Christmas Flannel 2016/1960s

Look at those people! There's my parents! My mom made her own dresses! There's my sister! I'm the goof in the front; I'm the baby! They are so cute! That table top artificial tree! What I wouldn't give for one like that!

 Flannel jammies have been in my family since forever.

My stepgrandmother had one pattern, and she made us new flannel ruffled nightgowns from it every year. It is the only thing she sewed for us. She was not real great with children; she wasn't a bad person, she was a great wife to a very cranky man. I joke that my mother was raised by wolves. They certainly did not let my stepgrandmother raise her, and I know that hurt both of them. There was a certain remove in these nightgowns. More of an idea of what theoretical children might wear.

I am pretty sure that I am wearing the hand-me-downs from my sister in some of these photos.  They never wore out, because they were just too heavy and stiff to wear to bed.

But they did get photo ops.

These are, for the most part, the only photos I have of me and my sister as kids. We just didn't take photos, so my grandmother was the photographer of record on the annual Christmas visit. 

Mmm leopard print slipper boots! And Barbie wigs. And Barbie's speedboat (floor at right) We had Barbie's Corvette and her Dreamhouse as well. Barbie did alright by us.

Yes, I had the same haircut in every photo. 

I prefer to work in a less ruffled idiom, the one piece pajama bottoms.

They have not agreed to be photographed for the blog in pajamas, but I do have previous photos of them in them.

I redraft the pattern every year, though the teen men just get longer, not wider. The spouse is pretty skinny, but not 17/19 year old skinny. 

Nevertheless, they are cut on the baggy side.

College Teen has asked for pockets to be added to his. For his phone when he goes to class in them.

(I had forgotten about that aspect of college)

But I am proud that this is the first pair he'd wear out of the house.

That's kind of an odd compliment, but I'll take it. 

Yes, I bought the bolt. Only 6yds left though, on 44". Shrank to 5 1/2, but very very soft and fluffy

I got two by doing single layer cuts. I milked one more set using the selvage pieces

Button in the front for easy dressing

Three men, three pair. The one here that wore his right away, and asked for it to be washed right away: he's staying in the will.

For a JoAnn's  novelty flannel, it washed up to be surprisingly and absurdly soft and fluffy. I have about 5/8 of a yard leftover, that will appear as a lining somewhere. 

Because fluffy.

And Star Wars.

Princess Leia, you get better soon!

Gussets, Puppets, Chicken, Flannel: this week in work

Starting in June, I have a stretch of full to bursting employment in the office and  in the sewing cave (and we do know it's really a cave, right?)

A bodice was taken in

Sleeve gussets were added to a too small dress

Ant puppets were made. This is version one, an actual sock puppet made of socks. Sorry it's such a dark and blurry picture, it's from a quick demo video I did and it's gone now. Deemed "too sweaty" sadly. Version three is under review. There's still four more tech rehearsals and I know that means three more versions until we're cranking out an army at the last minute.

I love it.

Chicken stock was made and frozen.

(this is so slack: we buy rotisserie chicken, strip it and eat it. I stuff the carcasses into a plastic bag in the freezer. When the need/space/time arises, I shove those into a crock pot slow cooker, chop an onion, add water to fill and a bay leaf and let it go until rendered. eight hours? Take that, strain out the stuff, chill it and skim off the solid fat. Put that in a wide pan and simmer it to reduce. This time I didn't burn it. It takes time but it doesn't take effort, and it makes other stuff taste amazing)

A JoAnn's coupon was used to buy Xmas jamas flannel

.

This shrank a little, but fluffed up beyond my expectations and six yards only lost about a 1/3 cup of lint. Dang! It's so fluffy now! Mine, all mine!

 (oh, the Armani bag! Like a postcard from a different decade of my life, it appears and disappears from time to time).

But there are more dresses waiting.

As of this moment, I've got 32 done, 18 to go, with 18 days left. 

And patterns to finish testing. A second set of puppets on the bubble. The usual mom stuff. 

and

Halloween!

We're going with the Dr Who stuff. It's faster to rehab and wear.

And I have a ray gun to repair.

Make good stuff. Not too much candy. See you later.