Sew Fabulous Quilt Shop Blog

February 2012 Giveaway - Good Fortune

2012-02-01T12:50:00.005-06:00

Happy February! Today is Giveaway Day and I think you're going to LOVE this one. We're giving away a 16 piece Good Fortune Fat Quarter Bundle by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics!!! Good Fortune arrived last week and I've gotta say.....the colors are so amazing and rich and vibrant in person. I had a "knock me over with a feather" moment when I opened the big boxes full of fabric - I couldn't believe what I was seeing! I'm in love with this Eye Candy!

Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win. I'd love to hear your answer to this question: Do you finish one project before starting another or do you have many, many projects going on at the same time? If you've read any of my previous blog posts you probably know which category I'm in - I have about 20 unfinished projects going on right now!

Be sure to leave your comment by Sunday, Feb 5 at midnight. We'll pick a winner on Monday, Feb 6.

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

I Am Pajama Girl

2012-01-26T13:54:00.010-06:00

Well, hello there! I've missed you blogland! Where did I disappear to for so long? I have no idea. I think I just went into social hibernation after the holidays. I think Alicia at Posie Gets Cozy said it best when she blogged about December being manic and January being like a big, deep breath where all you should do is rest and stay still. So, I guess that's what I was doing. Anyway.....I realized that I never showed you the little project I made in December so here it is....
I decided to make a replica of the J. Crew pajama pants that I lived in during my college years. I originally talked about that here. And do you remember how I ~~threatened~~ wanted to make a matching pair for John for Christmas so we could look like matching dorks? Well......I did that too. He wears them all the time but he refuses to pose for a picture in them. So one day I took a picture of him through the kitchen window as he was working on the computer outside. Gotcha! Now I have proof that he actually wears them!
And you may have noticed that I did the front and back of each leg in a different plaid. Here's a picture of the back of the pants. And please note - I'm NOT trying to do some sort of sexy Victoria's Secret picture where they're sticking their booties out. It just involves a lot of awkward twisting and turning to get a picture of your backside when you're home alone. Why oh why don't I remember to have John take the pictures I need before he goes out of town???
Oh yeah.....I bet you're wondering about the Pajama Girl thing. You may remember from previous posts that I live on a military base. It's a pretty small world here. I was at a party a few weeks ago and I met a woman named Wendy who happens to be the wife of a General here. Here's the conversation between us:

Wendy: So do you live on base?

Me: Yes. We live on XYZ street right by the You Know Who's and the So And So's.

Wendy: Ohhhhh......I know who you are! I go running by your house every morning. You're the girl whose always outside in your pajamas with your dogs.

Me: Ummmm.......Wellllll.......(imagine a bashful tone there). YUP! That's me! (imagine a proud tone there).

And then a good friend of mine chimed in and said "Jenny has the CUTEST pajamas!"

So, now everyone knows that I'm the Pajama Girl. And I will wear my new title with pride. There are definitely worse things to be known for! And hey.....when you work from home it's really hard to convince yourself to put on anything other than pajamas or yoga pants. If you can be super comfy all day why not do it, right?

So, I'm off to make myself another pair of pajama pants. I have to keep my "fans" entertained with my front yard fashion shows!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. The fabric is from the Preppy Plaids collections. I used the Sleep Well pattern for John's pajamas and the Sew Easy Pajama Pants for mine.

January 2012 Giveaway - Hooterville Quilt Pattern

2012-01-05T15:53:00.008-06:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner is Sallie who said "I like it the way you have it. I'd definitely use blue. Thanks for the great giveaway!" Congratulations Sallie! Send me an e-mail and I'll send your Hooterville pattern to you!

Happy January! I meant to post this Giveaway on the 1st......I really did.....but did anyone else have trouble getting back into their normal routine after the holidays??? I'm still just a little bit lost and out of sorts and can't remember what I'm supposed to be doing! But I'll figure it out eventually. Anyway, this month we're giving away a Hooterville Quilt Pattern. It's the most popular pattern we've ever had in the shop! Everyone loves those wide eyes owls!!!
And instead of having the Giveaway run for the whole month it's only going to be open for one week. I guess in the past I always wanted to give people plenty of time to enter.....but then I realized that there weren't many people entering the Giveaways after the first week. So, we'll make this one short and sweet. Just leave a comment to be entered to win. I'd love to hear what colors or fabrics you would want to use in the Hooterville quilt. And if you blog about this giveaway or tweet about it or do a Facebook post about it you can leave additional comments to receive extra chaces to win. I'll pick a winner on Friday, January 13, 2012. Last day to enter is Thursday, January 12, 2012 at midnight.

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Be sure to check last months Giveaway to see if you're the big winner.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T16:17:00.003-06:00

Merry Christmas from our house to yours! We hope you're having a wonderful holiday season full of health, happiness and love!

Big Hugs,
Jenny, John, Cassi, Daisy, Bailey, Emma and Sammy

Flower Sugar

2011-12-20T15:35:00.007-06:00

Everyone....this is Flower Sugar. Flower Sugar.....I'd like to introduce you to everyone!

Huge boxes from Japan arrived last week full of these gorgeous fabrics by Lecien. Unfortunately, at the time I was still too sick to open them so they just sat there....and sat there.....and sat there. I was staring at them and they were staring right back at me. Finally I couldn't take it anymore and dragged myself off the sofa to dig into those boxes full of fabric that were calling my name! It was love at first sight!!! Oh Flower Sugar.....where have you been my whole life???
Each bolt I pulled out seemed to be prettier than the last. But I'm really, really, reallllllyyyyy fond of the Polka Dot Roses in Green.....
And Polka Dot Roses in Pink. You know I love anything pink!!!
And as I was cutting the Fat Quarter Bundles my mind kept wandering away.....In my mind this is the story of these fabrics.....I've just walked into a beautiful seaside cottage that I'm renting for the summer and it has white beadboard walls, wood floors and French doors opening out onto a huge porch overlooking the ocean. There's a pitcher of pink lemonade and seashells on the table and a beautiful vintage quilt made with these fabrics is draped over the sofa. And I think I should be wearing a sundress made with one of the Polka Dot Rose fabrics that I love so much, right? Are you still with me? Or has my mind wandered too far yet again???
Anyway.....back to reality now. The most important point I'm trying to make here is that we now have the entire Flower Sugar Collection in the shop! I hope you love it! And I hope it makes your mind wander to a happy place too!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Cocoa, Canines and Cookies

2011-12-19T14:34:00.005-06:00

So how's your Christmas prep coming along? I'm so happy to say that I'm pretty much done with Christmas shopping, Christmas cards and all that other anxiety inducing prep work! And because I'm really trying to simplify my life this year I decided I was going to cut back on the massive amounts of homemade Christmas cookies that I normally make to give as gifts and try to do something a little different: Hot cocoa mixes in pretty jars.
After much taste-testing (it was a rough job but somebodies gotta do it) and recipe tweaking I finally found what I consider to be the perfect cocoa mix. Here it is:

-1 cup granulated sugar
-1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 cup powdered milk
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips
-1/2 cup miniature marshmallows

You layer all of the ingredients in a pretty jar, tie it with a bow and attach a tag with the directions.
This recipe was supposed to fit in a 1 quart jar but for some reason it wouldn't fit in the 1 quart jars that I bought. I'm reallllyyyyy glad I did a test jar before I started my assembly line of cocoa jars! I would have had a major cocoa-tastrophe if I hadn't tested things first! So, for the remaining jars I just reduced the amount of each ingredient a little bit but kept the proportions the same. For my jars, I had to remove 1 tablespoon for each 1/2 cup of ingredient in the mix.

I downloaded some cute, free tags here, printed them on cardstock and wrote "Classic Hot Cocoa Mix" on the front and the directions on the back:
-Mix contents together in large bowl
-For each serving place 1/4 cup of mix and 1 cup water in saucepan and whisk together
-Heat over med-high heat for 3-5 minutes stirring occasionally
-Store remaining mix in jar
You can also make this in the microwave. You just have to stir 1/4 cup mix and 1 cup water together in a mug. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, stir well, microwave for an additional 30 seconds. Stir for another minute after microwaving. It takes a while for all those mini chocolate chips to melt!

