K made me a ring. She glued one of those aquarium glass beads to a broken metal band that she scrounged up from somewhere. Then she tucked it inside a clasping shell container and wrote a note. Because this came in the mail: I probably don't have to tell you that I became quite emotional. I had a moment of terror before I opened the box. "What if I hate it? What if I feel disappointed?" I don't, I wasn't. No, not even close. There are too many things I love about it to list them here. ... Read more
Arrows
sometimes. life shoots arrows that pierce blindly the released air sounds like sighs of sadness or hiccups of laughter or maybe gasps of wonder* *I am having a week in which the highs and lows are engaged in a major tug-of-war. So for today, this is all. ... Read more
Monday Outfit: Seeking the Comfy-Stylish Factor
Good morning! It feels like it's been a very long time since I've sewn for K. There are many things I need to sew for her: more pants, warm cardis, hats, mittens. But I wanted to set the tone for the new year with this first garment -- something that blended comfort with style. Or so I hoped. With that in mind, I sketched out some ideas, and decided on a half knit, half woven tunic. Which somehow turned into a dress. This little raglan dress is entirely self-drafted, ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
I dated a Zen monk-in-training for a brief period when I lived in San Francisco. He was brilliant, hilarious, foul-mouthed yet eloquent and used phrases like "we are copacetic," and I would tell him to knock it off with the pretension (and then I asked him what copacetic meant. It means "excellent", in case you didn't know either). We didn't mesh as a couple, but I treasured the friendship, and I greatly admired his commitment to meditation. Like yoga, meditation is something I've tried and ... Read more
2014 Retrospective: Sewing for Me
Before I put this collage together (thank you Rachel, for the Mosaic Maker recommendation -- it saved me about a zillion hours!), I had it in my mind that I didn't sew much for myself last year. And compared to 2013 which clocked in at 37 garments, I definitely sewed less at 36 garments for 2014, especially since I didn't start sewing for myself until May in 2013. So overall, my sewing output has been decreasing, but 36 items of clothing is still a pretty decent number, and what was ... Read more