Burda December Preview

The preview for the December Burda is up on the German site. There are some pieces with potential.

The sleeves on this dress/tunic look pretty cool.

 

I can't quite tell but the sleeve detail on this jacket may be the same as the dress above, but either way, I love it!

This could be cute. I wish she were standing up. It appears to be a cowl neck, semi-fitted dress with a banded bottom.

I'm not so sure about the ruffle on the boob, but the skirt of this dress is beautiful. I can't read German, but I think this is from the plus size section.

Then there is this. It looks like she tore the shoulder of her dress. And what is that material? PVC? Pleather? Is that a turtleneck? Ick!

Camel Back Settee

 


I've begun another upholstery project. It's a camel back settee that my friend Dawn rescued. A pair of them were left on the street. They were absolutely filthy . . . and wet . . . and smelled like cat pee . . . but free! Actually, I found 65 cents while stripping it, so it actually paid me. I haven't gotten the official "before" photo from Dawn's camera yet, but it looks basically like this, only it's a two-seater, not a three.

The legs are curvier, more like a golf driver. The shape is similar to these (but without the carving).

Dawn is doing hers in purple velvet with a white velvet stripe. I was originally going to go with a white canvas because this will go into the bedroom. The plan is to paint the walls turquoise and have the duvet and most of the furniture white. But then I saw this gorgeous suzani print:

Another website shows it more muted, but either way, I like it.

Not only do the colors match the rest of the house, but it would still match the turquoise walls AND bring in another pop of color. I just ordered 9 yards. I hope it looks as good in person . . . and that Corey doesn't hate it. It will be fun to see how different the two pieces look just because of the fabric choices.

Lady Grey Muslin

I am trying to participate in Gertie's Lady Grey sew along, but I am way, way, way behind. I am just now starting my muslin. Gertie has almost completed her coat. Better late than never, right?

I have never made a coat or jacket before. Or sewed anything with princess seams, so I am taking this slow. Gertie is doing a lot of tailoring on hers. I don't know how much I'll do on mine. I want to try a little, but I don't want to overwhelm myself. But I want a nice looking coat out of this, so we'll see how much patience I have. My muslin is going to look like a clown coat. I didn't have enough muslin, so I used a couple leftover cotton pieces from old projects. Here is where I am so far.

My finished coat will be winter white (a wool blend) with a leopard print charmeuse lining. I like the look of the original, so I decided to stick with the color.

Colette Patterns

Here is how Roni has "helped" me.

She apparently thought that I needed practice ironing my pattern pieces so she got this one good and wrinkled by running over it whilst pouncing on a toy. Then she thought my sewing room was too neat . . . so she dumped my trash can . . . again.

Blessed Samhein, Happy Halloween, y Feliz Dia de los Muertos

This year's pumpkin. Design template from Zombie Pumpkins.

Here are Corey and I in our Halloween costumes. I went as a calavera, Corey as a baby. He always goes for the sexy, masculine costumes.

Here's a close up of my make-up at the end of the night (because I forgot to take one earlier.) I had to document the hour's worth of labor. This design was loosely based on a Sylvia Ji painting.

Nate Frizzell at LaBasse Projects

http://natefrizzell.blogspot.com/

 An artist I discovered through High Fructose magazine, Nate Frizzell, is having a show at LaBasse Projects in Culver City (L.A.) opening November 6. I am still jonesing after the painting below, Isnt it Smart to Be as Strong as the Bear, If There is a Bear? But someone bought it. Should I ask for the price list for the upcoming show? Maybe everything will be thousands of dollars so I won't even be tempted to buy anything. I certainly don't need another painting. But I still dream about paintings I didn't buy in the past. The fact that I didn't buy the drawing Girl with Bear Number 6 by Marcel Dzama still haunts me.

http://www.lebasseprojects.com/

http://www.lebasseprojects.com/

Gross National Happiness

Someone alerted me this morning to the video at the bottom of the post. It's about 17 minutes long but well worth the time. It's about how we as a culture and a country are more focused on gross domestic product (GDP) and the idea of success as having money and objects, than we are on gross national happiness (GNH), Basically the idea of having what we want instead of wanting what we have.

This is something that interests me immensely. Here I am with a blog about wanting stuff (GDP) with a name about happiness (GNH). Clearly these are at odds. Aren't they? Does being interested in sewing and style and decor make me shallow? They make me happy and they provide a service. Granted it's usually just to me and my family. But there is something fulfilling about being surrounded by a little bit of beauty.

I heard a different speech once that said humans need both bread AND roses to survive. This blog focuses on the roses, so to speak, but I will endeavor to do so in a way that is less greedy and materialistic.

Baguette et Chocolat

I met Corey for lunch yesterday at a new restaurant on Bee Caves called Baguette et Chocolat. He was told about it the day before by our neighbor. He went for lunch that day, and then came back yesterday and took me. They bill themselves as an authentic French bakery. And they appear to be so. The place smells like heaven—like fresh baked bread and sugar.

In addition to pastries, they have a full lunch menu of croquettes, crepes, panini, and salads. The previous visit Corey had the croquet madame (french bread, ham, swiss, french mornay sauce and egg on top). For dessert he had a cream puff (although he said it wasn’t called a cream puff). He highly recommends both. Yesterday he had the Texan crepe—barbecued chicken and red onions, which he enjoyed, but not as much as the previous lunch. I had the Montagnard panini (prosciutto, goat cheese, red onions and tomato). The bread was amazing, crunchy on the outside, chewy in the middle. The contents were a bit too salty for me. I am quite salt sensitive. The French macaroons made up for it though. They came in a variety of flavors. I had the rose and the pistachio. Yum. Next time I think I’ll try the caramel. Corey enjoyed his chocolate almond croissant too. We’ll be back.

By the way, if you are epileptic, avoid their website. There are so many flashing, blinking moving parts, I felt like I needed to take some Dramamine. But the gallery of pastry photos is drool inducing.

Baguette et Chocolat

As an aside why is it Texas has special forces praying manti (mantises?). Here is how they look in L.A., normal and green.

Check out this one I spotted outside my office yesterday. It's in camo. I almost didn't see it. I'm sure it was on a highly classified mission.