Sewing a Sleeve for my new Macbook Air

I recently bought a Macbook Air 13" which I have named Arie (my old computers were Elle and Eve).

Arie is so thin that she is in need of some protection, especially when I carry her around in my purse. She's already sustained a small gouge from my keys :-(

There are tons of super cute sleeves available on Etsy but I figured I could make one and I really need to deplete some of my fabric stash. So this is how I did it and I achieved moderate success... turns out even though Arie is super thin, she still has some thickness which I failed to account for so this sleeve is super snug. We'll call it sleeve version 1.0.

First, I took some measurements and drew a schematic of what I wanted to do. I basically wanted to make a lined tri-fold envelope. Arie is 13"x9" so with seam allowances of 1/4" and an extra 1/4" on either side for some give I needed to cut my fabric 14"x25". I'm sure I messed up in these calculations because the sleeve turned out a bit too snug. I had a little helper (maybe that was the problem..?):

Then, I ironed my fabrics - also this is a peek into my room/studio. Perhaps I will post more about it later.

I cut each fabric (grey for the outside, bird pattern for the liner), put wrong sides together and stitched 1/4" from the edge all the way around but left about a 3" opening so I would be able to turn it inside out later.

Then I turned it right sides out and ironed it flat.

So at this point I had a giant rectangle. I took my computer and laid it on the fabric to determine how big the pocket would be by simply folding the fabric around it... then I topstitched the sides of the envelope shut (as close to the edge as possible). Oh yeah, what about that 3" hole I had left? I sneakily sewed it shut when I topstitched the sides!

and voila! a very snug sleeve!

Definitely too snug though, the topstitching is already coming apart. I'll probably make another one soon, but this shall work for now!

Back again

I've been M.I.A. for a while, but a lot has been going on!

• I passed my qualifying exam. I am now officially a Ph.D. candidate!
• I moved to a new place and I'm saving $330 a month in rent. And all of that extra cash will be going to my projects!
• I painted my new room (first time I've ever painted a room) and I'm almost done decorating. I have much to post about!
• I've been going crazy on Pinterest.com. Check out my boards!

But until I get myself organized enough to post about the new house, I wanted to show you guys (if you exist) something else I've been thinking about and working on.

I've recently become a sewing pattern hoarder. I went from about 6 to around 25 now. And I have never completed a project based on a pattern before. So this morning I spent some time looking around for dresses I like that also sort of look like dress patterns I have to motivate me to get started. It was pretty fun and I thought I'd share the results:

J. Crew

J. Crew

J. Crew

Butterick B5612

J. Crew

Urban Outiftters

Flowers

A few shots of the roses in front my house. They make me happy!

And the view from the front window (these are a bit grey because I was shooting through the window screen)...

Muumuu for Mama

While at the Vintage fair with weekend, my friend Kate and I found some really neat sewing patterns from the 60s and 70s. Actually before this weekend, I didn't know Kate is a sew-er (seamstress is more proper I suppose)! In fact, she wears self-made clothes on a regular basis which is awesome and inspiring to me! The tops and skirts she has made are so well done that you would think she bought them (which is what I thought). She also knows how to sew jersey knit and she said she would show me how. I'm very excited to have a sewing mentor.

Anyway, this is the vintage pattern I bought- very Mad Men right?

My favorite view is the second dress... the black and white one with the boat neckline. Kate bought three other dress patterns with neat necklines and smocking and other interesting details. I feel like the sewing skills needed to complete this dress are beyond my capabilities so I decided to (re)take on a stepping stone project.

I think about a year ago I told my mom I would make her a new muumuu because her current muumuus are getting worn out. Yes my mom is a pacific islander and yes she wears muumuus. It is stereotypically appropriate I guess. Anyway, I had bought Simplicity pattern 4048 and some purple jersey fabric... and then nothing happened.

With Mother's Day around the corner and my revitalized interest in sewing clothing, I thought it would be a nice surprise to actually get around to making her that muumuu... she has definitely forgotten about/given up on getting a special muumuu from me.

Last night, I went to Joann's (armed with my coupons, of course) and picked out this silky oversized floral patterned fabric for the dress. I love it because it definitely has a modern look but still keeps with the floral motif of most traditional muumuus. It's a smooth and light fabric and I think it feels like it would be awesome to sleep in.

