Stacyverb

Snapshot: Garden lettuce

Fresh from Anthony's mom's garden in Tennessee.

Snapshot: Mermaid Access

Restroom at Harbour Bar & Fish House

Two problems solved

If you read yesterday's post, you'll remember that I was lamenting the state of my unmanageable hair and also waxing longingly about my lust for a certain shade of green.

Well, this morning I awoke to find this message in my inbox.  Loyal reader Bam Bammerson wrote:

I just read your blog and thanks to my excellent photoshop skills I solved your dilemma.

You're welcome!

You're all speechless, right?  I know.  I was, too. 

Thanks, Bam.  What a perfect example of that old adage, "Killing two birds with one fake yarn wig photo."

Equipment failure

Arrrrgh!  I had written a nice informative post for you all about a recently-completed sewing project, but while attempting a photo shoot of said project, I discovered that my camera is apparently dead.  It has power and acts like it wants to work, yet shows nothing but blackness in its little view finder screen thingie.  And then when you allegedly take a photo, all you get is that blackness.  Booooooo.

I may try to borrow a camera so I can finish that project post.  Beyond that, be prepared for upcoming posts of me just talking.  Or drawing little stick pictures.

Arrrrgh, I say again!

Another wardrobe challenge (or several)

Well, Me-Made-May is over.  I must admit that by the end of the month, I was jonesing to slip into my old reliable Dockers black capri pants and/or a store-bought T-shirt (I'm wearing the latter as we speak--albeit with a me-made skirt).  Overall, though, I loved the challenge and most of all enjoyed bonding with fellow sewists around the world.  Most of us find ourselves now asking, "Now what?"  Well, without even searching, I've discovered several clothing challenges that should keep the creativity flowing for months to come.

Looking at my daily outfit photos from Me-Made-May, I realized that on 8 out of 31 days, I wore a solid black garment either on top or bottom (and frequently craved the company of the aforementioned black capris).  Black is chic, of course, and it's so easy to combine with other colors and patterns, but it seems like I'm using it as a crutch.  So when I read about Sal's Summer Black-Out, I was intrigued.  Sal herself has pledged to wear no black all summer (which sounds like crazy talk to me), but has challenged her readers to join her for a mini-black-out next week.  It's only from June 7 to June 14.  I can manage that, right?  We'll find out!  

Ali, a Me-Made-Mayer, was so inspired by the camaraderie she found in the MMM group that she's started a summer sew-along so we can keep the mojo going.  The goal is for each participant to sew five summer garments by August 1.  This sounds like a good challenge--it won't be easy for me to squeeze in that much sewing time, but I think it's still do-able.  Having the support of my fellow sew-alongers (which is totally not a word) should keep me focused.

For a while now, I've been thinking about trying to make a coat.  This sew-along could give me the motivation I need.  I haven't committed to this, but the timeline on the sew-along blog gives me until June 24 to figure it out, and until the end of August to do the sewing.

And looking ahead...Zoe, the mastermind behind Me-Made-May, has already begun organizing Self-Stitched-September.  It'll be fun to see how everyone's styles change with the seasons (although really, our weather here in Atlanta in September probably won't be much different from what we had in May).

With all these fun and creative events in the pipeline, I'm hoping to keep the handmade happiness going!

Weekend Countdown: Benefits of Me-Made-May

This weekend finds us at the mid-way point of Me-Made-May, so it seemed like a good time to take stock of what I've gained from participating in this project so far.

5. Getting better at documenting my me-made outfits.  Over the years, I've made lots of things that I've never even photographed, and when I have, it's usually been on my dress form.  I'm enjoying capturing my creations "in action" (with the help of my trusty photographer, Adverb).

4. I've realized that I'm in a bit of a rut, creatively speaking.  Going into MMM, I already knew I had some favorite patterns I've used over and over again (McCall's 3341, 4783, and 4922--I'm talking to you, here), but listing the details of my outfits each day has made me realize just how dependent my sewing has been on these standby patterns. It's great to have tried-and-true designs to fall back on, but now I'm more motivated to experiment with some different things.  Which leads me to...

3. ...discovering patterns I'm excited about trying.  As I look through the MMM Flickr group each day, I've been making note of people's outfits I particularly love and jotting down corresponding patterns I want to make.  A recent Simplicity sale helped--watch for Simplicity 2403 & 2416 to make appearances in my wardrobe in the (hopefully) not-too-distant future.  This should help me...

2. ...fill in gaps I've discovered in my wardrobe.  I appreciate all the compliments I've been getting from fellow Me-Made-Mayers on my many blouses, but this has pointed out to me how few pullover, non-buttoned tops I've made.  Also, I've noticed that even though I buy a lot of dress patterns, I only have one me-made dress I can wear in warm weather.  What's up with that?

1. Connecting with fellow sewists.  Before MMM, I was putting infrequent sewing-related posts on my blog, reading a few other people's sewing blogs, and offering occasional comments on them.  Since MMM began, I've "met" lots of new creative people around the world and we've been able to offer plenty of feedback on each other's projects.  Very inspiring and fun!  I especially want to give a shout-out to Zoe, for masterminding Me-Made-May!

Weekend countdown: Eye candy

First of all, if you've newly found your way to my blog because of Me-Made-May, WELCOME!  M-M-M outfit photos will be forthcoming.  But in the meantime, please enjoy a little regular feature here at Stacyverb called Weekend Countdown.  This week's list highlights images I just can't stop looking at.

