Blogging break

I just can't seem to get to the 'new post' window...this home renovation stuff is nutso.  We're redoing two rooms...all that stuff is crammed, stacked, wedged and piled around the rest of the house.

It's nearly claustrophobic.

So I'm just going to holler 'UNCLE' here and take a blogging break until we can get some sort of order re established.

Hopefully  we'll be ALL done by Thanksgiving...

Choir Wardrobe 10/18/15

 Busy weekend...I didn't get my brown top cut out; mayhap I can get that done next week....

So I went with old and familiar... for the third week in a row, my brown wool jersey Pamela's Patterns 110, over my orange stretch lace Jalie 2566 T shirt, a burnout poly scarf from a remnant, and the new brown RTW jeans that obviously need to be rolled up just a bit.  I don't want to shorten them just yet; experience has taught me to let jeans go through 4 or 5 wash cycles before deciding whether or not to hem them.  I don't plan to put these through the dryer, due to the lycra content, but I am not going to do any adjustin' until I'm convinced they're not going to change length.

My inlaws did make it down; we went to an annual Royal Ranger event; a fundraiser for a local ministry that allows the Rangers to have use of their property for various camp outs during the year.  They run a number of 'buy a ticket and have fun' events.. and invite the community to come and have fun. 

My favorite activity was watching My Sweet Babboo man the 25-foot rappelling tower; he did the final hook - up for the kids and coached them over the side.  That's a pretty cool guy I married. ..in his FCF gear, getting a young fellow ready to go over the side.

:-)

Squeezing in a queue addition and a RTW rant...

We have company coming this weekend, which means I have to make the room I use for cutting back into a guest room.

It's not in too bad of a shape...well, it's been worse, anyway.  But I'm determined to get a top cut out before I pack it all up.

I've traced off virtually all the pieces of Vogue 9057  ...the view with the shirttail hem, the view with the pointy hem, both views with the assymetric hem...which I traced face up and face down, to get that offset...and the bracelet length sleeve and the deep-hemmed-for-rolling long sleeve and an extra short sleeve to be rolled a bit, plus one neckline binding to use. (And I just realized I didn't trace the armhole binding for the sleeveless version...rats...).  But I'm going to cut one of those out of the yummy brown rayon 4-way stretch that's been in the stash a while.   Probably won't get it sewn this weekend...there is company coming, after all...but soon.  Hopefully before Oct. 25th, so I can wear it in choir this month.

And we still have a plastic curtain with a red zipper blocking the back part of the house...fall break means the contractor went to the beach with his family.  So.  We have oddball stuff just crammed everywhere; it's going to be an interesting visit.

I had a wee bit of time yesterday between leaving work and having to be home for my youngster to climb in the car and head off to his second shift janitorial job, so I stopped at the mall in search of some colored jeans.  I wanted a gray pair and a brown pair.

I parked in front of the store that I'd had jeans-purchasing success in earlier this year, but a quick wander around didn't turn up any colored jeans.  So I hiked to the department store at the other end (fortunately it is not a huge mall).  I found three tables with colored jeans...Gloria Vanderbilts, Lees, and another brand that escapes me at the moment.

I started trying on 14's and 16's.   That was the size I'd bought last.

They were huge.  Granted, they were high in lycra content and they were labeled as 'relaxed fit' but...holy cow.  I went back and tried again.

I ended up with a pair of 10's and a pair of 12's that might be a bit big but I was tired of trying on.

Now, before you get all excited that my weight loss program has worked so well, I need to tell you that there is no weight loss going on here.

In fact, I currently weigh about ten pounds more than I weighed when I checked into the hospital nearly 30 years ago to deliver my firstborn.  When my regular, non-maternity size was a 10.

There is NO WAY I should've  left the store yesterday with size 10 pants.  NONE.

Now, I'm way beyond thinking the number on the size tag means anything at all.  But it would've saved me a LOT OF TIME had those jeans been marked for the actual size I am.  Then I would've tried on the right size to begin with, instead of pants that were two to three sizes too big.