And lucky for me, it was 50% off. Plus it was the end of the bolt so I got an additional 50% off the last yard, bringing the total fabric cost to.. $12.50. Awesome. I also needed matching grey thread and a yard of interfacing so my grand total was $18.57. This will be an economical Mother's Day too, if I can pull it off! (as opposed to last year when I think spent $40 sending her flowers.)

So today I will begin the sewing process (washed and dried the fabric last night too). I'm planning on making the far right night gown in the picture of the pattern above. Wish me luck!

Alameda Vintage Fashion Faire

I went to the Alameda Vintage Fashion Faire on Saturday and it was really fun. I was fixated on animal brooches. Here are some blurry pictures of my favorites.

I love Mondays!

It's pets-on-furniture day at Desire to Inspire!

Long time no see! Bedroom progress report

Sorry blog. I didn't mean to neglect you for so long but I've been productive in my research, so that has been a bit distracting.

Here are some pictures of how my room currently looks. I've added a lot of things.

New things in this picture: Well, mainly just the curtains. And one panel is missing because I put it in the living room. Don't worry it will be back. You can see the patch I painted... that brownish grey will be the new color of my room (when I get around to it...)! Also, you can see the awesome scarf my sister crocheted for me. It's green and draped across my desk chair. See it? It's super neat.

Here you can see green buddah and my new nightstand (more on them later). Oh and my new desk... it's an Ikea Micke desk but I got it off craigslist for $40 and it was already assembled! That blue tape dangling off the wall used to be marking where I was thinking about putting in a shelf. Then it slowly peeled off and I haven't done anything about it... Cobalt really likes to sneak into all my pictures.

There are too many new things in this picture of I numbered them for you:

1. Cool drum lamp shade ($13 at homegoods). Turns out its kind of bent, but I'm using it anyway
2. $4 lamp from Savers. Love the shape. Probably needs a different lampshade. I'm thinking a high contrast pattern. Like black and white houndstooth?
3. Mid-century smallish coffee table. It has super cute legs, but they're wobbly. Also currently painted a weird dark green. Lots of potential.
4. Two crazy shiny framed maps. They are of what the explorers thought north america looked like so the continent is all distorted. They're really cool, I need to take close ups of them. Got em for $8 each.
5. Bedazzled starburst mirror. Featured in my look for less post. I kept thinking about it so I finally went back and bought it. I even like the gems now. It is super fun to look at.
6. Movie poster for "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre"... Its my dad's favorite movie. I'm planning on getting it framed. I can't decide if I will keep it or give it to him.

Now for my new nightstand. $20 at St. Vincent de Paul thrift store. There is a matching dresser that I really want to buy but can't justify.

And my green buddah. Saw him at homegoods and was immediately in love. He's just so cute and strange.

He has become really good friends with my giant hourglass with red sand. It measure 27mins and 15 seconds. Another strange object I fell for...

Progress Report - Living Room

Made a few improvements to the living room over the past week. Let's remember where we started:

And this is the current look!

Looking a bit better eh? Those couches look much more anchored like they have a definite place and purpose in life.

I bought the rug from overstock.com for only $168 (had a $10 coupon). It's a bit smaller than I was hoping for, but I love the pattern.

It's wool and it feels very nice on the toes. It's pretty tall... like the little fibers stand up pretty high so when you step on it you kind of sink in a little. Like a pillow for your foot!

The pattern is also kind of indented/3D so it has a really nice texture and more of a high end look. I love it! So does Cobalt.

As for the window treatments... eh they need a little work. The curtains haven't been washed/ironed/hemmed so they are still a bit funky looking. We added a panel in the middle even though it is one window so that the curtains can actually be closed. We've decided the blinds have got to go. They are broken... we can't move them up or down so the window is always half uncovered. And people can see in at night. It's a little bit creepy.

We are thinking about getting some new blinds made of a natural material... like wood or bamboo and I think we will mount them just above the window. But we're still working that whole thing out. For being not-that-great, the curtains do add a more inviting, softer, comforting feel to the room. We just need to get rid of those darn white walls. A few more angles of the curtains (sorry these pictures are so dark, it was very overcast the day I took them):