End of the shutdown! A skirt, a dress, an outfit and a pie!

"Back to life, back to reality!" Thank God for the Senate and House actually FINALLY putting the citizens first instead of their egos! 

It was nice to be back at work today. Granted, I still had to work intermittently during the shutdown but still. It was a bit strange waking up everyday and trying to find something to do at home to busy myself. 

For the most part, I cooked/baked, exercised and sewed. I also stuck with my meal replacement (with a green smoothie) everyday and felt quite proud of myself and the 6-lbs I have lost to date.

Since my last "Shutdown" post, I have made a few more items. I made my last dress yesterday in time for the end of the shutdown. 

I am now envisioning my next outfit. I guess I am hooked on sewing :-).

So here are some pics of the items I have made so far.

Skirt #1:

I used this tutorial for making this skirt. It was quite easy to follow. 

I liked the way it turned out and will get a better (non-JOE splattered mirror) pic when I eventually wear the skirt. 

Expertise needed: Beginner. You really just need to know how to use a tape measure and a sewing machine. 

Total Approximate Time: This skirt took me less than an hour to make. 

Total spent on sewing materials: $3.75. I kid you not! The material was $2.50/yard and I got 1.5 yards. I only used one yard so technically, it was $2.50. I'll be using the remainder 1/2 yard for something for JOE. 

Feedback: I liked making this and I see many more in my future. My only issue though is that I wish I had read up and watched a few more YouTube videos on working with knit materials. It was a little challenging at first but once I figured out what to do, it got easier.

Outfit #2:

I love the way this turned out. I got this material a while back for JOE and never made it. So since I had more time on my hands, I decided to use that opportunity to finish it up. 

I used this tutorial to make the pants. Since the pattern was for a much younger kid, I made some allowances for an older kid but for the most part, it was the same. I also skipped the bell bottoms. 

For the top, I used this pattern/tutorial and made some modifications since I wanted to make it a top and not a dress. 

Expertise needed: Comfortable beginner. I needed to make adjustments to some areas and had to look up other "DIY" ideas to figure out the pattern. 

Total Approximate Time: The pants took me less than an hour to make once it was cut up. The top, took me approximately 2-hours. So total of 3-hours for the outfit. 

Total spent on sewing materials: $4.97. The material was $4.97/yard and I got 1-yards. I used about 3/4 of it so I saved the rest to use on something else for JOE. 

Feedback: This was relatively easy. Will I do it again? Yes! BUT, I will make more allowance for the butt area. My daughter is gifted in that area. Coupled with her diaper means I should have added another 1/2-inch to that area :-). 

Dress #3:

This was something else I mentally envisioned. I didn't really have a pattern or tutorial to go by so I pretty much "free-handed" it. I knew I wanted a reversible dress and my dilemma was how to stitch it in such a way that it could be worn both ways. 

I viewed some YouTube videos and got the idea to invert the seams and sew over them. So that's what I did.

Expertise needed: Comfortable beginner. I created my own pattern by just sketching out what I wanted and using a store bought outfit for measurement.

Total Approximate Time: The dress took a total of 2-hours. I really was straight forward. The pockets took the longest amount of time! Read feedback below.

Total spent on sewing materials: Approximately $6. I used leftover 1/2-yard materials for this so it really was a bargain. 

Feedback: Since I was free styling this one, it took some imagination to have it come together. I really wish I had sewn the pockets BEFORE seaming the bottom because then, I could have separated the sides. Since I seamed everything before hand, I ended up trying to put them both together on opposite sides. It was really hard to do the one pocket which is why it is only one. I actually cut up materials for 2-pockets! Lesson learned :-). Will I do this again? Absolutely!

A Pie!

The apples from our apple picking adventure on Monday had to be used up! So I decided to make a very simple apple pie :-). 

I did a semi homemade recipe for this one. 

Ingredients:

5-apples washed, peeled and cut (it might look like a lot but it will bake down)

4 table spoons of lemon juice

1-cup brown sugar

3-table spoons whole wheat flour

2-pie crusts (make sure you let this come to room temperature if you had it in the freezer)

- Mix all the ingredients in a bowl

- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit

- Roll out dough onto a pie dish

- Add ingredients

- Roll out the second dough over the top and shape

- Cut an "X" on the top to allow steam to escape

- Put in oven for 50-minutes and enjoy!

Kinda reminds me of the Pat-A-Cake nursery rhythm I used to listen to when I was a child. 

And since no post is complete without my beautiful princess, here is one of her from Tuesday :-). 

Hope you're having a great week so far! I guess now that I don't have as much time on my hands, my posts might be fewer. I need to get back into planning JOE's birthday party. It is in a little over 3-week. GASP!