I DO NOT recommend placing the mix in a mug and pouring hot water into the mug. It turned out pretty gross and chunky when I tried it that way. It's definitely better when the mix and water are combined before heating.
And voila! I now have a bunch of adorable, semi-homemade gifts to give out. But a few warnings if you're going to attempt to do this.....you will most likely get COVERED in cocoa powder as you make these! That stuff was not agreeable about going into the jars and I had to "funnel" it in using a baggie with a corner snipped off. And if you have a Golden Retriever, please lock him/her up while you make this. Otherwise you will be pulling marshmallows out of their fur for DAYS!

And now it's time to start making some sugar cookies. I said I was cutting back on the cookie making.....not eliminating it. I haven't gone completely mad! A girls gotta have some homemade Christmas cookies every year!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Staycation, Sinuses and Sewing

2011-12-17T16:30:00.006-06:00

Hey there! How've you been? I've been up, down and all around......First, I had my Staycation which was AMAZING! It was absolutely heavenly to take a few days to relax, recharge my brain and just veg-out. The only rule was to do whatever I felt like doing at that moment. And eat lots of wonderful food. On my first night of Staycation I made a new dish which I'll call "Lobster a la Jenny." It was lobster tail on sushi rice with spinach and beurre blanc sauce. Mmmmm.....
And then my afternoon snack on most days of the Staycation looked like this......
Fancy cheeses with a drizzle of honey and a glass of champagne. And while we're on the subject of champagne, I want to thank whoever started putting wine and champagne in those little single serving bottles. It's pure genius!

And I had to make one of my all time favorite dinners for my last night of Staycation.....The Cowboy Roll. It's a sushi roll made with Filet Mignon (which I cooked first of course!), avocado and that slightly spicy Japanese sauce that you make by mixing mayo with sriracha until it tastes right to you....
And I actually finished piecing the quilt top for the Living Room Quilt....
If you've been following along you know I started making this very simple quilt about 6 months ago....and it's still not done! I'm great at starting projects.....but finishing them is another matter entirely!

And after a few days of "catch up" work after the Staycation I came down with a wicked, evil, mean and nasty sinus infection/flu type thing. It's now 10 days later and I'm just starting to feel normal again. Whew. Being sick is no fun! I'm actually looking forward to doing laundry, ironing and dishes simply because I feel good enough to get off the sofa!

I hope you're having a healthy and happy holiday season so far! Be back soon....

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. I have a confession to make.....I may have started watching The Vampire Diaries on NetFlix while I was sick. I may have spent a few days watching it all....day....long. I may be having strange dreams involving vampires these days. Do you think less of me now? If you do, just pretend I didn't say that. I actually meant to say that I was watching a Masterpiece Theater marathon, o.k.?

December Giveaway - Pam Kitty Morning

2011-12-01T17:17:00.012-06:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner is Digital Michelle who said "My mother won a sewing contest when I was 8ish. The White Mini Roses reminds me so much of the fabric she used to make the matching dresses for my younger sister and I. The Blue Floral makes me drool. Thanks for this giveaway! :)" Congratulations Michelle. Please send me an e-mail so I can send your Fat Quarter Bundle to you!
Happy December! This month we're giving away a super, duper adorable Pam Kitty Morning Fat Quarter Bundle. I'm absolutely in love with this collection and can't wait to grab some for myself and start sewing. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win. I'd love to hear what you'd like to make with it or which one is your favorite print from the collection. Please leave your comment by December 31, 2011. We'll pick a winner on January 1, 2012.....well.....let's just say I'll pick the winner on January 2 to be safe!

And if you're wondering.....I have two favorite prints from this collection. I can't get enough of the Pink Bouquets.....
And the Blue Big Dots make me smile....
And I think I'd like to make either a Bitsy Button & Friends Quilt....
Or a State Fair Quilt.....
Or how cute would this fabric be in the Hooterville Quilt. I haven't even finished the Hooterville Quilt I'm working on right now and I already want to make another. But Pam Kitty Morning + Hooterville = Too Cute For Words!!!
And if you're wondering about last months Love It or Leave It here are the collections that came out on top.....
-Apple Of My Eye by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake Fabrics
-Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket for Moda Fabrics
-California Girl by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda Fabrics
-Sweet Lush by Patty Young for Michael Miller Fabrics
-Sunny Lush by Patty Young for Michael Miller Fabrics

Thanks to everyone who left a vote/comment on the Love It or Leave It and good luck to everyone who's entering this month's Giveaway!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Sit. Stay.

2011-11-30T17:25:00.006-06:00

If you need to find me, this is where I'll be for the next four days. On the big, cushy chair in the Living Room. Enjoying a much needed Staycation. Do you ever just feel like you really, really, REALLY need to take a break and do nothing for just a little while? Of course you do. So, about 6 weeks ago I decided I was going to do it and steal a few days just for me. Weekends and vacations are great....but I still always feel like I'm rushing around and doing stuff and not really relaxing. So for the next four days here's my plan....

No work. No chores. No errands. Nothing. Well.....except for walking the dogs and cleaning the cat box. It might get ugly around here if I don't continue doing those chores!

Live in my pajamas.

Eat whatever I want whenever I want and not feel guilty about it. If I want chocolate cake for breakfast I'm going to eat it. And maybe I'll have some champagne with it too! And maybe I'll have a glass of wine with lunch.

Sleep in as late as I want and not feel guilty about it.

Sit in front of the t.v. and do lots of sewing. And magazine reading. And lots of baking too.

And snuggle with the pets.

Any maybe....just maybe.....I'll make more progress on the Living Room Quilt....
And on the Hooterville Quilt....
As for now....I have to go finish up a few chores so I'm ready for my Staycation tomorrow! I can't wait to tell you all about it in a few days!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. I will be back tomorrow to post the December Giveaway!

A Very Ruby Christmas

2011-11-18T14:46:00.005-06:00

Hey there! Remember me? Wow - it's been chaotic around here the last few weeks. If you've been to the website lately you'll know why! We're in the middle of giving the shop a major "facelift." We're still working on redoing the Home Page and tweaking a few other things but it's almost done! I'm so excited about the fresh new look that "she" has. And as you can imagine everything else came in 2nd to getting the new website up and running. Stuff like the blog, my own sewing projects, feeding myself and putting on clothes that aren't pajamas are all projects that were temporarily pushed aside!

But in the midst of all this website chaos an adorable new pattern arrived at the shop called Merry, Merry Snowmen by Bunny Hill Designs.
After this pattern arrived I started looking through all the fabrics in the shop to see what would work with this pattern and then it hit me. RUBY!
I hadn't noticed before how Ruby is so very, very perfect for Christmas projects. Just look at all that red and green! And the silvery grey and icy aqua are perfect for Christmas too!
I have sooooo many quilts on my list of things to make but I really want to add this one to the list. I'd love to grab a Layer Cake, a Fat Quarter Bundle and some extra red, grey and white/cream yardage and dive in. And Ruby Quirky would be the perfect border for my quilt, don't you think? It' so sweet!
I've been working really hard on the new website and I think I deserve a reward! So, I might just tiptoe off to the shop and gather up some fabric before I get back to working on the website. Don't you think that's the perfect plan?

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Ruby is by Bonnie & Camille for Moda Fabrics.

October Love It or Leave It Fabric Vote Results

2011-11-02T16:07:00.009-05:00

We have a winner! And we have the results of October's Love It or Leave It fabric vote. First of all the winner is Free Indeed who said "Loved several of these lines! Esp. Good Fortune, Modernology and Fly A Kite. Did not care for the two clickable link ones......aren't we all so over red and aqua yet????? No one hit me o.k.?" LOL! Congratulations Free Indeed. And thanks to everyone who left a comment! They were so incredibly helpful!!!

And now for the results! I gave each collection one point for each positive comment and took away a point for each negative comment. So, let me show you what you guys loved.....

Good Fortune by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics came in first place. I'm not the least bit surprised! Everyone seems to LOVE Kate Spain. It should be arriving in the shop in January.
Next up, Flea Market Fancy by Denyse Schmidt for Free Spirit Fabrics came in second place. It should be arriving in March or April.
Third place goes to Verona by Emily Taylor for Riley Blake Designs.
In fourth place is Flower Sugar by Lecien. I'm working on creating a better image for this one as quick as I can! It should be arriving in November or December.
Fifth place goes to Fly A Kite by October Afternoon for Riley Blake Designs. It should be arriving in January or February.
And finally, sixth place goes to Folk Heart by Rosalie Quinlan for Lecien. And again, I'm working on creating a better image to show you more of the Folk Heart collection. This one should be arriving in December.
What do you think? Do you like the winners? And have you voted in November's Post Quilt Market Love It or Leave It yet?

