Halloween: A DIY Journey

This year was Noah’s first Halloween and I really wanted to get into it. I found the cutest shark costume for him online and decided make it a family theme costume – something I vowed never to do but was suddenly excited about. Instead of three sharks I thought it would be fun to do a shark, mermaid, and pirate. This is my mermaid costume DIY journey. Nothing ever goes as smoothly as it seems like it should on Pinterest.

I’ll start by saying my most favorite costume that I ever wore growing up was the mermaid costume I donned in kindergarten. I only remember a few things from that year; making donuts in class, pretending to sleep during naptime, and my mermaid costume. It was modeled after The Little Mermaid, as most mermaid costumes are. My mother sewed it for me. It was a dress; the top, a nude tank top with purple sparkling shells sewn on, and a shiny green skirt with fins on the bottom. The fins stuck out to the sides and would have been pretty convincing if not for my feet peeking out. On my feet I wore my favorite purple peep-toe jellies, which I wore everyday and still think of.

As a 30 year old adult with a small infant to take care of, I didn’t think I’d have time for a full on sewing project. Especially since I’d never sewn on a sewing machine and didn’t own one (you’ve seen my Instagram and know where this is going). I started by scouring the internet for inspiration and a no sew tutorial. There was quite a variety of costumes based on mermaids, from hipster Ariel to sexy mermaid (just Google search "mermaid costume" under images. Kim K was a hot mess as a mermaid and this one girl totally nailed Ariel including the dinglehopper). I found a tutorial on Martha Stewart online by Christian Siriano, a fashion designer and former Project Runway winner (in case you didn’t know). Throughout the tutorial he used encouraging words and phrases like, “simply” “your local craft store” “easily” “just like that” and “hot glue”. This was it! I made a shopping list based on this simple and easy no sew project as promised to me by Martha and Christian.

My local craft store. Funny I never considered whether or not there was a craft store in Kuwait City. There isn’t. We have a fabric souk, stationary supply store, and True Value. The fabric souk seemed the most promising of the three and I enlisted the help of an expert sewer and crafty friend who knows the souk well. It took several visits, but eventually I got some fabric. It was not what Mr. Siriano recommended. They didn’t have organza or stretchy teal fabric anywhere at the souk. I did find one that was made of gold tinsel and red thread, which looked like salmon scales and got totally side tracked. I ended up buying this thinking I’d hot glue it together to make a skirt (wrong). I also bought chiffon thinking it was see-through like organza. this was also a fail, too heavy and not enough body for fins. Tulle would have been a better substitute in case you are thinking of going in the same direction.

Things got more complicated. Having no craft store to simply buy shells from I had to order something online. There wasn’t much and it was hard to determine what exactly I was getting in a 5 pound bag of seashells for $20 on Amazon. In addition, I realized that with a frequently nursing baby who needs to be held at all times, shells on my chest might not be the right choice. Thwarted again. This is where my kindergarten costume became the inspiration. And I bought a sewing machine.

For a first sewing project usually people go with a pillow or a set of napkins. Me on the other hand, I like a challenge, especially when I’m sleep deprived. What started as something I could just hot glue turned into a full on sewing venture. A friend of mine recommended taking classes on Craftsy.com to start my journey. I decided to make a pencil skirt with my fabric and let the costume go from there.

I ventured back to the fabric souk to collection notions with a new project checklist. Once my sewing machine arrived, I panicked upon reading the instructions. Well, trying to read the instructions. Noah was bouncing in my lap, trying to grab and eat them. It all seemed too much. I let the machine sit on the counter for several days before diving in.

Then after taking my measurements, I nearly fainted and it took several more days for me to get the courage to continue. “Don’t let the numbers upset you,” the Craftsy instructor said. How could they not?!

During this time my mother came to town for a visit. As an expert sewer herself she offered to watch Noah for me and encouraged me to continue my efforts despite having to make our own pattern when we realized the one that came with the class was too small (I just about laid on the floor and cried).

