Zoo-ey #2

Well Hello again - as promised here is my second Zoo post.  This is the one from my adventure to the National Zoo in Washington, DC.  The National Zoo is part of the Smithsonian Institution, which means that it is the Nation's zoo and is free admission.  This zoo is fabulous as well, and is home to different animals than Catoctin Wildlife Preserve & Zoo from my last post.  I hope you find my favorite photos enjoyable.

This is an adult Orangutan

The oragutans are the two exclusively Asian species of extant great apes.  Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are currently found in only the rain forests of Borneo and Sumatra.  Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans were considered to be one species.  However, since 1996, they have been divided into two species: the Bornean orangutan (P. pygmeus) and the Sumatran orangutan. (P. abelii).  In addition, the Bornean species is divided into three subspecies.  The orangutans are also the only surviving species of the subfamily Ponginae, which also included several other species, such as Gigantopithecus, the largest known primate.  Both species had their genomes sequenced and they appear to have diverged around 400,000 years ago. Orangutans diverged from the rest of the great apes 15.7 to 19.3 million years ago (mya)

Young guy/gal - Too Cute, right?

This is the young Orangutan.

This is an Asian Elephant

The Asian or Asiatic elephant (Elephas maximus) is the only living species of the genus Elephus and is distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east.  Asian elephants are the largest living land animals in Asia.  Since 1986 E. maximus has been listed as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 50% over the last three generations, estimated to be 60-75 years.  The species is pre-eminently threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation.  In 2003, the wild population was estimated at between 41,410 and 52,345 individuals.  Female captive elephants have lived beyond 60 years when kept in semi-natural situations, such as forest camps.

Quite a magnificent African Lion

The lion (Panthera leo) is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera and a member of the family Felidae.  With some males exceeding 250 kg (550 lb), it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger.  Wild lions currently exist in sub-Saharan Africa and in Asia, while other types have disappeared from North Africa and Southwest Asia in historic times.  The lion is a vulnerable species, having seen a major population decline in its African range of 30-50% per two decades during the second half of the 20th century.  Within Africa, the West African lion is particularly endangered.  Lions live for 10-14 years in the wild, while in captivity they can live longer than 20 years.  In the wild males seldom live longer than 10 years, as injuries sustained from continual fighting with rival males greatly reduce their longevity.  Lions are unusually social compared to other cats. 

Groups of females lions typically hunt together, preying on large ungulates.  Sleeping mainly during the day, lions are primarily nocturnal, although bordering on crepuscular in nature.  

But, of course, we have the Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger (Pantheras tigris tigris) is the most numerous tiger subspecies.  Its populations have been estimated at 1,706-1,909 in India, 440 in Bangladesh, 163-253 in Nepal, and 67-81 in Bhutan.  Since 2010, it has been classified as an endangered species by the IUCN.  The total population is estimated at fewer than 2,500 individuals with a decreasing trend, and none of the Tiger Conservation Landscapes within the Bengal tiger's range is large enough to support an effective population size of 250 adult individuals.

Well that brings a close to the group of my favorite pix from my National Zoo adventure a couple weeks ago.  I hope you enjoyed them and the fun facts about the animals.  I would really like to get back and see the pandas.  I think I will pop down one Saturday early with just that mission in mind.

This below is a poster I made with a saying that my DH says to me quite often...

Thanks for viewing my photos!

Cheers!

JDol

Zoo-ey #1

Well, I haven't been on my blog for 3 months.  OMG.  I basically used the blog for sewing and I took a hiatus from sewing over the summer.  Don't tell anyone but I've purchased some RTW in the meantime.  So....what have I been doing with my creative juices? Well, Photoshop of course.... I also purchased a new camera -- a digital SLR  Nikon D3200 - it was time... my little Canon point and shoot just wasn't cutting it anymore for my creative desires.  I was a pro for a number of years, owned my own studio, shot more weddings than you can imagine, and loved shooting portraits - i had a real knack for folks and young adults who really disliked their photos being taken - anyway it was fun... then i got burnt out, life happened, and now I'm in a different field.  So, here I am 13 years later with the itch to get back to my creative photography.  So, armed with my new equipment, i set out for Catoctin Wildlife Preserve & Zoo.... it was a hot and steamy summer morning, but let's go to it.  I made it around to some of the zoo, lots of the residents were still sleeping when I went first thing in the morning. But I made my acquaintance with a handful of pals.  Here are my favorite photos of my Catoctin Buddies from my mini adventure.

