A little work, a little indulgence

Hope springs eternal.

Even though my sewing is proceeding slower than a snail on Benadryl, somehow I manage to justify fabric purchases.

Behold the latest acquisitions:

4 pieces of knit...left to right...

Cream rayon/lycra jersey.  On sale from a vendor I haven't tried before, the service and quality were fine but, oh, my, the shipping.  Took that piece of fabric from the listed price of 8.96/yd to 13.89/yd, once the math was done.  Sigh.  Don't know if there's an optimal amount to purchase to minimize the shipping cost...may or may not try them again to find out.

All in search of a white or near-white knit that is not translucent.   Still searching.

The rest are from Fabric Mart's recent knit sale.  The first, a cotton/lycra interlock knit in a bright cherry red; thinking comfy tunics but we'll see.  The other two pieces are a true windfall...I ordered 2 1/2 yards, but as it turned out, my order came in just as the bolt of poly/rayon/lycra double-sided doubleknit was at the end of the road...and they did not have 2.5 yards in one piece.  So they sent me 2 - 2yd pieces.  Black on one side, burgundy on the other.  It feels wonderful.

I see something colorblocked in my near future from this. ;-)

But I am working away on a project...little bit by little bit.  You can see the pattern behind the fabric; I'm tracing/doing the first-pass alterations on McCall's 6436, looking for the Basic Shirt TnT pattern for the white shirt that was supposed to be in the SWAP in the early part of the year.  I've been tracing about one-two pieces each time I can grab a minute...I'm about done tracing.  I'm going to pull out some of the inexpensive shirting I've got stashed and make a test run on it.  So far I've shortened the sleeves, narrowed the shoulders and adjusted the curve on the front hem slightly.  I will have to reduce the circumference of the sleeve cuff; true to what I have observed with the Palmer/Pletsch patterns, the cuff is HUGE.  It looks like I'll need to shorten it about 1 1/2 inches, and adjust the sleeve accordingly.  But I'm almost ready to put fabric on the table.

This fall is shaping up to be really, really busy; I think all Saturdays in October are booked.  I'm beginning to despair of getting my last SWAP plan finished before the next one kicks in...

Choir Wardrobe 9-28-14

Last Sunday in September.

My head is spinning....just doesn't seem possible...

So, this is the end for the gray, black and turquoise color combos.   And I've got on RTW jeans,  a Jalie 965 tank top made from a not-really-very-stretchy cotton knit under  Burda magazines' 5/2009/103A top in a graphic black/gray/turquoise/white print poly knit that fit a HECK of a lot better 10 pounds ago, and my black rayon jersey Vogue 8305 drape front cardigan that was not loved when I  made it, but about 2 years later it suddenly became a core wardrobe piece.  It will wear out soon; I should think about replacing it.

I'll be out of town next week, so October's orange/brown/tan/fancy-mustard yellow combo will show up in a couple of weeks.

I think I have enough orange and brown that I won't need to do tan or fancy-mustard yellow.  Maybe. ;-)

Choir Wardrobe 09 21 14

Yeah, I know, I know.  But the monitor on the computer died Sunday afternoon, and this is the first chance I've had to post the photo since we got it replaced. :-)

September colors are gray, black and turquoise...and the temps have been Alabama-fallish, that is, it didn't get above 80 on Sunday so I could get away with wearing a long sleeved T. 

Anyway, I'm making good use of the new Ann's Cardigan, with  a rayon knit print 2-2009 Burda magazine 108 boat neck top.

And somebody's jeans...Coldwater, I think.

I love, love love that print on the t...the colors are just perfect.

But...the fabric has fuzzed and pilled, the neckline has stretched out...I think this is going to be its last season.  :-(

And I definitely need to work on the upper chest/shoulder on that cardi before I make it again.  It's as good as Ready to Wear, I think...but I sew.  I can do better. :-)

Trip Coming Up...

As part of the whole transition thing I've been walking through (I've only referenced it here...the bones of the story are over on the other blog), I've got the opportunity to spend a week at Rita Springer's DIVE school (no, it doesn't involve large bodies of water; it's a week-long worship intensive).

It's something I've wanted to do since I first heard about it something like 6 years ago, but I didn't have the time or the resources to do it. But, since I'm not teaching teens at the moment, I have the time, and I had some Christmas money that had not yet been spent and My Sweet Babboo had some Frequent Flyer points available and...so, I'm going.

