I shall hereafter be referred to as the Bionic Woman

I went to the orthopedic surgeon today, and here's the latest on my arm:

I not only broke the tip, I broke it in two pieces and while one piece is in more or less the right spot, the other piece is very much in the wrong place. So the doctor will have to go in to fix it. Best case scenario, he goes in, puts the piece back, slaps a metal plate on it and wah-la, I'm done. Worst case scenario, he goes in, the piece that looks like it is broken off may actually be in many tiny pieces, and they would replace the bone tip with a metal tip. Either way, I'll be setting off metal detectors....yet another deterrent to flying.

Good news is that it doesn't look like this will be as traumatic as my last surgery, so while I will be taking Wednesday through Friday off this week, I should be back to work on Monday. Fortunately, the kids were already scheduled to take a test on the block day (Wed and Thur), so I just need to come up with something for Friday.

I would appreciate your prayers, the nurses generally have an extremely difficult time finding a vein for the IV and I always get a little freaked out when signing documents warning me that I may die in surgery AND IT'S NOT THE FAULT OF THE HOSPITAL. The surgery is scheduled for 9 am on Wednesday. Thanks.....more updates post-surgery.

Things I should Probably Take Care of

My students are being annoying and irritating

It is raining and cold outside

I'm ready for Spring Break to be here

When it is.....I'll be crafty.

Back soon.

Stupid Blogger

Ok, has anyone else been having this problem? When I click on a site hosted by blogger, sometimes it works, but I have had several load blank pages - with all the headers and sidebars, but no actual blog entries. It has happened more than once.

SO ANNOYED.

The Hot Granny Purse

I have had this purse half finished since Christmas break, but just finally got the right color of lining last weekend. It is still not quite right, it is hard to sew things sometimes using this kind of lining because it is a bit thick. I also thought it turned out kind of long, so I went back when I was done and cut the actual pattern down by two inches so that the next one I make will not be quite as long. I do like the shape of the flap on the front and I LOVE the fabric. I think the fabric looks like something from your grandma's house, hence the name "hot granny."

This one started out as a round clutch, but I had so much trouble sewing it that I changed it into a flat clutch. The fabric is a textured deep-pile velvet that I had trouble finding a lining for. It is cream colored but has a brown undertone so nothing went with it. I finally got some deep pumpkin colored satin, but I think when I use it again I will use chocolate brown, something completely rich. I had only one button like this that I had been saving for a while, so I used that.
I need to work on putting the magnets not so close to the edge, I had some trouble with it pulling the flap all wonky.

I also made some business card holders. Not totally happy with these either, but will work more on them. I did teach myself to install snaps. Very cool. All of these items will most likely remain with me, since none of them are exactly what I saw in my head and none of them are good enough to sell, but I think that all three patterns have potential.

More Excuses

I had no needles, then the lovely Tina sent me some....
I had no fabric, then the amazing Colleen sent me a gift card.....
I had no motivation, then I got everything graded.....


And then I spent all of this week sick.

I shall return.

Some weeks are drippier than others

Sorry for the lack of posts...here's one reason why.

AND I broke my last sewing needle and am on an even more restrictive budget this month due to my incapabilities in math so I haven't actually made anything in almost a week. I did find one more needle, which has to last the rest of the month, so I shall be a very careful sewer.

AND...I have been having an interesting discussion with Antoinette (Clevergirl) about copyright when it comes to patterns....as in, is it okay to make something from a pattern that I have bought (for example, from Simplicity or something) and then sell that item?

Thoughts?

One of THOSE days

So far....(at 9:17 am)

I went to my car this morning to find a flat tire.
Which I changed by myself.
With minimal whining.
In pouring down rain.
While about 25 cars drove by.
Had to change clothes (today became jeans day).
Forgot to put makeup back on.
Got to work (school) late.
1st period refused to do the assignment I gave them.
I filled out my voter card last night, but can't find a mailbox to post it in.

Will Barack Obama or John McCain provide mailboxes for the common man?

Happy Election Day.

And you shall be called the GRRRRR purse.

I liked the bag I made for etsy so much that I decided to make one for myself. My mom bought me a pattern book from Indygo Junction and I really liked some of the purses in it, but I can't sell those, so I decided to make one for myself using the same fabric, but using plastic handles instead of making fabric ones. I had attempted plastic handles one other time and had a lot of trouble, so I thought that following someone's specific directions instead of winging it using common sense might make things easier.

Um...Not really.

I followed the directions exactly, except that instead of using velcro to close it, I used magnets, and I didn't have any plastic stuff to put in the bottom so I didn't do that step either.

Positives: I think that Indygo Junction has really cute patterns and they show you lots of different possibilities for one pattern. The pattern pieces are very easy to read and understand and the first 15 pages of the book explain things like purse stiffening and things very well and in great detail. Negatives: If you are a novice sewer, this is NOT the book for you. The instructions are very direct, and unless you know what they are talking about, it doesn't make sense. If you are a mid-level sewer this book will frustrate you. I am guessing that maybe I need a specific foot to sew these plastic handles? I used a zipper foot (I think) so that I could put the needle as far to one side as possible and the foot wouldn't go over the plastic, but it still looks like I lost my sight before I sewed the top seams and did the whole thing by feel. Hence the GRRRRRR purse. I'm thinking that a big part of the problem was that the tabs to connect the handles to the purse were only 2-3/8 inches long and there is no way that was going to work well...but I was FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS. There is no way I could sell this, aside from the copyright issues, because the stitching around the top is so crooked. But, I did learn to use heavy interfacing (interlining?), and I installed my first magnetic closure. I like it, drunken stitching and all, and I will use it, but it will shame me on the inside. =)

