I won!

Thanks Threads magazine!

Only one pattern

Since I have a substantial stash of fabric, I've curtailed my fabric shopping by quite a bit in the last few years; however, patterns take up less space and who can resist a $1 or $2 pattern sale? But now my pattern stash is getting a bit out of hand and I can't justify buying more patterns and continue to acquire foreign pattern magazines, so I've cut back on the pattern sales.

Saturday I stopped by Hancock Fabrics to pick up some thread and was drawn like a moth to a light to the pattern table where Buttericks were $1.99 and Simplicity patterns were a buck each. But not much impressed me - or I finally found some will power. However, Butterick 5493 looked a lot like the simple tops I see at the store but don't want to pay a lot of money for. I think any one of these would be suitable for work, worn under a jacket or light sweater. Plus they have bust darts!

Berg Fashion Library

This morning I heard a piece on NPR about the New York Public Library opening up access to a digital library of fashion images for its library card holders. The collection is called the "Berg Fashion Library" and it's available by subscription ($295)...or if you're lucky enough to have access to a library or institution that has a subscription.

It looks to me like I'm out of luck obtaining a New York Public Library card because according to their website,  "an applicant must show proof that he/she lives, works, attends school, or pays property taxes in New York State." Out of state or international visitors can obtain a temporary card, but it's only good on-site.

There are universities that have purchased subscriptions, so lucky for you if you have access via that route. My university days are over so I don't have that option. It looks like a really neat database - there is a trial 30-day free look, but I think I'll stick with free options to view fashion photos for now.

Fun with photoshop

I was going through some photos and made some panoramic views from some photos (click to see larger)

Cozumel, Mexico

Davenport, NZ (near Auckland)

Taupo, NZ

Wellington, NZ

Rome

Paris

New York

(it's too large to post here, so this is a link to Flickr, where you might be able to see it larger)

I made all these using the panorama tool on my Adobe Elements. I think it's a pretty cool algorithm that can make sense of a bunch of photos and make one image, especially for the one of the New York skyline. I only sorta-kinda took panoramic photos from the top of the Empire State Building, meaning that I wasn't too careful. I didn't want to crop it to a perfect rectangle and lose some of the buildings. If you are able to view the original size (I don't know how it works for visitors to Flickr), you can see a lot of detail in the buildings.

I can see that I'll be making taking more panoramic shots in the future and will be a bit more careful doing so. 

A sewing day

I had today off from work so I spent it sewing. Yay! Well sort of. I finally finished the sheers for the guest room (sewing room #2). As I've expressed before, I'm not a fan of home dec sewing. I enjoy selecting the fabrics and deciding what to make but when it comes to actually sewing the stuff...bleh. I have been guilty of buying fabric with the intention of making the drapes, pillows...whatever and the fabric sits and sits and then I go to IKEA to buy the drapes - cheap, washable, and fun prints. Why do I take on the home dec then? Oh yeah, I like the design process and don't want to pay the high $$ to have someone else do the sewing. I even made it super easy for myself. The fabric is plaid, which can be a nightmare when sewing clothes but when making drapes all the lines are a real help to make sure everything is straight. Honestly these sheers were so simple that it's embarrassing that it's taken me so long to get them made. But they're finally done. On to the next project.

Oh, and Alison was correct. We are headed to Buenos Aires for our vacation!

Where in the world?

We have a week off next month and are hitting the road, well actually the skies, for another travel adventure. So guess where we are going?

1. It will be warm
2. It's a large, capital city
3. I don't speak the language but I hear/see a lot of it where I live
4. Shall we dance?
5. Don't cry for me...

My thoughts are with Christchurch, NZ

Christchurch, New Zealand has had another big earthquake - 6.3 magnitude - and it has caused at least 65 deaths. I visited Christchurch in April-May of 2003. Here are pictures of the Christchurch cathedral from that trip. The larger earthquake last September damaged the cathedral (and miraculously no one was killed in that quake) but this latest quake toppled the spire and has largely destroyed the building.

My thoughts are with the people of Christchurch. I've visited New Zealand twice and found the people there are incredibly friendly. When we drove around the south island we rarely saw other cars but we knew that if we had a breakdown, when a car did eventually come by, we had no doubt the occupants would come to our aid. So it's especially sad to know they've had such devastation and loss come to them.