All the deep introspective details will be dealt with over on Beer Lahai Roi; here, I'm going to be practical.

I want to pack a week's wardrobe in a carry on bag.

I am not a traveler, truth be told.  Last time I took a plane trip it was 1999.  I'm not even sure I know how to do it anymore.

I'll learn.

Anyway, this is where the wardrobe concept comes into play.  Can I really and truly put enough stuff in a small bag to get me through a week?

It helps that this is not a fancy event; we won't be doing much that requires a range of gear.  Casual is the word.

Oh, yeah, it's in Dallas, so I don't have to worry about it being cold.

So, I'm thinking I'll pack black and gray and a few brights that will work with them.  Take my grey denim jacket and wear one of my knit cardis.  One pair of pants on the body and three more in the bag.  6 knit t's.  Necessary underpinnings; shoes and socks on the plane and sandals in the bag. PJs.

I don't know if I'll have time to sew any new anything before I go...it's in just two weeks...so it's going to be a little bit of a personal challenge to see if all the wardrobe-thinking I've been doing is going to pay off with a workable travel wardrobe.

Woo Hoo!

Choir Wardrobe 09 14 14

This month's choir colors are turquoise, gray and black...but this is all about the jacket.

Jeans and a gray T under the jacket are not even worth noting; but I love love wearing that jacket.

Vogue 1100 , in a tropical weight wool that I got for a song from a Fabric Mart sale several years ago.

Even though there is nothing the least bit figure-flattering about that jacket, I get compliments on it every time I wear it.

It sure doesn't make me look skinny...but it's fun to wear just the same. :-)

Choir Wardrobe 09 07 14

First Sunday in September and the choir colors have changed to black, gray and turquoise.  So we have black jeans, a black sleeveless RTW sweater, a scarf cobbled up from scraps about 15 years ago (really...there's a piecing seam in it that shows if it's not turned right) and the hot off the machine gray cardi, that's so new I haven't even published the pattern review yet. [ETA: here's the review]

Still figuring out the new hair.  So far, the best approach has been to wash it, goop it up with product and then...don't touch it.  The more I fuss with it the frizzier it gets....

So it's an exercise in self discipline. :-)

And I  need to clear out the cobwebs in the foyer.  Again.  yeesh...

Still needing that gray cardi...

I decided last night it was time to get on it and make that replacement gray cardigan.

I used a different pattern than the one I was replacing; I've made 4 or 5 of those pleated Jalie cardis and thought I'd try something different...this was Ann's Cardigan from The Sewing Workshop.

Now, I traced and altered this pattern back before the trench coat, so...yeah...

Note to self...make notes!!!

I'd washed the fabric and discovered, to my dismay, that there were holes in it.  Mostly fairly near the selvedges,  but there were a couple that were pretty much in the center.  I cut it out, more to make sure I could than anything else.  I was able to squeeze the pattern on around the holes, which were only on half of the piece...one end was fine.

So I was saved from complaining to the vendor about it...it was ok.

And, having gotten it cut out, I decided to just sew it up...choir colors include gray for September, so I can wear it tomorrow.

However, there were issues.

I altered up one thing with the cardi; it is designed to have a single-layer collar.  The guide sheet is not illustrated correctly, as it shows the right side of the collar rolling out.

If you sew the collar to the body right sides together, as shown, then it is the WRONG side that is flipped to the outside, not the right side as illustrated in the guide.

Which means the hem allowance will show.

Now, that will not matter to a number of folks, but I didn't want the hem allowance showing on the front like that.  So I altered the collar piece...I doubled the width, and added a seam allowance at center back.  That meant that I have a double-thickness on the collar, which is fine with  me; that's the way my old standard Jalie cardi is constructed.

But I forgot to make a note of how much of a seam allowance I allowed at the bottom.  The hem is 3/4"; I just assumed that I had not changed it and I sewed a 3/4" seam allowance on the bottom edge of the collar.

Wrong.  I apparently allowed a 3/8" seam, because I have some easing happening at the lower edge where the drapey front bit meets the collar.  The collar covers it up, but it would've been better had everything matched up properly.  However, I really believe that is my fault and not the pattern.

