BITS AND PIECES...

This post is to catch up with all the little bits and questions I've been asked! In no particular order...

Our trip next fall, to North Eastern India; this will be my EIGHTH trip to India and I have wanted to go to Nagaland since my very first trip in 1990. Why?

"The uncontested 'wild east' of India, Nagaland is probably one of the reasons you came to the Northeast in the first place. A place of unparalleled primeval beauty, Nagaland's dazzling hills and valleys – right on the edge of the India–Myanmar border – are an otherworldly place where until very recently some 16-odd headhunting Naga tribes valiantly fought off any intruders. Of course, the place is a shadow of its once savage self today, and much of the south of the state is fairly developed. In the north, however, you still stand a good chance of meeting tribesmen in exotic attire who continue to live a lifestyle that is normally only seen within the pages of National Geographic" 

Read more: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/india/northeast-states/nagaland#ixzz3GkOk0Z2Y

I was attracted to their textiles the first time I saw them...maybe you can see

why...

I must have been a Naga woman in a previous life... travel to Nagaland has been difficult in the past, but Lesley Robin, who specializes in textile tours, is

inaugurating this new tour next year, so we're on! I've traveled to South India with Lesley in the past. I'll let you know more details as I get them.

That's not to say we won't take another trip between now and then....

Several readers have asked about my fabric data base which I showed a picture of here. I use Bento, a Mac program that was developed by FileMaker, and unfortunately is no longer offered or supported. Since I had already set up my own templates for my fabric stash and my patterns, I continue to use them.

I have experimented with Evernote, which would probably work, but to tell the truth, I haven't spent the time necessary to set up the application as I would like it.

This is the "form" view which consists of a picture of the fabric and all the data elements I determined I needed. As often as possible, I copy the description of the fabric from the website of the vendor (in this case, Emma One Sock). This is the first step.

This is the thumbnail view, which shows the picture of the fabric and the description.

This is the list view, which can be sorted by all the different fields I chose...I really like this app, and will continue to use it as long as I can. Like any database, it only works if you keep it up...:(

I set up a similar data base for Sewing Patterns...if anyone wants to see it, email me and I'll go into the details.

The giant hook and eye tape I've used here

and here

came from (I think) Fabric of Vision in Ashland, Oregon. It appears to also be

available on Vogue Fabrics' site.

And one last share...my mother studied at the San Francisco Art Institute (then known as California School of Fine Arts) in the late '20s and early '30s. As well as Fine Art, she studied dress design and designed and sewed most of her own clothes, as well and mine and my sister's, all her life. When I last cleaned out my studio (waaaaay too long ago) I found some note books she kept in the early '50s, chronicling her designs, mostly of my sister's high school graduating outfits and the wardrobe my mother made for her when she went to the University of Washington. There are a few outfits of my mother's and one or two for me (I was about 14 at the time).

I thought you might like to see some of them...

Aren't those fun?

TTYL...