It's 2015: I'm Ready

Assalamualaikum,

Bismillah...

 

Tirtamaya Beach

 

Oh my...I've gone for so long and it's 2015 already!!!

I'm very grateful for everything that I and my family have in 2014. Alhamdulillah!

I learned lots and lots of things in 2014....up and down, laughs and tears.

And now I'm ready for the next journey in 2015...in our new nest...very soon...

  

I hope every of you will have a great journey in 2015.

 

Wassalamualaikum.

Pointy Sleeve Dress

Assalamualaikum!

Bismillah...
 

Two weeks ago I tried to customize a pattern.

Really, I did envy all ladies out there who have made cute things with their own drafted pattern.

So... I pushed my self a little harder to work it out. My girl should be able to wear this dress on Sunday.

It was simplicity pattern that I have been used in making dress for my girl all this time. I used its bodice pattern as a guide to draw my own one.

The main idea was I wanted a simple A line dress with a small cap sleeve and a big pocket on the front (I always have problem with sleeve, though...sigh)

Okay, I went like this for the upper bodice:

1. I traced the bodice onto a paper.
2. For the cap sleeve, I drew a straight line extending the shoulder line about 1.5 inches
3. I marked the arm hole about an inch up from the bottom arm, and then I connected this to the end of the first line I drew. And I smoothed its corner by curving it a little bit. (I missed something out here, the dress would speak)
4. I cut down the length of the bodice to an inch from the bottom arm hole.

Front bodice: on the left was the original pattern

Back bodice

Sleeve

For the skirt I just make a slight A line. I wanted it as a top so it's about 8 inches in length.

Skirt: slight A line

I picked this love yellowish fabric for the skirt and red polka dot for the bodice.

The sewing was taken on Sunday...after I prepared meals for the whole family. Perhaps this was the fastest dress sewing I ever did, after the peasant dress. (Well it's took few hours work though....hahaha)

And here it is

Front view

Back view

For the closure I used 3 buttons with elastic loops. At first I planned using regular button holes, but time's ticking. (The original pattern called for zipper for closure) and I also skipped the pocket idea.

Did you notice something odd with this dress? I did.

1. The sleeves. If you took a look from the top you'd see it. It's pointy rather than curved

2. The up side down pattern on the front skirt.

I did not plan on that.  Lesson learned.

Anyway the dress was nicely fit on my girl. And we're having a great afternoon that day with a new dress fresh from the sewing table :)

Have a great day everyone
Wassalamualaikum.

Pretty Clutch

Assalamualaikum!

I have a new clutch...Errrr...What so special with that?
Remember this wallet? It's THE ONLY everyday wallet I have. Can't you believe that???
Well, I was planing to use only my handmade for my things, but poor me, I didn't have time was too lazy to make things. Most of the time I make thing when I need it. And yes, I need it now. This wallet really need some wash. On top of everything, I need to practice what I have learned from books and from great people out there who have willingly and kindly shared their knowledge.

For this clutch I used the tutorial from this book. For the fabric I used local canvas fabric for the outer and cotton for the lining. I was (still) experimenting on the interfacing. I used several types of interfacing for this clutch.

Two buttons?? Well...I did not plan on that. It was my hubb brilliant idea. He found me crying, screaming desperately knowing I mistakenly measured when installed the button after a long 3 hours working. He gave me the idea to install new button instead of replace the main body and used the old one for an accent. Brilliant!!

This clutch has 3 card slots, zippered pocket and 2 roomy compartment for cash, bills, and my cell phone. And my own label ;)

 Though it was not perfect, I was pretty pleased with the result as it was my first trial.
 And definitely will sew more. Practice makes perfect, right?!

Have a nice day
Wassalamualaikum!

Karena Wanita Ingin Dimengerti

Assalamualaikum!

