Wednesday, November 2, 2016

A Ninja Turtle And A Bum Gallbladder

Well hello there!  Long time no see, er... you know what I mean.  I'm alive.  For the most part.  I didn't mean to disappear for so long because I very much enjoy interacting in this space.  But life has been interesting lately.  I actually have been sick.  My gallbladder!  Having a bum gallbladder has been pretty life altering.  I got really sick at the end of July and then missed the entire first month of school while being sick and having all sorts of inconclusive tests done.  Don't you love it when doctors tell you there is nothing wrong with you when there very obviously is? Twenty-two pound weight loss later,  I made an appointment with a surgeon and had my gallbladder out.  I have been recovering ever since (doing much better now).  It was no fun.  I also have completely changed my diet.  I'm eating very carefully and avoiding all sorts of things at the moment.  Which means I have learned to cook.  And I am cooking all the time.  All the time.  It doesn't leave much time for sewing, this making-dinner-from-scratch thing.  I miss it.  Anyway, I'm figuring out how to balance it all.  I recently sat down at my sewing machine after a three month long hiatus and I made this:


Who is this girl?  This is Jane.  She's definitely not Baby Jane anymore.  She has somehow morphed in to this tall, long-legged little girl who love ninja turtles.  She is such a nut.  She wanted to be a ninja turtle for Halloween.  The orange ninja turtle, to be specific.  I could have bought a costume this year but I'm so glad I didn't.  This is my Halloween tradition.  I wish I could explain how I made this little vest/hoodie thing but I made it up as I went along.  I used fleece again.  I think I've used fleece for all of her Halloween costumes so far.  Its so easy to sew a costume with.  Hides mistakes well.  I used the same McCalls hoodie pattern that I used last year for her dinosaur costume.  I had already cut the pattern but had another pattern piece where I could see the size differences.  I cut the longest length (a size 5, I think) and added a little bit of width to the body (which previously was a size 2).  I didn't change the shoulders at all since her dinosaur hoodie still seems to fit her.  I could have used a bit more width in the body but I think that's because of the shell on the back.


The order of construction is what I made up as I went along.  The shell mainly.  I cut two oval-ish shapes for the shell, stitching hexagon-ish shapes on the top piece.  I sewed darts at each 'corner' of the top shell piece to give it more shape.  I sewed the bottom oval to the back hoodie piece first.  I stitched it on as a big oval in the middle.  Then, I sewed the front pieces of the hoodie to the back.  Then I sewed the top of the turtle shell to the bottom shell, pinning the hoodie inside. I left a hole and flipped the whole thing inside out through the hole.  I probably didn't explain that very well but like I said, I was making it up as I went along.  There was a belt in there somewhere, too.  I was pumped it all worked, especially since I was so rusty on the sewing machine.  There is some seriously shoddy sewing on this costume, so don't look too closely.  I lined the whole thing with some thin knit in my stash and added the drawstring to the hoodie.


The shell is stuffed with polyfill.  It  kind reminds me of a backpack.  I should have made it a backpack! Ah well.  Jane was insistent on having me make the orange mask, but then refused to wear it on Halloween.  She wore the hoodie and carried the pizza slice.  The pizza was a last minute idea/addition.  


She has some great girly ninja poses, doesn't she?  She is so funny.  I can't tell you how entertaining it is to have a three year old.  I'm pretty sure she loved her costume and we had a blast trick or treating the the other night.
  

Hope everyone is doing well!  Life seems to be returning to normal but I'm probably going to be absent from this space for a while longer.  At least until I get the hang of this cooking thing.  Ugh, meal planning...  

24 comments:

  1. What a great little costume! And I'm so sorry you were so ill.

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  2. Such a fun project to get you back at the machine! So worth it!!!

    Glad to hear you are getting better...good luck with your cooking journey!

    xx

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  3. Good to see you back, sorry you've been sick!! Maybe you can save on cooking/prep time w a slow cooker and get some more sewing time!

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  4. What a fantastic costume, Jane looks like she has a lot of fun wearing it. Sorry to hear you have been so sick, I hope your recovery is a smooth one and you are able to get back to sewing soon.

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  5. She looks adorable! Sorry to hear you've been so ill, but glad you're on the mend now. Like LLBB, I recommend a slow cooker and also cooking double portions of meals and freezing for another day.

