We toss out over 80 pounds of textiles each year. These textiles are often made of plastic materials (polyester, nylon), made in unethical conditions, dyed with harsh dyes that often get put into the rivers, etc. Even a single cotton shirt releases carbon emissions and uses tons of water.Ā
So the best thing to prevent the unsustainable growth of the fashion industry is to make sure that your clothing lasts as long as possible. To do so, mending clothing is a must. So here are some resources to help you learn how to do various things, such as sewing a button, to tailoring clothes, or even upcycling old clothing into new styles.Ā
* How to sew on three different types of button
* How to hand sew on a patch on a torn pair of jeans
* How to sew up a hole in an old shirt
* How to sew a simple T-shirt
* How to upcycle old clothing into new clothing
* More upcycle and sewing techniques
* How to repair a damaged sock
* How to do an invisible stitch
* 3 different stitches to work with for different results
* How to make a T-shirt smaller so it fits you better
* How to make repairs to your shoes
These are just a few of the things that you can do in order to make sure that your clothing lasts for a long time. Nobody wants to keep buying new clothing, as it is expensive and wasteful.Ā
So making alterations to your clothing, or fixing small holes hen you see them can be hugely beneficial to your wallet, to garment workers, and to the environment in the long term.Ā
Okay all -- few quick thoughts about the Elon Muskifying of the government, especially the takeover of the Treasury and associated financial data for every single US citizen and organization, that we are learning about in detail today.
Don't panic. This sounds bad, because it is bad. It's really, really bad. It's outrageously fascist bad. But we've still gotta take a deep breath and get through it.
This is the kind of shock-and-awe exercise of untrammeled fascist power where they are absolutely counting on gleefully terrorizing, paralyzing, and stunning you into mounting no resistance, or just giving up and giving in. They are literally live-tweeting it in real time and boasting about all the access and influence they have right now. They want you to know about it and feel like you can't do anything, so you might as well let it happen.
We have to show them that's not true.
TIME TO MAKE SOME NOISE. Because it's Sunday night, I've gone ahead and contacted my state Attorney General and both senators by email (but come Monday morning, we should all be calling). Here is the email that I wrote to my AG:
Dear Mr. [AG],
As you will be aware, today (February 2, 2025) the Trump administration has granted wide-ranging access to sensitive US Treasury data, including the personal and private information of [state] citizens, to Elon Musk's so-called "Department of Government Efficiency." Musk is an unelected private citizen who has no legal right to access this data, and is engaging in extensive intimidation and coercion to fulfill his personal and harmful ideological agenda. The present and material harm that this causes to US citizens, [state] residents, and basic laws of government, privacy, and financial security is direct, unconscionable, and actionable. I strongly urge you, in your capacity as [state] Attorney General, to file direct suit against the Trump administration, Elon Musk, the "DOGE" office, and any identifiable individuals who have taken part in this action, in order to protect consumer data, citizen privacy, and basic faith and trust in government.
All the best,
[Qqueenofhades]
Short! To the point! Doesn't waste time, tells him what I want him to do, how Elmo's nonsense directly harms the residents of my state, and why he should take action to stop it! And frankly, given how on-the-ball blue-state AGs have been thus far, they're probably already working on it. You are very welcome to copy-and-paste this message and fill in your AG's last name and your state as appropriate. Super easy to do. Takes five minutes. Call tomorrow.
If you are in a red state, your voice is particularly important right now. The Trumpsters are counting on and are even emboldened by blue state pushback, but you really need to make it start coming from Republican strongholds. Congressional Republicans will only feel the slightest amount of unease about docilely enabling this BS when it starts threatening their own personal power. Hit them where it hurts.
Other lawsuits are coming. Marc Elias, Democratic lawyer extraordinaire, is well aware of this situation and has noted on Bluesky that more lawsuits are in the works. He often wins his cases. This does not mean that you shouldn't loudly make noise elsewhere, but please remember that this is one of those 24-hour periods where, as noted, they are counting on demoralizing you with a nonstop blizzard of bullshit. It does not say anything about how this will play out long-term or the opposition that can and will be mobilized to stop it.
