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We have returned from our travels and I am busy doing laundry, sorting through buckets of mail and generally trying to get life settled back into some semblance of normality -- when I figure out whatever normal is supposed to be.

I had intended to post while I was away but the portable computer is down, I think I probably did something stupid one night in a sleep-deprived state of frustration -- but fixing that is yet one more thing on my to do list.

I did finish the robe before we left, and it proved to be the perfect companion to the pajamas. 

At first I had great, over-ambitious, plans.  I was going to use French seams and make everything just so perfect, but the reality of a certain lack of time brought me to my senses.  It is quilting cotton after all, no reason to go crazy.  So this ended up being simple sewing, serged edges, simple seams, no fuss. 

I traced off a pattern from a favorite robe so I pretty much knew what to expect, except that the cotton fabric has much less drape than the rayon of the original robe.  I made all the narrow tubes for ties and sash loops then turned them at the doctor's office when I was playing chauffeur one day only to find that in the end I didn't really need them all.  At least they entertained me for a bit.

I decided I liked the robe better without the sash.  The cotton is stiff enough that the robe was not flattering belted and tied, but it hangs gracefully on its own.  I ended up using a simple hidden hook and eye and leaving it at that.

We came home to find the irises in bloom, apparently the only bit of springtime cheer going on up here.  Although it was warm in Tennessee, I am told it remained cool here the entire time we were gone.    Despite the fact that the pool was opened before we left, and the solar heater is running, the water is still a chilling 63 degrees.

It looks like summer is still a little ways away.  But of course that could change tomorrow.

It does however strike me as somewhat funny that although I am still hoping for warm weather and don't yet have my summer clothes out and in circulation, the new Harper's Bazaar has arrived and is filled with predictions and plans for fall clothing (despite the Nicole Richie's summer frock on the cover).

Right about now joining Marji's coat sew-along sounds like a good idea.

Tagged!

Materfamilias tagged me for the following meme:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Turn to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people and acknowledge who tagged you.

As it happens, I am in the midst of  packing preparations and I have two books on my desk, stacked one atop the other.  One is the book I hoped to finish, but have not, and the other is the book I hoped to take with me and begin, but will not.

Because I cannot decide, which book to use, and because the precedent has been set, I shall post from both:

From Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals

If he wanted a seat in the U.S. Senate, however, he would need the support of Ohio Democrats, a task that would not be made easier by assaulting a Democratic president.

Of the four future presidential rivals, only Edward BAtes matched the vehemence of Lincoln's opposition.  He charged Polk with "gross & palpable lying, " arguing that the true object of the war was "plunder and conquest."

And from the other book, Jonathan Coe's The Rain Before it Falls comes this passage:

She came back from dinner that night rather early -- at about ten o'clock.  Beatrix and Thea had already gone to bed. I poured Rebecca one of those brandies for which we were rapidly starting to develop an appetite, and told her of Beatrix's request.

Well, now I really want to start reading that new book and find out what is going on, but alas it will have to wait.  The anticipation will be sweet indeed.

But first I need to share the fun and pass this on to five friends.

I select  Liana, Marji, Grace, Gina, and lastly Lisa at Blackwater Park  (if and when she finds the time, which may or may not be likely).

That said.  I am going to shut down the computer and prepare myself for vacation mode.  I will have my portable with me, and I hope to get time to post as I do have things to share, but frankly,  that 20 month old darling of a grandson gets first dibs on my attentions, so we'll see what I get to...no promises.

Oooh! Fabric!

There has been no sewing this week, although I still hope to whip out a simple robe in the two days remaining before my departure for Tennessee and DSD's doctoral hooding.

However, a package arrived from Vogue Fabrics with my Chicago purchases.  It included this:

The silk duopioni on the left is an odd shade of gray/brown/bronze that happens to pick up the colors in a group of fabrics around which I wish to build a small grouping or collection.  In fact all the fabrics in this photo blend into that grouping and are in the color families I was seeking out.

The two left fabrics were on sale for $2.99 a yard.  The two organzas on the right are 54" wide and were also on sale.  I purchased more than I will probably need for my group, although I might use them as underlining.  I am not worried about finding a use for these.  Organza is a basic and these colors are perfect colors for blending with many of my fabric choices.

Then we get to the frivolous stuff, the fabrics that were not in the plan.  One was on sale, one was not.

This cotton lawn was light and felt sinfully soft and smooth.  It is a good shade of red for me and I love the geometric pattern.  At $2.99 a yard it seemed like I would be foolish to resist.   It will become a lightweight summer top.

