The Pattern Queue is Full

I may need to take a break from the clothing sewing for a bit and do something else. When fall gets here, I definitely want to get back to quilting. The Slabtown Backpack stalled around this time last year and is still sitting here in my office next to the industrial Necchi. Working on that project would be a nice change of pace. I also need to prep some embroidery projects—probably more chickens—so I have handwork in the evening, not that I’ll be sitting down until canning season is over.

For now, it’s clothing. One of the women in my serger class on Saturday mentioned how much she likes the Pamela’s Patterns line. I took a look at the website when I got home and ordered three of the patterns. I ordered hard copies and had them shipped, because I’ve already got half a dozen other patterns in the queue and I’m not in any huge hurry. I might be ready to start them by the time they arrive in the mail.

The first one is the Magic Pencil Skirt:

I made a pencil skirt last year with some dark green ponte using the Liesel + Co Kensington pattern. I liked the skirt a lot, but I wasn’t crazy about the waistband construction. I thought it was clunky and looked unfinished. I’ve been kicking around the idea of frankenpatterning my own pencil skirt pattern using the top half of the Renee pants, because I love the way they fit. But then I saw this pattern and decided that I didn’t need to reinvent that wheel. This skirt’s waistband construction is similar and it comes with a YouTube video on dart placement.

The second one is the Classic T-Shirt Dress.

Again, I am trying to avoid doing the work if someone else has already done it for me. Rather than beating that Tessa Sheath Dress pattern into submission, I’m going to try this one. It has a bust dart option and that portrait collar is very intriguing. I watched the video for making the portrait collar and Pamela suggests using the three-step zig-zag stitch on the sewing machine to understitch collar facings on knits. I definitely plan to try that.

The last one is the Peek-A-Book Swing Tunic.

I think I might like this a bit better than the Laundry Day Tee just because it’s not quite as voluminous. Also, the bodice comes with a bust dart option. (There is a theme here.) I will not be making the “cold shoulder” version, though, because my shoulders do not like to be cold.

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I’m spending a lot of time in the kitchen. Yesterday, I made a batch of Red Lentil Coconut Curry using the recipe from the Simply in Season cookbook. I make this every so often so I can use up leftover bits of produce from the fridge, freezer, or garden. The recipe makes a big pot of curry; I portioned it out into smaller containers and put them in the freezer.

We’re swimming in cucumbers—why was I worried?—so the husband got a big batch of cucumbers in vinegar, or as my kids christened them when they were little, “instant pickles.”

I have all the ingredients for Grandma Milly’s BBQ sauce. I’ll do a batch of that soon.

I made 52 quarts of salsa last fall, based on the how much Costco salsa the husband used to consume in a year. That was a good estimate as we’ve used up 43 quarts so far. I’ll probably do 52 quarts again this year. I won’t need to do as much tomato sauce, though. We’re almost out of apple pie filling, but Susan informed me that my favorite Duchess of Oldenburg apple tree didn’t bear this year. (I have two that she grafted for me, but they are still small yet and not producing.) She said she has other varieties for me to choose from, though.

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Baby rooster discovered he can crow, so he has been practicing with abandon. Unfortunately, Dave now knows that there is another rooster in the coop and he is NOT HAPPY. The baby rooster and a handful of Barred Rock hens are still in the separate area of the coop. I let the rest of the pullets out with the general population. Dave paces back and forth around the outside of that blocked-off area looking menacingly at the baby rooster. The other day I went into the coop and Dave hopped up onto the top of the garbage can that holds the chicken feed and let loose a scathing editorial while I scooped scratch grains out of the other garbage can.

I will try to find a home for the baby rooster. I don’t dare let him out. Dave is probably the best rooster I’ve ever had, but he murders his competition. There can be only one.