Thanks for all the fabric shopping help! I can't wait to get these new collections in the shop!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

November 2011 Giveaway - Love It Or Leave It

2011-10-31T16:01:00.016-05:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner is Melissa who said "I especially love Salt Air and Apple of my Eye. But I'd probably buy some of all of it- I have no self control!" Congratulations Melissa! Please send me an e-mail so I can give your Gift Certificate info.

Happy November! This may seem a little bit like deja vu but this month we're doing another Love It or Leave It and another giveaway for a $50 Gift Certificate. There were so many amazing new collections that were just shown at Quilt Market and I just had to show them to you and get your opinion. And yet again, I've put together little "samplings" of my favorite soon to be released collections that I'm considering adding to the shop.

Please tell me what you think. Which ones do you love? Which ones would you buy? Which ones would you pass on? Please be honest. I won't be offended if you don't like them! And don't feel obligated to talk about every single collection. You can if you want to....or you can just talk about the ones that you have strong feelings about. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win. Oh, and only vote for or comment on the fabric collections shown BELOW. The images in the sidebar on the right are all the new stuff that's already in the shop! Please leave your comment by November 30, 2011 to be entered to win.

Apple of My Eye by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake Designs

California Girl by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda

Dress Up Days by Doohikey Designs for Riley Blake Designs

Hello Luscious by Basic Grey for Moda

Sweet Lush by Patty Young for Michael Miller Fabrics

Sunny Lush by Patty Young for Michael Miller Fabrics

Poetica by Art Gallery

Rhapsodia by Art Gallery

Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket for Moda

Seaside by October Afternoon for Riley Blake Designs

Summer Love by Art Gallery

Tradewinds by Lily Ashbury for Moda
Thanks for giving me your opinion on these fabrics! I can't wait to read your comments!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Long Time, No Talk

2011-10-27T15:38:00.007-05:00

Hey there! I know, I know - long time, no talk. But I have a very good excuse! There hasn't been much to talk about because there hasn't been much sewing going on around here. And there hasn't been much sewing going on around here because there has been a lot of running going on around here. Which tends to cause a lot of running related injuries. I've been doing a lot of power walking lately.....which turned into jogging/running.....which turned into an over-ambitious, overzealous, insane decision to run 7 miles in one day. And do you know what happens to an in-experienced runner who runs 7 miles all at once? You will strain every muscle in your chest and abs. Who knew? You'd think I would have pulled a muscle in my leg or back or something normal like that. But nooooo......I just have to be different!

Anyway, as I've been running I've obviously been noticing the weather getting cooler and cooler. Which obviously makes me realize I have absolutely nothing to wear in cooler weather. Which obviously makes me go raid the shop and see what I could whip up for myself that has long sleeves. And I definitely think I need some more Funked Out Peasant Blouses since the first one I made turned out so great, if I do say so myself. And yes, I realize it's more of a 3/4 sleeve length.....but it's still longer sleeves than most of my Florida summertime shirts!
Here's one possible color combo that I came up with. I'd use the Wrenly Cerulean Rosette for the sleeves, the Wrenly Gypsy Wrenly for the top part, the Wrenly Cobalt Bloom for the bottom part and the Bella Solids Robin's Egg Blue for the empire waistband and the hemband.....
Or here's another possible combination I came up with using some warm, autumny browns. I'd use the Midwest Modern Brown Martini for the top, the Soul Blossoms Honeydew Buttercups for the sleeves, the waistband and the hemband and then I'd use the Midwest Modern Brown Park Fountains for the bottom part. And then I'd have to call this my Martini Shirt....
And my final finalist for my soon to be next Peasant Blouse would have Meadowsweet Celery Paper Snowflake for the sleeves, Farmer's Market Autumn Dahlia for the top, Bella Solids Goldenrod for the waistband and hemband and Meadowsweet Celery Grand Foliage for the bottom part.
What do you think? Do you have any big plans for creating some new autumn/winter clothes? Do you have any ridiculous sports injury stories to share with everyone? I'm gonna go stretch and drink lots of water now. See you soon!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Thanks for all your comments about the new Ruby Collection! I love all of your brilliant ideas. Someone even suggested a Peasant Blouse made out of Ruby - I obviously think that's a fabulous, genius, perfect idea!

P.P.S.S. Only a few more days to vote in the Love It Or Leave It blog post!

Hello Ruby!

2011-10-18T16:29:00.007-05:00

Everyone.....I'd like you to meet Ruby. Ruby....this is everyone.....
This gorgeous collection by Bonnie & Camille for Moda Fabrics arrived last night. I was so excited that I dragged John into the fabric room to show him the fabrics and point out which ones were my favorites. And then I asked him which ones he liked the best.....and he actually gave me an answer! But shhhh.....don't tell the other fighter pilots that he did this. It might get him in trouble! Anyway, these are John's favorites....
He liked the Aqua Sublime and the Ruby Swoon because he thought they looked very Hawaiian. And he liked the Grey Dots because they're very classy.

And here are my favorites.....
I plan on using the Grey Sublime, Grey Quirky and Ruby Sundae to make this Short & Sassy Handbag (grey floral on the bottom, grey swirl will be the band at the top and the red scallop stripe will be the ruffle, button and straps).....
How cute will that be???!!! The pattern for that bag should be arriving in the shop very soon along with some of her pattern friends. I'll obviously let you know when she arrives.
Sooooo.....which ones are your favorites and what masterpieces are you planning on making with Ruby???

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Happy Owloween!

2011-10-10T13:14:00.010-05:00

Well....temptation struck again and I temporarily abandoned my current projects (Hooterville and the Living Room Quilt and A Girl In Paris) to attack a new one. Fortunately, it was a quick and easy project and I can now return to my regularly scheduled projects. Anyway.....here's what happened....

I've mentioned the Hooterville quilt that I'm working on about a million times before. And one of my readers commented that she wanted to use the owl applique from the pattern and put it on a skirt for her daughter. What an incredibly cute idea! So, that got me thinking of all the other things I could do with that adorable owl applique design.....and at that time I had just been thinking about vintage Halloween decor (I LOVE vintage Halloween stuff!). So my mind jumped to a Halloween Owl Tote.

I grabbed some appropriate black and orange fabrics and threw in a little green for fun.....
I built up my applique owl in the corner of my bag....

I attempted to see if you can do a hand blanket stitch on the edge of a fusible applique using one strand of thread and I've gotta say.....it looked absolutely awful! So I ripped those stitches out and did machine satin stitch around the edges like a sane person. Then I threw some ruffles on at the top.....
And voila! Here I am "modeling" my new Happy Owloween Tote Bag! It would also make a cute Trick or Treat bag for kids.
It's a very simple bag. Just some rectangles, some ruffles, a handle and an applique. I must confess - I'm sometimes intimidated by those bag patterns that have fancy pockets and structured bodies and all sorts of perfect details. So, I just created a very simple, lightweight bag with a simple lining. But you could add a layer of fusible fleece if you wanted a bag with more structure and body. You could also add a snap or a button at the top. And you could also add some little black beads or French Knots for eyes. I went with a "blank stare" kind of look for my owl!

I was so happy with how my bag turned out that I decided to make kits of my Happy Owloween bag.

And now that this little distraction is complete I'm heading back to Hooterville.....

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Did you know that all Amy Butler Collections (Midwest Modern, Love and Soul Blossoms) and all Fig Tree Quilts Fabrics (Gypsy Rose, Patisserie and Mill House Inn) are now 50% OFF???!!! We're making room for the fabrics in our Love It or Leave It post. So hurry....quick like a bunny....grab some before they're all gone!

Memory Lane

2011-10-05T16:25:00.008-05:00

Preppy Plaids by Moda have arrived and they are sending me on a long trip down memory lane.....and making me long for a "real" autumn and winter that we just don't get in Florida!
Whenever I look at these they make me think of college days in Ohio and falling leaves and caramel apples and bonfires and snuggling up by fires on chilly winter nights and sipping hot cocoa....basically I'm completely warm, cozy and nostalgic when I look at them.
The first time I saw them I was immediately reminded of a pair of plaid, flannel pajama pants from J. Crew that I LIVED in during my freshman year of college. They had a different plaid on the front and back of each leg and they looked sort of like this....
Do you know the pants that I'm talking about? Did you have a pair too? I think I might need to re-create those pajama pants as a Christmas present to myself! And maybe I should make a pair for John too so we can look like matching fools!

