Giveaway!! Pretty in Patchwork Doll Quilts book

I was going through Flickr right before I headed to Market and spied this adorable picture.

So, how surprised was I when her smiling face walked into the Robert Kaufman booth at Market a week ago? Sweet Cathy Gaubert, the author of Pretty in Patchwork Doll Quilts, and her wonderful editor and friend Amanda Carestio, came by the booth and introduced themselves. We just gabbed and gabbed and I really loved getting to meet them both!

Cathy had a copy of her brand new book with her and let me spend a few minutes oohing and ahhing over her copy. There are 24 fantastic projects and because they are all doll quilts. Which means with their small size they all seem really approachable and would come together pretty quickly. I can hardly wait to try a few out. There are some amazing pieces in here that really have my creative juices flowing. There's a Dresden Plate pattern that is calling my name. I plan to make it for one of the walls in my studio.

And I was just tickled to spy a bit of Tufted Tweets in one of the projects!

Take a peek at this sophisticated and stunning creation by Cathy.

And how much do you love this piece by Penny from Sew Take a Hike?

I really adore this book! And Cathy has graciously offered a signed copy of the book for me to giveaway to one of you. Just leave me a comment here and you'll be entered to win. Easy peasy! One entry per person please. I'll draw the winner after 8am CT this Sunday, November 13.

Fabric sighting | Sew to Swap Book

I was on Amazon a few weeks ago and was perusing some of the fabulous new sewing books that have recently been released. Doesn't it seem like there's been a surge of great new titles showing up on the scene lately? I was really drawn to one called Sew to Swap: Quilting Projects to Exchange Online and by Mail by Chrissie Grace.

Some day, when things slow down a smidge, I'd really like to be able to participate in some of the online swaps I see all over Flickr and in blog land. They look like so much fun. So this book looked like a great intro on how to organize a swap and into my cart it went. And I was reading more about the title, I spied two little pieces of Tufted Tweets on the cover. I placed my order and was excited to see if I could find any more little pieces of Tweets in any of the projects in the book.

Boy was I surprised and delighted to find that there is an entire swap and resulting quilt filled with Tufted Tweets. The quilt really just took my breath away! Lookie at how gorgeous this is! Each and every block is just fantastic!

And there are some absolutely beautiful illustrations by Ariel Eldridge that really add something special to the book. I just love how she's taken the process and the patterns and translated them into her beautiful hand drawn accompaniment to the projects.

If you're looking for guidance on setting up, or participating in, a swap I highly recommend this book. And even if you're not interested in swapping a thing, there are some really wonderful patterns and tutorials. Contributors for the book include 17 bloggers that each have a wonderful color and design sense so it's great to see how all those styles are brought together. Head on over to Chrissie's blog this month and follow along in her Blog hop for a bunch of extra tutorials and giveaways.

Congrats Chrissie and team. It's a really wonderful book! I can't wait to get started on some of the projects.

Quilt Market Houston 2011

I'm back from Quilt Market in Houston! And I have to tell you, I had so much fun!!

Living in Austin, it was a quick 3 hour-ish drive to Houston. And as soon as I dropped my bags in the hotel, I headed off to the convention center to visit the team from Robert Kaufman and see Modern Whimsy. When I arrived at the booth, I was simply stunned. Stunned I tell you! It was my first time seeing Modern Whimsy really up close. (I of course had received my swatches during strike offs, but this was my first glimpse of full sized pieces of the fabric.)

And you guys know I have a penchant for dancing/bouncing about when I get excited... So I'm sure I was subconsciously bouncing a bit in the aisle when I walked up to the booth... :) The team from RK did such an amazingly beautiful job! Modern Whimsy was on display along with the talented and sweet Ann Kelle Designs as well as the fabulous new collections by Marie Perkins of Inkjet Designs and Print and Pattern.

I somehow didn't get a good shot of the 2nd color way with the kelly green, yellow and pink. Harrumph! 

But...you can kinda -storta see it hanging from the edge of the table below the sign in the first picture above...

