Monday, June 29, 2009

My Older-Than-God Commercials Reel

I was prompted last week to upload the demo reel of the commercials and video/film projects I worked on in the late 80's and early 90's. A "reel" is a compilation of commercials (also known as "spots") and other shortish projects worked on that show the capabilities of a particular filmmaker. This one runs a bit over 9 minutes - enjoy it if you can...Actually, the pieces I am most proud of are the ones I edited. Skip past the director and producer segments and go straight for the gold in the editor's section.



Hmmm... it's missing some of my best stuff... must shovel out the hovel and find the other reel...

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Chirimen Jacket

The other day I found a gorgeous chirimen jacket at a consignment shop. Although it was a P for Petite and I am an E for Enormous, I bought it to study the details and hopefully recreate it in a larger size. It is fully reversible with a lightweight black nylon shell and has welt pockets (both inside and out).


But what really interested me was the padded collar; it is padded because it has a rain hood inside! Look at the beautiful delicate zipper pull - I almost didn't see it.












At Fabric Tales there are some lovely offerings of rayon and polyester chirimen fabrics.
In case you are unfamiliar with chirimen, it is that uniquely textured crepe from Japan that comes in either silk, rayon or polyester. Polyester chirimen is washable but doesn't have quite the fine silky feel as the silk or rayon versions. The rayon and silk versions are usually in shorter widths like 25-27 inches (63-70 cm), but the polys are usually 43-45 inches wide (110-114cm).
I can't decide between this polyester fabric Floral Snow Rings on Charcoal which is here












or the Ume Blossoms fabric which is here.








The truth is I wish I could order one already made from the designers. But I have looked all over the web and cannot find this jacket in their offerings for this year...and I've had no luck on eBay either.

As a side note, check out the patterned fabric cords on the Fabric Tales site...

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

St. John's Day, 2004

June 24th is St. John's Day and often you can find St. John's Wort blooming around here at this time of year. 5 years ago, it was on this day that my mother, Dr. Sybil G. deGroot passed away. She was 78 years old.

My mom was one of the most remarkable people you could ever meet; in her youth she had been a Rockette at the Radio City Music Hall, later she became the first woman in the U.S. to hold a Doctorate in Engineering Psychology (which is also known as Human Factors and Ergonomics).

To try to sum up her brilliant life and career in just a few sentences seems so inadequate and trite. After 5 years I still can't find the words. Even what I wrote in my book isn't enough:

"Those who knew her will agree, my mother led a most remarkable life. Highly intellectual and only sometimes circumspect about it, she was a curious blend of scientist and social butterfly. Her eyes flashed sage green whether engaged in scholarly pursuit or dancing a fandango on the neighbor's coffee table. I will always miss her."

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

I'm Thrilled!

My book just received a lovely review from Crafty Pod!

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Beaded Buddha Embroidery

Happy Solstice to one and all!

I picked up Sherry Serafini and Heidi Kummli's The Art of Bead Embroidery: Techniques, Designs & Inspirations book the other day because I have long admired their artwork. Here's my first attempt at following one of their designs; I'm not going to make a bracelet out of it but rather use it as a centerpiece for a micro-macrame neckpiece.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Elf Slippers - A Must Have!



Who can resist nice warm felted wool elf slippers? I can't. I had to have them - I ordered a pair in purple from mommayaya on etsy. I think they will look quite lovely with my teal-colored fingernails, don't you?