The Best of Selvage Blog (Just for Fun)

For our visitors from Quiltmaker today, here is a sample of some posts we enjoy... just for fun. Sometimes it's something beautiful, unusual, humorous, or just wierd. It all fills our creativity tank!

This is a life-size knitted Ferrari. Why? I don't know. But you had to see it.

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw these unique but very uncomfortable-looking shoes.

I found this wild calla lily at Big Sur, California. It was late afternoon, and I thought it looked majestic.

I love to see amazing things made out of common items, like the pencil sculpture below...and selvage quilts!

Sweedish photographer Eric Johansson took the photo above. Isn't he amazing?

I took the photo below at the Columbia River Gorge between Washington and Oregon. Not amazaing, but still beautiful.

Scroll down through Older Posts to see these and other topics.

Join Pat Sloan's Red Zinger Mania Group!

This is the Red Zinger that I made for Quilter's Home a year ago. It was the trigger for Pat Sloan's new obsession: Red Zinger Mania! (Heh heh heh, we're here for you, Pat!) She's going to make a Red Zinger and she wants company! Pat has a forum on her site for all of us to hang out: selvage quilters, non-selvage quilters, enablers, selvage swappers, wannabees, newbies, been-there-done-thats...

I just have to share with you what Pat said in her opening post:

"I said I was not going to do this...my friends are...I see quilters everywhere doing it...but I...not I...I would be strong. I would not cave in. Even if I did blog about Karen's quilt. But alas...the other day I started to keep them. I started to KEEP my selvages...gasp...the obsession has started!" -Pat Sloan, quilter from Virginia and Internet guru

When Pat gets an idea, she goes full tilt!! You will see what I mean when you visit her sites:

Read her post about Red Zinger Mania: http://patsloan.typepad.com/pat_sloans_corner/2009/10/just-a-litle-obsession.html

This is where you register to join the fun and add your Comments: http://quiltmashup.com/index.php/topic,278.0.html

Website - http://www.patsloan.com/

Blog - http://patsloan.typepad.com/

Quilt Forum - http://www.quiltmashup.com/

P.S. I sent her a box of selvages to get them going! I can't wait to see the quilts.

Brian Griska, Photographer

This is one of Brian's most recent photos. He's a photographer in NYC/NJ specializing in creative still life photos. I love his work. You can see more at http://www.briangriska.com/.

Today is his 26th birthday, and yes, as you may have guessed, I'm his Mom. :)

Happy birthday, Brian!

Jodie's Latest Obsession - Robots!

Fiberart genius Jodie Carleton of Ballarat, Australia is in full force making robots! And they have personalities and stories! They even knit - look at how the little black robot is holding the yarn for the knitter! Jodie's blog is a real treat. Take a look at: http://vintagericrac.blogspot.com/

Jodie is the creator of the selvage dress, selvage chair and selvage parasol shown in the sidebar at right, or just click here to see all: www.selvageblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Jodie%20Carleton

Heather Bailey's Felt for Embellishments and Ornaments

Designer Heather Bailey is always up to something deliciously colorful! Her latest thing is felt. She stocks high quality wool blend (and bamboo) felt in good colors in her online store: http://www.heatherbaileystore.com/category-s/55.htm&Click=25

This is the felt she uses for her leaves, flowers and pincushions. Aren't they stunning? I'm thinking ornaments! For Christmas and for year-round decoration in the quilt studio!

See Heather's blog: http://heatherbailey.typepad.com/

To see previous posts about Heather's wonderful stuff here on the Selvage Blog: http://selvageblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Heather%20Bailey

Have a creative day!

Congratulations, Linda!

Do you remember Linda from Des Moines, Iowa? (If not, click here: http://selvageblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/lindas-quilt-studio-in-iowa.html)

Right now she's in Australia cuddling with her happy new grandson, teaching her granddaughter how to knit and visiting with her daughter and son-in-law. In addition, she's teaching new quilters as they work on charity quilts together.

Isn't that a beautiful lavender jacaranda tree above? (Quilter Linda Robertus introduced us to those.) Looking in the other direction, she can see Sydney and the Iron Bridge. She loves it there. What's not to love?