 CRA-ZEE.

At least they were on sale.  I got both pairs for less than $60.  That was encouraging, considering I was on the brink of giving Stitch Fix a try with a request for gray jeans...knowing that the jeans that came in the one box I sampled had a $128 price tag (that whole box went back...).  I was that convinced that my wardrobe NEEDS gray jeans.  So, while I'm shaking my head over the size tag, I'm tickled to get something new into the wardrobe;  the only non-blue-denim I've worn in longer than I can remember is black.

You will see them in the Choir Wardrobe.  Probably a lot.

They'll look good with those Tilton tops..

Choir Wardrobe 10 11 15

Yeah...that's the same cardi as last week; wool jersey  Pamela's Patterns 110 .  It's such a nice brown....

I have a tan Guipure lace tank, bought on a double clearance rack last year on an out of town trip for significantly less than I would've paid for the lace yardage.  It has some gappy going on at the armholes, but as long as I've got a cardigan over it that totally doesn't matter.:-)  I've got a burnt orange Jalie 965 tank on under it,  to be consistent with the colors for the month of burnt orange/burgundy/tan/brown.  It's funny...I bought the lace top last year with the intention of putting it with the orange and brown for October choir, but figured I'd wear it with other colored tanks through the year.  None of them pop quite like that burnt orange one....I don't know that I've worn it with anything else...

And Levis.

Not sure when the seasonal clothes are going to get switched; the home renovation is kinda messing with my  normal schedule for these things.  I have some brown rayon jersey pulled from the stash...I may just have to make myself something...lol...

Choir Wardrobe 10/4/15

October colors are burgundy, burnt orange and brown or tan.  I went with the neutrals today...

Brown wool jersey Pamela's Patterns Draped Front cardigan #110, worn over what I *think* is a sleeveless Burda boatneck T #108  from the Feb 2009 issue of Burda World of Fashion (now known as 'BurdaStyle'), with some slightly modified (looser leg) Loes Hinse Oxford pants in a nice tan Tencel twill.

I don't think I've put this combo together before, but I rather liked it.  I squeeked in a little burnt orange in the necklace combo.

I haven't really talked much here about the wall-replacing we're doing;  but I thought I'd show the plastic barrier that's up to try and keep the dust out of the main part of the house:

(Novel use for a Really Big Zipper, no?)

My laundry and my sewing cave are both on the other side of that zipper.  It's kind of a nuisance to haul stuff  (read: laundry baskets) through it; it's really not that big of an opening. And the power cords are strung over my ironing board.  So I'm tracing patterns and will likely add a couple more garments to the queue in lieu of actual sewing.  Our contractor thinks he can finish the job in a couple more weeks; I think that's pushing it a bit but it should be close.  Definitely will be before the month is over.

It's going to be a big change on that end of the house. I'm excited to see the finished rooms, even if we're not going to get all the decor straightened around for a while yet....

Ten years ago today...

This is the way the back hall way looked when we hauled in our machines on Oct. 1, 2005 and officially opened the costume shop for the 2005 production of 'The Gospel According to Scrooge.'

Which was significant in many ways, not the least being that it was the impetus for me to start blogging, so that means I'm quickly approaching my ten year blogiversary, but you will no doubt hear more about that before long.

We have not repeated that production since then, which is kind of surprising, but, well, I don't even know where we would set up a sewing room if we were to do it again; every inch has been given over to offices and classrooms that are used multiple times in a week.  This view  has changed; now that hallway looks like this:



What was an open room to the left is now multiple offices.


And I'm now on staff, doing data base management, which is a rather far cry from the free wheeling costume design of ten years ago.

But seasons change; they go in cycles.  After several years of a hiatus in any kind of drama ministry, we are holding auditions Saturday for a new troupe of thespians, to be available to do skits and other drama ministry.

There may even be a major production in the wind again in the next year or so.

I may be dusting off the ol' costumer skill set again after all.

Choir Wardrobe 9/27/15

I know, I know, it's Tuesday, for crying out loud.