Then, when I pressed the sleeve cap after putting the sleeve in, I found a small hole in the very top of the left sleeve cap, just a pinch outside of the seam allowance.  And I dabbled on a wee bit of Fray Check on the inside, hoping it would not soak through and stain the outside, because I had to do something to keep that hole from growing.

Wrong there, too.  There's a spot.

And, apparently the other sleeve hit the card that I was using to dab the Fray Check off of, because there's  also a spot on the lower part of that sleeve.

Now, so far as choir attire goes, none of this matters, because it's not going to be visible at all from the stage.

But the upshot is that the new cardigan isn't really in much better shape than the old one it's supposed to replace.

Arg, arg and arg...  (the spot that is visible in the photo on the left sleeve is a smudge on the camera lens, not the Fray Check spot).

So...I'll wear it for choir, and keep an eye peeled for more gray jersey.  Someday I'll have a good one...

Time for a change...

But maybe not a HUGE change...

Before:

 I was really waffling on the whole hair thing.  This has pretty much been the style for the last 2ish years, and I did basically like it...but it was hot and heavy and I just wanted something lighter.

So a trip to the hairdressers left a pile of hair on the floor:

And I've got a new 'do!

 

I think this is kinda similar to a haircut I had about 6 or 7 years ago...she took off about 4" of length but whacked a BUNCH out of the heft of it with the thinning shears and razor.  It feels SO much lighter...

Two more in the 'done' column...

From some knit that I picked up from the flat fold table at Hancock's earlier this year... I had 1 5/8 yards, and I managed to get two tops from it, by careful cutting.

Very careful, in fact, because the fabric was flawed...somehow it was knitted tighter on one side than the other in a couple of areas; the black stripes were quite noticeably narrower as they approached that side and the fabric was rather puckery in places.

So I decided to use a single layer layout, so I could make sure the stripes were square all the way across.  Which meant I needed whole pattern pieces for the front and the back.  I'd been putting off making those, because I was going to have to tape things up and, well, it was going to be something of a nuisance.

But then I happened to think of the rolls of Swedish tracing paper I'd bought at the Expo last spring...I could fold it, then trace the front and back on the folds and cut out a whole front and a whole back.

And, with a whole pattern...I decided I could do the long-pondered alteration for my asymmetric shoulders and cut the left shoulder a half inch narrower.

Don't have a photo yet, but that left shoulder is spot on.

And the stripes are reasonably straight. ;-)

I made the Jalie Twinset T again, and Simplicity 2603 .  I decided to cut the neckline bands on the cross grain for the Simplicity top, for accent, so I interfaced both the band and the band facing to stabilize it.   Still had a little distortion, but it was minimal and I don't think anyone but me will really notice it.

I'm so pleased with the shoulders on these that I might use those whole-piece patterns and a single-layer layout even if I don't have to match anything...

Chop Job

I went to State  Girls Ministry Camp this year knowing it was the last time, as our church is  discontinuing our participation in that program.

I did not intend to get a t shirt; I have plenty of T shirts from years past, and I really couldn't wear them as promotional garments anymore.

But I liked this year's T shirt.  It was bright...it was sweet...

I finally decided I should get one.

But by that time they only had two adult sizes left...XL and XXL.

I hemmed and hawed, but finally decided to go ahead and get the XL...I could sleep in it or something, right?

I was unpacking my suitcase before I thought, D'uh!  Cut it down!

So I dug into the pattern cabinet and pulled out Kwik Sew 2900; a pattern I'd made ages and ages ago and kinda tossed back due to the boxy fit and batwing underarms.

But, for a promo T shirt...boxy and batwing fit the bill.  This was a rather beefy cotton jersey that didn't have a great deal of stretch, so a fitted girly T was out.

I traced off a Large...sigh, the last time was a Medium...and left it totally unaltered.

Then I hacked the t-shirt, cutting up the underarm seam in the sleeve and VERY CAREFULLY down the fold at the side of the shirt.

I left the neckline and shoulders intact, folded it in half  and matched up the front neckline and shoulder seams

 And then the back neckline and shoulder seams

 I cut the sleeves from the sleeve/shoulder of the original t; I was surprised that the original sleeve was not long enough to cut the sleeve cap.  So I left the armsceye sewed up and just cut the cap out of the shoulder area.  A bit of a weird detail on the shoulder now, to be sure, but it worked.

I folded up the hem allowance on the sleeve and put it right on the finished edge.

 So here's how it will all fit together...

