Look!

I found the date! 1947!

I've been busy...

...trying to clean up the house--cleaning out closets, taking bags of clothes to thrift, filing--and getting ready for classes (both grad school and the science class I teach)!

Here's my sewing closet, all neatened up. There's shelves for supplies and then then a countertop to hold my old machine and serger, with bins underneath for fabric, from Container Store

I keep my scraps in an IKEA laundry basket

My DH and I took off a day for fun, and look what I found! for $1.00! It's quite a mess, but complete. With the brand name of "McCall" not "McCall's", it's a pre-1951 pattern.

Doesn't it look nice and cool for this Texas August weather?

More about India

To back up a bit:
This is the first trek we went on, to the nomads. We travel by jeep (you can see why if you look closely at the "highway")

The Highway

Nomad PeopleThis is where the nomads live. Himalayan desert. There's only water from snow/glacier run-off. The nomads must move around as the streams dry up and the grass is eaten.

Camping---next to the goatsIn this area, the people are Tibetan Buddhist, like the Dalai Lama. There are many monasteries scattered about the mountains. Many families send one child to be a monk or a nun.

Tso (Lake) Moriri, from the top of Korzok Gompa (monastery)Then I went to Leh to wait for my DH and DS #1!

Finished painting!

Now it's time to put everything back.

I really like the pink color. It's very pale, paler even than the pic shows.

Tips for painting:

Go to This Old House website and look at their instructions: http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/house-painting

My favorite paint? Behr, from Home Depot. http://www.behr.com/ It's the best I've found (though I haven't tried those really, really expensive types.) It covers well and comes in oodles of colors. The colors samples are quite accurate, and you can buy a small amount for around $4.00 to try on your walls.

Buy really cheap, thin plastic to cover your furniture (tape it down if necessary), then buy heavier plastic sheets for the floor. I don't like canvas (as recommended by TOH)--paint can seep through! And it's much harder to get up the seepages than any splats from errant paint strokes.

Also buy those disposable paint tray liners (cheap is fine) to put inside your paint tray. So much easier than trying to scrub the paint out of the tray!

But buy a really good 1-1/2 inch angle brush to edge your walls and ceilings. Use it just like a pencil to cut in. Easier, faster, and less messy than taping your ceilings, trim, etc. Make sure you buy the right composition of brush for your paint! Use a synthetic brush for latex paint.

Paint is such an easy and inexpensive way to fix us your house. I painted my sewing room with less than a gallon of paint plus a couple of hours of prep time and 4 hours of painting!

Painting, painting, over the bounding main....

Ugghh. Last night the cats conspired to keep us up by sashaying all over the bed, purring and licking our ears and noses. This DID NOT help the jet lag.

I can't wait to show you the beautiful fabrics I purchased in Leh (India)! And to show you some more pictures of the trip!

But first, I am fixing up my sewing/study. This used to be the guest room, but two kids (excuse me, young men) out of the house, it's MINE!

Today I am painting. Then, with all the kids (ummm, young men) over tonight for dinner, I will have some help moving back the furniture!

It's PINK!

Would you like a run-down of India?

Packed & Ready to go on Trek!

After missing our flight to Delhi, it was great to see Leh!  The trek to ChangTang was wonderful. We visited with the nomads. We also visited Tso Moriri, a beautiful lake high in the Himalayas, as well as the village of Korzok nestled between the mountains and the lake.

Our first stop--campsite 

A brief stop at a village 

Our last week in Ladakh was spent in the Dah-Hanu area.  It is a very interesting place. The people, unlike those in the rest of Ladakh who derive from Tibetan lineage, are Aryan. They tell stories of their ancestors coming from Macedonia with Alexander the Great's army. Well, they certainly look and dress quite differently! Notice the long

noses and rounded eyes. And the beautiful flowers in their hair!

More pictures later!

Back from India!

Safe and sound. Actually got back late on Friday (missed a flight AGAIN!) but slept a lot of Saturday.
Can't wait to show you some of my new fabrics and to share a bit about India!