Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Guess it is time....

to begin trying this blog thing again.

The last two years have been a blur of lots of interesting things , but nothing extremely earth shattering....my interests have been in MAKING!!!!

Quilting, sewing clothing, knitting of course, poly form clay and now a little jewelry design.

I have gone to few conferences as a client....Puyallup, SEW QUILT KNIT in Portland, and sewing vacation in Sioux City. Also a few quilt shows...a few fun and few disappointing classes.

Work has changed a lot in the last few months....new offices, staff changes, and sharing a space rather than having my own office.....not having my own office has really made my work more difficult. "Getting into my zone", becomes more difficult as there are constant interruptions.  I just need to get used to it.

On the home front....new red convertible, new vintage featherweight machine in red, and a new resurgence in wanting to create for myself.

I have made 4 shirts in the last 6 weeks....each takes about 4-6 hours. And last night I just finished a pair of jeans , drafted from a pair I bought in Ireland 8years ago....they still fit, BUT are a little thread bare in spots.....I am going to wear them to work tomorrow.


Tuesday, September 24, 2013

another week...AARRGGHH

The weekend  passed uneventfully, except that is was my baby brother's birthday and the anniversary of my meeting Luke (33 years)...a little bittersweet not having him around to share the special day.

and another week has begun here at work... the garments for next photo shoot are coming in.
there are little tweaks i need to make in the fitting but nothing too major..thank heaven!
The models are chosen and on will be here the first weekend in October. Hoping that the fall weather decides to stay warm and sunny enough for the on-location shoot.

I have finished a Qiviut raglan pullover and hope to sew a skirt to match...have a great knit plaid chosen for the skirt.  A friend is finishing another pullover design for me while i am making scarf/ cowl/ mobius  to match, now I need to decide how to finish it...to be one of the 3 pieces...finished writing the pattern, and am working on schematics, illustrations and graphics.

We are 5 weeks from our next Stitches, and that too will be a ton of work...fortunately the Modeling Agency has already contacted me agreeing to furnish the talent, i have worked with them for many years...and glad to have them in my corner.

I need to get sewing, if not for work than just for my own well being...not sure why, but when i get home all i want to do is relax and cuddle with Pucci.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Turning 13

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Luke's death, which means I have been single for 13 years.  I won't say alone, because I have some pretty spectacular friends and family.   That also means i have been here at work and in Sioux Falls about 13 years. My oh my,  how time flies!


Sunday, September 8, 2013

What happened to august

On August 20  I drove out to Colorado to visit family and attend my niece's wedding. Along the way I shopped for fabrics...if you ever get to Material Girl in Grand Island,  NE, tell them Rick and Elaine sent you!?!? You'll get star treatment!!! LOL

It was a blast at the wedding, Wendi was as beautiful as ever with her 3 sisters as attendants. I did their make-up and assisted with the hair...pays to have a gay uncle!!! Her Dad, Ron, walked her down the aisle, and Wendi asked me to  escort her Mom to her seat as the ceremony was about  to begin...I was so honored!  

All 7 of  us ( siblings) were together, that hadn't. Happened since my Grandmother's funeral, the only hitch was one brother decided not to attend the wedding because his girlfriend had a meltdown the night before over her  grown kids...and I cooked for the masses like I had learned to do, many years ago thanks to my mentor, Clara DePriest.  as I cooked dinner the first evening, my father said, "every time you come home, I gain 5 pounds.". To which I responded, " now you know my problem, I have to eat my own cooking."

Had a wonderful 12 days at home (with a few work related problems I had to solve through emails) where I  met 2 of my grand nieces, and 2 grand nephews for the first time. Saw most of my nieces and nephews and a few of my cousins. Gawd, are they getting old!?!?! 

On Monday, We went t to Chimayo, bought red and green chili for the winter, then went on to Albuquerque to fly home....airports in Denver and Albuquerque being pretty empty... Pays to travel on a holiday (as long as it isn't a car).

Back to work just to realize I really need a vacation!!!!

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Home again


With a photo shoot under my belt— 2 book projects, one complete the other a partial shoot—completed in a day and a half. downtown chicago is a great place for shooting knitwear. The activity, the art, the buildings, and Buckingham Fountain...(the Married with Children" fountain in the opening  credits).

We hired 4 women from Factor Chicago, and had a great time working up and down michigan Avenue.  If you ever wanted to model you should rethink, these women need to stand in the heat and look pretty no mattern what they are required to wear...we had sweaters coats and jackets...and a few accessories and thay needed to look great in every shot and did...BTW it was 4500 frames shot!

so in review of the trip,
Bought  "From the Cauldron"  yarn to make a sweater for myself...in reds and blacks. This yarn was my favorite thing from the Stitches show...and no wonder...
 i just fell in love with everyone in the booth. Pretty edgy women—intelligent, witty, and totally fun...plus their work is stellar.

the yarn itself is a looooooonnng repeat which flows from red to black in only one repeat, and the other colorway has red and white that flows to black........i see a few more purchases from them in the future.


Saturday, August 10, 2013

Friday is over...bring on Saturday

fashion show done....no major glitches....

Had 8 beautiful women from Elite Chicago on the runway with 102 different ensembles....it was a blast....happy audience so I cannot complain...
Going down to market to demo knitting back and forth.....and then to give a Tour through the Pages of Issue 112.

Friday, August 9, 2013

Stitches

STITCHES Midwest

Her I am middle of night, ready for bed.... Great day!!!

Yesterday, WEDNESDAY, I started at Vogue Fabrics....bought silks and cottons for garments...but my best find was some great Sewing workshop patters that are no longer in the current catalog....along with a couple of Lois Ericson patterns. Had the clerk not been so annoying and listened i would have bought more. My time was limited and I decided to give up and use mail order instead!


Got back to Schaumburg Convention Center to judge the 3rd round of The Fiber Factor.....so many things to say during the taping, I don't envy the editing process of this round....Laura Bryant, Cirila Rose, Elaine Rowley, Karin Skacel and I had so many ideas and opinions. And not always agreeing made it even more fun and rewarding.

Thursday:
Opening day talk with Laura, and it was really informative...if you like hand-dyed yarn this was definitely a must see. Went to the luncheon, and was flattered when Laura commented that she wished we could live closer so we could collaborate and design together.

Spent the afternoon working on the fashion show. We have 102 garments....with full commentary for Friday night's show....some great knits and a few that make me wonder what the hell is someone thinking.  Building 102 ensembles can be a challenge, but we have some really great ones.

The market opened with the unveiling of Knitter's issue 112, my sweater is on the cover... And the photo is stellar.

I wore the Pan Pacific shirt with my pink chinos...to great  kudos when they learned my shirt was from my hands. Not sure what to wear later today, but I think I'll wear another handmade shirt....will let you know tonight...