 The sewing was really quick.  The only issue was that the shoulder of the t shirt was taped, so it's rather bulky right at the top of the sleeve cap, where the taped-and-seamed bit of the cap hits the remaining taped- and-seamed shoulder seam.

But..hey, it's still retained it's promo T look...and I'm no longer swimming in it. ;-)


ETA...a couple of years later...the lumpy shoulder really annoyed me; I eventually took the sleeves off and recut them again, this time putting the high point of the cap just under that old seam, and letting the extra pattern length just extend past the sleeve hem.  I put them back in and...much better! No more linebacker shoulders. ;-)

Choir Wardrobe 8/24/14

A little vacation gettaway pulled me away from the blogsphere for a bit, but I'm back now and trying to see about creating new routines...which is typical after a little bit of refreshment. 

I've missed most of August...and next week My Sweet Babboo and I have duties that will pull us out of choir, so it looks like this is it for the month of emerald, navy and tan.

But I did get inspired to finish new stuff! 

I wish I'd've done the arms-straight-out pose, so you could really see the sheer jacket, but if you look close you can see it. I actually wore coordinates today...the Plaza jacket and pants from Sewing Workshop.  The pants are midnight blue tropical weight wool, and the jacket is a poly burnout that's been in the stash for ages and ages.  Not a fabric I would buy now, as I've learned even lightweight poly is HOT and STINKY, but I thought it would do nicely for a topper when navy is on the choir list.  And sheer cocoony jackets are kinda 'in' at the moment, so it was a good project.  The T is my fave Jalie-still-gotta-review-it twinset t, made from navy rayon jersey.

The blues don't match, but that's the trend now, right?  Avoid the too matchy-matchy?? 

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

A little Catch Up

August 1.
There is just no way.

Like, how could it be Friday already?  And I never did a Choir Post?

 Not that this is really anything to get excited about; the jeans and the jacket are RTW, and the gray top is my much-used Simplicity 2603  which, as this was taken at the end of the day that included dinner at the noodle place and a bowl of drippy asian noodles, had a spot that is conveniently  concealed by the point of the jacket.

I've been working in ten-minute increments on a sheerish navy Plaza Jacket; it only needs hems but the poly burnout fabric is not being very cooperative and I've got to hand baste the whole thing.  So it's taking a bit.  But the choir colors for August are tan, emerald and navy, so I *should* get to wear it before the month is over.

This ten-minutes-at-a-time stuff is killing my sewing mojo.  Oh, it's better than nothing, but, wow, projects that used to take a weekend are now taking a month or more. I can live with this, but I'm not enjoying it much.

But, maybe as an enticement to get it together so I can sew more,  there are New Patterns In.  Had to make a trip to Hancock's today...because I lost some things I bought last year...and Vogue patterns were on sale.  So I grabbed a handful.  Each of these has something I like...and two of them have A/B/C/D cup sizing.  I figured it was worth $5 to not have to do a FBA.  If I ever get around to really making something.





The missing things were the iron-on applique letters I needed for my Girls Only Award Stole.  I'd made them for the girls last year, with their graduation year on the sash, and decided I'd make one for me, too, with the pins that I'd earned teaching the units.  My plan was to have it available for any promotional events we might do regarding the girls ministry program. But I didn't get to it last year, and I  looked and looked and couldn't find the letters this week, so I had to run to Hancocks.

However, as it has just been made public, we are doing away with the K - 12 girls ministry program and replacing it with a program for girls in grades k - 5 only.  So I'm kinda late with my promo plan.  But I needed a place to put the pins anyway, so I grabbed the appliques and finished off the stole.

Not really sure what I'm going to do with it; I might be able to use it in Wednesday night's advancement service but that would be it.

At this point, it's just going to be a bit of memorabilia of eight years spent with some amazing young ladies.

But, who knows...with 3 Teen Girls classes no longer on my plate, I might sew a little more.

At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

Choir Wardrobe 7/12/14

Same combo as last week...just turned inside-out, color-wise. 

Coldwater jeans, with navy rayon jersey Jalie 2566 cap sleeve t...I will do a review on that as soon as I get a minute, because it is turning into my TNT T shirt pattern and I really ought to have mentioned it on PR, at least. ;-) 

Also wearing the needs-to-be-replaced-because-it's-wearing-out Jalie 2919 Pleated cardigan.   Not sure when I'll get around to actually replacing it, but I've got the fabric now and hopefully I'll remember not to use it for anything else.