 

Keeping in mind the original Christian Siriano tutorial, I bought the recommended shape wear top to hot glue the shells on (before deciding to go in another direction). Besides not having shells to glue onto it, they don’t make those suckers in DDD. My breasts were spilling out. This is not as sexy as you are imagining - my nursing pads were spilling out too. Luckily my mom remembered how she made the shells on my costume 25 years ago and we improvised the rest of the outfit from there.

In theory, sewing isn’t really complicated. Once I got into it, I understood what I was doing and actually enjoyed using the machine. However, sewing tinsel proved rather challenging. So did removing erroneous seams when I did such a good job matching the thread color to the one in the skirt. My thoughts went from “I’m amazing! Once I finish this project, I’ll design my whole wardrobe and I will look fantastic and stylish!” to “WTF is going on? WHY why did I choose to sew TINSEL for my first sewing project? If the needle pulls the fabric one more time I’m going to light this on fire and take a nap.”

A lot of discussion, heartache, and sewing trial and error brought us to a pencil skirt with a short peplum and a nude body shaper with ruched fabric sewn as shells. This was not at all what the original was supposed to be. Nor did it scream mermaid (looking at the pictures now, I think it did but not at the time). No matter how I styled it, I looked like a 1950s housewife going to a Halloween party. I looked like my grandmother going to a Halloween party. My figure, already considered “womanly” now post-baby is overwhelmingly so. It is not the slight boyish figure of the girls modeling their mermaid costumes on Pinterest. I tried to embrace it, after all you’ve to go work with what you have, but in the end left the house wearing a blue t-shirt with my fishtail skirt.

Even so, my costume miraculously proved successful. When we finally arrived at the family Halloween Party, everyone got the picture that I was a mermaid accompanying my little shark - who stole the show anyways! I even got several compliments on the skirt. Although nothing went as smoothly as promised, it was definitely a learning experience and I am grateful for it. I won’t burn the skirt after all.

Have you ever tried a DIY project after seeing a tutorial online? How did it go?

I Have Standards

Amongst other things, I'm a coffee snob. I LOVE coffee. I love it more than wine (gasp) and I could drink it with every meal. Yes, every meal, morning, noon and night. When I was a working girl I would drink a cup in the mornings before work, then grab one on the way to the office - which I would sip on until lunch time. Sometimes in the afternoon I would get a third cup, though usually decaf. If I couldn't get a third cup, I would re-heat the old coffee for the afternoon. I know what you're thinking, and yes it did taste burnt.

I've been spoiled in almost every place I've lived with perfectly delicious coffee. Actually I remember the first Starbucks that opened in my hometown. It was at the Tampa International Airport and I believe I was just old enough for it to be OK for me to have coffee. Back then, going to the airport was a treat because usually we were picking up someone in town to visit and we could get a cup of Starbucks while we waited. In NYC and DC there were plenty of locally roasted, home grown places to purchase the perfect cup. In Dupont Circle, within a two minute walking radius from my apartment I had over five coffee shops to choose from. There wasn't a moment I had to consider drinking something sub-par.

My favorite type of coffee - not including type of beans and level of roasting - is just plain old American drip coffee. I sometimes drink it black, sometimes with a splash of milk, and once in a while black with a smidgen of honey (I don't really like sweet drinks). When at home I make my coffee by heating the water in a stove top kettle, grinding the beans fresh, and brewing in a single cup french press. I make one cup at a time. The process of making it has become a ritual for me. A way to transition from night to day, from dreams to reality.

Kuwait is a dry country - in case you didn't already know. I never thought I would move to a dry county let alone a dry country. No pork or porn either. I know, what a lame place you might be thinking. But its redeeming quality, at least in my mind before we arrived, was that they have a very active coffee culture. Instead of a bar on every corner, there are coffee shops. Just like in other large cities, sometimes two Starbucks face each other. Besides Starbucks there is Caribou Coffee, Illy, and MANY local joints I've yet to hit up. My fantasy was to buy beans from these local joints and experiment with local flavor.

