**warning: do not read this if animal skins freak you out**

My last trip to New York was for a garment tour with Bits of Thread, the studio where I do design work, sewing, etc. They hold various sewing and fashion design classes and hosted a trip for some fabric shopping.

I started the day at The Blind Barber in Williamsburg. They have Blue Bottle coffee and internet, which is all you ever need from a cafe.

We met at Mood. I got lost in the aisles searching for fabrics. Many stores in NY, including Mood, carry the remnants of fabrics ordered by designers. For example, if Theory orders thousands of yards of a cotton twill, but doesn't use all of it, it could end up at Mood where someone else can buy the very same fabric they use. At Mood they usually label the lot if it was made for a designer. The bummer is there is only a certain amount and you can't order more.

For lunch we stopped at Schnippers and I had a huge cobb salad. Yum.

Then we had a class at Global Leathers and learned about the different types and qualities of leather. We touched a lot of skins and discussed properties, treatments and uses. We also got to feel some exotic skins like stingray, zebra and python. It was pretty amazing to learn from an expert everything there is to know about leather (well, not everything!).

After I stopped at some other fabric stores, then Fashion Design Books for some art supplies and Around the World Fashion to browse through fashion magazines from around the world. To end the day I stopped at Moda Espresso Bar for a cappuccino and some down time with my swatches and new colored pencils.