And a double scarf...a scrap of sparkly dot-infused netting, left over from some costuming something that was being discarded from the school costume stash and toted home by The Princess about 11 years ago, that she finally said I could have, so I just whacked it into a rectangle.  I have a pink poly chiffon scarf that I made some time ago, just to have a scarf the right color.  I think I hit on the idea of putting them together last year and I liked that so well I just keep em' that way.

Back from Girls Camp

...and I realized I never posted the Choir photo from last week...

Jeans from Coldwater, I think, an ancient poly tricotene Evan Piccone blazer,  a hot pink version of Simplicity 2603 and a scarf that got several compliments.

It's the remnant from the Jiffy Pop Top.  It was a very interesting fabric...a blue poly knit with the lame sort of printed on.  Sort of.  So I had this 3" bit along the selvages that were not lamanized, for want of a better term, so I just squared up the bit left at the end...it was at least 60" wide...and, bingo, a silver/navy blue scarf, which works great when gray and navy are in the choir line up.  :-)

And, when I got home, a package was awaiting.  I got 3 yards of a rayon/lycra jersey in a spot on perfect shade of gray...not too dark, not too light...for the cardigan I was going to make from the fabric I inadvertently cut into two tops.

The really significant thing about that order is that I only ordered one piece of fabric.  Which safely arrived WITHOUT a traveling buddy.

Changing paradigms... ;-)

Pattern Keepers Winner...

...is....

Angela the Creative Diva!

So, Miss Angela, if you would email your mailing address to me at

tig77LW atsign yahoodotcom

I'll get them off in the mail to you!

Thanks, everyone, for playing and for the comments.  It's always fun to see who's actually reading the blog; thanks to everyone who stops by and leaves a comment now and then!

Last Call for Pattern Savers Giveaway

Maybe I should've put the giveaway at the top of the post instead of at the bottom, in view of today's abbreviated feed collectors.

Giving away one package tomorrow morning to one person drawn from comments on this week's blog posts; just asking for you to tell me how long you've been reading Sew Random and what your favorite posts tend to be about...Choir Wardrobe?  Costuming?  The Sewing Assistant?

Happy Friday! :-)

Choir Wardrobe 07-06-14...and a birthday giveaway...

Choir colors changed for July...we're now doing navy, hot pink/fuschia and gray.  So I snuck in the inaugural wearing of the new Sewing Workshop Plaza Pants, slightly wavy pleats and all. 

Which turned out not to show up hardly at all.  So.

These are a tropical weight wool that I got absolutely ages ago at the Atlanta Sewing Expo.  Now, there are those who will think, 'Wool in Alabama in the summer???' and I have to tell you that these are WAY more comfortable than a similar weight poly blend.  They're downright breezy as air flows right through.   :-) 

The barely visible top underneath is a summer wardrobe staple, Simplicity 4076, the scoop-neck view .  The topper is a linen jacket from Coldwater. 

I have a hack for you, too... the necklace was really a bit too long for the neckline.  I had a brainstorm and found a small safety pin that I fastened between a couple of beads about 2 inches in from the end.  Then I fastened the spring clasp on the safety pin and let the tail dangle under my hair in the back.  And the beads filled in the neckline just right. ;-)

I did some hunting for a couple of odd things...like the waistband interfacing that I almost never use, but added to the un-elasticized front of the Plaza pants...and found some long missing stuff.  Like the missing half of the Farewell to Arms skirt that I feared I had thrown away...and two and a half packages of these goodies:

Yep, these are those zip closure bags with the extra pocket on the front for patterns.  Love, love them.
And apparently they're no longer available.  Now, I happened to think it would be selfish of me to keep such a bounty all to myself, and, as it happens to be my birthday week, I thought I'd do a giveaway.  I will give one package of ten to a lucky random drawing winner.

But I'm going to be shameless here.  If you're interested...and I'll send them anywhere in the globe... you need to leave a comment for me telling me how long you've been reading Sew Random, and what your favorite topic that I cover might be...costuming?  Choir wardrobe?  Stashing stuff?  Whatever? 

My birthday is actually Friday, so I'll let this run through midnight Friday night and I'll draw the winner Saturday.

Have a great week!

