Monday, April 18, 2011

Crafty countdown to VLV

I have been running around like a crazy person in preparation for Viva Las Vegas! But my projects seem to be under control. Remember when I said I wasn't going to do any other projects specifically for VLV except for my black sleeveless sweater? Neither do I.

New jean snap attached to Freddie's jeans? Check! The snap fell off awhile back and I've just been using a belt to hold it closed but finally got around to fixing it.

Navy Heyday slacks hemmed? Check! I swapped out the buttons last month and finally hemmed them last week. Talk about waiting until the last minute... I must have bought them over 6 months ago!

Red blouse to match my capris completed? Check! That was done with plenty of time to spare.

Skirt fastener sewn on castles skirt so I can finally call it complete? Not done yet, will do this tonight. This skirt has been 99% complete for weeks but I finally got the right kind of fastener, a hook and bar type (even though I'm still not totally pleased with the result, but at least it'll be hidden by a belt).

A pair of Mel's pants hemmed? Fail, I forgot I didn't have the right color thread and ran out of time to procure any.

Zoo animals skirt to match pink elephants sweater completed? The skirt is sewn, the fastener is on, but I still have to hem it. Fortunately my rayon seam binding arrived and I can give it a whirl. I plan to sew it to the free edge of the hem and then blind stitch the hem by hand. I got this idea from several of my vintage pieces that are handmade (and some that were ready-to-wear, too). I wouldn't ordinarily be trying out something new 3 days before vacation but it seems pretty fool-proof. The skirt is essentially two rectangles pleated to form a circle skirt so there's not even any fullness to worry about. The only bad thing about the outfit is that I never did find a wide belt the right color in time, and I'm a bit lukewarm on how the whole ensemble looks. It's one outfit that might get rotated out. Or I may wear it with a black top, belt and shoes and throw caution to the wind and pretend that the dark color in the skirt isn't brown (here's a fabric sample). I did discover my pair of gorgeous brown vintage peep toes that I was going to wear with this outfit appear to no longer fit me (I am horrified at that one!). So we'll see.

Two pair of earrings made to match outfits? Check! Those were my tutorial earrings.

Black sleeveless knit blouse completed? Check! This seemed to take forever since it was such a boring knit.

Briar Rose knit-along post made? Fail. Sorry guys!! I clearly didn't plan well enough for vacation and the knit-along at the same time (due in large part to the above-mentioned black sleeveless knit blouse needing to be knit in time for our trip). Due to this, I am pushing back the deadline a bit, which I expected might happen anyway to give everyone enough time.

Now the final cast off date will be June 1st. I hope I'm not the only one this helps out. ;)


Phew! I don't even have time to post about my weekend, which included the Modern Vintage Chicago show. I'm down to the wire and in full-on vacation planning mode. I'm second guessing a few of my outfits and trying to decide what to do about that.  There aren't enough days and nights of VLV to get in everything I planned to wear. Do I take an extra couple of dresses just in case I have a change of heart once I'm there? Hmmm. We are staying on 3 extra days after, moving to the Flamingo and doing nothing but relaxing—a vacation from our vacation, if you will. So I will actually need more clothes than just for VLV.

I woke up this morning to snow and slush (a spring record). Let me tell you... am I ever ready for Las Vegas weather!

11 comments:

  1. Wow that is lot that you've got done! I'm exactly the same before a vacation too, can't wait to see photos, hope you both have a fabulous time, don't forget to drink a cocktail for me ;o)

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  2. I feel knackered just reading about what you've been up to!
    Px

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  3. and i thought i had a lot of projects going on! good luck!

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  4. Wow that is some project work there - Congrats on getting it all done! I love the Flamingo - the air con smells of coconut, lush!

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  5. You have been a busy lady. Have fun in Vegas the flamingo has a great pool.

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  6. I'm hoping you'll have a blast hemming that skirt with seam binding. I really like that technique, makes it so neat and tidy! The only thing better than seam binding is lace! And the only thing better than even that is VIVA LAS VEGAS! :P

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  7. Oh boy, I can't wait to see all the fabulous ensembles! As stressful as it can be, I love the down-to-the-wire crafting preparations for VLV. So exciting getting all the little details together, but so frustrating when they fall apart at the last minute. I just think of the mishaps as a reasons to go shopping for something in Vegas. One year Joey forgot the black pants he planned to wear with two of his jackets. Could have been a disaster, but a quick trip to the vendors and thank god I bring needle and thread everywhere with me, he had a brand new pair of tailored pants. I kind of love that VLV can fix a vintage clothing emergency.

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  8. Wow! You sound like you have a crazy amount of stuff going on! Good luck with all your endeavors! =)
    Kristina J.

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  9. How exciting! I love getting ready to go! Have a fantastic time.xx

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  10. It was so nice to see both of you this weekend! I'm dying to see pictures of all the outfits!

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  11. Hi, I stumbled over your blog a few days ago and got hooked on the knit-along project. Your post about resizing are amazing, thank you for doing this.
    I decided to join the knit-along, even though I'll be a little behind - better late than never. I always wanted to knit a vintage sweater but was overwhelmed by all the math. I followed your descriptions, made a swatch and have cast on the back and everything looks very good. Once again thank you for sharing your knowledge and greetings from Germany
    Ingrid

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