Channel Terry Gross

Terry Gross, photo credit Will Ryan

Have any of you ever listened to Terry Gross on Fresh Air?  I have been listening to her for the last decade religiously.  She is part of my daily ritual. Now that I have my Ipad, I listen to her whenever I want.  I am addicted.  My favorite interviews to date have been Martin Short, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and the latest Jimmy Fallon.

If Terry interviewed me it would go something like this...

Terry:

With us today is my guest Lara Serbin founder of Sam Harvey a fashion line of hand sewn design products and co-founder of Serbin Studio an architectural firm.  Lara Serbin, welcome to the show.

Lara:

Thank you Terry.  I cannot believe I am sitting here with you.  I love the sound of your voice.  You have been my companion through countless design projects for the last decade. Thank you for being so committed to your craft.  I have noticed that you always pin point someone's deepest secrets when you interview them.  They cannot hide from you.  You go for the jugular.

Terry:

"Crisp chuckle."  It has taken years to perfect it.  I don't notice it anymore.  It just happens naturally that my guests want to reveal themselves to me.

Lara:

They feel comfortable with you. It shows.

Terry:

Tell us about Sam Harvey.  What is it exactly?

Lara:

It started out as Hanukah presents for my family a couple years back.  I had lost my way with Serbin Studio and it seemed that it was going to stop all together.  I literally brought my sewing machine into the archtectural studio one day and just started sewing to get my mind off of the dead silence of the phones not ringing.

Terry:

Why the name Sam Harvey?

Lara:

Sam Harvey is an androgynous name.  Jeffrey and I don't have to limit ourselves in terms of design.  Sam Harris Parke was my Baptist great grandfather who was a sheriff in a county in North Carolina.  Harvey Nep was my Jewish grandfather from Los Angeles who was a food buyer for a discount chain store and then a sales manager for the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.  In the 1960's Harvey opened a full scale dinner house called King Neptune on Mission Bay.

Terry:

You must have been very brave to start something so new in such a depressed time.

Lara:

Jeffrey and I needed to get our minds off of architecture for a while. We knew we were missing something with Serbin Studio.  A missing ingredient or something.  

Terry:

Maybe a corned beef sandwhich?

Lara:

Hah! Nice put away shot!  It felt good to make up something to keep us busy at that time.  We were working on designing patterns for these quilted bags kind of like Vera Bradley bags but cooler and better engineered.  Except when it came time to cut each piece and assemble we started to understand how labor intensive it was to produce a bag that won't rip apart when you start loading it and carrying it.

Terry:

I read through some of your blog posts and it seems that you enjoyed making them and picking out fabrics.  You even designed your own metal hardware I noticed.

Lara:

I can't say there was a time when anything we produced for Sam Harvey was profitable.  The whole chapter was one of exploration.  I felt like I had started as a junior in a new high school and had to make friends.  

Terry:

You marketed to local spas in Arizona.  You and Jeff even went to ISPA in Texas at one point. 

Lara

I felt like we needed to commit to something in order to make Sam Harvey work.  I realized that Sam Harvey bags were not fetching the price that they deserved.  There was one spa in Paradise Valley in particular that I had a very unfortunate meeting. The spa director, a young woman didn't even make eye contact with me when I spoke to her.  Some spa directors forgot that I had even scheduled meetings with them.

Terry:

From the looks of your postings it doesn't look like you are sewing bags anymore.  Seems like you have been doing more watercolors and designing for Serbin Studio.

Lara:

Once I know we are going down a dead end, I can quickly change course.   I wasn't about to start a production overseas to bring the cost of the bags down.  I definitely didn't want to start a life of showing my bags at craft shows for a living.  After being an architect for so long, I have to say that I missed my professional status of saying that I was an architect.  I missed dressing like an architect.  I missed my white starched dress shirts, khaki pants and black mary janes.  I was used to being treated with respect and being paid for what I am worth.

Terry:

From the looks of things, Serbin Studio is headed towards great things.

Lara:

Thanks Terry.  Just talking with your has been amazing.  I have a new appreciation for being an architect.  I want Serbin Studio to succeed above all else.  I learned valuable lessons from trying to make it in the retail business. Who knows, maybe Sam Harvey can tie into Serbin Studio someday.  Fashion and architecture.  For now bag production has stopped.

Terry:

Looks like you still love to sew.

Lara:

That will never stop.  I have to have a personal sewing project I can loose myself in.  As long I spend about an hour a day sewing, I am a happy architect!

Terry:

It's  been great having you on the show.  I look forward to hearing more about your designs whether in the fashion or architecture world.

Lara:

Thanks for interviewing such amazing people in the past Terry. You will continue to inspire and amaze me.

