Sunshine and Skirt from Sheet

This skirt was my refashioning project this weekend. It started out as an old bedsheet from the dollar-a-pound that I'd gotten for my fabric stash probably two years ago and then promptly never done anything with. I have a bunch of other vintage sheets that I want to dive into soon! The cotton is really easy to work with, and it's easy to find sheets with fun prints. (I also signed up for So Zo's Me Made May, so am going to want to add a few more spring pieces to my self-made collection before then.)


Source

I used this 1969 Simplicity pattern. I'd definitely make this one again, as it came together fairly quickly but still has some nice details like the darts on the front and the waistband that makes the top very neat.


Funny story...I was really pleased when I finished this with how I'm improving the construction quality of what I'm sewing and perhaps it doesn't immediately look homemade. So I wore this today to go walk around Harvard Square (needed to get new running shoes), and while I was there I walked through a couple of stores looking for a new white shirt. I was in American Apparel and one of the saleswomen there comes up to me and says, "I know this is going to sound funny, but I could swear I had a pillowcase and sheets in that pattern when I was a kid!" (She was confused that the same pattern would have been sold to a clothing company as well...at least I cleared that up for her!) So I suppose it is obvious that this might have been a sheet, at least to those who recognize it.


I hope everyone's had a nice weekend! I was glad to get some time outside today...the weather's acting more like the end of May than the middle of April. Even though we've had a fairly mild winter, I'm still really happy that spring seems to be here! This is the first time I've actually gone out in short sleeves and bare legs for months...certainly enjoying the moment of time before it moves into the heat of the summer. Which...well, tomorrow and Tuesday are supposed to be in the high 80's. So that could be soon.

Other than that, I've been keeping busy with work and such. We've got our big demo week coming up the week after next, so a lot of coding and creating that has to happen before then. Then my group's next big project launches in a month, so that's been keeping me busy as well. It's been great to watch things come together, though...always exciting when code works!

I've been a busy blogger...

Rather, I've been busy with non-blogging things, as might have been guessed by my small posting hiatus (and limited viewing/commenting elsewhere). But I turned in my master's thesis on Friday! That's now officially done, which is really exciting. Along with that, the boyfriend was in town for a few days, and I've been helping my mother get ready to move.

So, I'll be playing catchup with Me-Made-May Lite outfits for the next little bit.


Yesterday, I was being frustrated by having not made many new items to add to my me-made and refashioned pile this moth, resulting in my wearing my refashioned jean skirt approximately one million times (more pictures will come...) So, before I headed off to the lab, I looked through my stock of pillowcases to make an easy top out of one. I grabbed this pillowcase with blue flowers that I'd gotten at a garage sale, and found that I'd already unpicked one seam at some point...so a skirt it was. I just cut a bit of length off the side opposite the original opening (to preserve the blue trim and lace as they were), folded down the top part and stitched it to make a casing, and threaded a shoelace through to serve as a drawstring. (This may be because I found a shoelace in my sewing box before I could find any elastic). And presto, a new Me-Made-May-appropriate item! I don't think it looks too much like a pillowcase now, does it? My strange pose is because I'm trying to hide my cellphone.


Details
Top: Express
Skirt: refashioned from a pillowcase
Shoes: Predictions, thrifted
Sweater: oh wait, I didn't have one. This is no longer an option for me, as the Lab is REALLY cold most of the time.

Saturday and Sunday I did keep up with Me-Made May (jean skirt on Saturday, ginko print dress on Sunday), but didn't get pictures.


On Friday, Day 14, I worked the outfit around a dress I'd refashioned. This had started out with long sleeves, a hem near midcalf, and far too much hot pink plaid. So, some chopping and hemming later, I got this mini-dress. The hem's much longer in the back than in the front, for some reason...while I took an even amount off the bottom all around, the waistband sits much lower in the back.

Details:
Dress: Liz Claiborne, thrifted and refashioned.
Jeans: Seven, thrifted (my friend convinced me to get them at the dollar-a-pound, and I'm very glad she did!)
Boots: thrifted
Earrings: Ebay


On Thursday, Day 14, I ended up having my jewelry be the me-made item...the earrings are my own design and construction, simple chains with a leaf bead on the end and some crystals dangling along the chain.


Details:
Patterned shirt: Ann Taylor, thrifted
Sweater: Express
Jeans: Seven, thrifted
Shoes: Sketchers, I think...can't quite see them well and don't remember
Earrings: Me-made

Hope everyone's week is going well so far!

