oh WOW I won!

So, I often enter giveaways and whatnot, even the occasional lottery ticket, but winning anything is a rare event.  Imagine my surprise to get an email today from Kennis at Itch To Stitch saying I won one of the two prize packs from her birthday giveaway!  When replying to her email, I remarked that hubby said I should get a lotto ticket since this doesn't happen too often.  When Kennis sent back my codes, she remarked hubby may be right and she thinks I ought to buy a ticket as well!  LOL  Sounds like she has a sense of humor.

Itch to Stitch Birthday Celebration Prize Pack 1

• 4 patterns from Itch to Stitch
• 1 pattern from The Wolf and the Tree
• 1 pattern from Laela Jeyne Patterns
• 1 pattern from Stitch Upon a Time
• 1 pattern from Wardrobe by Me
• 1 pattern from 5 out of 4 Patterns
• $25 gift card from Bella Sunshine Designs
• 1 PDF pattern & $10 shop credit from Striped Swallow Designs
• $10 store credit from Candy Castle Patterns
• 1 PDF pattern of choice (except bundles) from Susana Coelho de Melo Cunha
• $15 credit from Flosstyle

Candy Castle Patterns and Stitch Upon A Time are time-sensitive, so I surfed over to their sites first.  I finally decided on the very practical mens' and womens' sweater pattern from Candy Castle.  Looking through Stitch Upon A Time, I saw the exact thing I was thinking about this morning during milking: women's boxer briefs.  Well, that made my decision quite easy!

That's as far as I've gotten so far.  This is actually a little overwhelming, such a big pattern splurge.

Oh, and before Mom calls me out, a big public THANK YOU to Kennis and her friends for putting together such a big prize pack.  I suppose I ought to thank the software program for picking me as well ... LOL.  Nah, we don't thank computers.  Still, what a novelty to win so much.

More sock knitting

I finished up the Bridal lace socks about a week ago ... they're in the washing machine now but I do have some pics.

close-up of lace pattern

finished Bridal socks on my feet

They fit nicely, and the lace pattern with the slip-stitch rib is open enough to make great summer socks.  I need to remember to reinforce the heels and toes before I wear them too many times, and also the easy lace socks that I still do not have pics of yet.

Rolling along, I have sideways socks on my straight needles for hubby (need pic of those as well) and on my new small circular needles I am trying the "two-at-a-time" (2aat) idea for another lace pattern in a wool/bamboo/nylon blend.

start of "openwork ladders" socks done 2aat on circs

I am about 5 inches into the legs section now, with a couple road trips and appointments to work on them.  Hubby called the 2aat concept "bad(*donkey*) knitting" when he first saw it, then paused and asked, "Can knitting be bad(*donkey*)ed?"  Yes, my dear, it certainly can be.

I realize there are folks reading who are wondering just why I am bothering to knit my own socks.  For that matter, I am sure there are folks who wonder why we'd sew our own clothes too!  (Note: I will certainly be doing more of that, and soon.)  The socks I bought last year have been falling apart at the same rate as the ones I bought in '09 and '10 ... but at least the older ones have the excuse of being older and having given me my money's worth in use.  The ones I bought last year?  JUNK!!!!  It's not only socks, either.  I'll save the rant about underwear/panties for another post, but let's just say most of the recently-purchased ones are already in worse shape than the ones they were bought to replace.  So, I am at the point where I say "(*BLEEP!*) it!  I'll just make my own."  At least if these socks wear out quickly, I will know exactly whom to blame.

It's ALIVE!

Not only am I still alive, but we have moved to Florida.  While the sewing room is still in boxes (and packed almost up to the ceiling fan's blades) we have been working on the yard when weather has been nice.  Given the blizzards in the news the past week ... I probably should not mention too much about the weather right now.

I will mention a new blog we've made.  Yes, WE!  Hubby is posting on this one as well, as it will chronicle our adventure here at what I've named the S&G Homesteade.  Garden and orchard pics are already going up there (as of this weekend) although we are still not caught up on pictures of what we've done these past three weeks here.  I will also move my cooking, canning, and gardening posts to that blog while leaving this one for indoor crafts.

Oh, and I have learned a new craft over the past month - knitting.  I started with a gauge swatch that turned into a child's size blue scarf in stockinette stitch, and am working on a dishcloth in garter stitch on the diagonal so I get a crack at increasing and decreasing.

