last & first

Happy new year! Working in publishing is a strange thing... I keep thinking "only 2011?" That's what happens when you work so far in advance. I love this time of year: everyone posts their terrific mosaics of things made in the last year. So good to take a look back (and hard to do for folks who are in the midst of planning the next great quilty!) and to celebrate all that creativity. And with that in mind, here's a mini retrospective: my last creation of 2010 and my first of 2011!

Cheers to you for a happy, healthy, and amazingly creative 2011!

more felt goodness!

I must admit... been on kind of a felt kick lately. Well, when I'm not feeling totally overwhelmed by the impending holidays. Are you almost done with your list? I actually didn't plan that big this year, but these last-minute things I keep adding... someday I'll learn. Here's a quick recap:

A Ruby Doll (from Jhoanna Monte's pattern in the Craft Hope book) for my niecey Ella:

Some quick-and-easy birdy ornaments for my fabulous coworkers:

And finally, some folks are getting giftcards. Totally the opposite of handmade, probably, but it happens! And that doesn't mean the packaging can't be fantastic! Here are some simple felt gift card envelopes (free tutorial over on the Lark blog if you're interested):

And the saga continues. I don't know what it is, but I feel like a crafter possessed! Something about the early darkness makes me want to crank up pandora and sew, sew, sew! The dolly and birdies were fun - a nice break after sewing a lot (!) of flat things. Still pondering some possible blog themes for next year. In the meantime, happy solstice everyone!

a green holiday!

It's December, the time of year when I remember that I should have started hand-making all my holiday gifts months ago. Same for you, you say? Well, I've decided that if I can't hand-make every gift, handmade wrapping is a good - and green! - alternative. I've posted a tutorial for this reusable felt (of course!) gift bag over at LarkCrafts.com (my day job!). We'll be posting all kinds of felt goodness over there throughout the month of December. And looking for other green wrapping ideas? Join forces with the Green Grocery Bag Challenge, a neat project in which folks are encouraged to make, give, and use cloth grocery bags as wrapping paper.

In other news, it will be my two year blogiversary this month.... wowzers! I actually spent a bit of time the other night looking over the last two years of posts. It was so nice to look back and realize what a neat slice of my creative life this blog has become. I'm not sure what I was aiming for back when I created this space in December 2008, but I think I've acheived that! And I thank everyone who has tagged along! Thanks for your encouragement after my creative false starts, your positive feedback, the sweet comments when I submit you to endless photos of the brindle squad... I'm pondering a fun thank you giveaway later in the month - be on the lookout!

more (and more) pluses

I think Quilt Market was just what I needed to get back in my sewing groove! I made the quilt top for this baby quilt in a flurry back in September and haven't had a chance to think about it since.... until now, of course, since we're headed for the baby shower tomorrow. I tried a few new things with this quilty - grid lines, sprinkled pluses, variegated thread - that I can already tell will be making a repeat appearance later. And I finally feel like I'm getting a bit better at binding (which is cute and stripey, though hard to tell in the photo) - major yay! I can't wait to give this quilty to the expectant couple (good, good friends of ours); so fulfilling to give a handmade something!

I always feel compelled to add a little sneaky sweetness...

Speaking of making and giving, we held a little scrappy pincushion swap in our Asheville Modern Quilt Guild. Since I'm (always!) in plus mode, I tried some easy peasy appliqued pluses on linen (with a felt base). Hope my partner likes it!

Still pondering a new sewing machine.... and open to input!

quilt market recap (etc.!)

Wowza! It's been a crazy couple of weeks! First, we went on vacation to the Outer Banks (complete with 2 dogs and the sewing machine and the disc catcher and countless other toys). That truly is a magical place! Then, back in Asheville and the office before heading to.... Houston! It's really hard to sum up the whole quilt market/festival in words, but I've managed somehow, over on the Lark Crafts blog. Click:

• Here (Read about Tina Givens' magical goose and my monoprinting experiments!)
  
• Here (Read about my sashiko class and creations - I'm totally addicted! Plus highlights from the Husband's Lounge!)
  
• Here (Read my recap with some images of my favorite quilts from the exhibit, definitely through the lens of a modern quilter.)
  
• Or here (For a chance to win 500 Art Quilts and Masters: Art Quilts, two fabulous gallery books! Apologies for the shameless plug!)

What an experience! And then, of course, there was the monumental, glorious, and glutinous HAUL! Click here for a more detailed explanation of my finds. Fancy threads (for said sashiko), an innumerable amount of fat quarters (such a weakness), and some lovely vintage fabrics.

It was such an overwhelming, inspiring, and exhausting experience - what a lucky gal I am! It was also exciting to be there as a representative of the next generation of quilters. And I got to meet some of my Flickr friends in person - another level of awesomeness! I must admit that there were times throughout the week when I felt a bit out of place, but in general, I was met with warmth and acceptance - and lots of folks who were interested in learning more about the Modern Quilt Guild! It was also wonderful to see so many women investing time, energy, and financial resources into their continued learning, their passion, and their creative outlet... really inspiring!

And, of course, I found myself skulking around the Bernina booth for far too long - which means I'm definitely in the mood for an upgrade...I can't wait for Cincinnati to roll around!

stocking redux!

If you've already gotten the Special Holiday Issue of Fat Quarterly (and if you haven't, get cracking!), you've seen the lovely coverage they've given to Fa La La La Felt (many many thanks yous to the Fat Quarterly folks!!). As part of a holiday round-up, I remade my Oopsy Daisy stockings from the book... following my original instructions. What an exercise it was! And here are the results, hanging from the bar. I riffed on the original pattern a little (less daisy, more asterisk!) and used some of the Kate Spain Christmas fabric the FQ team sent me. I'm also including a free tutorial from the book (over on the Lark Crafts site). Happy stocking making!

birds and plus signs - a love affair!

Someday I'll bring these two elements together in some glorious quilty (sorry, to-do list!) but I'm just still enjoying exploring. It's kind of nice to do something over and over again, exploring the same form again and again but trying new directions and ideas. I've been meaning to try this plus sign design for a while (ever since making this back in January), and thank goodness I have the perfect excuse now - a lovely little lady due in January 2011.

And then I made a little blackbirdy something for a birthday gift. I'm lovin the asterisk - speaking of future explorations. This was also a lovely experiment in hand stitching. Boy, when hand stitching doesn't totally annoy me, it's kinda nice. And hey, wait a minute: is that a plus sign? Way down there in the corner....