my first attempt into serious alterations

i do not fit most store-bought pants, particularly those that come from anthropologie.  here's a pair of shimmery blue tweed pants from anthro that i adored.  ADORED.  i sent shirley all around nyc looking for a size 0 for me during her winter break while i was home recovering from knee surgery.   yes, that knee surgery of 2 years ago hehehehhe!

here's what the size 0 looks like on.  observe the right leg, the wider one.  i already started working on altering the left leg, hence why it looks slimmer.

2 springs ago in oregon, shirley and i had started trying to skinny up the legs a bit so they'd be straight leg with a long fit.  i was so overwhelmed by the alterations process that i literally put the project away for 2 years.  last weekend, i had to go back to florida so she could help me fix a tooth.  i brought the project to tackle again.

now shirley is the master of alterations.  girl buys all these pants from thrift stores, alters them until they fit her like a T.  so jealous.  i love the thrill of brand new projects, so i would much rather create things from scratch.  when i decided to switch the fit of the leg to skinny ankle pants, she dove in and helped me build a new seam line, leg hem, etc.  i learned so much.  today i finally got a chance to wear them to school with wedge heels!  (here i am barefoot though)

i wanted the pant leg to be skinnier, but these pants have no give, so i had to leave them looser.  they are MUCH narrower than they started out though, and much much shorter.  i think i ended up cutting 6 inches off the bottom.  (and coincidentally, 6 inches off my hair!)

look at the slim silhouette!  i quite like the fit now.  with heels they look even sleeker.  too lazy to find someone to take a pic of me right now, so use your imagination.  yesterday, during my sick day, i started (and finished!) cutting fabric for a new project, a navy tunic top/dress.  bunksy was guarding my patterns, but not doing a great job at it as the little guy was just snoring away.  i'm going to sew up the garment this long weekend, hooray!

happy valentine's day, peeps!

happy monkey new year!

after the success and rave reviews of the last pair of longjohns, i quickly started on 3 more pairs: long again, calf-length, jammers.  they sew up so quickly!  the only tweak i made to the pattern was shorting the butt space so that the waistband didn't ride so high.  then i stitched up the 3 pairs factory-style.  3 crotch gussets:

the jammers were the most unique and by far the quickest to sew up.  turns out, sewing down the length of the leg gets tough when the leg opening is tiny at the ankles.  this pair reminded me of the jammers jimmy wore at swim practice in high school.

the back is nice and simple, just a butt seam:

the calf-length is ideal for skiing according to eric: no need to stuff the pant leg in your ski boots!

the 3 pairs remind me of the 3 bears: baby bear, mama bear, papa bear.

the back yard has finally melted enough for us to be able to open the back door.  i was intending to let bunks out eventually, on a warmer day, but the little bugger went running out as soon as the door was opened.  he hopped right onto the snow!

his big feet served as natural snowshoes, hehe.

happy monkey new year to my asian peeps!