Ah, yes. How does that old saying go? "The best laid schemes of mice and men, go often awry." Once pregnant and sick as a dog my little cafe dreams didn't stand a chance (and moving to a dry country suddenly didn't seem so crazy). Although my doctor said it was OK to drink 6-8 oz of caffeine a day, I couldn't even smell coffee in my first trimester. The idea of drinking it made me gag. I replace my morning ritual with dry Eggo waffles and orange juice.

Recently, I've began to be wooed by coffee again. Regular coffee now gives me the jitters and what I didn't count on is that no one really drinks decaf here. Here in this entire country. There is no decaf American drip coffee to be had (iced decaf Americana has been the closest acceptable substitute). Not even decaf beans at the grocery store.

With each passing day of not finding exactly what I wanted. My standards changed. My mind opened. One day, I found decaf instant Folger's and bought it with the excitement of a 5 year old on Christmas. I got home and "brewed" it right away. I set up a place setting and dusted off my favorite coffee cup. It tasted like dirty soapy water. My little heart was broken with defeat.

Finally after over a month of searching, I've found something acceptable. In an isolated little corner of my local grocery store there is a section called "organic corner". It has packaged organic goods including instant decaf coffee! And it doesn't taste like dirty soapy water!

Now I gladly drink my instant decaf coffee each morning in the crisp fall air on my balcony (and by crisp fall I mean mid to high 70s). I drink my coffee with pride and satisfaction because by drinking it I was able to overcome the biggest obstacle of moving overseas - managing my own expectations.

Arlington National Cemetery

Exploring Wine: A Thanksgiving Pairing

I almost bored myself to tears last week as I wrote about suggested wine pairings for your Thanksgiving feasts. I was going argue why the body, structure, and fruitiness of a Pinot Noir would be perfect with your succulent turkey and cranberry sauce. But then, I thought better of it and instead I’m going to tell you a little story about pairing wine with the holiday meal.


It’s 10am. I’ve just finished serving my family a generous meal of scrambled eggs, biscuits, ambrosia, fresh coffee, orange juice, and applewood smoked bacon. I need the bacon for Brussels sprouts I’m roasting later in the day. So I do a pre-Thanksgiving breakfast feast. I can’t just cook bacon at 9am with a house full of people and not expect them to eat it all before I can say, “that’s for later.” I buy double what I need and accept the fact that I will also be sneaking little bits of it all day.


After cleaning the kitchen, I sit down to finish my second cup of coffee and go over my lists and recipes to make sure I start cooking everything on time, and in the right order. My sous chef/mother notices I have no oranges or sugar. She sends dad out for them while she starts peeling apples for a pie. I ask for Sucanat to try and keep the meal as dairy-free, organic, and non-processed as possible.


He comes back with a pound of refined white sugar, along with Grand Marnier and champagne to use to kill off the orange juice; because we obviously can’t just have orange juice sitting around. My sister decides it’s too much for her and goes for a run. My dad abandons his new mimosa making duties to accompany her. Gman is already out. My coffee is down to the last bitter, cold sip.


I start on the Brussels sprouts, rinsing, chopping, and roasting them with apples and bacon (which barely made it into the dish). My sous chef and I decide there is no time like the present to sample the good wine I carefully choose to compliment our dinner. My, my do I love Pinot Noir. It’s the Goldilocks of wine - not as heavy as a Cab or Malbec, not as light as a Nebbiolo or Chianti - and it goes down so easily too, especially while one is cooking. As soon as the Brussels sprouts are in the oven, we start the cranberry sauce. The Grand Marnier doesn’t go to waste, and we pour a little into the cranberries and orange zest. Man, the wine is so good. It makes everything fragrant and I pat myself on the back for such a fine selection.