Finally, a pic from my front yard taken Saturday morning:

Apple tree's first blossoms

I am now using this as my wallpaper on my computer.

Goodbye Green Blankie

It's finally dead, Mom ... that green blankie Katie gave me when I was four or five.  It had gotten so thin I only used it during the summer, and this time it did not survive a winter of feline attention.  Thirty-four or thirty-five years of love in fiber form - I think you tried to retire it back when I was a teenager.  I even smuggled it to a field problem or two, and it may have hitchhiked to Kuwait and Iraq hidden in my issued gortex sleep system.

I suppose one of my very last pieces of fiber from childhood will die next ... the Linus pillowcase from Mom.  I wonder if my brother still has his.  I used it to make my oversized pillowcases last year, but the fabric is getting very thin also.  Interestingly, hubby says he had that exact one as a kid as well.

I feel a little like Linus right now ... I just threw away an old blanket I've been carrying around from state to state for over thirty years.

Gift exchange mailed! Now for Thank You cards

I finally did it!  I got to the post office yesterday morning to mail off my contribution for the PR chatroom gift exchange.  I had intended to do it Tuesday afternoon ... but Tuesday and Wednesday were complete wash-outs when life threw us a curve ball.  We'll finish up the fixes after the weekend ... but things have settled down enough to enjoy our crafting again.  Hug your loved ones if they are within reach, or call and say you love them if not - that is what is truly important.

Now that I've mailed off the gift I made, it is time to turn to tank-you notes for gifts already received.  Last weekend I scored blank cards on Hobby Lobby's clearance shelf, with corresponding envelopes to boot ... complete set of 100 (50 larger, 50 "thank you" sized) all for just $6.  This morning I decided to start using them. Here is my prototype:

Calligraphy thank you card

This took me about two hours this morning.  I've been reading the calligraphy book reclaimed from son's room, and had forgotten that calligraphy is more than just pretty letters.  Just on this little card. there's been the layout, selecting alphabets (there's two used), sizing, and flourishing.I used three sheets of printer paper and two blank 4x6" index cards to get it looking like the idea I had in my mind.  Once I am certain the ink is dry I will erase the penciled guidelines (and hope the pigment doesn't come off the card!).  Then I'll have seven more to do ... so far.

Chatters, do NOT tell Val.  She claims she likes surprises, and of course I will send her one for the BDU bag she made me for the gift exchange.  This will be our secret.  Also, Mom - don't tell my sister either.  And Mom, I'll probably get the thank you card done for that buckram before I get your requested off-white doily crocheted up.

Now ... I think I need more ink to finish up the rest of the cards, so time to browse Hobby Lobby ... as if I really "need" an excuse to go do that!  Maybe I'll find more blank cards on the clearance shelf ....!

Calligraphy gift cards

OK, so I have been so far observing the secrecy rule on the chatroom gift exchange ... but I just can't help but post this pic.  First up, I have not purchased a card from a store in years, and have no intention of starting that nonsense up again.  I tried to find my old calligraphy pens, but after a week or so of checking places I think I would have put them, I broke down at Hobby Lobby and bought a new one (the sale helped this - ebil enablers that they are!  LOL).  So here is the card I made for the gift exchange:

Happy Holidays calligraphy gift exchange card

I had to practice for almost two hours to get it to look that good ... I am truly rusty at my calligraphy!  Use it or lose it, so the saying goes ...

My son pointed out that the letters get a bit bigger, which is overcompensation for my usual problem of getting smaller ... *sigh*.  Of course, my dear offsprung (since it happened over 18 years ago) also insists that the big calligraphy book in the house was purchased by me as a gift for him.  I seem to recall buying it, but for both of us.  I'll have to see if he tries to take it up to his room again ...

Calligraphy book and card sample

As for the calligraphy pen that followed me home a little over a week ago, this time I bought a dippable one instead of the cartridge style or "disposable" felt-tip ones.  I was actually quite annoyed that none of the sets with the nice cases had the dippable style ... they are all the cartridge style.  I am hoping hubby will make me a nice little box for this set, so I don't have to keep it all in a zippy bag.

I did make other gift cards, but those all have names on them.

