Creases and sequins
How is life treating you?
I am feeling a bit frumpy. I suppose I am a bit frumpy. I gave myself a fright yesterday when I took a few innocent selfies to show you a sparkly top I had made before Christmas. As you can see, I am not sharing the full fashion shoot. I was going to spare you the pain but then I thought heck, you can cope with a few wrinkles. I don't know what happened to my face and neck, both all of a sudden got all creased and wrinkled and puffy all at once. You know the kind of creases that you might find in the morning when you have been sleeping with your face pressed into the pillow (drooling gently in my case)? The kind of crease that you can move to a different part of our face? I have some of those, and and plenty of normal wrinkles, too. I am turning 50 this year and I look it.
Back to the fashion part of this post. The sparkly top is simple raglan t-shirt with front and back made of colourful sequins. The pattern is by Blank Slate (Rivage Raglan). It is my favourite t-shirt pattern. I've only worn the sparkly top a couple of time because it is a bit scratchy, even with a camisole underneath. I am not sure why I wanted to make a sequinned top, it is not my usual style but I quite like it. Sewing with sequinned fabric is not as tricky as I thought it would be. I used my sewing machine rather than the overlocker. I wasn't sure if the blades would be blunted when cutting the through the sequins. If you have tried this, let me know. Now that I know that sewing with sequin fabric is no more challenging than normal sewing, I might make something more elegant. If only I had the need for a beautiful evening gown! The fabric is from MinervaCrafts. If there was ever an online fabric shop in urgent need of a good website designer, this is it. One example of a major flaw is that fabric can only be ordered in 1 metre increments. No half metres or 1.5 metres or (gasp) 1.2 metres. Not good for those of us who would like to sew more sustainably. Mind you, sequin fabric is no doubt a crime against the environment. It is also difficult to find specific items because the search function is rubbish. I rarely buy at this vast online emporium of all things creative, which is a shame because it has so much to offer.
On to some other random news...
I have gained a bit of reputation as birdwatcher. I got not one but two emails from a colleague and a friend respectively to alert me to the recent waxwing sightings in the Westend of Glasgow. I've seen a pair a few years ago although at the time I didn't know it was waxwings. Little did I know then! I only really watch birds in my garden and when I am out walking. There are some interesting sightings here, too. A female blackcap visits sometimes. These birds usually migrate South in the winter and I have never seen one before, not even in the summer. I can't help to think that the changing weather patterns are to blame.
I just finished listening to The Lost Man by Jane Harper. I love this book, the narrator was really good, as was the story. I felt I was right there in the Australian outback, covered with an imaginary layer of red dust. Thank you CJ and Liz for the recommendation. I am listening to War Doctor by David Nott. It is grim but fascinating.
Woman's hour was good last week. I listened to all five episodes during the weekend. One of the features of the week was how it feels to be fat. The women talking were just awesome. Although I have lost a lot of weight last year, I am still quite overweight and I found the features quite difficult to listen to, emotionally. Body positivity is very trendy but it occured to me while listening to one of the women that is not easy to feel positive about yourself when you are at the top of the stairs gasping for breath, or when tying your shoe laces becomes a struggle. I am glad to say that I don't have those problems.
Today started with a an explosion of porridge. James dropped a hot bowl on the floor. The bowl remained intact but the porridge was everywhere, including my freshly laundered clothes that were looking for attention in a big blue Ikea bag nearby. I now know that it is not an easy task to scrape porridge of an old wood panel door. I did my best but there might still be some left, which now will solidify into immovable porridge concrete. I wonder if porridge might be a useful building material.
I am looking forward to the next session with the beginner's running group. The first session was fun and I was pleased to find myself somewhere in the middle of the pack. The coach kept saying that we should only focus on our own pace but honestly, nobody wants to be last. Apparently the running club is going to do a park run takeover at the end of the programme... regular club members are marshalling and encouraging us newbies along the route. I am not sure how I feel about this.
James enjoyed a very muddy weekend. He went to cross country training on Saturday (heavy rain and high winds) and competed in his first cyclocross race on Sunday (no rain). He thought both were amazing. I don't know where he finds the determination to subject himself to what I would consider pure torture...
Our house is battered by wind, hail and rain. I am going to miss my evening run I think.