Take a look at Linda's blogs. She's keeping them up to date while Down Under. Thanks for sharing all that joy, Linda! I could gaze at this laughing baby all day!

http://www.flourishingpalms.blogspot.com/
http://www.stitchinmission.blogspot.com/

Floral Plate Warms My Heart

I saw this plate on display in a Cracker Barrell restaurant in my travels. That's one of my favorite stops when I'm on the road. It was so pretty I decided to take a photo to show you. I love the combination of black and creamy white with multi bright colors. I should have turned the plate over to see what was written on the back but I didn't think of it at the time.

Not only does the Cracker Barrell have comfort food, they have antique decorations that warm my heart too. This plate reminds me of my Grandmother Barbara who came to this country from Lithuania by herself when she was 16 years old. Can you imagine? She could knit real fast, and she was the best cook. She had 5 kids, the middle one was my Dad. She and I were very close. She would peel the skin off grapes for me when I was a toddler. That memory makes me chuckle now.

I hope you enjoy a tender memory today.

Origami Bird Teabag

What a creative idea! As a tea lover and a fanatic for seeing common things in new ways, this really caught my eye. The concept was designed by Natalia Ponomareva from Russia. I bet the wings go up and down as you dip the bag. But you have to make the "tweet tweet" sounds yourself.

I found this item on Toxel.com.

Welcome to my office.

Well, not exactly. This is also the Main Reading Room of the Nashville Public Library. Isn't it beautiful? While visiting one of my sons in Nashville I spent some time on my computer here. That's the Selvage Blog on my screen. It's so uplifting to work in an elegant environment like this.

But Starbucks has it's advantages too. Where do you like to hang out when away from home? By the way, did you know Panera has free Internet access? Good deal.

Mary Rush's Rag Rugs

On a recent trip to the Smoky Mountain National Park and nearby Gatlinburg, TN, I met Mary Rush of "Hand Knotted Country Carpets" from Mountain Home, NC. Her demonstration and colorful craft fair booth caught my eye, especially the circular rug shown above. I love the soft colors.

Take a look at her website where she offers rug kits and a DVD showing how to knot a rug: http://www.handknottedcountrycarpets.com/.

Gwen Marston's New Book Coming in January

I think I'm going to have a new new favorite quilting book soon. "Liberated Quiltmaking II" is scheduled to be out in January 2010. I hope it has a gazillion quilts. I'll give you a full report as soon as my copy arrives.

Here's the link at American Quilter's Society: http://www.americanquilter.com/books_supplies/item_detail.php?id=8147

Here's the link at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Liberated-Quiltmaking-II-Gwen-Marston/dp/1574326538/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256763476&sr=1-6

Melinda's Selvage Covered Journal

Melinda of Marietta, GA just made this selvage journal cover. Isn't it a beauty? Lots of stripes and a great swirly button. Here's what she had to say:

"Today was special projects day at guild. We were making journal covers. We had some prep work to do before we started including quilting the outside cover and cutting all the parts needed to make the cover.
I decided to do a selvage one, of course. As you know I love selvages. Here is the finished project. It turned out even better than I expected."

See more photos of this project on her blog at:
http://melinful.blogspot.com/2009/10/special-projects-day-at-guild.html She credits her friend Lisa for the cover-making method. Thanks, Melinda!

LED Eyelashes!

Can you believe it? LED eyelashes from Korea! This is from Toxel:

"Designed by Soomi Park, futuristic LED Eyelashes look like something you would see in a science fiction movie.

The sensor inside the eyelashes can perceive the movements of the pupil in the eyes and eyelids. When the movement is detected, the LEDs flicker."

These would give me such a headache! But I thought you should see it. For more photos, visit:
http://www.toxel.com/tech/2009/10/25/led-eyelashes-from-korea/

Quilter from the Badlands in North Dakota

Here's what Karen, a new quilter, has to say about her part of the world:

"I live in a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota but my blog is badlandsquilts because I grew up on a farm in southwestern North Dakota near the Badlands. I'm attaching two photos that were taken this year over the 4th of July weekend... the first shows my parents farm from quite a distance away and the second photo was taken in one of fields with wildflower in the foreground and the Rainy Buttes (Second highest buttes in ND) in the background. Both pictures I think are very accurate in capturing the peaceful beauty of this very rural area."

