2-01-2010

Hello friends! Today is the big day! The book is officially released.

On that note, we are working on a few things to make your experience with Sewing Clothes Kids Love and our sewing patterns and notions more rewarding and, hopefully, even more fun. We are building a forum in both German and English. We hope the forum will be a place to exchange ideas and tips and tricks (I already see the threads that will be popping up concerning a certain new pattern "Manhattan"...not for the faint of heart, but it will melt your heart once complete...). We hope the members of the forum will make friends, share experiences and help one another. (Please help one another--my carpal tunnel is so bad, it hurts so bad to answer emails...).

I've also set up a flickr group, "Sewing Clothes Kids Love". And I'm working on a new Web site. But realize, please, that the book and all the hoopla is just a small part of the party that's already going on. Sabine has shared with me some of the things she has coming up. It is so hard to keep a secret. Because these new things will knock yo' socks off, sister.

In other news...

I went to the Craft and Hobby Association trade fair in Anaheim recently. It was the first time I'd been to a trade fair. I know, I know, I probably have to make a habit of showing my fine craftinista self at trade shows. It's just not my vibe. All that artificial light, brochure overload and perky sales people ("You really can't be that excited about interfacing. I mean, I get really excited about good interfacing. But you, young man? C'mon. You need to get out more."). I didn't take any photographs, because, well grown-ups scare me.

What was just great for me was to meet the faces behind the emails of the folks at Creative Publishing International. They rock. So professional, dedicated and supportive. I'm so happy they found us. The book, it seems, has been very positively received by booksellers and craft stores, so that's a good thing. Ultimately, though, it matters just what Y-O-U you think. But Creative Publishing International has a number of terrific books coming out, some I like better than my own. Creative Publishing International's craft books are real "get 'er done" kinds of books that get you through the nuts and bolts of doing-it-your-darn-self. For example, I'm saving my pennies for this one: Making Trousers.

In other-other news...

I took the kids skiing this weekend.

Gloves and poles and hats and helmets and boards and skis and Chapstick and wet socks and cold feet and chapped lips and crowded shuttles and lift line performance pressure and ski pants that don't fit anymore and the long drive and, God help me, ski boots (weren't they abandoned with iron maidens and other medieval torture devices?) ...I remembered suddenly why I don't ski.

But, then, blue sky and brisk sunshine and white snow and deep green needles peaking out and smooth sliding across the crystals and the kids smiling from ear to ear and laughing all the way down and an occassional "woohoo" and and and... and I suddenly forget why I don't ski...

It was the first time I'd been on skis in twenty years. I did okay. Kept my feet and knees together and managed the swishy-swishy kind of skiing again. I only fell twice. I remembered the basics and it turned out beautiful. And that's my metaphor for sewing: Machines and equipment and notions and interfacing and bias tape and seam gauges and measuring and pins and ballpoint needles and where's-my-seam-ripper? and I-need-to-drive-across-town-for-a-zipper and there are reasons not to sew. But just give it a go. Just remember the basics and it will turn out beautiful.

Please join the Sewing Clothes Kids Love flickr group now, if you like. I'm not going to be really strict and say that the images need to be related to Sewing Clothes Kids Love, just that they be of sewing, clothes, kids and love.

We'll give you the heads up when the forum is ready and hope you join in there, as well.