Monthly Archives: August 2007

Yesterday was all sewing – all day!

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I’ve been sort of lurking on several of the cloth diapering sites you guys have suggested. My favorite so far is Diaper Sewing Divas.

Yesterday, after reading all the info on all of the patterns, ordering supplies, and getting up the steam…I did a little sewing:

newborn diaper stash

That’s 6 newborn diaper covers and 6 size small diaper covers. The bright colored fabric is a laminated polyester, and the other layer is a cotton chambray. These are from the Very Baby pattern.

I also made 16 (!!) size small (Very Baby all in one pattern) fitted diapers. The yellow ones are the first batch, then the flowered ones, then the beige ones were the last ones of the day.

The yellow are made of two layers of birdseye cotton for the inner, a cotton stretch knit for the outer, and 8 layers of birdseye for the pad inside. The flowered ones are a 100% cotton flannel ($1/yard!!), using the flannel for both inner and outer and with 6-8 layers of the same flannel for the inner pad. The beige ones are birdseye for inner and outer, and 6- layers of the same birdseye for the pad.

I’m not sure why it took me so long to get to doing this…probably the overlap of my two jobs (started the new one with 2 weeks left of the first one) and just not being very confident in my sewing skills. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to follow the pattern correctly, and there are so many different kinds of fabrics and snaps and elastics. I think I was overwhelmed by all of the information.

Even now, I have no baby to test these on, so I won’t know if they even WORK for a few months yet.

I did learn a lot about the process, and even modified the pattern to my own needs. I omitted the waterproof layer from the dipes, so they’re “fitteds,” but not “all in one.”

After all that sewing, I was really stiff today! I guess I pretty much sat at the machine from 8:30 am to about 10 pm.

To move around some, Nate and I walked over to the coffee shop for breakfast, and afterward stopped by the fabric store and picked out some cuter fabrics for the next batch.

Yesterday while I was working on these, he kept telling me how professional they looked, and how much he appreciated me sewing them…it was so heartwarming! I love it that he’s into the idea of cloth diapering, and that he really understands the time and love that goes into it!

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OOH! And this yarn from Zenstring just came! It’s bluefaced leichester…for diaper covers.

zenstring bfl

(don’t worry, Medea likes being used as a prop!) :)

Good Baby News!

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You know how I took that Maternal Serum Screening test (Otherwise known as the TripleScreen) 3 weeks ago? It checks the baby’s hormone levels in my blood for signs of Down Syndrome and neural tube defects. I got a call yesterday and it came back NORMAL.

So that’s great.

Yesterday we also met with Nate’s HR person about transferring health insurance, so that’s DONE. We’re now officially ALL SET at least as far as the financial stuff goes.

I went to Unravel yesterday to talk about the fall class schedule, and I’ll be teaching beginning knitting and a lace scarf class.

Beginning Knitting:

October 20, Nov 3, Nov 17. This class is taught as a series, and you have to sign up for all three.
(10 am – 12 noon.)

Lace Scarf:

October 27 (1 pm – 4 pm.)

For the Lace Scarf class, I’m going to design the pattern myself, so everyone who signs up will get a copy of the pattern, too.

I guess that’s all the big news…class is going great (I’m teaching a college class this semester.)

Photo Sunday (Petal)

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Petal: both buttons buttoned.

I finally got the buttons sewn on the Petal sweater, so we were able to take the final photos. I decided to use smaller buttons than I originally planned because the bigger ones just didn’t sit well right at the top of the neckline. These are still vintage Bakelite buttons…just smaller. A few years ago I managed to amass quite the Bakelite button collection through some serious and dedicated eBaying. Lucky for me NOW, because I’ve become incredibly lazy.

Petal: one button buttoned.

I realized something today that I’m totally going to pass off as a “design feature” of this sweater. Having the two buttons and the two buttonholes makes is possible to vary the ease in the front of the sweater. And, luckily, it looks equally fine with one button closed as it does all buttoned up.

Petal sweater with no buttons buttoned
If you’re really careful while finishing, you can even wear it with the “lapels” turned out like a real little suit jacket.

I’m putting the finishing touches on version 1.0 of the pattern, which will go out to the TestLab this afternoon or tomorrow sometime.

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This has been just a great weekend. Yesterday we rearranged the furniture in the living room. We brought the futon out of the baby’s room and put the rocker IN the baby’s room. (Friends have decided to build us a crib, so we needed to make room for that.)

I also set up a new bookcase in the LR and put all my cloth diaper sewing material in pretty baskets so I can have it out (but not OUT) all the time. We did a major floor-cleaning and furniture-and-curtain vacuuming. Nate took a bunch of Rubbermaid containers of my too-small clothes out to the garage and got that all organized.

I’m not exactly sure why this brings me so much joy, but it DOES! I’m in this total cleaning-binge-mode right now…lately (and this is new) clutter bugs the HELL out of me, and I literally lie in bed at night obsessing about what needs to be organized next. Somehow, though, dusting hasn’t yet become a priority. ;)

Today we went out to take Petal Pictures. I haven’t really been happy with a photoshoot since Germany, so that was nice.

Then we went out to lunch to my favorite big-salad bar-having place. After that, we stopped by work to pack up and move out all my extraneous books and papers. It feels so good to be moving on to the next phase of our lives. I really don’t think I’ve been this happy in years.

In fact, this just might be the happiest I’ve EVER been in my LIFE.

ahem (knockonwood) ahem.

It's almost Frrrriday!

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I’m swatching for another maternity sweater. This time, I’m using this gorgeous Merino from Neighborhood Fiber Co. It’s hand dyed by Ms. Karida in what she calls a “semisolid” colorway. There is a very subtle verigation that really catches the light.

Neighborhood Fiber Co. Semisolid Merino

I’m trying out reversible cables on this one. (Fabric that cables on both the RS and WS.) Thanks to a little help from my friends, I *think* I’ve got it!

Saturated.

SO…I can tell you one big thing that’s been going on behind the scenes that I’ve been unable to blog until now: I’m leaving my job at the end of the month. I’m teaching a class fall semester, then staying home for at least a year.

I’ve been rushing around trying to get everything finished up there before my last day, figuring out what to do with our health insurance, and getting all kinds of other stuff in place.

That’s where I’ve been lately, if you’ve been looking! And it’s why I’ve been stressed the past weeks. It may not seem like a big change, but WOW. Going from full-time scientist to stay-at-home mom…it’s a major life change.

And a BIG secret to have to keep!