Kwik Sew 2565 (OOP)

I've already made this pattern a bunch of times, but I recently re-traced and re-cut it again due to (ahem) changes in my size. This is another project started at Material Girls. Thank goodness for all the space and sturdy, height-appropriate cutting tables at our meeting place!

This t-shirt went together ridiculously fast even with double layer front and back pieces to contend with. The fabric is a thin, textured jacquard knit so I doubled the layers to avoid show through. The sleeves are just a single layer. I bought it at Fabrix when Linda Lee was still having her Sewing Workshop getaways in San Francisco.

Here's a detail shot so  you can see both the tie dye effect and the jacquard pattern of the knit. I think it's some kind of poly. The colors are various shades of purple, but less vivid in natural light than they appear with the flash.

The most challenging part of this project was the coverstitching. It's a capability that I haven't used on my Babylock lately, and I've decided that it's silly not to. There's definitely a learning curve but this is the second project I've coverstitched this week. The McCall's 6069 dress was the other one. It's getting easier each time to troubleshoot the samples, then apply the adjustments for the best looking stitching.

Material Girls

Material Girls is one of my ASG chapter's Neighborhood Groups. Fortunately, it meets on Sunday afternoons when I can attend. I had stopped going for a long time and recently started up again. It's fun to have a group sewing experience. No agenda, just sit and sew. Because a couple of the participants work there, we use one of the classrooms at Ann Silva's store. We just lock ourselves in for a few hours and enjoy. I really appreciate her willingness to loan us her facility on a day when the store is closed.

I took some of my Sewing Workshop patterns with me so I could prepare for my pre-Conference sewing. I was able to cut out the Trio T and pants. No, I didn't trace first. I had the opportunity to try on samples at the last Getaway, so I'm pretty sure of the sizing (although those pants may end up a size smaller than I cut out, an easy fix).

The Trio T will be made from the black print mesh I showed in the last post. Originally I'd planned on using striped linen for the Trio Pants put I've changed my mind and will be using a solid color black linen instead. It'll be easier than having to match stripes with my limited time frame, but maybe another time.

I also cut out another Mimosa top, this time from a cotton print of chile ristras that I've had stashed away for quite a while. Arggh, more blur. What's going on with me and the camera. Sorry folks!



The binding will be another fabric that I pulled, a linen blend that has both black and cream threads. I was short on the cotton, and besides, I thought an all print top might look too home-y.

Pulling Fabrics

When I'm planning to sew a group of garments, I often just start pulling fabrics out of all the drawers and bins and shelves of my collection. I'll begin with an inspiration piece or two, then other fabrics come to mind. Before you know it, I've gathered up a big stack of fabrics that might work together. Then I start pulling out pattern envelopes and start matching them up. I have sticky notes pinned to each grouping of fabrics to remind me of what I want each to be.

As I mentioned earlier this week, I want to sew a group of Sewing Workshop garments to wear at the upcoming ASG Conference next month. I started with a summery colorway, but the grouping quickly turned into neutrals. I'll be sewing black, tan, cream and taupe with a few color accents. Summer in New Mexico? No, not exactly, but these colors were what I was feeling. This is everything all laid out on the cutting table:



It looks like a mess, but there's a method in the madness.

For example, I actually started this pull session with a blue/gold/lavender/green watercolor print fabric to combine with a similar green for pants.



I then switched over to the neutrals and selected a black mesh print for a t-shirt. I laid it down on top of some other fabrics that just happened to be next to the green.



Ah, they aren't matchy match, but the green in the mesh blends with the green of the pant fabric. This is one of the benefits of pulling out fabrics--sometimes you can find combinations you never expected to work together.

For more on this process, I previously discussed it when I was preparing for the Sewing Workshop Getaway that I went to in October 2007.

Now Shirt is Done

I finally completed the Now Shirt that I worked on at the Sewing Workshop Getaway I attended over Super Bowl Weekend. All that was left was buttonholes and buttons, yet it took a long time for me to get around to it. Probably because I'm not crazy about the buttonhole function on any of my sewing machines. I like the automatic buttonhole function, but the Brother is notoriously picky and the Bernina doesn't have this. So of course, I used the Brother and struggled with it. I'm not thrilled with how they came out, but it is a busy batik print so the details don't really show. Must. Practice. with. Bernina. It does make a nice buttonhole, even if it's not automatic.

