After getting the kids in bed Saturday night, I pondered my
options: a) go to
sleep, b) watch a few episodes of LOST, c) read magazines or d) go downstairs and do a little sewing. My typical choice is
a combination of a and b—falling asleep while watching LOST (or whatever
series I’m hooked on). But I decided to break from that tradition and stay up sewing. Stay up and sew, I did—all night in fact.
I knew I was in trouble when birds could be heard chirping outside my window.
One of my favorite Al Swearengen lines popped into my head: “Yes, it’s come to this…”. Are these the extremes to which
I must go in order to find time for my own projects? Not really, but this was the ill-considered choice I made that night. Sad? Funny? Stupid? All three probably.
Today I feel better and while I’m not sure this dress was worth the price of a whole night’s sleep, I do love it. It had been in the planning stages for a while, ever since the fabric called to me from the rounders at Fabric Depot. Nestled among the Hoffman Batiks was this gorgeous hand-dyed fabric. Now, I never went through much of a hippie phase. Never wore tie-dye of any kind and only went to one Grateful Dead show, throughout which I was bored to tears. But this stuff, with its soft hand, glorious colors and delicate visual textures seemed sophisticated in a way tie-dye never has*. I was defenseless and would not leave the store without at least a small cut. (A yard and a half is my standard when I don’t have a specific pattern in mind).
I determined in short order that a peasant-style dress would be ideal. A peasant dress is flowing, yet simple. Spare, yet feminine. It’s easy. And just the thing to complement the fabric’s boldness.
Yep. Just the thing.
*I wonder if my recent fondness for Jerry Garcia has anything to do with this?