Coachella 2007 Day 2

Day 2 of Coachella was even better than Day 1, which we never thought possible. However, the day started out with us roasting in the over 100 degree weather. The first day, I wore my typical outfit of thin pants with a t-shirt. Today, I experimented with a thin cotton dress to see if that would help me beat the heat.

Hey, is that a monk's bag I see?

I also found the perfect Coachella shoes.

Waterproof Keen sandals that I had bought for our Hawaii trip - breathable, light, and great arch support.

The bands we wanted to see had a theme today - Scots and Canucks! We got to the venue at 2:30, just in time to run over and see the Fratellis. They are a trio from Glasgow whose music you may have heard in this commercial for itunes. I've been listening to their album for the past couple of weeks and it's full of fun sing-along tunes.

The temperature in the tent had to be 110-115 degrees. But we were in a group of crazy souls that danced our little hearts out. I have never sweated so much in my life! For about 20 minutes I felt about 15 years old, then the next 10 minutes about my own age, but then 5 minutes later I felt like I might need a medic. So we made our way out of the tent and listening from some great shade outside.

We rested up to catch the next band from Glasgow (which must be one of the most amazing cities for music), Travis. They have been a favorite band of ours for quite some time but we've never seen them live.

They didn't disappoint - they sounded awesome live and I can't wait for their new album.

We had to cut our Travis viewing short to go see the New Pornographers (from Canada), who we've seen before but love.

The crowd was small and we were able to make our way to the front. I always find it so interesting that some people will stake out a space for hours to see a band that's playing later. You could tell who those people are because they don't move at all, no swaying of the heads or bopping to the beat. Again, another great performance. Luckily, Rob wanted to see the next band (The Decemberists) so we didn’t have to move but I couldn't handle the heat of the crowd.

I hydrated, ate, and wandered over to the main stage and watched the hipsters grooving to Kings of Leon (I don't quite get them) while Rob watched and LOVED the Decemberists, which are a new favorite of his.

Rob said they got the crowd going and really involved them in the performances.

Including encouraging a dance party.

But then a whale ate the band!

He shot some great video that we will probably upload to YouTube sometime soon.

As Kings of Leon set came to a close, I made my way up as close as I could for the next band, Arcade Fire. It's amazing how many people ignore one Asian girl squeezing through the crowd. Arcade Fire (go Montreal!) is one of my favorite bands that I've been listening to recently. I've heard so many amazing things about their live show that I wanted to get as close as possible. Somehow, Rob managed to make his way up to me (I guess saying, "My wife is up there" helped him through some angry concert goers – too bad he's not a small Asian girl!) Next thing we knew, our friend George was two people away from us. It’s crazy that in a crowd of 60,000 people, we saw someone we knew.

Hi George and strange guy behind you!


I’ve heard Arcade Fire’s live show described as though every concert was their first one. I’ve never seen a band where all the members played with such passion and enthusiasm.

They kept switching instruments and kept the excitement level at a fever pitch. They were just amazing and I was so happy that I managed to make my way so close.

See? Happy face!

After sweating so much my hair and dress were drenched, I made my way to the side for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I think I only have the energy to give my all for two bands a day. I’ve never been a big fan of the Chili Peppers, but I feel that I have to support them because they are from LA. However, they are an old favorite of Rob’s.


One of my favorite things about Coachella is how it looks at night, with the lights, flames, tesla coils, and the moon.


At the end of day 2, we were given two items that would either make Day 3 the best time we’ve had yet or just make an interesting souvenir. What could they be?

Coachella 2007 Day 1

We interrupt the regularly scheduled programming of sewing, eating, and cat photos to bring you some Coachella posts. Regular programming will resume on Tuesday or Wednesday. :)

Last year we went to one day of the Coachella Music Festival and it almost did us in. This year, we decided to go to all THREE days of the heat and craziness that is Coachella. This is the third time we've been, so finally we've learned our lessons and had a great time on Friday.

The key to Coachella is finding the right shoes, hydrating like crazy, wearing big hats, and resting in the shade as much as possible. Oh, and staying at a hotel with a big pool and internet access. The weather forecast for the whole weekend was predicted to be in the upper 90s - yipes! In between resting, we saw some great performances.


Our first picture upon arrival. Big hats - check!


First band of the day was Silversun Pickups. We only watched the first song because I was anxious to head over and see Amy Winehouse.


Gillian Welch was up before Amy - she was fantastic and was wearing a great outfit.

I was so curious to see Amy Winehouse. She has a reputation for canceling performances or vomiting on stage. Would she be together or a drunken mess? Would she even appear on time?


I'm happy to say that not only did she show up on time, she was fabulous and seemed genuinely pleased to be there.


She also has the best backup singers in the world! They are so smooth.

We didn't see the whole set because we were both looking forward to Arctic Monkeys, for us, the performance of the day.


They are so good live and tried their hardest to bring some energy to the hot and tired crowd.


I was the only one in our immediate area who was bopping to the music. My knees hurt afterwards but it was work it.


Smiling through the sweat.

We went over to see Rufus Wainwright, I rested while Rob caught him stripping off his caftan to reveal this outfit.


Although we both love Rufus, we've seen him a few times before and I wanted to see what Julieta Venegas was like. We walked into the tent to see this.

This was the surprise of the night. There was so much love between Julieta and the audience we couldn't help but be swept up with the joy. I know a couple of her older songs, but I am definitely going to get some of her newer albums and memorize the lyrics so I can sing along with everyone else the next time we see her. I want to be Julieta Venegas and play the accordion with abandon!

The final band we saw was Interpol.

Rob really likes Interpol's music, I enjoy them by association. Rob has been wanting to see them live for a while, so he was happy that they were at Coachella.


We have to admit, we weren't that impressed by them. But that's the beauty of festivals - the chance to see bands that you haven't seen before and finding new favorites along the way. Stay tuned for Day 2!

Mark one off the photo list!

I have to ask for everyone's indulgence for this fangirl post. I'm usually not one to fawn over celebrities, but there are a few people on my list that I would love to get a photo with, which include the whole cast of Battlestar Galactica, the cast of Arrested Developement (in character, of course!), and some half dozen actors who I won't name for Rob's sake. Well, last night I went to a book signing with a man who tops them all - Project Runway's Tim Gunn!

Tim with the co-author of his book, Kate Moloney

I've made no secret of my love for Tim Gunn. I adore the way he is with the contestants on Project Runway and I think it would be a blast to have a nice long meal with him. When I heard that Tim would be in Southern California for a series of book signings, you know I emailed my co-fan, my sister Mina, and convinced her to go to a signing with me (trust me, she was easily convinced!)

Nice smile, Tim!

The event was at the Barnes and Noble at Fashion Island, where we were both concerned that there was going to be a small turnout, but a bunch of people came in the nick of time. Tim was his charming self, telling the story of how Kate and he were forced to finish the book, answering a few questions, making sure to have Kate answer some questions, and taking the time to talk to everyone in line.

Tim signing Mina's book.

When it was my turn, I blathered on about how much Mina and I loved Tim and how we were so lucky to have a Mood Fabrics in LA (I was really just a nervous wreck). Mina, on the other hand, played it cool and just said, "That's me!" when he said her name, and "Thank you!" when he signed her book.

The line waiting to get their books signed.

His inscription was, of course, his catch phrase.


So, did I get my photo with Tim Gunn?

Of course I did! We had such a fun time - now to read the book!

Clothing cavalcade

Before I begin the post, I wanted to answer a couple of comments that I wasn't able to return personally.

Jill asked:
I love the monk's bag! Did you follow a pattern, or is it one of those things you just whip up?

Well Jill, first, thank you! Like I said, I love it! I kind of followed a photo of a monk's bag in one of my Japanese bag books, and took the dimensions of the straps, but everything else I made on my own. If anyone is interested in a tutorial (even one person!) I'd happily post one. It's an easy quick bag.

Kelly asked:
Hey, is that the same CK duvet that Carrie Bradshaw has on SATC?

What good eyes you have, Kelly! It is the same duvet. I bought it years and years ago, then I saw the same one on SATC. Isn't it the same old story, the bloggers create the trends and Hollywood copies them! But seriously, this duvet has really held up over the years - I really love the Calvin Klein linens (even though they can be expensive).

Onto the post! This spring and summer, instead of buying my clothes, I've decided to make them. Well, I'll still need to buy things like t-shirts and unmentionables, but here's a start.


Pattern - McCall 'sM5313 View A
Fabric - Amy Butler Slate Morning Glory, 2 yards
The idea behind this jumper was to create something that could have come from Anthropolgie, but it looks more like something from Urban Outfitters. Even though it makes me look four years old, it's a comfy dress that was easy to make. However, the pattern was a little more confusing than it needed to be, and there was a lack of detail that was lacking (e.g. topstiching around the top and straps) that I added myself.


Pattern - Simplicity 4589 View A
Fabric - Cotton Voile from Michael Levine Fabric, One yard
This is another one of those patterns I would never have bought if I didn't see it make on Nikki-Shell's blog. It's a cute simple pattern, a little boxy, but very versatile.

The fabric is from one of my favorite stores in the fashion district downtown, Michael Levine. It can be hit or miss, but they sometimes have great bargains, like this fabric, $2 a yard.


Pattern - Simplicity 4086, View F
Fabric - Re-form Pears from Superbuzzy, 2 yards
This is a home decorating fabric that was perfect for a skirt. The pears ran across both selvedges, so I still have a strip of pears that I can use for a bag or something else. Although I love the skirt, I still have issues with the sizing of skirt patterns. I like to wear my skirts low on my waist, so I made a size 14, but it was still a little high. Who are these women with skinny skinny waists who can wear size 8? I don't think they exist.


Pattern - McCall's M5042, View A
Fabric - Amy Butler Sage Lacework, 2 yards
I'm going to say this up front - I hated making this dress, from beginning to end. It turned out ok in the end, but the pain of making it has prevented me from objectively seeing it. Does that make sense? To me, it's a blur of seam ripping, seam ripping, and more seam ripping.

While I was making this dress, I realized that I'm not only high waisted, but thick waisted. So I wanted to find a pattern that was had a higher waist with a similar feeling. The problems occured when I decided to make the lining (which really didn't need it) and cutting the wide skirt, because it didn't fit onto my pre-shrunk fabric. A sidenote - I think Amy Butler's fabrics from her Lotus line are just fantastic. I know that everybody's using them, but I think they are still original enough to make a unique piece of clothing.

Anyways, I'm not going to bore you with even more details, but I'm glad it's done. How do you celebrate the completion of a dress?

Pizza with the family! This one was with olive oil, basil, garlic, romano and burrata cheeses... yummy...

Anniversary Gluttony

I've sewed some clothes recently, but I haven't found the chance to do a photo shoot with Rob. Here are a couple of non-clothing items that I could take photos of.


I've been thinking about making a monk's bag for a while, and I used the yukata fabric I bought to back my couch quilt. This is the MOST comfortable bag I've ever used. I think it's the combination of the thin (but strong!) fabric and the thick strap. I want to make one out of canvas for a travel bag to take to Japan.


Couple of bed pillows from Kokka Abeille fabric. Don't Henry and the original Unki look happy with the pillows?

Yesterday was our third wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary Rob! To celebrate, we cooked one of Rob's favorite dishes (chicken marsala). I also made not one, but two desserts, both recipes from Orangette.


I first made this cake because Rob loves chocolate, but it fell after taking it out of the oven. So I hurriedly whipped together another dessert...

from stuff I had around the house. I have to say, both cakes were delicious!
(By the way, did you notice Unki's feet in both photos? They were taken hours apart and yet he managed to be in both!)

What's the only thing to do after such a decadent meal?

Take a nap with the cats, of course!

in the Mood for Vain Pizza

Sometimes, there are just things that are so great or so weird a special post is in order.

MOOD

For fellow fans of Project Runway, Mood Fabrics is where the designers go to shop for their challenges. I've always been fascinated with those bolts of fabric going all the way up to the ceiling. If only I lived in Manhattan and and have Tim Gunn as my mentor!

Well, Angelenos are in luck. My friend Huay told me that she thought there was a Mood Fabrics on Pico and La Cienega. I went exploring yesterday, and yes, there is! It's definitely a neat place to browse - I didn't buy anything, but the workers were very nice and helped me look at some fabrics. Which I did need help, because those bolts are heavy! All I took out of there was this:

I had to have something from there - a business card is something!

They've only been there 4 weeks so they are still putting up signs. I did look at the cotton prints because I felt that was where I could be most discerning. The prices were from $8-$16 a yard and there were some very lovely fabrics. Next time I go I'll bring a camera and have more info about prices, types of fabrics, etc. Very exciting!

PIZZA

My cooking and baking guru is yaiAnn - if she gives it her seal of approval, I'm off to the market! The other day, she posted about some homemade pizza she made, and I had to try it. Rob was a little worried that the pizza dough wouldn't come out, but it tasted delicious!

Our first pizza (which I sloppily shaped) was a margherita with fresh mozzarella and basil.


Rob took over construction of the next pizza, which was his favorite - homemade meatball and mushroom pizza with mozzarella and parmesan.


Finally, the winner of "prettiest pizza" and my favorite, fresh tomato, mushroom and fresh mozzarella.


The crust was nice and bready and I couldn't believe how great it tasted. I'm inviting some girlfriends over for dinner on Friday night and we're having a pizza making party. I really recommend this recipe - it's so easy and very satisfying.

VAIN

Does anyone out there have a cat that likes to look in the mirror? We do! Unki has done it again. Not only does he play fetch, lay in weird positions, and try to get into every photo, he's become obsessed with looking at himself in the mirror. For the past two weeks, we've caught him looking in the bathroom mirror every chance he gets.

First, he makes sure he's looking good.


If he's not, he'll clean himself.


Then he'll scratch the mirror, just to make sure his reflection's not another cat.


If all is well, he'll settle down and make faces.


The funny part is when he sees Maggie in the mirror. He gets so excited, then jumps down and then goes BEHIND the mirror to find her. Of course, he can't find her, gets back on the counter, sees her again, gets excited, jumps down, goes behind the mirror, can't find her... on and on. I'll try to get video of that someday - luckily Unki's a cat and can't complain to his therapist how his parents used to make so much fun of him!