Then I was reminded of a Christmas dress that I made for myself in the 6th grade using a fabric that looked just like this Navy Plaid......
It had a drop waist, a knee length pleated skirt, poofy long sleeves and a cream, bib style collar. It was the height of fashion at the time and I was the envy of all the girls at school!

Do these plaids bring back any happy memories for you? What are you thinking about making with them? And are you loving the fall weather as much as I am???!!!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. These fabrics are brushed cotton. They feel like a cross between quilting cotton and flannel. You could think of them as being like a lightweight flannel. Soft and slightly fuzzy but not too heavy.

The Best Laid Plans....

2011-10-03T16:38:00.006-05:00

With my tail between my legs I must confess that I missed ALL of my quilting deadlines last week! Remember how I said I wanted to have this done by October 1......
Well.....it's obviously not done....but I did get all the blocks finished! And why didn't I get my quilt done by my self imposed deadline? That's because this little one (Daisy Daffodil) needed oral surgery for a tooth root abscess.....
So, as you can imagine my mind was on other things. And I took this picture a few hours after she returned home. Aren't loopy, confused kitties absolutely adorable???!!! Oh, and if you were wondering, she's doing great and seems to feel better than ever now!

And do you remember my goal of having Hooterville done and dropping it off at the quilters last week? Well, that obviously didn't happen either. I accidentally left my tree blocks for the center of the quilt on the floor one night.....and I woke up to find that this little one (Cassi, a.k.a. Pooh Bear, a.k.a. Cassandra Sunflower).....
Had "gotten sick" all over my tree blocks! Ugh! But don't worry - I didn't take a picture of that! After much fretting and woe-is-me-ing I gently hand washed the blocks and was able to save them! But as you can imagine that caused some major delays in Hooterville.

Now, it's time to set some new deadlines and get these quilts DONE! Wish me luck!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

October Giveaway - Love It Or Leave It

2011-10-01T15:12:00.020-05:00

We Have A Winner!

November 2, 2011 Update: The winner is Free Indeed who said "Loved several of these lines. Esp. Good Fortune, Modernology and Fly A Kite. Did not care for the two clickable link ones.....aren't we all so over red and aqua yet????? No one hit me o.k.?" Congratulations Free Indeed and thanks for your hilarious comment!

Happy October! This month you'll be entered to win a $50 Gift Certificate if you do a little favor for me! Lots of new fabric collections are being released in the next few months and I would love to have your help in deciding which ones to get! I've put together samplings of a few of the prints and colors from each collection that I'm considering so you can get a feel for each one. Please tell me what you think. Which ones do you love? Which ones would you buy? Which ones would you pass on? Please be honest. I won't be offended if you don't like them! And don't feel obligated to talk about every single collection. You can if you want to.....or you can just talk about the ones that you have strong feelings about. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win. Oh, and only vote for or comment on the fabric collections shown BELOW. The images in the sidebar on the right are all the new stuff that's already in the shop! I'll quit rambling now so you can start looking at fabric!

This is Millie's Closet by Bee In My Bonnet for Riley Blake Designs
This is Good Fortune by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics
This is Stars and Stripes by My Mind's Eye for Riley Blake Designs
This is Fly A Kite by October Afternoon for Riley Blake Designs
This is Modernology by Art Gallery Fabrics
This is Verona by Emily Taylor for Riley Blake Designs
This is Woodland Tails by Sheri Berry for Riley Blake Designs. I divided it into the girly colorway and the boyish colorway

This is Sunny Happy Skies by Bella Blvd for Riley Blake Designs
This is Freshcut by Heather Bailey. The original Freshcut came out a few years ago. Free Spirit is re-releasing this collection in slightly different colors
This is Flea Market Fancy by Denyse Schmidt for Free Spirit Fabrics. Again, this is a re-release of a collection that came out a few years ago in some new colors. Sorry for the less than perfect image. They haven't released other images of this collection yet.
And finally....I'll have to ask you to click on a link to The Happy Zombie's photos to see the last two collections. The images for these collections haven't been released yet but since The Happy Zombie (Monica Solorio-Snow) is a designer for Lecien she got some yardage early and posted pictures. Lucky girl! And FYI - Monica is the talented designer of the new Happy Mochi Yum Yum Collection that's in the shop now. Anyway, you won't want to miss these last two so please check them out! Pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top!

Folk Heart by Rosalie Quinlan for Lecien Fabrics

and

Flower Sugar for Lecien Fabrics

I can't wait to hear what you think about these collections! Every time I do one of these fabric vote blog posts I'm constantly checking my blog comments and tallying the "score" and anxiously waiting for the next comment to come in. I have so much fun doing these and I hope you like it too. Instead of shopping alone it's like I get to take a few hundred friends fabric shopping with me! Thanks friends!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Another Bright Idea...

2011-09-21T13:19:00.014-05:00

I'm not quite done with Hooterville yet (you can read about that here).....and I've already picked my next quilt I want to work on (you can read about that here).....but I'm already starting to pull fabrics for the quilt that will come after that. I've been eyeing the Easter Wishes pattern for quite some time now......
What's not to love about this??? Flowers, pastels, bunnies, chicks and lambs - I LOVE it all! If I ever get this one done I might just leave it up year round. I've been raiding my stash and the Lakehouse section of the shop to find all the perfect fabrics. And this is the mess that is currently sitting in the middle of my sewing room/office floor.....
And of course this happened shortly after I made that pile. What self respecting kitty would miss the opportunity to "photo bomb" a photo shoot involving a pile of fabric....
And then lay down for a nice long nap on that pile of fabric.....
Because the pile of fabric for the "Girl In Paris" quilt is already occupied.....
And as I was writing this blog post I just turned around to see this.....
Seriously! Are you kidding me? Have you figured out yet that I'm not the one in charge around here? Anyway.....I'm still trying to decide if I should stick with my current plan of doing "A Girl In Paris" next....
Or if I should go with "Easter Wishes" instead. What do you think? Which one should I dive into next?

For right now, I think I should go and pick up all that fabric off of the floor. That may be the brightest idea I've had all day!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Progress In Hooterville....

2011-09-19T15:03:00.006-05:00

My Hooterville quilt is almost done!!! I have an army of adorable owls all lined up in rows.....
And they're ready to receive they're beaks and feet.....
The squares for the X-blocks are all matched up and ready to go.....
And hopefully....with a little luck....and a lot of hard work....I'll have something that looks like this by the end of the week....except mine will be pink and green of course....
And if all goes well I'll be taking it to the quilter next week. It will actually be my first time taking a quilt to a professional quilter!!! In the past I've just always done really simple and basic quilting on my quilts. But I think Hooterville deserves something a little more special than that!

Gotta go finish cutting out the beaks and feet now....

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Ruby Pre-Cuts Have Arrived!

2011-09-18T14:52:00.021-05:00

Good news!!! The Ruby Pre-Cuts by Bonnie and Camille for Moda Fabrics just arrived! The colors and prints are absolutely gorgeous. I may need to re-decorate a room in my house just so I have a good excuse to use lots and lots of this fabric. And I must confess....I was NOT a big fan of the fact that grey is the hot new color this year. I usually think of grey as a somewhat cold and dreary color. But this collection has completely won me over. This grey is WARM. And soft. And snuggly. It has made me LOVE grey!

There are 36 different prints in the pre-cut bundles. We have Charm Packs, Jelly Rolls and Layer Cakes.
The moment I opened the box of pre-cuts my mind started racing with ideas of how to use this fabric. Of course you could make the In A Jiffy quilt or Sherbet Stars quilt that are shown in the Ruby Collection.....

Or they would look great in the brand new Garden Paths or Blossoms Quilts that I mentioned a few days ago....

And how cute would Ruby be in these applique quilts??? Wouldn't a whole bunch of Ruby owls in the Hooterville Quilt or Scotty Dogs in the Bitsy Button & Friends be too cute for words???

Or how about a sweet, little quilt from the Schnibbles Collection. Maybe the brand new Spot Pattern or the oldie but goodie State Fair Pattern.....

I still haven't decided which quilt I'm going to make with Ruby yet.....so maybe I should just make one of each! What are you planning on making with Ruby?

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. The Pre-Cuts arrive a few weeks before the yardage arrives, they tend to sell out fast and unfortunately they can't be re-ordered. If you have your heart set on getting a certain pre-cut you might not want to wait for the yardage to arrive.

