Elena Cresci

Archive for August 2010

This time last year…

August 31, 2010 Blog No comments

I know Mondays are normally reserved for my Movie Monday posts, but I have something a little different on my mind this week…

Namely that, this time last year I had just begun my German adventure and was on the induction course in Altenberg meeting the people that were to become some of my best friends in the course of my year abroad.

Although I’m certain that my business with Germany is by no means done, I can’t help but feel a little sad and nostalgic. So much has changed since I left for Dortmund, from some personal situations to my sewing and to my career aspirations. I actually have a plan for when I’m done with University now, whereas I didn’t have a bloody clue where I was going with my life this time last year! I’ve met the most amazing people, and I can’t wait to visit them in their respective locations.

Not to mention that this blog was pretty much in its infancy back then! I feel like it represents me much more accurately as a person now, and I’m more at ease with writing it than I ever was back then.

So tonight, as I chill out to watch The Shawshank Redemption for next week’s Movie Monday, I’ll be wearing my I <3 U Dortmund t-shirt – which you can buy here (for those who don’t know, the U is the old brewery in Dortmund which has become the symbol of the city) – and reminiscing about those good old German days. I’m actually wearing it with a skirt I made in preparation for Self Stitched September! Please excuse my heavily bruised legs, it’s been a crazy few weeks at training!

Speaking of Dortmund, please do go check out my article about it over at Third Year Abroad!

Holy moly it’s next week

August 27, 2010 Blog No comments

September is nearly here! We all know what that means… Self-Stitched September is just around the corner!

My sewing activity of late has been mostly on the refashioning side – I haven’t posted about them, because they’ll obviously feature a lot in the Self-Stitched September posts. I’m looking forward to the challenge, but I’ve hit a few snags.

For various reasons, I didn’t get the basics I’d hoped done in time, so my wardrobe is fairly limited in this sense. I’ve been whirring the old cogs as fast as I can to try and figure out a way I can stay true to the ethos of the pledge while being able to maintain an interesting set of outfits.

So as you guys may have seen from previous posts, I’m a bit of a fan of the old charity shop, mainly to buy things to alter and refashion. However, if I find something good in a charity shop that fits well, more often than not it’ll become a wardrobe staple. In fact, I’ve noticed that I wear a lot in the way of hand-me-downs. So, I’m going to alter my pledge somewhat.

‘I, Len of Can’t Say Strawberry sign up as a participant of Self-Stitched-September. I endeavour to wear only handmade, refashioned and second-hand items of clothing every day for the duration of September 2010′.

Basically, anything second hand goes, whether refashioned or not. I hope you guys don’t think I’m being too much of a cop out on this front, but it’s the best way I can think of to maintain the pledge with the lack of self-sewn basics that I have, especially as my job requires me to wear black and white, which I sew surprisingly little of!

Pre-loved clothing is sometimes the best kind, don’t you think? Furthermore, if I do buy clothing as part of the pledge, it all has to come from a charity shop – so my money’s going to an excellent cause as well.

Interestingly, this means that, while my plan was initially to keep Sportswear out of the pledge, ironically, some of it fits in to the new pledge! My gi (the suit that you wear in Karate) bottoms are hand-me-downs from when my brother did Judo, and the black trousers and black t-shirt I have for informal classes are also hand-me-downs from the brief time my brother did Karate! Interesting how these things turn out, no?

My only snag now is a coat! What with the atrocious August weather we’re having here in Wales, I have a feeling I’m certainly going to be needing one.

Thank goodness for Gertie’s Lady Grey sewalong! While I won’t have a me-made coat for the entirety of September, at least I can ensure I’ll be snug and cozy in my own by October! I’ll be sure to post my plans for my Lady Grey in due course.

How are everyone else’s preparations for Self-Stitched September going?

Good Will Hunting

August 23, 2010 Blog No comments

When Good Will Hunting appeared on BBC iPlayer last week, I jumped at the chance to watch, knowing that it was somewhere in the IMDB 250 (#198). Truthfully, I wasn’t entirely certain what to expect.

Good Will Hunting could be described as a coming of age tale, despite its protagonist being in his 20s. Will Hunting is a mathematical prodigy working as a mere janitor in M.I.T. Through a scenario involving Will anonymously answering two groundbreaking equations on the chalkboard outside the lecture theatre, his mathematical talents are noticed by the University’s professor of Mathematics, who helps him out of a tight scenario with the law under the condition that he sees a therapist.

What follows is a heartwarming story which sees Will discover that there’s far more to life than boozing, beating up old-time rivals and avoiding responsibility. The dialogue is super snappy and realistic, which is testament to not only the quality of the script but also the actors; don’t you just love it when the dialogue of a film feels so real? Some stellar performances here.