This is a Patas Monkey, Child

The patas monkey (erythrocebus patas) also known as the Wadi monkey or Hussar monkey, is a ground dwelling monkey distributed over semi-arid areas of West Africa and into East Africa.  It is the only species classified in the genus Erythrocebus

This is an Arctic Wolf pup 

The arctic wolf (Canis lupus arctos), also called snow wolf or white wolf, is a subspecies of the gray wolf, a mammal of the family Canidae.  Arctic wolves inhabit the Canadian Arctic, Alaska, and northern parts of Greenland.  They also have white fur and long canine teeth for killing their prey.

Patas Monkey parent

A pair of Barred Owls

The Barred Owl (Strix varia) is a large typical owl native to North America.  Best known as the Hoot Owl for its distinctive call, it goes by many other names, including Eight Hooter, Rain Owl, Wood Owl, and Striped Owl.

Ostrich - this one looked young.

The ostrich (Struthio Camelus) shares the order Struthioniformes with the kiwis, emus, rheas, and cassowaries.  It is distinctive in its appearance, with a long neck and legs, and can run at up to 70 km/h (43 mph), the fastest land speed of any bird.  The ostrich is the largest living species of bird and lays the largest eggs of any living bird. (Extinct elephant birds of Madagascar and the Giant Moa of New Zealand laid larger eggs).

Iberian Lynx

I believe this is an Iberian Lynx.  If not, here are some facts about the Iberian Lynx anyway...  (Lynx pardinus) is a critically endangered species of felid native to the Iberian Peninsula in Southern Europe.  A rabbit specialist, the Iberian lynx is unable to significantly alter its diet and, as a result, its population declined sharply when its main prey was decimated by two diseases in the 20th century.  It was also affected by the loss of scrubland, its major habitat, to human development.  It is now one of the most endangered cat species in the world.  According to the conservation group SOS Lynx, if the Iberian lynx died out, it would be the first feline species to become extinct since prehistoric times.  Captive breeding and reintroduction programs have boosted their numbers.  As of 2013, Andalucia has a population of 309 living in the wild.

I beleive this is a Clouded Sulphur  Butterfly

These were all dancing merrily about the butterfly bushes in front of the Zoo.

This is your basic American Alligator

(alligator mississippiens) is a species in which the males measure 3.4 m (11 ft) to 4.6 m (15 ft) in length, and can weigh 453 kg (1,000 lb.).  Females are smaller measuring around 3 m (9.8 ft).  The American Alligator inhabits freshwater wetlands, such as marshes and cypress swamps from Texas to North Carolina.  Alligators also play important roles in wetland ecosystems through the creation of "alligator holes" which provide wetter or drier habitats for other organisms.

I believe this is also a White Wolf. Adult.

Last but not least....

I couldn't find the species of these butterflies, however I thought this was an interesting capture of them mating.

That sums up my favorite photos from my photo adventure at Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo.  I will be visiting again, as there were more animals, just not all awake, and they also have Wildlife Safari Rides that I would like to go on.  I have some vacation days coming up and will make this trip on one of those days.

I hope you enjoyed these photos, I'll have another post soon of my National Zoo adventure.

Cheers!

JDol

Native American Poncho & Jacket

Well Here's Projects 2 & 3 on my DH 6PAC - Dearest Hubby's "6 Projects for my Awesome Companion"

Native American Jacket

DH found inspiration from Indian Village Mall one day, so he put on the list to embellish a denim jacket one day.  I had fallen in love with that site, too, and was inspired, so I searched for some nice fabrics, and ordered some from Southwest Decoratives.  He liked Sierra Trail Aztec Brown Stripe.  Their cottons are very good quality - at least the southwest collection was.  So No major pictures here, but I trimmed some fabric for the front and back yokes, 3 separate pieces. Took attention to details on centering, lining up, etc.  I double top-stitched all around each piece.  That gave it a quality finish as well as a strong finish.  I am aware that he washes his jackets, so I didn't want any mishaps down the line.

Do you know he paid me the grandest compliment today?  He said this jacket was The Best jacket he had out of his denims.  Now, this is coming from a man who a) knows how to dress, b) takes care on how he dresses, c) has many denim outfits, (and leather) let alone denim jackets, and he told me that this one was The Best of his denim jackets.  I am thrilled that he likes this one so much :-)  I am pleased how it turned out and pleased at how it looks on him.

