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I wanted to make a post I could copy and paste and or link when I see folks asking where to buy fabrics when Joann is gone. I sew a lot, generally between 100-200 items a year and I don't do it on a big budget. Stores are not in a particular order.

Notions:

Wawak.com - start here, mostly stay here. Wawak is a supplier for professional sewing businesses and have the prices that show it. I will not pay for gutermann Mara 100 anywhere else. I buy buttons, tools, thread, and most elastic here.

Stitch Love Studio - this is where I buy lingerie supplies https://www.etsy.com/shop/StitchLoveStudio?ref=yr_purchases

Fabric:

Fabric Mart - this is one where you want to sign up for emails and never buy unless its on sale. They run different sales every day and they rotate. Mostly deadstock fabrics but I buy more from here than anywhere else. Fantastic customer service and if you watch you can get things like $6 wool suiting or $4 cotton jersey. https://fabricmartfabrics.com/

Fabrics-Store - again, buy the sales not the full price. Sign up for the emails but redirect them to a folder because it is TOO MANY. They stock linen or good but not amazing quality. https://www.fabrics-store.com/

Purple Seamstress - This is where I buy my solid cotton lycra jersey. They have other things, but the jersey is what I'm here for. Inexpensive and very good quality. If you ask she will mail you a swatch card for the solids. https://purpleseamstressfabric.com/

LA Finch - deadstock fabrics with a fantastic remnant selection https://lafinchfabrics.myshopify.com/

Califabrics - mix of deadstock and big brands, easy to navigate and always seem to have good denim in stock. https://califabrics.com/

Boho Fabrics - good variety, nice bundles. I have also gotten some really great trims from here. https://www.bohofabrics.com/

Firecracker Fabrics - garment and quilting fabrics, really nice selection and great sale section. I've bought $5 yard quilting cottons here several times. https://www.firecrackerfabrics.com/

Hancock's of Paducah - Quilting fabric and some limited garment fabric. AMAZING sale section. Do not sleep on the sale section. This is my first stop when buying quilting fabrics. Usually the last stop too. Not particularly speedy shipping. https://www.hancocks-paducah.com/

Itokri - This is something a little different. Itokri is an Indian business with incredible traditional fabrics. Shipping to the US is expensive, but the fabric is so inexpensive it evens out. I generally end up paying like $30 for shipping. Beautiful ikat and block prints. https://itokri.com/

Miss Matatabi - this is a little treat. This isn't where you go to save money, but there are so many beautiful things in this shop. Ships from Japan incredibly quickly. https://shop.missmatatabi.com/

Lucky Deluxe - Craft thrift store, always has an incredible selection and fantastic customer service. I need to close the tab fast because I never go to this website without finding something I need. https://www.luckydeluxefabrics.com/

Swanson's - the OG of online craft thrift stores, but I find their website harder to navigate. https://www.swansonsfabrics.com

Honorary Mentions: I haven't shopped at these places yet but I have had them recommended and likely will at some point.

A Thrifty Notion - https://athriftynotion.com/

Creative Closeouts - https://creativecloseoutsfabric.com/ being rebranded to sewsnip.com on March 1 - quilting deadstock

Hawthorne Supply Co. - I just got this rec and I think I need to not look too closely or I'm going to slip with my debit card. https://www.hawthornesupplyco.com/

This is not an exhaustive list of everywhere you can buy fabric, or even a full list of where I shop. There are SO many options out there in the world. You also need to think outside the fabric store box. I thrift men's shirt fabrics for quilts and sheets for backing fabric. I don't do a ton of in person thrifting and my local stores don't get a lot of craft materials but every thrift store is its own universe and reflects the community it is in. Go out and find something cool.

It is 10pm

Essos Infographic: Dothraki

"The Dothraki people are a culture of nomadic warriors in Essos who range across the vast grasslands of the Dothraki seain hordes known as khalasars. People of the Seven Kingdoms and the Free Citiesalso refer to the Dothraki as horselords.

Dothraki typically have copper-toned skin, black hair, and black, almond-shaped eyes.Dothraki men wear their hair in long braids, oiled or greased with fat from the rendering pits.Dothraki warriors carry small bells in their braids, which ring softly when they move. They are only allowed to braid their hair after they have won a victory. A bell is added to their braid after each victory; The braid is only cut when a Dothraki warrior is defeated in battle, an act through which he lets the world know his shame. Only few men die with their braids never having been cut off.Men further might wear metal rings bound in their mustachios.

Both men and women might wear painted leather vests over bare chests and horsehair leggings cinched by bronzemedallion belts, although wealthier Dothraki might also have silver and golden medallions on their belts. Others might wear sandsilk trousers. For footwear Dothraki wear leather boots, leather sandals which lace up to the knee, or sandals of woven grass." - A Wiki of Ice and Fire (https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Dothraki)

Infographic fantasy fashion inspired by the artwork of @chiarart - @ilreleonewiki.