I also purchased this lovely wool.  Several of us looked at it and decided it wasn't quite right.  When I went back for a second look it seemed like it was the perfect shades of gray with a touch of brown and muted blue that I wear well.  When I saw that it was a panel and the size of the panels I knew what I wanted to make and so, after further consultation with Patti and Patty, it went into my bag.   Since this will be a fall project I will not start it now but I am planning to put it in my bag for San Francisco in July, when I will be participating in another Sandra Betzina sewing week.  It looks like I am developing a sense of what I will be sewing that week and I will start gathering together my projects and setting them aside the end of this month, when we get back from Tennessee and the Carolinas.  I will update you more about the plans at that time.

The package from Fishman's has not arrived.  One fabric needed to be ordered and I was told it would be about a week before they would be able to ship.  If it arrives Monday I will post photos.  Otherwise, since I am leaving for 10 to 12 days early Tuesday morning, it will all have to wait.

I DID finish one knitting project:
This is the tee I have been working on knit from Trendsetter's Binario  yarn.  The pattern is by L'Atelier in Redondo Beach, CA and is part of a set called "Compare and Contrast".  It was the sweater-of-the-month for May 2007.  Hey one year late, not so bad.

I have started the contrasting vest that goes with it, but I have already worn the tee once over a thin cotton turtleneck.  It may be May but it is still cold here.  Unfortunately it has been cold and gray, gray, gray, so photo ops have been limited.  Perhaps by the time I finish the vest, the sun will have come out again.

Fun in Chicago

I was incredibly fortunate to be able to spend this past weekend in the company of a group of fabulous women who all share a love of sewing, fiber, and for some knitting as well.  Barbara,  Diane, Patty and I all converged on Chicago to join Patti and share laughter, food, fun and fabric shopping.

I love this picture of Diane because it captures all the fun, laughter, and friendship that filled the weekend.

 

Here are Barbara and Patty perusing the remnant tables at Vogue Fabrics Saturday morning.  It was fun fabric shopping with fellow fiber fiends, and although there was some enabling going on, there was also considerable thoughtful advice and clear-thinking discussions of what works, what doesn't, and why we should be discriminating in what we buy.

We were fortunate to be able to meet Cennetta at Vogue and she joined us in a tiny booth for lunch which was fabulous primarily because we were all were able to share so many ideas with enthusiasm and laughter.   You should go check out Cennetta's blog as she is a far more organized and thinking photographer than I, as I managed to carry my camera around but mostly forget to take pictures.

I'm working on that, although perhaps far too slowly.

I did, of course, do some shopping.  For me that meant more at Fishman's  than at Vogue, although I found some lovely things at both.  Luckily Fishman's had the perfect coordinates for a grouping that has been haunting my thoughts for some time now.  I had shopped my stash but had not found just the right compliments.  I found one piece at Vogue and the rest at Fishman's and you will be seeing it all as it arrives and evolves.

Don't expect the evolution right away.  The Fishman's order is being held for one piece which was not in stock, and although I was initially disappointed not to have the fabric immediately, I also realized that I will be away for about 10 -12 days the beginning of May and wouldn't have gotten to it before the trip regardless.  It is so nice to have something that I have been fretting over finally begin to take shape and evolve into a coherent collection.

The only sad part of the weekend was that Carolyn  and Marji  couldn't join us.  They were missed.

pyjama top

I was going to just show you a flat picture of the  pajama top but, lucky you, you get this one instead.

I'm all packed up and ready to go now, and it is just as well that I didn't get to the robe, although the complementary prints will look nice together.  There is no more room in my bag.

I really like this top, and will make it again, in a softer fabric.  As you can see, although it looks fine, in the right fabric it really needs to be looser with more drape and float, but in this fabric that would be just unattractive.  I certainly don't need any extra room in the shoulders though, and should probably do my forward shoulder alteration to the shoulders and armhole/sleeve head  and then add from the FBA down.

We are departing tomorrow for Boston, where DH will visit his sister, and I head off to Chicago on Friday.

Have a nice weekend.

A little sewing

Well, I actually sewed something but I don't have pictures to show you as the batteries on my camera died and I apparently neglected to charge the spare....it has just been one of those days, despite the thrill of actually sewing. But I do want to be sure that I get something posted before going out of town Thursday morning.

I mentioned that I had a few panicked moments on Sunday when I noticed that I needed to sew something in a hurry -- I was thinking pajamas.  I am meeting some fiberly friends this weekend and there **may** be a pyjama party and I realized in a panic that I have no reputable looking pj's.  They are all either  threadbare or too small.  I was seriously considered taking my loose floppy gardening pants and big shirt but then I remembered several other upcoming trips and realized I really need something decent to wear in other-people's houses. 

