Belly's

IT'S IN THE BAG

Oh friends, I had such a full, lovely day today. It started in a press event at a very exciting showroom (more on that in a few weeks), continued at my beloved sewing/pattern-making class, where I'm fixing my dress for my brother's wedding (so emotional) and ended, after a try-out at the hairdresser, with a delicious pumpkin soup, courtesy of my huz.

 

 

All day, I was waiting to get back home and post my contribution for A Hasty Life's blog crawl. Isn't that a grand idea? Now, don't get me wrong: if you think my bag is messy NOW, well, it's usually so much messier! Here are my "essentials":

Bag: Kisim| Diary: Kate's Paperie|Wallet: Kipling| Lotion: OPI

At my once-in-a-blue-moon mani-pedi, my manicurist turned me on to OPI's Avoplex, and since then I can't leave home without it. I used to always have a book in my bag, but my back protested loud and clear, and I now always have an Audible book on my Nokia (hence the headphones). Magazines, however, are a habit I can't seem to kick (and don't really want to...). Aside from InStyle, you can spy Go Style, the Israeli magazine for which I started writing, in the background. I usually don't carry a hat, but it's been rainy here for the last past days, and I have an unexplainable bad luck with umbrellas (they always break!). A faux-python diary and two sharpies satisfy my doodling urge plus the need to stay organized (very, very difficult for messy me), MAC's brow pencil in "stud" keeps me nice 'n pretty, and the green crayola marker is for afternoons out with my kiddo.

I got my Kisim bag, which I coveted for months, for my birthday two years ago, and we never parted for long since then. I do have other (lovely bags) but this one is just so comfy and it gets prettier with age...

And the lil' brass elephant? My vintage shop owner friend saved it for my collection (thanks, Avi!) and I can't make my mind where to prop the little guy. So meanwhile, I enjoy him in my bag:)

Thank you so much, Ashley, for asking me to participate. Please don't forget to visit Yellow Songbird, who posted her beautiful bright bag yesterday, and check out  The Best is Yet to Come for her post tomorrow.

And please tell me - I'm dying to know - what's in YOUR bag?

 

my style recipe

Nicole at Sketch42blog has posted her "style formula" and I thought it's such a fun idea! I've always been not-that-bright at math, so I'm going to call it my style recipe, and as always with my recipes there are no measures and no telling which flavor will prevail (but somehow it always comes out delicious- if I may say so myself):

Markham Roberts

Eddie Ross

Hillary Thomas

Angie Hranowsky

A big helping of gentleman's club, a dash of oriental (books are always my spice of choice), a pinch of world traveler meets granny, stir in some kid-proof and washable in happy colors and finish off with modern palette cleanser.

Et voila!

 

p.s. I'm participating in A Hasty Life's blog crawl, and you can too! Check out the details here.

 

 

hi there

Hi everybody. Sorry for my absence lately. We're moving to our new apartment in ten days and it's been hectic around here. Today we laid the hardwood floors in the bedrooms and went to pick up the hardware I chose last week. I haven't slept properly in about a week, and I'm quite grouchy because of it.

I have a fabric haul to share, a few book reviews - fiction and sewing (I'm in love with Claire Shaffer's Fabric Sewing Guide) and I'm going to participate in Skirt Week - so you may want to check in or subscribe to the RSS feed (there are a few shortcuts on the left column <-). Also, I'll soon start posting photos of the decor in our new apartment. I'm very excited! the molding in the living room turned out gorgeous, and I'm really happy with the carrera marble I insisted upon having in the master bathroom, here's a sneak peek:

Have a great week, and happy memorial day for those of you in the states!

Make It, Wear It!

I added Chanoch's Macaron outfit and preppy PJs (which he wore for the last 24 hours, till I made him take it off in time for bath - so comfy!) to Andrea's blog. She hosts a lovely blog party every week for wearable sewn creations.

Go check out the other adorable garments, like Lemon Squeezy's boy's vest and bow tie (I'm dying to make a bow tie for C, but I have a feeling he'll throw it off in 2 seconds...).

kids clothes week : an early recap

There was frustration

There was happiness:

There was falling asleep in one's sweaty clothes (no, there's no picture of that),

there were lots and lots of mess,

and there is satisfaction:

That's all, at Sunday I will just sew buttons and finish hand stitching the lining and the belt loops, and if there's any time left I'll sneak in a t shirt or two. Thank, Meg of elsie marley, for arranging this challenge. It was a fun experience and a learning curve all at once.

hush now

I've been busy making this

For this guy

See you tomorrow, dear friends.

my mother's day

So how was your Mother's day?

By us everything was as usual, because in Israel Mother's Day is celebrated in February (and has recently been re-named Family Day. Don't mothers deserve a day of their own?). I did try to make it a little special by buying my mom a book, and before Chanoch went to bed we watched Annie together. I remember watching it with my parents when I was around his age, and the movie's charm still holds 20+ years later...

Talking about the eighties, I finished cutting McCall's 5473, and dubbed it the Power Skirt. Remember those days, when every noun had a "power" to enhance it? Power Walks, Power Talks, Power Couples, Power Lunches, Power Suits... So why not a Power Skirt? The PS is made from a scrumptious wool-silk blend (with some stretch, apparently), that I bought months ago. It's from a seller who gets fabric remnants from Italian mills, and so I got 2.50 meters for 55 ILS, which is about 10 dollars. Now I only need to sew it, and I'm debating whether to make a half lining.

Today was also the first day of Kids Clothes Week, in which I'll be dedicating at least an hour a day for sewing clothes for Chanoch (and maybe my sisters, they are still considered kids!). Check out the button at the sidebar for more information. I started by tracing patterns for a vest and shorts from the 3/2009 issue of Ottobre Magazine. I planned to sew them 2 months ago, for Passover, but I never got to it. Isn't the boy in the magazine cute? I called this outfit The Macaron because that's what he's holding in the picture and that's what I want to eat now...

Good night, friends. Please check back tomorrow for a post on weight and fit (and an update on the Oprah Dress) and our regular Monday Morning Coffee.

morning coffee

How do you take for coffee? I like mine sugar-less and with a serving of links, thank you very much. For me, the best way to start the day  (if we avoid the part where I wake Chanoch and plead with him until he goes to school) is fresh coffee and a heavy-loaded Google Reader. So here are a couple of links to help you start the day (and the week):

• In a recent survey, parents said 14 years old girls are the most annoying to parent, but do you remember how much more difficult it was to be one? Jezebel
• Do you use a croquis to draw your ideas before sewing? I recently bought the book mentioned in the link, 9Heads, but didn't have the chance to study it yet. BurdaStyle
• I love the colors in this post by Collete Patterns' Sarai, and I was inspired by it to buy this fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics (I wanted to buy so many more, but I'm trying to keep in mind that we're moving soon, and everything I buy now I'll have to schlep later.) Collete Patterns' blog.
• apropos Collete Patterns, doesn't this dress from ModCloth look a lot like their Macaron? I kind of like the tone on tone.
• Every time a post from Keren Taggar pops in my reader it makes me so happy. You should check it out. Drawing Diary
• Last but not least, I joined Elsie Marley's kid sewing week challenge. Check out the rules and who else participates. Elsie Marley

Have a great week, and come over for coffee and links whenever you like!