Absen beberapa lama dan kembali dengan judul seperti lagu...
Anyway...ceritanya seperti ini, beberapa waktu lalu saya menerima pesan dari seorang kawan.
Isinya seperti ini (judulnya sama dengan di atas itu)

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Karena Wanita Ingin Dimengerti

Saat istri marah, ia belum tentu kesal.
Ia hanya butuh pengertian.

Saat istri menangis, ia belum tentu bersedih
Ia hanya butuh pelukan

Saat istri cemberut, ia belum tentu kecewa
Ia hanya butuh perhatian

Saat istri cemburu, ia belum tentu iri
Ia hanya butuh pujian

Saat istri menolak, ia belum tentu tak mau
Ia hanya butuh rayuan dan bujukan

Saat istri lelah, ia belum tentu merasa capek
Ia hanya butuh diajak jalan-jalan

Saat istri sakit hati, ia belum tentu terluka
Ia hanya butuh belaian

Namun

Saat istri tersenyum, ia belum tentu setuju
Bisa jadi ia sedang berusaha mengerti

Saat istri tertawa, ia belum tentu bahagia
Bisa jadi ia sedang berusaha membahagiakan suaminya

Saat istri diberi hadiah, ia belum tentu senang
Bisa jadi ia sedang berusaha menghargai

Saat istri terlihat tegar, ia belum tentu kuat
Bisa jadi ia sedang mencoba bertahan menghadapi ujian

Saat istri mengerjakan perintah suami, belum tentu sesuai keinginannya
Bisa jadi ia sedang berusaha untuk menjadi istri yang taat

Wahai para suami atau calon suami, selami lebih dalam psikologi pasanganmu. Karena bisa jadi ada makna di balik setiap kata dan ekspresinya.
Ini bukan masalah tiak adanya ketulusan dan keikhlasan. Namun belajarlah memahami tabiat seorang wanita yang rela mengorbankan sisa umurnya bersamamu.

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Setelah baca pesan (yang harusnya ditujukan ke laki-laki) itu, saya pun manggut-manggut, dalam  hati berkata "iya, kadang seperti itu"
Saya pun teringat seminar yang disampaikan oleh Dr. Aisyah Dahlan (Kepala Unit Narkoba RS Bhayangkara, Staff Ahli BNN).
Seminar yang menurut saya supppeeeeer sekali. Seminar yang bisa membuat pesertanya (saya terutama) menangis dan tertawa sekaligus. Ooooh ternyata gitu to (otak) perempuan dan laki-laki.

Beliau menjelaskan bahwa otak wanita dan laki-laki itu berbeda. Pembentukan otakpun dipengaruhi oleh hormon "wanita/laki-laki" (kok saya lupa ya istilahnya...testosteron dan progesteron???)
Hal itu telah dibuktikan dengan penelitian ilmiah tentang otak wanita dan laki-laki.
Mudahnya seperti ini...otak wanita yang pertama berkembang adalah otak kiri alias penuh dengan analisis, selalu serius...sedangkan otak laki-laki yang pertama berkembang adalah otak kanan yang penuh dengan permainan, bersenang-senang dan sebagainya.

Volume otak tengah pun berbeda. Otak tengah wanita itu lebih tebal dari pada otak laki-laki.

Wujud dari perbedaan tersebut misalnya:

Wanita itu multitasking, dapat mengerjakan beberapa kegiatan sekaligus. Sedangkan pria tidak.

Wanita butuh mengeluarkan setidaknya 20.000 kata perhari sedangkan pria (hanya) butuh 7.000 kata perhari. Makanya wanita itu "lebih cerewet". Bahkan untuk wanita yang pendiam pun butuh 18.000 kata per hari.
Kalau kebutuhan "bicara wanita" itu tidak terpenuhi maka  bisa bahaya misal "ngambek".
Sebaliknya bila pria telah mengeluarkan  7.000 kata dalam sehari maka dia akan jadi "pendiam".

Ketika wanita "curhat" belum tentu ia minta solusi...ia hanya ingin didengarkan.