More biscuits, and some cornbread go into the oven as the Brussels sprouts finish up. I start boiling the potatoes and cook the sausage for the dressing. Everyone returns. We open a second bottle then nearly burn our fingers sampling the Brussels sprouts straight off the pan. “Yes,” I say, complimenting myself out loud, “the Pinot Noir picks up the bits of bacon nicely without over-powering the apples”. My sister rolls her eyes.


Then I realize that the turkey roast is still chilling in the fridge. It’s now 2pm and the side dishes are near completion. I ignore everything that Giada and Ina have taught me and rub a bunch of butter all over the cold roast, and then dump some salt and pepper on it. It’s thrown into the oven about 50 degrees hotter than noted on the packaging. We consider cutting up and grilling it instead, then realize the grill is out of gas and its also 40 degrees outside.


Slowly the day slips through my fingers. Once everything is finished in the kitchen, we are forced to drink cheap Chardonnay with the turkey (which wasn’t a total loss) instead of the hand-selected Pinot since my sous chef and I finished that off, oops. But no one seems to notice or mind. We end the night with a rousing game of Apples to Apples. Then devour some apple pie and vanilla ice cream.


Nothing was exactly as I prepared for in my head the weeks leading up. In the moment, I was stressed more than I was calm. I was even resentful that I couldn’t go for a run too, but really, I was relieved to get some quiet time to do one of my favorite things: sit in the kitchen with my mom, drink the finest wine we can afford while pretending to be focused on the food, but really we’re just gossiping until everyone returns and the moment is gone.

Shoe Love: Corso Como Boots

Corso Como Doyle Boot via Nordstrom

I haven't purchased a new pair of winter boots in almost four years! It doesn’t seem like that much time has passed but when I realized I was down to two very worn in pairs. It was time to start searching for a new addition.

Shopping for boots isn’t as easy as shopping for pumps and sandals. The height of the boot can be tricky, especially for my more petite friends, and the width of the opening can prove to be too wide or too narrow. My first ever purchase of winter boots was a pair of Corso Comos during my first ever winter in New York City. Accustomed to wearing sandals, it took a while for me to break them in, but now almost 5 years later they are still my go to.

I’m thinking about another pair. What do you think of the zipper on these? What boots are your cold weather go to?

Weekend Recap: fall back

It's finally looking like fall around here. The leaves on trees are orange, red, and yellow, and fall flowers are in full bloom. This weekend the air was cool and crisp and perfectly sunny. Gman and I spent most of our time this weekend with the windows open and relaxing around the house.

Saturday night we treated to dinner at our friends, Susan and Nick's house. Nick whipped up chicken with capers, mushrooms, and lemon, with fettucini alfredo, all from scratch. Susan made an apple pie that made my mouth water with just the smell coming from the oven. It was lovely catching up with them and we told stories as we ate and drank. She recently had a baby and he was so good during our visit.

What did you do this weekend? Have you been apple picking yet? What is your favorite thing to do when the weather changes?

Wardrobe: Apple Picking

Pants, Henley, Jacket, Booties, Bag, Earrings, Scarf

From my time in NYC, I quickly learned that New Yorkers value clothing, shoes, and bags that last for many years. They will buy a pair of shoes and have them re-soled a few times before getting new ones. You might see a girl in her 20s carrying around her grandmothers Louis Vuitton or Chanel  handbag, still in perfect condition.

One piece that I have always admired is the Barbour jacket. It's classically Northeaster casual with a touch of prep. You can wear this commuting, on the weekends for brunch, hiking, apple picking, or just simply throw it on while running errands. The waxed cotton keeps you dry in the rain and warm in the wind. I highly recommend this jacket as an investment piece that you will find joy in for years to come.

Well, I've convinced myself. Please excuse me, I have a bit of shopping to do...

I'm baaaack...

Did you miss me? Have you been bored and lonely? Did you leave the house because you had less stuff to read online?

I can't believe it's already the middle of October! The summer totally flew by and those 100 degree days are behind us. Woohoo! Now its on to college football, apple pie and pumpkin ravioli. Do you have any fall traditions?

Thank you again for sticking with me and tune in a bit later for a new destination!