Me And My Bright Ideas

2011-09-15T14:56:00.000-05:00

A while back I decided that I just had to make a Girl In Paris Quilt by Fig Tree Quilts......

Using the Penelope fabrics by Holly Holderman of Lakehouse Dry Goods. Isn't it the perfect combination for some major French Ooh La La-ness?

And earlier this week I couldn't fight the urge to start pulling fabrics for this quilt even though I have about 20 other projects that I'm working on right now! To make matters worse I was supposed to be doing business-y things at the time.....but I convinced myself that part of my job is providing sewing inspiration to my readers so this should be considered hard work....not having fun and playing with fabric!

My original plan had been to do the quilt in pink and black. But when I saw how great the pinks from Penelope looked with the Currant colorway from Mill House Inn my plans changed just a little bit. The Currant fabrics still gave me the contrast I was looking for but in a somewhat softer way than the black did.

And then I gathered up a bunch of soft greens from Patisserie and Mill House Inn....

And of course I raided my stash too! And now I'm being taunted by this pile of gorgeous-ness!

And I will continue to be taunted by that pile until I get my Living Room Quilt and Hooterville done. My usual system is to abandon a work in progress the moment I get an idea for another project. But, I'm realllllly trying to be good and I'm determined to finish two unfinished projects for every new project I want to start!

And if you're in the mood for more French applique Ooh La La adorable-ness you should take a peek at the Mon Ami pattern by the Vintage Spool.....

I'm off to go work on my unfinished quilts now!

Happy Sewing,

Jenny

Good Enough To Eat

2011-09-13T16:00:00.002-05:00

I always think that fat quarter bundles look good enough to eat....and Happy Mochi Yum Yum by Monica Solorio-Snow (The Happy Zombie) is no exception. It looks like a rainbow exploded in a candy shop and got covered in sprinkles! It's impossible to not smile when you see this bright and cheerful collection!

I love the simple flowers floating around on the White Confetti Fabric....

And the rose bouquets in the Blue Floraburst.....

And the pink stripes are the perfect backdrop for more Confetti flowers....

I'm thinking that I definitely need some Happy Mochi Yum Yum pajama pants. Wouldn't it be nice to wake up and see this fabric first thing in the morning? And wouldn't these fabrics look fabulous in the new Garden Paths quilt by Amanda Murphy....

Or in the Blossoms quilt (also Amanda Murphy).....

What are you thinking about making with the Happy Mochi Yum Yum Collection? And am I the only one in the mood for skittles and gumdrops and lollipops right now???

Happy Sewing,

Jenny

Making Progress.....

2011-09-12T14:55:00.000-05:00

Slowly but surely I'm making progress on the Meadowsweet quilt for the re-decorated Living Room. My goal is to have it done by October 1st! It will be the perfect quilt to snuggle up with on cool autumn nights. I have over half of the blocks done......but sometimes it's hard to make progress when adorable things like this happen.....

If you have kitties I know you understand! Hopefully they'll be curled up on the completed quilt in a few short weeks.

Gotta run.....Daisy and Bailey are actually laying on the clean laundry instead of the quilt pieces right now so I can get some sewing done - woo hoo!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

September 2011 Giveaway - Going Coastal

2011-09-01T16:30:00.005-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is Deserae who said "What fun fabric! I would love to make a happy quilt with it!" Congratulations Deserae! And thanks to everyone who entered - Your sweet, fun, wonderful comments always make my day!
Happy September! I refuse to believe that summer is almost over! So, this month we're giving away a Going Coastal Fat Quarter Bundle by Emily Herrick for Michael Miller Fabrics to keep everyone in a warm, beachy, summery mood!

Here's how to enter....
-Leave a blog comment for one entry. I'd love to hear what your favorite Summer 2011 memory is. And I also always love to hear what you'd like to do with the fabric!
-Tweet about this Giveaway for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or Twitter or Facebook......So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends about this Giveaway.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example....leave your first comment about what you plan on doing with this bundle. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I Tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this" so that I know that you get additional entries.

The Giveaway ends on September 30, 2011. The winner will be chosen on October 1, 2011.

Thanks for participating and good luck!
Jenny

Feeling Crabby

2011-08-31T10:14:00.010-05:00

Returning to reality after a wonderful vacation is kind of a shock to the system.....but when you're greeted with boxes full of gorgeous new fabric collections the day becomes much brighter! Going Coastal (by Emily Herrick for Michael Miller Fabrics) was one of the collections that arrived while I was gone and it was love at first sight. I knew it would be the perfect fabric collection to brighten up our bedroom and continue my new "Gender Neutral Hawaiian" decorating scheme. So, I immediately whipped up some accent pillows to complement the sad and lonely applique crab pillow that we already have...
I used Going Coastal Orange Crab Walk for the simple knife edge pillows. I love making pillows - it's so easy to do and they immediately brighten up the room.....
But I have to say that my favorite from this collection is the ridiculously cute Bottle Caps fabric....
And now I'm pretty sure that I need to make a nice quilt to lay at the end of the bed using the whole collection. I haven't even finished the quilt for the living room yet.....but that's never stopped me from starting a new project before!
After looking at all my patterns and tossing ideas around in my head I think I arrived at the perfect plan. I'm going to use the Flora & Fauna Pattern (also by Emily Herrick).....
And instead of doing the flower and butterfly appliques as shown, wouldn't it be cute if I did starfish and crab appliques in their place? Or maybe I could just leave the appliques off and let the beautiful prints really stand out in a simple quilt full of big circles and squares. What do you think?

I better run....it looks like I've got a lot of sewing to do!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. And in case you're wondering, the applique crab pillow in the middle was a gift from a friend - I didn't make it. The tag on the pillow says "Hable Construction." and the Outrigger Inn print is from Kerne Erickson's website.

Eat. Drink. Sleep

2011-08-30T14:50:00.013-05:00

Eat. Drink. Sleep. That pretty much sums up our amazing vacation in Napa. My scale and I are no longer on speaking terms but it was sooooo worth it.
Here is my first glass of wine after arriving in Napa 8 hours late. Canceled flights, delays and typical airport chaos were NOT going to stop me! The wine tasted soooo much better after having to fight so hard to get to it.
We did tons of wine tastings and vineyard tours.....
We even went on a tour of a 110,000 square foot castle with a vineyard and a winery.....
We saw some amazing gardens. Just look at this "Alice In Wonderland-esque" place!
We met a friendly vineyard kitty named Caesar.....
We ate tons and tons of gourmet food. Oddly, the food always seemed to disappear before we could take its picture. But I did manage to restrain myself long enough to get a picture of the desert case at Dean & Deluca. Isn't it a thing of beauty? The Red Velvet cupcakes are delicious, by the way.
We tasted lots of olive oil and I discovered a "political" cause that I can really get on board with.....
I learned that I think chickens are absolutely adorable. There's the most amazing garden where one of the restaurants grows their own fruits, veggies and herbs and in the middle of the garden is this.....
An adorable chicken coop with about 25 chickens running around and laying eggs and enjoying life. This one was pretty bold and kept trying to eat my hair through the chicken wire!
And for those Top Chef fans out there you may recognize this guy. It's Michael Chiarrello!!! For those of you who don't watch Top Chef, he's a celebrity chef and we ate at his restaurant one night and he just happened to be there! I thought I was going to lose my mind. He was going through his restaurant and taking photos with anyone who stopped him. He was so warm and friendly and charming......not at all like the "tough guy" he seemed to be on the show. And here I am getting a smooch from Michael Chiarrello and my sweetie, John. And by the way - the food at his restaurant was AMAZING!
And now we're back home getting caught up, giving the pets tons of hugs and kisses and trying to figure out how to get back on speaking terms with the scale. And I'm trying to convince John that we need to make this Napa thing a yearly event. There are about 400 wineries in Napa and I think we missed a few on this trip. I think we need to keep going back until we've seen them all......don't you agree?

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Did ya see my Funked Out Peasant Blouse in the first photo? She wanted to go on vacation too!

We're Off To Napa.....

2011-08-15T13:04:00.005-05:00

And we're off.......to Napa that is! So, the shop will be "closed" from Monday, August 15 until Wednesday, August 24. You'll still be able to shop but orders won't ship until Thursday, August 25 and Friday, August 26.

