Vacationing in Los Cabos, Mexico at the Riu Palace - Dinner at the Mona Lisa Restaurant

This is almost a wordless post.  These are pictures from my vacation in LosCabos, Mexico.  We Lodge at the RIU all inclusive Resort and had dinner at the Mona Lisa Restaurant.

About Last Week - SewCamp

Gaylen and Jay Owners' of the B&B

Some of the lovely ladies at Breakfast

SewCamp was so much fun!  I had an opportunity to see some old friends and make some new ones.  I headed for Philadelphia early Thursday morning.  Andrea picked me up at the airport.  We went to get Philly Steak and fries.  Then off to JoMar for our first fabric shopping experience of the weekend.  After that, we picked up Laquana (of course, we had to bring her a cheese steak too. Lol)

Andrea

Laquana with her sewing projects

Group after the shopping

Next stop Carriage Corner for our four day Sew Camp!  Within an hour of our arrival, we were all gathered in the sew studio selecting sewing stations and pulling out projects to sew.  On Friday after breakfast, we quickly got into the van and headed to Fabric Mart fabric.  Look at the group fabric haul.

Just a few pieces from my fabric haul.

Over the next few days, we did some serious power sewing.  Everyone enjoying the process and the company of fellow sewists.  There was all kinds of buzzing in the sew studio. We were helping fit each other, doing tutorials, snacking, and talking about the news of the day.  Gaylen and Jay are the best.  Hosting a Sew Camp is a big deal.  The preparing of the accommodations, meals, and sharing a lovely studio is a lot of work.  But Gaylen and Jay never failed to make this the most enjoyable experience.

Me with my sewing projects

On Saturday afternoon a few of us decided to take a walk to the local Quilt shop were they sold high end quilter's cotton and notions.  On the way, we stopped a fudge shop to pick up some treats.  After shopping back to Carriage Corner to continue with our sewing marathon.

Lady in the fudge shop

Fudge Shop

Carolyn kindly did photo shoots for each of us on Sunday and Monday.  Each of us have a series of photos to select from for Instagram and blog posts.  I think she took over 100 pictures of three outfits for me.  Great start for blogging my pattern and sewing project reviews.

Monday afternoon, my kind friend, Andrea, drove me and Laquana back to the airport for our flights home. I love everything about Sew Camp:  the location, the hopping, and the sewing with friends.  I'm looking forward to my next Sew Camp in 2020.

For more Sew Camp stories, check out these posts:

Carolyn, Diary of a Sewing Fantatic
Gaylen, gMarie Sews 
Andrea, Knit-Knac
Laquana, Made by Laquana 


Happy Sewing!
C

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

We are already well into the new year.  For weeks I've been pondering what's next!  Should I write a end of the year review?  TOO LATE.  Is it too late to post the last few project reviews of 2018?  NO. What is a good number of potentially achievable resolutions? A REALISTIC NUMBER.  What will I strive for in the new year? IMPROVED SKILLS AND PRODUCTIVITY.  How can I make it great? WORKING HARD AT ACHIEVING MY GOALS.

Unfortunately, the holiday season is over.  I don't miss all the shopping, but I love the happy spirit of comes from people. Everyone seems to smile and laugh more.  The sounds of Christmas is every where.  There are lots of parties and gatherings. It's a joyous time to celebrate the birth of Christ, reflect on the past year, and make plans for a great new year.  There is so much happiness in the air.  I love it!  Christmas time is my favorite time of year.

Last year it was super busy for me.  I was blessed to do my usual travelling and socializing.  My home was water proofed in the summer.  After that, my basement needed to be put back in order, at least the laundry room.  The sewing studio is still not quite where I'd like it to be.  But, I've begun some serious purging and re-organizing.  After the water proofing the flooring and the baseboards were reinstalled.  Then I had both rooms repainted.  In November, I had a procedure to correct some of my sinus issues.  To be exact, the surgeon corrected my deviated spectrum and performed a sinuplasty.  So I was recuperated for about three weeks and was still on the mend during the holiday season.  Despite the periods of NO SEWING, I did sew quite a lot.

Overall, I was happy with about 85% of the things I made in 2018.  There were six projects that I did not review or blog about.  Only three UFO's, all are summer vacation projects.  And there were about eight projects that I only did the pattern adjustments for.

