Pneumonia, in the Summer?

I thought it was strange when Miss E was diagnosed with pneumonia about three weeks ago, but I can tell you first hand that she definitely had it and shared it with Grandma.  ARGH!!!  Not the way I wanted to spend the last part of my vacation before gearing up to teach another year, for sure.  The bright side is that it is responding well to a broad spectrum antibiotic, for which I am forever grateful!  The down side is that I'll be starting behind the curve as I haven't done near enough on two fronts--cleaning and sewing.

Miss V's dress did get finished, and she's here modeling it for us.  Her Grandpa said the picture makes her look so old--wonder what that makes him and me?  :)  Anyway, she loves it and wanted to wear it home with her matching shorts underneath, so that's a good sign.  I'd like to make her 3 or 4 pairs of Capris to wear to school this fall since it is so hard to get pants to fit her.  Not sure if I'll have the time or not, but we can try.

I still need to finish the curtains for her sisters' room, so maybe that's what I will do next, or maybe not.  I still have pants and tops to sew for them and they like clothes more than curtains.

Think it's time to sit in the easy chair and read for a bit, eat some dinner and then get some more rest.

Summer Sewing -- Marking Fold Lines the Easy Way

I love summer, but it just goes by too quickly!  I've worked on several projects and have many of them "still in progress."  Sometimes I really hate that phrase, but sewing is both a "what I'm in the mood for" and "what needs to be done immediately" sort of thing around here.  The curtains for one granddaughter's room are finished, and the ones for the twins' room are about half done.  The girls have each gotten tops and shorts and Capris, or at least they will when they are sewn. Isn't cutting it out half the battle?  I did finish dresses for the twins and worked on two different quilts.

I'm currently finishing a cute dress from Kwik Sew 3906 for Miss V for school.  The matching shorts are done, and the dress only needs buttons, buttonholes and hemmed.  It's been several years since I've made a little girl's dress with ties in the back--and finishing the ties so they were pointed was probably the biggest challenge!  Remembering to clip across the point before folding twice to sew was something that wasn't in the directions, but I pulled out of the recesses of my mind from long, long ago.

I've been using a technique lately for marking fold lines on things like ties and straps and hems that has really made a difference.  I change my stitch length to 6 and then baste the fold line markings.  Using the built in walking foot on my Pfaff, the fabric doesn't gather at all, so I can then press right along the stitching, then remove the basting and when it comes time to do the folding it's all marked and looks great.  This is so much easier than trying to measure it in the round!  The shoulder straps and the ties were much easier using this technique.  It's particularly useful for hems on shorts, Capris, and pants as well as waistband elastic. It works on doll clothing, too. I'm so glad I figured it out.