Thank You

Today was the last business day of 2011, and it was a good day. As you know, it's been a crazy year. I closed the old shop and opened at the new location. Then, the accident happened. But, it turned to be the sweetest year too. I am so grateful for your love and support. People are sending me warm wishes for my boy's recovery. We've been receiving emails, cards, sweet treats, and even homemade dinner. You guys are so sweet. Thank you!!! He is doing very well and wants to tell you all THANK YOU. He had some friends over yesterday and the first thing they said was "wow, you look normal." Yeah, they had seen him at the hospital :-) The wounds on his face are almost gone, and it is hard to tell that he went through a head surgery just last week as long as he has a hat on. So, thank you again for all your support and we wish you a very happy new year.

i look up the window before getting in the car and there they are. my driving force...
bye mom...they send me off for work everyday from the window...
i know dash is missing to go to work with me, but i ordered him to keep the boy company at home and he is doing a great job :-)

Echo

I'm afraid that I might have ruined your sewing plans for the holidays because of the boy's accident. I know one lady was checking almost everyday to see if I received the whole collection of Echo. I was expecting lots of shipments last week, but because of the accident I had to ask my neighbor to receive my packages. Driving back and forth from the hospital, I picked up the packages, but I had to leave them in the shop without unpacking them until yesterday. So here it is! The whole collection is available (some prints are not photographed here). I have many ideas to make things with these. A bag. A table runner. A tunic. A pillow. A modern quilt would be very nice too. Or maybe a new table cloth to welcome a new year. Endless possibilities...

Open on Tuesday December 27

Just to let you know the shop is open today until 5pm...

Christmas Day

Thank you so much for your warm thoughts. He enjoyed reading your comments. Speaking of a helmet, he totally agrees with wearing it. On the second night in the hospital, he was sitting down on his bed staring in the air. I could see there were tears in his eyes. He wasn't feeling well that night and the tears were because of how sorry he was not wearing a helmet. He has one, but he just didn't wear it all the time. And I didn't force him either. He'll be writing a story on this accident for his school paper and be an ambassador to educate others to wear a helmet once he is able to go back to school. But he quits skating, he said :-)

So we had a pretty quiet Christmas. We needed to stay low at home. It was very nice. The boy gets tired pretty easily and has headaches once in a while, but he is doing well. He took a shower for the first time since Tuesday, and I gave him a little hair trim on the sides and back. It still looks pretty funny, but we don't care. He needs to shave it all at once after his stitches heal so it grows back evenly. Hope your day was filled with lots of love too.

opened the presents and cards...

played with the dog...during this crazy time, dash was being babysat by grandma and grandpa in santa cruz. he loves spending time at their place, but it seems that grandma and grandpa are enjoying his company more :-) every time he comes back home, he has new toys and clothes. during their regular morning walks, they had quite a lot of compliments on his christmas collar, grandma told us :-)
more playing...i think he looks pretty handsome in this sweater...
went for a short and slow walk and found this little branch on the sidewalk...
so the three of us reunited since tuesday (a christmas gift for me!), and guess who was happier than anybody else to see the boy at home...

dash: what?

One Lucky Boy

I don't feel so comfortable talking about things too personal here since I can't be anonymous, but this has been effecting the shop's business hours. So I decided to write...

This was the view from my boy's hospital room. He had been hospitalized since Tuesday. He had a serious head injury called Epidural Hematoma while he was skateboarding. It was the second day of winter break. He was skating alone at school and fell pretty badly. He called me at work panicking, and while I was on the way, one of his teachers came to work and found him bleeding on his face. She called 911 and when I got there, he was already in the paramedic's care. I left my car there and went to SF General in the ambulance with them. My long day started since then. Being in an ER was crazy, but they were an amazing team! They didn't waste a second and made sure not only the boy was looked after, but that I was feeling okay as well. He was conscious all those hours, so we were positive about his condition. But after CAT scan, they found that his skull was fractured and there was internal bleeding. They had to stop the bleeding and remove the clot right away. The neurosurgeon team quickly arrived and explained to me what needed to be done. Yes, there were some risks that scared the hell out of me. After everything was over, I was told what saved his life was that he received the medical treatments very quickly from the fall to the surgery. If his teacher didn't see him at the accident site and call 911, he could have been dead, his doctor told him. Everyone said he was very lucky. He has wounds all over his body and face. His left side face is so swollen that he can hardly open his left eye. And he will have a huge scar on his head for the rest of his life. But,the important thing is that he is ALIVE! That's all matters. He is recovering remarkably and came home yesterday. He needs to rest and recover at home for the next few weeks. So this was the reason for the emergency sign if you saw it on the door. And my apologies to those who traveled to the shop and found out that the shop was closed. Thanks for understanding and I wish you all happy and safe holidays.

***The shop will be closed on December 24, 25, 26.
Lucky to be alive! Wear a helmet, everyone. Peace out!

Bike Shirt

I know it is not seasonally appropriate, but this is something I was working on. A bike shirt for the boy. I felt more comfortable sewing a collar this time. He liked the print. I handled the button holes well. I even put my label on. He tried it on. It looked great on him except that it was a couple of inches too short for him. Noooooooo :-( Lesson learned...I will not cut the fabric pieces and leave them for more than a month. The kid grows like a weed. I will have to make another one soon.

boy: am i done yet? i gotta catch the bus. the guys are waiting...

Made in Japan

Echo

I know many of you have been asking if I have received Lotta Jansdotter's Echo. I've been waiting for this collection since July. I will be receiving all the prints from the collection soon, but today I only received these in the photo. The rest of them should arrive next week, probably Tuesday. As usual, her designs are simple, modern, and Scandinavian. There are a plenty of fabrics which are described as simple and modern, but her stuff just stands out. You know what I mean? Who doesn't love her stuff? All the Japanese do (she is huge in Japan)! I can't wait to receive the rest of the collection.

Cupcakes and Ornaments

okay, the tree is up and my holiday baking spirit is upon me again this time of the year. I made those last night for Santa :-)

cupcakes and christmas ornaments...aren't they cute together?
well, my regular little guys are here again...

Home

Yes, I know it's December, but I'm not feeling it this year. I'm usually quick at switching gears from fall to winter around the house, but I've been very slow this year. Our door is still decorated with a leaf garland, and the pumpkins are still sitting by its side. Yeah, I took out our tiny tree out from the closet, but it's sadly standing there without ornaments. The only place we feel Christmas spirit is on the cabinet in the entryway where I created a winter wonderland. Have you seen the December cover? It's still not complete. I don't know if I am ever going to get any corner of my home ready for the holidays. Is your home ready for the holidays?

Open on Tuesday, December 6

Just had a cup of cream corn soup. The shop will be open today. See you soon...

Sew & Tell - Mariko's Book Covers

So I've noticed many of you started sewing for holiday gifts. It's good to start early. Here is something to give you some ideas if you are not sure what to make for your bookworm friend. It seems that Mariko reads a lot, and these paperback covers are great for her to protect her books. In Japan, when you buy a paperback, they will put a cover which is made of craft paper with the bookstore's name on it instead of putting it in a merchandise bag. So, many paperback readers who are crafty usually make a fabric paperback cover to replace the one which came with the book. Make sense? Their paperbacks are all universal in size, and this is why paperback covers are common things to sew (you might have seen a book cover as a project in many Japanese craft books). The cover also provides privacy. Sometimes you don't want other people to know what you are reading in public, right? Mariko's book covers are adjustable to the volume of the books and have built in bookmarks. Isn't it clever? Thank you, Mariko!

Sew & Tell - Eva's Cupcake Duo

So it wasn't just Francine's family who was moving out of the city. Soon Peapod will loose another loyal customer :-( Well, luckily she will be an hour and half away. Eva took a little break from sewing as her sewing machine was still packed in the box from her previous move. She didn't want to unpack things because she found out that her family will be moving again soon. But, she couldn't go on with her life without her lovely sewing machine any longer. So she took it out of the box, then boom, the sewing bug took over. The first thing she made after a reunion with her machine was a cupcake dress for her little girl. Then she had a little left over. Not big enough to make anything, you think? No, it was plenty to make a patchwork skirt for the wise mom. This one is for her second little girl. They are as sweet as cupcakes! Thank you, Eva and remember it's just an hour and half :-)

Sew & Tell - Francine's Kimono Top

One of the fun things about seeing people's projects is to see their little ones grow when they come to show me what they made for them. Many times the little ones were still in their mom's womb kicking their arms and legs. Elia is one of the little ones whom I've seen grow since she was still in her stroller. Her mom, Francine loved making this kimono style top for her and her little sister, and they are famous for being purple lovers :-) Here she is again Elia is in her purple kimono top looking very pretty. It's just so amazing to see how the girl has "matured." I remember her as a shy little girl speaking all in French back then, but now she is a bright girl speaking very articulate English. I am just so sad that I won't see her family again. The day after this photo was taken they moved to the East Coast. Girls, thank you again for all these years and best of luck to you and your family. And thank you for the daisies too. Love them!

Sew & Tell - Heather's Play Suit

I hear that it is not exciting to sew for boys all the time. There is not much to sew for them because all they need are t-shirts and pants. Also, there are not many sewing patterns available for boys either...good ones at least. But, wait. Do not forget Oliver + S. Their designs are classic with a bit of a twist to make them cuter, like this Play Suit. With her excellent choice of fabric combination, Heather did such a wonderful job here. I love her choice of royal blue piping. It makes a huge difference! I remember that Heather and I talked about skipping this detail when she wasn't sure what to choose for piping, but she made the right decision. Yes, it seems like a tiny detail, but it is up to you to make the outcome more advanced looking if you take the time and love like Heather did. Thank you, Heather! It is beautiful!

Cabinet Makeover

So I found this cabinet on Craigs List during the summer for my entryway to hide the "stuff." It's perfect to hold the dog walking stuff like plastic bags and gloves, and small stuff like extra keys. And also it's perfect to put those shoes away. I went to pick it up down the Peninsula, and it had been sitting in the front porch ever since. The makeover progress was very slow as I was manually sanding it on my day offs for the past few months. But, one warm Monday in early fall I finally finished it. I had a few different shades of black paint left over and I planned to paint it in classic black that I chose for my night stand a while back, but I realized it was the wrong color after a couple of drawers were painted. I kept painting the pieces knowing it wasn't the color I wanted for this cabinet. But, in the end I am pretty happy with the way it turned out.

the yellow fabric in the frame is just temporary and i am currenly working on something for the wall...

before...

i was originally going to replace the hardware too, but i like the way this antique brass looks against this black...