M&J Trimming for your hair!

There's a cute hair ornament/ponytail holder that has been featured and ADVERTISED like MAD this holiday season.  Completely affordable, and easy to buy, right?  But... as any of you garment district lovers will notice, the supplies to duplicate or upgrade this idea are very also VERY easily obtainable.



Inspired by this idea, I stopped at M&J Trimming and found a variety of lovely things and other hair-taming ideas to make some stocking stuffers for a few "tweens" in our family this year.


While these do not photograph particularly well flat, here are some of the things I found, and how I used them...

The balls are light, the elastic is strong.  I found the balls about 18 years ago, in a unique Tibetan store in SoHo (NYC), but the cord stop is from M&J Trimming. I would consider this one to be "hair jewelry" more than anything, great for adorning a low ponytail or bun...

A strong, simple ponytail holder.

A ponytail holder with silver tassels!

A wonderfully strong, snug, stretchy, sparkly headband, to gracefully push hair away from the face.

Just some fun "extras" for some people I love this year...  Side note:  I made more than just these, and some extras I will keep for myself! (Can't wear 'em until after Christmas, though!)

A holiday Speakeasy

*Reposting.  This is the next tour I will be leading.  There will be no others before then.

In response to a particular tourist request, I will lead a holiday Speakeasy on Friday January 2, 2015.  All usual Speakeasy rules and itinerary information will apply:

Itinerary:

10AM - 1PM - 

Shopping (Will include a specifically selected set of stores with a wide variety of offerings suitable for many different purposes/types of garments, appropriate for the theme of the day's tour. Relevant additional information, suggested additional resources and appropriate on-site expertise will be available.)

1PM-2PM

Lunch (local restaurant reservation for our group, already included in your fee.)

2PM - until end of business day

Armed with your "Secret Map" and your own interest in or desire to visit the many other stores you see or have learned about, you may visit more garment district stores if you wish, and give unique codes (that you'll get from me) to vendors who will give special assistance/discounts.

The cost of this guided, efficient tour is $75 per person. If you use this trip to shop and participate in what the NYC garment district has to offer, you will save at least as much as you are paying in supplies and education, and probably far more.

Wanna come? Click above, send payment, and the details on meeting time/place will be provided.

From outta town? If you need hotel and/or travel help, I will advise some of the BEST NYC secrets I know! Payment is only accepted via PayPal (you do not need a Paypal account), credit or debit card. No cash, personal checks, or additional payments will be accepted on the day of the tour. The trip will involve a good amount of walking, so come prepared in weather-appropriate gear, and healthy.

Regarding cancellations:

 If you have paid and wish to cancel 7 days or more before date - 100% refund

 Fewer than 7 days - 50% refund

 If you don't come on the scheduled date or cancel within 24 hours or less - you will forfeit your refund, but can switch reservation to a future tour date.

 If I cancel a tour for reasons not related to weather, newsworthy acts of God or other emergencies, you are entitled to your choice of a full refund, or a future tour.

Wanna come? Buy a ticket here!

Never understood Groupon, but now... I totally get it!

**PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT**

Groupon deals are available from Paron Fabrics and M&J Trimming.  If you don't know what this means, follow the links, and all will be understood...

How it works: Basically, you're buying a coupon in advance, and  you'll buy it for a fraction of its shopping value. (Ex: You spend $30 to get $50 worth of merchandise.) Yes, this gives you a mandate to shop in that store before the expiration date arrives, but you know you will want something! Warning: You've gotta use it all in one shopping trip!

Makes a great gift, too!

Holiday gifts for the sewing enthusiast...

Let's say you know and/or love someone who loves to sew or craft.  There are some gifts guaranteed not to disappoint.  Time is short, life is busy.

Maybe you want to gift yourself with something sewing-related.   Maybe you want to gift yourself, and then hand the bill to someone else (ahem...) for reimbursement for your Christmas gift... Offensive? Maybe.  Efficient?  Definitely.  (You'll thank me later for that idea...)

Did you know there are some fabric stores, sewing studios, and websites who offer gift certificates and other gift possibilities?

Well, here are some ideas for you.

Gift Certificates:

Mood Fabrics (online or in-store)
Emma One Sock (online only, for online use)
Gorgeous Things (online only, for online use)

Classes (in person):

City Quilter ( I blame them for giving me the fever for their umbrella workshop, now that I've seen it!)
Cindy Chock for private, semi-private (3 or fewer adults), or children's classes - Call for details
Mood (NYC or LA)
Manhattan JCC
The Sewing Studio (in a group, or private lessons available)

Books and Subscriptions:

Around the World Fashion Publications

Or, you can always treat yourself or anyone else to a "Speakeasy" shopping trip!  The next one is scheduled for this Friday!

If you know of any other NYC garment-related stores  offering gift certificates, don't hesitate to chime in!

Getting into the holiday season...

You know the phrase "Everything s/he touches turns to gold"?

Well, what word would you use to replace "gold", when you are having just the opposite experience? Yeah, me too...

So I'm resting my hands for a bit. When it comes to clients that is...

After taking a rest, I will embrace my inner "Selfish Seamstress"(I loved that blog, for those who know who I am talking about.  I miss her terribly.), and sewing for just me and mine for a little while, so I can do the quality of work I want to do, within the budget and timeframe I need to complete it.  Sound selfish?  Well, it isn't, because I will share on the blog, and you all will benefit.

Part of my thinking here, is that every year I scramble around to earn enough to buy wonderful gifts for friends and relatives, and every year I fall short on time, energy, and money.  And suddenly, a bell went off in my head. Guess what the equivalent is? Make the things you can, and carefully plan the rest, keeping the budget low, with enough time to spare before Christmas.  In my case, that means I'll stop the flow of client work, and finish LAST YEAR'S gifts this year.  I know I'm not alone on this.  Chime in on this folks, so I'll know I'm not crazy. Your comments of support will be much appreciated. Seriously.

So yes.  I know EXACTLY where to get the fabrics I need, and they are waiting for me out there in the garment district right now.  Today's shopping and speculating trip is delayed due to exhaustion, and I expect to be back in full swing tomorrow.

Over the past year or two, I have amassed quite a spectacular stash, in terms of quality and beauty, and I cannot wait to turn those fabrics into the items I have planned for them.  I have even managed to finish a TEN year quilt project this fall, and am very pleased to see that it has finally come to fruition.  One of the work hazards of writing this blog, is that I see and am inspired by so much, I just can't stop dreaming and creating!

So here we go, folks... Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas or Hanukkah.  That's plenty to take in for all of you who celebrate!  I am inspired by such an eclectic bunch of things, that it makes no sense when you roll them all together. My son wants to dress in a similar costume as the one I made for client's child some time ago.

Two years ago, I made a crazy dinosaur costume for a toddler, using fabrics I found at NY Elegant.

And it had scaly feet you could attach with elastic cord over the child's shoe.

These are the kinds of projects I love to do when the clock is not ticking in an oppressive way, and I need that freedom just about now...

And, on a final note, yes, you can still come on the November 2 Speakeasy tour!  I will accept more participants, if you want to join in!  Details can be found by following this link!