Rose Shirt Rehab

I mended this last weekend, but haven't yet worked it into an outfit.
Maybe this week, maybe this combo.

[From last year. Still valid]

Or maybe for Fluevog Day (Wednesday, May 15) with The Fluevog Dress?
We shall see!

I got this from Suzanne Carillo's Etsy Shop, Vintage by Suzanne -- she posted it on Instagram or maybe her blog and I HAD to have it.
There were some fit issues.

View this post on Instagram

Flora and Fauna on my feet! More socks I didn't wear. COTD (colors of the day) Friday: FLORA AND FAUNA! #COTDstyle #cotdrewind #cotdthrowback Shirt from #vintagebysuzanne

A post shared by anne m bray (@annembray) on May 25, 2018 at 8:01pm PDT

[I had to check PayPal to find when I purchased this -- it was A YEAR AGO!]

The shirt has an unusual '90's sleeve, which you can't see at all because the print is so distracting, so I drew flats, front and back:

I could rip out the center back sleeve seam, remove a couple of pleats and make room for my shoulders. And that's what I did.

Here, everything is ripped out and ready to reconfigure. I used extra fabric from cutting off the cuffs for the patches.

I used a 1" thick piece of corrugated cardboard as my "voodoo" board.

Everything in position to sew, need to sandwich upper part of patch between the outside and inside collar stands.

Added another interior patch in the same location.

Done! Once I get my sewing machine repaired, I can add matching edge stitching at the base of the patch.

Whoa, that was a lot of detailed work!
Time to party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Linking up with
Patti's Visible Monday
Shelbee's Spread the Kindness
Catherine's #ShareAllLinkup

Floral Mend

I had the notion to approach Mending Mountain with parameters.
Since May is Flower Link-up Month [see end of post], I pulled all the more-or-less floral patterned dresses out of the Dress Mend box (yes, I have them all categorized by garment):

Then did a photo shoot to determine whether any were even worth the effort.

Meh. It's uncomfortable. To Poshmark it goes.

I am obviously much happier in this number.
What you can't see is the broken zipper and the 12" gap at center back at my shoulders.
It needs major work. I'll do it, later.
[And this, my friends, is exactly the reason Mending Mountain exists].

This one has the strangest interior elastic cinching situation that took me a while to figure out.
On the fence -- it IS 100% cotton
May be good for one of Anita's Poolside Movie Nights. 

This one is really mid-calf length and too small and I hiked it up for the photo.
I have nostalgia for this, but is it worth rehabilitating?

This is a creation with issues. First of all, the neckline is too wide.
Second, too long!
Third, transparent!

Shorter definitely better.
Originally sewn for a 20's themed Movie Night from a silk sari.

Seriously. Where is my wand? Or my herd of sheep!
Just cutting a neck slit in this linen tablecloth is clearly not the answer!
Something more form-fitting would look much better.
Sometimes a rectangle is not the best solution.

No easy mends in this batch. Sigh. What am I going to do for my MeMadeMay pledge this week?

[that's my pledge]

Got florals?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Linking this up with
Shelbee's Spread the Kindness
Catherine's #ShareAllLinkup

April Showers Bring May Flowers, or so they say

Roses in Mar Vista on Grand View street. This home has The Best greenway rose garden.

I must make this quick [late for work, what else is new?]

Here's a new Link-up Party for May.
The theme is FLOWERS

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Linking this party to these parties:
Shelbee's Spread the Kindness
Catherine's #ShareAllLinkup

BLOOPERS! OUTTAKES!

So I have this very low attendance Link Party happening.
The original theme is/was Foolish Things.
BIG thanks to Shelbee for being the first party guest.

The intention behind my Link Parties is a little different from most Style Blogs.
I want you to go through your old posts to find treasures to link up.
Or your Instagram.
Did you know that you can add an Instagram post? Yes, you can!
(I will add my sad broken coffee mug for you. See below).

How about I change the theme to 
"Bloopers, Outtakes, Happy Accidents, and Foolish Things"?

Let's see what I can find for visuals...
Oh boy...

Bathroom selfies!

Here's what I actually posted:

View this post on Instagram

#stylediary 4.9.19. A rare #bathroomselfie The camera decided this morning that the stepladder "tripod" was much more interesting than me. #bloopers Wearing my first @gudrunsjoden garment. So comfy, 94% Lyocel, 6% Elastane. #iwillwearwhatilike

A post shared by anne m bray (@annembray) on Apr 9, 2019 at 2:09pm PDT

Here's the above-mentioned camera blooper (unedited):

This is how EVERYTHING looks when I take off my glasses.

