My First COVER and Some Summer Catch Up

The lazy days of summer. They are wonderful aren’t they? It’s light out earlier in the morning AND later in the evening, and still, I realize things are getting scratched off my to-do list more slowly.

I’ve had some pretty exciting things happen though, during July and August. I’ve plastered them all over Instagram, but I decided it was important to memorialize them here.

My first published quilt pattern was published in the British magazine Quilt Now, in it’s June 2015 issue, number 12. The quilt is an oversized version of a single block. I absolutely love the look of bold, large scale designs like this. It’s made with Petal & Plume fabrics, by designer Bari J. of Art Gallery Fabrics. I also made a matching pillow, and called the two projects a “nap set”.

The editor Katy Jones had told me which issue the projects would be in, but it was a complete surprise to find them on the cover of the issue! I was scrolling through Facebook, and there they were…

That's my quilt, ON THE COVER

I didn’t find a copy of the magazine until around July 1st here in the US. It was a wonderful, fun day for me. 

As if that wasn’t enough, Michele Muska invited my quilt guild (Southern CT MQG) to come to the Simplicity creative offices in NYC in early August. I took a day off from work and spent a gorgeous sunny Wenesday travelling to the city to meet 6 of my fellow guild members for the day.

Me, Michelle our hostess, and my guild members

Michele took us around the office, and introduced us to lots of the people who work in the pattern making part of the business. It was so much fun to hear about what each person did, how the process worked, and get to see garments actually being made up.

Then we met with some of the folks from other areas of the business to talk social media, sewing tools, and the future of quilting. It was fantastic.

Michele lives in CT and had done a wonderful trunk show for our guild in March with the quilts from her book Quilting the New Classics. The quilts were just amazing in person and it was a treat to see them all at once. The book is beautiful, and full of color and inspiration.

Michelle's Wonderful Book, hyperlink above

August and September will be filled with making t-shirt quilts for customers, a Kate Spain/Simplicity mini-tool challenge, and my swap gift for my partner at Glamp Stitch-a-lot. I’d better get back to work!

Green Living Market Bag - Octopus, Seahorses and Anchors on a Freezing Day in February

I've been working on this queen size quilt for six weeks now.  Since the first of the year.  And I love it, and it's been great, but I can't share it.  BOOO!  So I was itching today for a quick win.  Something that I knew I could finish today and would love.  I went back to my very favorite pattern...The Green Living Market Bag by Bari J. 

This is my 10th one.  When I say I love this pattern, I'm not kidding.  I've made most of them as gifts.  This one is for a dear friend of mine who saw the fabric on Instagram when I bought it.  It's Tula Pink's Salt Water line.

Makes me think of carrying beach toys and flip flops!

I managed to get the seahorses to line up on the top cuff.  This is one of the benefits of having made so many!

Seahorses!

I am also much better at getting the folded up corners on the bottom to be neat and lined up perfectly with the sides.  This is a super sturdy bag that is perfect for groceries or goodies from the farmer's market.

Folded up corners for the bottom

So Kari, here are a few ideas of things you might be able to carry in your new bag...stuffed animals and American Girl dolls.  Both of which I know you have at your house.

Do you have a favorite pattern that you've made over and over again?  What is it?

Holiday In London Duffle Bag - Starting the Year off with a BANG

At first I thought this would be my final project of 2012, but I enjoyed New Year's Eve with my family and finished this off today.   I made this bag for my daughter as a new overnight bag. She's been using a backpack that's just way too small, and not nearly stylish enough.

This is the Holiday in London Duffle Bag pattern by my dear friend Bari J.  As with all of her other patterns, this was well written, with helpful pictures, and a really good amount of explanatory detail.

I used some Tammis Keefe cat print that I had been saving for just the right project, and I think it's great for a girl's bag, that not to childish looking.  I think she'll be able to use this for a long time.

With the long strap

A few things I learned while making this pattern.  First, the type and quality of fusible fleece that you buy is SERIOUSLY important.  I made the long strap with a thicker version of fleece and it made it nearly impossible to turn the sides in 1/4" to press them before folding the strap in half.  The result was a too-thin strap.  I will be re-making that for sure.

Another learning with this bag is just how important it is to trim.  With so many layers, I had to pin like crazy and still some of the seams were not as straight as I'd like.

Finally, there were so many layers in some spots that I literally had to turn my wheel by hand to get the needle through the fabric.  (This was a great tip I learned from another of Bari's patterns).  If I let the machine try to stitch through all those layers, the needle just jammed.  By hand turning, I could get through the 4-5 stitches that were just too thick for the machine.