Masih banyak lagi contoh yang diberikan oleh beliau. Jadi dari hal seperti itu masalah dapat muncul dalam hubungan antara pria dan wanita atau rumah tangga.
Beliau berharap dengan mengetahui perbedaan "otak" tersebut peserta diharapkan dapat lebih memahami pasangannya.

Cara Bu Aisyah saat menyampaikan seminar ini sungguh sangat menarik...beliau berikan contoh kejadian nyata dalam kehidupan sehari-hari, dan dengan cara yang sangat baik sekali. Fun tapi kena.

Oia saat itu peserta diberikan tes visual untuk mengetahui seberapa besar sifat maskulin/feminin masing-masing. Dan ternyata saya termasuk yang "tidak perempuan banget" alias ada sifat maskulinnya hehehehe

Yang belum pernah ikut seminar beliau ini, coba deh. Bagus lagi kalau bersama pasangannya. :)

Anyway...kok ngelantur gini ya jadinya....tak apalah pengingat diri... semoga bermanfaat

Wassalamualaikum

Have a nice day all...

Back and Still Alive!!

Assalamualaikum!


Whoaaaa...setelah sekian lama absen akhirnya ditekadkan hari ini untuk kembali. Setelah menjalani minggu-minggu yang melelahkan dengan berbagai uji ketahanan fisik dan mental dan tetap bisa bertahan... Yay for me! (dan sepertinya minggu-minggu ke depan pun masih akan menyita energi)
Inilah yang terjadi beberapa waktu lalu:

1. ke kantor jalan kaki karena jalanan lumpuh oleh banjir. 5 kilo mak! dah kayak hiking kemana tuh.
2. pulang kantor jalan kaki karena muacet minta ampun...daripada berdiri empet2an di bis, akhirnya turun di halte terdekat dan lanjut jalan kaki.
3. kecelakaan di dapur...(kecipratan air panas di dahi) gosong deh. Bioplacenton does help.
4. pingsan dengan sukses di apotek yang bikin panik para pegawainya (thanks to mba Deby sudah nungguin saya sampai benar-benar sadar...semoga magangnya lancar yah mba...)
5. kena flu berat yang berlanjut ke sinus...dan komen dokter 'kalau nanti ga bisa sembuh dengan obat ya kita operasi' (langsung mau pingsan).
6. putri kecilku demam selama 3 hari tanpa ada gejala batuk pilek...hari ke-4 demam hilang dan muncul bintik-bintik merah (kesimpulan setelah googling: Roseola Infantum)
7. si kakak yang tiba-tiba sakit perut jejeritan...hasil periksa dokter karena kontraksi di usus besar akibat menunda buang air besar.
8. nunggu antrian dokter dari jam 17.30 sampai jam 21.00 dan pulangnya disambut hujan badai.

What a month...and I'm grateful that I'm still alive and my babies are okay.

What do you have recently?

Wassalamualaikum.

New Year, New Hope, New Curtain....Why Not?

Assalamualaikum,

Wow...it's 2014 already ...I've been gone for so long I guess.

Happy (be lated) New Year everyone...

At the end of 2013 I got a special delivery from my father in law. My own sewing table he made for me. Yay...It's a 'real' sewing table and perfect. Now my sewing machine has its own place. All this time I was sharing table with my 7 yo boy (Well, I'm petite, so I have no problem with that... yet.)

Yay...

 So, in order to 'celebrate' the new workspace and welcoming new year, I decided to make a new curtain for my kids room. And lucky me...I found a beautiful linen with theme I wanted all this time. It's the festival flag theme...just perfect for decorating kids room.

I never sew a curtain before and I didn't know how, actually. So I just 'do it'.

I did not make a lot of cutting nor sewing on the fabric. I just hemmed the both side, added trim on the top and straps.

The sewing did not take a lot of time, but sewing on buttons was so time consuming. Button?

Yes, 2 snap buttons on every strap. Sound unusual? I don't know. I just 'do it'.

