Tuesday, January 20, 2015

DIY - The Curse



          Unable to find what I wanted in any stores, I’m now into day three of my McCall’s 90 minute curtains.
As a complete departure from my usual seat-of-my-pants method of sewing I began by actually reading the directions beforehand. Or at least trying to. If nothing else, this pattern has proven what a dearth of decent technical writers there is today.
          Before I ever got near the actual directions I had to first plow through a page full of oh-so-helpful hints, some of which were screamingly obvious and others that had no bearing at all on this pattern. (A board? When am I going to be attaching this valance to a board? And why isn’t it listed in the notions to buy?)
Yes, I admit to making not only the pillows,
but the curtains and pad for the bench.
          It’s not that I’m lacking in sewing experience. I’m still the pillow queen. I’ve whipped up pillows for the porch, the couch, the kitchen. Big ones, long ones, quilted ones.  Just last week I felt positively hedonistic when I bought one ready-made at a store.
          Years ago, due to a lack of money and a large dash of stay-at-home-mom cabin fever I made many of our kids' clothes. Aside from skirts and shirts, I’ve made a bathing suit and a blazer, both of which I actually wore, several quilts, and a slipcover or two, although I will say I’ve never been any good at trousers.
          Knowledge may be power, but it’s also loaded with guilt. I wrote a couple of days ago about paying someone else to paint a room and our hallway. With our history here in Welcome Words Land, this wasn’t the easiest thing to do. We’re not used to paying other people to do what we know we’re perfectly capable of doing ourselves. If you can do it yourself, we probably have.
          Just last year I painted the living room myself. We’ve refinished furniture, wallpapered (some rooms 3 or 4 times), and upholstered at least two chairs. When we moved here from our home of 22 years where we raised our kids, we didn’t do anything so spineless as to hire a moving company. We rolled up our collective sleeves and rented a truck.
          When our sweet future son-in-law from Queens came to visit for the first time, my husband was building a deck and I was kneading bread while fried chicken simmered on the stove.  It was an eye-opening moment for him, but to his credit I will say that over the years he’s certainly developed into quite the do-it-yourselfer, too.
          Most people I know wouldn’t think twice about buying an apple pie as opposed to making it, or paying someone else to hem those new pants.
We’re still learning how to let go here, but I will say I’m especially enjoying viewing my newly painted walls without the usual sore back and arm.
        I’ll keep you posted on the curtains. Tomorrow – day four – could be the big day.
           

15 comments:

  1. I admire people who enjoy (and are good at) DIY. I must say I am the exact opposite of you. I buy things and hire people!

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  2. I'ts about keeping your hand in, or scissors, as may be. And, you're not making a curtain, you're making curtains.

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  3. Maybe you will motivate me to start on that valance. I bought the pattern and cloth years ago!!! I used to be a bit of a seamstress, like you, but have not really sewed much for years and it is not like riding a bicycle. Like you we do most our selves, except construction is way out of our league.

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  4. I used to sew and had a little portable Singer that I loved. Then decades passed and I bought myself a new Husqvarna and cannot figure it out. When I try to sew something, I spend hours trying to make the machine do what I want, and then when I try it again, I have to relearn how to use the darn thing.I sure miss my simple Singer. I cannot imagine making trousers; they have so many little doodads that have to be just right! :-)

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  5. I drive to the store and buy pie....I do it myself too lol.

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    1. See?You've just found another version of DIY!

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  6. I'd say anybody who can make a bathing suit and a blazer could do about anything. Seriously! Can't wait to see the curtains.

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  7. We all pick our own battles. Yours seem to be curtains. I battle with my sewing machine so good luck:)

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  8. As I age my do it yourself ability is decreasing. There are some things I would never do again. I would not paint the inside of the kitchen cupboards again. I'm too stiff to paint cupboards. Good on you for being a do it yourselfer.

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    1. Yeah, well the bathroom needs painting and I'll let my fingers do the dialing for that!

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  9. Your McCall patterns made me smile. My mom had a bureau full of patterns from 1950 to late 1980s. They were ruined when the basement flooded. We both agreed that was one of the losses that we felt more deeply.

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  10. I'm with you on technical writers and instructions these days. Who writes these things? Its like they went through Google translator. I got a new digital converter for slides that took me two days to figure out the instructions, and there were many pages. In the end, it was pretty simple and could have been explained in about five steps. Argh! Good luck with your curtains.

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  11. My father used to say with some bit of pride that 'they don't make tools to fit my hand'. I could never understand why he thought that was a good thing., having to call someone to get anything done.

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  12. Four days for ninety minute curtains. I wonder if that is some sort of record? I do "cheaters" curtains; hem top and bottom, slide the rod through and hang them. Done.

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  13. You are so determined! I do miss my sewing days. I made a pillow cover last Christmas and found threading the needle tough.
    Love how they turned out.

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