On Sunday, the Robert Kaufman team scheduled a meet and greet for me. I was really nervous at first, but the nerves quickly dissipated. So many wonderful people came by to say hello and introduce themselves. I got such a kick out of meeting folks who I've only gotten to know through my blog or through Flickr! It was the highlight of my trip. Unfortunately, we used everyone's camera BUT mine for the shots, so I don't have any of those to share. So if you happen to have been there and we snapped a pic together, send it my way! I'd love to post it here to share with everyone.

Modern Whimsy will start shipping this December, so I'll make sure to share news about it's release as I get it. And as soon as I receive my samples and have some FQs to start giving away, I'll start dancing about again and you'll be the first to know. :)

Come see me at Quilt Market this weekend!

I'm beyond excited for Quilt Market this weekend. Literally bouncing from foot to foot! Modern Whimsy is going to be officially launching and I am ridiculously spazzy. And the fabulous team at Robert Kaufman has so kindly asked me to visit their booth for a meet and greet. (bounce, bounce, blush, blush...)

So if you're in Houston this weekend, please swing by and say hellooooo!!! :) Would love to get to meet you!

Max's Wonky Donkey Quilt

A few months ago I got an email that absolutely just tickled me. I heard from Michelle, who was making her very first quilt. And the quilt was to be for her nephew, Max, who can be frequently be found cruising about wearing his wellies. Turns out they are pretty much the only shoes he'll wear. :) 

So of course, my Donkeys and Wellies fabric and Kate Conklin's Wonky Donkey pattern fit the bill for Michelle and Max's quilt. I was touched when Michelle sent me a picture of Max's finished quilt. Isn't it darling!? Just perfect for a wellie-lovin' little boy! Have fun with your new quilt Max!

Also, a quick reminder that I will be retiring my Donkeys in Wellies and the Polar Bears fabric at the end of the month. They're 15% off through the 31st of October, so this is a great time to stock up on these colors before they're gone . (Here are more details on when Robert Kaufman will have the new colors/designs available...) If you need more yardage than what's listed in the store, just let me know and I can set up a custom listing for you. :)

UK edition of my book shipping!

How excited am I to get to share the news that one of the editions of my first book, Designing and Printing Fabric has started shipping!! YEA!!!

The UK edition (soft cover), published by A&C Black is available.I've been watching Amazon UK like a hawk and late last week learned that it started shipping last week. So unbelievably excited!! You can find it here.

The US version, published by Chronicle Books, will be a hard cover edition and has a slightly different title (Mastering the Art of Fabric Printing and Design). I've learned that the US edition won't be available until sometime this spring. The mysteries of book publishing, right? :) I'll keep you posted on the US edition and share any news I receive.

The book is broken into 6 sections:
Understanding Patterns
Sourcing Inspiration
Designing Patterns
Understanding Fabric, Inks & Dyes
Hand Printing
Digital Printing
Going Pro

The first 2 chapters are filled with information on the basics of pattern design, defining your color palette and inspiration for your designs. The 3rd chapter is filled with tutorials for creating digital pattern repeats.

Chapters 4 and 5 include guidance on a variety of methods for dyeing, stamping and screen printing fabrics. I was fortunate enough to get to collaborate with some immensely talented women who are experts on those topics, so you'll find tutorials and information from Malka Dubrawsky (Stitch in Dye), Jesse Braytenbach (Jezze Prints) and Lara Cameron and Tegan Rose (Ink and Spindle).

Chapter 6 covers digital printing in depth and walks you through the process of understanding how to set up your files and manage your colors.

The final chapter includes advice for going pro and features interviews with some truly amazing and talented leaders in fabric design. I was so humbled to be able to interview so many people who's designs are included in my own fabric stash and their fabric is a part of so many quilts and goodies I've sewn over the years.

I can't express how thankful I am to have been able to write this book and for all the help and support I received along the way. It's been a tremendous journey from sitting down to starting to write the book during the summer of 2010 and seeing an actual copy of the printed book this fall. Thank you all for your never ending encouragement and support!! It's meant the world to me. I can still hardly believe that I actually have an ISBN number that's recorded in the Library of Congress.

Angela Adams makes an appearance at my house

I have literally had dreams about owning a hand tufted wool rug by Angela Adams. Her eye for pattern is just simply gorgeous and I've coveted her designs from afar for the longest time. (To say that I have a design crush on her would be a dramatic understatement...) But I haven't ever had a space that would do her rugs justice (nor have they been in my budget to date...)

