Super Speedy Stretch

Hmm, why does your favourite pastime sometimes feel like hard work? Maybe it's just me. Maybe my tendency to over-think things and run each stage of a creation through my head turns a harmless project into a succession of difficult tasks. Maybe I'm mental and my own worst enemy. Maybe now isn't the time to address these issues!

Anyways, after the exhausting fit analysis of the Chinese takeaway top, and a pesky UFO (Un-Finished Object, for any poor non-sewer who has somehow found themselves reading my blog, probably a friend or loved one through a sense of obligation!) that is causing me extensive and extended headaches, I felt the urge to produce some garments QUICKLY. You know, nice and wearable garments, just really quickly.

The chance came Monday evening. Still on a high from finishing up the aforementioned Chinese takeaway top before I left for work earlier the same day, I found that my last class was cancelled and I was thus propelled home an hour earlier than expected. Got home, still day light, boy not due back for a while, what to do?! Get busy with the scissors, clar. So I cut out one T-shirt and two vests from some stretch fabric that actually belongs to my flatmate, but which through either his carelessness or lack of care has been absorbed into my stash. Opps. Tuesday morning this type of thing happened with great intensity:

To make the process even quicker, despite the fact that I was using two wildly different colours of stretch fabric and a contrast FOE (Fold Over Elastic, noob), I threaded up my overlocker and flatlock machine with red thread for the whole lot 'to create a contrast effect'. (No really, aesthetics were my only concern!). And when I came up for air a couple of hours later.... ta daaaaaa:

Even though I'm slap bang in the middle of Me-Made-May and should perhaps be focusing any sewing activity towards producing a wider and more exciting array of outfit options, I have produced a long sleeved sleeping T-shirt that I had a vague notion might be useful in the Autumn, a vest for myself even though I already have two self-made vests which are proving perfectly sufficient, and a vest for a mate that I'm probably not going to see for ages anyway. I can't say the logic is flawless, but I have to say that bashing these out in less than 24 hours was very satisfying. I have in fact found the long sleeved T-shirt useful this week for putting on over my (me-made) sleepwear in the mornings to consume my breakfast and coffee before having a shower. And my new vest (the pink one, BTW), although not essential, has already seen action too. In fact I think I'm wearing it now, let me check. Yep, I am. Maybe there's a moral here somewhere. Maybe not.