I am very happy with the way the bag came out overall.  I didn't realize that I had bought a goldtone zipper and silver hardware.  This is my biggest beef with how the bag came out overall.  On the plus side, the zipper opens nice and wide because of how long it is, so you can easily fill the bag, and see the inside (which ALSO has pockets!).

Things I didn't take pictures of, but are important to note...the whole bag is lined.  I used a pink and white houndstooth vintage sheet that I bought from an Etsy seller that was PERFECT.  I think using a light color inside will make it easier to find things.  It also has a hard bottom insert to keep the bag looking firm and sturdy.

Overall, this pattern gets an A+.  I will be making more for the other kids to be sure.

I'm a Copy Cat - State Street Tote by Bari J

You all already know that I love my dear friend Bari J. And you know that I am a huge fan of her patterns, and her "Keeping it Real" sewing philosophy. Well, when I saw that Jeni from In Color Order did a review of Bari's State Street Tote pattern, and how AMAZINGLY gorgeous it came out, I had to make one of my own.

The first thing I will say, is that the pattern cover was deceiving to me. This tote is much larger than I expected it to be. I hadn't made one because I thought it would be smaller, and well, I tend to carry a lot of junk around. The size of the bag is fantastic. It works out to be about 14" square and the handles are JUST the right length to put it over your shoulder (to distribute the weight of all that junk).

I used fabrics from three of Bari's lines of fabric. Some of my precious Full Bloom (the pink for the interior section", some of my Art Gallery, with the script writing, that I've been hoarding for just the right spot, and some Paris Apartment. Do you believe that three of her lines go this well together??

The interior is so roomy, and has a great divided pocket.

Another thing I didn't realize from the cover photo of the pattern is that BOTH of the sides are actually pockets too!

When you see it from the top, there is SO much room, and it's so sensibly constructed that you can use every little bit of room without your junk sliding around. Pure genius I say.

As always, Bari's directions were fantastic. Her detailed images that are used to show more difficult directions really make things clear. It took me around 3 1/2 hours total to make this bag. A time bargain!

Things I learned while making this pattern:

1. Precise pressing is really a big differentiator when you're making bags. Just like sewing, my pressing has improved greatly over time. I could really tell a difference with this bag how much neater everything came out and how smoothly things went together because of good pressing.

2. Lots of layers makes for even more difficult lining-up. I worked like crazy to get my side seams to line up. When I flipped the bag right side out I was not satisfied with how one of the sides came out. Your ideas and thoughts are welcome.

3. It's really important to have your lining/fleece cut as precisely as your fabric pieces. One of my sides was exact, the other side, my fleece was a little wonky, and it made for a tougher go of lining things up (see point number 2!).

Now go get yourself this pattern, and make one of these totes! You can buy the pattern here in Bari's online shop, and at many other online fabric stores.

The Little Things Make Me Happy

It’s hard for me to believe that the time has passed by so quickly, but in the middle of January, my blog turned two years old. The first year, blogging was very intermittent for me. As my sewing skills improved that year, I cared MUCH more about sewing than blogging about my sewing. Then last year when I got my new machine, and I attended BOTH Quiltmarkets, I worked on trying to be more consistent blogging.

This year, as part of my plan to move my business and craft to the next level, I drafted an actual PLAN. A calendar. With short term goals and long term goals. And targets. You name it, I planned for it. So far, it has been a smashing success! I have blogged at least once a week and I have watching my subscribers slowly tick up.
I told myself that if I hit 50 followers I would have a giveaway. Just because it would be a cool thing to celebrate.

So here’s the rules for entries in the giveaway…you can

1. Follow my blog
2. Leave a comment if you’re already a follower about your favorite post I’ve done
3. Leave a link to one of your other favorite blogs (if you’re already a follower), or
4. Leave a comment about what you’d like to see more of (if you’re already a follower).

One entry per person please! ** BE SURE TO LEAVE ME AN EMAIL OR WAY TO GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU **

Here’s the fun part…the giveaway!

Because I have been blessed with such amazing fabric friends, I have some gorgeous fabrics used to work on samples for them. I have 5 fat eighths of gorgeous FULL BLOOM fabric by the amazing and awesome Bari J. Her book “Inspired to Sew” can be found on Amazon, and at your local Barnes & Noble, or even on her website. She has an AMAZING new line coming out this spring called "Paris Apartment" that she sneak peeked on her blog HERE, so grab this great bundle from her first line before it all disappears forever. Her fabrics are so much fun to work with!





So help me celebrate, spread the word, and enter to win a great little package of fabric. Drawing will be open through Monday (February 28), and I’ll post a winner on Tuesday of next week (March 1)!