We have regular curtain rod in the house (the one that has rail on it and need little hook to hang the curtain). I don't want to take it down, so I have to improvise on the strap.

Adding snap button on the strap was the perfect solution. I used a 1/2'' snap button.

After an on and off days here it is.....my very first curtain

Before

After

And this is the strap detail

My first finished project in 2014 and lesson learnt.

What do you have recently?

Wassalamualaikum.

Twirly Hat

Assalamualaikum!

Yay....Alhamdulillah...I finally finished the hat I mentioned on the previous post. Yes, it took more time for me just to figure out how to put those hat pieces to one (sigh...)
It was a simple McCall's pattern actually, but... I still cut some pieces in wrong direction. My mistake...

pieces

See those 2 pieces right on the middle of the 2nd row....It was cut in wrong direction. Fortunately there are still remaining fabric.
This is how it looks after I put everything together:

side one...single fabric

side two...with contrast

Yup, this hat is reversible. Well, the pattern does not say it so. But why not? It's pretty on both side.
Now...the out fit is complete. Ready for play time under the sun.

Have a nice day.
Wassalamualaikum.

Another NewLook Dress

Assalamualaikum!

Alhamdulillah, akhirnya selesai juga baju ini. This is the fourth dress I've sewed up using the Newlook 6877 pattern.

The instructions are easy to follow, even for a very beginner sewer as I am. And I really love the result as I learned many techniques on sewing.

For sizing I'm using the "M" since my 18 mos baby girls is 9 kg. But I think it's still a little bit larger for her. Maybe size "S" will be perfect. Well, at least it has more room to grow....nothing is useless.

dress and panties

back view

Love the panties...so cute. The red fabrics I used is local cotton fabric. I added white baby ric rac for the trim (except the skirt, I'm out of it, it just go plain with small hem).

I'm ready to go, Mama...

 I'm planning to make a hat with the remaining fabric. I've cut everything out...BUT...I still couldn't find how to sew it!!! The instruction is too simple and I really have problem with curves. Sigh...

I'll post it if the hat is ready.

For now...this outfit is good for playtime.

Have a nice day.

Wassalamualaikum.

 

Clam Shell Purse....I did it, yay!!

Assalamualaikum!

Sudah beberapa kali lihat dompet nan unik ini di internet. Penasaran cara buatnya bagaimana, dan bahannya apa. Browsing-browsing dapatlah tutorialnya DISINI. Ternyata ada kitnya juga dari Clover.

Dari video itu cukup jelas langkah-langkahnya dan tidak rumit.

Berhubung tidak ada niat untuk nyari kitnya, akhirnya coba membuat dari bahan yang ada saja. Untuk polanya digambar sendiri. Jadi sepertinya tidak sama persis dengan kit dari Clover.

Ukurannya dikira-kira saja yang nyaman digenggaman tangan (ku).

Eh ternyata tempat kursus quiltingku dulu pas juga ngadain kursus pembuatan dompet ini. Tapi seperti biasa...tidak biasa ikut :(

Tapi tidak apa-apa...sudah tahu caranya dari internet....tambah semangat jadinya.

Ternyata tidak butuh waktu lama untuk membuat dompet ini (yang model dasar).

Setelah gambar-gambar, gunting-gunting, tempel-tempel, jahit-jahit... jadilah dia seperti di bawah ini:

front view

side view

inside (yup...that's key in it)

side view when opened

I'm using left over fabrics and my baby cereal box for this purse. I do recycling...yay!!!

Since cereal box is not water proof I think I should find another material that perfect for this purse. Any idea? Let's think!

Have a nice day.

Wassalamualaikum

My First DIY Wallet

Assalamualaikum!

Alhamdulillah, akhirnya dapat kembali kesini. Setelah minggu-minggu yang ribet bin ruwet mulai dari never ending story PRT, masalah kesehatan dan pekerjaan.
Selama minggu-minggu itu masih disempatkan untuk bergaul dengan benang dan jarum meski hanya sebentar. Sebenarnya untuk pelarian juga. Well, Sewing is one of my therapy.
Salah satu hasilnya adalah ini.

