On finding your inner Olympian

My daughter drew this portrait of my son.  Nothing to do with sewing, but her creativity inspires me.

Loving every minute of the Olympics so far, and feeling so inspired...

What can be taught about work ethic, perseverence, failure and success by watching all of these competitors?  For me, it lets me know that everyone, including the second AS WELL as the  very last person to finish in ANY event had to show up for someone else to win. To make that win count.  We all wanna win, but, win or lose, we all NEED to participate.  Of course the winner had to do the work to make that win possible, but the competition requires so much more effort than that person's individual effort.

Where is my olympian? She's feeling a little dumpy in her clothes right now.  Summer heat, sloppy t-shirts and shorts...

I've been doing a lot with rectangles lately.  Very simple shapes in fabrics that make a statement. (Above: Teal knit from Kashi, and "rippled craziness" (my term) from Fabrics Garden.)  This below- calf length dress is basically huge rectangle with a long panel suspended from the next, and a firm, elasticized belt.

My body wants to move.  When I wear something that restricts my movement or comfort, I may change my plans.  "Can we go home?" can be inspired by feeling hot and sticky, squeezed, exposed... My recent weight gain, while slight, I must confess, must be attached to the many decisions I am making every day.  This requires me to think about it a bit. What did I choose not to do because my pants were too tight, where did I choose not to sit because of the style of that skirt?


Where have I not  gone because I wasn't happy with my appearance recently?

Hmmmm. Now, I know I can make things that last a long time.  I know how to build a body of work, build a look, make a style statement...

And that's exactly what I should do. I'm inspired.

Playing hurt - sewing therapy... fabrics

Magic fabric

Wiggles are from Fabrics garden, solid is from Metro Textiles

My husband fondled this fabric, laying on my sewing area, and whispered with wonder, "Wow, what is that?"

"Fabric." I answered

"I get that (giggle), but like what..." He trailed off, kinda amazed by the soft, comforting feel of it.  I love the power of something beautiful, and this will certainly be killer.  I do have a 20th wedding anniversary coming up.

I've been wanting to say this for a while, and write a great, optimistic post about creativity, sewing, and the fun stores these fabrics come from... but now I offer this as an escape from the madness.

Here's the deal.  I've always known I would make a poor athlete, because if I sprained/broke/hurt something, the requirement to play through it would be unbearable.  And here we are.  But this time, it's emotional.

When I think back to big events, I can actually remember what I was sewing at the time, using sewing and creativity as therapy, decorating life with the beauty I craved when things felt turbulent.  The emotional equivalent of "playing hurt", I have found it hard to get back in the game, write, and inspire.  I've had a very busy schedule lately, and while that has been a good thing, it has left me very tired and quiet on the sewing/design front.

The media has just been a run of bad news lately, and I can't seem to write all of the light, happy stuff I'd like to write, because I just can't ignore the noise.

We're talking about cops, violence, innocent people, violent and angry people, noisy people, tired people...

Is started writing this post, and needed to stop, because...


We added France (the public event turned deadly in Nice) to that. 

And now let's add... and then let's add...

I think I've lost count.

As I write this, we are about an hour into a relentless circle of helicopters over the house.  I haven't even bothered to check the local news to find out why.  I am so... DONE.

So here is someone who says it better than I can... (my son's favorite You Tuber.)

Let's say you've got 20 bucks and an event to go to...

Oh come on... we've all been there!  The event is tomorrow.  Or this weekend. You have "nothing" to wear.  Payday is a bit too far away, and you haven't budgeted for this.  You still wanna look fabulous, current, and creative. What to do...?

Here's where you can go:

Top Trimmings - Grab a flower, and put it in your hair or on your dress/jacket whatever.  Match an interesting color of shoes you already own.

Daytona Braids and Trimming.  You can take something simple and boring, and jazz it up, with a bit of creativity.

Something I did for a dressmaking client - as posted on my other (older) blog on dressmaking.

Fabrics Garden Let's call their pricing "arbitrary".  And I mean that in the most respectful way.  This weekend, for example, I'm gonna make an $8 dress.  At least, I'm pretty sure it will be a dress.  I'll show you when I know!