But Sunday...well, Sunday was a pretty incredible day.  Aside from it being extremely busy...as in, I was only home just long enough to jump in front of the camera and wolf down a Jimmy John's Unwich (lettuce wrap 'sandwich'), we had some powerful worship at church Sunday.

The choir did not come down off the platform at all during each of the first two services (normally we come down during the transition from worship to teaching).  It was spontaneous...it was so...well...you just had to be there.  Sorry.

And it's really hard to come home from those services and write about what I wore.  I just can't shift mental/spiritual gears sometimes.

And it's not like I wore anything truly faboo anyway; I went to the back of the closet and pulled out a top that technically fits...it really doesn't strain or pull...but looked better 15 pounds ago, nonetheless.  All the style ease has been converted to wearing ease by the slow accumulation of the years.

But it garnered a few comments, nonetheless...probably just because it's a little out of the ordinary for me.

September colors: white, black and gold.  Black jeans with a ca. 2006 Hot Patterns Cadeau Top in marvelously beefy black and white stripe rayon/lycra jersey.  With a gold necklace and earrings.

And, yeah, those are birki sandals.  So glad I had those on...lol...

Choir Wardrobe 09 20 15

Hello again!

Our annual women's conference at church was last weekend; due to the stage set, we didn't even have choir last Sunday; the risers were gone and there was no place for us to stand.

But we're back this week; September colors are black, gold and ivory.

Kinda makes me wanna shout 'Boiler up!'...but I managed to restrain myself.

I actually indulged in a bit of online shopping last month; stumbled across a metallic T from J Crew that I thought would do nicely.  It looks tan in the photo, but it really is a sparkly gold. If I had made it, there would be a few tweeks I'd make before I made it again...chief among them being I'd add about 2.5 - 3 inches to the length of it, and I'd lengthen the sleeves just a bit so I could roll them up.  Or maybe put a  faux cuff on them.

And I might raise the neckline just a pinch, so I wouldn't have to wear a cami under it.

But I didn't make it, so I won't be worrying about it.

Except I like the loose T concept...so I may actually be doing a little alteration to one of my T patterns, using this T as a guide.  We'll see. ;-)

It's teamed up with my black cotton/lycra sateen La Fred Daphne Pants and what is probably the single most-worn item in my wardrobe, the black twill vest from the 05/2008 issue of BWOF. 

I'm rather amused that I've got the Birkies on; I meant to put on my black ballet flats but I was wearing the sandals around the house before we left and just totally forgot to switch.

At least they matched.

We have some home renovation work starting...or rather, starting back...this week.  I have a queue of sewing projects that have been languishing wilst I did the push to get all the registration ready for the conference, and then we went straight into cleaning/moving things to get things ready to knock a hole in a wall; I'm hoping to spend some time with my sewing machine in the next couple of weeks.

I don't think I'm going to get the gold leather vest done in time to wear it this go-round...

In Which She Wears Nothing She Made

It had to happen sooner or later.

I've come close a time or two, but usually managed to squeek in a cami top or a scarf or something to keep the string going.

But today we were requested to wear the shirts that promo our upcoming women's conference, if we had them (as we did a video shoot for the conference, many ladies in the choir did).  It is a black shirt w/ metallic gold lettering...and September choir colors are black or ivory w/ gold.

So today I wore my SHE t-shirt and blue jeans.

No cardi, no vest, no scarf...nothing that came off of my sewing machine.

It was hard.  I didn't realize what a point that was for me.  I kinda like the 'I always wear something I made' vibe.  I actually pulled a vest out of the closet that time has rendered a bit too small...and made myself put it back, because it detracted from the shirt.  Uniformity is the point.

You know, anything can be carried too far.  Maybe I should make myself wear a RTW outfit once a month or so, just so that I don't let that become part of my identity.

I will admit there have been times when I put back the first outfit I pulled out of the closet because I hadn't made any of the pieces.  Even though it was a really cute outfit in the right colors.  I was too hung up on the 'I must Wear My Makes' kinda deal.

