Sew Half Crazy

2/27/2012

Knowing Vs. Doing

Heather 2/27/2012 0 Comments

So as I may have mentioned here before, I have a goal. My goal expires March 1. The goal is too log 5 runs under an average of 13:00/mile.

I have 1 such run logged. It was a lovely two-mile jaunt that I averaged 12:43/mile, but that was almost a month ago.

I rushed it today, and I know I rushed it and I ran out of steam, which makes me mad, because I know better. Now don't get me wrong a 13:09 pace is nothing to sneeze at for me, but I was banking on logging my 2nd run on my goal today, and its a little deflating that I didn't do it.

Tomorrow I'm going to be running another 4 miles, and I will just be happy to keep it under 14:00/mile.

Oh and I've bumped down a bra size! Well kind of - I'm still a 42 but now I'm a 42DDD instead of a 42F

Yay! I'm really happy that I'm back down to my old size, because I kept all of my old bras and now they're back into the rotation. Woo Hoo!

2/24/2012

You Win Some, You Lose Some

Heather 2/24/2012 0 Comments

Can anyone guess what I did for Mike for Valentine's Day? You get three chances, but the first two don't count. That's right! I made a special meal for Mike at home. I know, that's my M.O., but making dinner for your special person shows that you're really putting in some effort. Plus, all the dishes I made were brand new. I loved them all. Mike...well...he had mixed reviews. To save time, I'm only including pictures from one dish.

Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon: Yay! I'm so glad Mike liked this one, especially because I spent about $20 on fish. I know that sounds like a lot, but that was for both of us. A single salmon dish in a restaurant would set you back even further than that. The glaze is really simple and easy, and the fish took less than half an hour to cook.

Broccoli Salad With Walnuts and Currants: Okay, Mike didn't like this one so much. I don't understand why, but he generally doesn't like sweet and savory combos. I used dried cranberries because I don't know where to find currants, and the dressing is sweet, while everything else is savory. I loved this stuff. The perpetual crunchiness of the walnuts, the sweetness of the dressing with just a little kick from the chili flakes, so good!

Barley Risotto: Mike and I love risotto, but I'm always looking for healthier alternatives. This was a great choice because Mike really likes barley, and the broth imparts so much flavor. I did leave the ham out, but I'm sure it would have been even better, if that's even possible.

Spiced Red Wine Poached Pears
2 cup dry red wine, such as cabernet or merlot
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp sugar
1 orange, juiced (about 1/2 cup)
1 (1 by 3-inch) strip orange zest
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
4 firm, ripe pears

In a 4-quart saucepan, combine wine, sugar, orange juice, zest, cinnamon stick and cloves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. While liquid is simmering, peel pears, leaving stem intact and being careful not to blemish the flesh of the pears. Slice 1/2-inch off the bottom of the pears to create a flat bottom. Gently place pears in poaching liquid, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes to ensure even color, until pears are cooked but still firm. Remove saucepan from flame, uncover and cool with pears upright in pan. Once cool, cover and chill in refrigerator at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours, turning occasionally, if desired. Gently remove pears from liquid and allow to come to room temperature. Meanwhile, reduce liquid by about half over a medium-high flame for 15 minutes, until liquid is thicker and slightly syrupy. Remove from flame and let liquid come to room temperature. Drizzle each pear with 2 tablespoons syrup and serve.

Here are our players. The sugar is already in the wine, and I used mulling spices I had on hand to flavor it instead of the cinnamon and cloves. That's half of what goes into mulling spices anyway.

The trickiest part of this dish, in my opinion, is getting the zest away from the pith. What I did was take a very sharp utility knife, held the orange peel flat, and then very carefully cut the peel in half all the way across it. Again, be very careful doing this.

See, look at all that pith that came away. Also, I prefer my sideways peeler for almost any peeling job. Once the pears are peeled, cutting the bottom off is easy. By the way, I used Bartlett pears for this.

Hey, look at that, hot, simmering wine. Safety first, kids. Tongs are your friend.