This year, so far, I've made six garments.  I plan to continue to focus on separates the first half of the year.  Also on my list of goals are:

• coats and jackets with welts pockets and buttonholes. I want to get better at finishing details of coats and jackets like to lining with piping,attaching the lining to the coat, and making beautiful pocket and buttonholes details.
• tops and shirts with plackets on the sleeve and front.  Here again, adding more details to tops and shirts.

and,

• maximizing the use of patterns that I already own.  I am going to do more with TNT's patterns instead of buying more new ones.  The goal is to mix, match, and hack TNT's to come up with an entirely new look.

So, this is my little sag way into the new year.  I'm happy to be able to make plans and to share my sewing adventures with all of my followers.  I sincerely appreciate your visits and comments.  It's been great.  

So off  to a great beginning  and God bless!

Cennetta

 

Carriage Corner Sew Camp - March 2018

I’m way behind on posting to my blog.  There is so much going on right now.  Today, I wanted to tell you a little bit about my Carriage Corner Sew Camp in Pennsylvania.  I met Gaylen for the first time January, 2017 in New York.  There we talked about having a quarterly Sew Camp at her Bed and Breakfast.  Great idea, right?  The first Sew Camp was two months later, but I couldn't make that one.   So, I decided to wait until after my trip to Greece before deciding when to come.

Then in January, Ms. Carolyn posted on her blog that she would go in March.  So Andrea and I immediately decided to come as well.  For me, it’s an opportunity for me to sew and hang out with some of my sewing friends. 

I came with no fabric.  My intentions were to buy from FabricMart Fabrics and use some of it to start new projects.  So our first full day of camp was shopping at FabricMart Fabrics and then lunch at a local café.  Needless to say, I bought a huge amount of fabric.  In many instances, I just purchased whatever was left on the bolt.  Besides, Julie gave us such a fantastic discount.  I mean it was GREAT!

A lot of what I bought is black and white.  Several striped pieces fell in my arms too.  But I couldn’t leave without something floral and bright colored knit.  See..,

I started on four projects while I was there:  two tops, one dress and a pair of pants.  I’ll post a full review on each later.  

Shirtings

Coatings

More Knits

While waiting for my flight to return home, I thought about how much fun I had during the sewing camp weekend.  I saw some old friends and made some new ones.  It was a very good time all the way around.  I also reflected on my many friendships born out social media.  I’ve been blogging for almost eleven years.  I first met all of the ladies through blogging or Instagram (directly or indirectly).  It’s amazing when you think of it.  How small the world has become and how social media has changed the way we make new friends.  On the last days, everyone shared their delight in all the activities that occurred in what seemed like only a few hours.  We all agreed to come back for another Sew Camp.  Some of the ladies are registered for the September, 2018 session.  I’m coming back in June, 2018 for the extended session. 

Sew Camp is a winner!  Gaylen and her husband were the best.  The bed and breakfast, two snaps up!  Sew Camp is a great way to meet sewing buddies and spend some time with friends doing what we love to do, SEW!

More on the Sew Camp on Carolyn's Blog.

Happy Sewing!
C

New York, New York!

By now, many of you know that I was in  New York to meet up with a few of my east coast friends.  Carolyn posted about our meet up and shopping day last week. I had a great weekend, but a few days later I came down with a very bad head cold. Today I am still not 100 percent but feeling much better.

When I arrived at the hotel on Friday night (1-13-17), I joined Andrea, Gaylen, and Carolyn for dinner.  We had a wonderful visit and discussed how we would shop the Garment Center on Saturday.  Of course, our first stop would be Mood Fabrics.

This was my first shopping experience in the physical store.  Let me tell you, it is huge.  If your in NY, you should check it out.  My fabric haul was heavy.  So I just had them ship it to me.  Our mini shopping spree also included stops at:  SIL Threads, Chic, Pracific Trimming, and Spandex House were I purchased more fabric and other sewing goodies.  It was a fun day of shopping.  There were many, many stores in the area, but too many to stop by in a short period of time.  Carolyn was so good about mapping out some great spots to hit during our day of shopping.

