Big news! Rhymes with hook...

For the last few months, I have been keeping a big old secret. And I can finally share the news! :) I am writing a book on Designing and Printing Fabric and it will be published in Fall of next year - 2011. Rotovision is publishing the European edition and Chronicle Books is publishing the US edition.



The book is packed with information on the design process, step-by-step tutorials, interviews and loads of what I hope will be inspirational information and photos!

Here's the official description of the book from the publisher: "The Compete Guide to Designing and Printing Fabric is a practical and comprehensive handbook that walks readers through the entire fabric design and printing process. Packed with clear, easy to follow step-by-step tutorials, this book provides inspiration and advice on how to design patterns, and also explores a wide variety of different printing methods such as digital printing, screen-printing, stamping and stencilling. Interviews with established fabric designers also provide valuable information on setting up and developing a fabric collection, and useful advice on how to approach manufacturers. Textile design is a highly competitive industry and the Complete Guide to Designing and Printing Fabric is an indispensable reference for all fabric designers and crafters seeing to expand their knowledge and take their skills to the next level."


Writing the book (which I'm still deep in the midst of) has been the most amazing experience. I can't wait to share updates with you! It's going to be a long year before it finally comes out (next Oct 2011) but I will keep you posted on progress as I go. I've been dying to tell you all about it and now that the cat's out of the bag I can keep you up to speed. :)

Holiday Fabric - Santa Donkeys and Boots in the shop!

I can't tell you how much fun it was to get your feedback on the holiday santa donkeys and the holiday rainboots. I read through all of your comments and really appreciate all of the great suggestions and ideas. Here's where I landed on revisions to the original design from a few weeks ago.

The donkeys who are wearing Santa Hats are no longer wearing boots. They always say to take off one accessory, right? Can't have the donkeys overdressed can we?

I changed the size of these donkeys so they are roughly a third smaller. The original donkeys are each 5" x 4". These holiday donkeys are roughly 3-1/2" x 3". So now you have MORE donkeys to sew with!

I tried and tried and tried to incorporate your suggestions on antlers and Rudolph noses. Really loved the ideas. But at the end of the day the antlers ended up looking like sticks coming out of the donkeys heads and the red nose looked like a tumor. So, needless to say, I had to step away from those additions. :)

I'm so excited to announce that both fabrics are now available in the shop!! I only have yard of each on hand but I'll be placing an order for more yardage this weekend. So for those of you anxious to get started on holiday sewing projects, place your orders and I'll start shipping fabric as soon as I receive it (should be 2-3 weeks max).

Thanks again for all your great ideas and I hope you love these little sweeties. I'm really happy with how they turned out!

A peek inside where I live

Whew...the last box is unpacked (well...except for those few boxes in that hall closet but I'm pretending like I don't see them)! Getting settled into my new space has taken some time but it's been really fun. I love nesting, don't you? :)

I promised that once I got settled I'd share some pictures. So I'm excited to show you some snapshots of where I work and live. When I decided to move from my last place, I hunted and hunted for someplace new that was flooded with bright light and I'm so lucky to have found this space. For the very first time, I have truly separate spaces for my office and for my sewing studio. And I have to tell you, I feel really, really lucky and I just love it here. So welcome to my space!

The 2nd quilt I ever made. Shirtbox Squares designed by Kaffe Fasset.



New pillows for the couch!

My desk.

The other side of my sewing room. And just in case you weren't paying very close attention...New cats! :) I went to the animal shelter for one and of course came home with two. They've quickly become best buddies and I awake each day with a pile of cats by my feet. So wish a warm welcome to Dexter (the little orange guy) and Fiona (also known as Cow Spot).