I started writing down some of the strange words that occupy the place of a noun in English.  I was thinking of the game Pictionary and how difficult it might be to convey

* any more
* the altogether
* a sudden
* a lot
* a little
* a few
etc.

Jeff_Wall_A_sudden_Gust_of_Wind_1993

Where the fabric and notions cost more than the finished garment made in Bangladesh, shipped around the world, and trucked to your local store - why sew?  The item you make may look awful on YOU! even when it was nifty on the pattern envelope.  Where is your spirit of adventure?  In more desperate times I sewed a jumpsuit including putting in the zipper by hand.  No automation.  No sewing machine.  People older than me used to do that sort of thing often.

To whet your taste

Miscellaneous
Making your own patterns
5 free patterns from Burda
assorted free patterns
tutorials for reconstructed clothing and some new clothing
Opera style cloak
Lots of good sewing patterns, all types of clothing
Belly dancing costume patterns
More free patterns from Burda, assorted items
Skirt and dress from Sew Simple
Patterns in German
Lots of different patterns
Totally Stitchin, lots of free patterns
Simplicity Classroom
Bra making
Baby bibs
Cosplay
Jeans
Lots of misc

Pattern Drafting
Help with pattern drafting
Free software & patterns for hats, bags & other accessories

Cocktail dress 50s

A girl can dream and I did my share.  Being a princess and waltzing around a ballroom with your skirts swirling.  I did it in left over dance recital costumes from older neighbors.  Who buys these clothes for real-life?  Some are for the bride but most are obviously for fairytale balls.

LauraBalombini-NinePage3rdDetail

I like all of these songs!

Enlarge courtesy of the artist

The Decemberists.

courtesy of the artist

The Decemberists.

01.

Artist: The Decemberists

Album: Hazards of Love

Song: The Rake's Song

The Hazards of Love is a masterwork; it does everything I want an album to do. It's full of surprises, the songs are connected by plot and musical motifs that act as connective tissue, and the story is big fun and larger than life. .The Decemberists are better than ever, including Chris Funk on everything from hurdy gurdy and mandolin to electric guitar. Jenny Conlee's Hammond B3 playing is outstanding, and so is the rhythm section of drummer John Moen and bassist Nate Query. All that said, my hat goes off to Colin Meloy for the story, the singing and sharing the lead vocals with his band's two "Diamond Ladies": Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond and Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond. Their voices and characters help inspire a band willing to stretch out and take chances.

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  • "The Rake's Song"
  • CD: Hazards of Love
  • Artist: The Decemberists
  • Label: Capitol
  • Released: 2009

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02.

Artist: The Dry Spells

Album: Too Soon for Flowers

Song: Black Is the Color

The Dry Spells are a San Francisco band with a love of British folk tales, Appalachian ballads and late-'70s New York rock. We all have comfort albums over the course of a year; records that feel like old friends. Too Soon for Flowers was that for me. The band's debut album felt familiar and new at the same time; it holds up well next to records by Fairport Convention, The Dodos or Television. The harmonies of Adria Otte, Tahlia Harbour and April Hayley feel effortless and tender, making Too Soon for Flowers the perfect Sunday-morning wake-up record.

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  • "Black Is the Color"
  • CD: Too Soon for Flowers
  • Artist: The Dry Spells
  • Label: Antenna Farm
  • Released: 2009

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03.

Artist: The xx

Album: XX

Song: Shelter

This is a very simple-sounding record with lots of open space and a good deal of restrained soul. It sounds as if all the instruments were played with just two fingers. In fact, the percussion is played with a few fingers tapping on small rubber pads. The control and timing on The xx's album is refreshing -- and the interplay between longtime friends Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sims (they've known each other since nursery school) is stark and matter of fact -- but in its casual demeanor, it's got an intensity missing from far louder records.

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  • "Shelter"
  • CD: XX
  • Artist: The xx
  • Label: XL
  • Released: 2009

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04.

Artist: Laura Gibson

Album: Beasts of Seasons

Song: Shadows on Parade

A slow-motion and passionate record, Beasts of Seasons asks a good deal from the listener. It takes time to dive into the world created by Laura Gibson and her collaborators, who include producer Tucker Martine and multi-instrumentalist Cory Gray. There's a sad, ghostly tension in many of her songs; a languid beauty that feels as close to meditation as I may ever reach. I put this record in the same category as star-gazing.

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  • "Shadows on Parade"
  • CD: Beasts of Seasons
  • Artist: Laura Gibson
  • Label: Hush Records
  • Released: 2009

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05.

Artist: Regina Spektor

Album: Far

Song: Eet

Many years ago, we received a homemade CD by Regina Spektor, and since 2003, her records have been favorites of mine. Spektor is one of the best pop songwriters around. Her songs are contagious, often funny and filled with characters and stories that feel plucked from life. Her lyrics are sometimes pedestrian and sometimes poignant. I'm partial to hearing a wide range of emotions on a pop record like Far, because the smiles are always so much bigger.

