New Toys to Play With

After seeing the post about Aurifil thread by Katy I knew I had to try it. I ordered a few spools to start plus this AMAZING color chart with real threads on it! :O I love charts of all kinds, it can go with my Kona cotton chart and Moda Bella Solids chart. I used a yellow Auriful thread to quilt the quilt in the first picture and it was marvelous, smooth and has a nice luster to it without being shiny, if that makes sense. My only complaint is that I wish the thread colors had names to them, not numbers. I'd be happy to take that job on if anyone is listening~ lol! I took a stab in the dark ordering the thread not knowing if I was getting ivory, white, etc. Now I have my chart, tho and I'm good to go!

I also got the Modern Log Cabin quilting book from Amazon and love it. I've always loved log cabin blocks and the variations that you can make with them. The author shows you the different patterns with their names and then each quilt or project lists which type of log cabin block it is. There's both quilt projects as well as pillows, pincushion, apron, bags and more. I know I will be trying out the projects. :)

UPDATE: Mr. Alex Veronelli from Aurifil sent me an email with an attachment that has all the names of the thread! What a nice guy! He said they will be on the thread cards in the future. I found out that the thread color I used on the quilt is Medium Butter. :)

Stitches in Progress

I'm enjoying stitching around the motifs in Summer Totem in grapefruit. I was inspired by Anna Maria's blog where she showed how she did the same for a pillow. I've always loved quilting around a flower in a print. I sometimes feel like I'm scribbling over someone's artwork when I do free motion all over. Its just a very time consuming process that I only do for myself. In the shop I like to keep it simple or no one's order would ever get done! :) This piece will eventually be a flap for a purse for me. I'm doing the front and back pieces in color coordinated patchwork and fussy cut some of the Summer Totem for the sides. They will all be hand quilted whilst I watch tv with my family. It will be a beautiful purse when its done!

New Fabrics!

I've been having fun playing with Valori Wells new fabric line, Wrenly. I think my fav combo is combining that line with Loulouthi by Anna Maria (2 pics up) or the orange/reds in the top picture would be so exciting in a quilt or crib set! Have you bought any Wrenly yet?

Thrift Store Score!

Roses print in frame $10

Franciscan Apple serving tray $20

Cross stitch tablecloth $8

Tiny painted pitchers with golden brown flowers $3

Tiny cups for maybe salt or spices? $3/set

Rumply ruffled light jacket~ cute with tank top & jeans $3

I had the best time at the thrift store today! It was just one of those perfect days. I kept bringing more and more stuff up to the counter. I told the lady, "I've never found so many things I want here in the same day! " It is one of those boutiquey types that have gorgeous embroidered linens~ one of my weaknesses and great china/pottery and some of the clothes are gorgeous! I actually had some birthday money, so it was fun to get so much for the money. I had fun when I got home rearranging my mantel & dining room. I've been trying to lighten up the family room, so its been great finding these light colored beauties! Off to sew, hope your summer has been fun so far!

New in the Shop & Pinterest

I've been wanting to put a random patchwork blanket in my shop with the cottage/shabby chic fabrics. I love red and pink together and just added a pop of green. The Casey Scroll seems to end up in almost everything I make! What will I do when I run out?? Used lots of another fav designer, Tanya Whelan with Darla and Delilah as well as some Farmers Market from Sandi Henderson.

I have been having a great time pinning things to pinterest. I've been finding all my fav flickr friends there and can follow them and see what they love. Its a really fun place to have your 'all time favs' in one group. You can pin from blogs, flickr, etsy listings. I've found some great shops on etsy that way, too. If you click on the red bar at the top of my blog you can see what I've pinned. You need to request through pinterest an invite to start your own pinning, but you can look at everyone elses pins in the meantime. Mine took about a week from request to acceptance. I'm not sure what the criteria is or if its to keep it from flooding. Lots of fun to add to 'things to do in your spare time'! :)

Spice Market Tote

I made these last week, the day before I left for vacation for my SIL and for me. I gave her the Love tote & I made mine out of Soul Blossoms with the inside in AMH Maybe in tangerine. I love the cool/warm color combo! Overall, it was a fun pattern, I made the larger tote. I will probably make the smaller one as well. Here is my experience: the pattern calls for attaching interfacing TWICE to the exterior & interior panels. It sounded like too much for me, so those totes are singly interfaced. They hold up well in my experience so far. The straps don't call for interfacing, which I was surprised, but I like because then they are floppy and don't weigh the bag down. My own personal problem with this size is that there is only 1" difference between the length and width and I got the positioning wrong, so make sure you identify & mark top so that you don't do that. Its easy to get it mixed up. On both bags my lining was either smaller or larger than the outside either due to the mix up or??? So that was a bummer! I used the laminated Sandlewood print for my SIL with straps & lining in the regular cotton. I like the stiffness it gave in addition to the interfacing. Overall, a make again~ it was fairly quick to put together, would make great Christmas gifts if I can be that organized this year!