This spring's production is The Bluegrass Musicians of Bremen Flats, the premiere of an original musical by Ron Lytle

Last May,  I saw their production of  Beauty & the Beasty and was so impressed with the children’s enjoyment of the show that I decided to join the volunteers in the EBCT that make these shows possible.

Each spring, a few shows are presented to the general public to help raise the funds needed for the group’s mission:  to bring live musical shows to children in under served schools in Oakland — many who have never seen any live entertainment.

If you have young children — from pre-school up to 5th grade level — you won’t want to miss this year’s show!

For a synopsis of the show, go to:  http://ebctonline.org/productions/

A flyer for the show, with the date, times and ticket prices is below, if you’d like to print a copy.

When:  This spring’s  public performance  of  The Bluegrass Musicians of Bremen Flats will take place in Montclair on Saturday, March 24th, with two one-hour shows at 11am and 1:30pm.   Tickets may or not be available at the door, depending upon advance sales.

Where:  Montclair Elementary School auditorium

Cost:  Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for children

For more info:  Call 510-645-2401 or visit ebctonline.org

To purchase tickets in advance, mail a check to:

EBCT Ticketing / P.O. Box 21502 /  Oakland, CA  94620-1502

Include which show you’d like to attend and how many adult and children’s tickets you’d like.

And also, whether you’d like an email confirmation of your order or,  if you’d like return mail,  include a self-addressed stamped envelope with your check.

Show Flyer:

Show flyer for The Bluegrass Musicians of Bremen Flats, an original musical by Ron Lytle

Trellis pattern in the 'pool' color from Duralee Fabrics

Like the way this pattern combines elements of a trellis and ogee pattern –  with what could be a leaf in the soft turquoise ground.

A nice fabric to brighten up a home;  it still has a nice relaxed feel to it.

From Duralee, in their Pavillion Collection of  Indoor/Outdoor fabrics.

Available in 3 colors, the embroidery work makes this one of  the most notable fabrics I’ve seen this spring.

The first color, ‘Orchard’ is my favorite, with its happy palette of reds, oranges and greens.  The inset photo near the bottom highlights an embroidered section of the pattern:

Emory Leaf embroidered fabric in the 'Orchard' color

Here’s a look at the 2 other colors in this pattern, which also have appealing  palettes:

Emory Leaf in the 'Stone' and 'Seaglass' colors

To give you an idea of the scale of the pattern:  The vertical repeat is 13″ and the horizontal repeat is 17.5.”

The overall width is 52″ and it is 100% cotton.

So it seems a good time to ask:  What does greening your home really mean when it comes to fabrics?

At one point, using organic or all natural materials was the standard used by most of us.

But today, I hear more talk about terms like sustainable and eco-friendly and the concept of the ‘carbon footprint.’   Which I believe is a change for the better.

Looking for products that are organic or all natural speaks to just the manufacturing process used.  And while that’s important, it leaves out two other equally important aspects to consider — the energy efficiency and the longevity of the materials in question.

Synthetic Fabrics

For instance, with draperies, polyester is often really the ‘greener’ fabric choice.  It will stand up to the sun 2 to 3 times longer than cotton, linens or (even longer) silk.  It’s also much more energy-efficient, as it doesn’t breathe.

Recycled Fabrics

Plus today, you can get recycled polyester drapery and upholstery fabrics.   For instance, Clodagh’s Global Passage Collection (pictured below) for Duralee Fabrics includes recycled polyester, renewable bamboo and organic cotton fabrics.

Fabrics from the Global Passage Collection

Fabrics from the Global Passage Collection

Next time around, I’ll go into some sustainable and outdoor-indoor fabric options.

Inaugural Greening Oakland Homes Green Fair

The fair is from 11am to 3pm, this Saturday, March 6^th at the Montclair Women’s Cultural Arts Club (at the corner of Thornhill Drive on Mountain Blvd).  For more info, visit:

http://www.greeningoakhomes.com/greening-oakland-homes-fair

I’ll be one of the exhibitors, so if you’d like to know more about which window treatments will help you save on your energy bill, please come by.

I’ll also have samples from the Clodagh Global Passage Collection on hand.