Flibbertygibbet

New frocks rock

I've been away. With the exception of Sleazyjet losing my bag for six days, it was muy bien.

Two of our favourite people are getting married this Saturday. Being faithful to the Wardrobe Refashion creed, I've made a frock. I'm quietly pleased with it, as in I pretty much followed the pattern, and it pretty much worked. Hurrah!

The Frock

Where I deviated:
I couldn't for the life of me get the fiddly little back ties to turn out, so I ditched them. Instead I'll be making a wider sash belt, using this vintage buckle, and also pictured is the hat that serendipitously matches quite well (the serendipity arises in that it's the only hat I have, and I can't quite see myself making headgear before Saturday). Actually, my DH may well tell me that they clash terribly - but for the moment I'm believing it works.

There are another couple of potential modifications to come - as the leggy model on the pattern envelope, New Look 6370 hasn't got my wonky knees. Another level of flounce may be required.

I'll also be making View A from lining as a slip to go underneath as it's a bit more seethrough than I'd like.

And as I'm a bit paranoid that the extra flounce won't work, I'm thinking of making a fall-back... also wondering if in fact it's a bit loud, hence the alternative needed. Lots to do before Friday, when we leave!

Vanilla days

It's almost quiet here. If you don't count the car alarm, the washing machine and the Duran Duran belting out of the radio. I've found the most fabulous kitsch radio station - mostly 80s and 90s music. Right now it's Flashdance! Ah, flashbacks... It's like a slightly less cool version of Guilty Pleasures, current stars of my iPod Hit Parade.

My bro has just left, it was lovely to see him although I had to work most of the time that he was here. Plus he brought us the world's best cheese - well, certainly Ireland's finest.

I have the house to myself for about an hour before I have to finish tidying, and packing for our holiday. We're going camping. I must have been deranged when I agreed to it, mind you where we're going in Spain will be marginally cooler than here tomorrow, but only because we're expecting 37 degrees in London. Of course there's news reports on how the roads are going to melt and the unions are asking employers to let staff wear their own clothes tomorrow 'so that they'll be cooler, and then the air-conditioning can be turned down which will help the environment' - oh puhlease. In Espana, it's going to be in the low 30s all week, and we're going to a music festival. I'm tremendously excited about seeing Scissor Sisters but the rest of the line up is a bit disappointing. (Can't I stay here and keep listening to Ace of Base? Wow, I'd completely forgottten them - probably just as well) But I've decided that the now low risk of musical overstimulation is actually dandy, as it will mean that rather than running about like loons from stage to stage, we'll take it at a slower pace, with our friends and are going to take a side-trip to Valencia. We'll be able to chill out and relax. Well, if they can convince any local restaurant to let me stay in their walk-in freezer, that is. Otherwise I'll be slathered in Factor 5000 and periodically dipped in the sea/pool as I try avoid migrating from my normally pale blue skin to any shade of lobster. But hey, it's sea, sun, sand and... singing? And then two nights in a posh spa hotel, hurray!

So it's vanilla ice cream, simple and lovely. Keep cool, no stress, no overplanning and a devil-may-care sensibility. And try to avoid melting. And eat ice cream! That's the general aim for the rest of the summer too, now that the majority of the social madness of hens and stags, weddings, christenings, is winding down. Lazy days ahead...

I finally almost finished* a dress for Sew Retro, but will probably redo some of the seams so that the zip (basted in but not sewn) fits better. Oh, and I'll obviously hem it. And sew in the straps - I'm so not finished this dress, mutter mutter... but I really like it. And it's really flattering, and it made me smile instinctively when I put it on. Can you really ask more than that? It's not perfect but eh, so what. It's got character. It's got potential. Just being motivated to press on is enough, really. Really.

Have fun in the sun (if it's your hemisphere's summertime). See you soon...

*me post something that actually ~is~ finished? Oh now, I think the heat is getting to you...

The Centre of Attention

I found a very effective way of meeting new people in the neighbourhood. It's astounding how many people come out of the woodwork when there's something to look at... and yesterday it was me, after a truck crashed into my car.

Everyone's ok, phew, but of course both drivers involved were extremely shook up and I know I'm still a little out of sorts. I was just pulling out of the parking space in front of our house, we live on a T-junction which can be very busy, what with our little corner shop accepting deliveries and mums on the school run etc. A HGV was pulled up blocking the junction, and I thought that he was probably dropping off goods - which he was, but actually to the community centre around the corner which he had overshot somewhat. There was a car behind beeping him to move on, and someone else trying to pass from the other side - apparently he was arguing with one of the drivers (which prompted the shopkeeper's wife to come out to see what was going on) and made a snap decision to move, to let at least one of the drivers out.

