and pigs flew over the moon

hey what's that i smell -
might there be a souvenir
for me those bags??

- baxter, 3.75 years old, sniffing the air as his mom unpacked some of her supply goodies from the NYC portion of her trip.







Talk to me about my trips to New York City and there almost always be three things you'll hear about. The fabulous food, the moments of inspiration, and the shopping. Of course the shopping. Most definitely the shopping. Most of the time there's a story about how Robin and I bought an entire roll or three or four of this or that in the garment district and lugged it down the street to the closest avenue and tried for minutes to hail a cab that would accept both us and our unruly belongings. And I'll gush at how we found wonderful shirtings for song or sumptuous velvets and unusual woolens perfect for making who knows what. But not this time. This time, this trip to NYC, pigs most definitely flew. Not a yard of fabric did we purchase, not a single fabric store did we grace with our ever entertaining shopping ways.

But fear not, our single shopping day in NYC was still spent in and around the garment district, focused as we were on finding wonderful trims and beads and metal findings and supplies. Our craft, I've come to realize with verbal clarity, is not only built on fabric, but ornamentation. And our success lies in having tons and tons of both from which we can mix and match and create to our hearts' content.

And so Robin and I had a blast, spending hours in the bead and trim stores, and soaking up the information so generously offered while we filled our basket with cool vintagey filigrees and jewelry making supplies at the metals store.

A peek at some of the goodies I brought home, most of which will eventually find their way on to purses and serged cashmere scarves, but some that will work their way into new experiments in adornment that I can't wait to start when summer finally says goodbye.