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  • "Eet"
  • CD: Far
  • Artist: Regina Spektor
  • Label: Warner Bros.
  • Released: 2009

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06.

Artist: M. Ward

Album: Hold Time

Song: Stars of Leo

I do an odd thing to arrive at my favorite records of the year. I take the 20 or so records l listen to most, put them in an iTunes playlist, and then, over the course of a few weeks, listen only to that playlist and rate the songs. I then average out the star ratings and put them in a list with the highest rating at the top. When I did that, this record by M. Ward came out on top, meaning that it had more songs I loved than any other record. Ward is a master of two- and three-minute pop gems. They're sometimes dark, sometimes rocky, and very lovable. If the record had hung together a bit more, this might have been my favorite album of the year. For the most part, it felt like a collection of great songs -- nothing to be ashamed of, though in the past, Ward has knocked me out with the way his songs were sequenced.

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  • "Stars of Leo"
  • CD: Hold Time
  • Artist: M. Ward
  • Label: Merge
  • Released: 2009

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07.

Artist: Taken by Trees

Album: East of Eden

Song: To Lose Someone

You may know Victoria Bergsman as the former singer in the Swedish band The Concretes, or the female voice in the Peter Bjorn and John song "Young Folks." None of that would prepare you for her adventure to Pakistan and a record made with musicians there, including the Sufi singer Sufi Sain Muhammad Ali, under the name Taken By Trees. Somehow, her deadpan delivery and mystical adventurism and Qwaali sounds all work together. This is passionate music, and my surprise record of the year

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  • "To Lose Someone"
  • CD: East of Eden
  • Artist: Taken by Trees
  • Label: Rough Trade US
  • Released: 2009

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08.

Artist: Fanfarlo

Album: Reservoir

Song: I'm A Pilot

After listening to a thousand songs in preparation for SXSW in 2008, one of the few outstanding finds was from a self-released EP by the British band Fanfarlo. This year, they put out a full album, which was reissued by a major label. This knockout debut is infused with mandolin, violin and trumpet flares. The melodies are strong and the singer stronger. A rousing and gentle record.

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  • "I'm A Pilot"
  • CD: Reservoir
  • Artist: Fanfarlo
  • Released: 2009

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09.

Artist: Patrick Watson

Album: Wooden Arms

Song: Beijing

One more brilliant pop record for my Top 10, in a list filled with pop. Patrick Watson's songs are drenched in sound, employing megaphones, bicycle spokes, tree branches, pots and pans, along with cartoon and movie sounds acting as atmosphere for his twisted stories. The record is a travelogue of sorts, with Watson as tour guide and carnival barker. He's a sweeter and more relatable version of Tom Waits, but no less mysterious.

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  • "Beijing"
  • CD: Wooden Arms
  • Artist: Patrick Watson
  • Label: Secret City
  • Released: 2009

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10.

Artist: K'naan

Album: Troubadour

Song: Wavin' Flag

I saw K'naan bring a crowd to tears in Austin, Texas, this year. That's when I went from liking this guy a lot to loving him. His songs are messages and morality tales which are heartfelt but not heavy-handed. He sings from the nightmarish experience of growing up in Mogadishu and brings those childhood horrors to his songs with perspective and good humor. K'naan reminds me of Bob Marley: He's a teacher and a gentle spirit with a powerful voice, and his music is potent stuff.

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  • "Wavin' Flag"
  • CD: Troubadour
  • Artist: K'naan
  • Label: A&M/Octone
  • Released: 2009

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I'm always fascinated by old cookbooks and the sometimes marvelous, sometimes outlandish recipes they hold, so Four Pounds Flour, a blog that attempts and updates historic recipes, is right up my alley. Check out this modernization of one of the earliest Christmas Cookie recipes (or should I say Cookey?)!

Last week the kids were here and we baked cookies.  I divided them into four containers, one for each kid and one for Dad.  When the party was over all the cookies were gone?!?!?!?

But all year around

Nice alphabet

I have been looking at Oriental rugs.  The seemingly abstract symbols are derived from plants, flowers, mountains and other things that were important to the people that made them.  Some quilt patterns are equally meaningful.

What do you see in the rug above?  Tanks! More explicitly Russian tanks with their guns raised in a non-combative position as they leave Afghanistan.  It is a 'war rug'.  We should not be surprised.  War has been part of this region for generations.

For my generation the motif might have been derived from a typewriter.  It would be a mysterious symbol now that the typewriter is extinct.  I cannot see the cell phone or the iPod as very attractive patterns.  They are already too abstract.

Fighter jets

Automobiles
Maybe snarls of highways

to purchase

At this time of year and all year long
- may we help each other with love

(not a great color scheme but you get the idea)

On our way to see one of the missions we passed a field with these Hay People

San Antonio - hay people 01

San Antonio - hay people 02

Down the hill there was a beautiful creek with fisher people

San Antonio - creek