Nov 11, 2014

from Threads Magazine: Finding Fabric Shops in Paris

Finding Fabric Shops in Paris

Paris is divied into 20 sections called arrondissements.Click to enlarge.
Find the nearest Paris metro station with this map. Click to enlarge.
Paris is divied into 20 sections called arrondissements.Click to enlarge.
Paris is divied into 20 sections called "arrondissements".Click to enlarge.
Some of the shops mentioned in Susan Khalje's "Sewing Destination: Paris, France" article in Threads #167 (June/July 2013) may be difficult to find because they are located in out-of-the-way corners of Paris's labyrinthine streets. Here are site markers and directions to help you locate the more difficult-to-find shops–plus some budget-friendly fabric shops to visit.
Remember that Paris is divided into 20 sections called "arrondissements", which spiral out from the city's center, and that addresses include the arrondissement number.
Sophie Hallette3, rue Saint-Fiacre, second floor (2nd arrondissement)
Métro: Sentier
Telephone: 01 42 36 98 11.
Hours: Monday-Friday, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. (5 p.m. on Fridays)
SophieHallette.comPush open the big wooden door, and once you're inside the courtyard, you'll see another door to your right. Use the buttons on the left of the keypad to find Sophie Hallette, then push "appel" (call). Go to the second floor, and they'll let you in.
Janssens & Janssens3-5, rue d'Anjou (8th arrondissement)
Métro: Madeleine or Concorde
Telephone: 01 42 65 04 00
Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Janssens & Janssens is just off rue Faubourg St. Honoré.
Tissus Edré16, rue de Jean Bologne (16th arrondissement)
Métro: Passy
Telephone: 01 46 47 60 18
Hours: Monday, 2:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.; Tuesday – Saturday, 10: a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
As you exit the metro station, head up the hill and make a left on rue Passy. Walk until you see rue de Jean Bologne; make a left, then turn immediately into the small courtyard. 
Legeron20, rue des Petits-Champs (2nd arrondissement)
Metro: Pyramides
Telephone: 01 42 96 94 89
Hours: Monday – Thursday, 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.; Friday 8:00 a.m. – 12: p.m. and 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Legeron.com
While the number 20 is clearly marked on the building, you'll have to go to the back of the courtyard to find Legeron's workroom. There's a wooden stairway on your left: walk up to the second floor (actually the third level above ground) and you'll see the workroom's door on your left. 

Les Perlés d'Antan142, rue des Rosiers (in the Clignancourt Flea Market, Saint-Ouen, just beyond the city's boundary)
Métro: Porte de Clignancourt
Telephone: 01 40 10 95 49
Hours: Saturday and Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.; Monday 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
LesPerlesDAntan.com
As you exit the metro, keep going straight. Pass the vendors in the flea market who are selling new items, and turn left onto rue des Rosiers. On the left, you'll see the Marché Malassis building. Flora is on the left, towards the back of the flea market. 

Finding Fabric Shops in Paris

Paris is divied into 20 sections called arrondissements.Click to enlarge.
Find the nearest Paris metro station with this map. Click to enlarge.
Paris is divied into 20 sections called arrondissements.Click to enlarge.
Paris is divied into 20 sections called "arrondissements".Click to enlarge.
Budget-friendly Fabric Shopping in Paris
In Paris, the cream rises to the top, and this holds true for fabric shopping. But there is still a market for the "milk"--the everyday shopping destinations that offer familiar fabrics at prices similar to those you'd find at the average American fabric store. The streets of the 18th arrondissement, particularly in the neighborhood of the Sacre-Coeur and Montmartre, are full of fabric stores, many of them well-known, popular destinations offering goods at reasonable prices. It's a lively and colorful area, and there are bargains to be had.
Paris Tissus15 rue de Steinkerque (18th arrondissement)
Paris Tissus is one of my favorites, because it carries a small but very nice range of suiting fabrics.
Tissus Reine
5 Place Saint-Pierre (18th arrondissement)
Tissus-Reine.com
Tissus Reine is one of the largest fabric stores in Paris and stocks a wide range of goods, all reasonably priced: bridal fabrics and lace, Liberty cotton, dupioni, and home decor fabrics, as well as patterns and notions.
Marché St. Pierre2 rue Charles Nodier (18th arrondissement)
MarchestPierre.comAlso a large store, Marché St. Pierre has multiple floors and a similarly broad offering.
Have you ever shopped for fabric in Paris? Are there any shops you would add to this list of budget-friendly fabric stores?

copied from Threads Magazine

and a link to the webpage:



I received this very useful information and much more by signing up for the Threads e-newsletter and it simply came to my inbox........cl

So in San Diego there is not a great selection of shirting fabric......following the Threads Magazine recommendation for London Fabric Shops one can find a giant assortment of fabric.....everything from Liberty of London Cottons to Chanel style wool and braids perfect for the classic jacket.  Yes, it was expensive for me, but I also think it was worth it........cl


more info from the comments section.......