Once again: courage. Take the small steps that you can do today. Then take a breath and get off social media for a little while. Try to take the long view. One step at a time, we will get through this.
āAides to Elon Musk charged with running the U.S. government human resources agency have locked career civil servants out of computer systems that contain the personal data of millions of federal employees, according to two agency officials.
Since taking office 11 days ago, President Donald Trump has embarked on a massive government makeover, firing and sidelining hundreds of civil servants in his first steps toward downsizing the bureaucracy and installing more loyalists.ā
And as always, the capital switch board is (202) 224-3121.
Please call your reps today and demand they start taking this shit seriously - we need an investigation into this rancid manās involvement in our government and a demand for his immediate removal. If you donāt know what to say, you can just say this:
āHi, my name is (blank) and Iām a constituent from (insert name of your town/city) and Iām calling because Iām concerned about the meddling of Elon Musk into our governmentās critical federal functions. Musk is not elected and should not have access to government systems. He also has not taken the oath to serve and he has no regard for the work of public servants. Please take immediate action and demand an investigation. Thank you.ā
In case anyone's anxious about talking on the phone please know it's the weekend rn (if you're reading this between 02/1-02/2) so you can leave a voicemail!
The switchboard has a system to help you figure out who you're supposed to leave a message for. There is a chance you might talk to a real person at the switchboard but they are just there to help direct your call!
The Autism Self Advocacy Network has a helpful guide to calling elected officials if you're new to this and/or would benefit from a little more structure/expectation setting before calling.
The script above is super easy, gets to the point, and won't take more than 45 seconds to record. I just called my senators and rep and it didn't take me more than five minutes total. Please please please call your reps if you're able.
It is done! This was so fun to stitch. It's mostly @mathysphere's math sampler, but I got inspired and so 3 of the squares are my own. It was a really lovely pattern to stitch. Lots of tiny finishes, and very easy to pick up and put down which is good because I sometimes only had 10 minutes to stitch. Or was trying to stitch in car line.
I should probably find some shading pixel art tutorials, and this picture doesn't show the binary in the "hello world" square at all. Oh well.
Fun fact! 'Funny cross stitch' is the 16įµŹ° most common tag given to cross-stitch listings on Etsy (right after 'pdf cross stitch' and before 'cute cross stitch'). But how many of those patterns are actually funny? What's the average humor level? And which among them is the funniest? I think it's time we found out!
Click Here* to cast your vote on any of 997 different 'funny' cross-stitch patterns, all randomly scraped from Etsy throughout the year, and check back later this month for the results!
NASA Inspires Your Crafty Creations for World Embroidery Day
Itās amazing what you can do with a little needle and thread! For #WorldEmbroideryDay, we asked what NASA imagery inspired you. You responded with a variety of embroidered creations, highlighting our different areas of study.
Hereās what we found:
Webbās Carina Nebula
Wendy Edwards, a project coordinator with Earth Science Data Systems at NASA, created this embroidered piece inspired by Webbās Carina Nebula image. Captured in infrared light, this image revealed for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth. Credit: Wendy Edwards, NASA. Pattern credit: Clare Bray, Climbing Goat Designs
Wendy Edwards, a project coordinator with Earth Science Data Systems at NASA, first learned cross stitch in middle school where she had to pick rotating electives and cross stitch/embroidery was one of the options.Ā āWhen I look up to the stars and think about how incredibly, incomprehensibly big it is out there in the universe, Iām reminded that the universe isnāt āout thereā at all. Weāre in it,ā she said. Her latest piece focused on Webbās image release of the Carina Nebula. The image showcased the telescopeās ability to peer through cosmic dust, shedding new light on how stars form.
