Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Colorado Shirtwaist

On vacation with sporadic internet service. That’s ok because the scenery is gorgeous, the activities are exciting, and family is close.

One day I tried to quilt but the needle kept skipping so I sewed a shirtwaist dress instead. Hey, it was on my list of projects from the New Year.  A friend helped me adjust the pattern; I brought it in case there was time to work on it. Not perfect but it fits well and the issues are worked out. Hopefully I'll sew another soon.

Green and white striped cotton broadcloth dress.
Shirtwaist dress

We flew over the Great Sand Dunes National Park because our flight detoured around a storm along the Front Range. Wind caused these dunes pile to up against the mountains. Funny how small this park looks from the air. It seems immensely tall and hot each time I visit in person.
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Exposed sand was blown against the Sangre de Cristo mountain range to form these massive dunes. The wide and shallow Medano Creek fronts the dunes.
Aerial view of Great Sand Dunes National Park

I gave a very short talk and workshop to the San Luis Valley Quilt Guild then a longer workshop at Kathy’s Fabric Trunk in Del Norte which went very well. Class fees went to Colorado wildfire relief and a summer camp program. It felt good to raise money for these causes.

QS took us on a boat trip down the Gunnison River above the Morrow Point Dam and what a treat that was! The weather was perfect, the scenery striking, and the NPS guides informative. We saw Curecanti’s Needle, a 700' granite spire formed by two intersecting faults that was the symbol of the Denver and Rio Grande Western narrow gauge railroad running through the canyon until the 1940s.

700-foot granite spire on the Gunnison River in Colorado was a notable landmark to natives and pioneers.
Curecanti's Needle

The other highlight of the trip was a pair of bald eagles hanging out in a dead tree. Wow!

Enjoy the day, Ann

14 comments:

patty a. said...

I am glad you are having a wonderful trip! The scenery is stunning. Your dress is cute! I like the way you added the horizontal striping at the waist.

LA Paylor said...

when I saw you were in CO I wondered if we could meet but then I saw you're a long way from here. CO is so big and diverse. We've not traveled more than two hours from here and you're about 6 hours from us on a good road. Wonderful that you had perfect weather, it's been horribly hot here. I am impressed that you donated your fee, putting thought into actions to help others, thank you for that. Congrats on checking something off your list, the dress looks fitted, which is challenging.

Robin said...

Love the Colorado pictures. We lived there for 23 years but we were on the Western Slope. It's was always a reat driving through the Rockies to get to the other side. Your dress is really cute. I've been thinking I should make myself a dress. I haven't sewn for myself in 15 years. Gravity has taken it's toll and my shape isn't what it used to be so it will be interesting to try and fit.

Ann said...

It’s such a treat to spend time with my sister. She always plans wonderful outings. The dress turned out quite well and hopefully with get lots of use.

Ann said...

It is cooler than usual here with a bit of rain almost daily. I keep teasing QS that it will become a lush forest with all this rain.
Our mother used to give talks and lays donated her fee. We are fortunate to not need that bit of income and enjoy helping locally.
The dress only fits at the shoulders and waist... well, the bodice front is fitted, too. The pattern came with bust size variations which helped lots.

Ann said...

We have lots in common, Robin. Several members of my family live in Colorado and we always enjoy visiting. I've been trying to try sewing clothes for several years but mainly have collected patterns and fabric. This is the first dress I've made in over 20 years. And yes, gravity has taken a toll here, too. Fortunately a friend helped me fit the pattern.

Mystic Quilter said...

Looks like you're enjoying your vacation, and what an amazing photo of the Dunes in the National Park, I've never seen anything like that before. Good for you on sewing yourself a dress, it's years since I made any dresses/shirts/skirts etc. Come Summertime I always have the urge to check my patterns but as they're all from many years ago I was a much smaller size than now so nothing is made!!

Ann said...

I've increased too, but many of my patterns are multi-sized so I can still use them. And I've bought a few (very few) new ones. Still have lots of sewing to do if I'm going to try them all.

Kaja said...

I love that green stripe - very summery and one of my favourite colours. My dressmaking is never perfect, but I found if you look closely that can be said of a lot of bought stuff too.

Janie said...

Congratulations on your finish!
You had time to finish a project on your trip, wow. Thanks for sharing your breath taking photos, so amazing.
You got a lot accomplished on your vacation!

Ann said...

I was determined to use what was on hand, if possible. The striped material turned out better than expected; it doesn't look like quilt fabric and indeed, it is not. I hate making a muslin so I try to start with something on hand. Hopefully I've worked out all the mistakes but that probably means I'll just find a different set of them.

Ann said...

Thanks, Janie. It was already cut out; I just had to sew it up. My sister worked part of the time so I knew I'd have time to work on this.

Mel Beach said...

Congratulations on your talk and workshops!! How exciting for you, the lucky quilters who I am sure were inspired by you, and two great causes that benefitted from the workshop fees!! How fun!!!

Ann said...

Thanks, Mel. Giving workshops is very tricky to me. I have to pretend I’m just sitting in the quilt group with friends. But I’m really glad the money went to good causes.