Palema28Palema28 writes: Hey everyone ,

After long hours on the forums french fabrics, I found the new trend in paris for fabrics shop: It is to go to the suppliers of fabrics directly :)
I've been at Bennytex palce it is nearly close to paris.
Friends of mine are also go there from London : It is great , you can fine plenty of choice and even lower prices than in stores.
Vendors and customers and superb relationships.
There is to an article on them in the newspaper
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/hidden-gem-in-the-deepest-paris-banlieues-8667489.html

More info : bennytex.fr



user-311702 writes: When this issue arrived, I was getting ready to go to France for three weeks.! As I was traveling with three men, there was not much time to shop. I ripped the pages from the magazine an tucked it in my bag. We were only in Paris for four days and on the third, I ditched the guys, hailed a taxi, and went to Janssen & Janssen. Thank you, Threads and Susan! I am the owner of a glorious meter and a half of exquisite fabric for a Chanel jacket! I also found why there are no remnants. When there was extra at the end of the bolt, it was included in my piece for no extra charge!
Posted: 2:06 pm on July 2nd

Spotlight on David Atlee Phillips alias Maurice Bishop from SWHT Author Larry Hancock


Bishop, Phillips and Veciana – the implications




Antonio Veciana recently verified that CIA officer David Phillips used the alias of Maurice Bishop from the time of his first 1960 contact with Veciana in Cuba, a relationship that continued over several years and continuing into cover operations in Latin America    The Phillips/Bishop match has been written on at great length by researches ranging from Gaeton Fonzi and Anthony Summers to myself.   In his autobiography Phillips mentioned making contact while in Cuba with a group plotting an attack on Fidel Castro; he stated that he used both an alias and a disguise in those contacts.   We know that Veciana was involved in such a plot and that he had actually proposed an attack on Castro to the CIA (the related document lists the crypt for his CIA contact as “Olien”, a crypt not yet found in other documents).   Phillips notes that he contacted Veciana as a businessman, making no reference to the CIA, and Veciana confirms that Phillips maintained that stance throughout their relationship.  In 1968, Veciana was given a job working for AID (a long time CIA cover) and moved to Latin America, during the next few years he was involved in additional efforts to kill Castro.  I go into this in some detail in NEXUS but Veciana was not the only Cuban exile involved and it appears that Phillips directly and personally ran those assets while serving in a CIA management position as Chief of Cuban Operations for the Western Hemisphere.
It is reasonably clear that Phillips used CIA resources and CIA money to fund those operations.  What is not clear is the degree to which they were sanctioned, documented or the subject of any CIA paperwork trail. Equally important is that circa 1962/1963, Veciana relates the fact that Bishop/Phillips was key in providing the drive, introductions and money to form Alpha 66 and then to direct its activities.  That is especially interesting since once again there is no CIA paper trial showing any connection to Alpha 66.  It is even more interesting given that Veciana relates that Bishop/Phillips directed the group to attack Soviet targets in Cuba, in a series of missions that were to essentially “put JFK’s back to the wall” in some sort of intervention.  Alpha 66 was being used in direct opposition to American and White House possibility – at the direction of a CIA officer.   One possibility was that the group was crated under a sanctioned operation and that Phillips effectively “stole” it with personal direction and manipulation.  Yet there is no paper trail connecting the Agency to Alpha 66 at any point and those documents which do mention it appear to support the view that there was no direct connection.
All of which means that either there is a huge volume of CIA documentation that is missing from the released materials – to no obvious purpose – or that all connections with Alpha 66 were destroyed.  Other possibilities would be that the whole thing could originally have been a vest pocket operation that Phillips stole or that he hijacked the Veciana contact to his own purposes when Veciana arrived in exile in Miami.
Under any guise, its a fascinating and important historical story.  Did the CIA initially direct Phillips to Veciana based on the offer to assassinate Castro?  If so did the CIA not ask for any follow on reports about the assassination group inside Cuba. Phillips was actually brought out of Cuba for a time once his commercial cover was exposed, was he not debriefed then – before being sent back to essentially retrieve his family.   Hopefully someone or some group of researchers will follow this trial – it could have serious historical implications as to whether or not the CIA was essentially acting independently under the Kennedy administration or whether CIA officers had the ability to go rogue and subvert contacts for their own agendas – in Phillips case an agenda lasting well over a decade.   Personally I’ve written about Phillips activities throughout his career in SWHT, NEXUS and Shadow Warfare – no doubt I’ve even forgotten some of the relevant details in those works.  Hopefully younger and fresher minds can use that as a launching point to take this piece of history much further.