So.  Not stopping the Choir Wardrobe posts...but admitting that there will be Sundays when I will find myself dressed in stuff I bought.

And that's ok.

But I probably won't post those photos. This ain't no style blog.  (but you knew that already  ;-) )

That Cookie Notice

I happened to check around on one of the other tabs connected to my other blog this morning and I read the following notice:
European Union laws require you to give European Union visitors information about cookies used on your blog. In many cases, these laws also require you to obtain consent.

As a courtesy, we have added a notice on your blog to explain Google's use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies.

You are responsible for confirming this notice actually works for your blog, and that it displays. If you employ other cookies, for example by adding third party features, this notice may not work for you.

So I did a little more checking and found that a really ugly notice pops up at the top of the screen if you happen to be visiting from the European Union:

 This site uses cookies from Google to deliver its services, to personalize ads and to analyze traffic. Information about your use of this site is shared with Google. By using this site, you agree to its use of cookies.

 This is a generic notice provided by Google to comply with the EU's requirements.  So I thought I'd do a little 'splainin' :

The only use of cookies THIS blog makes is to see who's visiting. I use a hit counter that generates a list letting me know who visits (IP/ IP address; city/state/country; the link they came on, the page they landed on, the page they left on and how long they were here; all of which can be blocked if you're savvy enough) .

I check the list periodically just to see if anyone is reading, since I only average one comment per post.  This is not a hugely active site...on days when I put up a new post, I'll get around 150 visits, not including folks who are reading via bloglovin (I don't think the stat counter records those visits unless the person kills the bloglovin' frame) or other feedburners, but it is a little encouraging to see that folks have come by, even if they're not leaving comments.

That's all the use I will ever make of cookie information. I am very honored that anyone would click through from where ever you found a link...face book, a search engine, whatever...and allow me to share a bit.  If you'd like to leave a comment letting me know you stopped by, that'd be great, but really, I'm just glad you're here.

Now I must go eat a cookie, because I have suddenly developed a craving...

Workwear 22

I said maybe I'd get another McCall's 6559 Maxi made before the summer was over...just squeaked it in last week...

I've recently seen references to the 'Dazzle' or 'Razzle-Dazzle' camouflage paint used on wartime ships during WW1...the black and white random graphic designs were visually confusing and made it difficult to determine how many ships were in a particular area and even what way they were going.

Of course, with the advent of radar and satellite imagery, that's all old stuff, but, well, I had a piece of black-and-silverish stylized print rayon/lycra jersey and I thought I could do with a little dazzle camouflage myself.

These are very nearly instant dresses.  They only take a pinch longer to sew than a tank top.

And I love them with a denim jacket...

I bet I use this pattern in different lengths...but maybe not this year.

Fall sewing beckons. :-D

Choir Wardrobe 8/30/15

At least the choir wardrobe pretty much guarantees at least one post a week! :-)

I did spend a little time in the sewing room yesterday and cranked out another McCall's 6559 Maxi.  Pictures as soon as I can manage it...

But today was the last day for August's coral/black/gray combo.

Gray/black stripe rayon jersey Jalie 2566 t shirt under my coral rayon blend jersey Jalie 2919 pleated cardigan.  Black Lee jeans that should stay black...they've got a good bit of poly blended w/the cotton, so hopefully they'll hold that nice dark color.

I had a long sparkly necklace on, but during 2nd service I was working on data entry in my office and the necklace caught on a corner on my desk and the jump ring at the clasp failed.  If something had to break, that was a good thing as it's easily repairable...just need to sit down for a minute with my needle nosed pliers.  But it's not in the photo and you totally miss my attempt to get on board the multiple necklace layers train...

Next month:  Black, ivory and gold....

Choir Wardrobe 8/23/15

Back again after a quick trip last weekend to Indiana to visit our parents and celebrate our 35th anniversary with a side overnight trip to Turkey Run State Park...one of my favorite places on the planet.

