Boredom busters!
15 July 2009, 13:13I’ve been keeping myself busy within my four walls, and a lot of this is down to you all who sent me boredom busting parcels and activities to open up each day! So I thought I’d share some of the sewing and crafty ones so you can see what I’ve been up to (though there’s way more yet to open!).
First up is from Rachel, who sent me two “retro” issues of BWOF from her stash, 07/2000 & 12/2002, with a note challenging me to find some hidden gems and just giggle at the rest. I’m up for a challenge!
(sorry for the iPhone photos – it’s the best I can do since I’m away from the scanner and the DSLR)
In the 2000 issue I absolutely fell in love with this skirt:
I mean, the seam lines, the slant kangaroo pockets, and the lower single welt pockets with the topstitched pocket bag (conveniently, Burda provided an illustrated step-by-step for the latter, too) – what’s not to love? I’m so making this!
I also really liked the seam lines and hidden pocket in the kids teeshirt, and I was ecstatic to find a full kimono pattern tucked away at the back, since it’s not shown on the At A Glance page!
Moving on to the mostly-ridiculous 2002 issue, I really liked the loden businesswear feature, specifically this double-breasted skirt suit:
But that’s where the classy stops. Really, what were they thinking in 2002? You’d think the issues would get more strange the further back you go, but the 2000 issue was pretty sane!
I’ve dubbed these the “omgwtfbbq trews”. Really. What? I refuse to believe these were ever trendy.
I give you…the most unflattering fleece wear ever!
A Maths lesson: tartan + silk dupioni + black lace = fugly
….and in other boredom busting news
I got my mom to grab me the second issue of the UK magazine Sew at the supermarket…
While the covermount pattern just got a big “meh” from me (the dress in the first issue and the preview of the 1950s dress in the third issue are both way better), it was fantastic to see a big profile of fellow UK sewing blogger Julia in there!! For me, the garment sewing in the magazine is either way too simplistic (like the feature on making a sheath dress by copying one you’ve got) or for children (like the board shorts and baby hat), but I still enjoy flicking through it and some of the crafts look fun. It’s oddly reminiscent of the NME in the way that my favourite part of the magazine are all the ads for UK fabric and haberdashery shops I’ve never heard of! I literally spent 2 hours taking the magazine page by page and visiting all the URLs of shops I didn’t know existed…
Another sewing boredom buster that came through the post is this ace beaded button making kit from Kim Hood!
She put together a bunch of covered buttons, a huge variety of beads and pearls from her stash, a Threads article with instructions for different beading techniques, and a finished button she’d done on a course! I can’t wait to get started, it’s so different from anything I’ve ever sewn before!
And speaking of beads, my aunt sent me a giant jewellery making kit, which, combined with some more supplies from my friend Pip and an old kit I’d bought at our local pound warehouse What!!! (yes. with three exclamation points.) a few years ago, I’ve been making lots of pretty shiny things with silver and stone beads…
I used to make tons of jewellery in middle school and even sold a bunch at craft fairs, but I lost interest when I hit high school and haven’t done it in years, so it’s been some nice nostalgia and my mom’s certainly not complaining about her spoils.
Finally, I’ve been doing a bunch of origami, both raising a tiny turtle army (I think the ranks have swelled to about 50 right now), and making a hedgehog, crane, and lily with these papers from Laura.
I’m not very good at origami, but if given enough time, I can usually figure out what I’m supposed to do. Thankfully, anything can be unfolded and redone, so it’s not like sewing where occasionally you cut where you shouldn’t have!
I’ve also been busy sewing up those KnipMode trousers, doing the bulk of them on Sunday, but then taking 3 episodes of Forever Knight to handstitch-in-the-ditch the waistband, and now I’ve just got to hem them (I kept forgetting to ask my mom to pin the hem when she’s here).
Hospital update: Still feeling absolutely normal. A cleaning lady actually asked the other day if I was the patient, I look so damn fine! Day 7 today so I start on the immune system-stimulating growth factors so once the stem cells start producing anything, this will amplify the result.
tags: bwof, hospital, magazine
You have been busy! I guess that’s a really good sign that you’re feeling well too, which is great news :)
— Ruth Jul 15, 02:16 PM #
Melissa,
Sounds like you are just coasting along in there! So happy to hear you have lots to keep you occupied. I hope the rest of your time is as much a breeze as the first couple weeks!
Cheers! Deb from Canada
— Deb Jul 15, 03:15 PM #
That skirt is totally you! Disappointed we won’t be seeing you in fleece though….
— racheljm Jul 15, 03:39 PM #
Back issues of BWOF are great to keep oneself occupies. I hope you continue to do well.
— Rachel Jul 15, 07:17 PM #
Bless you heart-I hope you continue to feel as well as you do right now.
— gwen Jul 15, 10:41 PM #
Everyone needs a pair of fleece shorts surely, perhaps you’ll come to your senses when you leave hospital! Glad to hear you are still feeling and doing so well.
— allisonC Jul 16, 01:00 AM #
Hm, the few Burdas I have are actually from around that time, and I mostly like them. But, then, mom only bought the issues she really liked, so there must have been a lot of elimination going on. :-)
— Hana - Marmota Jul 16, 09:49 PM #
Heya, what a trooper you are! Hope you continue to feel well and the treatment works its magic.
— San Jul 17, 06:05 AM #
Dude. I need to give you a ring to catch up. I am SO GLAD to hear that you are feeling normal thus far! I am working all weekend, but I will Gmail you a phone #. Cheers!
— Cindy Jul 17, 10:04 PM #
I remember those issues! I don’t think I made anything from them, certainly not the sweats! How to gain 20 lbs overnight. Glad to hear that your are doing so well.
— Nancy k Jul 19, 04:12 AM #