360

Tonight I took Eva and Lily my girls to PF Changs for dinner. This is a typical Monday evening for us after dance class.  As we are going through the circular glass door thing that spins around 360 *which I have no clue why you would need this in Arizona with all the hurricane activity* which I dread because Lily always makes it spin like 3-4 times.  Eva and I will be in the lobby and Lily will keep going round and round slowly while her greasy fingers are mashed up against the freshly windexed curved glass. Well this time the round door just haulted stop with lily wedged somewhere in the middle.  She was ready for Willie Wonka to suck her up to the blue berry gobstopper machine or what in the hell I don't know.  I felt myself loosing my cool.  I looked behind me in the reception and my eye stopped on this attractive young couple. Mind you I am pretty dead sure that the woman was about 3 months pregnant.  I said to them, "This is what you have to look forward to!" They looked at each other and giggled. Then I laughed in my big hardy har har way *which might I add it quite contagious*. 

Lily and Eva were well behaved but then they kind of lost it while I was waiting to pay.  Lily was laying down in the booth and sticking her feet up the sides of the upholstery. Then I swear Eva did this world federation body slam on Lil and then the couple next to our booth stopped eating and stared at us.  I am proud to say that they have some Nep in them after all.  You could never take Erik and I out to dinner or anywhere for that matter when we were that age. We were a mess.

Lil and Eva

For those that care *and I know you secretly do* my quilting on my skirt and jacket are slowly but steadily getting finished.  Just the sleeve of the jacket took the entire weekend. Just quilting that is.

Special thank you to Christine Jonson for sending some free knit fabrics my way.  Christine is on the cover of last months Threads magazine.  She designs her own patterns for garments. She mainly focuses on knit fabrics which she sells on her online boutique. She is truly a creative genius.  Her patterns are very straight forward. It took many trial and error but I have my favorite patterns from her website like for simple tops, skirts which I just repeat over and over with different knits.

The most amazing part of sewing a Jonson pattern is that the end result is something you can keep in your closet forever. The most well sewn quality garment you will every have. I love mixing and matching my pieces.  I like her patterns too because I can sew a top in about 3 hours.  SHAM WOW. I know.

Latest trip to Garlands in Oak Creek Canyon, AZ.  This was not our cabin but I like this one.

Roundabout

Mademoiselle's team of house models in Moscow for the second Chanel show in Russia, 1967.  I am the one on the right. YOU KNOW IT!

This is me hand tying the knots at the end of each machine permanent stitch.  Tiger's legs.  Her tail is unusually long. She likes to sit on my fabric as soon as I sit down.

This is what I am doing. A quilted lining.  I am quilting each piece of my skirt and jacket before I even sew everything together.  In this case my lining is the pink silk and the black tweed is my shell fabric.  Get it? Kind of? 

The permanent quilting is on the left. The right side is what I have left to do.  Each time I stitch over the neon orange basting with my machine for a permanent stitch it takes about 10 minutes. This is becuase I am not back stitching with my machine. I leave long tails and I knot each end by hand.

The neon hand basting is along the sides of the pink stripes.  I thought I would just follow the pattern.  The basting is only temporary.  I use black thread on the tweed side and pink thread on the silk lining side so my final permanent stitching will not be noticed.

Sewing for 30 minutes was the best part of today.  The feeling of the silk and tweed coming together as one is quite awesome.  See my hand basting with the neon thread above. I sew with my sewing machine over the orange basting.  Once I am done quilting the silk to the tweed I will remove the neon thread.  That, my dear, is what you call couture sewing or CRAZY TOWN. 

This is just one piece of my jacket. I have a boat load more to go.  I will be done with this suit when we can live on Mars.

Couture Sewing Techniques, Claire B. Shaeffer

Chanel Collections and Creations, Daniele Bott

The 2 things I would need if I had to wander the desert for 40 years.

Bound Button Holes

My latest project is another couture chanel skirt and jacket using this amazing tweed I picked up from MOOD Fabrics in LA.  No I am not showing the pattern.  It is so late now! I don't even know where it is now!  This project is going to be amazing.  Why?  I learned some tricks from Claire Shaeffer on how to make tailor knots and back stitches.  These small details is huge in my world of couture garment making.  For the last million years of my life I had been making knots and tying it like 10 times to get this huge knot ball to have at the end of my string.  Claire taught me to just go in the way I entered.  I am a sewing geek I know.  For this years birthday I asked Mom to buy Shaeffer's DVD with footage of how to do some of these crazy details in her book that I had to read 10 million times but still did them wrong.  This is how I get my kicks.  Like I said, this time this jacket and skirt will be amazing. Like laser beams and shit.

It is so 11pm now and I just scanned this for you.  This project should only take me about a year.  I am serious.  Now I know how to make a Tailor's Knot. I am super dangerous now.  I pretty much sew one seam per day.  The majority of my day is spent being an architect.  I manage to squeeze in about an hour a day of sewing. 