Ocean Color Imagery: Exploring the North Caspian Sea
Danielle Currie of Satellite Stitches created a piece inspired by the Caspian Sea, taken by NASAās ocean color satellites. Credit: Danielle Currie/Satellite Stitches
Danielle Currie is an environmental professional who resides in New Brunswick, Canada. She began embroidering at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic as a hobby to take her mind off the stress of the unknown. Danielleās piece is titled ā46.69, 50.43,ā named after the coordinates of the area of the northern Caspian Sea captured by LandSat8 in 2019.
An image of the Caspian Sea captured by Landsat 8 in 2019. Credit: NASA
Two Hubble Images of the Pillars of Creation, 1995 and 2015
Melissa Cole of Star Stuff Stitching created an embroidery piece based on the Hubble image Pillars of Creation released in 1995. Credit: Melissa Cole, Star Stuff Stitching
Melissa Cole is an award-winning fiber artist from Philadelphia, PA, USA, inspired by the beauty and vastness of the universe. They began creating their own cross stitch patterns at 14, while living with their grandparents in rural Michigan, using colored pencils and graph paper.Ā The Pillars of Creation (Eagle Nebula, M16), released by the Hubble Telescope in 1995 when Melissa was just 11 years old, captured the imagination of a young person in a rural, religious setting, with limited access to science education.
Lauren Wright Vartanian of the shop Neurons and Nebulas created this piece inspired by the Hubble Space Telescopeās 2015 25th anniversary re-capture of the Pillars of Creation. Credit:Ā Lauren Wright Vartanian, Neurons and Nebulas
Lauren Wright Vartanian of Guelph, Ontario Canada considers herself a huge space nerd. Sheās a multidisciplinary artist who took up hand sewing after the birth of her daughter. Sheās currently working on the illustrations for a science themed alphabet book, made entirely out of textile art. It is being published by Firefly Books and comes out in the fall of 2024. Lauren said she was enamored by the original Pillars image released by Hubble in 1995. When Hubble released a higher resolution capture in 2015, she fell in love even further! This is her tribute to those well-known images.
James Webb Telescope Captures Pillars of Creation
Darci Lenker of Darci Lenker Art, created a rectangular version of Webbās Pillars of Creation. Credit:Ā Darci Lenker of Darci Lenker Art
Darci Lenker of Norman, Oklahoma started embroidery in college more than 20 years ago, but mainly only used it as an embellishment for her other fiber works. In 2015, she started a daily embroidery project where she planned to do one one-inch circle of embroidery every day for a year.Ā She did a collection of miniature thread painted galaxies and nebulas for Science Museum Oklahoma in 2019. Lenker said she had previously embroidered the Hubble Telescopeās image of Pillars of Creation and was excited to see the new Webb Telescope image of the same thing. Lenker could not wait to stitch the same piece with bolder, more vivid colors.
Milky Way
Darci Lenker of Darci Lenker Art was inspired by NASAās imaging of the Milky Way Galaxy. Credit: Darci Lenker
In this piece, Lenker became inspired by the Milky Way Galaxy, which is organized into spiral arms of giant stars that illuminate interstellar gas and dust. The Sun is in a finger called the Orion Spur.
The Cosmic Microwave Background
This image shows an embroidery design based on the cosmic microwave background, created by Jessica Campbell, who runs Astrostitches. Inside a tan wooden frame, a colorful oval is stitched onto a black background in shades of blue, green, yellow, and a little bit of red. Credit: Jessica Campbell/ Astrostitches
Jessica Campbell obtained her PhD in astrophysics from the University of Toronto studying interstellar dust and magnetic fields in the Milky Way Galaxy. Jessica promptly taught herself how to cross-stitch in March 2020 and has since enjoyed turning astronomical observations into realistic cross-stitches. Her piece was inspired by the cosmic microwave background, which displays the oldest light in the universe.