ChatRoom Gift Exchange received

About a month ago, Val (of the corset challenge fame) proposed us chatroom degenerates should do a handmade gift exchange.  Gloria volunteered to coordinate who was making a gift for whom as she didn't think she would have time to participate, and no one else knew who was making the gift they would be receiving.  Personally, I hate suspense, surprise, and waiting ... but the rules were secrecy until a gift shows up in the mail.  My box arrived Saturday, from Val, but it's been too dark and cloudy to get decent pics (we all know about my lack of skill with the digicam).  The clouds broke yesterday afternoon, and this morning the dining room has frosty sunlight streaming in ... so here it is!

gift from Val - BDU bag

Yes, that used to be a pair of summer BDUs (Battle Dress Uniform - better looking army uniform than the current ACUs) that has been cleverly repurposed into a purse/bag!  Both back pockets and both cargo pockets are intact and functional, too, complete with belt loops to hang the keychain clip!  Val pulled out ALL the stops with this and went all-out.

functional cargo pockets on each side of BDU bag

Check this out ... I used to live out of all my pockets on my BDUs when I was still in, so having this many makes me smile.  Now, for the reason this will stay MY bag ... and not hubby's bag:

inside PINK pockets of BDU bag

Yes indeedy, that is very pink inside!  In fact, those (fully lined!) pockets are a pink camouflage fabric.

pink camouflage fabric - perfect!

Val mentioned in chat the pattern (? - give up the name/# or link, Val!) called for an unlined bag which she felt just would not do.  So, these pockets and the lining are 100% Val.

Oh yeah, it came with a card inside, and a little coin purse/billfold thing that I totally forgot to snap pics of ... and even a new project for me.  Makes me so glad I haven't gotten out to the post office to mail mine, because putting together cute gifts isn't my strong suit ... lately I have been trying to avoid even wrapping presents.  Must make a little card.  I have parchment paper and calligraphy pens that I hope have not dried out yet.

Now, for the truly important part: isn't this just the most clever and customized gift?  And - even more importantly - shouldn't Val start posting on the blog we talked her through setting up???

Making my own chicken stock (broth)

This is the project that's been on my stove since mid-afternoon, and when I mentioned it in chat, Maggie commented that she hasn't "quite gotten a handle on the whole stock-making thing".  So I offered to blog it ... although I don't have pictures of every step since this is quite impromptu.

Start with whole fryers (or roasters or broilers ... a whole chicken that's been dressed out) and cut off the frying pieces (wings, legs) and fillet off the breasts, saving the skin, neck, giblets, and the carcass after you're done cutting off the pieces.  Put into a stock pot and just cover all the parts with water, then simmer for an hour to an hour-and-half.  I've noticed it turns out better doing an hour-and-half on a low simmer.

3 chickens, 2 stock pots

After it's simmered enough to cook the meat tender but NOT falling off the bones by itself, pull out all the chicken pieces, and (AFTER it's cool enough to handle!) pull the meat off the bones, then dice up the giblets.  Toss out the bones and skin.  Set the meat in the fridge, then break out season-stuff that you will be straining out.  In my case, that is onion, celery, and minced garlic.  Slow-simmer another hour.

After the second hour, pour the shtuff through first a wire strainer to catch all the solid pieces, then through cheesecloth (or in my case tonight, cheap cotton muslin because I can't find my cheesecloth).  At this point you can let it cool and put it up in containers, or if like me you made way more than you realized you can simmer it down to concentrate it.  Don't skim the fat out until you are ready to cook with it, as the fat will form a seal over the top.

Here is where I am at right now, simmering it down to concentrate it.  I've managed to get it all in my largest stock pot.

chicken stock simmering down

Just a note: the cheap cotton muslin makes a decent substitute for cheesecloth, so this qualifies as a way to use scraps!

You can also boil down ham bones or do a straight vegetable stock using this method - although straight veggie stock won't form a fat seal on top.

Hope that helps ya, Maggie!

Quietly doing shtuff

I've been a bad little blogger lately.  In fact, it's gotten bad enough for not only my mom to email me and ask what I've been up to, but even maggie left a comment asking where I've been and why I've been so quiet.

