Nesting Dolls of Science

I think the word I want to use as my mantra this year is Sustainable. Not just in the green sense of the word, but maintaining good habits. All holiday, my heart has been breaking over new about wildfires in Australia and it reminds me that the new reality here in California is the same with semi annual wildfires.  I want to make changes to help the environment, but they need to be sustainable as well as sustainable...oh man that wordplay cuts me deep. Anyway, I started with some soul searching. A few changes I've already made are to use period panties and menstrual cups. I also started using a reusable straw a little last year, but maintaining that habit has proven tricky. I also was using an imperfect produce system, but we weren't eating stuff fast enough due to time constraints. There's also other changes I could make, but here's the thing: a lot of the rhetoric around sustainable lifestyles is changing habits and they ignore the privilege that involves. As a parent

You know, it's important to let your freak flag fly, even if you're a mother.  I went out for lunch with a lovely bunch of ladies, but it reminded me of a few things.  1.  My social anxiety is still strongly in effect. 2.  Finding mom friends is good, finding mom friends who get you is great. I really enjoyed my time, but it definitely made me feel like I shrank a little.  When I'm around people I'm comfortable with, I feel just free and comfortable to stretch out within myself and like I'm understood.  If I'm not, I feel exhausted, like I have to check every syllable for something that gives away just how odd I am.  What I realized is it just feels easier with either women I knew before I was a mother or nerdy moms.  Not to say I hate moms, it's not that at all.  Mothers (and fathers) need each other for survival.  We are the only people who understand the physical, mental and emotional toll raising a child takes.  And while that may be the only thing

Look at me, progressing with actually sewing something!  I think the moral of my story is have someone to keep you accountable, like a mom.  Every mom needs a mom. This was my daughter's first time in the magical place that is Joann's Fabric, and it turns out my kid as she is right now rocks at errands.  Frankly, she's more patient than me.  I don't think it hurts that she was complimented by I think just about everyone.  I had done some research on Joanns.com before we went to the store, so that is a huge plus.  I knew I wanted some light weight fabric for the peplum top and something kind of linen-y for the playsuit. I knew white withe some kind of embroidery was what I wanted for the top, but I hadn't decided what it would look like, and I saw some navy light weight embroidered fabric that I fell madly in love with.  The issue was that fabric was not really in the direction that worked best for the pattern, so I landed on this floral embroidered white fabric

Let's start with the peplum clone and how that's going so far.    I have seen some videos about cloning a garment (from WithWendy and AnnikaVictoria ) and so I have some idea of copying a shirt without destroying it.   HOWEVER, most tutorials are based around knit garments, and this garment is made of woven fabric.   The biggest issue with this is cloning a knit garment is easy because shaping is less of an issue.   Stretch is forgiving, so you can kind of wing it.   Woven material is 2D, so shaping it to 3D takes a couple techniques that can be hard to replicate.   It's got bust darts. It's got gathers on the bottom. I think to make an accurate copy, I'd have to cute the top apart, but the fabric is so thin, this might not be the best idea.   The first thing I did was call my mom.   Moms are important, and she tends to be a fount of sewing wisdom.   I told her about the issues with cloning, and she came up with some ideas.   The plan was to

So I’ve done Me Made May for a few years.   Last year, I even did Me Made Maternity thanks to some stuff my mom made for me as well as some pieces that transitioned with my changing body.   And once again, your girl’s body has changed.   Really my life has changed.   A lot.   I’m now the mother of a 7 (almost 8) month old baby, which means making stuff has taken even more of a backseat than before, if you can believe it.   All of the handmade clothes I have were made and have been seen on this blog before, which makes the whole reveal of Me Made May kind of useless to me.   I mean, some I am styling differently, but honestly I don’t feel like I need to post the stuff because it’s been seen.   And I think Me Made May is supposed to be one of those inspirational things, to inspire you to wear your homemade clothes and that’s great.   Frankly, I already rock my handmade clothes a lot because they’re the stuff that fits.   So…I had a thought. So for me, I think this month should be k

I studied animation and physics in college, and something I love to do is still to draw or paint or all around doodle.  And do math.  At work, I can math all day long (I'm a physics teacher) but my creative endeavors have been tricky.  The big barriers (and I think this is possibly true for most people, even if they aren't parents) are: Time to do the endeavor If you have the time, space in your home.  Some things take up a lot of space or need a large space to complete. If you have the space and time, materials can be hard to work with around the kids For me with drawing, I've been trying to find a digital solution.  I've been drawing with Procreate on the iPad, and if I can overcome time and space issues, I have my laptop and cintiq to play around with.  But the big thing is I want to make this something that works for me wherever and whenever.  Drawing on iPad on the go works pretty well, but the programs aren't as slick as those on the computer.  There a