New wallet just for me..yay!!

Yup...ini percobaan pertama kali membuat dompet sendiri. Karena kebutuhan sebenarnya, soalnya dompet lamanya sudah benar-benar minta pensiun.
Polanya buat sendiri?? Oooh..tentu tidak. Saya kan amatir kelas berat. Jadi saya cari-cari dan akhirnya nemu tutorial DISINI. Simpel dan kayaknya 'mudah'.

Bahannya pakai kain kanvas yang dapat di Tanah Abang. Ceritanya DISINI. Kenapa orange?? Karena saya cintah berat orange.

Menjahit dompet ini menimbulkan korban 1 jarum jahit! Yah karena keamatiran saya, jahit resleting tidak ganti kaki khusus resleting, walhasil jarum jahit melengkung. Untung tidak sampai patah.
Jarum yang dipakai masih jarum no.14 plus Bismillah. Benangnya merk Astra dan pas ngga punya warna senada kain.

Tanah Abang (akhirnya....)

Assalamualaikum!

Setelah sekian lama penasaran dengan informasi yang beredar bahwa toko kain yang lengkap dan murah itu ada di Tanah Abang, akhirnya kesampaian juga kesana.

Hasil googling kesana kemari ada 3 referensi tempat: Toko Suryadi dan Toko Jamal di blok A, dan

Toko Tujuh Saudara di Blok F.

Penasaran banget dengan Toko Suryadi yang paling sering dibicarakan di dunia maya.

Sebenarnya tujuan awal dan utama adalah cari kain kanvas. Sudah hubungi beberapa toko online tapi barang tidak ada...kalaupun ada harus beli dalam bentuk roll. (Belum waktunya hehehehe)

Berangkat pakai taksi langsung menuju Blok A....daripada nyasar, soalnya belum pernah kesini :)

Yang diingat alamat toko kain itu ada di lantai basement 2, jadi langsung menuju kesana. Wow...kain cantik dimana-mana. Mampir ke beberapa toko sekedar lihat-lihat dan tanya harga...memang ternyata lebih murah dari pada tempat aku biasa beli di Mayestik.

Alhamdulillah ga sengaja langsung ketemu toko Suryadi. Kesan pertama....kok kecil tokonya?? (masih kebayang dengan toko Fancy di Mayestik)

Lihat-lihat koleksinya ternyata juga sedikit yang menarik hati (ini selera yaaaa).

Berhubung sudah jauh-jauh kesini masa ga beli apa-apa...akhirnya iseng nanya kain kanvas. Ternyata ada!

Tapi harganya kok mahal ya? 50 ribu/meter yang lebar 150 cm.

Yo wis lah...sudah telanjur. Beli polos dan bermotif masing-masing 1 meter saja.

Selesai dari toko Suryadi, melirik ke toko Jamal yang ada tepat didepannya...tapi kayaknya ga ada yang menarik hati juga.

Dapat info dari penjaga toko, ada yang jual kain kanvas dan lebih murah. Akhirnya kesana...dan benar harganya cukup 30 ribu/meter (itupun belum ditawar dan aku paling ga bisa nawar)

Entahlah tadi memang kemahalan atau memang kualitas beda. Di toko kedua ini aku ambil kanvas polos.

Di toko ketiga ambil beberapa kain katun. Yang lebar kain 150cm harga 25rb. Murah! Dibanding aku biasa beli kain di Mayestik.

Karena cuma punya waktu 1 jam, ga sempat lihat-lihat ke toko lain (padahal banyak tuuuh). Ga sempat juga ke blok F...maybe next time.

Berikut kain yang didapat hari ini:

Katun lucu

Kanvas

Kanvas lagi

Begitulah pengalaman ke Tanah Abang (pertama) kali ini. Lain kali tujuan blok F.

Bila ada yang punya info tentang renda dan kancing-kancing di Tanah Abang akan sangat membantu.