Cool. Color changing pears. This is where your dish starts to look really impressive. By the way, you should read the entire recipe before making this. I should have too. Had I done so, I might not have had to wait until the next day to make it. Honestly, though, I think you could get away with not chilling the pears and be just fine.

Why do I say that? Because that gooey, delicious sauce turns to candy on semi-cold pears. Don't worry, it turns back to sauce eventually, but it was just kind of a pain at first.

It does look pretty cool all solidified there on the pears, though. I still think I'd have skipped the chilling part if I had to do it again.

Well, sadly, Mike wasn't a huge fan of this dish either. What can I say, he's a man of simple tastes. Good thing I loved these, because I got to eat three of them all by myself. Shame. :-) You have to admit, though, they look really cool. Well, maybe I can test out some of my more exotic recipes on my family when I'm home in a few weeks. I think they'd make good guinea pigs.

2/23/2012

Not So Small Victories

Heather 2/23/2012 1 Comments

So a lot has been going on lately and none of it was stress-free. It started to affect me. I got sick, then I started suffering insomnia, then I got bitchy, then I didn't want to get dressed or do any of the things I knew I had to do.

You know, like go get my kid from the bus stop. Chat with anyone. I kind of felt alone, even though I wasn't. Maybe I wanted to be alone, either way, I wasn't alone, but I was ~~irritable~~ pissed off.

After a heart to heart with the hubs about what was going on, and then some encouraging talks with some of my friends. I reluctantly went back to the gym on Wednesday. I haven't been to the gym since Feb. 7th. Scary. So I went to zumba.

I still didn't feel real hot. I'm still congested from being sick last week, but I couldn't use that as an excuse. The hubs made me go to the gym. I don't know what he had planned if I decided I wasn't going to go, but I feel like it would have been interesting.

So I go to the gym, and I get in some weights before class. I go to my usual spot, next to one of my friends and we proceed to warm up.

Then for some reason, I started adding extra moves. Not intentionally, but I was kind of just letting the music affect me. Not that I had a choice. I also felt like I was going to die. My throat and chest were on fire, and I was aware of how dehydrated I was. All those missed gym sessions were rearing their ugly heads.

But I persevered, and adjusted my moves accordingly and things went alright. Actually, they went better than alright. I had a blast. I laughed a lot during the dance line. I cheered on all the girls that were in class, and laughed some more. It was terrific. It was the kick in the ass I needed to get a grin back on my face and get my butt back into my routine.

So I went back to the gym today (I really couldn't wait to go) and I worked my muscles. They are all telling me about it right now, but that just goes back to those missed gym days.

Then I ran. Well power-walked/jogged/ran. For 56 minutes. For 4 miles. 4 miles!

I didn't do it in my fastest time, but its the furthest I've ever run and I'm freaking proud of myself. I. Did. It.

Saturday, I'm supposed to run 5 miles. It may happen. It may not, but whatever happens all that matters is that I tried. Or had a really good excuse. :)

Oh and I'm drinking more water. I kind of have too. Cramps suck. I did give something up for lent though. No more cookies and milk for my night-time snack. I bought some rice cakes. They're actually good. And addicting.

2/22/2012

Fierceness!

Heather 2/22/2012 4 Comments

For Christmas, I made Dana another suit. Its been a while since I made her one, so it was time to make another one.

I knew what style suit I wanted to make Dana, but I figured since she would be wearing it I'd let her weigh in. She actually went with a pattern that was far more feminine than I had picked for her. They were both the same style, but her's was fiercer. That's a word, right? Oh well if its not - it should be. :)

The pattern that she picked is Vogue 8679

I love that she picked something so very outside of her comfort zone and something that would work with some fabric that I bought in January '11.

So without further ado - here's Dae rocking her suit (sans pants, because I still have those)

I feel like the jacket got a little rumpled during shipping, but the great thing about this suit? 1) its couture, made to fit her and only her, 2) its washable, like tumble dry washable, 3) its wrinkle-free and 4) the pants are the same color red as the tank Dana is wearing, which means 5) the jacket with the pants is definitely going to be statement making, and 6) I am loving the boots with the skirt!