And guess what's going to arrive while we're GONE! Yup - It's Happy Mochi Yum Yum by Monica Solorio-Snow (The Happy Zombie) for Lecien.....
And Going Coastal by Emily Herrick for Michael Miller!
Hopefully I'll be able to add them to the shop while I'm gone. So be on the lookout for these cuties to arrive. I can't wait to dig into these adorable collections once I return home.

Time to go kiss the kitterses and pupperses goodbye and throw a few last items in my suitcase. I'll "see" ya when I get back! Cheers - clink, clink!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. And if you read my post, The Passport - Guess what??? I got it back! The new one came in the mail all by it's lonesome self and I was so sad. And then a week later I got the old one back. And I realize that I don't need a passport to go from Florida to California......this just seemed like an appropriate time to mention it!

Aloha New Living Room!

2011-08-07T13:54:00.010-05:00

Aloha! It's been 8 months since I moved into the house on Tyndall Air Force base and I finallllly have the Living Room looking decent enough to share some photos! I was going for a Hawaiian type of look. We were ready for a change.....and John basically begged me to get rid of the pastel pink and lavender shabby chic look I had going on in the previous house! It seemed like a fair request so now our main living space is a gender neutral Hawaiian theme we both love.
I know you're probably thinking that a Hawaiian look should have tons of aqua and turquoise and ocean blue. But I was really more inspired by the warmth and the lush tropical rain forests of Hawaii so I chose lots of greens and browns and oranges. I used 8 different fabrics (most of them are from the Meadowsweet Collection by Sandi Henderson for Michael Miller) and made tons of squishy pillows. I decided to make simple knife edge pillows because I had so many different prints and vibrant colors that I didn't think the pillows needed extra borders or piping or fancy trims. O.K.......seriously.......even I can't say that with a straight face. The REAL reason I made simple knife edge pillows is that they're quick and easy and I wanted to get this project done fast.
And those paddles aren't just props for our Hawaiian theme. John is a huge water sports guy and he got me into Stand Up Paddleboarding. I'm actually getting pretty good at it and I haven't fallen on my face YET. That's a pretty impressive feat for someone who's so clumsy. And that pink floral paddle in the front is my brand new, very own paddle! Don't you love it?!
Ohhh......you can just barely see our new vintage travel prints hanging on the wall of the dining room behind the sofa. I scoured the internet looking for the perfect prints to pull this look together and I think I succeeded.
And this is my big cushy chair and a half where most of my hand sewing occurs. I live in, on or around this chair in the evenings and on weekends. There's only one little "piece" of my living room that's not quite done yet......
Of course the new living room needs a quilt! This will be the final piece that will make this room perfect and homey. I'm still cutting out the pieces for the quilt and hopefully I'll have this done sometime in the next few weeks. It's just going to be a quilt of simple squares with simple borders sewn together in simple rows. The decision to make a simple quilt REALLY was based on the fact that I have so many vibrant colors and prints! I sooooo can't wait to see how my quilt turns out!

I'm off to go cut more squares and strips for my quilt!

Aloha and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Since everyone always seems to ask about wall colors when someone does a decorating blog post, I'll just tell ya - It's Ambitious Amber by Sherwin Williams. But if I had my way I would re-name the color Golden Retriever Fur because that's exactly what it looks like - warm and golden and happy all over!

August Giveaway - Christmas Candy

2011-08-01T17:31:00.003-05:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner is jlk who said "I'd make Christmas place mats. Or maybe even a table topper. Such cute fabrics!" Congratulations and thanks you to everyone who entered.

Happy August! Even though it's about 110 degrees out as I write this post it's time to start thinking about Christmas projects! And to get you in the holiday spirit we're giving away a Christmas Candy Fat Quarter Bundle by Doodlebug Design for Riley Blake Designs. This charming collection will definitely leave you with visions of sugarplums dancing in your head! It's full of cheerful Christmas motifs and polka dots in shades of cherry red, apple green, cotton candy pink and snowy white.

Here's how to enter....
-Leave a blog comment for one entry. I'd love to hear what you plan on making with this fabric.
-Tweet about this Giveaway for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or Twitter or Facebook......So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends about this Giveaway.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example....leave your first comment about what you plan on doing with this bundle. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I Tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this" so that I know that you get additional entries.

The Giveaway ends on August 30, 2011. The winner will be chosen on September 1, 2011.

Thanks for participating and good luck!
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Raining Cats & Dogs

2011-07-15T14:15:00.009-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! I know, I know.....I just said I was going on sabbatical for a while......but I had to make a special guest appearance to introduce the Raining Cats & Dogs Pattern by Anne Sutton for Bunny Hill Designs. And it happens to be raining as I write this post which makes things even more perfect....
It's a whimsical and charming applique quilt full of happy dogs and cats and their cute little houses.
This is one of my favorite blocks. A 4 Star Hotel for dogs. I'd definitely like to stay there.....but I think I'll skip the gym and just go to the spa and the dining room.....
And this is my absolute favorite block. The Pampered Pooch........
I think I'm going to head there right now for some R & R.....See ya later......
XOXO,
Emma Jane

Sew How Was Your Weekend?

2011-07-11T16:15:00.011-05:00

Another wonderful weekend has come and gone way too fast. We had an adorable house guest named Kipling.....
She fit right in with our crew and they all did a fabulous job of wearing each other out....
We threw some homemade pizzas on the grill on Saturday night.....
At sunset.....
And then we decided to spoil ourselves on Sunday morning with Mimosas.....
And Lobster Eggs Benedict.....
Don't forget....the calories you eat on the weekend don't count!

And I actually managed to do some sewing too. As the dogs were running in circles around me I made a bunch of pillows for the living room. We're going for a Hawaiian type of look.....
And I started work on a quilt to match those pillows....
Shall we take bets on how long it will take me, The Queen of Unfinished Projects to actually finish this??? And if you're wondering, most of the fabrics are from the Meadowsweet Collection by Sandi Henderson.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Jenny's Pick Of The Week - Wrenly by Valori Wells

2011-07-08T16:34:00.016-05:00

Hey there! If you're asking what happened to Emma Jane......well.....she's fine. But she was getting less and less "agreeable" during the weekly photo shoots for "Emma's Pick Of The Week." I'm not going to say Emma is retired.....and she'll definitely continue to make frequent appearances on the blog.....but I think she wanted to go on sabbatical for just a little while so I'm going to take over for my sweet little puppers.

Sooooo, if I could just drop everything right now (all that pesky paperwork and bookkeeping and laundry and stuff) I'd start playing with the brand new, bright, bold and modern Wrenly by Valori Wells for Free Spirit Fabrics. It's full of birds and blooms in shades of cobalt, cerulean, mandarin, cherry and citrus. We're still waiting on the arrival of four of these fabrics (the multicolored Gypsy colorway) but there's still plenty to play with as we wait for Gypsy's arrival!
These are some of my favs from the Cobalt colorway.....
I'm really thinking that the top one called Cobalt Bloom would make an excellent Wrap Dress (by Favorite Things)......
And these are some fabrics from the Cherry and Mandarin colorway that I'm drooling over.....
I would love to make a bright, summery City Market Tote by Kati Cupcake using these fabrics.....
And wouldn't the whole collection make an amazing San Francisco Window Boxes quilt.....
And once Gypsy gets here I plan on making a Honey Girl Dress.....
Using the Gypsy Wildfield fabric.....
Would I sound like a total geek if I said that I think THAT dress in THAT fabric would be absolutely dreamy? I'd be like a multicolored dandelion floating in the breeze!

So, that's what I'm crushing on right now. And I'll obviously let you know once the Gypsy colorway arrives (hopefully that will be at the end of July!).

Have a great weekend and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

July Giveaway - Farm Fresh

2011-07-01T17:40:00.008-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is scottylover who said "That is so cute! I think I would have to use it for a baby quilt, or maybe a picnic quilt. The prints are adorable!" Congratulations scottylover!

Happy July! Can you believe it's already July??? This month we're giving away a Farm Fresh Fat Quarter Bundle. July 14, 2011 Update - Farm Fresh just arrived in the shop today and it's too cute for words!!!

Here's how to enter....
-Leave a blog comment for one entry. I'd love to hear what you plan on making with this fabric.
-Tweet about this Giveaway for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or Twitter or Facebook......So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends about this Giveaway.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example....leave your first comment about what you plan on doing with this bundle. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I Tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this" so that I know that you get additional entries.

The Giveaway ends on July 31, 2011. The winner will be chosen on August 1, 2011.

