Well. A few things have happened since mid-January. What a strange few months it’s been. We have, of course, been cloistered at home, in our case for a full month as of yesterday. Honestly, on a day-to-day basis, it hasn’t been as bad as I might have feared; my partner and I are both fortunate to have jobs that make it possible for us to work from home (although I’m actually on maternity leave), and my daughter has borne up to the isolation with amazing good humor.
It’s when I think about the future that terror starts to creep in around the edges: things were bleak enough politically (fucking Joe Biden???), and now I’m quite concerned about what will happen to higher education. We’re already seeing widespread hiring freezes, and I don’t think layoffs are outside the realm of possibility. Historically, university leaders have used crises to make cuts they’d been eyeing for years, and all I can do is hope that I’ll still have a job when the dust settles.
Fortunately, some of the sting is counterbalanced by the best possible news: David, my son, joined us exactly a week earlier than expected, on February 27. He is lovely and squishy and everything a baby should be. Newborns, of course, are a ton of work, and this isn’t exactly the peaceful maternity leave I might have wished for, but we are nevertheless loving the chance to get to know our new little guy.
This blog, however, is about sewing, and I’ve been doing a fair amount of that, in the bit of time when the baby sleeps and my daughter entertains herself. Like a lot of people, I’ve had a terrible time concentrating lately, and my desire to sew comes and goes. But it remains one of the few activities to which no stress or expectations are attached, and I’m even more grateful than ever to have it as an outlet.
Since so much time has elapsed since my last post, I have a good amount to share, so I’ll keep the rundown short and sweet, and I’ll break things up into two posts. I have been faithfully entering everything I make on my little database, and I’ve really enjoyed looking back at that record.
Red Freya (maternity) dress
This is your typical Tilly and the Buttons Freya dress, with the substitution of the neckline from the Plantain tee. I didn’t make any maternity modifications, but did make it in a somewhat larger size, and it was a great dress for the last stretch of pregnancy. (I’ve also been wearing it postpartum.) The fabric is a red ribbed knit that I didn’t really want in my life: I ordered a small amount to use for ribbing and the vendor must have sent me four yards! Unbidden though it was, the red ribbed knit has made its way into quite a few garments over the last few months.
Joni (maternity) dress
This is another garment from the Tilly and the Buttons Stretch book, also with no maternity modifications, just in a larger size. The fabric is a tissue-thin jersey from Michael Levine, and I was surprised it worked as well as it did here. I made this on January 20, and it ended up being the last maternity-sized dress I made for myself.
Felt undersea mobile
In the last stretch of pregnancy, the prospect of getting up and dealing with my sewing machine began to seem pretty unappealing, so projects I could do on the couch were perfect. My family is so fortunate to have welcomed not one, but two babies in the last six months: my nephew came home to my sister in December. This little felt mobile is for him. I cut the undersea creatures from felt on my Cricut and spent a pretty enjoyable few hours sewing them together from the couch.
Labor and delivery gown
I did make one last garment during my pregnancy, with the aim of wearing it in the hospital. The idea with this nightgown is that the straps unbutton for nursing and the back unsnaps all the way so that nurses can access whatever they need. It’s ugly, I know, but basically functional. In the end, as with so many elements of labor, things did not go as planned, and I did not wear it in the hospital, but it’s nice to have another nightgown around.
Felt bird bunting
This was another project completed from Couch HQ, cut out from felt on my Cricut and hand-stitched. The felted pom-poms were purchased online. This one went on the wall of our “nursery,” AKA the corner of our bedroom.
Best Big Sister Ever t-shirt
Dora, who is indeed the best big sister ever, designed this t-shirt, which is decorated with vinyl Cricut cutouts.
…to be continued with the sewing I’ve done postpartum!