Out of the Box Thinking

Back in 1981, I was living in Maui, and I would have made a pattern like this one, but unlike the crazy creatives at McCalls, I would have worn shorts or a skirt with my top.
Of course, I am assuming that they meant this as a TOP and not a really super short dress, in which case I stand corrected.

The Curious Case of the Yoga Bag Pattern

We sell a lot of patterns at the Little Hunting Creek Company. Hundreds, maybe even thousand of different patterns – new, vintage, quilts and clothing, home dec and more. Whatever looks interesting to me, I sell on the website. Like puppies and kittens, most patterns find happy homes; they rarely come back
Once in a while, someone will find that they have bought two of the same pattern, or they bought the wrong size or some other innocuous reason and they send the pattern back for exchange or refund. That’s all part of doing business and it doesn’t happen often. We either exchange the pattern for a different one or give a refund. A plain and simple transaction and it is no trouble.
But in the case of the Yoga Bag Pattern, nothing was simple.

It says on the website: Handy tote pattern designed to carry everything you need to yoga class: mat, eye mask (pattern included), water bottle, keys, lock for personal locker, and more.
From Patterns by Annie
I decided to offer it because my daughter is a yoga fiend, and I thought that (silly me) people might like to make their own yoga bags. I had no idea that this decision would come to haunt me.
A few days after the pattern was listed, someone bought it and it was mailed to them. But this person wrote back that the pattern had no pattern pieces! Just measurements and instructions! That's not a pattern!

(The pieces are all rectangles or squares and do not need pattern pieces. Only measurements - like a quilt pattern. Does it amuse you when Simplicity or Butterick includes a pattern piece that is nothing but a rectangle or square that you could easily measure for yourself?? It amuses me. Perhaps some people can’t measure?)
So we told her to just send it back if it wasn’t what she wanted; we’ll be happy to give her a refund.
Then another person bought one. And she complained that it WASN'T A YOGA BAG!

And this made Mr. Hunting Creek declare, “What part of Yoga Bag Pattern by Patterns By Annie would lead someone to believe that it is an actual YOGA BAG?”

And this led me to think that maybe Yoga and sewing don’t mix.
After much thought, I’ve decided that this pattern is cursed. It has Bad karma.
Perhaps Yoga Bags should not be sewn! If the Universe wants you to have a yoga bag, one will present itself to you. You can’t make a yoga bag. Yoga bags should just come into being. Like rainbows or unicorns, yoga mats…stuff like that.

My dad used to have a sign over his desk that read, “Opportunity doesn’t knock. It calls you on the phone and asks a stupid question.”
Even though his official position was that the customer was always right, even if totally wrong, he taught us that the customer always deserved to be treated as IF they were right.
So in the interest of harmony and customer happiness, we will no longer sell the Yoga Bag Pattern. For people seeking harmony and balance and such, my experience with yoga sewists has been that they (so far) appear to be very poor readers.

Great Moments in Fabric Literature: The Burning Dress

By the time I'm introduced, the audience is an absolute wreck. People have been weeping and collapsing and even calling for change. The sight of me in my white silk bridal gown practically causes a riot. No more me, no more star-crossed lovers living happily ever after, no more wedding. I can see even Ceasar's professionalism showing some cracks as he quiets them so I can speak, but my three minutes are ticking quickly away.
Finally there's a lull and he gets out, "So Katniss, obvioulsy this is a very emotional night for everyone. Is there anything you'd like to say?"
My voice trembles as I speak. "Only that I'm so sorry that you won't get to be at my wedding...but I'm glad you at least got to see me in my dress. Isn't it just...the most beautiful thing?" I don't have to look at Cinna for a signal. I know this is the right time. I begin to twirl slowly, raising the sleeves of my heavy gown above my head.
When I hear the screams of the crowd, I think it's because I look stunning. Then I notice that something is rising up all around me. Smoke. From Fire. Not the flickery stuff I wore last year in the chariot, but something more real that devours my dress. I begin to panic as the smoke thickens. Charred bits of black silk swirl in the air, and pearls clatter on the stage. Somehow I'm afraid to stop because my flesh doesn't seem to be burning and I know Cinna must be behind whatever is happening. So I keep spinning and spinning. For a split second I'm gasping, completely engulfed in strange flames. Then all at once, the fire is gone. I slowly come to a stop, wondering if I'm naked and why Cinna arranged to burn away my wedding dress.
But I'm not naked. I'm in a dress of the exact design of my wedding dress, only it's the color of coal and made of tiny feathers. Wonderingly, I lift my long flowing sleeves into the air, and that's when I see myself on the television screen. Clothed in black except for the white patches on my sleeves. Or should I say wings.
Because Cinna has turned me into a mockingjay.

Suzanne Collins, Catching Fire, book 2 of the Hunger Games Trilogy

Burning wedding dresses - so symbolic! Of loss, of threat (think of Jane Eyre, fire and ripped veils - a threat to the dress is a threat to the bride.)
From white to black, burning can signify death but also danger, a signal fire, a message. It is also purification, or a warning. Or in Katniss' case, all of the above.

