Finished Summer Blouse!

So, I finished my summer blouse from Weekend Sewing. I had read a lot of reviews of this pattern and they all said to shorten the front facing and the sleeves, lengthen the body and lower the neckline. I had also heard that this voile was really slippery. So with all that in mind I did all my proper sewing things: I made a muslin, I pinned my pattern onto the fabric (instead of just laying it out like I usually do), I used actual dressmaking pins and cross-pinned (put pins vertically and horizontally to keep things in place), and sewed relatively slowly. And the result:

I like what I've got. The body is a little unstructured and boxy (this is another complaint about this blouse), but I like it that way because I don't have a waistline to show off in any case. I must have freakishly long arms because I shortened the sleeves and they are more like 3/4 length for me when I'm actually doing things, and I should have done them full length. This fabric is soft and drapes beautifully and this makes for a nice, casual summer blouse. Now I just need to stitch on a button.

The skirt is also made by me -- its a repurposed pair of well loved jeans. I love this skirt, too, and so I had to add these patches this morning when I pulled it out of the closet as there was a big hole where the two original pieces of pant leg cross over. Because this was kind of a weird place to patch a skirt I added a few other patches to make it look more like a design decision rather than an oddly placed patch.

And, just so there's another photo, here's my fabric pulled for my messenger bag:

I'd like to get this put together for tomorrow since I start work and I need a bag for hauling files and marking and the like back and forth to and from school on the bus / metro. But I somehow don't think I'll get it done tomorrow morning.

After 6 1/2 years of more or less staying home, I'm a little nervous about going back to teaching full time. But I'm really excited, too. I love being a teacher -- its always been my dream and passion to inspired students to live well and learn actively.

I'm feeling very blessed and a little overwhelmed today. Life is about to change dramatically for us and our little nest. Wish us well.