Patterns Can Be Your Best Friend or Worst Enemy?

One thing I had learned so far about patterns was that "They scared me to death! Since I had not created them - it was difficult for me to "wrap my brain" around somebody Else's' way of doing things. Then one day while I was "on a fabric search" we passed a little country fabric store , mainly devoted to all you lovely Quilters. Fabrics of all colors , so beautiful and "so cotton" ! I was also scared of cottons - I had not yet heard the call of the cotton - I had to have "somebody" more forgiving and I had discovered KNITS! Aww - the new love in my life - all colors and so forgiving with Stretch!!!!!!!!!!! Now, to nail down a pattern to "test out the waters" ???? I had already checked the normal stores and nothing had "Called " to me- but then while I was strolling around this little store I discovered a back room with a big box of USED patterns. Well, you know the ole saying about "curiosity" and what it can do - so I disappeared into that box for at least an hour and when I bobbed to the surface this little Simplicity pattern was my new adventure?

I studied the envelope , got the knit and Lynne guided me through my first shirt. I loved the feel of the knit and I discovered that I loved a "shirt tail" design - I did not like a regular square tee shirt bottom - for me ! I believe because I am a little "Hippie" and with this design it helped to hide my hips some. I worked really hard on this shirt and my main "boo-boo" that would end up haunting me is "NECKBANDS"!!!!!!!!!!! I declare I know all of them Hate me. I did manage to listen to Lynne and learn to get them pretty balanced all around the neck , But getting my seam to run nice and straight???????????? I was beginning to think that I did not have a straight bone in my body??????????????? And it had no sympathy on me if I went VERY slow - OR - if I speeded up and tried to run faster than the boo-boo could sew??? I would still get it crooked - AND- of course with it around your neck - it had to show up - like a Black-eye! GRRRRR! I was on a determined course - to figure out how to "straighten up a crooked person????"

My next lesson was SIZE????????????? I was a XL and that was the size I was working on. I was so excited to have a finished shirt in hand and excitedly climbed in it - only to have it TOO Big for me. But , I am so lucky to have different size people in my life and my "XL" shirt went to my sister-in-law who was a XXXL and it fit her perfectly! I discovered that the XXL size fit a dear buddy who was a XXXXL and the Large fit a friend who was a XXL and my size turned out to be the SMALL - which I had not been in for years - so - one way to look at that was WONDERFUL! I now wore a size small for the first time in 30 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!lol