sewing: grey jersey top

I have been sewing a lot these last days and finally got round to taking the first pictures.

I made this top this morning, it was incredibly quick to make.
It has kimono sleeves and consists of only three pattern pieces.
I made it of a very soft and stretchy grey jersey and it's very comfortable.
The pattern is Vogue 8534. I'd definitely recommend it.

the where & what

so this is where and how I spend my days these days:

1 my new desk and sewing space. I've been sewing a lot this last week.
2 watermelon keeps me cool when it's hot and while I'm updating my portfolio.
3 uten.silo is my favourite piece of furniture. T gave it to me for my birthday last year.
4 little naps at any time of the day. just because I can.
5 lots of iced coffee and lots of reading. just finished "any human heart" by william boyd. very much recommended.
6 the radiator in our flat apartment (am trying hard to americanize my british english) is probably older than I am.

dia:Beacon - Richard Serra

Richard Serra's works were definitely one of the highlights.
It's difficult to describe their power in words.

After the exhibition we had a little picnic and a nap on the lawn in front of the museum.
I'd very much recommend a visit.

dia:Beacon - Sol LeWitt

we took a little trip up the Hudson to dia:Beacon last Sunday.

The spaces are absolutely amazing, with more natural light than you could ever imagine.

Sol LeWitt's works were amazing. I'm a friend of pretty much any kind of geometrical lines on white ground,
but the scale of these was just breathtaking.

the guggenheim

we went to the guggenheim last saturday night to see the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibition before it closed on sunday.
surprisingly we were not the only people to have that idea, so we queued around the block for half an hour.

I had been to the museum on one of my previous visits to NYC but it had been wrapped in scaffolding at the time.
I was amazed when I saw the smooth white shape of the spiral appear as we approached the museum.
It is an incredibly powerful building.
and oh, yes, the exhibition was very nice too.

goodbye London

so this is the very last picture I took in London.
It's not very London-specific but it looks so summery
and reminds me of my last time in Hyde Park.

back in time: london

on my penultimate day in London two weeks ago I went to see this year's Serpentine Pavilion
by Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of SANAA (who I love).

I really liked the pavilion. it's not a big loud design statement,
it creates a quiet place between the trees that is protected from the sun,
but it still makes you interact with it, and walk around it and look at from all different angles.

back in time: berlin

I didn't take a lot of pictures in Berlin, too busy chatting with my best friend A
who I had not seen for almost a year.
The four days I spent there were full of perfect summer weather, cycling
and several trips to the Badeschiff for cooling off.
A tried to assure me that Berlin is not always this nice.

But seriously, I have no idea why anyone would want to live anywhere else.

woke up in Brooklyn the other morning

I arrived at my final destination last Thursday.
It feel so good to have arrived after all the travelling and all the saying goodbye.
It feels good to not sleep on friends' sofas any more, but in my own bed,
to be living with most of my books, things, and my sewing machines again.

New York is incredibly hot compared to the London summer, but I'm constantly being
told that it can (and will) get much hotter, and much more humid. I'm a bit scared!

I have lots of catching up to do with pictures and emails.
See you round here very soon!

the sea

last thursday by the baltic sea where my parents live.
I miss it already!

blue

pretty colours in today's last light

thanks mom!

lovely food at my parents' place this week.

abney park

I found abney park last saturday while wandering around stoke newington.
it fit my mood perfectly, being a bit confused after leaving my job on friday, and about to leave London.

Germany is very nice so far, the weather is great and I'm being fed home cooked food and home made cakes all the time.
I caught a pretty bad cold somewhere on the way here, but that's a good excuse to take lots of naps in the sun.
I've been pretty lazy about taking any pictures, which is a shame but also very relaxing!

I'm going to Hamburg this afternoon to see some friends
and look forward to going to Berlin on Friday.
It's so nice not to be at work!