I've been doing shtuff around the house and yard, just not taking many pics or posting about it.  Here is one yard project from two weekends ago:

garden box in progress

Yes, I am once again attempting to grow plants, but this time I am using a garden box with yard waste and compost and peat moss ... hopefully I can get the dirt good enough to counteract my notorious black thumb.  No, Mom ... I still have not figured out just how I managed to kill the mint.

I've been crocheting as well as sulking about the sewing slump.  Part of the sewing slump is I have unintentionally lost weight and will need to refit all my previous pattern alterations - which I had not nailed down to a really good fit anyway.  I do need to snap pics of what I've crocheted up: a wool hat, another soap bag, more washcloths, a potato bag and now two tote bags.  I just don't feel like fighting with the digicam today (besides, I have another bag to start ... actually two).

I've also been cooking up a storm, scored a bunch of old cookbooks from a new thrift store in town, and found what is left of my formerly large collection of cookbooks.  Hubby and son have both expression a deep appreciation for that little project.

Colors! I'm so HAPPY!

I decided to return to the "scene of the crime" with that cotton worsted weight yarn I've been making so many useful things with ... this time I went hoping to score colored yarn.  I was successful!  Yay!  First up, the variegated yarn in colors hubby calls "80s kneesock colors" and my first thing made up in it:

cotton crochet washcloth in "80s kneesock" colors

Yeah baby!  Pink and purple, with just the right splash of a cool sunny yellow and a green I can wear.  I'm pretty sure I've stated my tackiness knows no bounds, and when it comes to 80s color combinations this is painfully obvious to those who don't appreciate such colors.  While hubby sighs and tries to hide his pained expression, I am REVELING in this very recent reemergence of my favorite colors.  Oh yeah, fair warning: I have crochet thread to make lace in this color scheme.  I'm not sure it matches exactly, but it's close.

Hey, after about five years of seeing only earth tones that make me look like a cadaver available in the retail stores, I think I am allowed at least a little celebration. Besides, the earth tones haven't completely disappeared from retail yet ... they are just being combined with colors I can cope with right now.  Like the blue and green in one of my purchases last night:

Colored cotton worsted weight yarns

I restrained myself and put the lavender-white-green yarn back ... although that was a struggle.  One thing that helped me remember to be restrained was I had just hit the sale table of our local specialty yarn shop and scored alpaca yarn ... enough to make myself a lovely and decadent scarf for the winter!

Wonderfully soft alpaca yarn!

Along with being in "my" colors, this stuff is so soft ... it even beat out silk yarn on the table!  To top it off, back in January I scored some alpaca blend coating in tan.  If I can get my (*donkey*) in gear I will be really styling this winter.  (My thoughts have turned to winter sewing with our first cool-weather cold front.)

Now, a well-intentioned alert for those of y'all who look good in earth tones and love to wear them:  GO STOCK UP!!!  If what I've gone through these past few years is any indication, y'all are going to spend the next three to five years grumping about a lack of colors available that suit you.  For some insane reason, the textile and garment industry has the notion that colors are "trends" and depending on the whims of fashion trends, some colors are "out" while others are "in".  I don't know anyone who can change his or her complexion to match these trends, nor do I know anyone who can pull off all colors ... so for the rare fiber fiend who does NOT already have a stash of fabric and/or yarn in those preferred colors, you'll need to break your no-stash rule or suffer the paucity of good colors!  Check the clearance section first ...

Meanwhile, I'll be the too-happy customer in the stores doing happy dances at all the pinks, purples, and cool blues available - especially if they are all in one item!

My new dog

As the PR chat room heard last night, I went and got a new dog yesterday afternoon, brought about by my dogsitting last month.  Most (all?) of the chat regulars strongly requested (demanded!) pics of the new canine addition to my zoo ... so to avoid getting virtually lynched in chat tonight I picked up the digicam and made an honest effort this morning.  A couple camera notes: doggie will not stay the necessary distance from the camera, nor does he pose or hold very still unless he is laying on a stained part of the carpet.  Here's the best I can do without hubby's assistance:

Aries, my new dog

His name is Aries, which I find amusing since he is much more loverboy than god of war, and he'll turn two in October.  He comes to us already housebroken and loves being in the house with his family, and keeps trying to sniff and lick our cats ... the feline faction really doesn't appreciate that.  Last night, he and the cuddle kitty took turns next to my chair attempting to "guard" me from the other.