Thank you, Larry, for all of your hard work and always keeping us informed..........cl

copied from the website of Larry Hancock:

Ronnie and Bams






Displaying IMAG1589.jpg


77 WABC: Larry Mendte--Spotlight on A Good Reporter






Good listening this weekend to Larry Mendte........Sundays 7-9 PM on 77 WABC AM Radio New York......(that's Geraldo's station).

He also filled in for Geraldo Rivera on Monday morning in the 10-12 time slot.

Both of his shows offered plenty of new information and facts on the marijuana issue and the Seal Team 6 controversy.

Larry is well informed on the facts so again the listener is the winner because we get to hear new ideas about the topics being discussed.

Larry really knows what he is talking about--his good reporting skills shine through the conversation between Larry and the callers.

The people that call in have a respect for Larry Mendte--the callers are so well informed, too.

Larry is suggesting that marijuana will be legalized in New York just like Colorado and why not take the advantage of the financial opportunities at hand.

Larry told us that many of the original fears about the legalization of marijuana have been proven incorrect over time and fallen off the page one by one.

Larry also feels like the individuals talking about Seal Team 6--members of the team--should be allowed to talk about their activities resulting in the death of Osama Bin Laden.

Actually, Larry Mendte feels like these men should be celebrated as heroes, in this special circumstance, rather that take the silent approach preferred by the Seal Team members and those in charge in order to prevent giving away security secrets.

English: Actress Winona Ryder at the 2010 Toro...
English: Actress Winona Ryder at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Thanks, Larry, for sharing with us your good reporting skills and plenty of pertinent information.

Other good listening from The Ronnie Republic Radio Round-Up.......

WABC Saturdays--Joan Hamburg--really funny interviewing Joy Behar and telling us what is happening on Broadway.

Bill Nighy and Winona Ryder in PBS Masterpiece's Worricker....it is so fun to see brilliant actress Winona Ryder again.


Nov 10, 2014

Winona Ryder and Bill Nighy in the Brilliant PBS Spy Movie Worricker

copied from The Atlantic.........

