What Swoodson Said - Week of 2/27/15

Read/Shop/See Links, Social Sewing Calendar Updates, Blog Post Recaps, & Shop News

Hi! So, you were probably surprised to get a newsletter yesterday full of things... that don't exist yet! I debated sending a separate email apologizing, but decided three emails in two days was too many. I AM SORRY! I'm scheduling things out in advance in preparation for baby, and got a little too excited. So, now you know what will be coming up in April! Again, I'm truly sorry - please forgive me! -Stephanie Read: "10 Success Stories of People Who Refused To Quit Pursuing Their Dreams" on Grease and Glamour is a neat look at famous folks who didn't 'hit it big' until they were at least in their mid-twenties. The 'success stories' are actually just simple quotes - short and sweet. "Reality Show Sends Fashion Bloggers to Work in Cambodian Sweatshop" by  Jasmin Malik Chua on Ecouterre. I've been thinking more on consumption, fast fashion, and sewing after reading the book Overdressed (blog post forthcoming) and this fits in perfectly. Who is making our clothes, and why do we all think we need so many clothes for so cheap? Shop: This owl print is haunting and pretty at the same time, it would be perfect in the right bedroom or study! From Inameliart on Etsy. Land of Nod has such fun stuff and I wish my budget allowed for more of it in our house! I love their spring 'Chromatic' line, especially the Half Dot Garland. See: I've been thinking more about printmaking recently (you can see a hand-carved stamp I experimented with last year, here) and I thought this method, and pattern, by Karen Barbe for Whip Up was unique and cool. I don't even know how quite to describe it, so go check it out yourself. "The World’s First Glow-In-The-Dark Bike Path Inspired by Van Gogh" by Nanette Wong for Design Milk. Exactly what the title describes; this is so breath-taking. This is by far the cheapest DIY idea I've ever shared - it cost me $0! A really fast, easy toy to make for your kid to experiment with. A few days after I took these photos, my son took great delight in ripping the circles off the ends while shouting "RIPPPPP"; normally destruction of blog projects would bug me but not this one!   Have you heard of the book Overdressed by Elizabeth Cline? It looks at fast fashion and the modern relationship between clothes and shopping, offering sewing as a solution to the problems. I enjoyed the book, even though it presented things that are hard to think about, but I think there are some issues with sewing and consumption as well. I'd love to know what you think, you can read my post here. My monthly craft/sewing book review is up today, and it's a cute one! Talking about "Wee Wonderfuls" by Hillary Lang - read what I thought and see what I made. This week I added these events to the social sewing calendar: 'Inside Out' Challenge with The Monthly Stitch 'Passion' with Le Challenge Make It Mine Design Challenge with Whimsical Fabric Easter Sew Along with Whimsical Fabric