More Hawaii...

As promised, here are some more photos from Hawaii:

Love these two photos:

There was a wedding in the yard and this photo is taken after the ceremony was over:

Quick Pictorial Update

A month of no blogging is a long time. This is just a quick update of what has happened since my last post.

First, two of my favourite pictures of Mom's stay with us in October:





In the end of October we had a serious snow storm in Colorado. Emma and Sig got a chance to build a snowman. Emma was very proud!



Then, it was November and we flew to Hawaii! We are still here!

Emma found a friend:

Sig is building huge castles/forts with Emma's friend's Dad:

There are some other really exceptional photos from Hawaii but that will be a whole other post!

Wishing Star Farm

I, Emma, and my Mom (visiting from Bulgaria) went to a pumpkin patch today. The Place is called the Wishing Star Farm and is actually more than a pumpkin patch. They have animals you can pet, including a camel, a huge slide, give hay rides, pony rides, and choo-choo train rides. Emma loved it, and my Mom and I enjoyed it too. Here are some photos:

This is my favourite one:



Love the colors of this picture:



Some of the fun activities:



The rabbits were a huge hit:

Isn't this pig gorgeous! The pink and gray colors are so pretty! The pig's name was Emma too... Oh well...

I have been tagged by Josie at http://josiesews.blogspot.com/ with the Kreativ Blogger award.

I haven't sewn much at all recently due to the rest of my life keeping me too busy, and I have not even blogged much, so I apologize.

In response to the nomination, I am asked to tell you seven things you don't know about me and nominate seven creative bloggers.

1. I don’t like my calves much, therefore, I rarely wear skirt, dresses, or shorts. i know I have to get over it, but...
2. I don’t drink alcohol but love Baileys in my ice cream.
3. I met my husband online.
4. Love dance, ballet, and musicals. Opera – no. BTW, I am an awful singer and as dancer don’t have any talent either.
5. I like to make silly rhymes, add music, and sing them out loud. It is actually awful.
6. I feel uncomfortable surrounded by many people. I suppose I feel socially awkward.
7. Short of loving the occasional piece of Genoa salami, ham or turkey in my salad, I don’t eat meat. And I don’t eat bread. There is no particular reason to any of this. It just happened over the years.

On the nomination of 7 people requirement, I would only say that there are many people whose creativity I enjoy and get inspired by. I want to thank everyone who takes the time to post their work online. It is an effort that takes time and thought and I want to ackmnoledge it.

DIY Balmain

This DIYs are not by me. i found them while randomly surfing and thought I'd share.

The first DIY I found on the "Hey You - Get Off My Cloud" blog. It is for a tee adorned with crystals. Check it here http://www.bloglovin.com/m/46540616/0 or here http://heyyou-getoffofmycloud.blogspot.com/2009/09/diy-1.html

The second DIY is from "Style Scrapbook" blog. It is for for the famous Balmain jacket with the rope-like adornments on the front and on the shoulders. See it here http://www.stylescrapbook.com/2009/01/diy-balmain.html

Both are very much worth checking into!

Fall Lusts

Here are some of my favourite pieces for the fall:

I love this dress by ISSA. The designer is Daniella Issa Helayel and I know nothing about her. Her Fall 2009 collection of dresses, however, is delightful with its tropical palette and variety of hem lengths and necklines. The dress below is something that I'd like to make and I am open to suggestions about fabrics and patterns.

Remember I planned on making a blazer with Balmain-like shoulders? Well, it did not work out... Drafting a blazer from scratch turned out to be more that I could handle considering my time restraints. Fortunately, I found an affordable ZARA blazer that features exaggerated shoulders. The Future Classics coat below is an reiteration on the same theme. I think it is a beautiful, sexy, smart crossover between a dress and a coat. I suppose what attracts me most to it is the predatory silhouette. Love how it is styled with a hoodie underneath making it suddenly young and less serious.

This is the Enright Pant by Shipley and Halmos. This is the silhoette that I'd wear every day. I cannot find a pattern for a pant that skinny, so, pls help me out with that!

I love what Preen line has done this fall: body-con silhoettes adorned with pleats, zippers, just awesome! The Zip Hobbie Top by Preen Line is a piece that I could never replicate, yet, I thought I'd share it because it features one of my favourite trends - adornment through zipppers. Although I have no specific thoughts yet, I think I will attempt to make a garment that is embelished with zippers.

I kept the Preen Line biker pants for last. I WANT these pants so bad!!! The skinny, yet pleated at waist design is truly appealing to me. Again, if I find a pattern for a really skinny pant, I'd be able to adapt it, but so far no luck with the pattern. Aren't they just gorgeous though!

BTW, how about the Zanotti ( at least I think they are by G. Zanotti) peep-toe booties in the last two pics!

Note: all photos courtesy of forwardforward.com

Ripped hose? Really??

A very fashionable person (cannot remember who exactly) once said that part of sophistication is sitting out on some trends. A simple, yet profound thought, no?

