Sew happy for a day off

If my sewing machine was a car, I would have needed to give it an oil change today with all the milage I put on it. The morning was warm, the sky was white, and it was just dreary enough to stay put at home and sew up some items that have been piling up for months. Coin purses, summer tube tops and skirts from band shirts, and a wedding banner were started and finished. The many yards of duck cloth were cut and given to my screen printer to print some of my designs so I can make them into bags for holiday craft shows.

The sun just started to come out when I finished up my work.

One of my designs is of New Jersey moths. These moths in particular are ones I have caught or seen in nature (all but one to be honest...).  Once printed, I have a few other steps to do before the bag is completed. I can't wait to have them back, possibly as soon as Thursday.

Insectropolis in Toms River is a great resource for my studies.

Meanwhile, as I sew away and make a mess of the studio, this cat decides to do some yoga on my favorite chair.

I went on an errand to Stitch and Sew in Lakewood NJ.  This fabric warehouse has everything from multiple types of space themed fabric to ice cream sandwich fabric.  Every kind of button, every size and color of zipper, and every possible style of lace or ribbon can be found there. The lace aisles alone would make you dizzy.

I went to visit my sewing machine repair man,  who turned out to be a little man with a very curly, well groomed mustache.  I want it to be workable, which I suppose is a grandiose request because it's so old and the parts are hard to find.  This beautiful, and heavy, hand-me-down has some beautiful painting on it.  The mustachio'ed repair man wasn't finished with my old clunker of a machine, but continues to be ambitious, and says the parts can sometimes be found in old vacuum cleaners. I'm just amazed that this kind of person exists today and knows this kind of specific craft as well as he does. He was so photogenic in that tiny room with all of its many parts, machines, and manuals.

Coming up this week, I have to take down my photography show on Saturday morning, so please come by and check out the last week of the show. 

Also, Bone and Marrow's playing one of the bigger shows this summer at the Asbury Lanes this Thursday.  We're opening for Saintseneca, who I've been listening to all day, absorbing all the harmonies and coming up with my own.  It's worth a listen. More info about the show can be found here.

Oh, I forgot to inform you that I have become a mermaid with this turquoise blue.