Wednesday Reading

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The Atlantic—with a lovely new brand refresh–has an essay by Tom Junod about his friendship with Fred Rogers. He talks about his essay inspiring the movie A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood and what Mr. Rogers would make of society today. It’s just..nice; thoughtful and sad and but still hopeful.

This was my favorite memory he shared about Fred:

Once, when I called to tell him the story of five people stopping their cars to help an ancient and enormous snapping turtle across a highway exit ramp in Atlanta, he asked if I was going to write about it. I said no, and asked him why he thought it might make a good story. And this was his response: “Because whenever people come together to help either another person or another creature, something has happened, and everyone wants to know about it—because we all long to know that there’s a graciousness at the heart of creation.”

 

Tuesday Project Roundup: Hiking Tights

By in sewing, Tuesday Project Roundup 1 Comment

I’ve had a pair of cold-weather hiking tights on my list to make since I figured out I could make my own active wear in the spring. I placed a big order from The Fabric Fairy in July and included a cut of fleece-backed Polartec PowerStretch and sewed it up this past weekend.

These are the Super G Tights again (this is pair #10, if you count a couple test pairs?) and I decided to go for a TNT (tried and true) pattern even though I had my doubts about those layered pockets and the thickness of the fleece. To mitigate the layers I’d have to sew through, I lined the waistband and the pockets in some plain Lycra:

My serger did ok, though, and my Bernina didn’t even blink (god I love that machine). And these are so cozy with the fleece inside. I think I’ll need another layer over them when we get to deep winter but for now, they’re just right.

The Tiniest of Poems

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Matthew Ogle has restarted his Pome newsletter and this came through a couple of days ago:

 

Daylight Savings

Like money the light
doesn’t go

as far these days

Kevin Young (2010)

Make Nine #7: Cozy

By in 2019 Make Nine, sewing, Tuesday Project Roundup No Comments

This may be the last of the 2019 Make Nine that gets made this year. I like having a plan but I’ve figured out that I treat sewing like shopping and enjoy making something on a whim or to hop on a trend.  (And I make a lot more than nine things every year, anyway.)

With that said, this year’s plan got me some really nice basics, like another Sloane Sweatshirt from Named Clothing:

This is in a merino wool sweatshirting I bought at the end of 2017 from The Fabric Store in New Zealand. I’d heard about the quality of their wool and the hype is real: this is machine washable, not itchy, thick and spongy, and just gorgeous. It’s also gone*, but I hope they get more in at some point.

The Sloane pattern is beautifully drafted and sewed up in a Sunday morning. Love those long French darts and warm basic tops you can wear with snake pants.**

 

 

*My dad made me feel better about buying fabric I didn’t use right away: He called it “limited edition” and said that I had to buy it at the time or I would miss out.

**From J. Crew; the first J. Crew I’ve bought in about two years.

“The bare bones of it”

By in children's literature, nature No Comments

The canyon is mostly bare of leaves but not yet snow-covered; we went up for a walk yesterday and I thought of this passage I found in The Wind in the Willows (at the start of the chapter when Mole ventures into the Wild Wood):

Copses, dells, quarries, and all hidden places, which had been mysterious mines for exploration in leafy summer, now exposed themselves and their secrets pathetically, and seemed to ask him to overlook their shabby poverty for a while, till they could riot in rich masquerade as before, and trick and entice him with the old deceptions. It was pitiful in a way, and yet cheering—even exhilarating. He was glad that he liked the country undecorated, hard, and stripped of its finery. He had got down to the bare bones of it, and they were fine and strong and simple.

Words About Feelings

By in feelings

Speaking of just sitting with your feelings, here are some nice words I found (from Morgan Harper Nichols‘ Instagram account, full of nice words):

Of course, this doesn’t get into the haunted house aspect of feeling your feelings, but I can speak from experience that that part does go away a little more every time you do it. And “take heart, breathe deep” are evergreen words of advice.

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