New Year, New To-Do Lists

Happy New Year!
In honor of the New Year and New Beginnings, I declare all old to-do lists null and void. all previous resolutions will be considered completed; we all get a fresh start.

One of our resolutions last year was to go out more often. I am pleased to report that we tried a few new restaurants and saw some excellent movies. (My favorite movie this year was Midnight In Paris, in case you're wondering.)

I had resolved to entertain more often. We did try doing this and did entertain more often, but due to medical circumstances beyond my control, not as often as we would have liked. But no matter, it's a New Year! We'll try again!

Due to frequent, relentless nagging from my daughter, we did reduce clutter, get rid of extra stuff and reach new levels of neatness. She comes around frequently and throws stuff away when we're not looking. No possums have been sighted in our closets.She watches our progress with her steely gaze and threatens to throw out our old coffee carafes.(Those might come in handy someday - really!)

Mr. Hunting Creek went on a diet last year and lost over 60 pounds; he now weighs what he did when he played water polo at Cal. (There is nothing more annoying than a successful dieter, don't you agree?)


Now, on to the new:
I decided, while waiting in the Dr's office last week, that I needed to do new things this year. Take some classes, try new things, experiment.
So yesterday I signed up for the Block of the Month class on Craftsy, and took the class and made the blocks. I used colors that I don't normally combine. I tried to do something different from my usual. It will be fun. It's free, if your resolutions also include learning new stuff.
Next up, maybe a new museum visit, sewing something crazy (maybe a crazy quilt? I've never made one), painting and starting different seeds than my usual.
Thats enough to keep me busy.
What are your new resolutions?

A Throw, New Pillows and on the Cutting Table

Finished: new covers in winter fabrics for all of the throw pillows. I chose a pretty red and white toile that has been ripening in the stash since 2003. I had forgotten exactly what I bought it for, but it makes pretty pillows for winter that don't look too Christmas-y. Pillows in Chez Hunting Creek lead a hard life, and I end up recovering them about twice a year anyway. They serve as floor pillows, lap desks, foot rests, as well as normal pillow duty. I don't use zippers because of customer complaints about zipper hardness. Instead I use one piece of fabric, two seams, (one on each side) and an envelope back. Smooth, no lumps and everyone is happy.


Some people have said mean things recently about minky, but the blanket-using population here has nothing but praise for the new faux sheepskin and minky blanket I made last weekend (when it SNOWED!). Making a faux fur throw is so easy a rookie can do it, but be aware that just like real fur, this stuff sheds like crazy when you cut it and sew it. When writers talk about the fur flying, I believe they were referring to sewing faux fur. I had to clean out the inside of my machine twice and wipe down the cutting board plus vacuum the sewing room afterwards. But the actual construction is a breeze. Please note that minky and my faux fur were knit backed, so I used a ball point needle and a small zigzag stitch. I left a opening on one side then reached in, turned it right side out and hand sewed the opening shut. The fancy fur thows at Pottery barn and Restoration Hardware sell for hundreds of dollars, and while I admire them, I won't cry when someone spills pizza, root beer or red wine on mine, because I can wash it. And it didn't cost several hundred dollars.
I asked Mr. Hunting Creek if so many finished projects meant new fabric purchases were in my future. He laughed and said, "Only when you have an empty shelf", so don't expect new fabric purchases in the next week or so.
Next up:

I admired Lindsey T's Cynthia Rowley Simplicity 2192 tops so much that I thought I'd make one of my own. The pattern back suggested brocade as an option, and it just so happened that I had some pretty dark teal and black brocade lurking in the stash from a long ago purchase. I don't recall what this fabric is made of, (I suspect man-made, but nice synthetic, if that's not an oxymoron) but I know it has some lycra because it has a slight stretch. Since I bought it forever ago, that means it's free, right? This pattern is very simple, and like all simple designs, nice fabric is all. If the "free" brocade version looks good, then I'll upgrade to silk brocade.(Which is aging nicely in the Great Wall 'O Fabric).
A note about this pattern. As Lindsay T mentioned, it runs big. That seems to be the style now, so if you prefer a smaller size, please plan accordingly.

I've finished six things in the last week and items 7 and eight are in progress. This is amazing productivity for me. And all items have been successes! I want to hang a sign on my sewing room door like they have on factory floors that says something like Eight Successful Projects Without An Injury.
What's on your cutting table?

Great Moments in Fabric Literature, Vol XX1: Fabric Words

My BFF from high school, up in snowy Alaska, sent this fun fabric email:

This week's theme
Fabric words used metaphorically

This week's words
chintzy
pinstriped
dirty linen
flannelmouth

I've heard peaches described as cottony, as in, "Late peaches are all cottony inside." Maybe it's a Virginia thing?
Cheap people are chintzy, but generous people are never satiny or silky.
We all know about airing dirty linen in public, (witness the current Republican Primaries for a more direct example of dirty linen airing in real time) but no one ever advises showing off your clean linens either.

What other fabric related words can you think of?

Scary Fabrics,Volume I: Sock Monkey Santa

If Stephen King sewed, this would be the fabric he'd make into pajamas for his kids.
"No, Daddy, NO! Not Sock Monkey Santa!"
Of course, if you're a fan of the macabre little monkieys, find them here. All others be warned.