Tuesday

Greetings friends!  How was your weekend?  I guess that's a lame question coming on Tuesday but that's what happens when you totally skip Monday blogging.  We had a busy time, mini birthday celebration with Frankie, normal errands, some holiday related errands, lollygagging around.  It all takes time people.  Especially the lollygagging.

 

Also late.. but today I'm showing off the bags my friend Melissa sent me!  If you follow Melissa, you've seen these bags over on her blog, 100 Billion Stars.  I love this top bag, it's her pattern Easy on the Curves and you can pick up the pattern here. Perfect for taking on a quick trip the market, its soft enough to fold up but sturdy enough to withstand a nice supply of groceries.

 

I am in love with this next bag..it's made with Bosal Foam so it's nice and stiff, but still feels good.  I'm looking forward to when Melissa posts about her experience sewing with the foam.  This bag is now my go-to bag to use for my tablet and a couple of magazine when headed out for a trip.  Everything slides right in it and it keeps its shape.  It has a magnetic closure and a couple of big pockets, it's perfect.  I sure appreciate that I sent her fabric and she sent it back in the form of bags!

 

Melissa has a great free patchwork bag pattern you can download here.  I love Melissa's style, she love bright saturated colors and her projects are bold and exciting.  You should follow along with her on her blog, she's always working on something and her photos are fantastic.

 

Are you working on anything fun?  I finished this cute potholder the other day. Sometimes I post pictures on Instagram from my phone that are sneak peeks so if you're not an Instagram user you can get a look at them here.

 

Have a great week everyone!  Happy Thanksgiving! xo

 

 

 

#fabricfriends

#fogcitykitty

TGIF

Happy Friday! What a week, I was sure busy, how about you guys?   My week rounded out yesterday with hunting for something lost.  No, not that sewing ham again, although honestly I keep hoping I'll come across it.   I never did end up finding what I wanted but OMG I have way too much stuff.  I found some things I'd totally forgotten about   Recently my friend Rebecca posted a picture on instagram of her pyrex bowl set.  I have one,  and ran across it on my search.  FYI I apparently have a thing for bowls.

ANYWAY.... seeing those bowls got me thinking about Lori's cute bowls in her Farm Girl Vintage book, so I pulled out my scrap basket and got busy making a block.  How cute are Holly's Sunrise Studio 2  medium sized scallops on that bowl! 

 

It was a no brainer for sure. The scallops easily cut into that 1 1/2 inch strip. You can see a lot of cute uses for that fabric here on Holly's Instagram Feed.  You can also see lots of variations on the Two By Two blocks from McCalls Quick Quilts.  Just to entice you to sew a long I'll tell you Fat Quarter Shop has the original scallops on sale.. you could get your red and green scallops half off.

 

Well what will I hunt for today? 

 

Have a good weekend friends!! xo

Quiltmaker 100 Blocks Volume 12

Hi there old friends and new!  I'm excited that it's  my turn on the Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Blog Hop. Did you know that I have a block in each issue of the Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks magazine?  Very exciting to me as the competition gets stiffer each edition!

 

My block, #1199,  is Hollyhocks. I've always loved the old fashioned flowers, and have had mixed luck with them in the garden but in the sewing room I can always have good luck.  This would be the perfect time to bust out your stash and go hog wild with single color blooms...

Or mix it up with multicolor flowers on your stem.  It might not happen in nature but you are you own gardener indoors at your sewing machine. 

 

Make one long plant for a table runner, or combine more blocks for a quilted garden of Hollyhocks.  I have staggered the blocks in this photoshopped version of a Hollyhocks quilt.

 

 

Photoshop sewing is fun! But not as fun as getting out real fabric and stitching it up.  This quilt would just take 12 blocks!  Mix up your greens for some leaves!  You can go scrap wild!

 

Ok, now be sure and hop right on over to the Quilty Pleasures blog to see who else is showing off their blocks today.  And watch for my buddy Greg on Wednesday,  his beautiful East Side Rose block is totally gorgeous in Pam Kitty Garden fabric!

 

Want to win a copy of Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Volume 12?  Leave a comment here and I'll pick a winner next week! Quiltmaker will send you a copy so you can make your own Hollyhocks block and 99 other great blocks!  There are lots of chances to win, leave comments on all the blog stops along the way!

 

Ok, have fun people! It can be spring in your sewing room all year round if you want! xo

Fat Quarter Baby Blog Hop

Good Morning friends!  Today is the first day of the Fat Quarter Baby blog hop! Fat Quarter Baby is the latest book by It's Sew Emma/Fat Quarter Shop, and it's chock full of great baby quilts to make! 

