- I think we can establish that things have been weird these days
- Like the moon is stuck in some weird phase
- You know the kind that makes the inmates jumpy
- In a full moon
- But stuck there
- How about you?
- This last few months
- My youngest son moved back here after years away
- And the day after he was finished quarantine
- He got an excellent job offer back in Texas
- So off he goes again
- Probably for the long term
- The switch that was on, has been switched back
- So I have a question
- Where is the closest good fabric store for a person in Austin Texas?
- Last few times I was there I could only find Joanns
- Although Hill County Weavers is excellent for knitting
- I need to develop more contacts there
- Daisy also developed some worrying red rashes on her belly
- Near where her cancer was removed earlier this year
- Well false alarm
- Seems the cat, who adores her
- Has been trying to nurse
- The vet thought this was very funny
- Knowing about the stuck moon I was not surprised
- Since it appears all bets are off these days
- Speaking of which
- I decided to apply to university
- To do another undergrad
- Seems students over 65 don't pay tuition
- When I heard that I was off
- So many interests I didn't pursue
- First time out
- Getting my transcripts forwarded was hilarious
- "Can you give me the post code of your address when you lived here?"
- Canada didn't yet use postcodes when I was that age
- "OK then what was your student email address?"
- Listen kiddo I graduated before they invented the internet
- Big pause
- I am thinking
- Spanish, because of being really positive about that Texas thing
- Animal behaviour
- Clearly there is a lot to learn about there
- Creative writing
- Well there is this blog
- Comparative religions
- Substantial knowledge gaps there
- Women and Aging
- Surely I have the pre-reqs for that?
- And I am sewing and sewing
- With family all over the place now
- I am setting up Pinterest boards
- They post ideas and I post fabrics
- When you have taste like mine
- It makes more sense to sew by demand
- Than by surprise
- I have seen a few surprised looks in my time
- My niece nailed it
- "Just make it in a colour you would never wear"
- Good taste is not always CHEERFUL
- Hence the Pinterest boards
- Currently working on mother and daughter outfits for my DIL and granddaughter in California
- That was by request
- If the vaccination schedule goes as planned
- I will be free to go to Berkeley to see those guys
- For three weeks
- Mid August to early September
- So so excited about that
- Revising my wardrobe to be more packable
- We are also planning a month in Florida in November
- And Texas state parks in February
- I need to link up with sewing people
- One of my decisions in the year and a half I have spent
- In the striped chair, the comfortable one, with Daisy
- Is to be as social as I can
- Got to appreciate your people
- My neighbourhood has kept me going
- Everyone is doing the same thing
- Out in the yards
- Or walking the dogs
- Talking and talking
- I had no idea so many interesting
- Good hearted people
- Lived five blocks from me
- Confucius was right
- In the midst of every crisis
- There is an opportunity
- Making sure I don't miss it
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About me
- Barbara
- I am a mother, a grandmother, and a teacher. But whatever happens in my life, I keep sewing. I have worked as a political communicator and now as a teacher in my formal life. I have also written extensively on sewing. I have been a frequent contributor and contributing editor of Threads magazine and the Australian magazine Dressmaking with Stitches. My book Sew.. the garment-making book of knowledge was published in May 2018 and is available for pre-order from Amazon
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Thursday, May 27, 2021
Flypaper thoughts: unusual times edition
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9 comments:
Barbara I now live in Houston but I lived in Austin for 30 years. All the fabric stores closed there. It was heartbreaking. Joanns is it. There are some really good ones in Houston though. Come on down!!!
Okay now I want to see your pinterest boards!
There is a nice quilt fabric store in Victoria Texas.
Pattern Review had a convention one time in Austin Texas.
Texas state parks - Big Bend! Might be cold in February though. We went in March during spring break (ugh, not the time to go).
Stayed in Marfa, Texas. Closet place to stay, when we had finally decided. Reserve your spot early for sure!
Gail
Oh gosh, I love this post. Crisis/opportunity indeed.
But I'm really surprised that there hasn't been a resurgence of fabric stores in Austin! Too bad.
Connect with Mary Danielson Perry a blogger idlefancy. She’s part of the curvy sewing collective and lives in Waco area.
I'm of no use on Texas or Florida information. It seems all over the country, good independent fabric stores are non-existant, except for quilt shops. Even some of those have closed over the past few years, some due to retirement and not able to find buyers, some due to lack of business. I hate to think of how many quilt shops were kept in business by mask makers the past year. Of the two sewing machine/fabric stores in Cedar Rapids, one has nearly eliminated their garment fabrics, the other is slowly bringing garment fabrics in to stock, otherwise both are quilt shops now.
Enrolling in university for no tuition sounds wonderful, and it's funny about the no zip code and no email back then throwing the people off balance. I shouldn't laugh too hard, I didn't have email in school either, I don't remember about zip code. I hope your vaccine and travel plans all come together.
Hi Barb, if you are coming through the US NC Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area, come over for dinner!
Erika
Its great to see you envisioning some travel opportunities opening up! We have our fingers crossed too. Laughing about Daisy's belly rash - we had a very optimistic cat that would try to nurse on our dog's belly, first carefully patting the hair away. Male dog. He was confused but amiable.
ceci
Ok, so totally not on point, but a blast from the past. I was lucky to pick up a box of sewing magazines free on our local Freecycle. What should I find but a nice stack of Australian Stitches magazines and lots of copies of Threads. First thing I did was go through the Stitches and read all the Barbara Emodi articles and your Final Word essays. Australian Stitches was also the first magazine that introduced me to the concept of a capsule wardrobe during my corporate work years. Thanks for all the years of sharing your sewing knowledge- always practical, sensible and fun. Hope we all get to travel this year. Take care.
Barb
There was a small independent fabric store in Austin. I went there 2-3 years ago but I don't recall the name. I still have the fabric I bought there ... a black cotton open weave cotton sweater knit. I guess it's closed since then.
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