Workin' away today

What I am currently working on today

Grey Tube Top for high waisted skirt

There was some leftover fabric from the grey bubble dress and the friend who I made it for had talked about how she loved this look she saw from aritzia. A grey tube top with high waisted tulip shaped skirt. So I made this for her. The skirt I paired it with is the Marie skirt from Burda Style. I'm horrible at starting things without finishing it, and I'm sure you can tell my Marie skirt isn't finished yet, hence the tucking of the unfinished parts to the back and underneath the dress form... =P

Friend assisted Bubble Dress

This is a dress/tunic I made for my friend. She asked for a strapless dress with lace trim. I always make a prototype with cheap fabric before the finished version... here is the prototype...


The pic on the left was my prototype of what she initially asked for, but then I took it a few more steps for myself. I added a bubble hem and straps. My friend ended up liking the bubble hem better. So I did this on her finished version. The thing I love about the yellow one was that it probably cost a dollar for raw materials as I got the fabric from a bin at the Salvation Army and barely used half of it.

How to make Pick ups on a skirt, my Obsession with lil J's runway dress

So I was watching this show that I seriously should not be watching, but I'm sorry to say I love it and I love the fashion on that show. I saw this crazy outfit on one episode...
And wondered to myself... How the heck did they make that skirt?!?! and this was the beginning of my obsession. I don't know why but I have this problem with thinking that I can learn to do anything that I want, and even better, to do it for free (when I say this I mean, without buying a book etc.)

So after much research on the internet, and not finding a how-to, I put what information I had and figured it out! Well somewhat.... as close as this novice sewer will get to doing it




So here's how I did it!!

Pick up Skirt Technique how to which I posted on BurdaStyle.com

http://www.burdastyle.com/howtos/show/1475

Cooking-Baking Biography/Profile

I love love love cooking! I also bake. I think my food is more like comfort food/home-cooking rather than on the gourmet side.

My interest in culinary arts started in fourth grade when we had a valentines day cooking competition at school and I have been hooked ever since. The food network is one of my favorite channels. Before sewing took over my life I used to love to plan what to cook for dinner and I really loved to serve it beautifully. I still do, I just don't do it as often as I used to.... mostly because it takes a lot to rip me away from my sewing machine.

I really believe in serving delicious food that didn't take a million years to make. If I can do it in under 30 minutes I am ecstatic. I think so far my family and friends favourite meal of mine is (from scratch always) chicken cordon bleu, grilled veggies and brown rice. I try to balance health and yummy food. It helps that my partner in crime has three major dislikes. He frowns at food that is too processed, greasy or salty. Usually keeps me on track... he def doesn't have my same love for cheese!!

Sewing-Textiles-Design Biography/Profile

Left is one of my recent designs/creations (Corset top with voluminous mini skirt with pick-ups, purple in the first pick black in the second )

This hobby is one that is very very new. Currently it is the hobby dearest to my heart. I haven't felt this way about anything in a long time. After the black hole hell that I call Dental Hygiene school, Sewing was basically my Sunshine Savior that rescued me from the dark depressing pit after school was finished and I was faced with the tumultuous ordeal of getting licensed to work. If I didn't have this after all that, honestly I don't know if I would have made it and found it in me to push through. It may sound silly, but it's so true. I was so ready to give up and felt so depressed. Something new that I loved was exactly what I needed to help put the dental hygiene hell experiences behind me.

I have only been sewing for the last 2 months or so but I know that I will probably continue to do it for the rest of my life. If I could snap my fingers and do it for a profession, I would. If I could guarantee to make the same wage that I could as a dental hygienist, I would trade in my diploma. Well.... maybe not, but I would definitely put sewing front and center.

Even if I haven't gotten my hands into actually doing it until recently, my interest stemmed as early as back when I was ten years old and I hand sewed some outfits for my Barbie. Then in home ec class in eighth grade we sewed a pair of shorts and I really like it, but I didn't have my own sewing machine. My parents were so frugal I know they wouldn't have gotten me one.

Luckily, my mom was handed down a Pfaff 309 Hobby (from the eighties?) and she only used it to make curtains, she hadn't touched it since then and that was years ago. Two and a half years ago I asked her if I could have it. I even bought an idiots guide to sewing. However since dental hygiene school and all it's ridiculousness was consuming my life, I wasn't able to devote any time to learning till I was done school. When I finally could I jumped in the way I usually do. Screw the manual and see what I can do by figuring it out on my own! I love working with patterns but when at all possible I love working from scratch with no patterns.

