When I was a young lass toiling over catalog page layouts amid the design-y and stylish citizens of Williams-Sonoma / Pottery Barn HQ, I used to spend a lot of time and effort on my appearance because everyone around me sashayed about in beautiful attire. One of my good friends and co-workers -- he of the vintage couture connoisseurship and wearer of thrifted Ferragamo loafers -- would appraise my daily outfits and give me a thumbs up or down. We had the sort of honest and hilarious relationship ... Read more
Giveaway: Cute Fall Fabrics! [CLOSED]
Good morning! So. The first order of business now that the book is 99% done (at least in my mind) is absolutely critical: cleaning. I am, by nature, a neat and tidy person, but for the last few months I've really let the house go to pot. It's ugly, folks. The disarray has been steadily driving me crazy and probably had some impact on my productivity, but I tried my very best to choose taking care of my health via food and exercise and spending time with people over laundry or vacuuming when I ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
Happy Friday! Above are my poor, poor neglected serger (left) and sewing machine (right). Did you know that you can use a regular old sewing machine cover for your serger too? The pear print is what could be considered a vintage Kokka linen/cotton blend -- I made that cover for my very first Singer sewing machine back in 2007 or so. I adore that fabric. The cover on the right was a potential book project (it has multiple pockets), but it didn't make the cut. Good news: final illustrations for ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
I did not make my deadline. This was a colossal bummer since I'd told everyone and their pets that I would be officially fini with all book brouhaha by October 5th (even the barista at my regular coffee shop haunt greeted me with a high five on The Day). I was technically done -- of course, I'm using the words "technically done" very loosely here -- on Monday, but then I kept finding mistake after mistake. It killed me, but I asked for an extension. Again. I used to pride myself on keeping my ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
Happy Friday! I was going through some of my old photos, and I found this image I'd snapped of a cardboard sign someone had tacked up near a construction site. It's an iphone shot, so it's not stellar in quality but the message more than makes up for it, don't you think? I had an interesting conversation with a couple of friends the other day about how the internet's anonymity seems to breed meanness. I wonder what kind of world it would be if the philosophy above was widespread on and offline? ... Read more