Page Eight: A Brilliant Bill Nighy Spy Movie You've Probably Never Seen

There's still time to watch it before the sequel airs on PBS Sunday.
BBC Films
In 2011, the BBC premiered Page Eight, broadcasting it on television a few months before it was aired to America audiences under the mantle of Masterpiece Contemporary. Written and directed by playwright David Hare, the film flew under the radar in the U.S. despite having a cast of luminaries, including Bill Nighy as aging spy Johnny Worricker, Rachel Weisz as his neighbor, Michael Gambon as Benedict Baron, the director general of MI5, and Ralph Fiennes as the Prime Minister. The opportunity to see Dumbledore and Voldemort facing off against each other aside, Page Eight is an accomplished, subtle thriller; theatrical while almost defiantly modest in a very British way.
Johnny Worricker returns to PBS in two follow-ups to Page Eight airing this month. Worricker: Turks and Caicos (November 9) sees the now-exiled spy on the lam from his former employer in the Caribbean, while Worricker: Salting the Battlefield follows his return to England in an attempt to protect his family. Before watching the sequels—which feature an all-star lineup including Christopher Walken, Helena Bonham-Carter, Winona Ryder, and Olivia Williams—it's worth catching up with the first film in the series, available to stream via PBS's website and Netflix. The film was criticized when it aired in the U.S. for its perceived anti-American tone, but its cynical treatment of those in power is aimed just as much toward British authorities, particularly the scheming Prime Minister Alec Beasley (Fiennes) and his power-hungry Home Secretary Andrea Catcheside (Saskia Reeves). Worricker, accustomed to putting country first, infuriates both with his laconic drawl, his quiet insistence on following the old rules, and his irreverent attitude towards people in power.
The plot is structured around two interweaving threads: a document discussed in a joint MI5-Home Office meeting that seems to implicate the Prime Minister in knowing about unauthorized American torture camps around the globe, and Worricker's relationship with his neighbor, Nancy (Weisz), a book editor whose brother was killed during a peaceful protest against Israeli occupation in the West Bank. Beasley's desire to dismantle the MI5 and replace it with an American-style Department of Homeland Security means that Worricker and his like will soon be dispensed with, but the existence of the secret document, the most damning part of which lives on page eight (hence the title), gives Worricker and Baron (Gambon) some leverage. After Baron dies of a heart attack, Worricker believes he raised the existence of the memo as a last attempt to save the intelligence agency, and feels duty-bound to follow through with Baron’s mission.
When he isn’t working, Worricker collects art in his modest apartment in Battersea, listens to jazz, and tries to mend bridges with his rebellious artist daughter, Julianne (Felicity Jones, currently playing Stephen Hawking’s wife in The Theory of Everything). Like Nighy himself, Worricker is irresistible to women, despite being perhaps more advanced in years than some of his younger counterparts. This is perhaps the only thing he has in common with that much more famous British spy, given that he doesn’t seem great with technology (“I’ve been taking photos of your operation … and sending them to a computer,” he tells an antagonist at one point) and doesn’t “do guns or violence.” Instead, his spy capabilities seem to be based around quietly observing things around him, and perceiving who he can and can’t trust. Hare allows the character jokes (“Things got so bad last night that I went home and watched the X Factor,” he says), but Nighy’s muted, deadpan delivery makes them as tightly controlled as everything else in the production.
Worricker’s relationship with Nancy is one of the more intriguing parts of the movie to watch, given not only their age difference (Weisz is some 20 years younger, but looks even more so), but their undeniable chemistry. At first, he considers her interest in him to be so unusual that he wonders if she’s also a spy, but perhaps he’s being too modest. The Home Secretary’s assistant, Anna (Holly Aird) is revealed to be both a lover and a source, while a gallery owner (Marthe Keller) closes her eyes when he kisses her goodbye in a way that implies for her, the moment could last forever. But it’s Nancy whom Worricker seems most captivated by. “They come and go, don’t they Johnny,” says his prickly MI5 superior Jill (Judy Davis, in an Emmy-nominated role). “Not Lester,” Johnny replies,” referring to an earlier scene where he and Nancy watched videos of Billie Holiday and Lester Young, observing how desperately in love the singer was with the musician.
Hare is best known for his plays, including PlentyAmy’s View, and the recently revived Skylight, but he also wrote the screenplays for the Oscar-nominated The Hours and The Reader. His language is, at times, overwhelmingly theatrical (“That is why I am asking you in,” says Nancy at one point, resisting both contractions and naturalism), but his direction is flawless. He plays with light and dark endlessly, showing Worricker sitting in the dark in his apartment with only the glow of a laptop on his face, or Worricker alone at MI5 after hours, sitting in the lonely beam from an overhead fluorescent bulb. Most scenes are set at dusk, in darkness, or under grey, gloomy English skies, as if to convey the furtive nature of Worricker’s job, and how lonely it can be.
Unlikely though it may be, the spy Worricker seems to have the most in common with is Jason Bourne, even though one’s a killing machine and the other is, to put it gently, not. But both have been rejected by the institutions that raised and molded them, and both are intent on stamping out corruption because of some innate moral code—the kind that can’t be bought off, or scared into submission. Nighy would be worth watching if he were reading the phone book in an empty room for an hour and a half, but as the uneasy, weary Worricker, he’s just exquisite.
SOPHIE GILBERT is a senior editor at The Atlantic, where she oversees The Atlantic Weekly. She was previously the arts editor at The Washingtonian.

    Nov 9, 2014

    Dear President Obama: You Have Done A Very Good Job.......

    Official photographic portrait of US President...
    Official photographic portrait of US President Barack Obama (born 4 August 1961; assumed office 20 January 2009) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
    Dear President Obama....you have done a very good job...for starters--health care--this is giant, the unemployment numbers, you have set a brilliant example for young people because you love your family--you are a family man and you are cool, cute and funny--referring to that hilarious day at the voting booth.  The economy is going great--even Geraldo said that on his radio show and admitted many of his cohorts just do not want to admit it but they must give credit where credit is due.  One problem--many Americans do not realize how bad our health care was comparatively--recent numbers have come out again with us low on the list prior to the ACA--they simply will not accept this information.