Pants off the WIP list...and learning the new machine

I don't have photos yet; I'm sure they'll show up sooner or later.

I finally finished the Sewing Workshop Plaza pants that have been hanging out on the WIP list since 2011.  I cut them out of a dark midnight navy tropical wool, and they'd just languished in the bag, waiting on me to get enough time to work on them.

I was afraid that either 1) the fabric would have had moth damage by now or 2) they would be too small; neither of which turned out to be the case.

But I sewed them on the new machine, and I learned some things about it that are different than my old machine.

I cannot adjust the pressure foot pressure.  This meant that I got more slippage between the top layer of fabric, which was next to the foot, and the bottom layer, which was next to the feed dogs.

And I didn't catch on.

Now, this machine HAS a walking foot, which would correct the problem.  However, it is something of a nuisance to put on/take off as it involves unscrewing the snap-on shank that most of the feet attach to, and Janome switched what WAS a thumb screw on my old machine to a screw that needs a screwdriver.  And the only one that fits is the little triangly one that comes with the machine and is slow as Christmas to use, as it has to be repositioned after every half turn.

So, when I took it off to do some zig--zag stitching,  I didn't put it back on.

And the Plaza pants have this funky pleat thing going on down the front of them.

I did not notice until the final try on that I have some ripply things happening in those front pleats, due to the top layer of fabric being pushed against the pull of the bottom layer against the feed dogs.

Now, it's not horrible and it won't keep me from wearing them, but it is enough that it will bug me.  Not enough to go through what would be a  burdensome amount of ripping and re-stitching that might not improve the look anyway, but just enough to make me annoyed.

If I *KNEW* I could make it better, I'd fix it, but I suspect that I'd go to all that trouble and end up with something that really won't look any better, due to all the wrangling that would be done to undo the  first time.   See, I'd reversed the direction of the pleat so I could put some pockets in under it, so it's not just a matter of restitching that pleat...there are pockets involved.

So, I'm just going to grin and bear it...it really doesn't show unless I'm standing stock still.  Oh, and it will probably be magnified in a flash photo.

But, that is one really long-standing item off the WIP (aka the 'UFO' list).  If I can get one thing made from that list every three months or so, I'll eventually get back to current sewing.

Choir Wardrobe 6/29/14

Mayhap the season of staying at church virtually all day on Sunday is starting to wind down a bit and I'll be able to post photos in a more timely fashion.... But in the meantime, I'm just getting it done when I can.

I do realize this is almost the same as the last Choir Wardrobe post I managed to get up.  But I have a new t shirt under the scarf and Jalie pleated cardigan, believe it or not.

I've managed to get a couple of gray knit tops done from the SWAP plan, in a nice silky feeling rayon blend knit.

It was AFTER I made them that I remembered I wanted to make just one top from this, and replace my much-worn silver Jalie cardigan.  But, as it turned out, a cutting mishap probably meant I didn't have enough fabric for the cardi anyway.  So its a a couple of tops instead of a top and a cardi...

Anyway, they're Jalie 2566 cap sleeve T, a pattern that I still haven't reviewed for the T shirt (it's the twinset pattern...I *have* reviewed the cardigan) and one of my favorite sleeveless tops, Jalie 2682 .  This *is* a replacement for a virtually identical top that just fell apart about a year ago; I wore it to pieces.  I think this is a better quality fabric...hopefully it will last a little longer.  I did add a pinch of fusible interfacing right where the center front seam ends and the neckline begins; I've had problems with the knit tops wearing out right there  and have had to retire two or three tops because of that.  We'll see if that helps.

And I'm making a little progress on the SWAP... I've about decided to change the plan just a bit.  I don't think I've got enough khaki fabric to make pants, so I think I'll use that for shorts and do a different pair of pants.  I've already got two pairs of khaki pants that are still holding up, so I don't really need another anyway.    Thinking....

Choir Wardrobe 6 08 14

Choir colors for June are yellow, coral and gray.  Just for grins, I pulled out the Jiffy Pop Top (Vogue 8669) , being as how it's silver gray and all, and topped it with iteration two of the Jalie Drape pleated cardigan, #2919, which is still going strong.

Can't tell you which jeans those are; I think they're Lees.  I just grabbed a clean pair. ;-)

Bonus photo of the kitty being friendly!  Took this photo in the evening after she'd been home alone all day...