Paris est vivant!

 Yes, Paris is alive 

and from the looks of it still kicking.

Paris and all that she stands for

cannot be killed.

Paris is beauty, 

romance, adventure, friendship,

refinement, food, art, 

connection, intimacy, life,

and most important,

love.

My heart is broken.

My heart goes out to Paris.

My heart goes out to humanity.

And the tragedy of Friday, November 13th

has simply opened my heart to loving Paris more.

Paris is mystery.

Paris is light.

And the Seine flows.

I look forward to returning to Paris in the Spring --

connecting with friends,

visiting my favorite places,

eating good food,

laughing at my poor French language skills,

sitting in cafes.

You can't kill love.

Paris, Étonnez Moi

Great gratitude for the opportunity

to wander Paris 

with two groups of wonderful women

and continue to be amazed.

An abundance of riches —

delicious food, fine wine,

satisfying shopping,

visual feasting,

a riot of laughing

and new friends.

Rain was rare

and added to the magic.

We took silly selfies,

meandered in Montmartre,

gushed over charming puppies,

posed with the Eiffel Tower,

enjoyed Chopin on the street,

visited with bladers on the bridge,

Chris, Karen and Marcy 

Kate

Brooks and Dana

played on the plinths in the Palais Royale,

Alber Albez/Lanvin exhibition

Alber Albez/Lanvin exhibition

Alber Albez/Lanvin exhibition

Dominique, Marcy and Debra

inhaled the gift of Alber Albez's creativity ,

 photographed our shadow,

'licked' some windows,

looked in some windows,

Painting by Faith Ringgold

Detail by Faith Ringgold

found the best piece in the Picasso Mania show

by Faith Ringgold,

watched an artist sketch Sacre Coeur,

Bench by Lee Kwang-ho

Light fixture by Lee Kwang-ho

viewed the Korea Now exhibit,

Marcy, Louise, Jennifer and Jill

and enjoyed cafe life.

Je suis stupéfié!

Paris Postcards

An autumn day at Giverny

Blue sky pond reflecting

the final burst of leafy chroma.

Flea market fun with Ruth and Jenny. 

 Photos and playing in the Palais Royale.

 Judi, Sherry and Carmen 

installed on the installation.

Stone sculpture in the gardens.

Dye colors at the couture flower house.

Cheryl, Ruth, Debra and Marcy
enjoy the flowers.

Contemporary textiles from the

Korea Now exhibition

at Musée des Arts Décoratifs.

A marvelous mix of old

and new textile techniques

with a different point of view. 

Wish you were here!

Sensate Paris

After a hot dry summer in Oregon

the rain in Paris is welcome.

Streets and greenery shine

and the air smells fresh.

Sometimes in Paris one is gifted

with a peek into a tended courtyard.

Food for the eye

as tasty and sweet as a macaron!

A surprise concert outside our hotel.

Harmonious sounds swirling

through the street;

auditory leaves of resonance wrapping round.

Selfies in the gelato shop

can't convey the taste

and perfect texture 

of our delectable dessert.

A decadent den of deliciousness.

Concept shop Merci

is always on the edge of something new;

presently featuring vintage 

English Navy coats and jackets

in scratchy wool serge with

shiny brass buttons.

Pricy chic.

But then Paris

is never stingy...

Butterick 6253 - Three Tiered Jacket

A girlie hoodie! Butterick 6253

Winter will come

and before it Autumn

with her clear scent and fresh chill.

Time to make some warm things...

Back View of Butterick 6523

This pattern combines
the practicality of a sweatshirt,
having the warmth and comfort I crave,
with a flattering feminine fit
and simple construction.

I've not yet worn the hood up
but I like the extra weight and warmth
of it on the back of my neck.

Suitable fabrics include
classic sweatshirt fleece (grey),
beefy Ponte (red), 
French Terry, 
light to medium weight polar fleece
or one of the new quilted knits (white).

All fabrics available from
MarcyTilton.com
of course!

Some Stitching Tips for View A & B

If you are making View C
the seams are sewn to the inside as usual.

Views A and B utilize the cut raw edge
of a fabric like fleece or Ponte.
The edges overlap
for a more textured effect.

Use a row of pins to mark the overlap line edge.

To make the gathering of the tiers easy,
I first stitch a double row of gathering stitches
on the top of each tier.
I want them to be about 1/4" from each other
on either side of the topstitching line
because I am going to use a double needle
for the topstitching down the center.

I mark a line with pins for the top of the tier
so things stay straight.
My line is 1" from the cut edges because 
I use 1/2" seam allowances.

Tiers pinned and ready to be stitched together.

Double needle topstitching.

Stitch down the center of the gathering lines,
removing pins as you go.
It might look like too many pins
but it works well for me
keeping the stitching easy
and straight.

Ties coming out of hood edge.

The hood is pretty straightforward.
I like to thread the ties through the placket
before I stitch the placket closed.
Here you can see that I edged
the inside placket edge
 with the same ribbon
that is used for the tie.

Finish the hood's inside seams.

Since the seams on the inside of the hood
will be visible when the hood is down
I finished these seams with some hand sewing.
The edges were rolled under
and slipstitched in place.

The zen of hand sewing appeals
to me more as I do more.
Relaxing, 
satisfying,
calming.


Don't Like the Hood?

The hood can be fashioned into a collar.
Use the width around the neck
that the pattern pieces provide.
Trim the depth of the hood pieces to about 3-1/2," 
plus seam allowance on the neck edge,
plus top hem depth.
A placket for ties can be included 
providing a nice design element.

Happy sewing!