BITS 'N PIECES...CATCH UP!

My best friend, Joan, had a birthday right in the middle of all the wedding activities, so we put off celebrating it till I could get my act together. That finally happened this last week. First, the food...

(I know I've shown this before, but I LOVE those colors!!!)

We had Lamb Shanks with Gremolata and Baked Polenta and Warm Kale Salad with Maple Roasted Acorn Squash...a perfect meal for our cold rainy night!

For her birthday cake, I made a Clementine and Almond Syrup Cake (AGAIN!)
from my TNT cookbook, Jerusalem...

 

The other part of the celebration was a Travel Vest for Joan; she travels as much or more than I do and had wanted one. I had her try on mine (here and here) and showed her the colors available from the vendor I use. We're almost the same size, so I didn't have to make many changes...she did want a reversible vest, so that was new for me with this pattern.

She close black for one side, with black twill tape and tiny "evil eye" beads I got in the fabulous Ashkabad Market in Turkmenistan. (I astounded the old lady in the market when I bought her entire stock.) The opposite side is the cranberry stretch taffeta I've used before...

I used some printed bias tape for the pocket trim. I had to find a place for my label that wasn't on the neckline...so I hid it behind the zippered pocket!

One change I made was to use elastic in the back waist channel; it works better than trying to make the tape tie gather evenly.

Here are some pictures of the vest on Joan, at her beautiful home on the Alisal Ranch...

N.B. The warrior in the background is from Xian, China, as is my horse who

has lately appeared in the blog...

My jacket is a RTW ponte moto jacket trimmed with (faux) leather by NYDJ, as are the jeans...and my beloved red western boots!

As for my next sewing project, I am working on a Super Secret knockoff of a jacket by one of my favorite designers...I do have a couple of non-sewing posts
to share, so stand by...

Till later!

BLACK AND SILVER!

I've been having a little trouble getting back in the swing of things... I made this in a carmine/black knit from Marcy Tilton, but it seemed dark and murky to me and the style was kinda dumpy...so it's already gone to a new home! I have a new pair of silver jeans, and some spectacular silver boots, so it was clear I needed a top to go with them!

Pattern is V8699, OOP, and I used a black light-ish weight ponte from who-knows-where, and a gray with silver dots knit from Girl Charlee. The necklace is a silver chatelaine which I found in Uzbekistan.

The silver jeans are from Chicos and the shoes are black and gray spectator wedges from Sesto Meucci.....

The gorgeous silver boots are "Groove" Distressed Leather Boot in Pewter...Charles by Charles David, which I got from Bluefly...

I'm making it under the wire for Style Crone's Hat Attack, wearing my very old, very beloved Patricia Underwood hat, which is  soft and worn...

'

and also for Patti at Not Dead Yet Style's Visible Monday.

Cooking? Oh, yes...this

and this

both, of course, from Plenty and Jerusalem, by Ottolenghi and Tamimi.

Today, I made two soups for a party my friend Joan and I are giving tomorrow...

Cannellini and Kale soup, and

Winter Squash Soup with Curry and Coconut Milk...YUMM!

FASHION...AND FOOD!

Back, at last, to my studio and sewing...the mini sabbatical due to the wedding preparations is over, and I have spent some quality time doing what I love to do!

I made another M6607, my 3rd...I guess this makes this pattern a TNT (tried and true) for me.

I wear tops like this over a tee or turtleneck and slim pants for at least six months of the year. The only change I made from this one and this one was to add pockets...MUST HAVE POCKETS!

I used a vibrant ivory and white ponte knit from Girl Charlee, one of my favorite vendors for knits.

And I've been at it again...cooking from my current love(s), Jerusalem and

Plenty. Here is a link to an article in the New York Times which attempts to explain the popularity of these books.

