Riviera Theater, its easy to run across the street to the El Encanto Hotel for a drink at the end of the day while watching the sail boats off the coast. 

A few days later several other friends and I spent a fun day in Los Angeles. After exploring the National History Museum and Exposition Park, we headed to for dinner. Then off to The Music Center for the Dizzy Feet Foundation's "Celebration of Dance" to see a variety of excellent dance performances by some of our favorite So You Think You Can Dance artists and more!

I also have been hearing some really good music lately . . . at the Solvang Festival Theater's Jazz In the Garden series Grammy nominee Denise Donatelli presented an outstanding performance under the oaks, so did Chicago jazz singer Paul Marinaro, and a couple of weeks ago the Brazilian sounds of Téka and NewBossa. Friday night was introduced to the Missouri-based bluegrass / folk group Clusterpluck at Casa Dumetz Winery in Los Alamos that I and others are meeting up tonight at Standing Sun Winery where they will be performing!

Most especially, it was terrific because I shared it with dear friends Joan and Jim whose son, Dirk, plays in Joan's band and is a virtuoso in his own right!

Today I became acquainted with the beautiful tie and dye process of India known as Bandhini and Shibori.

Bhandini is one of the oldest forms of surface embellishment done on textiles with references dating back to the Jain Manuscripts. The meticulous process is created mainly by the Khatri artisans. I was introduced to this meticulous process through a traditional chitarnar (artist / designer) who draws the patterns on the fabric — sometimes floral, abstracted circles and zig-zags, figures, animals, birds or trees. The chitamar I was introduced to works with about 300 women and men to produce her exquisite designs.

The fabric is speckled with tiny square-shaped dots (bindi) typically done by women knotters (bandnari), who tediously pinch and resist tie the silk with thin threads before it is dyed.

 Customarily, the dyeing is done by men — ranganaar or dyer — who dye the textile pieces in either natural vegetable or man-made dyes. Their proficiency is seen in the hues and balanced blending of color that is radiated from the material.

Shibori is another tie and dye method that creates pattern by binding, stitching, folding, twisting or compressing cloth. The method is generally determined by the characteristics of the cloth used.

The gorgeous scarves and shawls shown in a trunk show were from the region of Gujarat, which is renowned for its textiles. Though hard to decide because the colors are so sumptuous, I finally decided on two natural pigmented scarves — one to be a gift. Mine was dyed using purpurin, which is only present in the natural form of madder and imparts an orange/red tone. The other was dyed using indigo. 

My dear friend (and faux little sister) Andrea Weir has accomplished a life-long dream . . . and I am still smiling over her accomplishment! What is it? The publication of her first novel, "A Foolish Consistency."

According to the back jacket, it is a "passionate love story, a statement on the power of hope, the importance of forgiveness, and ultimately, the joy of redemption." Though the book is dedicated to her two daughters, who are also my late husband's and my god-daughters, the first acknowledgement amazingly is to me — for which I am totally touched.

Andrea has also raised the bar for me . . . no longer can I make excuses to her for not having finished the books I've begun. Thank you, I think!

Some friends and I saw this really fun and thought-provoking one-woman play last night . . . Manchester Girl. 

It is a mostly biographical piece about escaping life in Northern England via the Tokyo modeling world in the 80s . . . taking you on "a vivid journey of hilarious culture clashes, discos, drugs, and heartbreak. Manchester Girl received a Fringe First Award in Edinburgh and will be opening in New York in September as part of the United Solo theatre festival.

By the way, Sue and her musician husband Robert Cray live in our fabulous Santa Ynez Valley!