We got back Wednesday night, and I had a grueling 3 1/2 hours in a dentist's chair the next morning to put a car in my mouth...er, prep 6 teeth for crowns.  I now have a six-tooth temporary crown in place for the next 10 days whilst the permanents are being made; I've joked that it's a Barney tooth....totally non functional but keeping me presentable.  I'm being Very Careful as to what I eat...

So, no sewing to speak of has gotten accomplished in the last two weeks, which is ok as there is plenty of gray, black and coral in the closet.

This week it's a gray rayon jersey Sewing Workshop Ann's Cardigan, which is really way too big in the shoulders and more than a little aggravating but definitely worth tweaking and making again, over an ancient coral rayon jersey Vogue 2925 shell top , which is over a charcoal gray Jalie 965 tank.

And, since we were headed south on the Pennyrile Parkway and therefore going right by the Vanity Fair/Lee Outlet in Hanson, KY, we stopped for a little wardrobe refreshing and I found a pair of really black jeans to replace the ones that have faded to dark gray.  We'll see how long I can keep these black. ;-)

I did a bunch of cutting out in July; going to try to get some of those projects sewn up in the next couple of weeks.

Crossing my fingers...the women's conference is just around the corner; I may be busier at work than I'm expecting...

Choir Wardrobe 8/9/15

I can pretty much guarantee it will be all old stuff for August; our colors for this month are black, gray and coral.

I have plenty of black, gray and coral in the wardrobe from past years, so  there's no need to crank out more at this point.

Black Lee jeans with a dove gray ...fine cotton?  It's been too long...jersey made up in a sleeveless version of  Jalie 2682, topped by a variation of my favorite knit cardi pattern, Jalie  2919 in a rayon blend jersey.

However, next month the colors are going to be black, white/ivory and gold, which are the colors for our women's conference that will be happening the 10th - 12th, themed 'She is BRAVE'.

And I have a metallic gold half calf skin waiting on me to be very BRAVE and make it up into a vest.

So.  We shall see.  I did pull the piece out and put it on the cutting table. ;-)

Random Road Trip means simple Choir Wardrobing 8/2/15

My Sweet Baboo's brothers are both active Barbershoppers...one sings with the 'Voices of California' chorus, which is based in Sacramento, and the other sings with the quartet 'New Found Sound' in Pennsylvania.

Well, this year the VoCal chorus (clever nickname, no?) attended the week-long Harmony University in Nashville, which was capped off with a showcase concert of sorts in which VoCal was one of the featured choruses.

So of course, we loaded up the van and took a quick road trip up to Belmont University campus for the event last night.  We could not pass up the opportunity to see a live performance.

It started at 8 PM.  Which was a good thing, really, as it meant we could wait for The Actor to get off work.  Prince Charming had some other things going on, so it was just the six of us in the van...which I don't think has happened since Christmas 2010.

Now, you know, we are probably the least musically talented branch of the family, but we can sing...sort of.  Church Choir, family Christmas Caroling...but this was a whole 'nuther level of musical exposure for the kids.  Most of the audience were HU participants; although it was open to the public, it was very much  a show celebrating the shared experience of the week, with lots of inside jokes.

There was even a bit of audience participation singing at the beginning and end.  'Let Me Call You Sweetheart' was led by an elderly gentleman that we met after the show when we were chatting with DBIL...who told him that we were 'non-barbershoppers'.  He dug in his shoulderbag and pulled out pins for all of us. 'You sang with me!' he said, passing them around.

It was an amazing evening; I haven't had that much fun in a long time. Bad jokes, wonderful music, and lots of standing ovations (seriously.  My quads are slightly sore today from the up-and-down.  And...embarrassing side note...as I sat down after the first one, the back of my head kinda bounced against the pot belly of the guy behind me, who hadn't sat down yet.  After that, I checked and made sure he sat down before me...).  But on the way home, one of the boys commented, 'I think we've just been initiated into a cult....'