Um, yes ... he is a pit bull.  However, just like other house-pits I've known and the three house-Rotties I've owned, Aries totally blows the stereotype for the breed out of the water.  He's affectionate, adoring towards his special human (and he's chosen me!), responsive, and eager to please ... and is taking the cats' snit fit in good humor.  Aries just isn't too sure about my teenage son and his size 12 shoes ... LOL.

Summer sewing slump

Last summer I had about a month-long sewing slump during June and part of July.  This summer, it is August ... this month.  This past week has been especially low-energy, low-motivation, although I am have started on the border band sampler idea, which I will post a pic of after I finish the band I am currently working on (#6).  Days that I do have some energy and motivation have been spent on errands, at the library perusing both the sewing and embroidery shelves (and now woodworking for hubby), trying to organize things around the house, and cooking up a storm (like today).

The sewing mojo will return ... I'm just not sure when.  I do know it will probably be another burst of inspiration and activity (like my two-hat weekend?).  Part of my library browsing has been looking at various fitting books - and I will need to work on pants fitting as well as nailing down the fit for tops.  Right now I am still trying to figure where the fit problems are with pants, as I keep pulling my jeans up that I bought retail.

Oh, we're dogsitting for one of hubby's coworkers, and the feline faction in the house is definitely NOT happy.  Maybe I should whip up some more pillowcases just in case one of my furry monsters decides to show displeasure via a hairball on the pillow ...

Why I am not buying fabric right now

A picture is worth a thousand words, so they say:

Hubby's project: oak bookcase(s)

Ever since he returned from his tour in Korea, hubby has been talking about wanting a small woodworking shop.  When he came back from Afghanistan, this picked up as he was one who helped build a new camp out of plywood and 2x4s.  On the way home from Indiana - without either of the two bookcases we intended to bring back - the subject came up again ... and over the past month of discussion we agreed on a big, fun project for hubby: custom oak bookcases for the living room.

This is the start of the first one.  We wanted to buy enough to do the frame of both, but Lowe's only had two sheets of the 3/4 inch thick oak in stock yesterday.  At the store, and on the way home, hubby was talking about how he'd put it together slowly to avoid mistakes ... that didn't last long and a couple hours later he was asking me to hold the side boards up so he could attach them to the already-put-together base.

This bookcase is 7 feet 8 inches tall and a smidge over 4 feet wide.  It still needs a back, and trim (oh yes, I can pick out pretty trim for it!), and hubby wants to build the second one before staining and finishing so they come out the same shade.  My original request was for "real" bookcases that would last a good twenty years, as I am tired of replacing them every other time I want to move them from one room to another (and that's if they are the good ones!).  Hubby's stated goal: "I want to make them last a century!"  That would be cool!

When both are done, and the books are moved onto it ... I will have two particleboard cheapie WalMart bookcases to store my fabric on in the soon (?)-to-be sewing lair, which will open up floor space that is now occupied by boxes (the wools and silks will still hide in tubs from both cats and insects!).

So right now, my fabric funds are instead buying wood, wood supplies, and of course woodworking tools.  I get oak furniture, and hubby gets his small woodshop.  Sounds like a win-win deal to me!

Still no sewing

I'm beginning to think I need to hide out in the Witness Protection Program just to get some quality time with my sewing machine.  Before I get rolling on my vent about this, I should note that I have been going great guns on the latest cross stitch project in the evenings and a bit in the morning while chugging down coffee, so there IS a needle moving this week ... just not any of the ones loaded into any of my machines.

So Monday I hinted at some "life" happening ... an appliance I ordered online was scheduled to be delivered in the afternoon so I couldn't leave the house until that was taken care of.  About an hour after getting the call to schedule a delivery window, my son came home and announced my car now had a flat tire.  *Sigh*  Once the portable dishwasher was inside and out of its box, hubby came home to change the tire, and we discovered a jagged hole in the sidewall of the flat.  This was of course after many tire places were closed.

So I spent Tuesday afternoon getting new tires on the front of my car.  While waiting, I got my hair cut short.  I still don't have a pic of it yet - hopefully tomorrow.

Wednesday afternoon and early evening involved braving Crashville traffic to pick my friend up from the airport ... with his flight scheduled to land during the rush hours.  I've never understood why it's called "rush hour" when even the interstate traffic is often at a complete stop!  I took my cross stitch with me in case his flight was delayed (it wasn't though).

