Super Cuteness!

The Audrey Hepburn tutu dress. What a great pic! 

Some days you should just feel like a princess. 

Amber Studios - Eco Fashion, Wedding Coat

Amber Studios is all about art, fantasy and sustainability. Barbara creates stunning sweater coats, scarves, bags and home decor from recycled high-end collected materials. Her styles include Steampunk, Woodland, Gypsy, Fairy Tale and more. See them all here. This sought-after designer takes custom orders on Etsy and ships worldwide (from New Jersey, USA). She provides directions for taking your measurements, listens to your likes and dislikes, and then she creates the outfit of your dreams. Barbara is friendly and easy to deal with. I recently met her and viewed some of her recent creations. They are even more beautiful in person than in the photos. This white coat (which would be perfect for an outdoor wedding) is one of my favorites. But I have a lot of favorites!

I also love the scarves and bags from Amber Studios. The intricate surface detailing is over the top.

Although Barbara lives 40 minutes from New York City, her house is located at the edge of the woods. These photos were taken in her beautiful backyard.

 New York City is a rich source for collecting fibers and embellishments. She says upcycling is a way of honoring the past and creating a new garment with a new story. 

Bravo, Barbara! 

Quilt Art Studio - New Selvage Quilt!

Pam at QuiltArtStudio in Virginia recently made this gorgeous selvage quilt. She used a "quilt-as-you-go" method. This quilt is for sale on Etsy at QuiltArtStudio. She has a stuning collection of quilts there, many made with colorful Kaffe Fasset fabrics. Lots of inspiration there!

Pam put her label on the back of the quilt.

Nice quilting. It looks like Mickey is admiring it too. Nice job, Pam!

Happy Easter!

I hope you have a wonderful Easter Sunday!

New Honeycomb Quilt by Diane Volk Harris!

Just off her sewing machine: Honeycomb quilt by Diane Volk Harris (from Nebraska) of Quiltmaker magazine. She used my quilt pattern Honeycomb. She says it may be her favorite project ever. Aww. I love her version! Isn't it gorgeous?

Diane posted this photo on her Facebook page.

Pincushion from Kathleen

My quilt guild Hearthside Quilters had a handmade pincushion exchange in February. This is the beauty I received from my friend and fellow guild member Kathleen Connors. She made it from wool. And what a nice embroidery job she did. It looks great in my quilt room (I love black). Thank you, Kathleen! 

Paperweights Quilt from Alaska!

Maile Soto of Wasilla, Alaska made the beautiful table runner below, inspired by my Paperweights quilt pattern. Her version has nice machine hand applique blanket stitching around the edge of each circle. (I thought it was machine done because it is so neat; but it's hand stitched!)

Here's a close-up so you can see the applique and quilting. Nice job, Maile! 

I wonder how long quilting season is in Alaska. About 10 months, I would guess. I could deal with that, especially with those gorgeous mountain views.

New Puddysticks Quilt Pattern

Here's my latest quilt pattern: Puddysticks. It measures 65" x 84," XL twin (dorm bed). Instant download pdf, photos, helpful hints, 5 pages. You might already have all the fabrics you need for this string quilt, a fun stash-buster. 

The ease of making this quilt is what led to the title “Puddysticks.” In South Africa it’s a children’s phrase that means “very easy.” For example, “The math quiz was puddysticks! I finished in five minutes.” Or, if you are very cool, you might say, “That quiz was pudds!” 

See pattern here.

Seize the Day and Make a Quilt!

Step 1: Cut 12 white squares, 21" x 21."

Then cut them in half on the diagonal. 

If you already have some 3" strips, this quilt won't even take all day.

You'll love the Carpe Diem pattern.

I took this photo in my front yard yesterday before the snow. 

Mary Watt (www.quiltedewe.com) did the machine quilting. 

The quilt is 60" x 80" XL Twin size, good for dorm beds.

If you would Pin, Facebook, or blog about this, it would be great. Thanks.

Here's the link:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/269710790/modern-quilt-pattern-carpe-diem-quilt?ref=shop_home_active_1 

Welcome to My Studio!

C'mon in. Left to right: design wall on the left, fabric in the white wire drawers (and yarn on top), door to walk-in closet, Juki 98Q sewing machine, Big Board ironing board in the foreground.

To the right of the log cabin quilt is the door to the porch. It has a nice view of the woods.

This is the "husband's sofa." I like to relax there too and browse through my quilt books.

The sturdy elfa drawers (from the Container Store) hold a lot of fabric, 

but I do have more in plastic boxes. 

Is my studio always this neat? Hahaha. Not even close.

Selvage Quilt by Jodi Nelson

This selvage quilt top is the creation of Jodi Nelson from the Pleasant Home blog.

She lives in Oregon. I like the little bits of color scattered about in her quilt.

Nice job, Jodi!

Selvage Rainbow Bookcase Quilt

Jessica Skultety loves to quilt and read books. See in-progress photos and read about this quilt at Quilty Habit. Jessica is the author of the Wonky Press modern quilting newsletter.

