Hello friends!
I hope you’ve had a good, productive week. This time of year gets so busy, doesn’t it? Between holiday preparations (decorating, finding or making gifts, baking and cooking), social events like holiday performances and parties, and preparing for holiday travel, not to mention Christmas cards (we don’t send them anymore; I just can’t), there’s just too much to do! We’re keeping it really simple this year. Last weekend we brought home a cute little potted Christmas tree from a holiday market here in Madrid, and we’ve been making a few decorations to give our apartment a holiday feel. I’ve added Pinterest links to similar decorations and ideas below, in case you’re looking for inspiration and easy projects for yourself.
But it’s not all holiday planning around here. I’m still sewing samples for the book, and I’m working on new Lisette designs for Butterick. Right now I’m designing for next fall, which is my favorite season. And it’s always nice to design for the season that you’re living in! I always enjoyed that when I was working for Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger as well. It’s much easier to be in a fall/winter mindset when it’s actually fall/winter outside.
In any case, I hope your holiday preparations are going well. I’ll be back again next Friday with one last weekend links post before we take a blog break for the holidays. We have a few treats for you next week, however, so stay tuned for those. (One of those treats involves a give-away!)
Pinterest Picks
Here are two fun and easy ways to use some of those leftover fabric scraps: tassels and gift wrapping!
For our little Christmas tree, we purchased gold paper, cut it in half, and glued the wrong sides together before cutting out lots of gold stars.
And we strung cotton balls onto thread and hung snow garlands in our entryway.
Wouldn’t this be a cute, casual holiday outfit? You could make the Liesl + Co Everyday Skirt pattern in silk satin and add a monochromatic sweater or maybe a Bento Tee in wool jersey. I’ve been thinking that I should make a black silk Everyday Skirt anyway. I’d wear it…well, almost every day!
We’re contemplating a trip to Lisbon for the holiday break. Have you ever been? It looks so pretty! (P.S. We just finished watching El Tiempo entre Costuras on Netflix, and several episodes were filmed in Lisbon. I highly recommend the show, which has English subtitles. And of course the book is fantastic!)
Weekend Reading (and Watching)
- Quite a few of you have sewn our Lisette for Butterick moto jacket pattern, B6169, and you know how versatile it is. Well, it seems that the moto jacket has overtaken the classic blazer in terms of wardrobe basics. Or at least it has in Bill Cunningham’s eyes. And if Mr. Cunningham says it, it’s a fact!
- We have a family holiday tradition of attending a flamenco performance every year with our very favorite artist, Soledad Barrio. This year we’ll miss her, since she’s living in New York, but we loved this story about her in the New York Times. (Incidentally, S and I took a flamenco class with her a couple of years ago and it was fantastic! I highly recommend her workshops if you live in the area.)
- I loved this article about making a truly memorable holiday. (Hint: it doesn’t involve all the fuss!)
- Take Ivy is a famous book within fashion circles. But the story of how it came to be is fascinating and involves an intriguing look at Japanese cultural history.
- If we were still in New York, this exhibit would be high on my To See list.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Go to .fool4fabric.blogspot.com to see Margy’s pics from her trip to Portugal this past fall. Renita
Oh yes, Lisbon is a lovely place to visit – the castle, the trams, the elevador, Sintra, the coast – and of course the pasteis de nata! Yum!
I love the look of that sweater/skirt combo — it seems manageable and very comfortable, but could be dressed up ‘just enough’ with the right fabrics. Great tip, thank you!
Yes we (myself, husband, and 5y/o) went to Lisbon earlier this year, tagging along for a conference. It was wonderful. If you go be sure to visit Sintra. It’s about an hour train ride away, but the sights are amazing, especially Quinta da Regaleira. We also really enjoyed the archeological tour that dates all the way back to the Roman times (it’s free and sponsored by a bank – they found the site while planning for new construction).
I read the book as ‘the seamstress’ about a year ago and didn’t realise it was a series until about a week ago. I’m down to the last 2 episodes now. The costuming is gorgeous with beautiful locations and details. When I was travelling that part of the world I was on a eurail pass, so I went to Madrid and Barcelona, but any further south or west would mean a return journey and not in a circle, so it wasn’t economical – would love to get back there!