My favourite character by far was Robin Williams’ Sean McGuire, Will’s offbeat therapist, as he provided some of my favourite dialogue in the film. Possibly my favourite moment of the entire film was when Sean speaks about what he remembers about his late wife:

“The little idiosyncrasies that only I know about: that’s what made her my wife. Oh she had the goods on me too, she knew all my little peccadilloes. People call these things imperfections, but they’re not. Ah, that’s the good stuff.”

Quality, quality film.

I felt that this needed to be shared!

August 22, 2010 Blog No comments

There’s no way that this song isn’t going to go viral – Simon Pegg tweeted about it TWICE this weekend, and rightly so!

As my friend Ki said : ‘This is the kind of music I wish I was making, sweet soul laced with broken hearted bitterness and a little tongue in cheek…’

Incredible record.

Good body.

August 19, 2010 Blog No comments

Yesterday, Gertie posted a wonderful post about body image, based around a poem by Eve Ensler. You should go read it here, now! Don’t worry, I’ll wait.

…

Read it? Good!

Maybe I was just really dehydrated, but damn. This quote said a lot to me. This may sound crazy, but hearing this quote is the first time that it hit me that my body is the only body I will ever have. (Sorry, do I sound high right now? I’m not, I swear.) But seriously, let that sink in for a moment. You will never have Christina Hendricks’s body, or Dita Von Teese’s, or Kate Moss’s. The one you’ve got is the only one you’ll ever know.

Isn’t it curious how little we think this? As Gertie points out in her post, we’re constantly searching for something better than what we have; the grass is always greener on the other side. Take me for example, Miss Small Chest here, who has certainly been guilty of envying other ladies’ sizeable jugs, wishing that I could get that cleavage. But then, without sounding bigheaded, I’m sure there are things about my body that some ladies sporting the most wonderful DD cups would kill to have.

Us ladies spend far too much time putting each other down, but more than anything, putting ourselves down. So, ladies, and if there are any gents reading this I’d love you to join in too, I’d like you to comment with three things that you love about your body! There is no way that you hate your entire body, so share with me what it is you love!

I’ll get the ball rolling :

My body in general is strong and athletic! It can withstand some tough exercise, some pretty nasty throws and a lot of running.
I’m packing it in the trunk in a very very good way. My bum is awesome!
This is a totally bizarre one coming from the girl who, at 16, wore jeans all Summer because she hated them, but I really do love my legs. It’s not a night out if I don’t get my legs out!

Follow me!

August 18, 2010 Blog No comments

Or, er, become a member!

I’ve noticed a few blogs doing the whole ‘100 followers giveaway’ stuff – I’m not so interested in that, I’m just concerned that they have 100 followers in their army, and I have none! How on earth am I going to compete with that?

While building my personal online army is obviously a priority here, I’d also like to get to know my readers, and I guess becoming a ‘member’ (I much rather the term follower, perhaps Google Friend Connect knows about my dastardly intentions) is a good way to see who your readership is! I’d also love to get some giveaways going!

Just click your cursor over to the box on the right hand of your screen and use your Google account to become a member. Or a follower. Or a minion. You can choose. (Incidentally, I would love it if every time someone became a member, a message would pop up with ‘A NEW CREATURE HAS ENTERED YOUR DUNGEON’: bonus points to the minion who gets the reference)

As ever, you can follow me using Bloglovin, a handy tool to follow all your favourite blogs from one location, and you can also follow me on Twitter. Though my Twitter isn’t really that interesting. One of my recent entries was ‘nom nom nom’. But if you’re interested in that kind of thing, then I guess my Twitter is perfect for you!

I’ll leave you with a K-Pop song I haven’t been able to stop listening to, appropriately named ‘Follow Me’:

Summer Essentials Items #2 and #3 (and a half)

August 17, 2010 Blog 6 comments

So… we’re midway through August and I’ve only just got around to posting these babies! I apologise for the delay, mine and Martha’s schedules are fairly hectic! We were only able to shoot two outfits in the end due to time restrictions.

Summer Essentials Item #2 comes courtesy of the super cute Port Elizabeth Top pattern from Goldfinch and Eagle. It was very easy to make, and I’ve had a lot of wear out of it since I finished. I’m already planning another in a cream lace fabric!

As soon as I spotted this blue gingham fabric, I knew that it would make a lovely Port Elizabeth top, especially as Sarah also used a similar fabric! I’m loving the nautical vibe, and am yearning for a red Beignet to become its partner.

Summer Essentials item #3 is a creation from a vintage pattern that I bought from midvalecottage on Etsy – there are some wonderful vintage patterns on sale here, go check it out! I’ve wanted a pair of high-waisted polka dot culottes for months now, and this was the best pattern I found for the job! In vintage sizing, I’m a 16, so this also meant my first foray into the world of resizing! Unfortunately this involved Maths… it’s been a very long time since I last did Maths. Never did I think that the day would come when I would VOLUNTARILY sit down and do some number crunching.

