Yeah, Shir

I haven't had much time to write any blog posts in the past few days, but I can happily say that the little bag I made for the birthday party on Wednesday went over well. Lambchop #2 embarrassed his mommy a tiny bit, though. My intention was not to make it known that the gift was homemade. I'm proud of making things for my family, but sometimes, people don't appreciate handmade gifts the way they should. He was proud, though, and the second the little girl opened it, he blurted out, "And, and, and, my mommy made it, too!" Nobody heard him the first time, so he was forced to say it louder for everyone to really know how happy he was about it. Very sweet, and I do hope they all continue to be proud when mommy makes them things (though, I have a sneaking suspicion the pride will turn to shame some day at least while they're going through their teen years - we'll see). And, the ladies in the room actually seemed pleased and impressed by a handmade gift, so the world is not lost after all.

Oh, and I learned something about my son while at the party. He appears to have some success with the little ladies. There were mostly girls at the party (Lili-Rose, Lola, Lili and Lila - if you can believe that) with a couple of boys. When we arrived, the boys were in one room playing with boy stuff and the girls were in another playing a game we have here at home that Lambchop #2 loves. He went right in and sat down to play with the girls. They seemed quite happy with his presence. I had already noticed that he gets the Beatles treatment when he arrives at school, with the girls smiling and screaming his name (no fainting, though). The birthday party pretty much confirmed it for me. He's a lady's man. I guess it pays to have two sisters at home.

Though the blog has been silent the past few days, I have been keeping myself busy. I did a little remake of a piece of clothing I've had for over 10 years. It was one of those crinkle skirts that were so popular in the 90's. I've always loved the fabric, but the elastic on the skirt was never very forgiving, and though it fit without me sucking my stomach in, it always gave me a stomach ache some how. Needless to say, it never got much wear. This week, I decided to give it a new life.

I have been fascinated by the idea of shirring for quite some time, but I hadn't found the appropriate project to try it out for myself. Then, a post over at Wardrobe Refashion got me thinking it'd be the perfect way to change this skirt into a shirt to wear this summer. I like the end result, but the best thing about shirring is that as my body shrinks a little here and there (I tend to lose weight gradually while breastfeeding till it mostly all melts away), the shirt will continue to fit. It even fits Lambchop #1's tiny chest size because of the elastic used in shirring.

The skirt looked like this in the beginning:

Nothing very special, but I always loved the roses on the fabric. I have never been a very frilly girl. I always tended toward t-shirts and jeans or simple skirts. As it turns out, though, I really do love flowers. I'm realizing this now, because the things I seem to have trouble parting with all have flowers (I've got another flowered skirt like this to mess with later).

I spent about a half and hour detaching the waistband with my seam ripper and got to shirring on the top section. Later, I added the black band around the top and the straps. I needed thick ones, because I'm not one who can go braless even with the elasticity provided by the shirring.

The shirt has gotten mixed reviews around here. Lambchop #1 loves it, mostly likely because it's the kind of thing that is in style these days. The hubbie isn't quite so fond of it, most likely for the same reasons Lambchop #1 loves it. I'm not 100% certain for several reasons. First, it's not my usual style, so it'll take some getting used to. Second, I'm a little afraid the high waist makes me look a little preggers. That's not the look I'm going for after having given birth 9 months ago, but if I suck my gut in to the point that I can no longer breathe, I admit, I look pretty hot. It's just a shame it's not convenient for that whole will to survive thing I've got going these days. I'll shrink into it, and for now, it's very comfy. The last reason I'm not too sure about this shirt is the slip factor. It might have a tendency to slip down a bit in the front, possibly exposing my girlimajigs (Or, should I say "girlimajugs"?). I think it'll be alright. I just need to watch when I bend forward. It's light and airy, though, so it'll be good for summer. and with all the shirring, it doesn't seem nearly as see-through as it did as a skirt.

Here's one last shot of it, taken by Lambchop #1. She's home sick from school and did a little photography for Mommy. Not bad, actually. A little blurry, but at least she didn't make me look fat like Daddy usually does.