Claire, if you ever read this can you come over here and show me how to do a BOUND button hole.  Why didn't you show this on your video?  Baby steps. Second, you are a sewing GODDESS! 

Box of Treasures

A package arrived at my door this week that made me really happy.   

Hey, Mom if you are reading this... the cactus you gave me is blooming.  See?  

Inside the box from Pennslyvania were lots of treasures sent from Nen and her sister Katy .  These bloggers enjoy sharing their life in Pennsylvania.  Their families support one another.  Nen just had a baby girl and still managed to make this surprise so special.   Whenever I read their blogs I feel good. It is that simple.  Even though I have never spoken a word to them, I just know that they are kind hearted and sincere people.  Baking, sewing, planting, knitting, blogging, home schooling their children also make them super talented.  They are powerful creators.

How could you not like someone who sends you a package with a lettuce sticker on it.  Too cool.

Eva and Lily loved the lambs.  I would not let them open it.  It sat on my entry chair for a couple of days until I was really ready to enjoy it.  I have been going from morning mixer to town meeting non stop lately.  There is a rumor that Serbin Studio our architectural firm will be launching a new blog soon.  Hmmm.  I wonder who will be blogging on it?

I finally had a gap of time and cracked it open. Man, I should have done it much sooner! 

Chocolates from a local candy store Dan Smith's in Nen and Katy's hometown of Brookville, PA.  Yeah, I know there is a missing chocolate in the golden box. I couldn't help myself.  Trust me it was over the top!  It WAS this malted chunk covered in the most delicious chocolate.

Chocoate BUNNY!  Perfect for Eva and Lily's Easter baskets. The stock pile is growing.  I am so glad I didn't have to buy the gangster bunny's at Walmart this year.  Some of the chocolate bunny's out there are just scary.  My bunny doesn't need gold teeth. REALLY!

This thing is heavy.  I am glad this box didn't have a chance to sit outside. It is getting toasty over here.  It is cooling down this weekend though.  Maybe my tennis tournament will be cancelled tomorrow.  Secretly....I thinking.... YES!

Katy knitted this dish cloth.  She calls it a dish cloth. It is too gorgeous and well crafted to use on my dishes.  I know you used garter picking for this.  

Of course Tiger had to come sniff everything.  I call her Tigerlette. Sounds like omelette. Tigerlette, Tigerlette, Tigerlette.  Ok black cats are not the center of the planet anymore.

Nen made this lovely clay bowl.

Nen also made these gorgeous envelopes, owl stickers and cool card.

This was the first thing I ripped open. Confection popcorn didn't even make it into the staged photograph.  Tastes like frosted popcorn.  I think I was cackling when I ate it.  I was totally craving chocolate that afternoon and I didn't have anything on hand.

Thank you to Nen and Katy.  I send you my hugs from the desert.  You brightened up my day! 

Free Sweet Tea

I'm just waiting for my tuna melt to melt you know.   Just making conversation. It's the little things like how much Easter shit can you buy this season.  I plan on going full tilt this year. I don't want to hear it ok. I know I am Jewish. Oh there is so much to learn.  It's all good.   Why wouldn't you want to put the Peep's in the microwave for fun.

I want to find some pink and green clear plastic and wrap the entire inside of my house so when eva and lil wake up it will look like the Alice in Wonderland ride.  I think I used that analogy already, maybe more than once.  Just deal.  I bought some Steiff animals just because they have that yellow screw through their ear.  Maybe the girls will really fall in love with lamby. they will probably fight over it.  I want their baskets to be like the top of Marge Simpson's blue hair.  Really blue and awkwardly tall. Tiny presents hidden in plastic grass that will take years of vacuming.

Mom used to make organic Easter baskets for Erik and I.  Baby bunches of carrots with the green ends still on, carob raisins, goji berries covered in dried kefir, spiralina energy packs.  Good times.

My inspirations for now...

 

I forgot where I tore this out.

This has been stuck in my head for 1000's of years. PLEASE MAKE IT STOP NOW!

Reading a biography on Henry Edward Huntington by James Thorpe. 

Fashion Independent: The Original Style of Ann Bonfoey Taylor - anyone who could figure out how to own every size of Louis Vuitton luggage is bomb.

 Theatre de la Mode, everything is miniature and that is a good thing

Woodsy Nerd

View 2, Textile Magazine Winter 10/11

Sombody please wear this look.  And wear it like you mean it damn it.

It's sweet and it's free.

I Find It

This billboard lives close to me.  Most times I drive right past it just as I am driving up the desert mountain to go home.  Sometimes just before the light turns green, I glance at it.

Raw beauty.

What did you just say....?  You want to see a close up? Ok fine!