We are both thinking if there is a touch of anything that will coordinate onto the front breast pockets, but he is being very particular, since he said he would rather have the jacket as is, then put something on the pockets, just for the sake of putting something on there.  If it doesn't coordinate within the fabric that is already on, then we are going to leave them as is.  So far I've been playing around and haven't liked anything.

Here is the front an back of the jacket.  No photos along the way, this was a pretty simple assembly, just took time to line it all up the way I wanted.

Native American Poncho

So, next, for my SWAP bridging garment I had made a Native American Poncho, and when he saw mine, he immediately wanted one.  See, we always keep a blanket in the trucks for in the case of an emergency to keep warm.  when he saw my poncho, he thought that would be a great idea, because then while keeping warm, you could still use your hands if needed.  Now if this isn't a simple garment to make, I don't  know what else is.  You know those patterns that advertise 1 hour pattern? and then in that small print they say **1 hour actual sewing time?  Yes, you still have to cut the pattern pieces and still have the cut the fabric, pin it, yadda yadda.... well this is totally a 20 minute outfit.  Fold the blanket twice to get the exact center, cut from the center in each direction (on the long side) about 9 inches, but to a decorative stop point on the garment, and roll and stitch.  I've found it easiest so far to stitch the two sides then stitch the two v's.

So, Now I have 3 projects knocked off of the DH 6PAC list.  At the current time, the only materials I have in house are the leather and bead strips for the leather shirt embellishment, so we'll take a look at that project next.  

Since I've got 3 projects knocked out, I might squeeze in my pants tomorrow.... I'd like to have them for next week.

Preakness is starting in a few minutes.... Will Orb head for the Triple Crown?  

Oh well... Not so much....Oxbow & D Wayne Lukas. At least my girl Showed. :-)

Cheers!

JDol

Shoulder Taps Gone Wild!

Well, here's the 1st item on my DH 6PAC.  I'm using 6PAC as 6 Projects 4 my Awesome Companion.

So DH purchased a brown leather riding jacket with fringe, nice for spring mornings with a bit of a chill in the air. Real nice jacket... though those shoulder taps - goodness were they loopy... almost looping up to his ears.... take a look at this....

Have you seen taps like this before?? Anyway, I took a look and it seemed if i opened the shoulder seams, I could pull the tap through and snug it up.  Also, one of the sides seemed to be placed back too far. So lets pull that forward a bit, too while we're at it.

Okay here we go.  Let's open the lining at the shoulders.  DH said he wasn't concerned with how the lining looked at the end, so I was just going to open it up and top-stitch it back together when done.

Once the lining was opened, I was able to pull the shoulder through and take a peek how they assembled it.  Sometimes they use glue on leather assembly, so I didn't know what I was gong to find.  Well nothing was out of the ordinary, the seam held the tap, and the fringe. 

So i opened that up, just the inch 1/2 or so that held the tap, and pulled the tap through.  Gee that was a lot of extra tap. Hmmm.

So took a peek at how it looked on the other side, and what an improvement. So now comes the stitching.  This is leather after all.  So I have upholstery thread and Leather needles...

I set the stitches at 3.0 length. It made it though all thicknesses when we got to the tap, and no thread breakage at all.  I am confident now that the stitches are of good strength for the wear and tear of a man's leather jacket.  Adjusted side two to move the tap forward a bit, and stitched that together.  Went together flawlessly also.  Let's take a look....

Now that is much better than that airborne floppy tap of ole...  Had DH do a quick try on, to make sure just before the closing of the lining... I got a big stamp of approval :-)..., so I stitched up the lining on the shoulders, and we're all set.  

There was also a loose stitch on the front of the jacket that was unraveling, so I did a run along that to give that reinforcement.  It was a zipper facing stitch, so that would have only kept unraveling as used...  All is good.

Alright!  Project #1 on the DH 6PAC done!

I think I threw off my comrades on my SG Forum by calling this a 6PAC.  They are used to 6PAC's being collections of sewn garments that form a cohesive unit.  I playfully called this a DH 6PAC since it was going to be 6 projects for DH.  I think I set off a stir on the 6PAC thread. :-) LOL   Ahhhh......... Whatta ya gonna do....

OKAY - What's next?