Do you take self-timed photos?
I have a lot is these:

Look! It's Selfie Corner!

Selfies really lend themselves to Bloopers.
Especially when you have a group: Exhibit A. Exhibit B. (or see links below)

So, what have YOU got?
Join in!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

And speaking of joining Link Parties:
Adding to:
Patti's Visible Monday
Catherine's Share All Linkup
Shelbee's Spread the Kindness

I Pity the [April] Fool, April 2019 Linkup

Last year, while corralling links for my 2014 road trip journal, I came across this April Fool's Mr T linkup from 2014.

One of the many Mr T images/things that I found in 2014.
Click here to see more! Totally worth it! 

For April 2019, instead of dressing like Mr T, let's reveal and linkup some foolish things that we've done in the past (or currently, you fool, you).
I certainly have a few, how about you?

The gallery of foolish Poshmark purchases, shoe division.
What is it with the brown shoes, Anne? [only the Keds remain unsold -- yay]

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Linking this up with
Shelbee's Spread the Kindness
Catherine's #shareAllLinkup

It's Gingham Party Time!

Welcome to a new month of Link-up fun!
This month's theme is GINGHAM.
In a couple of weeks, I'll get all technical about gingham.
(Because I'm a professor and a textile geek and I can't help myself).
(Oh wait. I already did that here. Hey, I'll do it again!)

One is gingham, the other not. Can you tell which?

For now, give me your best shot!

Add your GINGHAM looks here:






This month's theme was inspired by Nancy and Shelbee's The Good Bye/Good-Buy Book series. They are accepting GINGHAM submissions still. See the link for more information.

#MeMadeMay Week 2: Tunic Rehabs

These items are NOT from Repair/Repurpose Mountain.
Instead, it was adding a tiny bit of hand sewing that made me love them all over again.

First, the green stripe rayon tunic.
It kept sliding off my shoulders and driving me batty.
The problem? Neck hole too wide!
A simple 2" in at the shoulder on both sides and my sanity was restored.

"This tunic matches my eyes. Yes, I'll pose with it."

Next, the Japanese kimono textile:

I'm "backstage" at the Palm Desert Civic Center Amphitheater.
Severo had a gig with The Pettybreakers. It was 106ºF.
I found this a good print for disguising spilled guacamole.
Write up on the Glutton blog soon.

And last, the BOOM! tunic, which I tolerated at work in order to be extra festive for the Otis Senior Exhibition after work.

The Chico's ombre dot scarf, acquired last year, pairs perfectly with the tunic.

At Otis. Couldn't figure out the student who created this mirror piece.

Linking up with Patti's Visible Monday

Catherines #iwillwearwhatilike

Oh yeah, DOTS!

#MeMadeMay '18 Week 1 -- Buttons

I blame Pao of Project Minima. She tempted me into this.
Last week, I signed an intention statement over on So, Zo's page:

[Now that I reread my statement, I might not be exactly following it this week. Oops].

This week I tackled the pile of shirts that need buttons replaced.

First, this shirt of Severo's:

Os are missing buttons, Xs are extras that I can move.

I really like the print on this. Even though it's made up of squares, it looks like dots.

Fixed! It only took ten minutes! And how long was it sitting in a To-Do pile?

I won't say!

Totally pretend outfit. Perhaps will wear tomorrow!

Next up, the African explosion shirt:

I gave this to Severo, then took it back.
I'm holding it closed where the button is missing because I haven't fixed it yet.

Linking up with Patti's Visible Monday

and Catherine's #iwillwearwhatilike

We're still on the Dots Month Linkup. Let's see those dots, new, old, whatever!

My skirt has dots, don't give me any grief.

May Lost and Found

There was that time I said I'd start doing a Lost and Found series.
[Words of warning: if I say "stay tuned" I think that files the idea into a fog of forgetfulness]. 

I wrote:
"Every time I'm looking for one thing, I find something else, something I've often COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN ABOUT! Usually it's a happy discovery. So, my plan is to document: 

1) what I was (or still am) looking for

2) what I found

Get ready for many "interesting" discoveries!"

There was also a time when I did regular link-up posts. The link-ups were always themed because I thought it would be more interesting. I suppose I also like bossing people around (I AM the eldest of four, so it's ingrained). When Rena and I met up at the Poshmark Live Party last month, she said how much she enjoyed my link-ups.

I FOUND this post recently, over on my Pattern blog (can't remember what I was searching for):

It has a really fun group of link-ups, and I'm resurrecting it!

As you can see in the screenshot above, it's a link-up from FOUR years ago. I'm including the original links. And the links post randomly! Fun, yes?

Get your dots on and join in!