First Project in the New Room!

So I lied about the pictures.  Actually I just haven't put the most recent lot on to the computer yet and there are some interesting things going on.  Update:  I realized that I had in fact uploaded a few pictures!  Here are two of the least awful.

As with housework, the thing that got me mostly moved into my new room was the prospect of company.  My old friend Anne  was coming in July and her suggestion was that we spend the time we had together sewing!  Last summer we both bought a jacket pattern and fabric while driving around western Washington but then neither one of us had touched it since.  Her idea was that we should work on it, maybe inspiring each other to new heights of skill and daring in the sewing world.

Well, that was the idea.  Our first hurdle was to try to figure out just how on earth you were actually supposed to *use* this pattern.  Fortunately, Anne had purchased Swedish pattern tracing paper which you can both write on and sew on so it is possible to fit the pattern pieces on your body.  Our first attempt revealed that the pattern was about two inches too narrow across the back (weirdly, the front was OK). But we are grownups so we traced the pattern pieces again, adding two inches all over for me and tapering down to one inch for Anne who has a real waist.  Once we figured out that the unlabeled rectangle was meant to extend the sleeves to the right length, we were good to go. 

Except then we had to follow directions.  This next part was my own fault:  I sewed the front piece to the side front piece upside down.  No wonder that curve seemed so much easier than described . . . however, Anne saw immediately what I had done (duh!) and I reiterated my mantra of "The seam-ripper is my friend" as I took out that wonderful first seam.

Some of the directions are just opaque and we are not going to be able to figure out what they mean until we actually have the cut pieces for the lining in hand.  I am baffled by this method of putting the lining in but maybe it will make sense when I'm doing doing it.  I hope.  Anne had to go back home to Washington state before we got to that point so I'm on my own unless we figure out Skype.

But the room!  The room is light and airy and I can see what I'm doing!  It's amazing!  !!  It makes me happy to be in there!  I am going to get a radio to keep me company--the IPod keeps my ears blocked so I can't hear what's going on in the rest of my house but maybe I can get a radio with an auxiliary port. 

I promise, (more) pictures next time.