The full-sky image of the temperature fluctuations (shown as color differences) in the cosmic microwave background, made from nine years of WMAP observations. These are the seeds of galaxies, from a time when the universe was under 400,000 years old. Credit: NASA/WMAP Science Team
GISSTEMP: NASAās Yearly Temperature Release
Katy Mersmann, a NASA social media specialist, created this embroidered piece based on NASAās Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) global annual temperature record. Earthās average surface temperature in 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record. Credit: Katy Mersmann, NASA
Katy Mersmann is a social media specialist at NASAās Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. She started embroidering when she was in graduate school. Many of her pieces are inspired by her work as a communicator. With climate data in particular, she was inspired by the researchers who are doing the work to understand how the planet is changing. The GISTEMP piece above is based on a data visualization of 2020 global temperature anomalies, still currently tied for the warmest year on record.
In addition to embroidery, NASA continues to inspire art in all forms. Check out other creative takes with Landsat Crafts and the James Webb Space telescope public art gallery.
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!
Here's THE masterpost of free and full adaptations, by which I mean that it's a post made by the master.
Anthony and Cleopatra: here's the BBC version
As you like it: you'll find here an outdoor stage adaptation and here the BBC version
Coriolanus: Here's a college play, here's the 1984 telefilm, here's the 2014 one with tom hiddleston
Hamlet: The Kenneth Branagh 1996 Hamlet is here, the 1964 russian version is here and the 1964 american version is here. THe 1964 Broadway production is here, the 1948 Laurence Olivier one is here. And the 1980 version is here. Here are part 1 and 2 of the 1990 BBC adaptation. Have the 2018 Almeida version here.
Henry IV: part 1 and part 2 of the BBC 1989 version. And here's part 1 of a corwall school version.
Henry V: Laurence Olivier (who would have guessed) 1944 version. The 1989 Branagh version here. The BBC version is here.
Julius Caesar: here's the 1979 BBC adaptation, here the 1970 John Gielgud one.
King Lear: Laurence Olivier once again plays in here. And Gregory Kozintsev, who was I think in charge of the russian hamlet, has a king lear here. The 1975 BBC version is here. The Royal Shakespeare Compagny's 2008 version is here. The 1974 version with James Earl Jones is here.
Macbeth: here's the 1961 one with Sean Connery. Here's the 1971 by Roman Polanski, with spanish subtitles. Here's the 1948 www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljZrf_0_CcQ">here. The 1988 BBC onee with portugese subtitles and here the 2001 one). The 1969 radio one with Ian McKellen and Judi Dench is here and the 1966 BBC version is here. The Royal Shakespeare Compagny's 2008 version is here.
Measure for Measure: BBC version here.
The Merchant of Venice: here's a stage version, here's the 1980 movie, here the 1973 Lawrence Olivier movie, here's the 2004 movie.
The Merry Wives of Windsor: the Royal Shakespeare Compagny gives you this movie.
A Midsummer Night's Dream: have this sponsored by the City of Columbia, and here the BBC version.
Much Ado About Nothing: Here is the kenneth branagh version and here the Tennant and Tate 2011 version. Here's the 1984 version.
Othello: A Massachussets Performance here, the 2001 movie her is the Orson Wells movie with portuguese subtitles theree, and a fifteen minutes long lego adaptation here. THen if you want more good ole reliable you've got the BBC version here and there.
Richard II: here is the BBC version
Richard III: here's the 1955 one with Laurence Olivier, and here's the 1995 one with Ian McKellen. (the 1995 one is in english subtitled in spanish. the 1955 one has no subtitles and might have ads since it's on youtube)
Romeo and Juliet: here's the 1988 BBC version.
The Taming of the Shrew: the 1988 BBC version here, the 1929 version here, some Ontario stuff here and here is the 1967 one with Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor.
The Tempest: the 1979 one is here, the 2010 is here. Here is the 1988 one.