As for today, we just spent another six hours trying to locate a car for my friend after the sudden demise of his last car right before his vacation.  This is on top of five hours of car hunting before he left on his trip.  I never thought I'd see the day when it is a challenge to find an ugly-but-running small beater car for daily driving - especially in this army post and college town where there are arguably as many used car lots as there are bars!  It may have been quicker to locate hens' teeth ... but we finally accomplished the mission, just in time to get soaked in one of our infamous summer squall thunderstorms.

Tomorrow I only have two errands planned, with a third as "maybe" ... so hope springs eternal that I will FINALLY get to sew together the sunhat pieces.  I really do want to get it sewn up, as right now my only sunhat is a screamingly obvious "Florida tourist!" one that I had to buy down in St Augustine, Florida once I realized just sunscreen wasn't keeping me from sunburning.

Cross your fingers and knock (or touch) on wood that I can finally power up one of my sewing machines.

Stitchin' it Old School

I figured today's "little" project would be easy once I got everything set up ... I thought wrong.  Last night I tucked Camster into her cabinet and folded it up, which makes it easy to see how she spent a year impersonating an end table, then broke out Timex, my ridiculously sturdy $80 WalMart Brother LX-3125.

Timex, my Brother LX-3125 mechanical

Timex is so named simply because he survived my first six months of sewing.  This is the little mechanical that could ... sew through poly boning both length-ways and cross-ways, go through an entire Elizabethan corset corded with hemp craft cord, and plow through through five layers of heavy drapery for my pirate coat.  I treated this poor little bottom-of-the-line plastic machine as if it was a heavy-duty industrial model ... and it still sews.  But this morning, Timex met his match ... my son's "papa-san" chair.

I tried to sew using upholstery thread, a topstitching needle ... and probably too many layers of fabric.  So I am resorting to hand-stitching this thing back together.  When I was up in Indiana, I managed to find a pair of Machingers gloves recommended to me a few months ago by Nay, an avid quilter who also has done bridal sewing and gave me all kinds of useful advice on sewing my silk charmeuse tunic.  These do help grip the needle for pulling it through the layers, but don't protect me from accidentally putting the needle point up and under my thumbnail.

So I have one corner fixed, halfway through the other, and still one more to go.  Then I have the fun of putting the "pillows" pieces back in right.

Something unusual from last night: my usually camera-shy Cuddle Kitty posed just long enough for me to snap a pic of him.  This time, he wasn't posing on the new Camster cabinet (I have been shooing him and the Terrorist Kitty off that cabinet since I set it up!) or a pile of fabric.  So I now have a cute pic of my only skinny cat:

my camera-shy Cuddle Kitty

Now y'all know where the darker cat hair comes from ...

Kenmore 148.12190 anchor

This morning I mentioned my (new-to-me) Kenmore 1803 Camster wasn't the heaviest thing to follow me home from Indiana ... even with its lovely wood cabinet.  Let me introduce y'all to my heaviest aircraft carrier anchor ... err .. sewing machine.  Interestingly enough, it's also the one I have technically owned the longest.

Kenmore 148.12190 sewing Anchor

Yes, I have indeed named this poor bedraggled machine "the Anchor" just as the other sleek and beautiful Kenmore 1803 is officially now named "the Camster".  (Wait until I introduce Timex ...)  I managed to clean off the surface ick enough to snap a pic, but there will be no sewing until it gets an official inner clean and servicing.  Honestly, I cannot recall sewing on this thing for at least twenty years.

Yeah, twenty years ... my Mom brought this home for my tenth birthday back in 1983 when it was traded in at the Sears store she worked at and none of the other employees were interested in it.  Mom says two things about that: 1) She only paid $5 for it at the time, and 2) I was (once again) disappointed because it was not the horse I asked for each year starting with my 5th birthday.  My comment to Mom today was that at the time she gave it to me, the Anchor weighed more than I did.  After she had a good laugh at that, Mom agreed.

By some strange twist of fate, this has to be the clearest pic I've posted in quite a while here ... for a machine given to me 28 years ago and has been missing/misplaced/hiding for at least the last dozen years.

