January 1st, 2012

Happy New Year.


My husband went off this morning to three months in Tennessee, with two visits planned for me during that time.


For the first time in my life I will be alone in the house, that is if you don't count dogs. No kid in the basement, nothing.


It occurred to me that for the last few decades with work and family I have had this line running through my mind "If I only had 5 minutes to myself."


Well, you know now I have. Three months to work only on online courses, to be done at the dining room table, babysit as required, sew and blog.


You have been warned.


The first thing I did as soon as I got home from the airport was to cut out 12 pairs of panties. 


I have just made a pair from Jan Bones' Smoothie pattern and I love them. This pattern has been well-reviewed on Patternreview, all raves, so I won't add to it but to say this is a great pattern. Here are the features:


1. Your basic stop just about an inch below your navel pantie, but with the side seams moved to the front so there is no clear discernible seamline.
2. Good solid bum coverage. Right around and tucked in. This is useful if like me this is your biggest and best feature. Nothing hanging out, nothing bisected by an elastic line that shows when you wear pants.


These panties do the job and are nearly identical to a fancy expensive "invisible" pair I bought at Soma last year.


Now store bought panties are cheap. Who would make them and why?


1. See above on style.
2. Possibility of much nicer fabric. I used all my good 2-way cotton, rayon and bamboo knit scraps. So these are sort of cost neutral projects. This particular pattern encases ordinary 1/4" braided elastic so no fancy notions are required, although you could add those if you had a previous reckless purchase of some fancy elastic to write off.
3. They are super quick projects that you can make when you need to see that needle go up and down in some fabric but are not able to fully engage brain.


There are no illustrations as test pair one is in the wash. I intend on making a bunch up tomorrow, with a Jalie bra.


That will give you something to look forward to.


I also have to sound off.


One of those annoying Huffingtonpost over 50 articles recently did one of those truly annoying "things to never wear or do over 50" articles and listed "granny pants" meaning panties that go up near your waist, as one of the no-nos.


Women over 50, it said, should wear thongs, like elderly French women apparently. You know the ones they tell us never gain weight despite a diet of wine and goose liver and would rather shoot themselves in the head then ever run down to the drugstore at 11:00 at night in tennis shoes to get milk/bread/toilet paper without full make-up on over their exfoliated pores.


Listen. I don't buy this thong business so you might as well give it up. That includes my sister Nancy who claims they are comfortable. Look, a string up your privates is a string up your privates. Don't tell me you don't notice.


And if you have a nicely padded seat to sit on let me tell you nothing beats "The Smoothie" for just that.


Great pattern, even if the envelope drawing is a little dull.


Samples to follow.