thimbly things

[That’s some kind of geek-speak that will be funny to my husband if no one else.]

Yesterday, I did FAIL–twice, in fact–in my attempt to make myself slippers. I got this grand idea from the hospital’s list of items to bring for labor & delivery. Funny source of inspiration, huh?

I have lots of great slipper pattern ideas from Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion and the Martha Stewart Holiday Handmade Gifts (special issue 2006). I eventually settled on the pattern in Sew Pretty Homestyle.

Things didn’t work out as planned. Perhaps because I didn’t have enough wool and thus used other materials. Or perhaps because I got carried away and sewed the sole on wrong-side out. OK, I made mistakes every step of the way, but they were still pretty cute in the end. Just a little flimsy.

So I pressed on, altered my pattern, added some bulk, and used stronger fabric. I even put a little felt on the bottom. Things were going swimmingly. Until I tried my second pair on.

Quite unfortunately, these must be a size 5 1/2 or something close. And I wear a 6 1/2 to 7. So they are snug. Very snug. Busting at the seams snug. My advice to anyone using Tone Finnanger’s pattern is to add to the seam allowance. Oh, and measure your feet before you dive in.

And that’s how I managed to FAIL twice in one evening. I think I’ll be wearing socks or flip-flops while in the hospital.

They are cute though. Don’t you think?

If I decide to make another pair of slippers (just the thought makes me a bit weary right now), I will knit or crochet some Mary Janes. If they’re too small, they’ll stretch. And if they’re too big… well, it will be hard not to realize that before the project is complete. I found what looks like a pretty cute pattern here. And here’s another pattern complete with tutorial. Would you expect anything less from Purl?

In other news, Dear Julia has offered to care for Emily, and I am ecstatic! I can’t think of anyone in a better position to help us with this. Thank you, Julia!

Today, I will (yes, I will!) clean and install Brother’s carseat. For some reason, I’ve been putting this off. Perhaps to make silly slippers that don’t fit? While I’m at it, I plan to vaccuum out the car. This hasn’t been done in, oh, about a year. (And another thank you to Julia for the Dust Buster… it will be put to good use today!)

This entry was posted on Friday, April 4th, 2008 at 12:03 pm and is filed under Crafting, Homekeeping, Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.