sewing saturday.. a birthday dress preview!

I can't call this post much more than a preview, due to my (lack of!) progress in beginning my birthday dress. But I wanted to show you all what I'll be sewing this week and wearing for my birthday on Thursday! I'm making a pullover mini dress in a medium weight chestnut brown fabric with puff sleeves and black lace detail at the yoke. The pattern is a McCall's notion from the 1970s.. a little big for me, but I think it'll work.

What you need for this project? The usual.. sewing machine, thread (I'm using contrasting black thread), just over two yards of fabric, sharp sewing scissors, pins, and pinking shears. Lace trim is optional. Buttons and zippers aren't needed since this pattern calls for a pullover style (yay!).

To begin, I trimmed the uncut pattern pieces and laid them out on the fabric. I then pinned the pieces and cut them out.. ready to sew!

And.. I need your help with a decision. Should I add short puff sleeves to the dress or long ones with cuffs (C vs. D)? What do you think?

I recently wrote a little commentary for my lovely friend Jessica's blog. She asked me to talk about a favorite novel of mine, and I gladly accepted.. while blogging about fashion and vintage is wonderful, it's nice to write about something a little different for a change. Read the post here!

Time for more unpacking. It's our first night in the new place and life feels good.

a fall day with family

Yesterday, Neil and I drove down to my parent's to visit with Rhi and our grandparents. Our grandma hasn't been doing well lately, so Rhiannon drove over from Georgia to visit her.

Our grandma has lung cancer that has recently spread to her hips and spine. She has been under hospice care for close to a week now, and thankfully, she doesn't have a lot of pain. When we saw her, she joked around with us and seemed happy to see us - which made us glad, since we didn't know if it'd be a good day or a bad day. It felt good to hug her petite little shoulders and it felt REALLY good to say I love you.

The bright side to all of this sadness in our family right now is a new perspective - we all appreciate the time spent with each other even more. And my aunts and uncles have been visiting, which means my mom and dad have enjoyed a lot of good family time, too. Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and when it comes, I think all of us will be truly, genuinely thankful.. I can't count how many Thanksgivings have gone by without feeling what it was about - just a good day with great food. This Thanksgiving will be different, I think. I've really been blessed with an awesome, loving, supportive family.

I'm actually wearing my Halloween dress in these pictures. I couldn't wait to wear it out after Halloween.. I guess I couldn't even wait til after I posted about our Halloween festivities. But there will be a post, wig and all, of Halloween, I promise!

Later on in the day, Rhi and I went to Goodwill.. It's always fun to go to Goodwill with my sisters, because they take almost as long in there as I do. I found a great leather jacket for Neil and an awesome 70's mini dress for me. It makes me look like I belong in Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band or maybe in a marching band or something. And I absolutely love it.

Off to make some ice cream.. any flavor suggestions? Pumpkin pie?