The show ended at 10:15;  it was 2:30 AM before I actually hit the hay, and we had to be at church at 8 AM this morning.  I just kinda pulled the first thing out of the closet that met this month's criteria...we're wearing black, gray and choral for August...and headed out the door.  No makeup, no contacts...but I was there. ;-)  And...I had a fresh appreciation for the gift of being able to sing, even if it's just in the middle of the choir.

Vogue 2925 coral rayon jersey top,  the hopefully-soon-to-be-replaced Jalie 2919 cardigan, slightly modified, and RTW jeans.  A great service with guest speaker Robert Madu.

All in all, a very good weekend.

Yawn.... ;-)

Why do I do this to myself?

The spare bedroom.  I use it for my cutting space...but it has kind of turned into secondary fabric storage.  Now, this is NOT just the fabric that has accumulated in the last 3 ish years...it's also fabric that I have pulled out of the bins in the for-real stash storage area in anticipation of cutting out projects  in the last 3-ish years.

But I needed to clean the closet out because I've got to stash some other stuff in it, as the adult-kids-living-elsewhere can't seem to find space for their stuff and we're about to start some renovation again so It Must Move.  So all the accumulated/pulled out fabric had to get corralled  and rebinned.

Y'all.  This is no way to run a railroad.  I can't even think about what I want to do with all that.

I sorted it out and rebinned it...mostly; the silk bin and the printed cotton bin were both full, so I had to figure out something else to do with the overflow.  And I did leave a few pieces out because I am determined to turn them into clothes for the closet.

But the truth is that I have had a real come-to-Jesus-moment regarding the fabric stash.

And I have decided that I am adding nothing to the stash for a year.  Nothing.

Now, that does not mean I won't buy any fabric at all...but it does mean that anything that I buy has to be sewn up at once.  So that allows for emergencies, like a costuming project, but by and large...I'm going to try to use the stash.

I mean, that's why it's there.

So...between now and my birthday in July 2016...I'm going to be shopping the stash.

There.  I said it out loud, with witnesses.

Here goes.

Workwear 21 - A totally frivolous dress

Here's a dress that will likely never be worn for choir; just not a color combo that will get worn in tank top season.  But I wanted one nonetheless.  A striped maxi in an old catalog was the inspiration, and when Fabric Mart put this stripe on one of their crazy sales a year and a half ago I got five yards...intending to use a chunk of it for the McCall's 6559 dress.

But it languished.  Choir projects took priority.  Then Carolyn made a boatload of 6559 Maxis  and I was inspired.  I had to make mine.

This is actually a frankenpattern of McCall's 6559 and my TNT Jalie 965.  The neckline is Jalie; the shoulders are Jalie, extended about 3/8" towards the shoulder to brastrap-friendly the shoulders.

I actually prefer binding on knit necklines/armholes...it feels like it stabilizes it a little bit.  Alternately, you could sew clear elastic into the turned-and-stitched hem, but binding is easy.

Assuming, of course , that you cut it to the correct length.  I could use the Jalie pattern for the neckline binding, but the armholes were a mashup so I measured and, despite knowing better, cut the binding the same length.  So of course they were horribly floppy and gappy.

Pulled 'em off, shortened them 2" and put 'em back.  Not perfect, but acceptable.

I steam a seamed basted the hem and then double needled it.   Even with redoing the armholes, it was a really quick sew.

Wore it to work today w/ my CWC denim jacket.  Loved it.

I may make a couple more before the summer's over...lol...

Choir Wardrobe 07 26 15

Believe it or not, I found a place in California that claims to repair  my Powershot  lens error issue; I boxed it up and mailed it out Friday...so, we'll see.  If it all comes back beautifully, I'll write a blog post.  If it's a dead end, I'll write a blog post.  Either way...blog material is coming. ;-)

But my hubby loaned me his old 7.1 megapixel camera, so I can at least get some photos.  Good enough is...good enough.

So, today was the last day for the choir to wear black, gray and kelly green.  And I wore the cotton/lycra zig-zag print Jalie 2566 t...just because the colors were right...with  Oldcoldwatercreek (as opposed to the new company with the same name) jeans that fit around the middle but are too big everywhere else, and my wear-at-least-once-a-week black cotton twill Burda magazine 05-09-108 vest.