Fly into Fall - Fly Trap Tutorial

The first week of school is rough, so I haven't done much crafting this week, but one of the things that is driving me crazy are the fruit flies in my apartment. I hate them, I have a lot of them, and I can't seem to get rid of them. I have had them before, and usually if I get rid of the fruit or dirty dish that was attracting them, they would go away. But this year, they are just getting worse. They are expecially bad in the bathroom where the cat's litterbox is, and in the kitchen, especially over the sink. I had tried some things to get rid of them, but to no avail!! First, the super sticky, super stinky fly paper....this worked somewhat...

I also tried smashing them against the mirror in my bathroom...I used this book in hopes the flies would, in fact, be "EASY TO KILL." =)

When I called my dad this morning to complain about the flies, he said he used a piece of fruit and a vacuum cleaner. So I tried that.....but mostly spent my time waving the vacuum around while the flies mockingly laughed and the cats fled in terror (of the vacuum, not the flies' mocking laughter). So then, I did some research, beyond the old "call dad" trick, and found some tutorials on the internet. There are some good ones on instructables.com, my favorite one is here. So...I'll walk you through my process.

First, gather some supplies. For this first one, I used an empty V8 bottle, some packing tape, and the bruised part of a pear. You can also use a soda bottle.Cut the top off of the bottle and take the lid off. Put the pear inside the bottle, then turn the top upside down and put it inside the bottle. I put some tape over the opening since it was a bit large. Don't make it too small though!Put tape around the top of the bottle to seal it, then put it somewhere where the flies are. Mine is right next to the sink.

I wanted more than one (I have a LOT of flies in here), so I made another one using the same process, only using a small Coke bottle and cider vinegar instead. And finally, I made one using a wide mouth bottle, some cardstock, and some hot glue.

First, cut a slit into the center of the piece of paper. I cut the corners off, but you do not have to do that. Then, cross the slit over each end to make a funnel shape and tape it together. I had to tape the inside and the outside. Next, cut the tip of the funnel off, but again, make sure it isn't too big!

Pour some cider vinegar into the bottom of the jar, and plug your glue gun in...

Make yourself a glass of chocolate milk while you wait for your glue gun to warm up.Once your glue gun is warmed up, glue around the inside edge of the jar, right at the top. Make sure the glue goes all the way around, no gaps!Press the funnel down into the jar immediately so that the glue will seal it off. I put mine on top of the litterbox in the bathroom. Hopefully this will eliminate the flies!!

UPDATE - After a few hours, I can say that the funnel trap is not as effective as the bottle ones, and that cider vinegar works better than fruit. 2 cider vinegar traps attract MANY more flies than one trap, even away from food. =)

UPDATE 2 - either I have smart fruit flies, or I didn't empty the traps quickly enough....I suggest that you empty them every 10-12 hours or so. I also have had some success with the vacuum....I use the traps to attract the flies to one area, then use the vacuum to suck the little buggers up. I WILL win this battle.

T-Shirt Blanket

A few weeks ago, I picked up some shirts from a client who wanted a 3x4 t-shirt blanket. Normally, I can do these without a lot of thought, but for some reason - perhaps the lack of thought =) - this one gave me problems. First of all, she had enough material for 13 squares, but wanted some of the smaller writing pieces to just be added to other squares so that she would have 12 total. I cut the shirts apart, and for some reason ended up with only 11 squares. I couldn't figure out where I went wrong, so I just created an extra square, which looked great!

Then, I started putting the blanket together, which I do in strips. After I had all the strips sewn and was about halfway through sewing the strips together, I found the missing square. The client wanted to use the original plan, which meant that I had to take apart all of the stitching on the above square. Since this is t-shirt material, it meant that every stitch caused a little bit of stretching to happen, making it harder to line things up when I resewed it later. I got it done though, and took apart the strips, and sewed the pieces where they were supposed to go.

Back to sewing the strips together....and since I topstitch both sides of every seam for stability and flatness, I had sewed 12 seams when I realized I had sewn one strip on upside down. So...back to the ripper (not my favorite utensil) and I had to tear out 9 of the 12 seams. I finally got it done (thank goodness) and here it is....I didn't take pictures of the back, but there is light gray fleece on the back.

Feeling Bluesy

I am sort of at the point of the summer where I don't feel like doing anything. I don't want to read, I don't want to go anywhere, I don't want to sew, I don't want to craft, I don't want to clean house, I don't want to work out, I don't want to talk on the phone, I don't want to lesson plan, nothing. I think, like a little kid, I need a set schedule and I don't do well without one. I did finally sort of tidy up the living room a little bit. I also finished sewing a shirt and a pair of pants (I HATE zippers) and cut out a bag - and then realized I screwed it up, so I threw it in the corner. Argh! No pictures though....I don't do self-portraits or any other kind if I can help it.

I am a little proud of myself though, I don't really like to sew clothes because....well mostly because I'm lazy, but I have been very inspired by a couple of blogs this summer, especially clevergirl.org and wardrobe refashion, so I am trying to work on that. With practice, I will get better. Maybe when I can sew cotton without episodes of violent cursing, I will consider moving on to other more exciting fabrics. =)