Karen's first selvage creation was a big label for this quilt (above). She added selvages to some leftover blocks, writing her name and the date along the bottom. Clever.

The beautiful landscapes above are near the Badlands. To see the appropriately named Badlands, visit Karen's blog at: http://www.badlandsquilts.blogspot.com/ It's scenic, but really bad if you're traveling cross-country on foot!

Amy's Selvage Bag

Amy in San Diego, California made this pretty selvage bag. That long red handle is a nice touch, and what a deal! Read her words below:

"I finally did something with some of my selvages. This is a cute bag pattern from the magazine, Better Homes and Gardens Quilts and More, Fall 2009. The original pattern was made with fat eighths. I cut muslin rectangles, 5 1/2 inches by 5 inches, and sewed my selvages to them to make the fabric rectangles used for the bag. The webbing for the handle (which is long, designed to be worn diagonally across the chest) came from a garage sale (5 yds for $1)! I think it came out pretty cute. Thanks for your inspiration!"

Nice job, Amy! Thank you for the inspiration.

Paulette's New Selvage Purse

Remember Paulette Carr, maker of the beautiful selvage & denim skirt? (See sidebar at right.) Now she's made a selvage purse. This is what she says about it:

"Here is the purse I did from selvage edges. It is a purse pattern that I designed myself a few months ago. It was a pretty simple design with an adjustable strap. It has sold pretty well in my local quilt shop. It worked very well with the selvage edges.....and my granddaughter loved her skirt!"

I can imagine that a purse like this would sell well in a quilt shop. You know everyone who sees it already loves fabric. (Well, except the UPS driver maybe.) Nice button, too.

New Quilt Inspired by Gwen and Freddy's Book

Quilt Diva Julie of Memphis, TN made this gorgeous basket quilt called "Sing the Sun Down." She was inspired by the new book "Freddy and Gwen Collaborate Again" by Gwen Marston and Freddy Moran (reviewed here a few days ago). Look at those basket handles, and I love the colors. Oh, Julie - this is a beauty!

To see more photos, visit Julie's blog at: http://quiltdivajulie.blogspot.com/2009/10/sing-sun-down-finished.html

Greetings to all our visitors from Spain and Canada today!

Martina's Mini Selvage Quilt for Fall

Martina Odenthal of Germany made this mini selvage quilt for fall. If you have been reading the Selvage blog for a while you will notice she included some of her tape-measure fabric in this quilt, just like she does in her other selvage creations, and there are many! I really like that little bird in the center, framed with the frayed red fabric. Nice job, Martina!

Visit Martina's blog at: http://stufenzumgericht.blogspot.com/

My New Favorite Quilting Book

This book just arrived and I'm savoring each word and picture. The authors have put together a dazzling collection of quilts that I really love. They are somewhat improvisational quilts that you can study and find lots of interesting surprises. The quilts are very creative interpretations of traditional quilts. Great variety, lots of inspiration, humor, color. This is my new favorite quilt book. (This is not an advertisement, per se, I just had to share my excitement with you.)

Take a look on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Freddy-Gwen-Collaborate-Again-Freewheeling/dp/1600594395/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256500452&sr=1-1

Steffi's View in Germany

Steffi from the northwest part of Germany sent this photo of the view from her sewing room. How charming. Here's what she says about it:

"This is the church of our village (the only church). It's one of the oldest in our region and dates back to the year 800. We can hear the bells, very often. They ring every 15 minutes to tell the time, and they ring before the services. (8 and 10 AM on sundays - that wakes us up often ;-)"

She started a blog just one month ago: http://steffiscandyquilts.blogspot.com/ If you are fond of 1930's style quilts, soft and beautiful, you will enjoy this blog! She also has a selvage project in the works (nice stars).

And don't worry, she writes in German and English.