Zero Waste Shorts

Inspired by Timo Rissanen (Fashion Creation Without Fabric Waste Creation), I managed to cut out a top, a bias skirt and this pair of shorts with just 3 yards of 54" wide linen.  There are no scraps bigger than 6" square after I was through.

The eagle-eyed may see where I pieced together the waistband piece.

I didn't have enough left over for pockets, but I found a lighter-weight coordinating cotton madras in my collection.

It's not terribly exciting, but it is comfy and suitable for bicycle-commuting.  I don't necessarily want to wear spandex bike shorts when I walk from my bicycle locker, through the main courtyard, across the cafeteria, up the stairs, down the hall, across my department main office bay, in front of my boss and our secretary...

My only beef with it is that it would be easier to ride if the shorts were shorter.

But then they wouldn't be safe for work...

At first, they looked like baggy pajamas, but I trimmed the crotch depth 1/4" at the CB, 1/2" at the sides and 3/4" at the CF at the top edge.  It isn't noticeable in the side view, but it improves the overall fit.

I can't believe that Butterick 5358 is discontinued already.  I originally bought it for the cool tied pants, only to discover they were some sort of weird applique thingy.  The pleated and pull-on shorts and capris are nice, though. 

It was a quick project, 2-3 hours total, including time fussing with the crotch depth.

Pattern Review is here.
Zero Waste design in the NY Times.

Down at the Creek

Lair means hanging out at the creek and wearing tie-dye (and being eaten by mosquitoes).  Our creekside location virtually guarantees we will be bitten, but we love our cabin anyway.  We spent an entire morning, sitting on our secret flat rock in the middle of the creek, playing with watercolors.  Don't tell the EPA, but we cleaned our brushes when switching colors by dipping them in the creek.

At Camp Blue, there are different neighborhoods, each with their pros and cons.  We've nicknamed them "beachfront" (creekside), "theater district" (campfire area) and no one name has stuck for the hillside.  Some people like "the heights", some like "hillside village", others don't like village and call it "hillside estates"; but I like "azure heights".  What do you think?

Back From Camp 2010

We are back from Lair, caught up with laundry and unpacked (mostly).

The wildflowers were disappointing. Breathing Treatment went week 2 (late June) and the flowers hadn't peaked yet. Another coworker went week 4 (early July) and said the wildflowers were the best since 2005-6. They looked past their peak in week 6, July 17-24.

We saw some lupines by the highway near Camp Blue; many DYCs on hikes and DWCs in camp. DYC/DWC is the scientific name for damn yellow/white composite. (Damned if I can key it!)  I painted a DWC tile to commemorate 2010. The yellow iris is from 2009. You can see other Lair commemorative tiles in A Sense of Place and Back from Camp.

We moved from week 2 to week 6, due to Iris' school and camp schedule.  We managed to keep our favorite cabin by the creek.  Coincidentally, our next door neighbors in both weeks are Stanford alums that never attended Cal.  They left their red shirts at home to better blend in.  ;-)