 

This week the blog tour will feature quilts from the book made by a group of your favorite bloggers.   The book has 20 great quilts, 10 for girls and 10 for boys, and you'll see all of them over the course of the hop. 

 

This is Elizabeth.  I made it exactly like the one of the book, very exciting for me to have Fat Quarter Shop use Fog City Kitty in their book. The applique is very easy, but if applique isn't your thing,  it's just as adorable without it!

 

You can order a copy of Fat Quarter Baby here.  Be sure and check out the other bloggers on the list this week to see all the cute quilts, and also stop by the Jolly Jabber to check out what they're up to!   I've enjoyed all the fun peeks at the quilts on Instagram and Facebook. 

 

Anne – Caroline of Sew Can She

Claire – Melissa of Oh How Sweet

Emma – Melissa of Happy Quilting

Hannah – Sherri of A Quilting Life

Gerri Robinson of Planted Seed Designs

 

Ok friends, have a great week!  xo

 

#fatquarterbaby

 #fqsfun

 #itssoemma

 

 

Snapshots November - Sail Away!

Hi there friends!  It's November 15 and that means it's time for the 11th block on our Snapshots Quilt-Along!  I can hardly believe it's almost over. True story, my quilt is being quilted right now and I'm 'sew' excited to get it back! 

 

This month's block, Sail Away, is one of my favorites as the sewing is so clever  on it.  And what a great sail boat block.  I had a lot of fun making it. 

 

Head over to the Jolly Jabber to get your pdf for this cute block! Kimberly has a great video to show you how to make it, just head over here to the Fat Quarter Shop you tube channel to see it. Then download your block and get busy stitching.  We're also hoping you'll donate $5 a pattern to the St. Jude's Research Hospital, it's a great cause!

 

I'm looking forward to seeing your blocks on Facebook and Instagram!   Be sure and tag them with #fqssnapshots and #fqsfun so we can all see them!   You can also join the Facebook group and post them there! 

 

Smooth Sailing friends ! xo

Something to Talk About

I am back at these blocks again. Monday and Tuesday I sewed away and have 25 of them done.  I think we talked a little about the text back in this post IN FEBRUARY.  Wow people, when I set something aside I SET IT ASIDE.  But anyway I was looking for something kind of mindless to sew ON A RAINY DAY and basically these are just 4 patches and  did the trick.

 

Back in the day when I learned to quilt I was taught to just throw caution to the wind when cutting something directional,  like plaid for instance. It was pretty contrary to my sewing up to that point, coming at quilting from garment making.  But I embraced it.   I'm influenced by my quilting roots and tend to want to just chop into things and sew but also heavily influenced by the world around me where people are fussy cutting stuff like lives depend on it.. so obviously I'm hot mess of indecision. 

So...anyway I stitched up all the blocks I could with the text going all the same direction. I have 27 blocks, then another maybe half dozen or so that won't be going the same direction.  Of course laying out in a 5 x 5 layout I'm finding the limitations of  this method.   I'm probably going to throw caution to the wind and just layout them out in a pleasing manner direction be damned! 

What would you do? It would have been way easier if I had a gigantic wall where I could lay it all out in individual units and sew them together that way, but that's not an option. So I'll probably finish up the last of the blocks and lay them out the way that works out best.

Or, I'll set it aside and see what happens when I pull them out next time. Who knows.

Happy Day friends!

Enchanted

Good morning friends! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! We had a lovely weekend here, sewing, reading, drinking coffee, errand running, does it get any better?  YES IT DOES!  When you wake up and find your backyard trees full of Cedar Waxwings!  This is the first time in quite a while that I've seen them, they usually fly through in a day and rarely ever to my backyard.  It felt pretty magical.  They stayed even though I crept outside with my camera, that one bird stayed on long after the rest flew off... maybe he was just tired or maybe he knew how much I loved seeing him.  I'm pretty sure that's it.

 

Speaking of magical, I was very lucky to receive a copy of Susan Branch's new book The Fairy Tale Girl to read and review. I just love Susan Branch, long time blog friends probably remember that Elizabeth and I met Susan at her Farm Sale way back in 2010. Doesn't that seem like a lifetime ago?  Five small years chock full of so much. 

 

I am not sure exactly what I though the book would be like.  But like Susan, it was completely charming.  It was filled with all the beautiful drawings and paintings and quotes and music (!) that we see on her blog, and in her other books.  But it was also so wonderfully nostalgic.  Although I didn't meet Tarzan or the Beatles, I grew up in California in the same era.  All the changes in the 60s and 70s she shared felt familiar.  I can remember what San Luis Obispo was like in the 70s, as we often visited my Great Aunt Millie and camped at Morro Bay State Park.  I felt transported back there.