A quick look through the cotton stash revealed this cotton by Carla Miller for Rowan.  I thought I had enough for a pair of PJ's.  The coordinating floral in Sunday's post is meant to be a simple robe.

Then I picked this pattern:

Truthfully it was mostly chosen because I didn't want to deal with buttons and buttonholes, knowing it would be a busy week, and it was on top of the first pile of patterns waiting to be filed and put away.  I actually only made the top.  For the pants I used my basic one-seam pants pattern.

The top turned out very nicely.  I cut a straight 16 and did no alterations because it looked like it would fit well enough (they are only pajamas) and again, there was the time issue.  They do fit, but they are a little snug through the hip, this will not bother me.  I did not do a turned back cuff on the sleeves, mostly because I just barely had enough length to cut the both the pants and the shirt and had to shorten the sleeve pattern in order to make it work.  It would be really nice in a soft linen or a lightweight wool knit, although for regular street wear I really need to make the top a bit looser and do a FBA.

The fabric is a little stiffer and heavier than I usually prefer in my jammies and it is too stiff for this top, but it is fine for my purposes and there will certainly be no modesty issue.  I don't know if I am going to get to the robe, I haven't cut it yet.  I can definitely have it for the trip to Tennessee to see step-daughter's family, but I might not make it this weekend.  The alternatives are not good though.  The only robe that fits is bulky and heavy and I was really hoping to make do with carry-on luggage as I also have to negotiate the Boston Metro, and the light robe is a little too snug. I may have to rely on the old Trenchcoat trick.

I had hoped to start it tonight but I took a little break to go online and pay a few bills only to notice some funny charges on my credit card.  Now I use that card a lot online and elsewhere and have never had problems before, but apparently someone and their friends or family think they are flying to Singapore on my dollar and I don't approve.  The card has been cancelled, the charges disputed, and I really don't know what will happen to the tickets, I don't care as long as I don't pay for them.   

Since I still seem to be riled up, perhaps I will get that robe cut out, but I do have two work crews coming at 8,  and I might have just used up my sewing allotment.

weekend update

I have made no progress on the UFO piles.  Well, no that is not quite true -- I did hem some workout pants so that I can go to the gym decently clad now that I can no longer hide beneath my coat.

This may not look like much to some, but these are really just  this year's UFOs.  There is at least another large box and drawer full hiding away and I really need to finish some of those as well, regardless of season.  The psychic weight of the UFOs is stifling my creativity. 

That said, and despite the fact that there are at least 4 unfinished current knitting projects, not counting the ones from last year, I am making good progress on a  new sweater.  The front and back are completed and have been blocked:













The yarn is Binario by Trendsetter and I am knitting it on US 9 needles, which yields a rather open lacy effect. 

I had intended to start working on the pattern for a particular project today and I did pull the pattern out and start studying the pieces, thinking about cutting and potential alterations and starting the muslin. Then in a panic I realized I need to start something else as well so I grabbed some pretty cottons and washed, dried, and pressed them, so that now I am ready to start tomorrow.  At least I hope I am ready.  I haven't checked my notion supplies for over a year and really have no idea if I have everything I need, but I have faith, and I know I have thread.

Here are the fabrics I am going to start working on this week:

Saturday Miscellany

I finally got out to work in the disaster area that was formally known as my front yard today and it was a joy to be rooting about the leaves and twigs, unearthing the dainty green tendrils.

The fritallaria are blooming:

They are hiding between the iris  and a few stalwart tulips that have ventured up for a second year's bloom.  I had been a bit worried about the irises after a few of them thought they were going to go for a third bloom last year in early December.  They were caught by a frost and a snowstorm just a day or two before they would have opened and I remember how the warm January of 2007 fooled my poppies into thinking it was spring and they were fully leafed out and blooming when we got the February snowstorms. Only two of the poppies survived, a fate apparently not shared by the irises.

I also neglected to plant tulips in the front bed last fall; in fact I didn't even pull the spent tulip bulbs and I was thrilled to see so many coming back up with buds. Of course they are much smaller than new bulbs, but I don't usually expect more than one year from my tulips. I did learn that the Ropell dip I gave them when I planted them in the fall of 2006 is apparently good for only 1 season, as quite a few of the tulips have been nibbled down to the ground, but I am hoping that a few of these buds will survive long enough to give me a few blossoms.

Between gardening adventures I have been knitting -- I'll update you on that tomorrow, and have absolutely been avoiding the UFO pile.

What I have been spending my indoor time with today is the new issue of Gourmet, which arrived yesterday and is devoted to cooking vacations.

