adventures of a quilting diva

To top off the year, here’s my favorite posts from 2009 in case you missed them or just want to reminisce with me.

January: Shine in 2009! ~ One of my goals for 2009 was to have fun and I succeeded on that count. 2009 was a lot of fun. I also accomplished quite a lot too.

February: Quilt-cycle ~ This was a really fun quilt! Scroll down to the end of the post for tips on making your own quilt from recycled materials.

March: In case you were wondering … February quilting ~ More quilting fun, this tutorial is easy too!

April: It’s a beauty! ~ I would show you the rest of my New York Beauty blocks, but I have to finish piecing them. Here’s the first.

May: Tip Tuesday: Mix it up! ~ Most quilters prefer either piecing or applique (I’m an applique gal). Mixing both together makes a dynamic block and you don’t feel so overwhelmed by your less-favored technique.

June: Muse Monday: Donuts! ~ Whether or not you’ve resolved to lose weight in 2010, donut-shaped designs are calorie-free!

July: Muse Monday: Surf’s up! ~ Miami colors are so fresh and fun!

August: Muse Monday: Inspiration in your stash ~ I’m almost finished with this stash reorganization. I’m down to the odd-shaped pieces and new, unwashed fabric.

September: Happy Dance: It’s launch day! ~ My first book, yippee!

October: Tip Tuesday: Getting started with free motion quilting ~ Don’t you just love it when the quilting designs fall into place effortlessly?

November: Pocket Full of Posies ~ One of my most fun block designs, and a tutorial for Kurumi cover buttons, too.

December: Muse Monday: Inspired by … deadlines! ~ Several years in the making, and all by hand, I love how my African Folklore Embroidery wall hanging turned out.

As far as 2010 is concerned, I have a lot on my plate so it’s probably better if I don’t list it all out in one place or think about all of it at one time.

Happy New Year! =(^_^)=

… Nancy at Roadrunner! Congratulations!

Nancy’s favorite color palette is blues and yellows. She says, “Yellow is such a happy color”. I agree, Nancy. The yellow fabric section is one of the first places I head to when I visit my local quilt shop.

Here’s what my Posies block might look like in blue and yellow (with a little green thrown in for good measure).

Thanks everyone for entering and for sharing your favorite colors. Hope you’ll visit again.

… Not the space shuttle launch, but my book release! I almost forgot to tell you …

That’s right, Fast, Fun & Easy Fabric Cover-Button Jewelry: Create Gifts & Glamour in an Afternoon is now available for your creative pleasure!

I’ve always wanted to wear my fabric stash, but without all the fuss of getting body measurements exactly right, making two sleeves that are the same length, and etcetera.

Luckily getting two earrings the same length is much easier {and faster} than sleeves. You can even get up early, make a pair to match your outfit, and wear them that very same day. Try doing that when making a blouse or jacket.

I’m working on the PayPal shopping cart for my new website. It’s nearly finished and when it’s done, (Friday 9-18-09 update: the shop is now open!) I will have a special offer for you, my wonderful blog readers:

One free Kurumi Mini Lanyard Kit with every book purchased through October 5, 2009 to get you started on your button adventure. This kit includes two Kurumi cover buttons and a silver-plated mini lanyard. Just enter “DIVA” in the coupon code box. There’ll be a box for if you want your book signed as well.

The online shop should be open this weekend. Until then feel free to look around. (Friday 9-18-09 update: the shop is now open!)

Here’s one of my Kurumi Mini Lanyards. Making a mini lanyard is even faster and easier than making a pair of earrings, because you only have to make one and it doesn’t have to match anything in particular. (Just follow the earrings instructions starting on page 41, substituting the mini lanyard in place of the earring finding and make only one instead of two.)

Hang your Kurumi Mini Lanyard from a USB flash drive, cell phone, digital camera, purse strap or belt loop.

happy beading! =(^_^)=

My daughter made this teddy bear quilt as a present for her best friend. She chose each fabric to remember the special things that they did together. It’s finished pillowcase-style and tied so that she wouldn’t get too worn out and discouraged by the sometimes long process of making a quilt.

She’s thrilled with the results and is also excited about designing and sewing fashions as well as quilts. And of course fabric shopping … I now have a ready-made partner for hitting all the fabric stores in town!