Thanks for participating and good luck!
Jenny

Favorite Fabric Vote Results

2011-07-01T17:17:00.011-05:00

Here's the Semi-Annual Favorite Quilt Fabric Vote wrap up.....

In case you missed it, the winner is Korie who said "No competition for me, Farm Fresh is the best!"

And now onto the fabric results.

Ruby by Bonnie and Camille for Moda was the runaway favorite. It should be arriving in the shop in October.
Happy Mochi Yum Yum by Monica Solorio-Snow (The Happy Zombie) for Lecien came in second. It should be arriving in the shop in July.
Pam Kitty Morning by Pam Viera McGinnis for Lakehouse Dry Goods was a VERY close third place. It should be arriving in the shop in October.
Wrenly by Valori Wells for Free Spirit Fabrics came in fourth. It is actually in the shop RIGHT NOW!
Fifth place goes to Farm Fresh by October Afternoon for Riley Blake. It should be arriving in the shop in July.
Going Coastal by Crazy Old Ladies for Michael Miller came in sixth place. It is expected to arrive in the shop sometime in August.
We also ordered Preppy Plaids by Moda and they should be arriving in September.
Thank you to everyone who voted! I loved reading your comments. And I'll let you know what other collections we end up adding to the shop!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Preppy In Pink

2011-06-30T16:09:00.010-05:00

Hello all! I mentioned in my last post that I'm easily distracted and here is the proof. I'm the type of person who has to have multiple projects going on at once - a few applique projects, a few embroidery projects, a few clothing projects, a few pieced quilt projects.....well..... you get the idea. I am definitely NOT the type of person who finishes one project before starting the next. So, once I get bored looking at the black and oranges of my Halloween project I can jump back to the preppy pinks and greens of my Hooterville Quilt that I started a few months ago. Here's what the pattern cover looks like.....
I thought this quilt would look adorable in all pinks and greens. So, I began eyeing this bucket of fabrics on my bookshelf. I'd been hoarding this fabric for years.....just waiting for the perfect project.....
I finally dove into the bucket and started cutting and planning and prepping applique pieces. And of course I had to grab a few new fabrics from the shop! (I use the freezer paper and starch applique method, by the way. Should I write a tutorial on that???)
And here is where I'm currently at with my Hooterville quilt. The owl bodies are done. And the wings are almost done. Next up, those owls need some eyes, beaks and feet....
I love my preppy pink and green color palette. I think it's kind of drool worthy. And if you love those colors as much as I do check out this new "Preppy In Pink Fat Quarter Bundle." I put it together for all of my fellow pink-a-holics.
Aaaahhhh.....it's total pink and green heaven.....
And guess what happens tomorrow??? I pick the winner of June's Giveaway, list the fabric winners and post a new Giveaway!

Hopefully I'll have a finished quilt to show you sometime very soon....hopefully....

Until then.....Happy Sewing,
Jenny

What I've Been Up To....

2011-06-27T14:11:00.007-05:00

Hello all! It may be summer outside but it's definitely looking a lot like Halloween in here. As I've been working on some major and exciting and huge changes to the website (all will be revealed soon) I've been taking what I call "Stitching Sanity Breaks." Every so often I just need to get away from the computer and do something crafty for just a few short minutes. And I was just itching to get to work on the Vintage Trick or Treat Quilt by Crabapple Hill that I first mentioned on this blog post - "Another Soon To Be Unfinished Project." And I have to say - this picture of the whole quilt does not do it justice. I saw it in person many Quilt Markets ago and it was take your breath away, stop you in your tracks, jaw dropping stunning.
And maybe.....just maybe.....I'll get it done in time for Halloween this year. That is if I can ever get all those French knots done. Yup - that whole mouth is going to be full of French knots. It's a good thing I love to do French knots! Anyway, I wanted to show you a few other new Halloween patterns by Crabapple Hill that I'm thinking about adding to the shop. This is "Which Witch's Boot." I love the little flowers that look like Candy Corn! Isn't it adorable????
And this is Calendula Pattendrip's Cottage. I love the way it has a sepia toned photograph look to it. And the immense amount of detail on this quilt is amazing.....
But, I'm easily distracted and I'm worried I might get bored if I start a huge, monotone project. So, when I finally get around to making this I think I'll just do the upper left part of the quilt and turn it into a wall hanging that will look something like this cropped version.....
I'd love to hear what you think about these patterns. I know not everyone loves Halloween as much as I do. And my intense love of Halloween only seemed to appear after I left Ohio and moved to Florida. Florida is great but there is nothing better than a mid-western autumn - the amazing red-orange-yellow leaves, the chill in the air, the pumpkins, plaid wool blankets, caramel apples and bon fires. Aaaaahhhh.....heavenly.

Oh...and before I sign off and take another "Stitching Sanity Break" I wanted to tell you about a new blog that is sure to be amazing. The talented fabric and pattern designer, Bari J is starting a new blog called We Love French Knots. She's just getting it ramped up now and the big launch will be on July 25. So, if you love embroidery you'll definitely want to take a look.

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

The Passport

2011-06-19T12:37:00.011-05:00

Hello all! This may seem like a strange post after I haven't really been around the blog lately (except to post Giveaways of course!) but it's where my mind is right now so I'm going with it. I have to mail this away tomorrow because it's about to expire and I need to get a new one. It's kind of a bittersweet moment.
I realized I had to look at all the stamps I have before I send it away. So.....of course a flood of memories started coming back. John and I had been together for less than a year when he took me to the passport office during a hot July in Miami 10 years ago. At the time, I had no idea what was in store for me in the decade ahead.

The first stamp I got in the passport was at the Narita (Tokyo) airport. We had to go through Japan to get to our vacation in Hawaii. Yes. You read that correctly. We went to Hawaii via Japan. It's a long story which I'll save for another day.
There are stamps for Stansted and Frankfurt, Germany - we ended up all over Europe on those trips - Belgium (very cool place - we had great Mussels in Brussels - seriously!), Holland (oh my goodness - the flowers! The Flowers!), Italy (Venice! Need I say more? It was Venice!) and Cinque Terre (amazing cluster of 5 towns along the Italian Riviera).

There's a stamp for London Heathrow......and unfortunately I left my purse on the plane when we arrived in London! Eeeek! Thank goodness I was able to retrieve it the next day and nothing was missing.

I've flown to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris twice but oddly there are no stamps for that in my book. Why doesn't Paris do stamps??? I want a Paris stamp! The second time I flew to Paris I was alone. John had to catch an earlier flight than me. My flight ended up making an emergency landing in Gander, Newfoundland (someone had a medical emergency on the plane but it ended up being a false alarm. She was promptly removed from the plane). I saw a gorgeous sunrise in Gander and then it was off to Paris. Where I promptly got lost on their subway system when I was trying to meet up with John. Then I became the woman who was crying hysterically and begging a cab driver to take me to the hotel where John was but I had no cash so would he please take me to an ATM first. Not my finest moment.

The first time I flew to Paris was much better. John and I were only in Paris briefly as we were actually on our way to somewhere else (but I don't remember where!). We did a whirlwind tour of Paris and then fell asleep on the grass under the Eiffel tower on a beautiful spring day. What a great way to recover from jet lag!

Then there are several stamps for Mexico. Three stamps in one year alone actually. And there should be a 4th stamp but I can't find it! We've been to Cancun and Mexico City and some icky place John wanted to go for surfing near Acalpulco and Cabo San Lucas. Ahhhh.....Cabo......John rode the Baja 1000 with a group of friends for one of the guy's 40th birthdays. It took a week for them to ride from California down to Cabo. The girls all met the guys at a resort in Baja for a week long vacation after their ride. They all showed up broken and bruised and battered but very happy. One guy broke his arm. One guy got a concussion. And John was full of cuts and bruises after he was flung off his motorcycle and landed in a cactus. Yes. A cactus.

And I can't forget the Bahamas - there are a few of those stamps in there too!

And then my favorite stamp.....Pisa, Italy......

We went to Tuscany on that trip. Best. Trip. Ever. We stayed in a 15th century castle and visited all the little towns dotting the hills of Tuscany. Everything about Tuscany is amazing and perfect - The wine. The cheese. The truffle ravioli. The flowers. The castles. The cypress trees. I want to go back. Now.

So, tomorrow I'll say goodbye to my first Passport. And hopefully the next one will go on just as many adventures with me. Australia? Switzerland? Tahiti? Italy again (yes, please!). Paris maybe.....I need to ask them about that stamp thing! And from now on I'm taking this with me.....
I have such vague memories of so many of our trips. When did we go there? Why were we there? What were we doing? Soooo.....from now on I'm going to record all of these details.