Have a nice and and week end.

Wassalamualaikum.

Keep Learning, Keep Trying, Keep Fighting, Keep Smiling

Assalamualaikum!

Oh my...I was such an inconsistent blogger. Have promised my self to write at least once a week...and fact...have been away from here for over than a month!
Now...here I am...
I made some kind of to do list since July. Does it work well? Well, not so well. Very slow progress indeed. But I'm glad I have the list. It reminds me things I want and need to do.
My major plans recently are doing home decor and gardening (and little sewing of course).

Progress on home decor:
Well it's not an actually home decorating... I thing home organizing is more appropriate. Try to get things more organized and neater. I thought it would be easy as writing it on the list. Fact: need more energy and time.

Progress on gardening:
I have a small neglected front yard and I'm planning to make an edible garden on it. I've prepared basic gardening supply. Try to get those crazy weeds out of the yard. Have bought some vegetable seed from local nursery and  have grown some of it (it was a thrill to see those seeds grow).
Well, I'm new into gardening. Just hope those little babies will survive :)


Progress on little sewing:
Have finished some baby dress (and want more)
Baby 'mukena' (for praying).
Bag for my boy.
Listing supplies for busy book.
And more to do....


I hope I have enough energy. And my baby says:

Keep smile, Mama...

Wassalamualaikum.

Ramadhan Day-14

Assalamualaikum!

Tidak terasa sudah hampir separuh bulan Ramadhan. Up and down...high and low....
Astaghfirulloh...Ya Allah ampunilah dosa-dosaku...

Last week I finally finished my first attempt of macaroon purse making. Here it is

as a charm

inside

macaroon wannabe

Masih banyak kekurangan. Belum sesuai harapan. Setidaknya sudah bisa mengidentifikasi dimana saja yang perlu perhatian. Let's practice again!

Project this week: dress for my baby!

Have a happy fasting and day.
Wassalamualaikum.

Ramadhan Day-6

Assalamualaikum!

Alhamdulillah, sampai Ramadhan hari ke-5 semua masih berpuasa. Kakak juga dan hari ini hari pertamanya masuk sekolah kelas 2!

Di antara waktu luang mencoba untuk 'mewujudkan' ide (atau obsesi?) yang berkeliaran di kepala ini. Salah satunya ini...mencoba membuat macaroon purse. Pertama lihat tutorialnya di sini penasaran banget pengen buat. Ternyata susah ya, harus telaten karena ukurannya imut-imut.
Hasil sementara seperti ini, masih jauh dari tutorialnya

on progress

masih berantakan jahitannya...see those peeking stitches???

Masih perlu banyak latihan!
And my little man, Kakak, he's kind of kid that can play with anything he has on hand. He made this few days ago with a paper tissue roll.

Rocket

Have work to do now...

Have a happy fasting and day.
Wassalamualaikum.

Ramadhan Day-1

Assalamualaikum!

Alhamdulillah, Ramadhan hari pertama dilalui dengan sangat baik. Meski penuh perjuangan tapi secara pribadi this is my best day!
My 7 yo little man managed to have full day fasting . Yup, his first full day fasting. So proud of him. Good job Kakak!
And just before my little baby cried for mama, I made this with little man:

tracing our hands

Well, I have some ideas with it. Have got all the materials needed ready. Yeay!
Kita liat nanti jadinya seperti apa dan kapan itu terjadi. Hahahaha...
(Got too many ideas this Ramadhan.)

Have a happy fasting and day.
Wassalamualaikum.

The Journey Begin in Ramadhan 1434 H

Bismillah...

Menjelang Ramadhan 1434 H, akhirnya terwujud juga untuk membuat sarang baru. Sarang kecil tempat untuk belajar menjadi mama yang kreatif dan mama yang lebih baik.
Berharap nantinya dapat mencari ilmu dan berbagi ilmu dengan mama-mama yang hebat di luar sana. Amiiin.

The Journey Has Begun...