phew times t-w-o!

this past week has been quite the whirlwind, with so much going on that i don't know where to begin! i have been surrounded by enormous amounts of inspiration and knowledge. tuesday nite i was oh-so glad to attend the 100-year 'birthday' party for cone mills, a textile manufacturer here in greensboro. they had more than 200 designers travel in for the multi-day event, and a lot of them came in to the store to look at our archival fabrics and in particular our vintage denims. the party was held in an amazing (imagine exposed brick walls juxtaposing handcarved primitive seating) industrial space downtown and there were lots of denim overalls and jackets on display from the forties. let's talk about breathtaking! each garment was sandwiched between plexiglass and suspended from the ceiling so that the viewer could see both sides. the detailing and beautiful handstitched patches and alterations made each piece unique, and the entire event really solidified my interest in the field of museum studies. on wednesday we went to the white oak plant, where we got to see the cone archives they have begun to assemble for their customers. documents and records from the 'beginning of time' along with original denims and also some reproductions made with original machinery. *guuuuuuuuush* if only i had a digital camera...it's only a matter of time. but if you visit the website for cone mills, you can check out 'denim 101,' which has lots of info including a diagram of jeans and a glossary of terms associated with denim production. i am particularly fascinated with vintage denims because of the modern jeans created to be exact copies or close cousins. those paper denim and cloth's you've been lusting after...wouldn't you love to snag an original pair, one no one else would have?! i know i sure would!

thursday nite i saw the lovely ms loretta lynn at merlefest! this was only my second visit to merlefest, and it was a chilly mountain-y nite. ms loretta had lost her voice on the way to wilkesboro, and her daughters peggy and patsy (love those names!) came out to sing a few songs for her first. once she came out she played a lot of the classics including 'coal miner's daughter' and 'fist city,' and played a few songs off the new album. to be so spunky and dedicated at age 70+ is definately an inspiration!

i spent last nite in winston-salem, at the secca opening as well as doing a little bar-hopping. i cannot reccomend the new exhibits at secca enough! the carrie mae weems is naturally a must-see, but i feel like the outsider/folk art exhibit, Create and Be Recognized: Photography on the Edge. i was most fascinated by the photo montages of eugene von bruenchenhein and the eerie dolls by morton bartlett, in addition to the kitschy collages by joe '40,000' murphy. i'm definately planning a trip to secca again real soon, so let me know if you want to tag along! the exhibition catalogue will be a purchase i'm making soon as well. raw vision also has some great info on the topic.

there are so many things in greensboro, as i'm sure in every town out there, that seem to go unnoticed, and events happen and the turnout is low or people just aren't aware of them. it makes me sad to think about things i myself miss out on. it's kinda like all those books at the library that i'll never get a chance to read! overwhelming to say the least!

i've got so much to catch up on, sewing-wise. a long awaited birthday gift to finish, as well as tons of flap stuff. i've been talking to a few online consignment shops this week --- i couldn't be more excited about the prospects. and ice-atlanta is just six weeks away!