Trumart... or is it Truemart?  Even Google doesn't know the answer to this question!  The signage on the store reads "Truemart", but other sources indicate otherwise.  Who cares, right?  I wrote a post on this store many moons ago, but there have clearly been some changes since.  While still packed to the brim, I shopped there comfortably with about 4 other customers yesterday, finding exactly what I needed, at exactly the price I was willing to pay.  Prices are clearly still negotiable there, and the other shoppers made their budget consciousness known, but the fabric quality of their offerings has significantly improved compared to my last trip inside.  No longer feeling like closeouts, but more like "lucky finds", the pickins' are much plumper now, and the variety more interesting.

Believe me, there's much more you can do.  You are only limited by what your imagination (or fellow bloggers and creatives) can dream up.  People don't really sew to save money anymore, but for what you can create, the opportunity to really do something fun and fabulous for yourself is irresistible.

And if you're in NYC right now, it is cold and raining.  Bummer for Memorial weekend plans today, but fire up the machine, and you can make magic.  Report back if you do!

NYC Fabric Store Review: Fabrics Garden

Recently, I was told about this store by a professional friend, who considers it to be one of her favorites.  At times, I feel as if I have developed garment district "blinders" that keep me from noticing things that have been directly in front of me for years. Despite walking right past this store a likely three billion times over the past few years, I have never set even a single foot inside.  I' not sure why I never felt moved to enter; it may have been something as simple as the very small staircase in front, the uninspiring name, or that the glance from outside gives the impression that they sell only formal fabrics.  Well, whatever it was, I'm glad I finally stepped inside.

Front window, as seen from the street.

While  lots of African laces, flamboyant costume, look-at-me novelty and over-the-top formal fabrics crowd the front of the store, a patient breath and a few steps forward will reveal that there is a lot more to behold.  The curation of this store's offerings is interesting, compared to many of the others in the district.  The colors are a bit more vibrant, and the palette more deliberately "foreign", but exciting, in a way I can't quite define.  Some unexpected patchworked fabrics tickled my fancy, and some of the African waxcloths folded and stacked neatly on a table were done in great colors.

Cool, right?  Who does a black/grey patchwork? (Fabric is  actually darker than the photo appears.)

One thing I was very happy to find, was the inexpensive fabric perfect for the pants I make for one of my regular clients.  Just the right weight, plenty of it, and at just the right price! My old source for this fabric had run out, and I hadn't been able to find more of it recently! Fabrics Garden had lots of sueded fabrics and nice corduroys.  A world of printed cottons and novelty fabrics, and some very interesting knits lined the walls, too.

What kind of customer was inside?  From my visit, I saw design students getting fabrics for class projects, and highly creative costume/designer-types, for whom budget was the major consideration.  There is a lot to choose from, to absolutely suit the impulse buyer, too, since the prices were all pretty low.  Keep in mind though, that these are no high-end goods, so I would suggest buying extra, and doing an appropriate wash/dry test with whatever you choose.

The staff was very helpful and friendly, without hovering.  One of my personal pet-peeves, although I must say, it only bothers me when the prices disappoint - is when you have to ask the price of everything, and there seems to be a bit of hemming and hawing over what the actual price is, and what you will actually pay.  You know they are gauging your excitement when determining what to charge, and that doesn't feel good. While you can pay with a credit or debit card, in theory, cash is king here, and they will not hesitate to tell you so.  In this economy, I certainly understand, but it needed to be said...

By the way, the owners of this store own a few others, located on 8th Avenue, so just know that they have access to quite a quantity/array of goods.

The words "double knit" have always sounded icky to me, but this a double knit I loved the texture of.  This fabric is actually inky black.  When I asked about fiber content, the salesperson was nice enough to remind me (if I were to buy some) to do a wash/dry test for shrinkage before use, to spare me any disappointment.

And this fabric (extremely affordable) left the store with me. I love its energy, and it will be something fun!

Fabrics Garden

249 West 39th Street
Bet 7th & 8th Ave
New York
NY 10018
Tel : 212 354 6193
Fax : 212 354 6241

email : fabricsgarden@yahoo.com

Mon-Fri : 9.30am - 7.30 pm
Sat : 10.30am - 6.30 pm
Sun : 12.00pm - 5.00pm

*Notice that they have nearly full weekend hours, which many fabric stores do not!

*Notice that they have online ordering available also!  See their offerings here.