Not real fancy...I'd've liked to do something different, but too much birthday cake and ice cream in the last couple of weeks has limited my pants choices considerably.  (insert rolling eyes).


I took a couple of days off last week...it was youth camp week and 85% of the staff was involved in either the youth event or the concurrent pastor's conference...so I took advantage of the resulting light work load for the DBA and stayed home the last half of the week.  Found the bottom of the laundry basket (yay!), helped The Princess a bit with a costume that she is working on to wear to Disney world later in the fall (she is sewing.  I am helping), did a few oddball projects that have been waiting and waiting...and made myself a McCall's  6559 maxi knit dress.  I think I'm really late to that show...it's got 112 reviews posted...but it wasn't choir-wardrobe-able so it just didn't get high on the list. 

I'll write a review once I can corral someone to take a photo of me in it. ;-)

So...a productive weekend!  And I've still got over a week's worth of comp time to burn...and I haven't touched the vacation yet...

Singin' the 'My Camera's Bonked' Blues...

Sigh.  Who knows when I'll get another photo to post...

Trying to be clever and take a selfie photo before we went to dinner on our quick-out-of-town-to-celebrate-my-birthday weekend; somehow, in rushing to get in front of the camera after setting the camera down just so on the table and activating the timer, I bumped it and the camera fell over.  It wasn't a bad bump, no biggie, right?

Right.

It's only working about 30% of  the time now; the rest of the time it doesn't focus, or it gives me a 'Lens error restart camera' message...and I have to turn it off about half a dozen times before it finally shuts down and stays shut down...so  I can turn it on and begin the whole process again.  Frustrating.

It's been a good little camera; it's a Canon Powershot point-and-shoot.  I'd like to get it fixed, but I don't know where I could get it serviced. 

I suppose I could google it, eh? lol.

So...I might get photos in the next few weeks, I might not.  We'll see.

Road Trip and a Factory Tour

My sewing traveling buddy, Miss A, found herself in need of a new serger; her aging machine finally lost all ability to maintain tension.  She'd shopped around in the Rocket City, but hadn't really found info that was helpful (Not kidding...one local store's 'Expert on that machine' answered every question with, 'I'm not sure, I'd have to check the manual' ...on a machine that she was purported to use and love...).

So, as we had today off for the 4th of July holiday (church offices are closed every Friday, so we got our holiday today) we decided we'd take a road trip to Florence and see if Ken's Sewing Center could be more helpful.

I arrived at her house this morning and, as we discussed lunch plans, she asked if I'd heard of Alabama Chanin.

Um, heck yeah.

Well, when she googled restaurants in the Florence area, Alabama Chanin Factory came up.

And, after a successful visit to Ken's which resulted in a Janome serger joining us for the rest of the trip, a wild goose chase roundabout trip to a fabric store that turned out to be closed on Mondays, we ended up at the Alabama Chanin Factory.

Where, in addition to marvelous eye candy sewing inspiration,  we really did find a gourmet deli restaurant.  Who knew?







We had a yummy quiche and salad, and learned that they gave factory tours at 2 PM.  As luck would have it, it was quarter to.


 So we did the tour of the factory, which was very interesting.

Our guide, Erin,  works in the media department and was very knowledgeable and articulate and did a really good job of describing not only how the Alabama Chanin factory operates but Natalie Chanin's vision.    Their hand sewing is done by local artisans who are independent contractors, but the prep work (cutting and stenciling) is done in the factory before the work is sent out.  They also do a small amount of indigo dyeing, and they do have some machine sewn work, some of which is under the Alabama Chanin brand and some of which is work for other brands...ie, Patagonia, who recycles jackets into scarves in partnership with AC.

There is a DIY section, with fabric and such for sale; I wasn't in fabric buying mode but I did get one of the AC books that has been on my Amazon wish list for a while....when I opened it I found it was signed by the author as well! 

What a treat we had!  If you ever are in the Florence, AL area, drop by!