The Return of the Daily Ditch or "Get it OUT"

Friends, I know it may seem strange to follow a post about finding treasures in the trash with one about tackling my increasingly overwhelming clutter, but so be it.

It is time, once again, to resurrect The Daily Ditch.



I think I told you that on MPB Day, after our lunch/pattern swap, I sent Michael home with a bag of nearly 40 patterns that nobody wanted.  Well, today I took that bag of unloved patterns to the Salvation Army.  It felt good!



Do you remember that papier maché plant/thing I found in the trash this summer?  It dawned on me gradually that, interesting as it was, this objet wasn't really enhancing my life.  It will be available for sale at the Salvation Army at 208 Eighth Avenue imminently, along with a few pair of my old pants, a scarf, hats, shoes, and a couple of books.



Monday's Ditch Total: two large bags.

Not bad considering I'm very out of practice.



I was talking to Michael today about all the things we hang onto because we either a) paid too much money for them to just give them away without some sort of compensation (which would mean selling them on eBay or Craigslist, with all the nuisance that entails); or b) care so much about them that we want them to go to somebody who's going to really appreciate them.

But what's the cost of hanging on to all that stuff?  Every time I encounter this clutter (daily) it brings me down and makes me feel trapped. 

Sometimes I think, What would I be willing to pay to have all of this stuff GONE and never have to deal with again.  $100?  $500?  $1,000?  I mean, sure, it's great to sell things on eBay and make money on the stuff, but that involves a great deal of work -- I know, I've done it.  But honestly, are we talking money that's really going to make a huge difference in the scheme of things? 

I was thinking today that, here in the United States, so many things are relatively cheap to purchase.  Most of this is stuff we don't actually need.  What we actually do need -- a place to live, health insurance, an education, good quality food -- is increasingly out of reach.  Just a thought.

Readers, I hope this post will inspire you to do some ditching of your own -- not that you need to, of course.  I'm aiming to keep this going for at least a week -- I still see plenty of clutter in my peripheral vision.

Have a great day, everybody!

Friday Button Bonanza!

Friends, surely you know by now that I have few qualms about reclaiming others' trash -- provided it looks and smells clean of course!

This morning, as I was leaving my apartment building (through the back where the dumpsters are), I noticed that someone had discarded what looked like a child's art project -- an aluminum foil and tinsel-covered butterfly -- atop one of the recycling bins.   Naturally, I'm drawn to shiny objects and I noticed upon closer inspection that this butterfly was decorated with a great many buttons -- including some very nice buttons.

DING DING DING!!!

I grabbed the butterfly, stuffed it in my messenger bag and went on my merry way.



Well, I just harvested my butterfly and I'm very happy with my yield.

Twelve plastic turquoise buttons in two different sizes:



Eight cornflower blue buttons:



A single satin frog closure:



Two beaded buttons embellished with pearls and rhinestones:



Six large plastic imitation mother of pearl buttons -- I like these the best!





And that's Friday's treasure -- so far!

Any good trash finds in your neck of the dump?

Have a great day, everybody!

Houndstooth in the House -- modeled today at Mood!

You already know I'm a fan of houndstooth, but when are they going to name a pattern after chihuahua teeth?

I'm excited to announce that today you can see how (all) my houndstooth knit projects turned out over on the Mood Sewing Network -- just click here.

I hope I've inspired some of you to try sewing with sweater knits -- for you and your hounds!

Have a great day everybody!

Peter's Paris Original + More Knit Project Planning

Readers, have you ever seen Charade (1963) starring Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant?

I watched it last week, and while this suspense film is undermined by its relentlessly spoofy tone, it is certainly stylish, as nearly any Audrey Hepburn movie is.







Every time I see Audrey in her Givenchy movie wardrobes, I think of Vogue Paris Original patterns, whose heyday was the 1960's and 70's. 







Of course today, the very idea of a Paris original anything seems quaint; it's been so long since Paris was the center of global fashion.  Fifty years ago, however, the term definitely suggested status and exclusivity.

I own a few Vogue Paris Original patterns (mainly in the wrong size, like the three above) that I've picked up here and there, but I've yet to make one.  After seeing Charade I think it may be time.  Last week I hunted on eBay and Etsy for one I really liked (at a price I could afford), and found the Givenchy below.  It's late 60's, but still has a very Audrey flavor, don't you think?



