Oh, the Irony KILLS Me

Yes, that's a neckband and tie on the top. Yes, I said I wasn't going to do it. No, it's not the exact pattern piece — it's actually wider. Yes, I said it would probably choke me and it might, but at least the cleavage will be covered. And it's really not that bad since the fabric is very soft and cool to the touch.

Just sticking a bow at the vee point wasn't going to work without a lot of futzing, and a flower was going to be too TOO, IYKWIM. So, maybe Trudy knew what she was doing. But I actually prefer the way I semi-attached the band/tie better than the instructions, which is a good thing since I didn't exactly have a choice of methods by this time. 

It's attached under the finished neckline with stitches that follow one line of the coverstitching, completely at the back and ending about 3" forward of the shoulder seam. Even I can't tell it's an afterthought and I know where to look.

And, oh yeah, I finished the skirt too. ;-) Easy-peasy sewing but I would still change some things. One, I should've cut the 14 and not the 16. Two, I would narrow the front wrap flap so it ends further away from the sideseam. As is, it's not really very noticeable that this is a wrap (albeit faux) skirt. Three, I would (and did) toss out the bias binding for elastic casing instructions and instead just serge elastic to the top edge, turn under, and top/coverstitch.With a 1-inch waist turndown and a 1-inch hem, the length turned out perfect for me as drafted and hits right at my knee.

I'm still going to curve in the sideseams of the top some more before I call this outfit done, but other than that I made absolutely no alterations of any kind to either piece. Nice. I'll finish the top as soon as I finish typing and will wear the new outfit tomorrow. I like it. It's different than my usual, and it's feminine and pretty darn comfortable too. But, do you think my co-workers notice that I'm really wearing a bunch of different brown skirts or do you think they think I just wear one a lot? It may be time to get off the brown skirts for a while.

I'll try to get a pic of me wearing the outfit tomorrow, but I can't promise I'll keep the camera in focus after Girls Night Out. Maybe I can sneak one in the Ladies room during the day but I already know it's going to be CRAZY tomorrow and remembering to take my cell phone into the restroom may not be top of mind. 

* * * * *

To answer two recent comments — No, I don't think he who shan't be named reads this blog, but even if he does, there's nothing untrue here. And no, he doesn't pay for much of the kids' expenses. It will be even less once he takes off for Virginia. He IS contributing toward household expenses until we go our separate ways, so that's something at least. But with it comes complaint and guilt trips, so I'm looking forward to that phase of my life being done.

A couple others have asked about my "diet." It's not a diet, it's just the way I eat now and forever. I eat hardly any carbs and that's it, the whole plan (although I did indulge in the birthday cakes at work on Friday since it IS my birthday month even though we're not mentioning that either. Less than 24 hours people! And yes, cakes plural.).