Frog sounds and grunts

That's what's going on in my "sewing room" these days. Frog sounds-- meaning "rip it, rip it" and grunts --meaning the sounds I'm making in frustration.

I decided to work on my tunic again today. Everything seemed to be going well so far, and so I thought perhaps I could finally finish this thing. But I ran into a big problem, which I have to figure out how to fix. Well, I mean I think I do know how to fix it, but I fear it means more work and reworking things. Let me explain.

In the pattern I have, there are arm collars of sorts, I suppose to give it a more finished look as well as reinforce that area. Fair enough. The arm collars were made, and I tried to attach them to the tunic. But then there was a problem. Because I had to make the garment wider, there was too much fabric to line up for the armholes. Okay, so I thought maybe the solution would be for me to pick the stitches for the sides of the garment, then realign the armhole areas, and then I could stitch the armholes in, and work around the gaps by adjusting the size of the armholes. Hard to explain, but trust me, I thought it was a good idea. So, I lined everything up, pinned it, and sewed in the arm collars. The only problem was that when it came to the problem area, it turned into a bigger problem. The stitches didn't catch, and it was making the chest area even smaller, and I don't need that. I do know that I do have to make some alterations in the garment, but that's not one of the area that needed it. :-S So, as you can imagine, I am frustrated that I had to frog the stitches from that section too, and unlike knitting, it's a more tedious task since the stitches are so tiny, and you don't want to literally rip anything-- just pop the stitches.

I just came down from taking those stitches out, and figured that my brain needed a rest from looking at that, and needed to stop and figure out a better solution. After starting a load of laundry, it hit me what I need to do. I know it's the best solution, but it means more work. That solution is remaking the arm collars, but making them longer to adjust to the wider garment. I really think it's the only way. That means I have to recut ALL that fabric and interfacing AGAIN, and figure out how much more I have to actually add to the length of the collars so it works this time. Bleeh. Why do I have to be so fat to have to make these adjustments? It's testing me, for sure.

I really want to finish this once and for all. I'm really wishing I had a dress form, because it would be easier to figure out some of the changes as far as pinning it and such. I'll probably have to get JC to help me, since I haven't made a homemade dress form yet, and I think I really need to do that sometime soon. I also want to make this thing for my girlfriend for her birthday, and I might just have to either wait (even though her birthday is this week), or just put the bobbin and thread for the tunic aside and work on her project this week instead, which is what I think I need to do. I think it's usually harder to do in sewing, but I know in knitting, it's not uncommon to not finish something (otherwise known as a UFO - an "UnFinished Object") and put it aside for a while, and then come back to it while working on another thing. Heck, I do that a lot in knitting these days. I think this tunic is going to be my first sewing UFO...at least for now.

I was also cleaning out my closet today, and found some old sweats that are still in good condition, but don't fit anymore. I'm thinking I might take a pair of my son's other sweat shorts, and trace a pattern with them, and make him some new shorts for summer. I think I can make at least two pairs. That would be good, don't you think? I think I just need some good elastic, and he'll be set. See? I haven't lost my interest yet. I think I just need to move on for a bit, and then come back to this one.

Maybe then, I'll have less strange noises coming out of my sewing room.