Yes, I changed my layout - again! The Halloween one was getting on my nerves and just looked silly.  No, this one isn't tons better but I like it more and yes, the banner is silly and I did make it myself.  For Facebook readers just imagine fun pictures around these words, kay?  :)

I'm going to point to InkyGirl again today, she clued in on a 60-second-writing tool that I'm very interested in trying out later.  Right now I don't have the concentration to stay dedicated to one thought for that long.  (It's taken me several attempts to write this much today).  Also, my pastor's wife, Lisa Young was on the the Today Show, yesterday and he blogs about it here.  The interview is very short, if you fast forward through where they talk about other prominant women in the Christian community, but it's good and reminds me why I like them even though I've never met either.

They bring up an interesting point - how working women are much less likely to attend church while women who do attend church are more likely to not be in the workplace.  I'm not sure what that says as far as a social dynamic, but I find it interesting.

In completely unrelated news! I picked out yarn for a friend's scarf - now he doesn't know what colors so there won't be pictures of it until the scarf is finished and ready for delivery/pick-up.  I'm going to try something a bit different with this one and that is knitting it in a circle.  I've read over on The Well-Dressed Hedgehog about her experiences knitting in the round and I've looked at some other things so we'll see how I manage.  I think it'll be okay, but I'm also thinking I need two more skiens of yarn... I didn't think I'd get to it until Saturday but after a frusterating night last night I started it and did about six rows, so it's at least started.  It won't get a lot of attention though until after I finish The Dress.  I'm also just going to give in and pay for knitting lessons, though it'll be more like December or January before I make the effort because there's just too much going on during November and I have enough scarves I can knit to keep my knitting itch satisfied.

Tonight, after the block party for finishing the updates at my apartment complex - I started the charge to finish the bridesmaid dress I've been stalling over.  It's time I finish it and get my apartment back to looking nice - and not like a hobo lives there! I also need to do t-shirt surgery on my NaNoWriMo shirt since it's far too large to be much fun wearing and our kick-off is on Sunday.  I will be baking cookies and maybe a cake if I feel like going and looking at fun pans and getting all the necessary items for that - which probably means no cake!  I have a lot of stuff going as it is for the next month!

Anyways, the dress... I decided that I didn't want to run the thread through the fabric where you would see it in order to hem the dress, so I cut another piece of the plum poplin and made a facing out of it.  I am at a loss for words how to describe it easily to someone who doesn't know anything about sewing so I'm going to pretend everyone knows what I'm talking about...  So the facign was a TERRIBLE idea to add; for some reason it makes everything lay funny, it won't sit right, and it makes the straps and zipper difficult to deal with.  I absolutly hate the straps that come with the pattern; they are designed to have a slight curve to them, the idea is that the curve will help them stay up and on the shoulders easier.  On me, while the inner edge of the strap is flush with my skin, the outside part of the strap is an inch to an inch and a half above my shoulder.  It looks silly.  I did - however - manage an amazing zipper job so I'm bummed about loosing that sucess to the fact that I'll have to rip out the facing and straps.  (The zipper must come out because the facing connects to it.  I *can* only rip out the top part and resew only that little bit - we'll see)

For a while I was agonizing over making the bodice fit snugly, but then stepped back and realized that the dress has a billowy figure anyways, so having the bodice fit like a glove and the rest loose and flowy was silly.  There's enough shape to the bodice that me having difficulty breathing is silly.  Plus, without the facing, if I really feel the need, I can always tack in the side seams a hair. 

As tonight is the Halloween party and my magnificant costume, it's going to be Saturday until I can finish the dress, and I'm going to push myself to do just that.  Finish the dress and clean the place.  If I can't finish my latest novelette like I'd planned before NaNo, I'm going to finish this stinking dress!  It also needs to be dry-cleaned I believe, there's some strange spots on the poplin that I have no idea where they came from and now I'm too nervous about it to just wash it outright in my own washer.