So when I found out that she has a new line of candles available through Crash Candles, I was all a twitter and I just have to share my little treasure with you. I snapped up this little lovely (called Forrest) and it's happily living in my bedroom. It's soy, smells amazing and I finally have a tiny little Angela Adams design in my house!! To see more of Angela's candles for Crash, click here. And while you're there, make sure you check out the Lotta Jansdotter candles as well. I wouldn't be at all surprised if I asked Santa for a little box of Crash candles this year. :)

Bye Bye for now Donkeys and Bears - Final Sale on 2 more collections

And by now, you know what a Final Sale means!! Robert Kaufman has picked up 2 more of my collections. Super duper mega excited!!

The Donkeys in Wellies and the Polar Bears will be released by RK in January 2012 and shipping sometime this coming Spring. The new color stories are really different from what I've had in the store and can't wait for you to see them once they start hitting the streets next year.

So if you need any of the Donkeys or Bears or want to stash away some of these color stories  or have a project underway that needs donkeys or bears, stock up now... I'll have them available through the end of October ONLY and they're 15% off in celebration of this Final Sale. If you need more yardage than what's listed in the store (or if the listings expire when I'm not looking), just lemme know and I can set up a custom listing for you. I'll be printing as needed to fill orders for the rest of the month. :)

-Fat quarter: regularly $8.50 - now 15% off = $7.23
-Half yard: regularly $17.00 - now 15% off = $14.45
-One yard: regularly $34.00 - now 15% off = $28.90

One exception to the sale...The Donkey and Bears Holiday pillow panels WILL BE available for sale through the end of the December. Sorry, but the pillow panels are not included in the sale. 

Duvet. Check!

Yea! Brand new duvet has officially moved onto the bed. And I just love it!

Finished size is 90x90. Which felt simply gi-normous when I was putting it all together. It was pretty much comedy of errors watching me manhandle all that fabric through the machine. Serious kudos to those of you who can quilt such giant pieces!

Next up, I'm going to do a few quilted pillows for the chair in my room. You think I should use the left over pieces from the duvet cover and put them together in a way other than string piecing? Or should I use different fabrics all together? I don't want it to be too 'matchy matchy' so I'm leaning towards all different fabric but I just have so many great strips left I hate to just put them into the scrap bin. Oh, decisions decisions!

Here's the duvet :)

Exciting news - NEW journals from Urban Smart on Amazon.com!

I did a little happy dance this morning in my kitchen!

When I exhibited at Surtex this last May, I was lucky enough to get to meet with one of the wonderful folks from Urban Smart. And they licensed 6 of my designs to include on these super cool journals!! The journals are printed on Rock Paper, which is an ultra environmentally friendly paper that's made utilizing lime stone. And the paper is both water and tear resistant. I'm a total journal junkie and when you write on this paper, your pen just glides along. I simply fell in love with them and have been so excited about having a few of my designs featured on these really great products.

Drum roll please....I'm super excited to get to tell you the Urban Smart journals are available for sale on Amazon, so go take a peek if you have a second.

View journal

View journal

View journal

View journal

View journal

View journal

Duvet cover - Almost done!

Well, I'm slowly but surely continuing to make progress on the duvet cover. The top is pieced! I LOVE the way it's coming together and I can hardly wait to get it finished and on my bed. Even if my points don't quite match up (at all!), I still love, love it.

Next up is piecing together the two halves of the back fabric (more gorgeous DS fabric!) and mastering the 10 button closure. I'm hoping to get it wrapped up before end of week. But I keep getting delayed by cuteness like this! I love the way when Dexter decides that its time to groom Fiona that the best way to do that is simply to park on top of her. Dorks.

And although not specific to this duvet, entirely too cute not to share. And no, he's not supposed to be sleeping on that fabric but how could I move him?

Nor is she supposed to be hanging out up here!

Duvet cover progress!!

Making great headway on the duvet cover and having so much fun sewing these blocks.
If I counted correctly, I think I only have 4 more to go!

Next up:
- Laying everything out (I really should figure out some sort of design wall...)
- Figuring out if I need/want any border sashing
- Piecing together the back
- Sewing everything together
- Doing happy dance!