Uncomfortable

Happy Halloween, my friends! If it’s a thing in your area, are you dressing up and/or trick-or-treating? That very abstract inky image right above is actually my living room wall when sunshine suddenly burst through the clouds and cast a murky, Halloween-y shadow pattern. Although I want to get more into the spirit of things, my Hallow’s Eve zest has been distracted by surreal events happening throughout the month. I’ve been very, very uncomfortable. I’m stepping out of my comfort zone, as it were, and am feeling like I’m wearing an existential costume a lot these days.

Part of it was flying out to California to film for Creativebug. So fun! So not in my wheelhouse! The image you see above was from the production set — I taught a bunch of sewing classes and they will be available through their site in a couple of months. More on that later.

Part of it was trying to update this ole blog of mine. Technology has always been challenging for me, and I kept messing up the website so I ended up reverting to the old blog format for the interim. I was also trying to revamp my email subscription system and botched that up too. If you are subscribed, you will probably get a number of annoying emails from me telling you that you’ll need to confirm your subscription. I apologize in advance! I haven’t given up yet and will continue to work on updating everything.

A little part of it was learning how to use various inks in my art supply stash in an unofficial attempt to join Inktober (apparently there’s some sort of copyright scandal associated with it so people don’t call it Inktober anymore? Not sure). I’ve been painting tiny sketches every day and posting them on Instagram. I realized how comfortable I’ve gotten with watercolors and gouache, and it was surprisingly challenging to adapt to the slightly different nature of inks. I also have an absurd amount of art supplies and had no idea that I had so many different types of inks. My favorite were these three: fuyu-syogun Iroshizuku by Pilot (a deep, deep indigo blue color), Yasutomo Sumi ink, and though not technically an ink, Dr Ph Martin’s Hydrus Fine Art liquid watercolor in carbon black is wonderful.

But all of these aspects have been good. I felt weirdly satisfied that I stuck through the discomfort of filming, failing at technology and understanding new paint mediums — I can’t say that the end results are exactly what I had in mind, but I feel less intimidated now. I’ll take it.

Alright. I am, as always, working  on meeting deadlines and will be back next month with some holiday goodies for you. Take good care, my lovely friends!

 

Another Drygoods Class!

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Friends, I’m so excited to be teaching another class at my favorite fabric store/sewing studio! This time, we’re focusing on baby outfits, and I’m certain that everyone needs to make an adorable pinafore and pair of bloomers at some point. Right? I think these would make fabulous holiday gifts as well as gifts for expectant parents any time of the year.

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I think what’s most thrilling for me is that these are adapted from Japanese patterns but modified heavily by me, so they are, in essence, my own patterns. I worked and re-worked the patterns to really simplify them, but the class will include tips and tricks on working with Japanese sewing books as well.  The pinafore top can be adjusted to fit sizes approximately 6 months to 18 months (if the 18-month-old is quite slim), and is fully lined.

pinafore-top-bloomers3Though the description says these would be perfect for “little ladies”, I think these could easily be unisex, and really, I don’t think there’s anything cuter than bloomers on any tush, boy or girl.

It’s another all-day workshop on December 8th, so I’ll be doing quite a bit to prepare for the class. I was so very lucky with my first class (awesome people! super fun!) and it seemed like an auspicious beginning. Holiday times are tricky though, so I’ve got my fingers crossed that the class will actually happen…

P.S. If you’re curious about the fabrics I used for the above (I’ve had all of these in my stash forever):

Grey=Nani Iro Peaceful Cooing in double-gauze
Red/Cream/Aqua Watercolor=Nani Iro Linen/Cotton
Brown Bears=Kokka Linen/Cotton
White with black polka dots=Cotton from JoAnn’s
Orange Stripes=Linen/Cotton
Off-White bloomers=Linen/Rayon blend