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Wednesday, July 29, 2015

I run my own sweatshop



That’s right folks.  It’s my bonus room upstairs that doubles as a sewing and craft room.  I’ve been doing alterations up there in my spare time.  What spare time?  The thing of it is I try to keep the A/C off and use fans only.  I figure it will save on the electric bill and if we could manage as kids in the south with no A/C, I figured I could do it now.  Well, this is tougher than you think.  Usually by the end of the day, I can wring out my clothes.  I have a soaked towel I’ve been mopping my face and neck with and I can’t wait to hit the shower to cool off and take some aspirin for my splitting headache.

Still this is doable, although it takes me longer because I’m delirious from the heat.  Plus, it gives me extra spending money, eventually, once I get the items finished.




Here are some skirts I altered recently.  The polka dot strip is for insertion into a swimsuit top that’s a bit too low for my busty friend.

Occasionally, I sew something from scratch too, but it’s hard to stay up there all day without some kind of break.  The room is definitely more pleasant in the wintertime, but I can get so much more accomplished when hubby is out of town because I don’t have to keep his schedule for eating, sleeping and just hanging out, etc.  It’s hard to disappear upstairs for hours with a man in the house.

10 comments:

  1. Keep yourself well hydrated when working up there (I'm sure you do). That's nice you have something you can do to bring in a little spending money.

    betty

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    1. Betty,

      I do stay hydrated. I always take a giant mug up there that holds four glasses of water.

      I have my hands into all kinds of crafts, so there is something I can usually make money at, even if it isn't much. Alterations come my way more often than other stuff. Now I'm glad my grandmother taught us sew starting at age nine.

      Thanks for visiting me and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

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  2. Is there a way to do that someplace cooler? Sewing is fun. Sewing in the heat--not so much.

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    1. Liz,

      I love to sew and don't spend enough time doing it because I'm also working on some books (mystery series) and, of course, writing blog posts. Sewing in the heat isn't fun at all and I usually put things off that I want to work on. I do the ripping out and any other handwork downstairs, if I can, and the sewing upstairs, but I usually find myself running up and down the stairs because I forgot something I need.

      Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.

      Sunni

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  3. I can sympathize. My sewing room is also upstairs. I've actually avoided mine for the past couple of months largely in part to the fact that our A/C is currently non-functional and it gets rather toasty up there. You're braver than me to go ahead and muscle through!

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    1. Elle,

      Our A/C works, but we try to keep the bill down by not turning it on up there very often. I had to get those alterations done because I had those skirts here for almost a month. I wanted that job fnished up before my husband got back.

      I love my room upstairs and my office is up there too, but not so pleasant in the summer months. I can bring my laptop downstairs, but it's hard with the sewing machines.

      Thanks for reading.

      Sunni

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  4. No, no, no! Sunni, please turn on your AC! It isn't safe to sweat so much. You can become dehydrated which can cause an electrolyte imbalance and things can get really bad after that. At the very least you should have a good fan up there and drink lots of cold water throughout the day. Now I'm worried about you. I do like that you're sewing and making some extra money though.

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    1. Vashti,

      Don't worry about me. I take a big mug with ice and water up there with me. (One I got at the hospital when I had surgery three years ago). It holds four glasses of water. The ice melts pretty fast but the water stays cold a while. I always try to drink lots of fluids, even if it's warm fluids. I also have two fans up there that move the hot air around (a ceiling fan and a table fan).

      Right now I'm more worried about losing electrolytes from the prep I'm doing on Mon for a colonoscopy. Of course I won't be up sweating in my sewing room that day.

      Thanks for your advice and for stopping by.

      Sunni

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  5. Oh Sunni, I remember that kind of heat all too well. We lived in a house in California for two years without A/C, during which time I was expecting my daughter, my third child. The day I had her it was 116F. I begged the hospital to keep me in an extra night, which our insurance covered at the time, just so I could enjoy the cooling! We had ceiling fans which helped, and when we did move to a house with A/C like you, I tried not to use it too much due to the cost. And I know just what you mean about not being able to get on with things with a man in the house. Bless...they like us to be around don't they? Hope you have a lovely weekend Sunni :-)

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    1. Sherri,

      Thanks for visiting my blog. I knew a few others would be able to relate to this heat. Oh my ! I bet you were struggling through pregnancy with those kind of temps! I don't blame you for wanting to stay in the hospital an extra day.

      Summers can get a bit warm, but they don't last forever, so somehow we struggle through it. The funny thing is how much we look forward to them again after the winter.

      Yes, men love having us around. :-)

      Thanks so much for your comment.

      Sunni

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Sunni