 

I loved hearing about her move to San Luis Obispo, her long time friendship with Diana, and of course her life with Cliff, her boyfriend turned husband.  Lots of drama that felt so real when flying through the pages, waiting to find out what happened. I'd forgotten about those tender feelings of young adulthood, about life and boys and growing up.   But also many sweet stories like dropping of the rent and discovering the world of cooking and entertaining via her landlord.

 

I finished the book in a matter of two or three days, savored it all and when I closed it up I was already wishing that the second book, Martha's Vineyard, Isle of Dreams was waiting on my nightstand.  It's not like I don't know what happened but I'm hanging on every word. 

 

It was almost like being there.

 

Probably not the best book review in the world but honestly, I loved it.  Maybe you would love it to.

 

Ok, have a good week my favorite friends.  Tell me, what's new and exciting in your world! (which is what my mother always asks me when we chat on the phone)xo

 

 

 

Find the book here and here.

 

 

Friday's PSA

Hi hi hi and happy Friday!  How was your week!  It's turned chilly here, so awesome! We even had a serious rain day!  Maybe later I'll feel like complaining but for now I'm thrilled.

So onto projects!  Have you guys picked up the December/Januray issue of McCalls Quick Quilts? The quilt that I pieced for Holly is in the magazine and it's so cute! (photo from the McCalls website)

 

The quilt uses Holly's scallop fabric, and it's so easy to piece.  The quilt is being presented over the next year, as a block of the month. It's the perfect time for you to get your scallops ready and grab some fabric and sew along with us. 

 

I've made some blocks for a smaller version when Holly was testing out the pattern, but I never finished them up.  I also made the quilt for the magazine, but now I feel like maybe I want to make another one, this time red and white.. or maybe pink and white? I CAN'T DECIDE. I have a lot of different red and white prints and it would be fun to go that way.. but then I see a red white and pink combo.. well I'm not sure what I'll do.  The really nice thing about the scallops .. they come in so many colors and you know how LakeHouse colors play well with others.. you could pull from your stash and make this quilt.  Think about it. 

On a completely unrelated note... THESE POLKA DOT TOWELS.

 

 

Home Goods people.  Home Goods yesterday.

Have a great weekend everyone!  xop

 

Cozy Cottage Calendar Day

Good morning favorite friends! Today is my day on the Cozy Cottage Calender blog hop!  I was so happy to be invited to play along, sometimes these fun blog hops are the perfect encouragement to commit to a project and get stitching on it. 

 

It didn't take me long to get out my box of scraps and get busy cutting. In fact you might remember I cut two of these cute houses out, and have already show you my 4 inch block.

The 8 inch block goes together so fast.  Before you know it, Cozy Cottage.  I had to much fun choosing fabrics.  Who wouldn't want to live in a house with a gingham roof?  

 

You know I love making a nice fat pillow!  Soon my house will be filled to the brim with pillows.  And don't you love the sweet little confetti border?  Someone mentioned they look like little flags, and I agree, my cottage is ready for a party!

 

But quick, before you get busy on your pillow, which is a special pattern in the calendar,  Lori has again come up with something special, a sweet little mini quilt just for us! Just hop your way over to her blog and get ready to get busy!  If you don't have her calendar yet, head over to the Fat Quarter Shop and grab one, and while you're there, click over to their blog and see all the creative people who are on the hop.  SO MUCH COZY CUTENESS!

 

Ok my very special friends.. hope you have a cozy day! xo

November

Good Morning! Hard to believe it's November already, right?  Where did this whole year go? I don't know, it flew by with barely a sound it seems like. 

 

Did you have a good weekend?  We had some fun.   Saturday Frankie and I surprised Bret with a little birthday party day!  He and I drove down to Monterey on the pretense of taking advantage of the great top down  weather and taking the convertible down to the coast.  We drove along the shore in Pacific Grove and of course for us, no trip to Pacific Grove is complete with out a trip to the El Carmelo Cemetery to check out the deer population.  I warned him that I hadn't seen deer the last few times I'd been, but the place was mobbed with deer.  Pretty great.

 

I'm sure he was being kind when he said he was surprised to see Frankie at lunch.  Then we headed back up to Santa Cruz and spent the afternoon at Frankie's for a little cake party.  Or brownie party in Bret's case.  The weather was still nice enough in the evening to drive home with the top down.  Perfect California fall day.   Of course his birthday is later this week, so I can spoil him again with cake!

 

Hope you had a lovely weekend.  Halloween! It was great fun to see  everyone's photos on Instagram and Facebook.  I guess it's only a matter of time before Christmas photos start cropping up! 

 

Have a great week everyone! xo