Timon of Athens: here is the 1981 movie with Jonathan Pryce,
Troilus and Cressida can be found here
Titus Andronicus: the 1999 movie with Anthony Hopkins here
Twelfth night: here for the BBC, herefor the 1970 version with Alec Guinness, Joan Plowright and Ralph Richardson.
The Winter's Tale: the BBC version is here
Please do contribute if you find more. This is far from exhaustive.
(also look up the original post from time to time for more plays)
A Misdummer Night Dream: Hereās the 2013 globe production (the one with The Kiss, you know it)
Romeo and Juliet: Hereās the one that was going to be a stage show and then lockdown happened so they filmed it! Stars Josh OāConnor and Jessie Buckley
Okay, I'm collating everything from the comments because I love this so much!
From vivienlacroix:
Much Ado about Nothing: Here is the Free Shakespeare in the Park version with Danielle Brooks as Beatrice (From 2019)
Hamlet: Here is the 1921 silent film in which Hamlet is a woman (donāt get your hopes up though itās extremely sexist and heteronormative)
A Midsummer Nightās Dream: here is the 2019 National Theatre version (With Gwendoline Christie)
From partywithponies:
Here is the Shakespeare's Globe/Roger Allam/Colin Morgan version of The Tempest! (From 2013)
From ryfkah
"ŠŠ²ŠµŠ½Š°Š“ŃŠ°ŃŠ°Ń Š½Š¾ŃŃ" (Twelfth Night), a Russian film from 1955 (with subtitles)
Twelfth Night (1986), a filmed version of an Australian stage production with baby Geoffrey Rush as Andrew Aguecheek
From chekovsphaser:
This drive has 4 Globe productions Midsummer 2013 and Tempest 2013 (Both above), and then As You Like It 2009, and Love's Labour's Lost 2010
From maa-pix:
Twelfth Night: the 1998 version, "Live From Lincoln Center" on PBS, directed by Nicholas Hytner, with Helen Hunt, Paul Rudd, and Kyra Sedgwick. Part One, Intermission interview with Nicholas Hytner, and Part Two. Also here. (Absolutely fantastic version, best I've ever seen.)
From everybody-dies-at-least-once:
Andrew Scott's Hamlet: Almeida (2018)
King Lear at Shakespeare Festival NYC (1974) w/ James Earl Jones, Paul Sorvino, and a young (very sexy) Raul Julia here
Then I made a Google Drive for the ones that I have that I haven't seen elsewhere on the list:
They are also all Globe productions: MacBeth 2020, Romeo and Juliet 2009, Romeo and Juliet 2019, The Merry Wives of Windsor 2019, and The Winter's Tale 2018.
And then finally MIT has this super cool repository of performances from around the world and some of them have videos https://globalshakespeares.mit.edu/
In my (unsuccessful) quest to find The Hollow Crown, I also found a few other of the histories, so here's Richard II with Sean Connery, Richard II with Ian McKellan, and a stage play of Richard III
Also, if anyone has a version of the lockdown Romeo and Juliet mentioned above or the Olivier or McKellan Richard IIIs, the current links are broken and the productions sound very cool!
I might kiss you my friend for that work. I awoke from my slumber to find that the post had become popular again and there was way too much notes attached to it for me to read them all.
This. Is my pride and joy. A gift for my dad, who played Zork with me when I was a kid, and with his dad when he was a kid. I designed this pattern myself and had a great time puzzling out how to hide the glow in the dark letters!
Pattern: āWest of Houseā by me
Fabric: 2x1 on 18ct Blue-Grey Aida
Started: 11/27/2021
Finished: 12/25/2021
Heās got specific lacing advice for skates and tall boots and there are decorative patterns and I recently relaced my skate shoes for both a wide forefoot and less friction on the laces so itās easier to tighten and loosen them but he also has lace-locking patterns so that shoes stay exactly as tight as you laced them the first time and it is just a VERY GOOD website.
Like. Iāve been buying shoes the wrong size because itās often hard to find wide shoes but the lacing pattern for a wide forefoot means that my big hobbit feet actually fit into the previously too-tight running shoes and sneakers I had.
Reblogging because I got this tip from an REI employee and it changed my life.
I have both wide forefeet and high arches, so my shoes are a ridiculous combo of both options above where they are attached at the bottom and then likeā¦ at the very top. It looks stupid, and it helps SO MUCH.
I also have high arches and wide forefeet but I usually just lace like the latter (because someone told me once I have flat feet but then I had my feet imaged later on and no!! they are very high arches theyāre just hidden by the way I stand!!) and oh my gosh the day I discovered it
just
AMAZING.
also I recently got a pair of On Cloudgos and I was walking my dog yesterday LITERALLY feeling like I was bouncing on air, they are amazingly supportive but not heavy like the dad shoes I wore for so many years, augh I love them
For this year's celebratory pattern I wanted to tackle a dream project of mine: stitching a functional unit circle. The French knots (all 100 of them!) around the lower circle represent the coordinates of each point (sans radicals and negative signs), and the upper circle shows how sine and cosine can be found by following a point around a circle's circumference.
context: went thrifting yesterday to find more pieces for my gallery wall, i saw this and knew i absolutely had to have it. the pattern is so clever and the backstitching and detail is incredible! i wish whoever finished it had signed or dated it.ā
Once upon a time I worked in this little burger/coffee/ice cream shop and a lady came in one winter and asked if we had a caramel apple drink and we were likeĀ āwell we have ciderā and she was likeĀ āno I donāt remember what itās called but this place made a drink that was chai tea, apple cider, and caramelā and Breezy offered to try and make something for her but she changed her mind and left so Breezy and I were likeĀ āalright letās try thisā because we had chai tea, instant cider mix, a shit ton of caramel, instant hot water from the espresso and too much free time.Ā
And let me tell you it was delightful. It tastes like watching the leaves changing color and dancing in the wind. It tastes like picking out pumpkins and gourds and fresh apples at the farm up north. It tastes like witches and freedom.
I make it every year now and this year I walked in the house on the morning of October first with all the ingredients and shouted āFALL DRINKā and my roommates were likeĀ ā????ā so I made them Fall Drink and now every time they get home from work theyāre likeĀ āFall Drink pls?????ā
Anyway I remember literally nothing else about that woman but Iām very grateful to her.Ā
Deareat @simonalkenmayer I feel like this is relevant to your interests.
Also, I do something like this in the crock pot with the overly sweet Growers Pumpkin Apple Cider, chai spices, cloves, a bit of orange juice, and some super dry Pinot Grigio.
Mix, heat, and serve on a nippy night best spent cuddled under blankets with a book.
My friend, you have essentially backward engineered a wonderful winter drink from the Stuart period.
White sack wine, cider, spices (clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, ginger) tea, sugar, and if you want it authentic, a bit of cream or whipped egg. All this is brought together in a low temperature and then stewed for a time. It can also beĀ āpulledā, a process in which oneĀ āstirsā the concoction by using a ladle and pouring it repeatedly from high in the air. Makes it foamy and frothy.Ā
Serve warm.
On a cold night, this is a delightful thing. Believe it or not, we also used to make it with a stout beer instead of wine. For a darker richer flavor.
One Black Tea Bag, One Cup Apple Juice, 2tsp butter, 2tsp brown sugar, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger to taste will also accomplish something similar (just melt the butter and brown sugar together and whisk them around a pan a bit - donāt bother making proper caramel) Make your faux-caramel then you add the apple juice and then the rest; heat it up to a boil then turn off the heat, drop the tea bag in and let it steep for 3 minutes, serve with gingersnaps.
Started making something similar last year, old cider (Irish, alcoholic), chai tea bags and a mulled cider flavour sachet (sugar, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg mainly). You donāt need caramel because itās already pretty sweet and lightly boozy! Great with popcorn, banshee bones or Halloween picnmix
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