However, he didn't check his blind spot before moving (yes, that's where I was, in our little buggy) and just as I was checking mine for the second time before moving off - I suddenly saw a window full of truck as it slammed into me. Glass rained down as the driver window was decimated, and the door impacted towards me, rather a little too close for comfort. Next thing I know he's outside, frantically trying to make sure that I'm ok, and the audience starts to gather! The driver thought he had really hurt me as he heard screaming, but I think that was the shopkeeper's wife, not me - though perhaps in extreme need I could project that far...

That all led to a very shaky day, trying to sort out details and recovery vehicles and hire cars and tow trucks. The other driver completely admitted liability - and we reported it to the one of the local Mounted Police - they pass by our house six or eight times a day as I presume they are stabled nearby, I was very glad to see them yesterday. Very possibly the worst part of the day was when the @*&%$£$ at the insurance company misinformed me that in fact I wasn't insured on the car - at which point I very nearly threw up, the thought of driving around without insurance... anyway.

What was really reassuring about it all was that lots of people came to help, or came by during the day - one of our new neighbours, everyone from the shop, the manager of the centre that the driver was delivering to, and even the foreman of the site down the road - firstly he thought that it was one of his drivers - he was incensed, and said he'd effing kill them. I don't doubt he would have done it personally. God knows what or indeed who will end up in the foundations of those flats.

So much for collecting the new curtains (which was where I was headed). I think I'll get them posted to me.

In other developments, I may now have made the disaster dress a bit too small! Hah, is that the metallic tang of irony that I'm choking on.

My brother comes to visit tonight, for the first time in about seven years, which is very cool. He'll be off haunting the Imperial War Museum, he's such an anorak.

And to end, I think I found the perfect secret garden in Lewes this weekend. Can you imagine the girl with long brown hair, wearing the crinoline dress, peeping out from behind the roses?

Eyes almost open

This morning I had a lie-in as it was 7.00am when I woke. I'm taking advantage of the fact that I can get a few minutes of quiet time alone down here before the guests wake, and the electrician and carpet fitter arrive. Admittedly I normally wake about 6.30am anyway, but at the moment I'm sleeping in our 'new' [finally renovated and moved into after two-and-a-half years] bedroom - hurrah - which is south-facing and has had only one blind installed - boooooooooo. It's like being interrogated by nature from 4.30am every morning. The new room is also that much closer to our marvellous little corner shop, which sells almost everything known to man and housewife, even organic wine - hurrah - and reduces hugely the need for me to use Big Corp Supermarkets - double hurrah - but opens at 6.30am with deliveries starting from 6.00am, usually with a lot of associated banging and clamouring - boo boo boooo. Even with earplugs and a sleeping mask, I'm not getting a lot of shut-eye. I'm surprised the kids aren't frightened by me when I crawl out of the bedroom to do breakfast.

We've also hit on the idea of the kids using the eye masks from the airplane too, as the 5 year old, B, thinks that as soon as it's daylight it's time to get up and start playing Playstation. So he kicks his ever patient brother, I, until he drags himself downstairs to switch the machine on. It's daylight at 4.30am.

To recap a little, I did manage to get the biscotti done, the aroma of chocolatey vanillaness was permeating the whole house when the guests piled in on Saturday morning, plus we had the bread in the oven - mmmmmm. Of course to add to the atmosphere there was the carpet fitter banging on the stairs, doing a poor job of laying the last of the runner, and the plasterer was in the front bedroom with a jackhammer, smashing out the prounounced hearth with a view to re-laying it later. Welcome to the insanity that is our home!

The guests have come with their own agenda and plans, which has been great as I've been largely housebound. They've done the open top bus tour, Madame Tussauds, Covent Garden, Harrods, the Rainforest Cafe, the London Eye, the Tower of London and the Natural History Museum, and more. Thankfully, we've had glorious weather for the last week, with just the odd shower yesterday which has been perfect for sightseeing. Didn't even use all the 'weather-cover' options, so they have a few more places to go today if when it rains!

I'm still working on the gold Woo-hoo skirt, I did get some more sequins done yesterday but I'm still unsure. I hope I'll get to the dress today (have to be positive and stop calling it the Disaster Dress) to see if it can be salvaged but I don't think I'll be finished on it by tomorrow for the wedding, as doing the bodice the first time took me almost a day. I am a bit concerned that the embellishment on the skirt makes it look cheap. As someone else said (sorry, can't remember - was it the wonderful Miss Twiss?) it's less of the 'oh where did you get that skirt?', more of the 'you made that yourself, didn't you...'

I got my packages from Posy Gets Cozy, really love the fabrics.

Today the electrician comes to replace all the socket plates and light switch covers, and to install the new lights, and the fight about the carpet starts (I'm just predicting that one but I have a feeling it's going to be ugly). I call the blinds company to find out when the other one is arriving. Tomorrow the joiner finishes hanging the doors and puts the handles on. Next week the painters finish the gloss paint on the doors, I collect the curtains and get them hung. Then I try to get out of the house...