Tuesday, October 28, 2014

potpourri

Actually, today is the third time since Saturday I have been in the City.  Saturday afternoon after my grandson Ben's football game, we headed into Greenwich Village to the FIlm Forum, which shows classic, foreign, indy, and all kinds of interesting movies.  The film was one neither of us had seen when it came out: Hiroshima Mon Amour.  A brilliant, beautiful, powerful film that I will not forget.

Sunday was Brooklyn. I usually drive in on a Sunday morning when there is no traffic, but we took the bus in because I was not in the mood to hassle with late afternoon traffic coming home.  Here was the view from the bus window in NJ, as the sun was setting.
Today I went into NY to meet my friend Penny and her husband Hank for lunch. They live in St. Thomas and were in NY for a special event, so they were squeezing in everything they could manage in a few days.  After lunch, I headed to the garment district to search for a linen/rayon blend similar to the shawl I recently dyed.  It's deliciously soft and  has the consistency of cheesecloth - but a bit heavier.  Here is the undyed original.  See the weave?  This is 45"x60" - a perfect wrap!
Last week I went into a fabric store near my studio and bought some cheesecloth, which I also dyed.
It is lighter weight than the above fabric and was only 36" wide.  It had the benefit of being cheap, though, so I could experiment.  It makes a sweet summer scarf at 18" x 60" but I'd like to see it longer.
I am going to look for heavier weight cheesecloth online. (below is the actual yellow of the above fabric). bleh.
Today I walked up and down 39th St in vain, looking for the linen/rayon blend.  I forget which store this was, but they didn't have what I was looking for.
 Finally, at Paron Fabircs, I found a linen/cotton blend and splurged on two yards, which should make 3 scarves @ 18"x 72".  This was 4 times as expensive as the cheesecloth and an only slightly tighter weave but I'm on a mission.
On my way back to the bus terminal, I passed this sign, which reminded me of the way 42nd St. used to be when it was gritty. I miss it.
There were about a zillion people on line at the TKTS booth on 47th and B'way, waiting to buy half-price theatre tickets.  It was such a warm, beautiful day that nobody minded standing for who-knows how many hours.  This was only one little bit on the 7th Ave. side.
By Saturday, when we will be back in NY to stay with friends, it is supposed to be freezing cold and I saw a forecast for snow. Snow? Again in October? Oy! Please let it be wrong.   In the meantime, my woods still look beautiful -- and the green is not ready to go yet.

6 comments:

Judy Sall Fiber Art said...

Busy gal! I love your ideas for the linen/rayon cloth... how do you hem it? I have dyed cheese cloth for my shabby chic scarves, and love how it takes the dye. But it is so skimpy... would be afraid to try and make anything, and it always ends up with uneven ends. Weather-wise, we're in for cooler temps here, but no snow yet at the lower elevations. Hope your weather forecast ends up wrong... too soon for winter!

patty a. said...

Your woods are beautiful. We had a windy night a couple of nights ago and it blew all the leaves off the trees. I have nothing but naked trees until spring!

Linda Hicks said...

Amused by your "mission." I love to get on them. I have about three scarves of that fabric and love. Thanks for the heads up on the weather.

Linda Hicks said...

P.S. I thought the leaves this year were at peak color...I don't ever remember more beauty. Also, I heard there is not a line at the South Street Seaport for half-price tickets, but curious how to find with ease.

Dianne Koppisch Hricko said...

Would love to be able to get to the city so easily to shop for fabric. I am always on a mission that way and have even had mood send me some samples. Your scarf fabric was indeed worth seeking out.

Karaquilts said...

I am completely stuck on your woods photo ~ ~ it is a new quilt ~ ~ I feel it coming to me ~ ~

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