Cheers, 

JDol

DH 6PAC

Well! with SWAP behind me, and photos in, the big reveal is on Monday the 20th.  DH (Dearest Husband) has been rooting me on the whole way, and said my collection was top notch. I think the word excellent has been used. :-) He's just grand.  So I was sort of energetic to jump into a Summer 6PAC which turned into a double....for an ambitious 12 pieces.  Then I noticed DH had a few items on the docket, that i wanted to tackle for him, and decided, i didn't want to merely "squeeze" them in, I wanted to "Take them on". SO............. we are placing the 2 summer 6's aside and we are going to do a DH 6PAC.  So let's see what we have:

"Shoulder Taps Gone Wild"

He recently purchased a really nice riding jacket, brown leather with fringe. Good for the spring chill in the mornings.  It is a "Bon Jovi" style. That aside, it is really nice........except for ........... well it has shoulder taps that practically loop up to his ears! LOL.  So that's project number one.

Native American Denim Jacket.

We were both inspired at the same time by Indian Village Mall.  He had come across this website and showed me their clothing items. I fell in love, too.  So he would like a denim jacket with embellishment on the shoulder yokes.

Native American Poncho.

He saw mine from SWAP and wanted one :-)

Civil War Period Shirt.

He likes history, and Gettysburg.  We are looking for the right pattern and then will shop for the fabric.  That one will be fun.

Beading Embellishments

He has two strips of beads to be installed onto a black leather pullover shirt/jacket.  He got some inexpensive black leather pants off EBay for me to cut up to make the strips for braiding that will frame the beads when I install them on the shoulders of the shirt.

Quilt.

He liked the quilt I made. My Butterfly Quilt.  I told him he could pick out fabric and I would make him one! He will pick out 8 complimentary fabrics and 1/2 yard each.  Let's see what he comes up with!  He's got a great sense of style.  He will have his own unique quilt.

So that's my DH 6PAC that I will be working on until they are complete.  There is *one* pair of pants that I have cut that will take two hours to sew that I will "squeeze" in for myself, but the rest is the DH 6PAC.

Cheers!

JDol

SWAP Entry 2013 Final Pix.

I have now finished my very first SWAP (Sewing With A Plan) 2013. I had a lot of fun joining in this adventure.  You have seen my posts along the way.  I am making this post merely of the collection as a whole all in one post.  Photo submissions start on May 10th and close on May 18th.  I'm not sure when voting occurs, how it is handled, or any of those logistics.  That info will be revealed as time draws nearer.  I am so excited to see everyone's collections!  We were all given some sneak peeks of some, and then there are some quiet members who will unveil at the end.  Everyone has so much talent this will be hard to vote - I'll want to vote for so many of them.  I'm glad I joined the Stitcher's Guild Forum when I did - Last Sept/Oct, because I jumped in on a winter 6PAC sew-along, which gave me a little boost of confidence to join the SWAP 2013.

So here is the Collections Photo:

Photo #1

#1A: Top #1.  Self Designed and Drafted Top.  Della Buckskin Faux Leather from Warehouse Fabrics Inc.  Side zip, fringe, self fabric lace, modesty panel.

#1B: Bottom #1.  Matching Faux Leather Pants Burda "Bella" #6011. Della Buckskin from Warehouse Fabrics.com.  Fringe added. (not in pattern)

Photo#2

#2: Top #2.  3rd piece of ensemble: Self Drafted Halter inspired by a photo of a Harley Davidson Halter top.  Matching Faux Leather.  Self designed and weaved beading accents,  Back has embroidery of wolf. (next photo)

Photo #3

#3: Back of Self Drafted Halter with wolf embroidery. Design is from Embroidery Library

It's called Autumn Wolf

Photo#4

#4: Bridging Poncho with this collection

Photo #5

#5A: Top #3.  Same Self-Drafted Halter pattern (inspired by a picture of a Harley Davidson halter).  Completely hand painted with self designed artwork. (butterflies) Piece 3 of my wine denim ensemble. (piece 2 was a Moto Jacket which is not included in this SWAP)

#5B: Bottom #2.  Wine Denim trousers: Burda "Bella" #6011.  Fabric is: Wine Denim from Fabric.Com

Photo #6

#6A: Top #1. Purchased Plain Denim Shirt and embellished with yoke accent fabric (Southwest Decoratives), fringe, and 3 embroidery designs: a Sun Dancer Kachina, Rain Dance Kachina and a Wolf Diamond on the back. Designs from Design Library and Embroidery Library.