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  6. super cute costume! and glad you are feeling better. good luck with the cooking. my favorite cooking thing is leftovers - cook 2x as much as you need for your family. the best part being on the 2nd night you have that time for other stuff (sewing) while the food is heating up:)

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  7. I'm sorry to hear you've been so ill but glad to hear you're getting better! This is such a brilliant Halloween costume. All my grand plans of sewing one for my 3 year old fell by the wayside - maybe next year!

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  8. How rubbish to have been so ill. I had similar issues last year with stomach ulcers and a hernia. My diet has totally changed too. It's time consuming cooking from scratch but better the pain of eating badly. Glad you are finding time to sew again because this costume is awesome. X

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  9. I'm so sorry you've been so sick! What a huge change, in such a rapid amount of time. I hope you're finally on the mend for good. Such an adorable costume for little Jane! She's a cutie :)

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  10. A good quality pressure cooker and a crockpot can totally save your bacon and give you back some precious "me time". Also, it's helpful to have a deep freeze where you can assemble casseroles and such to bake up later. Skip the chest style freezers though, they're too hard to find anything in, even if they are cheaper (look for a scratch'n'dent store in your area if you don't already have a good freezer). Whenever I make a "favorite" meal I double or triple it for freezing. It doesn't cost significantly more (usually), and since you're already going to the trouble of making _____________, it makes sense to make extra. And I should probably climb off my soapbox now....but if you need more tips, Google OAMC or shoot me an email.

    Anyway, sorry to hear that you got sick, hope you are on the mend now and can get your life back under control soon! Your daughter's outfit is AMAZING!! Imperfections or no, the whole effect is spot on, and I cracked up about the part where she wouldn't wear the mask--gotta love fiercely independent toddlers, eh? :-P

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  11. I am so sorry to hear that you've been ill! Glad that you're on the mend now. Wow, she's definitely grown up! I absolutely love how you made her costume. So cool!

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  12. well, it's good to hear that you're doing better now! and, jane looks adorable, and her costume is awesome :)

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  13. Oh goodness, you poor thing! Glad you are on the mend now... that costume is ADORABLE!!!!

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  14. I'm so glad that you are doing better and finally got a diagnosis. You will work out a schedule for cooking. I think I became such a great weekend sewist because working a full time job, cooking, checking homework and checking in on the kids didn't leave much time during the week. I was also a fan of cooking several meals at once to gain a little more time during the week.

    As for the sewing, you will get back to it when everything works out. As for your spot in the blogging community, we will all still be here when you return - at least I DEFINITELY will!

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  15. I'm so happy for you to have finally had a resolution to your sinking health!! how frustrating... and that weight loss is significant - I imagine your energy level really tanked.

    That little lovely thing is beyond precious. So cute and her costume is wonderful!! Clearly she loves it!

    Glad you're back and starting to feel better. We'll all be around when you pop back in with a post, hope you continue to gain strength and just enjoy life and family. Coco

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  16. I'm glad you're on the mend! I hope your new cooking/eating philosophy helps you regain your strength, too. Love this costume - when did she get so tall?!

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  17. How did she get so big?! Wonderful costume - I love that she loves Ninja Turtles. And, I'm sorry to hear that you've been so sick, but I'm very thankful to hear that you figured out what was wrong and are on the mend now. My guess is that you'll be a master chef before you know it.

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  18. Sorry to hear that you have been unwell but it is great that you are getting better. Jane looks so big. That is an awesome costume. I am sure that Halloween was a blast. Xx

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  19. I was wondering where you were!!!! I kept seeing the same picture of you I figured you got sick of blogging...take care of yourself!!!

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  20. That's a fabulously cute costume!
    Glad someone finally found out your problem and you're feeling better. :-)

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  21. Fantastic costume and nice job on the tinkersewing! Good luck with the new diet. I changed my diet this year and have seen a lot of improvement in my energy and general health - well worth the effort.

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  22. I'm so sorry to hear that you've been so sick, but I'm glad you got it figured out and that you're on the mend now. And really with cooking all your own meals, you'll probably much healthier because of it.
    Your little ninja turtle is awesome - you did such a great job on the costume. She looks like she would be nice an cozy too!

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    1. Oh one more thing. I know that cooking is really time consuming, but your slow cooker and freezer can really help - there are so many great ideas out there!

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  23. LOVE LOVE LOVE this costume!! Hope you are feeling better and that with time the baking takes less time and more sewing time comes back!

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