Thanks for stopping by, it is good to see you.
I am feeling a bit frumpy. I suppose I am a bit frumpy. I gave myself a fright yesterday when I took a few innocent selfies to show you a sparkly top I had made before Christmas. As you can see, I am not sharing the full fashion shoot. I was going to spare you the pain but then I thought heck, you can cope with a few wrinkles. I don't know what happened to my face and neck, both all of a sudden got all creased and wrinkled and puffy all at once. You know the kind of creases that you might find in the morning when you have been sleeping with your face pressed into the pillow (drooling gently in my case)? The kind of crease that you can move to a different part of our face? I have some of those, and and plenty of normal wrinkles, too. I am turning 50 this year and I look it.
Back to the fashion part of this post. The sparkly top is simple raglan t-shirt with front and back made of colourful sequins. The pattern is by Blank Slate (Rivage Raglan). It is my favourite t-shirt pattern. I've only worn the sparkly top a couple of time because it is a bit scratchy, even with a camisole underneath. I am not sure why I wanted to make a sequinned top, it is not my usual style but I quite like it. Sewing with sequinned fabric is not as tricky as I thought it would be. I used my sewing machine rather than the overlocker. I wasn't sure if the blades would be blunted when cutting the through the sequins. If you have tried this, let me know. Now that I know that sewing with sequin fabric is no more challenging than normal sewing, I might make something more elegant. If only I had the need for a beautiful evening gown! The fabric is from MinervaCrafts. If there was ever an online fabric shop in urgent need of a good website designer, this is it. One example of a major flaw is that fabric can only be ordered in 1 metre increments. No half metres or 1.5 metres or (gasp) 1.2 metres. Not good for those of us who would like to sew more sustainably. Mind you, sequin fabric is no doubt a crime against the environment. It is also difficult to find specific items because the search function is rubbish. I rarely buy at this vast online emporium of all things creative, which is a shame because it has so much to offer.
On to some other random news...
I have gained a bit of reputation as birdwatcher. I got not one but two emails from a colleague and a friend respectively to alert me to the recent waxwing sightings in the Westend of Glasgow. I've seen a pair a few years ago although at the time I didn't know it was waxwings. Little did I know then! I only really watch birds in my garden and when I am out walking. There are some interesting sightings here, too. A female blackcap visits sometimes. These birds usually migrate South in the winter and I have never seen one before, not even in the summer. I can't help to think that the changing weather patterns are to blame.
I just finished listening to The Lost Man by Jane Harper. I love this book, the narrator was really good, as was the story. I felt I was right there in the Australian outback, covered with an imaginary layer of red dust. Thank you CJ and Liz for the recommendation. I am listening to War Doctor by David Nott. It is grim but fascinating.
Woman's hour was good last week. I listened to all five episodes during the weekend. One of the features of the week was how it feels to be fat. The women talking were just awesome. Although I have lost a lot of weight last year, I am still quite overweight and I found the features quite difficult to listen to, emotionally. Body positivity is very trendy but it occured to me while listening to one of the women that is not easy to feel positive about yourself when you are at the top of the stairs gasping for breath, or when tying your shoe laces becomes a struggle. I am glad to say that I don't have those problems.
Today started with a an explosion of porridge. James dropped a hot bowl on the floor. The bowl remained intact but the porridge was everywhere, including my freshly laundered clothes that were looking for attention in a big blue Ikea bag nearby. I now know that it is not an easy task to scrape porridge of an old wood panel door. I did my best but there might still be some left, which now will solidify into immovable porridge concrete. I wonder if porridge might be a useful building material.
I am looking forward to the next session with the beginner's running group. The first session was fun and I was pleased to find myself somewhere in the middle of the pack. The coach kept saying that we should only focus on our own pace but honestly, nobody wants to be last. Apparently the running club is going to do a park run takeover at the end of the programme... regular club members are marshalling and encouraging us newbies along the route. I am not sure how I feel about this.
James enjoyed a very muddy weekend. He went to cross country training on Saturday (heavy rain and high winds) and competed in his first cyclocross race on Sunday (no rain). He thought both were amazing. I don't know where he finds the determination to subject himself to what I would consider pure torture...
Our house is battered by wind, hail and rain. I am going to miss my evening run I think.
