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Pillows

2013-05-20T08:49:00.001-04:00

Moist bathing suit. It's gross, right? You know what else is gross? Loose sheets. Is that just me? I hope not. While I'm not super picky about making the bed, I do like to make sure the pillowcases and fitted sheet are snug. Not like that hotel BS where they use a flat sheet on the bottom too. The problem was that Josh's pillows are constantly coming out of their cases. He's not very

Feather Dress

2013-05-13T07:50:00.000-04:00

As soon as I saw the Anna Maria Horner Parenthetical Feathers I KNEW I had to make a Maxi dress. The hard part was finding the right pattern. Should I just make up my own or use an existing one? I ended up with the Burda Young 7232 view A from JoAnn. I had to make a few alterations to get it to be what I wanted. Modifications 1. Added length to make the skirt maxi length. I copied

Chevron Quilt

2013-05-06T06:58:00.000-04:00

Back in January I had my photographer friend Liz take a few headshot for me. In exchange I told her that I would make her a quilt. I sent some inspiration quilts over to her to get a sense of what she wanted and she LOVED this one. It took me a while to get around to making the quilt (sorry Liz!) but she was super happy with how it turned out. I am too! It's big, 64" x 72". I'm hoping

The Stash Bash

2013-04-22T09:11:00.000-04:00

Chris put together this awesome little event a couple weeks ago called Stash Bash. It was just south of Atlanta so a no brainer that I had to go. The location was gorgeous! And as happens at these events, there was lots of sewing... Pouch I made for the swap Swap with Safieh. She made the pouch and I made the tote! Finally cut into my Modern Meadow!! fabric.... and

SS13

2013-04-16T08:31:00.004-04:00

I have a recap of Stash Bash for you, some sewing projects, and a fun new feature to announce, but right now I just have time to pop in and say... SEWING SUMMIT TICKETS GO ON SALE TODAY at 10 am MST!!! I'll be running around like a mad woman again this year, but I hope to see you there!

TV on the Radio Quilt Tutorial

2013-04-11T08:45:00.000-04:00

I'm not a curve sewer. Last time I sewed curves (into clamshells, tutorial here) I did it by cutting all the pieces with templates. This time I'm going to show you how it's done with freezer paper. There is a bit more waste (discarded freezer paper), but I also couldn't figure out how to get the curves perfectly aligned without it. This pattern is perfect for beginners. Perfect for Layer

TV on the Radio

2013-04-08T10:33:00.001-04:00

Like last week, this is a quilt that I started last summer. Then it sat until November when I quilted it at Kelly's house. Then it sat at my house for another couple months waiting to be bound. I have a problem, I know. But here it is at last. What's even more exciting is that I took pictures as I was making it so that I could give you all a TUTORIAL on how to makes these blocks. It will go

My Precious!

2013-04-01T00:03:00.003-04:00

Last year my friend Kelly started a little challenge of sorts to use up that precious fabric that we've all been hoarding. So I did it. I cut into the tiny pieces of fabric from my trip to Japan in 2007 (before I was really into sewing and fabric), added some other prints that I love, and made my first square patchwork quilt. On the back I used the Nano Iro I bought in Japan. Again, I

Emerald WINNERS!

2013-03-22T08:26:00.000-04:00

THANK YOU to everyone who entered and left comments along the way. It's so inspirational to see how differently everyone interprets the same rules and the same color. You can go back and check out the entries here. The judges kept telling me how hard it was to pick and I'm so thankful that I didn't have to try to narrow down the entries myself. Without further ado, here are the winners.

Shimmering Emerald

2013-03-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

I'm so excited about all the Emerald Quilt Challenge Entries! You can see them for yourself (and enter!) over here. Last year when I hosted the Tangerine Tango Quilt Challenge my quilt idea never came to fruition. I was super excited about orange too! This year my girls kept me on track and MADE me work. I'm so glad they did because I love this guy! The design is from Quilting

Pinspiration

2013-03-06T05:17:00.000-05:00

Last weekend (wait, 2 weekends ago?), when the ladies were in town, we organized a swap amongst ourselves. While we're swapped by chance through Flickr, we had never really arrange anything just between us. So I paired everyone up and gave myself to Kaelin. She did not disappoint! I really think that I ended up with the best item (which is what everyone thinks when a swap is a success). As soon

March?! Let's see those Pantone Quilts!

