-fingered!
-Lynnette

It's going to be a rough couple weeks....

I started a new job on Monday. While the work isn't incredibly hard (I'm a house keeper for a sorority), it does take a toll (especially all the stairs!). Pair that with still working my other job (we'll call that "retail slave") and I am tuckered out. I don't have a entire day off until next Monday at the earliest. I know....whine, whine, whine.

Again, I did the challenge of Galaxy nails....and failed to get a picture when it was fresh. Now it's chipped off (not a huge deal because I really didn't like it), and I have to re-do the challenge. Maybe the second time will turn out better? Here's hoping.

I also have some stuff I want to show you from my sewing room, but again I haven't made time to photograph, etc.

Ugh...I've gotta figure out this new routine so I can have my me time, and keep this from getting stale.

Until I get motivated!
-Lynnette

Week 30 & 32: Marble Madness!

It's becoming more and more obvious that the real challenge in the 52 Week Challenge is NOT the nail art....it's the posting! It's pretty easy to do the challenge and get the pictures, but it's not as easy to edit the pictures and write about it. With me starting a second job soon, I may get even more sporadic with posting. However I am still having fun with nails....I'm just not showing you guys as promptly!

Week 30 (which I did, didn't get pictures, then skipped and re-did) was water marbling. LOVE water marbling, even if I am marbling nubs. You can get some crazy intricate designs, and every nail is different.
This is using Julep Elizabeth, Isla, and Piper. I find it best to prep the nails with one coat of the lightest color in your marble....which isn't always white (but in this case it was lol).

Week 32 was needle marbling. Now this one I hadn't done before, but I've seen some cool designs around the web. I'm ok with how mine turned out, but I think that I could have done better. Maybe I needed another color? I'm not sure, but here's the pictures. You'll have to excuse the state of the my cuticles....I had to clean my turtle tank and these pictures where taken mid cleaning (I realized that the mani was slowly chipping off because of all the water and I needed pictures ASAP!)
The base is Orly Decades of Dysfunction marbled with Grave Mistake. I really like these 2 from the Dark Shadows collection and I'm regretting not getting the other 2!

Well that's all I have for now. Today is my wedding anniversary, so maybe there will be something special on my nails for that!
-Lynnette

Week 31: Crackle mani

I know I skipped posting about Week 30's water marble (which I did! There's just no photo evidence), however I wanted to catch up to everyone else and post the crackle mani in a timely fashion.

This is Revlon Timeless topped with black crackle (can't tell which brand) and China Glaze Oxidized Aqua. This came out better than my other crackle mash up. A tip if you are going to try to layer crackles but don't want them cracking in the same spots, but a thin layer of topcoat over you previous crackle. Wait for it to dry, and then you can put your next layer on.

Unfortunately this mani didn't really dry for some crazy reason. It stayed gooey and dentable, and I ended up taking it off.

So maybe another water marble will happen soon!
-Lynnette

Week 29: Rockstar mani

Late again! Seems to be my normal thing >.<

Anyway, I should have worn this to the Like a Storm/Saving Abel/Three Days Grace show I went to on the 14th. However that was such a busy weekend, there was no time for nails. However I did notice several of the lead singers had on black nail polish themselves! I must say, I think I like men rocking manly colors (like black, dark blue, gray, etc)......I brings the whole image together.

Anyway this is what I would wear as a rockstar.....well for shows. I don't think that I could wear anything 24/7/365!

This is one careful coat of Wet n'Wild black creme followed by Fergie Make Them Boys Go Loco. My left hand then got a coat of Revlon Scandalous, and another coat of Loco. My right hand got another coat of Loco, without the Scandalous. Stickers on the ring fingers and thumbs
While I liked the look of Scandalous and Loco together, I REALLY love 2 coats of Loco by itself.

You may have noticed that my nails aren't as neat or "photo ready" as they used to be. In an effort to help my nails grow and keep them out of chemicals, I am not doing the cleanup that most nail bloggers do. Keeping them out of the acetone has helped, and I'm trying Nailtek II as a base coat. I might experiment with soak off gel base and top coats, but that depends on how hard my new job is on my nails (ie: how many chemicals I'm exposed to).

Ok, now to do a water marble.
-Lynnette