The Robe

 I've been doing small projects with my 'new' sewing machine, the one I got FREE from a yard down the block...mending towels, enlarging bandanas, making a quick slip cover for a chair back. I felt comfortable enough to jump feet first into a big undertaking, a garment using a pattern. I decided a robe would be a great thing, something comfy but not too fitted, so the sewing wouldn't need to be too exacting. I wanted a robe with a hood. In the colder months I like waking up and having my head covered. I found the exact thing I wanted in a Simplicity pattern that I found on Amazon. I needed five and half yards of fabric. There was a nice blue-green, very masculine. It took me a whole day to lay out the pattern on the fabric after it had been washed and then to cut out all the pieces. Then another day to do the pockets and belt loops. The third day I got most of the body of the robe done and the last day I finished the hood and the hemming. At first I thought that the fit was a little too big (I chose to go with LARGE as the size), but on reflection I think it's fine. If I were to make another one I might try the MEDIUM. I learned A LOT about patterns and garment construction thru this process. Thank God for YouTube also. I watched a ton of how-to videos and picked up a lot of tips and tricks that helped a lot. I can't wait to try my next project. 

A bicycle built for one

I was on Nextdoor.com this week and spotted what I thought was a great deal. A stationary bike for only $200 that looked practically brand new. As I zoomed in on the picture I saw that it was a Schwinn, a good brand name.

 I exchanged DM's with  the owner and at the end of the day we agreed that I could drive over to her place and take a look at it. It turned out to be a huge house in the Norhwest Woods, almost near my friend Dean's home. Very modern with an electrical gate all the way around. When I got there the husband (?) greeted me, I think he had Parkinson's. Very nice but shaky and a little hard to understand when he talked. She came to the door, "Hi Ron!". They weren't wearing masks which was a little odd to me, but I was for sure so I took the gamble. They showed me down to their basement which was half home movie theatre, half personal gym. It was VERY luxe. The minute I saw the bike I knew it was an expensive model. If it had been used more than four times I would have been surprised. My plan was to haggle a little but I knew that at $200 it was a bargain, so I let that go. I gave him he money and realized that I could take off the handle bars and seat and it would be easy to fit in the back of the Jeep. It must have weighed FIVE TONS. It was a struggle to get up the stairs, out the house and into the car...but I managed somehow. They were extremely nice and even threw in the mat that the bike sits on. When I got it home and into the basement, again with much effort and strain, I Googled the model. It's worth at least ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS. This was the deal of the century...SCORE!! I tried out my first workout on it yesterday and it's perfect. This has been the summer of great deals for sure.