Black Monday

Actually it was pretty sunny...but for some reason I felt like wearing this black wrap dress.


This is going to be a very, very busy week. Thesis draft going in by the end of the week, plus some very important visitors on Friday for whom we're trying to get fancy new things ready to demo. So if I'm sparse here for a few days, you'll know why.


Details:
Black dress: Lola, thrifted
White skirt (worn underneath): thrifted
Gray tights: Hue
Pink top: Gap, thrifted
Necklace: random jewelry booth in Dulles International Airport
Earrings: Claire's
Shoes: 9 West, thrifted




I wish the shoes didn't have marks on them...I don't think I'd noticed how large they were before I bought them, entranced by the pretty colors. I really like the color palette.


Also, I just wanted to put in a couple of pictures of how amazing the trees by the lab look. I don't know what kind of trees these are. With that day of 90 degree weather last week, they all just burst into bloom simultaneously...I've never seen so many flowers!

And the week goes by...

Well, today went back to standard spring temperatures, after we'd hit 90+ degrees here in Cambridge yesterday! It was so amazingly lovely out yesterday (not humid, either) that I ended up just ducking out of the lab after my class ended at 4 and going to play pool/walk around/have dinner with labmates. Did I mention it was a really, really amazing day? I don't know why nice weather makes it almost impossible to focus on work. This is why it's probably a good thing I didn't go to grad school in California!


So this is what I wore today. Yesterday I'd worn the dress I made from vintage strawberry-printed sheets last summer, but my camera ran out of batteries and so no pictures.
Details--
Floral skirt: Express
Black shirt: Ann Taylor Loft, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Tights: Hue
Shoes: Sketchers
Mixed-metal necklace: free


Today was actually quite a productive day as far as the thesis-writing was concerned. I stayed home from the lab in the morning to write, made some progress, and then went into the lab...then came back home in the evening and wrote some more. I'm approaching a draft, though a bit shorter than I want it to be as I still need to flesh out some bits. My goal is to have a draft ready to give my readers by a week from Monday at the latest. I think I can do it, though it's going to be a very busy week at the lab next week with some important demos. I'm going to be doing a lot of writing over the weekend. Anyone have lovely weekend plans?

Some thoughts

I don't know if any of you are familiar with Sal from Already Pretty, but I've been reading her blog for a while and really love her positivity and inspirational viewpoint on beauty and self-esteem. I've wanted to talk about her posts for a while, but in particular she had a post yesterday that really floored me. Already Pretty: "The Big Secret" Sal talks about the secret that none of the retailers/makeup companies/diet brands want you to realize: "There is nothing wrong with you. You are gorgeous and glorious and goddesslike right now, today, just as you are. You don't need a lick of makeup, or a pair of Spanx, or towering platform heels. You don't need Botox or the 30-day Shred or Nice 'N' Easy to cover those grays. You don't need Louboutins, or taupe nail polish, or whatever trend is gonna be trendy for the next seven seconds. If you WANT any of those things, then by all means go for 'em. Every sentient human being is entitled to make choices. But you are utterly complete and undeniably marvelous without them." (you should read the rest of her lovely post, too!)

This is a great self-esteem booster about being content with yourself as you are, but I realized that there's more value to me in this paragraph than just the "value yourself" message. Reading this, I realized that Sal nicely cuts through the debate that I so often run into in my head about style/fashion/weight/etc. If I am to believe that I am good enough exactly as I am, if in fact I'm perfect as I am, then I often feel that I SHOULDN'T put as much effort as I often do into my appearance. Isn't wearing dresses and "looking pretty" and trying to lose a couple of pounds just buying into the "you don't look good enough, you aren't thin enough, you aren't attractive enough" trap that fashion magazines and the media are setting? Especially as a feminist (I think I'd call myself a feminist) in a technological field, I'm occasionally worrying that it is a waste of my time and energy and mind to care about what I wear or what I look like, that I've just been brainwashed into thinking that more than basic presentability is important. But there's that other level that Sal points out -- we are entitled to our own choices. If I WANT to put on beautiful shoes or a velvet skirt or a dress that makes me feel like a million dollars, if I want to take joy in my self-presentation and my creative exploration of clothing and my finding beautiful garments at thrift stores...then those are choices that are perfectly good too, and I should, in Sal's words, "go for 'em."

