Go-To Cape and Winter Boots

This week, the challenge over at Project Sewn is "If the Shoe Fits". The idea is to pick your favorite pair of shoes and sew an outfit to go with. I live in Minnesota. And right now we have tons of snow! So for this challenge, I chose my winter boots because they definitely keep my feet warm and dry, which is perfect if you have to walk around outside in this weather!

Do you wanna build a snowman??

 

In case you're wondering, yes, I did build a snowman, by myself, wearing my Lady Skater dress, leggings and boots. I put my cape on afterwards though.

 

I thought my Go-To cape would be perfect with my winter boots. It is a fully lined cape made using purple plaid wool and plain purple flannel for the lining. I was actully getting hot standing in the sun while I took pictures. It is 40 degrees today - a heat wave compared to the weather we've been having here!

 

The cape has an oversized hood, which is one of my favorite parts! I also made the peekaboo lining - you can see the lining "peeking out" on the hood. The pattern calls for four 3/4" buttons, but I thought that size was too small, so I used four 1 1/8" buttons. They worked perfectly!

 

 

Andrea, of Go-To Patterns, designed this cape to hit at the hip level. However, I wanted a longer cape, so I cut out the long length, which is for people taller than 5'9" (I'm 5'7").

 I was having fun with the photo shoot! You can see the plaid in this picture too. It's harder than you think setting up a tripod in the snow and running back and forth after every picture. The snow is pretty deep too! There must be over a foot accumulated in the back yard - the snow almost came to the top of my boots.

Here's the back. I have always been afraid of sewing with plaid, but I did it! And the back seam matches up!!

I received the plaid wool from a friend and have had it for a few years. I knew I was keeping it for a reason! It is so warm and pretty thick. I bought the flannel at Jo-Ann Fabrics when it was on sale, and I was able to use a gift card, so I only ended up spending $15 for 4 yards of flannel. That's a deal!

Oh, you know, just contemplating life. :)

 

Finally, here's a better picture of my boots, since the snow covered them in almost all my other pictures. They were the whole inspiration for my outfit. As you can see, they're pretty wet in this picture, but they kept my feet dry!

Would you wear a cape?

~Elizabeth

Black Friday Finds and Some Thrifting

Hello Everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I know I did! I spent it at home with my family, worked a couple of days and didn't even open my textbooks. These next couple of weeks before finals will be spent studying hard though and then I get a month long break! Yay!

On Black Friday, I went shopping with my mom and sisters but we waited until late morning. We went to Joann Fabrics, Kohl's and Target.

At Joanns I found some fleece, zippers, and interfacing. There was a great deal on interfacing, so I bought five yards. The fleece was on sale for a really good price too (somewhere around $4/yd). I bought some zebra print and solid blue fleece to make a gift for a friend.

 

The next stop was Kohl's. I was looking for some fashion boots that would look nice with skirts and would also be comfortable. I found some that were the last pair in my size!

 

 

Target didn't have a lot of deals, but I did find some mustard colored tights and fleece-lined leggings. The fleece leggings are so warm to wear in the cold weather under my skirts! I also found a frying pan because none of my roommates have one big enough to cook anything in and we cook fairly often.

 

When I was home over the Thanksgiving break, I went to check out a new thrift store that has just opened in our town. They have clothes, games, shoes, some toys and games, and some antiques. The antique stuff is priced higher but the clothes are very reasonable. I found two things for myself and one thing for my sister.

 

 

Isn't this a beautiful sweater? I bought it for my 9 year old sister and it fits her perfectly. It was only $5.

 

 

I found this sweater for myself. It was $2.

 

 

This jacket was only $5 and it is a forever 21 brand. The hem on one sleeve is undone, but that's something I can easily fix.

 

Did you go Black Friday shopping? I'd love to hear what kind of deals you found!



~Elizabeth