I don't know exactly when I'll make this outfit, but I do think it's time Cathy had a Paris Original of her own. 

In other pattern-related news, I also picked up this contemporary McCall's unisex knit sweater pattern, 6803.  One of my ideas for my next sweater knit project is a shawl-collar cardigan.  (Another is a knit and leather project.  More about that later.) 



In closing, friends, have you ever made a Vogue Paris Original?  Was it very difficult?

Did you sew in the little "Vogue Paris Original" label you were supposed to pick up from the store where you bought your pattern, way back when?  I have one of those lying around in one of my notions drawers -- I'll have to dig it out.



Have a great day, everybody!

How to Make a Dog Coat in "Ruffly" an Hour

The houndstooth sweater knit adventures continue -- now for actual hounds!   (I mean chihuahuas.)

I wanted to make a coat like this old acrylic one that Willy has outgrown, only a crewneck rather than a turtleneck.



First, I measured Willy.  I knew I'd need the coat to be approximately 12" long and 12" around.  I stitched my fabric edges right sides together to make a tube, serged the seam allowance, and turned the tube right side out.





Next, I added a neckband 1-2" narrower than the tube opening and stitched it (and then serged just past the seam allowance like I did for my sweaters) to one end of the tube.  I tried it on Willy to make sure it fit.



I cut two holes for his front legs a few inches below the neckband.  Then I cut and stitched my leg bands.



All the bands for these sweaters are, of course, two layers (each piece is folded in half).  I stitched them into the holes and then serged just past the seam allowance.





Using the blue knit coat as my guide, I cut a U-shaped piece out of the underside of the coat, just below the leg holes, and trimmed the top outer edges to make them curve smoothly.  I then tried the coat on Willy again.





Finally, I cut a narrow waistband and attached it to this curved outer edge and the U-shape below his chest.  The band is slightly taut to hold it over the edge of his hind legs.  As you can see, it leaves plenty of room for him to pee.



The fit is good, Willy seems very comfortable wearing it, and the cuteness factor is high.  What more can you ask?





Willy even wore it on this afternoon's walk!





How fortunate that, like me, Willy is a summer.

Have a great day, everybody!

The Dirndl -- YEA or NAY?

Readers, as September winds down, I know many of you are eagerly anticipating Oktoberfest, the 16-day German beer festival that is celebrated in many parts of the world -- I am!

But to be honest, that's not what got me thinking about dirndls today.

I'm a nice person, and I never intentionally offend anyone, so imagine how embarrassed I felt when I chose the pattern immediately below, which I found on Etsy this morning, for my "Worst Women's Patterns Ever" board on Pinterest, not realizing it was being sold by my sewing friend, blogger Lisette, through her Etsy shop, Sleuth Patterns. 



I learned this when Lisette left a comment on my board, saying she thinks this pattern should be filed under "CUTEST Women's Patterns Ever" (With those palazzo pants, Lisette???)

Friends, I must ask: Do you have an opinion about dirndls, and if so, what is it?

If you are not Austrian or Bavarian, should you be wearing a dirndl at all?  Isn't the mainstreaming of the dirndl one of those insensitive cultural appropriations, like pole dancers wearing American Indian feather headdresses or Miley Cyrus twerking?  (And speaking of Miley, only the other day, she appropriated my cultural heritage: the faux fur shrug and sheer net mini dress.)



But let's get back to dirndls.

Readers, I know my frame of reference is a little lowbrow, but all I can think of when I see dirndl outfits is Heidi, The Sound of Music, and bosomy, beer-toting strippers.







You can read more about the origins of the dirndl here.  Basically, it was the traditional garb of Alpine peasants.  Like many traditional folkloric styles, it was popularized far beyond its area of origin, and has been revisited often by Western fashion designers, particularly in the late Thirties and Forties.

Dirndl patterns are easy to find -- I even own a few myself (the top two below):

















Even Already Pretty's Sally McGraw sports a dirndl-inspired dress occasionally.



And late songbird Deanna Durbin looked born-to-the-dirndl in Spring Parade (1940).



Readers, what do you think of dirndls and dirndl-inspired styles?

Is this a look that can too easily turn costumey, making you look like a life-size, kitschy Hummel figurine?

The dirndl -- YEA or NAY?