I’ve wanted to do a Wordle word cloud of my blog for quite some time now but just never got around to it. So, here’s the Wordle for my blog:And here’s a “Twordle” for my Twitterfeed (Do you Tweet? Follow me on Twitter):

Wordle Word Clouds ©2009 http://www.wordle.net

I resolved to skip the resolutions this year, I’ve got enough to do without worrying about a big to-do/wish list … but as they say, “Resistance is futile,” so here they are … with a twist.

Two simple things:

1). Each month choose something new to accomplish. January’s is to finish everything in the mending pile. I’ve done 3 items already so I’m off to a great start. In February I’ll tackle something else, and so on. After all I can do just about anything for a month at a time.

2). Have fun! I like to think of my designs as happy and lighthearted. If I’m stressed out over making my quilt, I believe that it shows in the final outcome, and not in a good way. I hope you will have fun with your quilting in 2009. Here are some ideas to get you started:

SEW SMALL All it takes is a little time and a few fabric scraps to make these the best dressed Littlest Pets on the block. (Thread spools for size reference. These are truly little pets.) Why not try sewing up a cute little dress or doll quilt for a favorite girl’s teddy?

SEW GREEN Why not take a tip from our quilting ancestors and recycle some old clothes into your next quilt? You could go through all the stuff you haven’t worn for a year or more, then sew them up into a fab quilt for the bed or wall. And the clean closet is a great bonus! Above are two charming thrift store dresses/fabric stash finds, a Waltah Clarke vintage cotton and a polyester marble print. Another idea is to make a memory quilt from special clothes (baby clothes, prom dresses, etc.).

SEW CHARITABLE Why not make some preemie quilts for your local hospital? Piece together some fun fabrics that make you smile … they’re sure to make a stressed-out new mother smile as well. Preemie quilts don’t need to be large, these are just 24 inches square. If you struggle with machine quilting on larger quilts, you’ll find this size to be manageable … even fun!

=(^_^)= happy quilting!

Wishing everyone a happy, safe and delicious Thanksgiving! It looks like we’re going to have a wet and rainy Thanksgiving here in Cali, so if you find yourself with a house full of house-bound kids here’s a few autumn crafts they can try. After dinner you can deconstruct the cornucopia and make gourd people.
Or try crafting some pine cone birds. The eyes on these owls are made from beads and pipe cleaners and the nose is an almond. Add a bunch more feathers and you could have a pine cone turkey.
happy crafting! (^_^)

This Saturday we went to Corona del Mar. Considering that it was about 102° when we left Loma Linda, it was quite a surprise to arrive at the beach to find that it was closer to 62° there. Everyone had a great time in spite of the cold. All the kids even had a marvelous swim. From the top of the hill, the entire ocean was enveloped by fog. You wouldn’t know it by looking but there are quite a few boaters out there.
Once in awhile the fog lifts and you get a glimpse of the boats.
Sunday morning I had the bright idea to make scones. While cutting the butter into the flour I realized that I could drive to Starbucks and back before these scones would even make it into the oven. In fact I could actually walk to Starbucks and back home again, that’s how long this was going to take (and that’s also how close I live to Starbucks).
As you can see I persevered and enjoyed a terrific scone and pretty darn good coffee as well, all before lunchtime. Although it was a lot of work for just 8 scones, its very much like quilt-making. Sure you can make a bazillion trips to Wal-Mart in the time that it takes to create just one quilt, but you don’t need me to tell you why we spend hours at our sewing machines and quilting hoops rather than running down to the store and simply buying a $30 manufactured one at the 10 items or less register.

^_^ happy quilting!

This morning as I watered my tomato plants before heading out the door to a workshop in African Folklore embroidery, an unusual tomato caught my eye. When I took a closer look it wasn’t a tomato at all, it was one of my earrings hanging from the tomato vine. How it got there I’ll never know, but I just had to share. ^_^

Anyways, the African Folklore embroidery is simply awesome. I’ll post more about that this weekend. I want to include a bit about Leora’s lecture tomorrow (at Citrus Belt Quilters in case you’re local). I can tell you this right now, you will be seeing a lot more hand embroidery on my future quilt blocks, that is certain.