Despite the Maths, I’m quite proud of the result. They’re made from a cotton fabric, which is probably more suited to quilting than to clothing, but I’m going to ignore that because the pattern is fab. Also, I think the stiffness of the fabric gives a nice effect on the pleating. However, I would like to make some out of a fabric with some more drape at some point in the future.

…I also have a confession to make. I cut a major corner when I made these shorts. Oh Sewing Gods, forgive me… but I used WONDERWEB for the hem! It was a moment of weakness, I assure you! It doesn’t look too bad, but I think I much prefer the results of slipstitching a hem in place. Lesson learnt!

Can you tell that I’m totally living the dream here? Despite being a petite 5”3, Martha has succeeded in making me look like a GIANT. This pleases me.

As for the half Summer Essential item mentioned in the title – that would be the black strapless top I’m sporting with my shorts. It’s from the wonderful Afternoon Tea Top by Ichigogirl. I made it from a jersey remnant I had lying about. It was a bit of a rushed job, and I’m still getting used to working with jersey – it’s more difficult that I’d anticipated!

With that in mind, I shall leave you with a photo of me laughing like a hyena.

Please do head over to the Summer Essentials Flickr Group – people have made some amazing garments in the course of this challenge!

I buhlieve in MIRACLES

August 17, 2010 Blog No comments

I knew there would come a point in my mission to educate myself in classic film where I would watch a film and not be able to believe that it’s in my ‘never got around to see’ pile.

The Full Monty is definitely one of those films. Now, it’s not actually placed in the IMDB Top 250, but it certainly should be. The general atmosphere of most British films really appeal to me – personally, I can’t see the Full Monty working as an American film. The British humour is what makes it fantastic in my opinion, and British films always seem so much more real to me. Does anyone else feel that way? Or is it just because I am British and therefore have more experience and knowledge about that which the director is trying to portray?

While The Full Monty is placed clearly in the comedy bracket, it deals with topical issues such as unemployment, depression and fathers’ rights within a working class community. Set in Sheffield, it follows the story of six unemployed men who decide to go ‘the Full Monty’, i.e, strip for money, after seeing the crowds that the Chippendale dancers attract. They believe they can go one better than the Chippendales – because they plan to go the whole way!

The best bit in the entire film is this gem of a scene when the lads queue at the Job Centre (annoyingly, the only copy I could find was the Spanish dub, but the dialogue is not important) :

Amazing film.

Don’t worry, be happy

August 14, 2010 Blog No comments

I’m having a bad day – mostly due to it being that super special time of the month, so sewing has been on a bit of a backburner today.

When I’m feeling low, I tend to reach for the chocolate, listen to some tunes or watch some sort of chick flick.

What are your top tips for keeping cheerful when you’re on a downer?

Refashionista

August 10, 2010 Blog No comments

With my return to the U.K comes my return to charity shops – I lamented the lack of them in Germany (I counted one expensive Oxfam in Dortmund) and rejoice to be back in a country where it’s not uncommon for a small village’s town centre to be comprised mainly of charity shops.

Lately I’ve been looking mainly for things that are black and white – i.e things that can double as a work uniform in September as well as something to wear just generally. I found this beauty of a pleated granny skirt today; I know you want to bask in all its ankle length glory! Bask away! As of yet, I’m not sure if I want to keep the pleats, partly because I’m actually making a black pleated skirt as we speak, but also because it was the buttons that drew me to this skirt. I was highly tempted to take some comedy pictures of me wearing this skirt, but I’m currently sat with Henna on my head and a facemask plastering my face… this isn’t something that the world needs to see!

This dress really reminds me of the Uniform Project’s LBD for Year 1– simple and chic. As it’s from a petite range, the only alteration needed is to take it in at the sides, and bingo! I’ll be pairing this with colourful tights I think. Isn’t the top stitched cross detail adorable?

Finally, I have an actual sewing project to show you! Anyone remember the shirt that I paired my Roses are Red Cynthia Rowley skirt with? Here’s a refresher if you don’t :

While it looked utterly fabulous on my dearly departed mannequin Sally, it was pretty ugly and shapeless on me. This was mostly because it was a size 12, but also I don’t seem to get along very well with long sleeved shirts.

I’ll be sure to get some photos of this paired with the black pleated skirt I’m cracking out at the moment. After removing the collar and the sleeves, I took the shirt in at the sides and cut a new neckline using a vintage shirt pattern I have in my stash, created a simple facing to make a collarless neckline and then cut the sleeves to a cute cap sleeve. Not too shabby! Also means that I have a shirt to wear in September, hurrah!

Coincidentally, BurdaStyle just posted an awesome gingham dress – check me out, following the trend! Anyone else tempted to make up the same dress?

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