When I remarked to Mom over the phone today about how amazing I find it that both the Camster and the Anchor were sitting in Sears store at the same time, Mom informed me that the Camster was considered top-of-the-line at that time ... while the Anchor was considered low-end ("bottom-of-the-line") and their prices were inversely related to their weights.

Oh last note: Mom couldn't recall who made the "148." machines ... so I googled.  Then I tried Bing, Yahoo, and even Wikipedia out of desperation.  Finally got an answer over at PatternReview's message board from member FrBasil, who informs me that a company called Soryu made it for the Kenmore brand.  Another public thank you for that!

Hey Google: Soryu manufactured the 148.12190 for Kenmore.  I'm still peeved that I couldn't find that out just by googling no matter what search phrase I tried ...

So between the three of us 1973 year models ... the Anchor is definitely still the worse for the wear.  The Camster still looks the best for her age.  And I am somewhere in the middle of the two.  LOL

In-cabinet Kenmore 1803 Cam-ster

I finally got it some floor space and set it up and got a somewhat-clear (for me!) photo ... so here she is ... the largest piece of loot brought home from Indiana (although not the heaviest - that is another post).  This little beauty is from Dad's wife, not Mom ... Mom would have never given this up as she had one back in the 1970s that she loved and had stolen out of her car.  A pic for the visually inclined ... then a typical wall-of-text to tell the story:

In-cabinet Kenmore 1803 with most of its accessories

Isn't she pretty?  Dad's wife found her at a garage sale over a year ago, minus cams and a few accessories, told it didn't work anymore, but the manual and most of the feet came with her in the cabinet which is in beautiful condition.  Now, for the part that will make most of us eat our spleen with envy ... she got it for only ten dollars!  Afterwards, she took it in for a service and tune-up, after which the "Kenny" worked again.  So, price at garage sale plus $40 for servicing ... still only $50 in this beauty ... and when she told me about it last year when I was up there I am sure I turned a sickly bile green because somehow I never seem to hit the right garage sales to find something like this.

When I mentioned to Mom someone I knew had a 1803 but not the cams ... Mom spent a total of 4 minutes digging up the box of cams for it.  So last June when I took the cams over, I told Dad and his wife that if it didn't get used in a year's time I would claim the machine.  And so it came home with me this year, after about 54 weeks of serving as a pretty end table because it folds up so neatly into the perfect size for that.

The handwriting on the front of the manual includes the date "1973" so that means this lovely machine is as old as I am.  Mom was in Kentucky and southern Indiana that year ... but it is possible that Mom had the original owner of this machine in one of her sewing classes at Sears a few years later if she kept coming to classes.

I've had to promise Mom I will read the manual before attempting to sew on this old cam-ster, so that will need to wait until the rest of the loot is unpacked and put away.  If it runs as good as it looks, Mom says I will absolutely love its stitching.  She loved hers up until she got the then-new 1914 to replace hers (which she still uses regularly).  Oh, the official model number handwritten on the front of the manual says 158.18032 ... which Mom informs me means it was manufactured by Brother .... which keeps up my "Band of Brothers" motif in machines.

Out-of-Print fleece patterns from Mom

Now I have finally gotten to the sewing-related gifts from Mom.  Here it is 95F outside ... and I am pulling out fleece patterns Mom gave me.  Oh, and the piece of plaid fleece that I gifted Mom with back in December - it came back home with me as Mom has finally decided what she wants made from it!  And it isn't one of these patterns:

OOP fleece patterns from Mom

If you can hear in the back of your mind the old Sesame Street ditty "One of these things is not like the others ... One of these things just doesn't belong ..." then you've probably noticed one of these patterns sticks out like a sore thumb, and probably isn't intended for this kind of fleece!  Actually, both patterns in the top row get a closer mention from me, for different reasons.

NL 6790: what year(s)?  S7123 is almost as old as I am!

First, the New Look 6790 ... I cannot find a copyright date on the envelope or in the instructions ... and can't find run dates for it when Googling.  It's been out of print long enough for NL to reissue the number though.  It looks close in age to the McCall's 4222 in style, which does have a copyright date of 2003.  Can anyone confirm this?  Or correct?