5. Marco Grob's photo of Lady Gaga for Time's 100 Most Influential People list.  I love how stylized this portrait is.  Her pose, the colors...she looks like a living piece of sculpture.  (Plus, duh, a bra that shoots fireworks is just plain awesome.)  In her write-up about Gaga for Time, Cyndi Lauper wrote, "Being around her, I felt like the dust was shaken off of me."  I love that quote.  Don't we all need more things that make us feel that way?

4. Smitten Kitchen's Cabbage and Lime Salad with Roasted Peanuts.  With the warming weather, I've been craving fresh, crunchy veggies.  These photos from Smitten Kitchen had me salivating this week.  Following Deb's links, I found a passage on her blog in which she neatly describes her relationship with coleslaw: "I’ve never been a fan of coleslaw, as nearly every one I had ever tried was god-awful. I thought it was because I didn’t like cabbage, but this has turned out not to be the case. Then I thought it was because I didn’t like mayonnaise, but this, too, turned out to be a farce.[...].As it turned out, it was coleslaw, the way it is typically prepared (read: scooped from bucket of mysterious origin and packing date), that I loathed."  I feel exactly the same way!  It's like we're slaw twins.

3. This dress by Seth Aaron Henderson for the season finale of Project Runway.  When I saw this dress come down the runway, I literally gasped.  I think I also might have yelled, "Stop it!  You're killing me!"  He took gingham (gingham, of all things!) and made it look edgy.  I would love to find a way to make something for myself inspired by this dress.  It's chic, fun, sexy, and doesn't look a bit like a tablecloth. 

2. Images of the "deadliest place in the solar system."  Go here to see more images sent back to earth from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.  They're jaw-droppingly scary and undeniably gorgeous.  Make sure you watch the video for some hot solar prominence action!

1. Amy Polcyn's Marigold Sweater from the Summer 2010 issue of Interweave Knits.  As soon as I turned the page and saw this, I knew I was in trouble.  Helloooo, this whole outfit is screaming my name, right?  The shape of the sweater, the shirtdress, the headband, the colors...I'm a goner.  Time to rearrange the project queue yet again.  Sweater?  Yes.  Shirtdress?  Yup.  Oh, and sometime soon I need to tell you about the first time I ever made a shirtdress.  It's an epic tale involving Grace Kelly, Chattanooga, and hot dogs.  Stay tuned!

San Francisco, part 5: Golden Gate Bridge

One of my main goals for this trip was to wheel across the Golden Gate Bridge.  Certain landmarks I have only been able to admire from a distance--the Statue of Liberty, for example--because they aren't Fred-friendly*.  Knowing this particular landmark totally welcomed Fred, I was determined to take full advantage of this.

 

First good view of the Bridge, driving south on Highway 101.

 

Scenic view from, well, a scenic overlook, with the skyline in the background.

 

Driving across the Bridge to the south end, where we parked and then...

 

...prepared to walk across.  (Photo by some random French guy.  Merci!)

 

Lovely view looking down at the Bay from the Bridge.

 

I'm doing it!  Slightly uphill both ways, and a bit of a headwind at times, but do-able.

 

You just knew I had to get a good shot of textures and stuff.  Look--rivets!  This is the view looking up from the base of one of the suspension towers.  (Hey, this visit was so educational--before this, I was calling that the "pointy part" of the Bridge.)

We made it!  View from the north end looking back toward the south.  Then it was time to head back.  Because I know some of you are wondering, the Bridge is 1.7 miles long.

 

Back at the south end again, ready for a nice big lunch!  We really lucked out with a beautiful day and no fog to block our views.

I loved visiting the Bridge.  It's a beautiful testament to humankind figuring out a way to conquer a natural barrier in an elegant way.  The thought of its actual construction process--despite deep water, swirling tides, strong winds, frequent fog--is quite awe-inspiring.

*For those not in the know, my wheelchair's name is Fred.  Thus, places that are wheelchair accessible are "Fred-friendly."

Jones Bridge Park

The other day, Adverb and I had a zillion things we should have been doing around the house, but instead we decided to run away from home and spend a beautiful late summer day at the park.  We headed out to Jones Bridge Park, part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.

 

On the way, we picked up some picnic food from the Publix deli.  With happy taste buds and full tummies, we took a stroll down to the water.

 

We watched ducks...

 

...and geese...

 

...and this big black dog, who was having the time of his life swimming out to fetch a tennis ball.  (Photo blurry due to dog being in action!)

 

Adverb tests the waters.  Verdict: cold!

 

Scenic pedestrian bridge.  Not the eponymous Jones Bridge, which apparently is at some other, undisclosed, location--or at least we never saw it.

 

Close-up of oddly beautiful rust on the bridge railing, because I like to take pictures of weird crap like that.

 

A lovely day--much better spent than doing whatever it was we were supposed to be doing!

Photoshopped phlowers

A few years ago, I started taking digital photos of flowers and altering them in Photoshop.  What I try to create with these images is a heightened sense of the subject.  The flower is still a flower, but it's a stylized (sometimes abstract) version of itself.  Here are some of my favorites:

"Wisteria"



"Mandevilla for Sue"



"Reception"



"Laminated"



"On the Double"