Monday Musings and Reminiscences of a trip to NYC

Well it seems that time just got away from me and all of last week went by in a blur.  There are several posts that were composed mentally but never committed to paper or computer and now they are lost in the ephemera.

At the beginning of Father’s Day Weekend I still had such high hopes of leaping into my sewing.  I wanted to make a dress to wear the next Friday (i had been hoping to do this for some time) to meet some friends during the day and to go to the symphony with my DH in the evening.  But sewing time was not available and on Monday I realized that it was simply not going to happen, and in fact I had worked myself into such a lather of stress over not being able to sew that my creative instincts were literally being strangled.

I know when this happens it is time to step back.  I told myself that I didn’t need to sew.  After the first day, when I thought I looked like a sack of potatoes and was convinced I had nothing to wear, I calmed down and looked in my closet only to find that I did indeed have clothes and that I looked fine and would look fine on Friday.

That obstacle overcome, I was ready to curl up and read a book, deal with the many meetings that were scheduled last week, and just relax.

Then Friday rolled around and I went in to NYC to meet Carolyn and a couple of other sewing friends for lunch and an afternoon of shopping.  It was a fabulous afternoon with fabulous women.  Carolyn, who is much more together than I have been of late, has already written all about in far more charming detail than I think I can muster. 

After chattering away through lunch, completely wrapped up in our conversations and oblivious to the fact that the restaurant was emptying out and potential shopping time was slipping by, we suddenly came to our senses and headed out the door.

The first stop was MJ Trim  where Carolyn needed some trim for a special project and I just looked around hoping to learn some of the secrets of Carolyn’s remarkable ability to come up with the perfect trim for a project — one that enhances the garment without overpowering or drawing too much attention to itself.

Here are Carolyn and myself contemplating a few trim choices.  Carolyn had good suggestions for everyone’s trim choices and also gently set us straight when we were contemplating bright pretty colors and trims that simply made too strong a statement on their own — not that they weren’t worthy, but that their very strength of character (and price) made them suitable only if a specific project was in mind.

I don’t often managed to keep a project in mind when I am in a trim store….I just grab for anything pretty and all rational thought just leaves my head, but I did find one trim that was deemed useful and versatile, and Carolyn had ideas that had never occurred to me:

This little light and airy sequined trim is perfect for me.  I immediately had one idea for its use and then Carolyn gave me new ideas.  Now that I am home I have several potential projects in mind so I do not think that this is something that is going to languish very long.

Well, that depends on what I actually get around to sewing…..

We also looked at buttons, where Joanna found the perfect button for a handbag she is knitting.  I avoided looking at buttons (except for Joanna) as I have a sizable button collection which does not need general expansion except when I need a specific button for a specific project. 

But I was entranced by the various sew on rhinestones and jewels, especially these sew-on jewels.   You know there have been a lot of these jewels showing up in the spring collections, and there are also a couple of things coming up for fall.  Looking at these little gems, and thinking about the photos I have saved in my inspiration file, I began to get an idea for a project that might materialize later this fall.  I have the perfect fabric in mind, and an idea is taking shape, but I will have to work out the specific details first as I will need to determine how many jewels I will need and in what shapes and colors.  Look for an update as we get closer to the cool weather. 

Then we all trekked over to Metro Textiles, where I thought I was fairly moderate in my purchases, but then moderate is a rather vague term.  Carolyn was definitely in control and she adhered to the principles of her fabric moratorium admirably.  While we were at Metro Textiles, we met Trina, who recently started a blog, the slapdash sewist and who writes wittily about sewing and the pleasures of turning out fun clothes that are far more clever and interesting than anything I ever make. 

Friday night I met G in the city for a symphony concert and we had a slow weekend without any sewing.  Doesn’t this refrain begin to get boring after a while?

But I am waiting for the fabric to arrive.  Kashi said he would ship Monday so I expect my package today.  If I am lucky I will get two packages of fabric today, as I was back in NYC on Monday, meeting another friend, and I ran back to the garment district to stop in at Rosen and Chadick, where I had actually made a reconnaissance run before meeting up with everyone for lunch on Friday, but even then, it was late Monday by the time I got to the store, so the package might not have gone out until today…..

Now, I want to sew and waiting for fabric is sooooo boring….

(you know I have nothing else to sew in this entire house).