Stranded at the Drive-in...I mean Hotel

That's right everybody, never have I been more happy to work at a hotel.

Here on the frigid plains of the upper Midwest, we had a blizzard last night. It began at around 6pm, and lasted until 6 this evening. I was able to get myself into work just fine last night for my 10pm to 8am shift. However, when the worst of the weather hit us at around 1-5 in the morning, all roads in town plus the interstate were posted as "no travel advised". I decided it want worth it to struggle my way home to sleep then have to come back to work again at 10 tonight. Instead, I grabbed the key to one of our "no show" rooms from last night, slopes down on the bed, and was out cold for a solid eight hours.

Upon waking, I got up, took all the sheets off of the bed, got dressed and made my way downstairs to get clean sheets and...Bibbity, bobbity, boo! We had one more room to sell for tonight! (a good thing because we're full up with travelers stuck here after coming for presidents day weekend).

Unfortunately this means that I didn't get within miles (literally) of my sewing machine. Luckily I have my perpetual craft of my Hardanger embroidery with me, so that's what I'll be working on for the next hour until my shift.

I hope you all had a safe and relaxing holiday. Anybody have some holiday and/or travel horror stories they'd like to share?




My lovely bed from last night, after I had torn off the sheets, getting ready to make it up clean again.



Something "Winter" This Way Comes

Hello all!

Today I am bracing myself for a long day stuck indoors until I work Monday evening. We have a blizzard warning in effect starting at 6 this morning until Monday morning with snow totals of 4-7 inches and winds from 25-45 mph! Not the storm of the century, but still a good reason to cuddle up with my Singer!

I'm happy to report that I had another wonderfully productive day yesterday. So much so that I neglected to post to tell you all about it!

On that subject, unfortunately I can't tell you too much as the subject of most of my work is a Valentine's Day gift, and I wouldn't want to risk spoiling it for the recipient. I can however tell you what I got done, and I will definitely be posting the many pictures that I took after this Thursday!

The project is a pillow and I decided to make an inner pillow with the stuffing in it and a removable pillow cover so that it would be easier to clean, and in case I ever need to add more fluff, I don't have to worry about doing the world's most "pretty" job of ripping it apart and resewing it if the need should arise.

I got the entire inner pillow finished, and I decorated and sewed the back pieces (two overlapping pieces of fabric rather than a zipper). I have spent some of my free time designing how I want the front to look. I will be using some cut up sweaters in a quilting/patchwork style, again, pictures at a later date.

In lieu of anything fun and shiny to show you, I have decided to take some time and jot down a few of my overall goals for this coming year, specifically for my sewing journey.

Here's what I came up with, mostly just in list form with a few dates/deadlines attached to individual goals or projects:

-Finish a wearable linen/cotton jacket to wear at my cousin's beach wedding by June

-Fashion myself a well fitting pair of dress pants either from a pattern or by drafting my own

-Begin collecting patterns and sewing/tailoring books for reference and future projects

-Sew a slip cover for my love seat

-Finish a passable "Malcolm Reynolds" (Captain Mal from "Firefly") costume for Halloween

-Begin to find and collect fun and unique fabrics to help inspire me for future projects

-Build/design myself a sewing space in my new apartment/room when I move in May

-Continue to grow my list of sewing related blogs that I read and get my foot in the door of the online sewing community for support, advice, and inspiration galore!

-Craft at least one piece for someone else (just to see if it's for me or not)

-Have a blast learning a new, rewarding, lifelong skill!!!

Well, now that's out of the way, I think I'm going to go get a hot cup of tea and enjoy a nice book before drifting off to sleep. I'll talk to you all soon!


"Winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart." -Victor Hugo

P.S. Happy Chinese New Year everyone, enjoy the year of the snake (it's MY year, hooray!)

Matthew