#6B: Bottom #1.  Black Denim Tiered Skirt from a XOX Skirt Tutorial from Weekend Designer.  Pattern was modified to include waist band, and to match photo that came with the tutorial.

Photo #7

#7A&7B: Back of Shirt and Skirt

Photo #8

#8A: Top #2.  Red Denim Vest  Butterick B5402. 10 oz. Red Bull Denim from JoAnn's. Made Cut-Off Sleeves., Embroidered Front pockets and back.

#8B: Bottom #2.  Matching Red Denim Jeans McCall's Palmer Pletsch M5894 Boot cut. Outfit designed to match my motorcycle.

Photo # 9

#9: Top #3.  Showcase the Silver Spandex Turtleneck pattern for the cooler days, also matches my motorcycle. Fabric (Dancewear from JoAnn's) Pattern: Kwik Sew/Kwik Serge 2900 view A.

Photo #10

#10: Bridging Poncho with this collection

Photo #11

#11:  Denim Skirt detail.

Well, That's it...

My SWAP 2013.  See you next year.

PS.  I'm onto a Summer 6PAC along with a JDol 6PAC starting May-July.

Cheers!

JDol.

2 Summer 6 PACS

Well My friends, SWAP 2013 is over, my photos are submitted, I have a post drafted but not published yet, and we're onto summer 6PACs now. These are sew-alongs with my pals at Stitcher's Guild Sewing Forum.  I did a purge of my closets/racks a couple weeks ago and gave 9 bags of clothes to Purple Heart (for Veterans) foundation.  So I found where the holes were in my wardrobe.  Definitely needed comfortable pants to wear to work. and I wanted summer dresses.  So when the Summer 6PAC finally rolled out, I was excited, and figured I'd do 2 pants and 4 dresses. However, when the ladies do 6PACs, they are usually capsules of certain pieces, with certain schematics involved.  This summer, the guidelines are to choose a neutral (white/khaki/olive/black, etc).... and a "color", and choose these pieces:

1 a jacket or cardigan that will set the tone for the whole collection - in neutral

2 a pair of trousers, shorts, or skirt in the same neutral (but not necessarily EXACTLY the same --can vary in shade or texture)

3 another bottom in the second colour

4 an underlayer top in the neutral

5 an underlayer top in the colour

6 an overlayer top in a linking print or in the colour

So you can see my 2 pants and 4 dresses were not in the spirit of this 6PAC, so I had to determine whether I was going to do my 6PAC, and sit this one out from the forum, or do both?  You got it - I decided to do both.  So, 12 pieces in another 3 months...I already have 2 done, so 10 really to do....

So, I needed some patterns to fit in the SG 6PAC, and JA's was having a 5 for $5 sale on Simplicity, so off I went.... and found some nice ones.  Then I had to go through stash to see what all I had.  Oh -- did I tell you that I had chosen my two colors to be cream/pale yellow & Lavender...

Stash audit yielded that I have a lot of "junk" in there of scraps... I have 4 tubs and probably 2 of them are scraps.  Hmmmm what do people do with these scraps???  I've gotta organize those tubs - but that's another day.

I found a good handful of good yardage to choose from for my 6PACs, and then I ordered about 30 swatches and samples from Fashion Fabrics, Fabric.Com, and Online Fabric Store. I basically stopped there because I wore myself out.  I still need to learn my fabrics, so I ordered quite an assortment and range so I could see what different fabrics are.  Then maybe one day I can say "Oh I can see that in a nice Chambray".  Right now I have no idea what a chambray is. :-)

So enough chatter - here are my two Summer 6PAC's

This one is for the Forum's Summer 6PAC:

So far I have two fabrics chosen. For the 4127 C top, it is a pale yellow stretch cotton with a hint of glitter.  For the Burda it is a lavender heather knit.

Here is my "JDol Summer-dress 6PAC"

2 of these are done already, (checked) and I have fabric for 3 of the others. It's Mother's Day today... Shall I sew something?  I would actually like to get that second pair of pants done.  I have a DH project on the board, too.

Here's me in the summer-dress M6115 above:

Of course with black knee boots, it was a wintery summer-dress I guess.

That's it for now.

Happy Mother's Day!