Always Room for a Hat

Sun Hat
Scalloped Hem Jacket
Pirate Pants
Wrap Belt
Lace-edged Blouse

Photograph: Robert Lucy
Labor Day Weekend. Summer's last hurrah has been a generous wave of heat and humidity.

Autumn is on the way.

A sun hat, sandals and lightweight linen (blouse, pants). A jacket to usher in the season.

A hat hook on the exterior of a building?! (A matter of perspective.)

On the Road

Suitcase of Self-made Garments, 2011

In Grand Central station, board a train heading north. The Hudson line travels alongside the water. Beyond the city the view thorough the window transforms into a wide expanse of moving river. On the far bank stand masses of trees in lavish color. Have brought mending along and alternate between it and gazing out the window.

When sewing sometimes I listen to stories (Fresh Air, This American Life, the Moth) and music. This is song is both-- it's about sewing!
Coat of Many Colors by Dolly Parton



Blue Batiste Skirt

Amy and I went to Prospect Park yesterday where the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. There were wedding parties posing for photographs,  parents photographing their children and of course flowers and trees were photographed with abandon. The ground was dappled with sunlight. It was joyous.

I photographed Amy by a lavish sea of tulips--yellow, red, crimson all bright and seemingly happy. As I stood on the petal strewn lawn Amy took this photograph.

I had finished the cotton batiste skirt that afternoon. It has a zipper closure in the back, sewn  in place by hand because machine stitches lay too heavily on the breeze-like batiste. A discarded linen sheet was made into this blouse, a left-over piece of cloth became a sash. (How comfortable it is to wear a sash. The quasi-weightlifter's belt has merit outside of the gym.) The hat, made with a deep crown, initially seemed too big. Having discovered it is possible to put my hair up under the hat it has now become a favorite. Hats were the first step in making a completely homemade wardrobe.