I know what you are thinking...SWEET!

Cheap Fun

My new bag. Look at it...

I knew you would want to see this close up.  So true.

Here is the first one. I gave it to Ron.  It may just be at the bottom of his car by now.

Big enough for your pet squirrel.

I was just on my way to wipe down the inside of my car at like 10 o'clock at night because I am driving my client around tomorrow to look at really expensive kitchen appliances.  Don't worry now!  I will do it before I go to bed, gawd, you ride me!  

Kids love to be in the car during an automatic car wash. Period. Cheap fun.

Lily said she wished it was longer and turned into a roller coaster.  I told them it was a gigantic octopus devouring our car.  My car is so full of dirt right now.  What I really want to do is make Beouf Bourguignon with my Julia Child but it would be done at 1am.  I will be stoned tired for my jaunt to Scottsdale and then my sleep will be bacon filled. Beef house. No way. I will wait till tomorrow I guess. So much for having dinner ready for when I get home.

What I really want to do is use my new pot I bought today at Williams Sonoma.  When I was paying for it *not cheap fun* I told the apron clad honey it was BAD ASS!  

Doesn't it just make you want to cook a roast in your jammies?

Let's Play... What's at the bottom of Lara's Car?

1. Green kazoo.
2. Mini CPK menu, you know the one.
3. One dirty sock.
4. Hunk of asphalt *Lily*.
5. Photo of Lara's Grandpa that she keeps avoiding getting framed.
6. Lulu Lemon shopping bag.
7. Mixed Nuts.
8. A plush snake that can be manipulated.
9. Digital camera, surprise surprise.
10. Lily's spelling word list.
11. Carousel of Pip Squeak markers no less than 30 colors at all times.
12. White board.

Dashboard has been wiped.  Are you so happy with delight now!

Nighty night light bright.



Black with an Orange Zipper

We are back from our Christmas in Washington with Nana and Papa.  Erik my brother was there too which made it crazy fun.  There were many BEST parts.

1. Walking 4 miles in the rainy mist with Jeffrey.

2. Me playing drums and Erik playing base at EMP.

3. Swedish Pancakes at Oak Table twice!

4. Mom's house smelling like meat all day...

5. Watching Oceans and falling asleep.

6. Learing how to knit *you know I couldn't NOT have a project!*

7.  Drinking coffee all day.

8. Wearing rain boots.

9. Being cold.

10.  Playing tennis in a bubble dome.

Tonight I FINALLY *LET'S EMPHASIS FINALLY* started my new zipper bag prototype.  I am making the first one for Ron.  He can use it for toiletries. He likes to travel.  I am going black with gray and then an orange zipper.  I hope he is at the New Year's Party tomorrow.  It is the only way I will get this damn thing done is to give myself a deadline.  Notice how this cheesy ass pink sweater from Costco is now my "designing a new bag" uniform.   It should be easy right? RIGHT?!  I said I would make a chocolate sponge cake from Julia Child too for New Years. 

Eva making a Birthday card for Uncle Ron.

Not anybody has a "make your own bubble gum kit" next to their cereal. 

Oh Lil.

My What Green Eye Liner You Have

Nice arm rest ball thing?!

Um...that's why I have been so quiet.  Yuh see now!

The only outlet that works for my Sam Harvey card swiper is by my bed table.  I know what your thinking. NOW STOP IT!

Hot Wheels rule.

I mean really cool!  The runners are going into bags now!  Hah! Should I add a SAM HARVEY sticker to seal it?

I feel like celebrating!  I am closing in on the custom runners for the Sanctuary Resort and Spa.  I have a million mitered corners that could pass GO and collect $200 dollars but you know how you feel when you have a small amber popcorn sheath stuck in your back gum up against your tooth? It is annoying.  You try to unstuck it with your tongue for hours and then try to use your pinky nail to get it out but you know you have to get out the dental floss to free your mind.  YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO!  These mitered corners need to be hand stitched down.  So I will retire to my sewing thrown on my mountain in the desert.  Let's see... 15 runners each having 8 corners. I am talking 4 corners but back and front. I cannot give these runners up yet.  They have to be perfect or I won't be able to live with myself. 

I really love when I am in the middle of a stitch and I can't get up to fast forward through Chinese people torturing each other over some ancient lantern. I bought this new audio book called The Emperor's Tomb. I bought it thinking I would get visual sensations of ancient worlds underground the Chinese provences.  I wanted to hear about archeological digs full of old chinese beads and broken lion statues and stuff but so far it is just water boarding torture.  Merry Christmas.  After spending just 5 minutes tying a knot to my needled thread I am not going to waste my time to fast forward through Hu Ching getting scalded by a fire pit below. WHATEVER! Cleopatra - A Life, is hard to top. Gawd that audio book was knock out good.