Sewing Again

Another weekend has zoomed by.  I'm back at my sewing machine for the moment, making a new ballroom dance dress for one of the other girls coached by my daughter's coach.  Let me just say that I am not a great seamstress.  I can sew reasonably well, though, and have made quite a few dresses in the last five years for Laura.  I've had a few failures but most turned out pretty good.  Here are four photos of Laura in a few of her dresses, with her partner Dakota. 

So I was willing to make two dresses for Heather earlier this year for USADance Nationals in Baltimore, which we all went to in April.  One, the Latin dress (cha cha, rumba, etc), turned out fine.  But the other, for smooth dances (waltz, tango, foxtrot)...not so much.  She wore it but I didn't think it was flattering enough or moved well enough.  (I don't have photos of them, sorry about that.)

I planned to work on it this summer and fix it, but with my other projects to do for my etsy shop, I'm short on time.  Sometimes trying to fix something takes more time and effort (and patience) than starting anew.  I found a new pattern I thought was a good shape for the dress, and a print material I like for the skirt, and got started this weekend.

My sewing machine is a Singer I bought after we moved into our house almost 24 years ago.  I get it serviced and fixed now and then, and it's solid metal--like a boat anchor--yes, it's sturdy, not fancy.  

And what is it with sewing patterns??  Why oh why do they fold them like freaking origami!?  Getting them back into the envelope is nearly impossible.  Why are they folded in such ridiculous ways instead of simply in half over and over?  

I got the dress made but not the lining and underskirt yet.  It needs a try-on first to see how it fits her.  I wish I were better at this!  I'm hoping this one will be successful.  Every dancer wants to feel beautiful on the dance floor, and the dress can have a big impact on how they look as they move and how they feel about themselves.

We had a lovely sunset tonight, all blue and orange.

And another week begins! Hope your week is wonderful.