Dana will be getting more clothes, because 1) I am still not totally convinced about making clothes for me since I want to, you know, lose more weight, and 2) I'm not buying more fabric and 3) Dana and I have very similar complexions so anything I bought for me and have since changed my mind will look good on her, which means 4) I may be able to see the floor of my sewing room at some point this year. :)

Well there you go! There's my kid sister rocking the fierceness! You look great girly and I can't wait to see you in a few weeks. Maybe I'll even have a new dress for you. :)

Heather

2/21/2012

Under 40!

Heather 2/21/2012 0 Comments

Its been a while since I've made anything for myself.

For a long time, making stuff for me has been, um, well not enjoyable.

Clothes for larger figures suck.

I mean there's no nice way to put it. Lets get a potato sack, cut some holes in it and call it a plus-size fashion.

We have measurements....larger than some, but we are not a rectangle. I wish pattern companies would listen to me, or at least information in the pattern guide to alter the pattern to fit our measurements. Honestly, how many of us fit into 1 size? I span 3 different sizes right now, luckily, I can squeeze my bust measurement into the same size as my waist.

Which, coincidentally, is below 40 inches! 39 inches, baby! That, my dear friends, lands me into a size 24 in pattern sizes!

Ok, I'm going to share the shirt I made myself. My first new piece of clothing since I started losing weight.
Welcome to Simplicity 2447

On the face of it I made view A, but with the collar and sleeves of D. Love that I can customize a pattern to fit my style. The addition of the belt helped - a lot. Its still a super comfy lounge shirt though. I had some madras plaid lying around, so I washed it up and then went to town on it.

The yokes of the shirt are set on the bias. I didn't get a picture of the back, but that too has a yoke.

Well there's my new shirt. Here's a sneak peak of the dress I made Dana for Christmas. Unfortunately, she doesn't have the pants to the suit yet, because......I haven't mailed them, but Dae is coming to visit in a few weeks, so I'll probably just wait until she gets here. :)

I love her fierce pose! More on that suit tomorrow!

Heather

2/20/2012

Maymont 2012

Heather 2/20/2012 0 Comments

A couple of Fridays ago the family and I went to Maymont Flower Show down in Richmond, and despite not feeling well I still had a blast.

So do you guys have your walking shoes on?

I do.

Let's get started. Probably not to much commentary going to happen, but you can guys can look and see what we saw. I'll also show off the new outfit. :) I apologize for the blurriness as well. The new phone does not account for a mom pushing a stroller while holding up her phone to take the picture adjustment. :)

Small boy interruption! He wanted his picture taken - too bad he wouldn't stay still long enough to get a good picture. Look how cute he looks in the shirt that Nana Bet made him. :) Oh and below is a coffee table that I loved because of the blue on it.

And the boy is exhausted. We spent another hour or two walking around the home show and then off to find the best, most perfect curly fry ever.

We found it. The best, most perfect curly fry ever. It was delicious. :)

Oh and here's the outfit I rocked...back down to a size 24 (that's 18 in normal sizes!)

More on it tomorrow. See you guys later!
Heather

2/17/2012

As promised...

Heather 2/17/2012 4 Comments

I'm sick, again.

Fun times. I hate this season. I went from stomach nastiness to oh-so-stuffy cold.

I did lose two pounds though. :)

Probably not the way to do it, but - MEH!

I'm finally off that 30 pound mark. I'm at 32 pounds now. :)

Anyways, I did say I'd share photos and I am.

I have two pictures from Maymont Flower Show. One is from last year at my heaviest (296) and then from this year.

So those are last year's pictures.

And here is what I'm looking like currently. Dark, saggy eyes included! These pictures were also taken at the very start of the plague from this week. :) Apparently its hard for me to smile while taking my own picture.

I think I'm going to add some more pictures of my progress to the side bar.

Next week, I'm back to the gym. Even if I'm still hacking up my lungs. I only need 14 more pounds to get down to 250!

Linking up to: