pink skirt up next

next skirt, a photo by megan_n_smith_99 on Flickr.

i went for a walk today, only 2 miles today because my back started to bother me. i went down to the Ballard Locks. In addition to the locks there is a park and botanical garden and the fish ladder. If you cross over the locks there is another park on the other side. It's beautiful and interesting and if you ever visit Seattle you should make the trip out there! I always think of my grandmother when I am there. She lived in Ballard for many many years. She even went to the opening of the locks, in 1917. She was a young girl then. Her father took her through the tunnel under the locks -- it's only accessible when the locks are shut down for maintenance -- the rest of the time it is flooded. She cried "Papa, don't let them turn the water on!". I think it was a bit traumatic but she got over it and she took my sister and I there often when we were visiting her while we were growing up.

Of course to make it an even better walk, the Quilting Loft is on my way to the locks. I had about half of the fabric I needed to make a pink skirt so I picked up a bit more. These are the fabric I will be using, some from the Quilting Loft and the rest from my stash. Everyone there is friendly and helpful and the clerk told me that this type of batik - from block prints - is boiled to remove the wax, so it's essentially pre-shrunk. That's good to know, I don't have to wash and iron it before I sew.

Via Flickr:
Batiks from stash and from The Quilting Loft in Ballard