So, here is a trend I AM sitting out (while truly wondering why so many people, from the runway to the street, are doing it):

Little Girly Stuff

I am not a good photographer, yet, I love snapping random pictures of my girl. I love all her facial expressions and especially those when she is thoughtful or focused (as in the second batch).

BTW, the furry vest she wears, I got it a year ago from GAP and sure wish I had gotten it in her size and a size larger (I truly dislike sewing with faux-fur, too messy). She absolutely loves it and wears it ALL the time (really)!

Hippy Monday

I love Colorado Indian summer. The colors, the weather, the coziness.. It also allows for fun dressing through layering and adding texture.
My daughter had dance today and I snapped some pictures of what I wore

Free People top, Paige Premium Denim jeans, Banana republic midheel pums, LaRok vest

Under My Trenchcoat (well, it's a nail color)

In reality the color looks more gray-taupe. It may be just me, but I love it. This is my first Sephora by OPI and I fund the color more durable and chip-resistent than the original OPI.

SEPHORA by OPI

Under my Trenchcoat

SE 008

The Color Gray - The New Black

I have always been attractes to gray, pretty much ever since middle school. Why? Well, first, it is a neutral color and hence, goes with everything, second, it comes in all nuances, third, is much less severe than black, forth, is more fun than black, fifth, gray shoes look awesome with matter gray hosiery, sixth, great for work, seventh, looks sophisticated, etc.

I have always wondered why would retailer make clothes in gray, yet, not manifacture accessories and shoes in this staple color. Well, right now, there are plenty of shoes, handbags, and belts out there in different shades of gray.

For the collages below I used only major retailers, such as Ann Taylor, J Crew, and Banana Republic. I decided to go with them because of their accessability, generally good price points, frequent promotions/sales, and more classic designs. And, btw, I am not affiliated with any of them, in any way.

These pumps are classic enoughto last through the fashion seasons:

From left to right: Banana Republic, Ann Taylor, J Crew, and J Crew again

Love these fancier J Crew pumps. The pink trim and the flower make it so much fun! I'd actually really love to own a pair!

I own a pair of gray boots actually. Cannot tell you enough how versatile they turned out to be. Wore them all winter and got tons of compliments for them.

From left: Banana Republic and J Crew

If you still like your footwear black, escape tha matchy-matchy world and cinch your waist with a gray or charcoal belt like the one below from Ann Taylor.

If you are tired of toting a black bag in fall and winter, try a gray one. I have a gray bag and a gray clutch and have found that they are greatly versatile.

All handbags J Crew

Lastly, I find gray clothes to be a great neutral canvas to use funky colors with. a basic example below: A slate J Crew puffer can be cinched with a neon pink skinny belt (again J Crew). I have this very same puffer and cinching it makes you look like you have really long legs, regardless of being 5'3" (in my case).

Our NYC Visit - a Photo Story

We are back, the laundry is done, and I am happy to be home.

There is so much to see and do in NYC and it was not my purpose to do it all, I wanted to rather enjoy it and take it easy.

Emma and I saw The Lion King on Broadway, and it was quite spectacular!

This photo was taken outside of our hotel. And yes, the police presence was due to our arrival! Just kidding! On our first full day, Friday, Emma and I walked from 42nd st and 2nd Ave to 66th st and 5th Ave, across Central Park to Broadway, and then back to our hotel. Naturally, I got a huge headache the day after.

On Saturday my husband, Emma, and I went to Central Park. This is a picture Sig took and I thought it was beautiful:

This is me by one of the lakes:

And this is Emma: Ice-cream and kissing:

On Sunday my headache evolved into a migraine + toothache and I stayed in the hotel. Emma and her Dad took the train to the Aquarium in Brooklyn:


After the Aquarium they enjoyed a boardwalk on the beach:

Followed by a visit to Times Square:

Playing bashful with one of NY's finest:

Later during the week Emma and I went to the Central Park Zoo. It was scorchingly hot and humid and I for a moment I felt like jumping in the pool with the seals. Emma, however, felt more like smelling the flowers:

And feeding the sheep:

The day after we visited the Museum of Natural History. It was really crowded and Emma was scared by some of the exhibits. She did, however, enjoy the mamals but was not satisfied by my answers as to why they were not moving.

There was a playgroung by the hotel and this is us there:

Our hotel was in immediate proximity to the UN building and these are some pics from there:

It was after 5pm and the flags were down, unfortunately...

Sewing-wise, I got some hard to find in notions from the Garment District, no fabric (by choice)!

Big thanks again to a fellow sewer and blogger for kindly meeting us there for a lunch and a visit to Pacific Trims.

We also went to SoHo where we went to what feels like 100 shops. I got some pretty good ideas from Scoop.

I've loved Zara since I first saw there stores in Belgium many years ago, so, naturally, we spent considerable time there.

Visiting NYC feels like a lot of work, really. Still, if my husband's project gets extended after Xmas, we may visit there again next year.