Listening: Turnpike Troubadours, Bossier City (2007). That's BO-zhure City, for anyone who isn't from around here.
This is a debut album and I was prepared to kind-of-like it. It's rough, both in musicianship and in recording quality. Some of the tracks sound professional and some sound like a guy in his kitchen with a handheld cassette player. The songwriting is a little bit amateurish but, when I think about it, no moreso than most pop-country hits. Less so than some, even. And even when the musicianship is a little rough it's not bad; the songs that are fully produced are well-performed and creatively arranged. I've ended up liking it much more than I expected. If you like early-to-mid-career Robert Earl Keen and/or Steve Earle, would definitely recommend it; a lot of the material reminds me very much of one or the other.
This is a debut album and I was prepared to kind-of-like it. It's rough, both in musicianship and in recording quality. Some of the tracks sound professional and some sound like a guy in his kitchen with a handheld cassette player. The songwriting is a little bit amateurish but, when I think about it, no moreso than most pop-country hits. Less so than some, even. And even when the musicianship is a little rough it's not bad; the songs that are fully produced are well-performed and creatively arranged. I've ended up liking it much more than I expected. If you like early-to-mid-career Robert Earl Keen and/or Steve Earle, would definitely recommend it; a lot of the material reminds me very much of one or the other.
Predictably, I didn't get squat done on the St. Patrick's Day
dress. Well, I got some pattern alteration done but didn't even get to
finish a second test bodice. Mom and I went out to run errands on
Saturday and she took an impossibly long time at Michaels trying to pick
out stick-on letters. Either they weren't bright enough (we needed
shiny ones) or she didn't like the font, and she kept looking as though
just the right letters would magically appear. I finally told her she
either needed to settle or we had to go somewhere else. And she said,
"But I don't like these. I want shiny like these but in all capitals."
BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THEM HERE and they aren't going to in the
forseeable future. OMG. So there went half the day.
I'm still going to make it but I might do some faster projects
first. I have a bunch of sundresses I want to cut based on 4727, that I
could actually wear and that need some stylistic tweaking but no more
fitting. I'm feeling mega-overwhelmed by my fabric stash right now and
would love to do something that would clear some of it. Four sundresses
would be a load off my mind.
I want to try the second round of 9880, the green calico tantrum dress, too, now that I've identified some fit issues. This is
another one that would clear some fabric stash and provide usable
weekend clothes.
Planned variations of Simplicity 4727 (1943):
1. Periwinkle blue poly/cotton with salvaged lace trim and white buttons down the front.
2. Blue-green cotton with large red, orange, and blue flowers. White rick-rack trim and white buttons down the front.
3. Cream and rust check cow print bodice with black skirt.
4. Wrap-over variant in purple calico.
Alterations to Simplicity 9880 (1995):
1. Added width across bust and upper chest.
2. Reduce shoulder angle. I feel as though the shoulders on the green dress are too sloped; the dress feels as though it bubbles up around my neck even while it's pulling down on my shoulders/arms.
3. Added width across upper back between armscyes. Honestly, I'll probably try extending the shoulder point slightly and then making the armscyes shallower. I'm totally cool with a slightly dropped shoulder on this particular dress, and that would also add a little width across the front and back between the arms.
4. Add about an inch of length all around.
5. Shorten the inset belt. I meant this to be relaxed at the waist, but I went a little too far.
6. Trim down lower sleeve; it's too full as it is.
I think that raising the shoulders will fix the sleeve cap fit, but I might have to tweak that a bit, too.
Planned variations of Simplicity 4727 (1943):
1. Periwinkle blue poly/cotton with salvaged lace trim and white buttons down the front.
2. Blue-green cotton with large red, orange, and blue flowers. White rick-rack trim and white buttons down the front.
3. Cream and rust check cow print bodice with black skirt.
4. Wrap-over variant in purple calico.
Alterations to Simplicity 9880 (1995):
1. Added width across bust and upper chest.
2. Reduce shoulder angle. I feel as though the shoulders on the green dress are too sloped; the dress feels as though it bubbles up around my neck even while it's pulling down on my shoulders/arms.
3. Added width across upper back between armscyes. Honestly, I'll probably try extending the shoulder point slightly and then making the armscyes shallower. I'm totally cool with a slightly dropped shoulder on this particular dress, and that would also add a little width across the front and back between the arms.
4. Add about an inch of length all around.
5. Shorten the inset belt. I meant this to be relaxed at the waist, but I went a little too far.
6. Trim down lower sleeve; it's too full as it is.
I think that raising the shoulders will fix the sleeve cap fit, but I might have to tweak that a bit, too.
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