Sew Excited!

Okay, so I’m announcing some awesome news!  I’m officially signed up and registered for sewing classes!  I’m super stoked to finally learn to sew.  I have wanted to learn for a really long time and it’ll be great to now actually know what I’m doing.  I don’t start until the end of May and it’s only 3 sessions, but by the end, I will have made my first garment – shorts or a skirt.  I don’t wear shorts really ever, but I will most likely take the shorts option in the class as it will allow me to learn more about sewing a more complicated piece.  A skirt seems fairly easy to sew, so I feel like tackling that on my own after the class will be easier than if I try shorts for the first time.

So that means in the next few weeks, I have to go shopping.  I’m taking my classes through JoAnn’s, so I have supply lists (which make my heart happy – I get to buy “school” supplies) of things I need.  A nice thing is that they give you a 30% off coupon for the store for each class, so I may buy a sewing machine from there.  Depends on prices.  But I’m looking forward to being able to take in my own clothes as my weight goes down, make some nice pieces for myself, and also add more sewing crafts to my to do list.

Another thing I’m excited for – my mom and sister both sew, so it will be a great thing I can do with them.  My baby sister is a fabulous clothing designer and currently in fashion school, so I know once I get the basics down, she can help me improve my skills.

Anyone out there sew? Have some advice for a beginner,  especially on selecting my first machine?

Operation Shoe

I have a confession to make.  I have an addiction to shoes.  A serious problem.  I own more shoes than fit in my closet and I continue to buy new ones.  It’s insane.

So of course I find ***THE*** wedding shoe I must have.  The one that makes me swoon.  And of course, it’s a designer brand that is way out of my league.   But having huge feet (size 11) and looking for shoes that are not boring and plain have equaled a continued search that took me to my precious.

I have choices, I’m not completely powerless to my addiction.  Buy it and cry over the price or leave it and cry over not having them.  Or choice #3 – find the money somewhere that isn’t my bank account.

Okay so I know option 3 sounds stupid – find the money?  Who finds that kind of money somewhere?  Well I mean find it in the things you don’t use in your house.  I have tons of books, dvds, and exercise toys that I’ve been thinking of selling for months.  I’ve piled them up over the time and even done inventory.  But never actually sold them.  No motivation.  Clothes I cleaned out of my closet that I’ve been thinking of donating.  All kinds of wonderful things that now look like dollar signs instead of old junk.  Our small house is what prompted the original thought, my shoe addiction is what will get it done.

So starting this weekend – I’m going online on a campaign to raise at least half the cost of the shoes via sales of old stuff.  I have a big change jar that I’ve had for about 2 years that I have been saving for a rainy day.  That will be funding source #2.  And funding source #3 is my own cash reserves.  The objective goal is to have to pay nothing out of cash reserves.  The threshold is to pay about $100, maybe $150.  That’s how much a decent pair of shoes in the right color would cost anyway for the wedding.  If I don’t reach the threshold, then I’ll figure out how badly I want the shoes at that point.

So Operation Shoe is on.  I’m having a fire sale, everything must go.  I’m going to post some things on CraigsList, some on Ebay, and maybe some on Half.com.  Is there anyplace else you can recommend to sell stuff on the interwebs?