Readers, This month marks the tenth anniversary of meeting my fabulous sewing teacher and fairy godmother, Edith Gazzuolo. I have learned so much from her–and I don’t mean about sewing construction. And I definitely don’t mean about fitting or pattern-drafting, both of which still strike me as arcane arts. No, what I’ve learned from Edith […]
Anatomy of a Dud: The Green Scarf
Readers, Do you have an unusual wardrobe item you bought in a moment of inspiration that you’ve never worn? Do you know why you bought it? Do you know why you never wear it? My Exhibit A is…the green scarf. It looked harmless enough. It even had a name: The Rose. The salespeople were very […]
Who’s Got the Button? Editing My Button Stash
Readers, Having recently edited my fabric stash and fresh from revisiting David Allen’s penetrating questions about projects and next actions, I was primed to edit my button stash. It’s grown an awful lot since I discovered button dealers in London selling treasures from the 1930s through ’50s, sometimes on their original cards. Now I understand […]
Getting to the Peaceful Place
Readers, If you’ve been in any bookstore with a business section in the last twelve years, especially one in an airport, you’ve undoubtedly seen David Allen’s phenomenal bestseller from 2001, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. At the time I learned about him, though, his book was a manuscript in the hands of […]
Fabric Stash-Busting, continued
Readers, The brow is wrinkled. If only I could escort you to my basement sewing domain it would be so easy to demonstrate how I evaluated each of my fabrics and decided whether to keep or release it. I’d show you how my fabrics looked before–crowded and disheveled huddled masses –and after– breathing free in […]
Fabric Stash-Busting Without Tears
Readers, Does the prospect of editing your fabric stash–you do have one, don’t you?–fill you with excitement? Dread? Curiosity? I had all those feelings as I approached the task of evaluating each piece of yardage in my sewing space. I wasn’t sure at first how I’d decide what fabrics would stay and which would go. […]
It Figures: Figure Analysis, part 2
Readers, In my previous post I described how my helper (sister and photographer Cynthia), and I created an outline of my figure so I could stand back and view it with some objectivity. We followed instructions in the book The Perfect Fit in the Singer Sewing Reference Library. I hoped this exercise could show where […]