Attempts at being domestic

I decided that the easiest way (and cheapest way) for me to get curtains would be to make some myself. Mom had bought me a Hello Kitty sewing machine as a house warming present when I got my last apartment and I figured it was time to use it... Especially since I've had it for over a year and hadn't taken it out of the box yet! I also had been wanting to make Lilly a new dress. Walmart had this material you could buy and all it would take is one seam (straight, if possible) down the back and you have a strapless dress! I took Lilly there so she could pick out her own dress material (and me material for curtains) and hurried home all excited to start creating pretty things! I ran to my closet, grabbed the box, moved my computer (that desk was the most sensible place to set up shop), and tore open the box. I then proceded to fill a bobbin, rather easily, and get it in place. Then came the process of threading the top thread through a series of hoops and turns, all the while trying not to cuss out the 'f'ing machine! I finally managed to (what I thought was) get it all done and cut off a piece of test cloth (thank God for thinking of that!) so I could try it out. I then managed to destroy the test cloth and took a break before throwing the whole 'd' machine across the room! I attempted to call mom a number of times to see if she could help over the phone, but she wouldn't even answer the phone (thanks mom) so I called Grandma. She talked about top and bottom tension and helped me understand the machine a little better, but it was still bunching up at the bottom and not going to well at all. Grandma told me that sometimes it was best to just take a break and come back to it after you've calmed down and maybe you'll be able to figure out the problem. I thanked her for the help, had a little lunch, and looked at it again. I realized that I hadn't threaded the top one correctly (missed one of the little threading things...) and after that it worked like a charm! I was able to sew the test piece back together! I then measured a VERY eager Lilly and cut the material to size... then realized that I had forgotten to purchase pins to hold it together while I sewed to make sure it went in a straight line... At this point, I didn't really care. I held it together as best as possible and Lilly had a new dress in less than one minute! She now won't take it off and is ever so eager to show it off (answer your phone Mom and you can see it!). The dress is a beautiful light blue with butterflies, the bottom looks like green hills with tall flowers and ladybugs playing hopscotch and jump rope... The perfect summer dress!

The seam isn't perfectly straight, but she's happy and I'll learn as I go. I think before I attempt to make my curtains I'll buy some pins to help make the job go a little easier. That's a much bigger job than a simple (and rather tiny) dress! I'll let you all know how that goes!! Wish me luck!!