After a very hard day of work, I mean shopping, we  went to Rosa Mexicano for dinner.  A few more ladies join us:  Sheila and Olgalyn.  We had a fantastic time and I couldn't believe the weekend was nearly over.  I wanted to stay for at least two more days.

We made the trek back to the hotel.  Most of the sewing ladies headed back to the homes.  Andrea and I spent one more night at the hotel.

Then on Sunday morning we palled around New York city.  Andrea and parted our ways as I got into the taxi to head for the airport.  I smiled and chuckled as I reflected on the great time I had with my friends.  A special group of friends that I would have never known.  I first met most of them on the internet through blogging and social media.  A lot of bad can be say about the internet and social media, but there is also a lot of good to be say as well.  What I know for sure, these things have made it possible to establish friendships across vast bodies of water hundreds, thousands of miles away.

Parting Shot:  Me pictured with Eric owner of Mood.  Great Guy!

Happy Sewing!
C

Alaska, The Beautiful

 

At last I'm able to post a blog about my vacation to Alaska. ( I've been under the weather since I returned eight days ago.) Most of my life I've dreamed about the days when I'd be able to travel to all the wonderful places of the world.  During my early days at the University of Illinois at Chicago, I used to make the travel arrangements for the Research Services Program Coordinators (late 1980's).  Back in those days we had to pick up the airline tickets at Hobbit Travels.  With each visit to Hobbit Travel I would pick up a different brochure about an exotic place to visit.

On August 24th, eleven of us set out to visit Alaska, the beautiful. We flew to Seattle, Washington.  The very next day, we set sail aboard the Explorer of the Sea (Royal Caribbean).  I was super excited and each time I thought of how grand it was to go to Alaska, my heart was over-joyed.  It felt like Christmas morning.  I also recognize not many people of the world get to vacation very far from home.

In Seattle we lodged at the Mediterranean Inn.  It's a modest hotel with very good accommodations.  I didn't do must sight-seeing or shopping there. 

 But we did eat at a great little mom and pop restaurant called "Mecca Cafe and Bar".  Mmm, Mmm good food at a reasonable price.  Unfortunately, we did not make it to the Pike marketplace.  But there is always next time.

Our first stop in Alaska was Juneau.  From a distance, the mountain sides appeared to be covered with grass, instead of endless rows of evergreens.

We all booked an excursion for Mt Robert Tramway.  The tramway takes you high up the mountain side where you can shop and hike the trail.  I was scared to ride the tramway, just a few cables to hold the car as it ascended way above the evergreen canopy.  Lucky me, we had a singer aboard to help keep me distracted.  It worked for a little while..,

At destination, I breathed a sigh of relief and hoped to see an eagle or some majestic wild life.  No sightings, but I had a good, short hike up the mountain.

Our next port of call was Skagway, Alaska.  We chose to take the White Pass train up the mountain.  For three and half hours, we learned about the railroad, the search for gold, and the lives of the people who came to Alaska in the early 1900's.  I couldn't imagine life back then, harsh weather and harsh living conditions.

Ms. Bunny

My Cousin Gerri

Retired section of the Railroad

For those days at sea it was festive aboard the ship.  There was plenty to eat and drink around the clock.  There were shows, shopping, music, and dancing.

Trina and Me

Enough fun to be had by all.  From the dining areas and from our balcony we saw whales. And there were sea loins swimming near by.

Tracy Arm-Fords

The next stop was to be Tracy Arm-Fords, but the area was unsafe.  So the captain took us to another location so that we could see the glaciers.

We arrived at 6:30 am.  Out on the balcony, I was able to behold the beautiful of this most frigid part of the world.  It was amazing beautiful.  How could it be.  It was like a movie. 

Our final stop, before heading back to Seattle, was Victoria, Canada.  Lovely, clean, and quite the touristy location.  We took a tour bus through the town, did some shopping, and eat at the "Dog Gone It" hot dog restaurant at Government and Humboldt.

The weather forecast was between 52 and 76 degrees.  We were lucky to have a sunny day at Juneau.  There was rain and overcast in Skagway and Victoria.  This time of year, a coat was certainly needed.  Layering was the best approach to prepare for the Alaskan weather conditions.

I'm very pleased with my little tour of Alaska and hope I get to visit the other side someday. 

Cousin Train and Me Again

 God is good!
C