Yes, one can argue that what we WANT may still be (is almost certainly) affected by what we are shown by our culture and the pervasive media that tries to tell us what we should want. (As well as by the others we see in real life or online wearing lovely floral rompers and Jeffrey Campbell shoes.) But it's a very interesting, and satisfying, point of view that we are neither "bad" for not buying/wearing/doing all the things we're told to want, nor "bad" for wanting (and getting/using/doing) things that we actually do want. So, thank you, Sal!


In any case. I should be heading to the lab, but I wanted to put down some of my thoughts here first. (and I've already been working on my thesis for a while this morning). It's supposed to be 85F today, which is staggeringly warm for April!


And a quick picture of what I wore yesterday. The color scheme of this outfit came from a page in Harper's Bazaar with all kinds of yellow and white pairings...I started with the yellow shirt/tunic (the only one I own in yellow, actually), and added one of my long-time favorite skirts. At first I was going to put the skirt over the top, but that made a strange double waistline...so then I layered the top over the skirt and added the belt for some shape. I liked this outfit, though the texture was a bit strange with the light jersey over a very textured skirt.


Details:
Yellow top: Forever21, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
White skirt: Forever21
White tank top: Express
Sandals: Liz Claiborne, thrifted
Belt: thrifted (dollar-a-pound)

Spring at last!

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend! I know it was a beautiful spring weekend here in the Boston area...worth taking advantage of. This may have lead to a bit too little work-related activity, but it was worth it (I hope). I spent some time outside, a bit of time crafting (including a couple of things I'll post later), some time relaxing, and some time at the lab and working on the thesis. The boyfriend and I took a long walk down by the Charles River on Saturday, which was just terrific. Spring really is my favorite season, especially this brief spring period when everything starts flowering and it's just warm enough.


So this was my outfit Saturday. Everything is from the dollar-a-pound except the sandals, which are a few years old and showing it...there's a dry torn spot on the top of one foot that rubbed a hole in the top of one of my feet. Sunday I wore the red dress that I'd just refashioned and posted recently.


This was today's outfit, along the lines of that spring thing. It was a busy day today: meeting with my adviser in the morning, coding, group meeting, working on a class project, ending with a demo at 7PM. Plus I've had a little bit of cold-like symptoms since last night, so not sure what to make of that. Perhaps it's just allergies? Though I generally don't get seasonal allergies...


Today also proved appropriate to break out the trench coat! This is the first trench coat I've ever owned...a dollar-a-pound find... and I really love it so far! It's also got some lovely details like a silky pink-and-brown polka-dot piping.


Look! Toenail polish for the first time this year! Ignore the bandaid from Saturday's sandals...

Outfit details:
White lacy shirt: thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Blue polka-dotted skirt: Liz Claiborne, thrifted (dollar-a-pound) and hemmed by me.
White skirt (used as petticoat): Forever21
Shoes: Naturalizer, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Coat: Suzuya, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)

April!

It's SPRING! Yes, I know I'm still in Massachusetts and we're only in early April and there may still be storms and bad weather and snow. But...the magnolias are blooming and it finally was sunny today and I've decided that it's spring.


I'd had this outfit in mind, or parts of it at least, for a few days now, since I hemmed this floral dress from an unflattering mid-thigh length. I knew I needed to get up the nerve to wear it, and thought it would be an interesting contrast with black tights. Then I'd happened to have the dress next to my purple cardigan and realized they matched (yes, I know I wore the cardigan yesterday. I'm remixing!) And this morning, added the boots, necklace, and hat, after trying to accessorize it in a couple of ways. This look is a bit of a stretch for me, but it was fun to do. Though I admit I only wore the hat to and from work.


Here's the dress without the cardigan. It's got interesting puffed sleeve details, which I'm still trying to decide whether I like or not. Also, the strange face in this picture comes from me attempting to take pictures in semi-public! I was done at the lab very close to sunset and decided to try to find someplace with a bit of light (and an appropriate post on which to rest my camera) on my walk home. I'd missed the late afternoon light on this wall, but these still turned out all right. During this picture, though, there was someone walking by -- and I'm not yet used to the public-picture-taking thing! (or when I do, I usually am having someone else take my picture).


This is with the coat... a very different look when you can't see the floral print!


Details:
Floral dress: thrifted (dollar-a-pound), hemmed by me
Boots: thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Hat: vintage, Ebay
Brooch (on hat): vintage, Ebay
Coat: thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Black tights: Hue
Necklace: Ebay


Another quiet day at the lab. Working on the thesis writing, reading a lot about systems of dance notation, getting books from the library, working on a class project. All of my labmates and I are absolutely exhausted for no really good reason...we think it's the rain from earlier in the week? Or some disease going around that just makes everyone sleepy?