Now, for the "sore thumb" in this batch ... a 1975 Simplicity 7123 mens/unisex poncho/coat ... sans envelope. Several of the mid-1970s patterns in Mom's boxes are missing their envelopes, so I sincerely doubt these will be sought-after collectibles.  Even though the pattern tissue looks like it has never been unfolded.  For those of y'all 70s-era vintage fans ... hold your fire.  I have no intentions of cutting this pattern tissue.  It probably wouldn't survive actual use.  However, I definitely want to trace it off and use one of my Shetland wools to actually make this pattern!  Seriously, this one is a neato-looking coat.  Is this old enough to be considered "vintage"?

Oh, I may be asking for more help as I sort through the rest of the small box of patterns:

box of Mom's old patterns

There's a couple more without envelopes in there, along with more men's wear patterns.  Just for the record, Mom would have been happy to give me even more patterns than this, but given my weakness for the 99c pattern sales, I didn't want to take more than I feel I will want to sew up.

The unpacking of the Indiana loot continues ... and the thought briefly crossed my mind today if I will get things organized enough to get back to actual sewing!

Unexpected sewing gift for Mom

This is above and beyond the bag of scraps I would have snuck into Mom's house (and conveniently "forgot" to take back with me).  For the record, Mom not only liked the cotton scraps I brought her, but also wants the purple cotton flannel scraps I forgot to stuff into the bag as well.

After having little sister try on my denim Victorian corset in the morning ... and having her want one of her own (that should have been my warning) ... I migrated over to Mom's house to spend the night there.  I had Mom try the denim Victorian on as well, and despite it not being fitted to her body shape she decided it wasn't uncomfortable (big warning sign) like she had thought up to that point.  Part of the try-on for both was showing them how to get in and out of it.

The next morning, Mom asked about the waist corset and how it was different from the overbust.  I figured the easiest way to explain would be to let her try on the waist corset ... it didn't come back off Mom until after two hours of sorting through the old boxes, and the main reason Mom took it off after that was because we worked up a sweat and she wanted to let it dry.  At this point, I had already told her it was now hers.  She put it back on for pics later in the afternoon:

Mom in M4861 front (I rolled the front)

Mom insisted a side view be included to show how the curve up fits

M4861 from the back, showing why we call it a pretty backbrace

The number one reason this is now Mom's backbrace?  It fits her better.  What I had thought was just sloppy patterning is actually a fitting issue: Mom has a longer back waist length than I do, by almost two inches, and the M4861 does not slide up or down on her at all ... even after two hours of rooting through old boxes and lifting.  Mom also declared it is more comfortable than the backbrace she got from her chiropractor ... not to mention it looks better.

Given all this, how could I have NOT gifted it to her?  Like the tops I gifted to little sis, this waist corset fit Mom perfectly.  I'm just glad the denim Victorian didn't fit either one well ... after all, I did spend ten days fitting it to ME!  However, the denim corset inspired Mom to look through Jill Salen's Corsets book with me, and she wants a "Pretty Housemaid" one (page 58) because it is lighter boned to allow more movement as it was marketed to working women in the 1890s.

Some special dishes

My mom has a sense of humor.  Sometimes it's a little on the strange side (and this is coming from ME!) but sometimes it is just too appropriate. After listening to me grump about how well my sewn clothes fit my sister, and the new pattern alterations I need to try in my quest for a nice-fitting top ... Mom went into her cupboard and pulled out this coffee mug:

"I'm having a fit!" coffee mug

She then said it needs to be mine for upcoming pattern work ... not only cute, but all too fitting.  Yes, the pun is intended.

While rummaging through old boxes in her pole barn, I found these:

Blue glass Avon dishes set (almost)

Mom bought these back in the 80s for my "hope chest" from Avon back when she and I sold it.  At least I think it was the late 80s.  I'd have to google to be sure ... but Mom has already warned me these are highly sought collectibles now, so if we can't locate the other two water goblets, it may cost me a pretty penny to re-complete my set of six.  I have six plates, six bowls ... and four goblets.  This is the only set of dishes that wasn't handed down, or bought at a garage sale or Big Lots.  It's also very beautiful, and the shade of blue you see at the bottom of the goblet stems and in the stack of bowls is the glass's actual color.  I haven't seen these since 1997, and thought they had been lost in one of my too-many moves.  Instead, they were tucked away in a mismarked box and not a single piece has so much as a chip or crack.

Color me happy, in that lovely shade of blue glass.