CARRD TO EVERYTHING

but I'm positing that it's actually Nemo who is Odysseus. I think there's a lot more to the characteristics of Odysseus and Telemachus than just "father on an epic adventure to reunite with son." this isn't a perfect analogy because Finding Nemo is not an official retelling of the Odyssey, but I think there's certainly enough similarities to make an argument. like Odysseus, Nemo is trying to return home and conquering his own hubris. like Telemachus, Marlin is searching for a loved one and conquering his own fears. Marlin's journey is driven by Nemo's absence and a call to action, while Nemo's struggle is caused by the consequences of his own actions. their journeys work in perfect tandem yet remain distinct.

let's start with the type of journey each character has. in the Odyssey, Telemachus undergoes a paideia (παιδεία), which is essentially a rite of passage journey in which a character is shaped (physically, mentally, ethically, etc.) into a well-rounded, responsible citizen. while Marlin certainly shares Odysseus' exhausting, episodic journey, his actual character arc takes him through paideia. at the beginning of Finding Nemo, it is Marlin, not Nemo, who is afraid of what lies beyond his control, uncertain in his own power of navigate his path and lead others. like Telemachus, Marlin goes through a process of journeying and searching for his lost loved one, and he emerges a confident, well-rounded leader who has set aside immaturity and taken his rightful place in the hierarchy of his society.

now let's look at Odysseus. his journey in the Odyssey is one of nostos (νόστος), which usually refers to an extensive maritime journey to return home, marked by trials and culminating in a homecoming. this is EXACTLY the journey Nemo goes through — even though he's stuck in one place, he goes through all manner of hijinks to escape the fishtank and get back home to his dad. Marlin's journey isn't one of homecoming, but Nemo's very much is. Nostos is also a reclamation of honor for the hero, and Nemo certainly redeems himself from the hubris that landed him in trouble. in the Odyssey, Odysseus' brags that he is greater than the gods' pride and hubris is what causes him to be cursed and barred from home. Nemo gets captured because he disobeys his dad and is too confident in swimming out to sea. he redeems his status as beloved son, proves his honor as a returning hero, and returns home worthy of the great tales everyone is telling about him (Marlin does this too btw, just like Telemachus).

consider some of the supporting characters. Dory serves as a companion to Marlin, one who accompanies him in his quest and eventually serves as an agent who reunites him with Nemo. in this way, Dory is the Eumaeus of Finding Nemo: someone who primarily is connected with Marlin (Telemachus) but is instrumental in the reunion between father and son. she also participates in the big fish-escape scene at the end, just as Eumaeus participates in the slaughter of the suitors. Dory's lack of memory in general is also a very cool parallel for the way Telemachus cannot remember Odysseus but goes searching for him anyway. she and Marlin combined form a complete Telemachus.

I don't think it's too much of a stretch to identify the Athena of the story as Nigel the pelican. he's the one link between Marlin and Nemo, and he (unlike the fish and sea creatures) can travel much faster and over farther distances than the fish can. he's got nearly godlike powers compared to them. Nigel is the one who gives Nemo advice, orchestrates the reunion between Nemo and Marlin, etc. however, Nigel actually physically moves Marlin from the ocean to the dentist's office, which is borderline supernatural intervention to a clownfish.

so let's compare that with Athena's role in the Odyssey. she's a goddess, and Odysseus is her favorite mortal. she advises him, orchestrates events in his favor (his adventure with the Phaeacians, for example), but she never physically manipulates him across time and space. who does she physically travel with, though? Telemachus! Athena is in disguise, but she brings literal supernatural intervention to get Telemachus to Sparta and Pylos. in summary, Athena (Nigel) is accompanying / traveling with / transporting Telemachus (Marlin) while she just advises and checks in with Odysseus (Nemo).

there are plenty of other character parallels too. if there's a Poseidon of the story, it's the dentist (P. Sherman), who is the cause of Nemo's (Odysseus') inability to return home. the Tank Gang (Gill, Bloat, Bubbles, etc.) function like Odysseus' crew — they accompany him for the majority of his attempts to return home, but they don't make it to the final stretch with him. all the creatures that Marlin encounters (the sharks, the moonfish, the sea turtles, etc.) serve in much the same function that characters like Nestor, Menelaus, and Helen do for Telemachus as they give him information and aid him in his journey to maturity.

the parallels are just too obvious to ignore. in the beginning, Marlin is secretly ridiculed by the other fish fathers in his home-reef; Telemachus is a stranger in his own home once the suitors arrive. Marlin refuses to give up on finding Nemo even when all hope seems lost; Telemachus searches for Odysseus even when everyone tells him that his father is long dead. Marlin grows in confidence and reputation like Telemachus; Nemo grows in humility and honor like Odysseus. the big fish-escape sequence at the end (which is the only thing I can compare to the defeat of the suitors in the Odyssey) represents Nemo taking charge as a leader and Marlin following his lead. the ending (where Marlin and Nemo return to the reef) is synonymous with the reestablishment of order upon Odysseus' re-institution as king of Ithaca. even Nemo's name literally means nobody.

so yeah Marlin may have the traditional adventures we associate with Odysseus, but I think Finding Nemo is far more interesting as an Odyssey retelling when you look at it through some seriously inverted roles. again, Finding Nemo isn't technically a retelling of the Odyssey, but the whole dual-journey-narrative-between-father-and-son is pretty gosh darn similar. I welcome all comments, questions, and attacks that this analysis brings