Sewing Updates

I am awaiting boning tips which should come in tomorrow. I should have ordered them ages ago, but stupid me as usual kept forgetting.

This was my last to-do list for the wedding dress:
To Do Before Saturday:
-- iron fabric
-- trace out pattern on silk
-- trace out pattern on cotton
-- finish seam allowances
-- cut out silk
-- cut out cotton
-- flat line cotton to silk
-- grade seam allowance
-- zigzag finish seam allowance
-- flat fell lining together
-- put in boning casing
-- put in boning
-- fully finish the halter straps
-- deal with tulle
-- zipper??

It is now at:

-- iron fabric
-- trace out pattern on silk
-- trace out pattern on cotton
-- finish seam allowances
-- cut out silk
-- cut out cotton
-- flat line cotton to silk
-- grade seam allowance
-- zigzag finish seam allowance
-- flat fell lining together
-- put in boning casing
-- deal with tulle
-- iron outer fabric
-- fully finish the halter straps
-- figure out hem circumference of outer fabric
-- pin pleating attempts
-- cut out pieces for outer fabric
-- zigzag cut edges of outer fabric
-- french seam along panels and gores
-- cut and tip bones
-- put in boning
-- edge neckline with fashion fabric
-- pin pleating along hipline
-- pin pleating along neckline
-- confirm that the measurements work
-- stitch pleating in place
-- set zipper
-- attach hook and eyes
-- figure out hem length on Fluffy
-- hem lining
-- hem outer fabric with horsehair braid

Most of what remains is hand work. I can hem the lining with the machine, but everything else is handwork. Which, I rather like. Honestly, I've been enjoying my work on Fluffy's dress, as it's a puzzle to figure out, and it feels much like my work with Y, in terms of "not my project so it's kinda interesting". Also the amount of handwork is much higher than I usually allow myself for my own projects.

Speaking of my own projects, I meant to do a fair amount of work on the bridesmaid dress today, as I couldn't move forward on the wedding dress without bone tips. What did I accomplish? Ironing the silk habotai, washing and drying by way of the iron my lining fabric, and unpicking the curtain hems someone had hilariously terribly sewn into said lining fabric. Oh, and a quick burn test of the lining fabric. It appears to be mostly cotton, with perhaps a little poly added. Something WAS bubbling, but it nearly burned cleanly away. What I still have to do on that:

-- double check pattern
-- trace pattern onto silk
-- trace pattern onto cotton
-- add seam allowance
-- cut out silk
-- cut out cotton
-- hem cotton
-- flat line cotton and silk
-- trim seam allowances down evenly
-- zigzag edge seam allowances
-- sew darts
-- sew seams
-- finish neckline
-- finish armscye
-- install zipper
-- figure out pattern for bolero and ruffles
-- iron silk chiffon
-- trace bolero and ruffles onto silk
-- add seam allowance
-- cut out silk
-- zigzag edge
-- attach ruffles
-- attach bolero
-- make big flower for shoulder closure

I'm just not enthused about making this stupid bridesmaid dress. I'm just not particularly enthused about anything involving this wedding. We have the bachelorette party this weekend, and then only a week and a half away is the wedding itself. I'd much rather be sewing the wedding gown that I'm getting paid for, than the bridesmaid gown for a wedding that continually demands monetary support from me.

New Clarinet!

So my friend was getting rid of his clarinet. I said "sure, I'd love to have it -- maybe a student would need it". Well, maybe with a little fixing up it could be better than my normal clarinet! It's a wooden Bb Evette & Schaeffer, made in France by Buffet-Crampon. It's a little hard to read the serial number chart, but this instrument was made either in the mid-50s or mid-60s.

It's a little gunky and sticky now, but hopefully my repair guy will get it working as right as rain. I'd also like to get another case for it, as it's in a double case and I don't need that.

I also will need my repair guy to tell me how much it's worth so I can add it to my instrument insurance! I think I'll need to up my policy if I add this new clarinet and the 12-bass accordion I recently purchased.

Also, my friend gave me his stereo speakers. :) I'm very excited, for all that I won't use them in this apartment.

(Haha, after handling the clarinet, my hands smell like old-instrument.)

Nostalgia

There's that thing about teenage summers, I don't know what it is but they are golden in the remembering, like most things, but there's something particular about those summers so that I keep trying to work on stories about it and them and very specific locations that I was only in for a moment compared to all the other places in life. I haven't been back in about ten years, and since then I've spent a lot of time (for whatever reason) picturing and thinking and writing about silly things like the walk to the beach where we stay.

I disagree with this writer wholeheartedly. Teenage summers? 50% of them I was working. The other ones? Not. memorable. at. all. Except, actually, I do recall this: being really upset and surprised that I was BORED THE ENTIRE TIME. I remember feeling like "what the heck? Summers used to be the best! Why is this so shitty?"

I think if you want cozy nostalgia, head back to elementary school. When everything that you learn makes the world a more interesting place. Where the cruelties of children are solvable by hitting them on the sly. And they hit you back and you both get time out. When I think of some of the worst times in my life, they were pretty much all teenage years. Not that my 20s haven't had their shitty times. But gimme the single digit years. Before I wanted to grow up and move out, which is what I spent ages 10-19 doing. Hoping that every tomorrow was better than today. And not changing anything, so the tomorrow turned out just the same.

I don't miss my teen years. I am happy to have them behind me.