I am reading all the descriptions of the various locations and courses and filling my head with dreams of new skills, wonderful flavors, and exotic locales.  There is not  a one that does not sound interesting to me.  I always want to cook when I go to new places and look at the markets and the food, and I would love to go somewhere and learn to cool regional or local dishes.  Although France and Italy and California sound wonderful, so do the more exotic climes.  I would happily travel from village to village in Soviet Georgia and milk cows to make my own fresh cheese, I would love to explore the cuisines of Turkey, or Laos, and I would probably try the Buffalo stomach too, it can't be that much different than the pig stomach we had in Chinatown once, when DH pulled over the waiter and said we wanted what they were having at the next table, despite the protestations that the dish was not suited to American tastes.

Anyway, it is a great magazine for dreaming, and of course there are recipes (not for beef stomach) to try,  and even a discussion of a culinary vacation right in my own backyard.  The CIA offers a culinary boot camp, an intense one week course in basic skills and techniques.  I have taken simpler, one day classes and learned a lot but I would still love to go to boot camp.  As a self-taught home cook, there are wide gaps in my knowledge.  Lucky me I wouldn't even have to leave home and DH wouldn't have to milk cows or wander around strange locales while I cooked.  Of course he might still miss me when I'm in cooking school from dawn to dark or beyond.

A favorite green and purple combination

It is definitely spring here, but still a cool spring.  Although I am bringing out the lighter clothes, certain deeper, richer colors still seem right at home.  This is fine with me, I actually like the cool evenings and mornings (although I would perhaps prefer that "cool" meant above freezing, and I enjoy the opportunity to indulge in one of my favorite color pairings.

Soon enough it will be warm enough to put the stretch velvet turtleneck away for the season as well as the purple cords and boots which aren't seen in this photo.  For now I can enjoy the richness of color the opportunity to combine a wider variety of textures.

A spring weekend

A sailboat on the Hudson is a clear sign that it must be spring.

Although it is cold today, with a chill wind, we finally had a few warm days and I was able to spend a little time in the yard.  A few new flowers are peeking up although they seem to be few and far between.  But  the hyacinths are up, looking a little chilly, but they are braving the cool weather. 

I wish I could have shown you the crocuses, but they were a little shy this year.  The blossoms were up, but stayed tightly closed most of the time.  Occasionally they would open up, most likely only to be hit with a chill and wilt before my eyes.  Still it was nice to see their bright little bits of color, just as these hyacinths are quite welcome  peeping up through the sea of brown.

The yard has suffered through a few years of workmen trampling on my flower beds and my own failure to give them the attention they need.  There is much to be done and I was happy to be out in the yard a little bit this weekend.  I don't see how I will manage to tackle everything, but it is really not something that I worry about that much.  Increasingly it seems that life is not to be measured in the number of things that are done but in the joy of doing.  That will be enough.

Still it was nice to see little bits of green here and there.  I tried to grow primulas for years  without success and it tickles me no end that these two, which were picked by DH about 8 years ago when he accompanied me to a local greenhouse, come back faithfully year after year.  I was convinced they would be another failure, but they keep coming back, reminding me to keep trying.

There were few fiberly activities over the weekend.  Yard work and a concert took up much of Saturday and Sunday found me possessed of a seasonally inspired need to clean, refurbish and refeather the nest.

I did find time to peruse the new Vogue Sewing:

I love the articles and information on the new Chado Ralph Rucci patterns and details about the garments and their construction. I have been a fan of Rucci's for a long time and have taken advantage of the opportunity to study his garments whenever possible.

Of course I bought the first two patterns, although I don't intend to make the dress right away.  I hope to start the shirt soon and have the pattern on a stack of things that I must make muslins of VERY SOON,

There is also, unfortunately, a rather large stack of UFOs that must be completed simply because they have grown to be such a burden on my psyche.  I am really hoping that I can work on both the UFOs and the muslins simultaneously......kind of rewarding myself for working through the stack, but you know that is not really likely to happen.  Still, it is a lovely dream, and looking at the pattern will hopefully encourage me to wrap up those pesky projects.

It is still a little early around here for spring produce, but  I just have to show you these beautiful  mushrooms that were delivered this week.  I know I am very fortunate to have a specialty mushroom grower near me and to be able be one of his customers.  Although he grows mushrooms much of the year, this week the oyster mushrooms were incredible.  Often when they are big like this they get a little thick and tough.  In that case I usually roast them.  But although these are large, they are also tender and delicate so I wanted to take advantage of their more subtle  flavors.  They were perfect for a quick stir-fry with a little chicken breast and some crisp snow-peas on the side.  And that is the perfect way to end a spring weekend.