She quilted the names of some of her favorite books on this unique quilt. Nice work, Jessica!

Linda Satkowski's Selvage Quilt

A nice light and airy selvage quilt by Linda Satkowski. Great job!

Louisa's Selvage Quilt

Louisa Enright's selvage quilt is called "Ain't This Fun?" See more photos of this quilt on Louisa's blog. 

Owl Selvage Quilt is a Hoot!

What a creative selvage quilt! I wish I could see what words are printed on the owls.

Made by Darcy Ashton of Ashton Publications in Oklahoma. See her Outstanding Owls patterns.

Modern Selvage Mug Rug

Stunning modern selvage mug rug by Cassandra of The Not So Dramatic Life. She used Cotton and Steel fabrics for this little pretty. 

And here's the back side. I love the jacks fabric in every colorway. Nice, Cassandra!

Selvage Pillows

Pretty selvage pillows made by Barbara Cain from Modern Quilting by B. Her book is called Go Big Go Bold, Large Scale Modern Quilts,  published by C&T. Beautiful, Barbara!

Selvage Double Wedding Ring

Impressive double-wedding ring quilt block featuring selvages! 

Made by Miriam/berlinquilter. Nice job!

New Etsy Shop: Russian Miniatures

This little hedgehog was made by slava che in St. Petersburg, Russia.

It's a featured item in his brand new Etsy shop: Russian Miniatures. Click on over. 

He has over 200 miniature glass items listed! These are some of my favorites.

See more about this little dog.

See more photos of this graceful fish.

You can see Russian Miniatures on fb too.

Floating Star Quilt

This "Floating Star Quilt" is featured on the University of Alberta (Canada) Museums site. No date is given for the creation of this quilt, but it is probably an antique. Similar to modern quilts too.

I like the simplicity of the colors and design, so I Pinned it. Today my Pin Stats page revealed that it has been wildly popular so I thought you might like to see it too.

Happy Birthday, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King!

Today we celebrate the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King. 

This clergy stole is the first in a new series made from my collection of beautiful fabrics from Africa. 

Quiltsy Team Destash Party!

The dynamic team of Etsy quilters known as Quiltsy is having a big 

Destash Party.

Quiltsy members are offering fabrics, patterns, tools, etc. 

Take a look. Here are all the party links:

https://www.etsy.com/pages/quiltsyteam/destash-quilt-books

https://www.etsy.com/…/quiltsyteam/destash-patterns-and-kits

https://www.etsy.com/pages/quiltsyteam/destash-fabric

https://www.etsy.com/…/exciting-new-fabrics-patterns-and-to…

https://www.etsy.com/…/quiltsy…/gifts-for-sewing-enthusiasts

To see the listing for the Philip Jacobs fabric above, click here.

Wearable Art by Amber Studios

Barbara of Amber Studios in New Jersey creates the most wonderful wearable art! If I was a snow princess I would definitely wear this sweater. And I'd keep my castle nice and cool so I could wear it indoors too.

Another show-stopper by Barbara, a woodland style bag with felted flowers. Wow!

Catherine Timm's Forest Quilt

This is "Winter Forest Sumac" by Catherine Timm of Ontario, Canada. I found it on The Textile and Fiber Art website. Did you notice the little patch of red in the lower right corner? I like quilts with a surprise. Nice job, Catherine!

23 Spools of Thread Used in 2015!

Surprisingly, I use about the same amount of thread every year. In 2015, I used 23 spools, slightly more than my average of 21. I know this is a flimsy measurement. My spools are different sizes, I don't start the new year with all new spools, and hand sewing uses less thread than machine sewing. But I like to toss my empty spools in a basket throughout the year, then see how many I have at year end before tossing them out. Yes, they're all Coats & Clark's Dual Duty. The basket's empty now, ready for the new year. I hope you have a lot of quilting fun this year!

Merry Christmas, Oliver!

This is the Christmas gift quilt that I made for my nephew Oliver, a 20 yr old college student in Vermont. And this is Domo (below) a little character that is special to Oliver and his mom and his sister. They have a little soft toy version that they hide in the refrigerator or under a bed pillow or even mail to each other. I told my sister that I was making this quilt and she sent me this 3" tall Domo patch. Oliver laughed when he saw this. In the full quilt photo above you can see Domo in the lower left hand corner. 

Oliver has a little kid quilt that I made for him a long time ago. It was time for a grown up quilt. I really like the fabrics in this quilt, especially the old NYC street scenes, rulers, and batiks below.

And the garlic and polka dots too.

The quilt measures 65" x 80." The backing is black with a tiny gray geometric design. The binding is the same as the back. The batting is Warm and White, and the machine quilting is wavy parallel horizontal lines done in gray thread (on the front) and black thread (on the back).

Felted Brooch from Lithuania

These felted brooches were made by Brigita Re in Lithuania and are offered in her Etsy shop: Bridget Studio. Aren't they beautiful? Imagine how they would look on a crazy quilt. Over the top! :)