Also, did I mention it's spring? I can't wait for the weekend!

Lace and Pearls

Pretty straightforward outfit today, I think. It was actually getting warmer...more spring-like...but I'm still in a black and white mood, apparently. And I love this skirt because it has pockets!


Details:
White lace dress (worn as top): thrifted years ago
Black skirt: thrifted
Black shoes: Capezio character shoes, which I've had since 8th grade...definitely the longest I've ever owned a pair of shoes!
Black tights: Hue
"Pearl" necklace: vintage, from Ebay
Red jacket: thrifted, dollar-a-pound


Right, the red jacket...it was actually warm enough today that I could get away with wearing a pretty lightweight jacket! I really, really like this red one that my mother found for me thrifting recently. The buttons and pockets weren't in great shape, but I moved a couple of detail buttons to the front and fixed the tears. It's still too small (tight across the chest and in the arms...definitely couldn't wear it over a long-sleeve shirt), but I really like the asymmetrical styling and the buttons! Also, the shade of red is a great one.




I was attempting to play a little bit with the lighting in these photos, as I hadn't gotten myself out of the lab before it got dark today to try to take some pictures outside. I don't think I've gotten a really great setup for indoor pictures yet. It's dark in my place in the evening, as I just have torch lights...and only a couple of spaces uncluttered enough! I'm seriously thinking I'll get a little tripod to make taking pictures in various places easier.

Post-Modern Dress

Today it was a nice day and I actually got some pictures outside, having convinced one of my labmates that he wanted to go walking and take pictures of me for my blog. It was quite windy, though, so half of my expression is from the fact that I'm trying to subtly hold my dress closed!

This outfit actually started out in a fairly straightforward manner...I wanted to wear this wrap shirtdress that I had gotten at the dollar-a-pound while out with my mother yesterday. However, the neckline was really low, so I needed something to fill it in...oh look, how about the silk gauzy shirt hanging on my dresser waiting to be worn? I'd gotten that far last night, then woke up this morning and had to rush to the lab for the continuation of the conference I was at yesterday. Suddenly, the outfit had a bit too girly/dress-up/old-fashioned of a feel to it, so I needed to grab accessories that would modernize it. Enter, quickly, my chunky orange necklace and tall black boots, which is how I ended up wearing 4 1/2" heels to work today. Oops.


So with the combination of textures and different kinds of lines in this outfit (sleek and modern boots plus Victorian-esque flowing blouse plus a structured shirtdress), the labmate who took the pictures dubbed it "Post-Modern Dress." May or may not be appropriate, but I like the term!


Details:
Silk blouse, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Black wrap dress, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Boots, thrifted (dollar-a-pound)
Tights, HUE
Necklace, craft fair
Entertainingly, the necklace was by far the priciest part of the outfit, at around $25...but I got it years ago and have definitely worn it enough to be worth the money!


Also, this coat (again, thrifted at the dollar-a-pound) is my take on this season's military trend. I do like it in combination with the tall black boots...

I realize you can't really see the necklace/neckline in any of those pictures, so here you go:

Is it spring yet?

Despite the fact that we were going to be hit by a number of inches of snow yesterday, I was drawn to this little dress I’d gotten recently at my favorite pay-by-the-pound store. (Any Bostonians/Cantabrigians out there who know about the Garment District's Dollar-A-Pound-Plus? You should come shopping with me…) I think this is intended to be a little dress for going out in the evening in the summer…it’s a thin drapy fabric, and has a semi-open back. But I put a black shirt under it, along with a ruffly skirt (for a bit of extra shape), and two pairs of tights. Thus, winter-appropriate and warm-- at least when paired with my latest thrifted coat!


Though we did get hit by a lot of snow...heavy, thick, wet snow. It's supposed to be warmer today, so perhaps it won't stick around for too long.


And yesterday was productive in terms of the thesis performance/rehearsal progress. Code and sensors and gesture recognition started doing what I wanted. Always a good thing…I might be able to pull this off yet? I actually felt really productive, which was great. And I had a good rehearsal in which the technology was (mostly) on my side. I also figured out that a change I made (trying to recognize gestures only after triggers, rather than all the time) took my program down to needing around 20% of my CPU, rather than around 80%...so.





The belt is also from the dollar-a-pound. I've gotten pretty decent at pulling out interesting things there, I think...

However, this is what happens when I'm doing self-photography around midnight:

I suspect I should leave the jumping style pictures to those slightly younger than I am! Or at least save it for when I take pictures outdoors...