One night, we had Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Onion with Tahini and Za'atar

and (a repeat)  Sweet Corn Polenta with Eggplant Sauce

All of the ingredients for these two fabulous dishes came from our next-door-neighbor's organic farm stand...the last of the sweet corn and the first of the winter squash.

Last night, we had Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce; this is the dish that is pictured on the cover of Plenty

and I think was partly responsible for so many readers buying the book...it was

as good as it looks!

I have to show you pictures of this lovely food in my colorful dining room...they were meant for each other!

So...my life is back to food and fabric...I am in heaven!

I am back on Patti's Visible Monday this afternoon; she is on the road, but the rest of us Visible Women are showing up...take a look!

A FAIRYTALE WEDDING!

Ah, the pictures are here! WARNING: this will be a picture-heavy post!

The Bride

The Groom

David and Maggie

 The Bride and her parents

The Bride and the FOB... on their way to the ceremony

(Hey, we live in the country!)

down the "aisle"

Bird's eye view

Groom's Family

All of us!

Sisters Janet, Maggie and Linda

The Bridal Bouquet

Magic under the oak tree

The "Magic Shed" under a starry sky

Dear Friend Jeannine, Sarah, who made it all happen, and moi

True Love!

THE TRAVELLING YELLOW SKIRT FREAK SHOW!!!

What is this, you ask...I thought she was telling us all about the wedding? Well, until I have some beauteous photos to share with you, we'll take a little detour here and see what other kinds of fun I've been up to!

 

                                           photo by Melanie K

One of my favorite bloggers, Melanie of Bag and a Beret, started a "Travelling Yellow Skirt" project last year...for those of us who enjoy stepping way outside the box, you sign up to be on the route, and the yellow skirt, in all its glory, is sent from one blogger to another. Each recipient styles the skirt as she pleases, takes some photos, possibly adds a "little something" to the skirt, and sends it on to the next one in line. The journey started in Vancouver, Canada (where Melanie lives) and continued on to Australia, New Zealand, Italy, California, Ontario, Canada (3 times), Montreal, Canada, Maryland, USA, another USA,
another California, and now, to me! (also in California). Be sure to click on the link above to see the pictures of the previous Yellow Skirt people...

When I first heard it was coming the week of the wedding, I thought,"oh, no",
how untimely. Then I came to my senses and decided to include the wedding decor in my styling. I guess you'd call the wedding "theme" Indo-Asian-African...I have a lot of beautiful textiles from those parts of the world, and Maggie is as big a fan of India as I am...(I took her on one of my 7 trips). I'll show you when the wedding pictures come, the beautiful magical fantasy that was created. For now....

Here I am on Liu Xiao, a terracotta warrior horse we brought back from Xian, China. He guards our property and we decorate him according to the season.Here he is decked out in mirrored and marigold garlands. I am wearing
 some tribal Indian jewelry I brought back on several of my trips...

a mirrored embroidered vest , also from India, and some fabulous antique slippers from Marrakesh, Morocco.

In my right hand, I am clutching a staff I made with a  plasma cutter and welding equipment...it is a symbol that's very meaningful to me, and it usually lives right outside my studio door...

On to the "Bedouin Love Bower" (Maggie's wedding designer has a marvelous imagination)...

The cushions and pillows were all made from textiles I brought back from India.
Here is another picture of the BLB from a different perspective:

The lanterns are from India, the fabulous hanging in front is from Kyrgystan in Central Asia. Here is a picture of me, circa 2000, on an unheated bus in Bishkek, using the hanging for warmth! OMG, the wrinkle-less face!

This turned out to be kind of a long post, but I had several weeks of being AWOL to catch up on.

The next Yellow Skirt blogger is Sheila, from Ephemera; I am sending the skirt off tomorrow.

Oh, I almost forgot...my little "addition" to the skirt is a pocket (I always need pockets) made from a vintage Indian embroidered and mirrored piece...

I promise to come back with wedding pictures soon, and also an in-depth review of my MOB jacket as requested by several readers.

TTYL!