Thanks for stopping by, it is good to see you.
I love the rainbow sequins paired with the black, perfect for a raglan top!
ReplyDeleteLovely colourful sequins. Between them and your beautiful smile noone will bother about noticing any wrinkles. We are too hard on ourselves. I decided at 40 (possibly while still on a high from the birth of the first of my children a couple of months before!) just to be grateful for life and health and it has been refreshing as I had dreaded every birthday from 25 to 39! I am 51 now and it is pretty fine :-) Thank you for sharing your thoughts and your makes on your blog. I always enjoy a read.
ReplyDeleteYou look great!
ReplyDeleteDon't they say that 50 is the new 30? :)
Fabulous sequins and I am seconding what Marion says about your smile, you are lovely, so stop looking for wrinkles. And sixty is the new forty, so fifty is nothing at all. Glad you enjoyed The Lost Man, Jane Harper really does instil such a sense of place doesn't she. We've never seen waxwings, although the biggest boy and I did make a pilgrimage to the car park at the big Tesco where there was a whole flock feasting on the rowan berries. Sadly missed them though. I know what you mean about boys enjoying sprinting/cycling about the place in the cold and the mud. But well done James, he has my admiration. Hope you're having a good week. CJ xx
ReplyDeleteI'm 55 and since I turned 50 suddenly no amount of Oil of Olay will now hold back the creases and wrinkles! I try and smile more so those deep lines at the side of my mouth look like smile lines. I try and look thoughtful to make excuse for my forehead wrinkles! And the only cure for my turkey neck is to hide it in a polo neck or scarf. Oh well. I love your sparkly top. Best, Jane x
ReplyDeleteThere are many worse "reputations" that you could have other than a bird watcher - be proud of this one! We see Cedar Waxwings around here, normally in late Winter and early Spring when they arrive in groups, eating the leftover berries. I've been lucky enough to find one of their feathers with red waxy wingtip.
ReplyDeleteYou are beautiful Christina...age is only a number. Love the sequin top but sadly I need comfort these days so fabrics of this nature are a non starter. Hope you manage to get the porridge cement off the door.
ReplyDeleteI try not to focus on the wrinkles. I got a shock with a selfie after fifty, too. We are only going to get older. Congratulations on the running. I find I really need to get outside and exercise in the cold weather. It gets the endorphins going.
ReplyDeleteEveryone needs a sparkly top to wear! I'm 20 years older than you so I've come to terms with the wrinkles and extra padding on my bones. It is.. what it is.. no going back. When I was your age I was living on my sailboat for 4 months in the San Juan Islands of Washington USA. LOL! Time marches on. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
ReplyDeleteAh those creases and wrinkles. I am surprised these days when I see younger people without them. The nerve.
ReplyDeleteYour top looks fabulous! I've never tried sewing with sequins for much the same reason as you but I may give it a go, especially if Rachel wants something sparkly. I've never heard of waxwings but we have plenty of black cockatoos flying about at the moment which is a good sign as they always mean rain. In fact, as I'm sitting here (at 3.30am) it's just started to shower a bit. Bliss and very much needed. Lets hope we get a lot more. xx Susan
ReplyDeleteChristina, you may have be able to start something if porridge can be used as a cement product, and oatmeal may work the same as it always adheres to the pot. Wrinkles and creases are to be ignored because after all there's nothing to be done about them and the alternatives are not good either. The top is very colorful and not a project I could accomplish at all. Hope your weather imprioves as ours is about to go downhill over the next few days.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful sparkly top, and you always come across on your blog as beautiful and sparkly too so stop worrying about the wrinkles.
ReplyDeleteYour sparkly top looks fab and so do you. (Wrinkles? I'm the human version of linen.) So pleased you enjoyed The Lost Man. Can also highly recommend Where The Crawdads Sing. I loved it.
ReplyDeleteI love your sparkly top and that is a great picture so don't worry about getting older. I think you look great and aren't you so much happier in yourself than you were at twenty? I know I am. Take care. x
ReplyDeleteI don’t know about body image but you don’t look in the least puffy or wrinkly to me! It’s a lovely photo.When I look in the mirror I keep wondering who the old lady is who looks back at me. Love your sparkly top!
ReplyDelete