Household Work

This past week, I had cleaned out the studio in preparation for a new theory student on Wednesday. Wednesday morning, my landlord knocked on the door and said that in 10 minutes, someone would need roof access. Now, the roof access IS in our apartment, yes, but it's behind the piano. This necessitated my moving EVERYTHING in my studio over so the door was accessible. (And after all that, the tech looked at the horrible, blocked over hole at shoulder height and said "... I'll go through the skylight")

Now everything was EVERYWHERE. And since my shiny new theory student cancelled his lesson that day, I have spent several days doing a complete re-organization and clean of the studio and the back stairs. Just in time for summer and airing everything out!

It's glorious! And of course, I just HAD to take a little time to make some quick projects!

Enter, my two new furry couch pillows! I have had an overabundance of fake fur chilling in my stash for many years now, and I have wanted to have some fake fur pillows to go with the duck head for a while now. And now I do! We have enough pillows on the couch finally!

And just think, this all happened because of a 10 minute warning that I needed to unblock a door! :-D

Friday Morning

There's something very comforting in putting on an album, and carving reeds. I've needed to do so for a long while, and I tied and did initial scrapes on 7 reeds (2 of which broke under the initial scrapes :-P). 3 for me, 4 for my students. As I have a concert tonight and a concert tomorrow, I really need reeds that function at more volumes than mp.

I hate google

So much. Now they think that I'm illegally hacking my own blogger account and I had to change my password to even log in. I don't WANT my password changed. Fuck you.

Well

I apparently have a new embroidery student! This is exciting. I have never had one -- I'll have to figure out how to structure those lessons.

Sigh

I love my studio teacher dearly, don't get me wrong, but he should not have agreed to cover my mentor's class while on sabbatical. My studio teacher rarely, if ever, teaches full classrooms, and he is having so many problems with a) the workload of grading b) the language used in the textbook, not being a native speaker c) differences in notational systems between his usage and what is being taught d) some personality problems with students.

I am helping him grade. I am fielding one or two phone calls DAILY about this class. They should have just fucking asked ME to teach this course, for all that I don't have the degree. And I know my studio prof could use the money. He just doesn't need the stress load.

He had 18 attacks yesterday. Attacks of what? He said it's never been that many or that bad. At one point, while at the park with his grandson, he almost lost consciousness. He's going to either finish this course or die. ... I suppose I should stop bitching and be more supportive, since his health is in such a fragile state right now. It's just hard because I know I could teach this class and teach it well. ... And I know my prof feels they are underpaying him for the amount of work he's having to do. He didn't say the number, but he thought it really loudly in comparison with the salary of a tenured faculty member, as opposed to his lowly adjunct status.

Best Card Ever

I received a card from my grandmother's best friend from high school, congratulating myself on my upcoming nuptials. My grandparents met on a double date, a BLIND date, with this woman, Joann, and her then-boyfriend, Harold. Harold passed away this last year, and I wound up never getting around to sending a letter, for which I've continually felt terrible about. In my letter back, I talked about that and what I miss about Harold, and that my partner and I will visit her the next time we're in the area.

Anyhow, here is the letter:

9-14-15
Dear [Dea],
My original thought was to send you one of those hearts and flowers cards wishing you a life full of joys and happiness.
But both of us know life is not like that, you've matured enough (and seen enough) to know there is more to marriage than that. It's a challenge and a willingness to change from "me" to "use" and it takes time!
Time and the strength to see past arguments and bad times but it's all a season of growth and well [worth] working for!
I wish you and your fiance a love strong enough and the wisdom to be partners through life together.
I'm sorry I was not able to attend your party, it seems that after the long winter we had, everybody has been eager to go-go-go and do things (of course at this age you want to "go" as long as you are able!).
The problem is reservations have to be made, and paid for, weeks in advance so unfortunately we are unable to change our minds to do other things we would enjoy even more!
Affenctionately,
Jo Ann

My sister and I grew up visiting with Harold and Jo Ann every time we would visit Grandma and Grandpa. Jo Ann, Grandma, my sister and I would visit the dollar store and spend $10 on anything we wanted (I usually got little knicknacks and figurines), we would go back to Harold and Jo Ann's house and play cards, or dominoes, and we would usually go out to eat. And watch Grandpa and Harold play the game of "who gets the pleasure of paying for dinner?" It is one of my favorite games to watch. People trying to pull their wallets out at lightning speed, trying to "bribe" the waitstaff, it's always fun.

Jo Ann and Harold had two sons, I believe, and their grandchildren lived on the west coast. So they rarely go the chance to do grandparent-y things. Harold fixed up old cars. We went for a ride in a Model T once when I was a kid. It was freezing cold, and they only had isinglass for windows, which is similar to vinyl.
I can still see the layout of their perfectly maintained house and garden. Jo Ann used an expanding hat rack in her kitchen to store her every day mugs. I remember that I bought one of them at the dollar store on one of our visits because I thought that was the best idea ever. Completely forgetting the fact that I was in elementary school and didn't have a kitchen with mugs that needed a home.

I love these people very much, and I appreciate the card more than anything else I've ever received. I appreciate the lack of bullshit, and the acknowledgement of such. I appreciate the love inherent in its words. Thank you, Jo Ann.

Music Studio Update

I finally contacted a leader of a music education organization that I'm a part of, to see if they were interested in my group lesson idea. It looks like it might be possible! :-D I'm one step closer to have a small ensemble coaching business with Liz!