I love what I can create from a flat piece of fabric. I love how I can make it exactly the way I want it. I love how the right fit and design can make you feel like a million bucks when the outfit costs $5 or less and I especially love the look on a person's face when they put on a garment you have made for them and they love it as much as you do!

I have fallen in love, if only fabric were free!!!

Singing Songwriting Biography/Profile

Singing for me is therapy for the soul. I don't think I've ever felt the same type of artistic self release from anything as profoundly as I do when I sing.

I have been singing ever since I can remember and in high school (12th grade) I decided to take singing lessons. When I joined I met some girls and we worked together to form a group. That was over a decade ago andI am still friends with those girls and we try to sing together still whenever we can.

I definitely don't shine as bright in the songwriting. The earliest memory of songwriting I have is back when I was nine or ten and I wrote a song about going to the beach and taught my brother and sister to perform it with me for my parents =P

Currently I need a lot of motivation to song write. I don't write anything out unless I have something I have to write about or if I'm working with my partner in crime on a specific song. I will admit that it usually ends up being his words being executed by my voice.

As my partner in crime is currently in school for music production and audio engineering I suspect that there will be various projects in the up comming year.

Health-Beauty-Fitness-Nutrition Biography/Profile

This profile will be short and I probably will elaborate more in the future.

For health and beauty, for as long as I can remember I have been into make-up and self care products. When I was young my idea of fun was giving my sister a make over and styling her an outfit. I was probably 12 and my sister 7. There was even a time where I thought going to make-up artistry school would be the right idea.

I love love love make up artistry still as a hobby and I believe if you can do it yourself, why pay. This includes the fact that I do all my own facial and hair care, mani/pedis, eyelash extensions and false eyelashes and waxing. I have my own equipment (incl. foot spa) and enjoy doing it myself. I also currently cut my own hair. I mostly style the front (using a razor and scissors) but I don't trust myself to cut the back or length so I usually have that done some where cheap. I used to dye and streak my own hair but I've been sticking with my black hair.

I don't turn my nose up to going to salons... not at all, I enjoy it! However with my lifestyle I can't afford to go to the spa as much as I would like to, and I feel DIY is a good comprimise!


For fitness and nutrition, diet and exercise has been an in and out part of my life ever since I can remember. Being from an asian background you are never thin enough, so my interest grew (much to my chagrin) at an early age. I have much fluctuation with weight as I think my body style is naturally curvier and being fit is a full time job. I know lots about diet and nutrition but I can't say I follow it as much as I would like. Clearly!! I try lots though. If only we had an infinite number of hours in the day! I know, excuses, EXCUSES!

Dental Biography/Profile

Left is Me circa 2007, school clinic

I have been working in the dental field for about seven years. I've been a certified dental assistant (CDA) since 2002 and chair side assisted for one year before that. This last June 2008, I graduated from Dental Hygiene school. Standing at the point I am now and looking back, I feel that I have a total love/hate relationship with Dentistry. I wanted to be a Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH) since I was 12. With the competition for getting into a hygiene school being so high, I did CDA to make sure I wanted to be in the field. I fell in love very early on, I did well and cruised through CDA school and loved working in the field for a good year. It took a few years for me to really see all the politics and such that occurs behind the scenes. Also, finding out how much your career as an assistant depends on the personality of the dentist you work for (as you are basically their sidekick/slave) and also the environment of the office (co workers etc) left me feeling trapped and totally not in control of my career. This drove me to really pursue hygiene.

To make a long story short, and I'm probably writing from a place that is very in the now, but, everything that I have gone through to work through Dental hygiene school feels like so much more work than it was worth. I'm not gonna lie, I hated the program and I hate the process it takes to obtain your license. The only thing that I liked, and the only thing that made me feel that it still is a good career choice for me is that I really enjoyed clinic time working on clients when my teachers weren't breathing down my neck and (metaphorically) slapping my wrists when they didn't like that way my scaling looked.

I feel it is unfair to go on a complete RANT about my experiences through school. In actuality my grades were good and I did well, especially considering that I did the whole thing basically kicking and screaming because the entire process was ridiculous.

I have come to the conclusion that Dentistry having the highest rate of suicide and substance abuse than any other profession definitely has to be true, because I undoubtedly feel that the profession is known for chewing you up and spitting you out.

Life is too short to dwell on such things, all I have to say is that dentistry fell short of what I expected, in another lifetime, having gone through what I have (mums the word.... for now) I would probably feel that I would have never given it the time of day. Saying this I do feel saddened at the difference in how I felt when I was a newly graduated CDA, but like lots of things in life, it can't last forever and nothing is perfect.

Over all, I feel like my focus definitely needs to now be on what makes me happy and what I enjoy doing. Hopefully one day I'll feel that way about dentistry again.