2013-03-04T05:00:00.000-05:00

How is it March already? I think we need to talk to some scientists because the Earth is turning way too quickly! I'm opening the entries TODAY! Don't worry if you haven't finished, you still have about 2 weeks. 1) Entries will open today (3/4) on my blog and close on Sunday (3/17). I extended the deadline to be on St. Patrick's day, which seemed fitting. Our judges (see below) will narrow down

Bundles & Pouches

2013-02-25T16:19:00.000-05:00

The more I sew, the more I know about my fabric using habits. When I first started buying fabric I would buy at least a yard of the fabrics that I liked. Maybe 1/2 yards if I liked the print just ok. The problem is that it breaks my heart to cut into a yard if I only need a little piece. What if I need that full yard one day for a quilt back? Or a bag? So the large cuts languish. Even half yards

Colorful Beaded Necklace

2013-02-22T06:05:00.000-05:00

My mom is a jeweler / glass artist. I grew up around the tools and though I never set out to learn, I picked up a few things. That means that when I see a piece of jewelry that I like I usually: a) think it's over-priced and b) set out to make one for myself or ask my mom to make it. This time around I made 9, which left plenty of time for me to document the process for you all! There

Back to sewing

2013-02-11T06:13:00.000-05:00

Do you ever get burned out from sewing? I was just done. I wanted to just sit on the couch and watch hours of tv and not be productive. And I happened to get sick, so that's what I did. I caught up on 7 episodes of Vampire Diaries, 3 episodes of Downtown Abbey, and 5 episodes of The Office. It felt good, but now I'm back to sewing. I decided to join the X Plus Along (#xplusalong) happening

Emerald Quilt Challenge Sponsors

2013-01-28T01:04:00.000-05:00

How is your Emerald project coming along? Have you picked out fabrics or a pattern yet? I know which pattern I want to use, now I just need to dig up some fabrics and find time! I've lined up some FANTASTIC sponsors for this round of the Pantone Quilt Challenge. Minis 1st place Minis From Hawthorne Threads $50 Gift Certificate 2nd Place Minis From I Don't Do Dishes... Fat Quarter Bundle

2013 Pantone Quilt Challenge: Emerald!

2013-01-06T20:24:00.001-05:00

This color is tough! I cannot tell you how many hours I spent looking through fabrics. The hard part is that Emerald has a bluish tint, it's not a true green. You can see in the image below, when I went to color match the Pantone image, the green is much closer the the aqua than yellow. I've started a Pinterest board for the fabrics that I think are Emerald. Onto the rules! All

Feeling Festive

2012-12-05T07:38:00.000-05:00

Welcome Janome readers! And if you are here because you have stuck with me through this silence, thank you! I'm being featured on the Janome website today, so you'll have to excuse all the exclamations. I'm a bit excited, to say the least! If you have even sewn with me, you will know how much I love my Janome and I'd like to think I'm the reason that a few friends have switched. ;) Last week I

Flip Bag Tutorial

2012-11-17T08:12:00.000-05:00

When I received my copy of Melody' book, Ruby Star Wrapping, I was inspired to cut down on the wrapping waste this year. Ideas floated around but none of them seemed to stick. I needed something easy that I could do with what I already have (lots of fabric!). Like magic, this came to me. I spent a good amount of time figuring out how to make this with all seams hidden. A few prototypes

Guest Tutorial

2012-11-15T11:00:00.000-05:00

I know that I'm MIA a bit, but I have another tutorial for you!! Head over to QuiltStory to check out their Holiday Tutorial Series.

Machine Pieced Clamshell Tutorial

2012-11-09T06:37:00.000-05:00

Jessie and I decided to do a private swap back in September. As I was "stalking" her, I saw a lot of clamshell quilts in her favorites and on Pinterest. I'm not much for hand-sewing though. You've probably realized that by now. ;) So I figured out a way to sew them by machine. The look is similar, but not exactly the same. Materials - Curve Templates (I used these designed by Christina) - 4

Fall Drive 2012

2012-10-26T16:59:00.001-04:00

Every year Josh and I find a scenic drive to experience fall. I bring my camera. Yeah, the one that I was unhappy with a few days ago. Maybe it isn't that bad. Enjoy a tour of the North Georgia mountains! Josh took this one. Look at those spiders!! Boots are the proper fall picture taking shoe. I love my car! Some trees were colorful! Others had already dropped

SS12 - Travel Handmade

2012-10-24T07:38:00.000-04:00

Now that we got that picture issue cleared up, let's look at some handmade goodies! What I made before I left: A Weekender! I used Peltex on the bottom and feel that the Peltex is truly what makes the Weekender a monster! I would like to remove Peltex from my life. Also, I just sergered my inside seams and called it a day. The bag is sturdy, the seams are sturdy, and I'm the only one looking in

When good cameras go bad...

2012-10-22T20:49:00.001-04:00

I've had my Nikon D80 for almost exactly 5 years. I've loved having a DSLR, even though it can be heavy to lug around. April 2009 in Albuquerque, NM - All my older photos are on an external hard drive Over the last few years I've found myself using it less and less, option for my CanonELPH 100HS Powershot or my iPhone camera. Ahem - Instagram (@a_2_w) Vanessa's lecture at Sewing

A little dress

2012-10-01T06:18:00.000-04:00

I was hit with the Washi Dress fever when the pattern came out last month. The fabric is Amy Buter voile and was bought on sale from Whipstitch. Next time I would face the pleats out, like others have, but otherwise the pattern is perfect and easy as is.