    My favorite thing about your time in office is your measured approach to jumping into wars--John McCain and Bill O'Reilly would have been in about ten wars by now.  I really appreciate that approach but many simply disagree on policy alone and that is too bad as far as I am concerned.

    I try to be an O'Reilly critic but he is hard to take....he is very angry simply at your existence.  He is wrong on so many things but particularly white privilege.  I know because my neighbor here in Wichita is a very nice man but he told me he never felt he would live to adulthood.  It is a funny thing because we have a beautiful school right in the middle of the lower income area.  I think some of the kids may go to this school.  I wish more of the people in the neighborhood had access to this school.

    Believe it or not I would say this city is almost segregated--I will just say I was shocked compared to San Diego.

    You will go down in history as a great President.

    I am also concerned because I listen to the radio every night-Coast to Coast AM.  Recently, George Noory has been so right wing--ultra right wing and he often has on his show the guest Jerome Corsi from World Net Daily.  Again, these people are very tea-party.  He only presents one view and that is what upsets me.  

    I write a blog about the radio and I wrote about my feelings regarding his show--I put it in Smirking Chimp and on my blog but unfortunately I do not have that many readers but I will try to promote it.

    I listen to the radio and news all day--Geraldo is willing to talk and agree and disagree and usually tries to be respectful--he might be an ear to get your message across.  I admired you for talking to O'Reilly but his disrespect was hurtful.

    Good luck to you and keep up the good work,

    Your friend....Chloe Louise...the ronnie republic.

    Nov 7, 2014

    Chocolate Cream Pie Layered Dessert for Thanksgiving from Daniel Dedmon

    from Yahoo Food........

    and Daniel Dedmon--Chapel Hill Baking Examiner



    Dessert to make for Thanksgiving

    "Mystery Dessert" is a luscious, layered treat that would fit in with a Thanksgiving menu!
    "Mystery Dessert" is a luscious, layered treat that would fit in with a Thanksgiving menu!
    photo: lovoffood.com
    According to the calendar, Thanksgiving is about three weeks away. Everyone has a favorite dish to go with the holiday turkey. Many families have a traditional assortment of recipes that they follow for the big feast and many of those recipes are only made at the holidays. In our family, there is a standard set of dishes that are reserved just for Thanksgiving. It's having them only at the holidays that makes us appreciate them more when we make and serve them.
    Some years ago, Helen Moore, the food editor of "The Charlotte Observer", inquired with two of her grandchilden what they would like to have for Thanksgiving that year. One of them requested the recipe I'm sharing today, called "Mystery Dessert." Helen stated in her article that she made this for Thanksgiving and it was gobbled up in a hurry.
    As to why this is called "Mystery Dessert" is really a "mystery" to me! There's no explanation as to why this dessert has this name. The only reason I can come up with is that the layering of the ingredients has people guessing as to what all is in it. It begins with a buttery, shortbread-type crust. It's then topped with a mixture of cream cheese, powdered sugar and whipped topping. This is then followed by chocolate pudding, then more whipped topping. For the finale, it can be topped with chopped nuts or grated chocolate.
    One big advantage to this dessert is that it's to be made ahead, so it can even be made the day before. It's best served when it's well-chilled, so make certain to start on this ahead of time. This makes enough to serve between six and eight, but if you expect everyone to be very full after the main meal, your guests may want a very small serving. Therefore, it would make the dessert go further.
    Last year at this time, I shared a collection of recipes for dressing, which is an absolute necessity at Thanksgiving! In case you missed it, here's the link:
    So, make a list of what you and your family would like for the holiday feast and plan a cooking schedule. Meantime, try this "mysterious" dessert!
    MYSTERY DESSERT
    1 stick butter or margarine, melted
    1 cup of all-purpose flour
    1/2 cup chopped nuts
    1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
    1 (8 oz) carton whipped topping, such as Cool Whip
    1 cup powdered sugar
    2 small packages instant chocolate pudding
    3 cups cold milk
    Additional chopped nuts or grated chocolate for garnishing
    Mix together melted butter, flour and nuts. Press into a 9-inch pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the crust is a pale beige. Watch closely as it doesn't burn. Remove and cool. Cream together the cream cheese, 1 cup of the whipped topping and the powdered sugar. Mix until smooth and gently spread over the crust. Mix the chocolate pudding and milk, mixing according to package directions. Spread over the cream cheese layer. Cover pudding with the remaining whipped topping and garnish with the chopped nuts or grated chocolate. Cover and chill for several hours or overnight. Serves 6-8.

    here is a link to his page for info about Daniel and more good food info: