New Sewing Things

My stuff should be here in about 2 weeks or so and I really can not wait to sew something. After a really terrible year which included the loss of interest of things I once loved, I am ready to start over again. I'm already running and reading -- sewing is next! Here are a few new patterns I bought:

Butterick 6217

Butterick 6266

Vintage Vogue 9127

I also hit up a thrift store and picked up a few cheapies before I left Philly:

1987. Who doesn't need a Miami Vice jacket in their wardrobe?

1990. Couch cushion collection.

2008. Always love a skirt pattern!

I've also helped myself to a few sewing books. Three books with patterns and instructions on how to make various iconic movie dresses. I haven't been able to use them yet, so I can't speak about that. But the dress selections are nice.

These two "Famous Frocks" books are of modernized versions of famous dresses spanning 1930s to 1990s. Most of them have been way shortened and they are mostly "based on" instead of close replicas. Some dresses in these books are closer replicas than others. For example, the Bette Davis gown representing the 1930s has been heavily modified:

Audrey's gown representing the 1950s is closer to the real thing:

The Little Black Dress version seems to be closer to the originals. I don't mind the modified, modernized versions in the original Famous Frocks book, though. I think the Bette Davis example is very cute. I might end up making some of the dresses longer, though. They're all above the knee.

Today I got Sew Iconic in the mail, which has patterns and instructions for 10 iconic movie costumes. This one seems to be a bit closer to the originals and they actually look like COSTUMES, not a "wearable" version (again, I love both!):

The 10 dresses. Can you name the films?

Once my sewing machines get here I'm going to keep myself busy while I'm still not working yet! This blog will get more exciting very soon!

Shrine Of Remembrance

This post is not about sewing, but I've moved to Colorado and my things should be arriving from Pennsylvania within 2-3 weeks. While I am currently unemployed (but looking) I'm making the most of my days by "sightseeing." My first stop was the Shrine of Remembrance mausoleum in Colorado Springs. This was a special visit because it is the final resting place of Ruth Etting, who is one of my favorite singers.

This is it! She's all the way on the very top so I couldn't get close to her. Some vaults had decorations on them pertaining to what the person did in life: fireman, a telephone operator, a guitar player, etc. Ruth's vault is so underwhelming and there's no indication she was anyone special. As a matter of fact, when the man at the front desk asked me if I wanted to see someone particular I said "Ruth Etting." He said "Is she your relative?" I said "She's a singer from the 20s and 30s." He said "Do you mean Ethel Merman?" (who has a cenotaph at the same place.) I told him Ruth was another singer, but would love to see Ethel's cenotaph, too.

He said people come in to see Ethel's cenotaph quite frequently, but he had no idea who Ruth Etting was. Which is actually kind of sad that Ruth gets no love.

The rest of the place...OH MAN! I've never been to a mausoleum like this. There were the huge outdoor vaults (where Ruth is), but is was also a church-like building with vaults inside just this normal looking building. There were different rooms with vaults in the walls set up like living rooms or dining rooms. I wanted to move in, lol:

Wall of cremains

The entire place was beautiful! I would definitely love to visit again WITH someone else who can appreciate grave sites!