KAF Look of the day

With  drastic temperature changes from morning to mid-day to evening,  frequent though brief showers and a nearly complete lack of any cover from fiercely bright sunlight between them, layering is the correct approach.

The long-sleeved tee is Jalie 2805, from a delicious blue-tan heathered stretch cotton from Emma One Sock; the slacks are my self-developed TNT, from a stretch cotton herringbone in very pale tan, an exact match to the local dried mud, accessorized with one of my keyhole silk chiffon scarves - wonderful for keeping the neck warm. Barbed and razor wire form a common thread in the local scenery.

The boots and coat were my big but essential purchases for this assignment.  The coat (though it has absurdly long sleeves) is roomy enough for a thick under layer and did a beautiful job doubling as a very warm blanket on the two long haul flights that got me here. 

 I'm standing in front of the Canadian memorial to our servicewomen and men, who lost their lives in the line of duty here.  The sculpture is an inukshuk.

Up, up and away!

The time has come....

...to put away...
...my sewing machines...
...my serger...
...my fabrics...
...my patterns...
...my Burda magazines...
...and return all my unconventional sewing aids (chopsticks, toothpics, the rolling pin, and the like) to their rightful place in the home...

Yesterday I made three workout tops. Today I pack. And tomorrow?



How did my self-clothed deployment project turn out?  With the exception of pj's and hats, I made pretty much everything on my list.  I BOUGHT only a suitably mud-coloured convertible winter/raincoat and one pair of gym shorts - but neither of these were on my list to begin with. 

I leave you with the trailer for Kandahar (2001), a superb Canadian-made movie that predates the current conflict, but instead shows an expat woman's perspective of her country after the Afghan-Soviet war. Highly, highly recommended.