The top came out cute and I wore it to church today.

The fabrics from Textile Studios came yesterday, and they are gorgeous!! The pictures I posted are pretty accurate but don't compare with real life. I also picked up a short length of cotton fabric while researching rayons at Hancock.



Not much rayon there BTW. One display, most of it tropical prints for Hawaiian shirts. However, there were some solids, which are often hard to find.

I also stopped by World Market on the way home to restock the wine rack, and found a really cool dish towel that I plan to use in something, I'm not sure what. Worse comes to worse, it'll end up as a dish towel! (Added 3/31/09: wow, the monitor really makes a difference! I was confused about a comment I received about combining the towel with black and white fabrics until I saw the photo on my work monitor. The towel is actually dark navy and white and looks that way on my laptop. But it definitely looks black and white here at the office!)

Mimosa Top is Done!

I realized when posting this picture that some of my non-sewing friends might look at this and think, "Hmmm, it looks the same as before, what gives?"

The finished version has finished armhole bindings and fasteners. The previous version had raw armholes and was pinned onto Miss Acme.

Those armholes...PITA, I tell you! It took me 2 days to get them installed. I'm not sure exactly why these were so hard. Partly a function of that "well behaved" synthetic olive fabric that I praised in a previous post, I think. It didn't play well with me on the bias and became somewhat bulky. I'm also not totally sold on the pattern instructions for applying the bindings. The Sewing Workshop typically has great methods on its instruction sheets, but I found the technique given for the Mimosa was a bit fiddly. I'll try it again just to see how it works with a different fabric.

For the fasteners, I used big snaps instead of buttons and buttonholes, kind of a nod to current RTW trends. I'm not sure if the placement is exactly right, but I can always adjust later if I'm bugged. And the underlap peeking out at the bottom? Yes, it's supposed to be that way.

I'm looking forward to wearing this. It'll be fun and a little different. I need to find the olive tencel so I can make coordinating pants.

Mimosa Top in Progress

I've been slowly making progress on the Mimosa Top that I started at the Sewing Workshop Getaway. And here's where I am now:




I put in a lining, inspired by an offhand comment Linda made about using georgette for a weightless, bulkless lining in pants. I wanted to increase the "slide factor" of this of the top but without bulking/stiffening it up. Stash to the rescue! The lining is thin Joann's poly georgette/chiffon stuff that worked very well for what I had in mind. Plus, the print is fun and cheerful:




You may be seeing this fabric again. For some unknown reason, I bought 5 yards of it!

I'm also in the process of adding the neck band and bindings, made from leftover olive mystery fabric that I used for a less-than-successful pair of Plaza Pants at the first Getaway. While the tweed is a lovely fabric, I just felt that it was a little too plain for the entire top. The olive adds a bit of pop. Surprisingly for a man-made fabric, it pressed fairly easily and is generally well-behaved. I completed the neck band last night, so it's onward to binding the arm holes.


The Now Shirt? Not much progress since bringing it home. I basted the center front line in both fronts and I've selected buttons, but that's all. I need to drag out and set up another machine that makes those good automatic buttonholes. So, I'm procrastinating as a result.

More on the Getaway

...and yes, there are pictures! At last!

Linda kicked us off with a trunk show Thursday evening. Of course, I was sitting on the end of the semi circle, so it wasn't easy to get good photos. But here are some of the better ones of the group. Linda is wearing a Zig Zag Shirt from one of her newer Sewing Workshop patterns in all of these photos. No doubt, you'll be seeing more over time.

This one features the t-shirt from the new Trio pattern. Love it. I already have visions of making it up many times in many variations. Lengthened it would be a fabulous dress. Linda brought two of these--the chartreuse one is wool jersey, and the other one was in poly/lycra. The rest of the pattern was pretty cool (the pants are wild, and yes, I think I'll make a pair), but pretty distinctive. However, the T a classic and the real reason to buy the pattern.





In the next picture. Linda is wearing the Valencia Jacket and is talking about the Peony Vest, in response to a question about how to find fabrics. The vest was made out of kimono fabric and has been worn so much that she keeps adding to it with bindings, etc. I've seen this vest before, but obviously it's a classic that keeps on going.





The next picture features the Zig Zag Shirt and Pants. The pants on this are fitted, with princess seams in the back of the leg and some detailing and the lower leg (which you can see in the photo). I haven't gotten this one yet, but I kind of like the idea of those pants. They'd be interesting in a small houndstooth, with the fabric turned to the bias in the lower leg section.





I bought 3 patterns, the Hudson, the Liberty Shirt, and the new Trio ensemble. I have to admit, I didn't much care for either the Hudson or the Trio by looking at the pattern envelope but they are beautiful made up. I tried on the Hudson Pants and really liked them, so that'll probably be what I make most from that one, although a touch longer since I'm not a huge fan of cropped pants--1970's youth, I suppose. Same thing with the Trio pants. Linda brought several Liberty shirts with her, and they are really great on. I'm thinking that it would be a nice pattern for a lightweight spring jacket for work. In other words, it's attractive and not too avant garde for banking (ha!!)




And yes, I did buy fabric I didn't "need," but wanted. I think I did ok. I got 3 pieces and a remnant at Satin Moon, one of our field trips on Friday.





Left: black rayon Japanese georgette. The colors are so beautiful, in this piece. Center: Japanese cotton lawn. Interesting print, one of the owners told me that the Japanese fabric companies are using more and more young designers for their prints, which is really showing in the designs and colorways. This one is a little retro in feel but the colors are combined in a different way. Right: this one is slightly felted, tie-dye wool from India. There was also a gray and black bolt, but I had to go for the colors. This one is definitely a coating weight. Oops, I neglected to take a picture of the remnant, but it's a very interesting upholstery tapestry.


Next are the two Ralph Lauren wool double knits I bought from Linda. Lush, and I'll never see anything like them at local stores. Notice the turquoise one will be perfect for this project (yes, still on the burner)





Of course, there was sewing. I was able to get quite a bit done on two garments, a Now shirt




and a Mimosa Top





The Now Shirt is complete except for buttonholes and buttons. I felt it was best to finish that at home since I neither had the buttons picked out nor knew the machine very well (machines were provided at the Getaway). The Mimosa is also pretty well along. I'm adding a lining because the fabric has a sticky texture from its silk/cotton content, and I didn't want to fight with the garment if I wore it with a t underneath. There really isn't all that much left to do--famous last words to be sure, but hopefully I'm right.


Linda also adjusted the Mimosa Pant pattern, which is a classic no waistband pant and a great basic. I'm pretty sure those are the same pants she's wearing in the trunk show pictures above (Terri, thanks for asking). So that's something else from the Getaway.

What did I like about the Getaway at the Sewing Workshop?

Ok, so it's been a week since I left for San Francisco and the Sewing Workshop Getaway. What did I like? In no particular order, here you are:

• Time to work, with minimal interruptions. I felt productive and inspired.


• Immersion in sewing. Sewing from Thursday evening through Sunday morning. Bliss! I never have that much time to focus on garment making.


• I love Linda’s problem-solving approach—it’s a combination of calm, knowing the pattern, learning the fabric, learning the body the garment will be made for. Strangely,I'd describe it as a cross of Zen and analysis.


• Trunk show, seeing all the garments made up and being able to try them on for fit. Sewing Workshop’s patterns are not based on a single block. They develop the patterns from existing clothes from different sources. With such an approach, trying on is very helpful.


• Visit to Satin Moon. It’s a nice, albeit tiny, fabric store. Exquisite stuff and the proprietors are quirky in a nice way. Not inexpensive, but there are some unique and gorgeous fabrics there.


• Chinese food. Our lunches were heavy on the Chinese. Friday, we had lunch near Satin Moon, but Saturday featured dim sum and Sunday had normal Chinese takeout (but excellent, after all we were in San Francisco!)


• Yves St. Laurent exhibit at the deYoung museum. OMG, you must see this!! There were a lot of amazing garments, but the impression I came away with was how ahead of the curve he was. There were ensembles that any of us would be thrilled to wear today, yet the labels indicated they were from the early 60s! This really brought home to me how much influence he had on how we live today. Aside from that, numerous pieces of eye candy, and a fair share of amusing arty pieces.


• Dinner with Erica. DF’s niece lives in San Francisco, so it was lovely to meet another member of the family of which I will someday be a member. We ate at a small but wonderful Italian place right up the street from the Laurel Inn, my home away from home. Yes, I know I'm being somewhat repetitious, having done the same last time. But isn't that part of the joy of repeat visits to the same city?


• It was a smaller group than usual, which was great. Little competition for help, easy access to the serger and the irons.


• I got to meet some really cool people. The other women in the class were an interesting group of smart, capable people. It's nice to be with like-minded, intelligent women who sew.

I realize still haven't provided any pictures and there's still more to tell. I still owe pictures of what I bought at Satin Moon and the patterns I bought at the very least. But that will need to wait for another post. Stay tuned...

Quick-Like

This will be a really short update, since I got back last night and I'm at work today.

The trip was fun! I felt productive--I completed a Now Shirt except for the buttons and buttonholes and made quite a lot of progress on a Mimosa Top. Linda tweaked the Mimosa Pants pattern for me so that's almost ready to start on. Once again, I got to try on many of the sample garments so I have a pretty good idea of what fits.

I'll post more later but just wanted to let you know I was back. I was able to read all your comments on the Touch (Thank You!!), but posting to the blog was not as easy to accomplish.

The Bags are Packed...

Tonight I packed for the Sewing Workshop Getaway in San Francisco. I packed less stuff this time, but still way more than necessary for a 4-day trip. Lots of fabric and sewing supplies (and room for still more!) I'm only taking my iPod Touch this time, so I'm not sure how much blogging I'll be able to do on the road, but I promise that I'll have things to report when I get back!

Sewing Workshop Plaza Pants

I decided to make a second pair for my upcoming trip to San Francisco for another Sewing Workshop Getaway. I made a pair at the last one that I wasn't totally thrilled with, but I later figured out what needed to be done to improve the fit for me. So with tweaked pattern in hand, I started in on a second pair. These were made from a rayon/poly suiting I bought from the clearance/jobber section of Jo-Ann's. More drapy than the last pair, which I think was part of the issue with them.



Sorry the picture is crappy, but I don't have a photographer and I haven't figured out a great way to take pictures of myself in the garment. I'll try to add one later if I get the opportunity.

These are much improved over the last pair. I narrowed the leg slightly and shortened the rise to avoid "butt droop". I also inserted the elastic all the way through the casing to support the waistband of the pants, since the fabric is not very firm. I flattened the casing in the front and sewed at the pleats so it looks like the pattern. I'm pretty happy with these, although I hope I'm not disappointed that I didn't add a lining. The fabric is pretty thin.

Sewing Workshop Getaway II

I'm repeating the experience! I just paid for the plane(s) and hotel, so I'm good to go.

The last time I did this was in October 2007 and there were 13 of us. This time, it will be a smaller group. I guess this is due to the economy, but smaller is better from the perspective of an attendee. From the standpoint of the Sewing Workshop, I'm sure it's a bit concerning, but I'm very happy that Linda decided to have the event even with the smaller group.

I'm still working on goals for this time, but considering that I have patterns cut out and ready to go, it's likely I'll be focusing on making garments from them.

The Review is Done...

At last! I finished it up yesterday afternoon, and now I can veg without guilt. I'm still relaxing with Food Network and HGTV while pondering what the next sewing project is going to be. Another month, another garment.

I'm thinking about finally trying the Sewing Workshop Now shirt. I cut the pattern out a year ago when I was at the Getaway. Maybe it's time to do something with it? From all the pictures on the Sewing Workshop's website, this looks like a nice basic top that could be made over and over.

Of course, the Michelle Obama dress is still waiting patiently to be made. I've cut out the pattern pieces, but I'll need to make some fitting adjustments before proceeding to the actual garment.

On a tangent, DF's sister visited last month for a nursing conference, and I took her and her coworkers on the Sandia Peak tram. She took this picture of me at the base area after we all came back down.

Salvage

Like Lisa at Sew Random, I've been doing a bit of salvage sewing during the last week--what a great description! Somehow, it sounds better than "alterations," which I dread. That probably explains why I have so much stuff parked in my sewing room!

Nevertheless, I worked on a couple of items this past week, and I'm actually pretty happy that I've turned a couple of potential discards into "new" items.

The first project was the remake of a slinky skirt I bought at Coldwater Creek a couple of years ago when I wore a Large. I loved the fabric, a gold and black paisley, but there was way too much of it for me to wear now that I'm several sizes smaller. So it hung in the closet. Then my girlfriend Fran wore a similar skirt to work and I had an "aha" moment--time to revive that skirt. It turned out to be so easy. I just cut the elastic waist off and ripped out the coverstitched hem, re-sewed the side seams, put in a new casing, and restitched the hem. It's projects like this that really make me love my Evolve!

The second project was some tweaks of the Plaza Pants I made at the Sewing Workshop Getaway last fall. They were too long in the crotch and too loose for my taste. Since these have no side seams and also have the pleat/flange detail in front, I removed the waistband and cut off 5/8" from the top edge. Then I removed the excess width from the center front and center back seams, a total of 1 1/4". Re-attached the waistband, and done. I think I'll be making these pants again and will need to transfer the changes to the pattern.

Salvage projects still aren't my favorites but I do enjoy the results when I can convince myself to start. A couple of rules of thumb, though. Don't try to salvage everything--make sure you're spending your time on a garment that you'll actually wear afterwards! Like the skirt--love that fabric, so I'll wear it now that it's remade. Don't waste time on something you feel meh about. Similarly with the Plaza Pants--they're a color, olive, that I'll wear a lot. And the pattern has the potential to be a TNT--the flanges can be folded out for a seam down the front of each leg. Or, the seam can be eliminated altogether for a one-seam pattern.

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Also, thanks for all of your comments regarding my rant about my friend. I'm setting more boundaries re: the phone. I'm using the Mute function on my land line and cell phone, and she also knows that I turn off the ringers when I need "me" time. I'm working on weaning her off her computer dependency as well--the public libraries here not only have wi-fi access, but computers you can use. I really believe she'll be happier if she has more control over her destiny during her job search.

Sewing Travel

I thought it would be a good idea to share some of the things I learned about travel to sewing retreats, getaways, and so forth. I found that it's more challenging to to fly to an event, because you're much more limited in what you can pack.

• Bring interfacing. I didn't and it would have been helpful to have some for the San Diego Jacket I started at the Getaway. It's cut from ravelly stuff, and interfacing the areas to be slashed would have improved the result at the neck/shoulder intersection.



• Bring basting thread. I've become very fond of silk thread for basting, yet I forgot to bring a spool with me. Cotton just isn't the same.



• Bring less fabric. I picked out a ton of fabric and even left some of it at home. Yet there was still a suitcaseful to drag around airports, the hotel, and the Sewing Workshop. And we also went on a shopping trip and bought more. The most prolific of the Getaway participants made only 3 garments and a muslin, so I could have edited out even more.



• Bring muslin fabric. This is one fabric I didn't have but wish I did. Fortunately, the pants fit well from the tissue, but what if they hadn't? Muslin is insurance.



• Tracing paper, same thing. Insurance.



• Be sure to try on the trunk show items if allowed (and, IMO, you should be able to but ask anyway). It's a real plus to be able to check the fit or to explore whether a particular style suits you.



• Bring sewing supplies and notions. I didn't regret bringing any of the scissors, marking tools, pins, measures, etc. that I brought. Do remember that you'll need to check these items!



• A digital camera is a great tool to have. You can use it to take photos of details and processes, in addition to the usual vacation shots. And it's easy to share with your friends.

• I brought a lot of patterns to the Getaway, and it was a positive thing for me. When I had to wait for the irons or sergers, I could cut patterns out.

...And We're Done

Sunday wasn't quite as productive as Saturday. But then again, it was a 9-5 day vs. the 12 hour Saturday marathon. I did finish cutting out the San Diego Jacket, and made some progress sewing it (and learned after the fact that there were some things I should have done for greater success). Here's a picture of it, not too much worse for wear after the trip:

Trust me, there's still plenty left to do on this jacket.

However--I got hung up on having to wait for equipment and decided to stop sewing before I really needed to pack up for the weekend. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed working with the group. We had a lot of fun and I feel that I made some wonderful new friends. But sometimes it's frustrating not having your own dedicated equipment, despite all the good energy.

Linda showed us some techniques and tips in the afternoon. I was very impressed with her discussion of sewing thread. I've always pooh-poohed those who are extremely picky about thread. I just didn't think it made that much difference. Then Linda passed around samples of some silk chiffon, one sewn with poly, the second with cotton, and the last with silk. The poly was noticeably stiffer, the cotton was ok, but the silk thread was undetectable! I don't know how far I'll take this knowlege in my everyday sewing, but worth knowing for special projects.


I spent the remaining time cutting out Now and Zen shirt patterns, so they're ready to go when I feel like doing some sewing. I know a lot of people really believe in tracing, but you know what? It was liberating to just cut into those pricy Sewing Workshop patterns. There are times when tracing is the right thing to do but IMO, it does add an additional level of inaccuracy, no matter how good you are at the process.


And it's not like the Sewing Workshop clothes are all that body conscious in the sense of negative ease and closely fitting each and every curve. Of course, it helps that I had the opportunity to try on the garments. Now I know exactly what size is going to work for me.


A comment that always comes up re: these patterns is that they are voluminous. Well, yes and no. The older designs are big, because that's what people were wearing in the 1980's and 1990's. The newer patterns have much less ease. I can wear a Medium in most of the newer designs, even a Small in some, but the Japonesque (a really old design) in Extra Small fit me just fine.


After wrapping up in the afternoon and heading back to the Laurel Inn, I repacked everything. Needless to say, I was a little worried that all the additional fabrics wouldn't fit in the suitcases. A little juggling, and now they do. However, there's not a lot of extra room to spare! I hope the TSA can get these bags re-closed after their checked luggage inspections.


In the evening, I headed down the block to a little Italian place that one of the other Getaway participants recommended, Osteria. Very popular, let me tell you! It was packed out for a Sunday evening (or maybe that's San Francisco for you). But delicious! Mmm, mmm, mmm. I had gnocchi, which is a real test, IMO. Too many times they can be like little lead balls, but these were light textured and melt-in-your mouth. The sauce was cream-based with gorgonzola and pine nuts. My only very minor criticism was in the plating. It was all very white on white and could have used a touch of color. But that's a tiny quibble, and given a choice between flavor and appearance, I'll go with flavor!

Around noon, I'm heading back to Albuquerque, and on the schedule for this afternoon and evening are a long soak in the tub. It's amazing how stiff and sore my shoulders and back are from all the sewing.

Productivity

Saturday was a pretty productive time at the Sewing Workshop. We spent all day and well into the evening working on projects. From Friday, I had a pair of Plaza Pants cut out and ready to be sewn. I'm pleased to report that I got them done yesterday, and I'm wearing them today. And I also had time to start cutting out a San Diego Jacket, which I hope to have well under way by tonight.

There's a charming little jewelry store located across the street, called A Jeweler's Place. So of course, we had to go over and take a look. I ended up spending some money over there...2 pairs of earrings and a citrine, pearl, and silver bracelet are coming home with me.

(Sorry about the crappy photo. I only noticed the dust and Smudge's fur after taking it! But you get the idea.)

The owner, Carol Reed, provides great customer service. She adjusted the bracelet to fit my narrow wrist, and while I was there, she was helping a customer put together a design for a bracelet made of antique red coral beads. I'm accustomed to this with "fine" jewelry, but not so much with silver and semiprecious stones.

We also had a guest in the afternoon, Anna Lisa Hedstrom, who is a nationally-known fiber artist working in shibori. Among many styles of scarves, she had some pleated into flower shapes that were amazing.

Linda brought us dim sum for lunch, and we were on our own for dinner. Several of us went to a Mexican place, Tommy's, and I had an Enchilada Suiza dinner and a margarita. It was a different style of Mexican food than I'm used to, but delicious nevertheless. It was also nice to get out and walk after a day of hunching over a sewing machine.

Not Exactly Radio Silence, But...

I'd hoped to post more, but I'm having problems with accessing wi-fi from the hotel. No, thanks, I don't want your AT&T connectivity, thank you very much. Yet it keeps trying to possess my computer anyway.

A quick summary of yesterday's activities:

• It rained all day yesterday. Well, I did want the San Francisco experience!
  


• Linda brought muslins of the Plaza Pants and the Ikina Pants. I fit the Ikina muslin in Medium. Right from the envelope. The Plaza Pants required only a minimal tweak for the Medium size.



• I'm working on Plaza Pants now. They're cut out, and edges are serged. They should be completed today. Linda and I decided that the Medium would work for me, with a slight tweak to add a little bit of extra room. High hips, ya know.



• We went to Satin Moon yesterday. Small store and lots of beautiful fabrics wedged into every nook and cranny. I was kind of overwhelmed, but did end up with a couple of pieces:

• Fabrix is right up the street, and a whole 'nuther experience. I picked up 3 pieces of knits. Nice stuff and only $1.99 per yard.

• I tried on a bunch of the clothes from Thursday's trunk show. There are several patterns I can wear straight from the envelope. Those would be the Now and Zen Tops (Medium), the Japonesque Top (Extra Small!), and the San Diego Jacket (Small). I'm planning on working on these patterns some more while I'm here.



• Dinner was very nice. We basically took over Mescolanza, an Italian restaurant on Clement St. with our group of 16, and later discovered that we actually had reservations at a different Italian restaurant up the street! The food was excellent, and it was really a fun time.

I should have brought heavier clothes. This desert diva is having a little difficulty with the dampness here, so I'm feeling cold most of the time. It's nice that the hotel room has great linens, including a fluffy down (?) comforter and masses of pillows.

Cali!

I've made it to San Francisco, where I'm blogging from the Laurel Inn, our group's recommended hotel for the Getaway. I've been in travel mode since 6 am this morning, and fortunately, I was able to check into my room upon arrival at 1 pm.

Jeez, did I ever bring a lot of stuff. I had one wheelie with fabric and supplies, another wheelie with clothes and toiletries, and a computer/overnighter bag (courtesy of DBF). No travelling light, even if I wanted to. I didn't think sewing tools would be too acceptable to the TSA, so there was no choice but to check them. Unfortunately, the elevators at the Albuquerque Sunport were out of order this morning. Ugggh, it's no fun to schlep 3 bags onto 2 flights of escalators to check-in.

San Francisco is true urbanity, while Albuquerque is a lot smaller and more spread out. I'm feeling a little bit "country" at this point, know what I mean?

My clothes are hung up and I have a wheelie bag full of sewing stuff ready to take over to the Sewing Workshop this evening. I think that's the plan, Linda's last email mentioned bringing your "stuff" this evening.

Tonight's activity is a trunk show of Sewing Workshop garments while the attendees get to know each other and get started. Yes, my camera will be coming with me!

I haven't had much chance to eat today. Coffee, pretzels, and a diet Coke aren't going to get me much farther so I need to go in search of a late lunch. There appear to be several restaurants close by as well as a Trader Joe's.

More later...

Q & A Re: Organizational Tricks Part 1

Awww, you all give me too much credit. Thanks Carolyn, Laura, and Lisa Laree for commenting. But really, you all are too kind. Keep in mind that all my systems have evolved over time. I didn't wake up one day and decide that this was the way it was going to be!


In reality, a lot of the rationale for developing methods and systems had to do with a) buying the exact same item multiple times; b) losing items (you know the feeling, "I know I have this someplace!! @#$%^! it!!"); moving (see point a and b); c) evolution.


By evolution, I don't mean in the Biblical sense, but really, this stuff starts small then develops a momentum of its own. In my case, I now have:

• Several bins, 2 closets, a bureau, and a bookcase filled up with fabric,
• At least 5 boxes of patterns, which were beer bottle cases in a previous life,
• Years of classes, training, and inspiration over the years,
• Lots of sewing, fashion, and crafts books
• No chance that it will end anytime soon.

Something had to give and it wasn't going to be me (although sometimes I wonder).

Until this weekend, the sewing room had become quite a mess. While in an organizational frenzy (yesterday), I decided to tackle the sewing room as well. Lots of loose fabrics and flotsam have been put away, and I'm feeling much better now.

Laura, I'll go into more detail about the journal contents in a future organizational post. Good suggestion!

Artemesia, thanks for the kind words about my trip. I do hope to meet you in Taos someday. I look forward to seeing some posts on your blog, too.

Carolyn, thanks also for the advice on Fabric Fixx! I'll be trying to slip away and check it out! I hope that we will have the opportunity to attend one of these workshop/getaways together some time.