bodner052

You see pattern hacks all around the internet. Mine is not especially different but it was fun to puzzle out. The bias binding hasn't been pressed, so it is a little bubbly. It started when I saw a blog post at The Sewing Workshop  (TSW) involving a variation on their Eureka top. This is such a simple pattern - front cut on fold, back cut on fold, and sleeve cuffs - so it is perfect for some easy hacks. The folks at TSW worked with knits, as well as some Alabama Chanin techniques and the results are quite lovely. So I dutifully followed their instructions to create new pattern tissue. That's when I realized that such an approach would not let me use some pretty remnants I wanted to use. So I started over with blank front and back pattern tissues. The tissue was cut for the full front and the full back. Next I placed a remnant underneath the pattern tissue and determined where my slicing of the pattern tissue should occur. I drew a line on the pattern tissue following a straight...

For the first time in recent memory, I spent time planning my wardrobe for travel. And it was fun! pocket purses that are large enough to hold glasses, phone (for pix), passport and credit card I made sure that every top had multiple pants to match and the reverse. I also kept checking weather.com, right up until we boarded the plane. I was in denial. I so wanted it to feel like crisp fall weather. Part of my deception stems from my first trip to Europe in my twenties. I was living in Austin TX where it is hot, hot, hot in June. We went to Germany and it was cold (to me). I layered clothes that should never have been layered. I have traveled overseas quite a bit since that first trip but the idea that Europe was cold stayed with me. As it happens, the geography and weather in Europe varies. Duh. What is a trip overseas if it is not an opportunity to learn a little geography? I now know that my current home town and Seville Spain are at approximately the same latitude. And we've had...

Alcazar, Seville, Spain When I am not sewing or cannot sew, I am constantly dreaming of sewing. I see people in interesting clothes and I try to determine how they are made. I see colors, shapes, textures, and I wonder how those could be translated into sewing. Figs in the market, Barcelona, Spain Spices, nuts, sweets in beautiful fall colors, Market in Barcelona La Pedrera, Gaudi house in Barcelona, Spain You, too? Seville, Spain, hotel steps And I'm always on the look-out for fabric stores. Funny thing - when I found one, then another would appear. They seemed to cluster. Julian Lopez, Seville Spain Three pieces came home with me from stores in Madrid and Seville. I wish I had bought more! Cotton and lycra knit, black cotton pique, viscose knit (border print, mostly black) And did you know that you can buy patterns in a newsstand? No English spoken but *Pattrones* was the magic word! Each of these is chocked full of patterns to trace and cost 5 Euro each. What a deal. And now I a...