Not a Lot Going On Here

I would like to say I'm sewing up a storm...but I'm not.  I managed to get these curtains done before we had visitors come for Easter.  That's about all of the sewing I've done in the past little while. (Remember my post from a while back...? So I didn't go black and white, but did go geometric and simple)

The fabric is this navy blue wax resist dyed loveliness that my husband brought back for me from Ghana, way back in January. It's only taken 19 years for him to learn what I really want as a souvenir:)

I left the side edges raw (they even wax resist dyed the name and some other things on the side) and then simply used a rolled hem for the top and bottom.  I didn't want to waist any of the fabric by hemming too much.  As I was cutting it out to the measurements, last minute I remembered to make sure that the circles would line up from panel to panel...that was a close call.  I'm kind of loving how they look. Simple, yet stunning to look at. And they are simply hung with little clips on a simple rod.

As for what has been keeping me busy, besides chauffeuring my kids around, on the days it is nice outside...I love Spring...I've been outside discovering what our flowerbeds have to offer. Since we bought this house and moved in July 1st, what blooms in Spring is a nice surprise. Every day it seems like it is something new, awakening to the warm sunshine that has become more the norm.

So here are some of the surprised for your enjoyment.

 One night a couple of weeks ago, there was a chorus of probably 50-80 of these guys in our little pond...it was loud! The result is now a ton of tadpoles swimming around. The girls are having fun with daily observations...got to love backyard biology!

 And this lovely sight is from a drive on Easter around a local park. How many turtles can you count?

A Little Something for Me

Well I finally finished it...this skirt that has been on my mind since I bought (fell in love with) this fabric over a year ago. I bought the fabric at the 1/2 price sale at Textile Fabrics and it was a big splurge even at half off, but I loved the simplicity of the design and the softness of the fabric.

It's just a simple A line skirt with a waistband and invisible zipper on the side...nothing fancy, but perfect for me. 

Here's a quick rundown of how to figure out an A line skirt. Get a low waist line measurement (since you are adding a waistband) and a hip measurement and then I add a couple of inches to each because I don't like my clothes too snug. Take a waist to hip measurement. Now you are set to "draw" your pattern out on your fabric. Make sure you take your fabric and fold it in half twice (you need the front and back piece). Take your waist + 2 inches (blue line) and hip + 2 inches (red line) measurements and 1/2 them. Now take the number you now have for your waist and measure then mark it on the top of your fabric (blue line).  Take your waist to hip measurement (green line) and mark it down from your waist measurement. From the fold take your hip measurement number and mark it at the bottom of your waist to hip line (this becomes the red line).

With me so far?

Now just figure out how long you want your skirt(purple line) and mark that, measuring from your waist. Then all I do is gradually extend the line from the end of your waist measurement line to the edge of the fabric.

Once I get it cut out, I finish the right side, add the waist band, add the zipper and finish the left side. After that I fold down the waistband and finish it off.

For the waistband, I simply take the waist measurement and add 3 inches (you have to have room to put the zipper in) and cut out a 4 inch band to that length, line it with facing and add it to the top of the skirt. Then I'm ready for the zipper.

Not the best pictures of the skirt, but at least you get the feel for it. My kids were my photographers...my 12 year old took the one on the left and my 5 year old took the one on the right.

Now for some pretty pictures.  I've always wanted a "cutting" flower garden and something that would attract a lot of birds and butterflies.  And I succeeded this year.  Here's some of the results: