I wanted to try another evening gown because I wanted to improve my fitting techniques. Evening gowns, because of their close fit, require a lot attention to detail, and multiple fittings to ensure things are going well.  I also like doing them because they are fast. : )   This one is Vogue pattern 8556. I really like working with Vogue because the patterns are usually well sized, and require minimal adjustments to make them fit well. And, the patterns are just very flattering. The fabric is a crepe back satin in royal blue, and the dress is fully lined.

Halfway through May, and I'm just now getting to my April Project blog!!  April was a busy month, and May was even crazier! I finished the 1810 Regency Stays and Chemise. Yay! And started the gown. Meanwhile, I had been working on a knitted sweater that I had started at the end of March.

In April, I finished the regency short stays and chemise, and in May, I finished the gown.  So I am putting this in between the April and May Projects blog posts, even though I still haven't gotten to the April one. : ) The inspiration from this project came from watching Immortal Beloved, a movie about Ludwig Van Beethoven's life. He is long been a favorite composer of mine, and I love the movie because it captures his life through his music.

(This appeared originally in the March Projects blog post. I pulled it out so the Monkey shows in the knitting project list.)

Well, March seemed to go the same way as February... not enough time for getting a lot done.  But, I did get some stuff done! In February, I had started knitting a sock monkey. I had done several hats by then, and realized that I was dangerously close to being surrounded by stacks of hats that I will never get a chance to wear in sunny SoCal, so I started looking for something new to do.