If anyone is still reading this who isn't John or my Mom I commend your dedication. And I promise that my next post will be soon. And it will be about sewing.

Happy Sewing. And Happy Traveling,
Jenny

P.S. I've recently heard a rumor that you get your old passport back when you get your new one. I sure hope it's true! I'll let you know. Either way....it still seems like the end of an era and the start of a fresh new one!

June 2011 Giveaway & The Semi-Annual Fabric Vote

2011-05-31T17:00:00.020-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is Korie who said "No competition for me, Farm Fresh is the best!" Congratulations Korie. You can click here to see the results of the voting.

Happy June! This month we're giving away a $50 Gift Certificate....but there's a small string attached. We're trying to pick the best new fabric collections from May Quilt Market and I want your opinion. So, I've posted little sneak peeks of some of my favorites. Just leave a comment and let me know which one/ones are your favorite collections and you'll be entered to win. Or, let me know if there's a fabric collection that you wish I had put on this list. And of course, I'm planning on adding many of these fabrics to the shop!

And you don't have to pick just one!!!
Pick as many as you like!!!

The last day to enter is June 30, 2011. The winner will be chosen on July 1, 2011.

Please Note: The 12 fabric collections that are up for voting are shown below. The fabrics, kits and patterns in the sidebar on the right side are already in the shop.

Enough with the talking....let's take a look at the fabric....

This is Going Coastal by Crazy Old Ladies for Michael Miller

This is Farm Fresh by October Afternoon for Riley Blake
This is Happy Mochi Yum Yum by Monica Solorio Snow (The Happy Zombie) for Lecien

This is Black and White and Red Allover from various collections/designers (mostly Ann Kelle) from Robert Kaufman

This is Wrenly by Valori Wells for Free Spirit

This is Fiona's Fancy by Lila Tueller for Riley Blake

This is Sorbet by Michael Miller

This is Ruby by Bonnie and Camille for Moda

This is Daisy Cottage by Lori Holt of Bee In My Bonnet for Riley Blake

This is Preppy Plaids by Moda

This is Pam Kitty Morning for Lakehouse Dry Goods

This is Confections from various designers (mostly Ann Kelle) for Robert Kaufman
Thanks for letting me know what you think! I can't wait to read all the comments and tally up the results!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Sew Fabulous Quilt Shops is celebrating her 2nd birthday on June 1! Thanks for making these first two years so great!!!

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Christmas Candy

2011-05-26T15:02:00.010-05:00

Hey there! It's me, Emma Jane! Why the sad face, you ask??? I just found out that Christmas is seven months away!!! Seven long months to wait for tons of new toys and special treats and that strange tree that gets put up in the middle of the living room. But I guess that gives all of you plenty of time to make quilts and aprons and pajamas and adorable dresses for little girls using the Christmas Candy Collection by Doodlebug Designs for Riley Blake.....
This fabric collection is full of cheerful Christmas prints in shades of Cherry Red, Apple Green, Cotton Candy Pink and Snowy white. And you know I have a passion for pink so obviously my favorite fabric is the Pink Christmas Candy fabric......
And aren't these Apple Green Polka Dots so fresh and happy and adorable???
And I love the sweet, happy, snowy forest in the White Trees fabric....
And if you're one of those people that has an aversion to using pink for Christmas (GASP!) we've created a Fat Quarter Bundle that uses the fabrics that are mostly red and green without the overly pink fabrics.....
It's time for me to go take a nap and let visions of sugarplums dance in my head. See ya next week!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Cherries and Aquas and Reds, Oh My!

2011-05-14T15:06:00.011-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Our garden is really starting to bloom, the air is warm and I've been spending lots of time in the great outdoors. I think this Robin & Red Fat Quarter Bundle would be the perfect fabric for a little summertime, outdoor nap quilt for ME!
This fabric makes me think of a perfect summertime picnic with some pink lemonade, a big bowl of cherries and a bright blue sky....
And this blue and white ticking....well....what can I say other than it's perfect! It's blue and white ticking for goodness sake - does it get any better than this???
And while we're on the subject of cherries you should take a peek at this awesome new Cherry Baby Quilt Kit....
It's too cute for words, isn't it???!!! I'm gonna go pack my picnic basket and head out to the backyard. See ya next week (assuming blogger doesn't break again, Mommy doesn't slice any more fingers open, etc.).

XOXO,
Emma Jane

May Giveaway - Annie's Farm Stand!!!

2011-05-07T10:39:00.010-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is Gina who said "OOOOOhhhhh this collection is just begging for an Irish Chain pattern! Love it!"
Hello friends!!! Thanks for being so patient AGAIN as I dealt with yet ANOTHER mini-crisis!!! And now it's time for a Giveaway. I am so in love with this new Annie's Farm Stand Collection by Lakehouse Dry Goods!!! It's on it's way here and should be arriving at the end of next week - on or around Friday, May 13. I'll let you know when it arrives. But in the meantime you can enter to win this adorable, charming and cheerful Fat Quarter Bundle.

Here's how to enter:

-Leave a blog comment for one entry. I'd really love to hear what you'd like to do with this fabric. Are you going to make a quilt, purse, dress for a little girl or what??? Do you have a specific pattern in mind??? Inquiring minds want to know!!!
-Tweet about this giveaway for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on your blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or twitter or Facebook account.....So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends about this Giveaway.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example.....leave your first blog comment about what you plan on doing with this bundle. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I Facebooked" this so I know you get extra chances to win.

The Giveaway ends on May 31, 2011. The winner will be chosen on June 1, 2011.

Thanks for participating and thanks for all of your great comments!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. If you're wondering, I think this fabric collection would look ADORABLE in the Easter Wishes Quilt......Or in the State Fair by Schnibbles Quilt....

Deja Vu

2011-05-04T15:36:00.004-05:00

Ahhhhh.....Deja vu.....How on earth did this happen again??? This is not a picture of my finger after the Great Rotary Cutter Accident of March 2, 2011.....This is what my finger looks like TODAY!
This is a picture of the rotary cutter accident two months ago.....
And no....I didn't cut my finger on a rotary cutter again. But I could see why you might think that! Yesterday, I badly sliced the EXACT same finger in the EXACT same place on the lid of a cat food can. Seriously!!! How on earth did I do this again??? But at least this time I was able to get my ring off BEFORE my hand swelled up!

But this was just the cherry on top of an already unfortunate month! On Friday, my Mom suddenly went blind in her right eye and had to spend four days in the hospital. They think it's some sort of stroke like condition. And they think it's permanent. Major bummer.

Anyway...the point of this post wasn't to have a pity party or try to depress everyone! The point of this post is just to let ya'll know that things are moving a little slow around here. I'll pick the winner of the April Giveaway and post the May Giveaway in a day or two. And I've got an adorable new fabric collection arriving tomorrow and lots of cute new patterns that arrived yesterday that I'm adding to the shop as fast as I can with one functioning hand! And Emma has so many picks that she wants to share with you!!!

And here are the answers to a few questions that you may be asking yourself right now....

-Yes, I am very, very, VERY accident prone.

-Yes, I agree that I should not be allowed near sharp objects and I need to wear full body armor at all times.

-Yes, I've had quite the little spell of bad luck lately.

-And yes, I realize that my luck is going to turn around eventually!!! Hopefully that will happen very soon!

I'm going to go lock myself in a padded room for a while and hope for the best! Be back soon...

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Truffles

2011-04-27T14:02:00.010-05:00

I'd like to introduce you to my new addiction.....Peanut Butter Cookies Dough Truffles. I'm a cookie dough addict (I like the dough more than the cookies) and I was inspired by a recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies Dough Truffles that I found on an adorable cooking blog called Love & Olive Oil. The awesome thing about eating the cookie dough in these recipes is that it's safe - no raw egg so no fear of food poisoning!

I made the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles and fell in love. Then I wondered if I could make these using other types of cookie dough. After a few failed attempts I came up with the perfect peanut butter cookie "dough" to make my truffles. And let me tell ya - these aren't Peanut Butter Buckeyes! I love Buckeyes but I love Reese's Peanut Butter Cups even more. Yeah, yeah - I know they're similar. They're both peanut butter concoctions covered in chocolate. But these have that slightly more "grainy" texture like PBCs. And they taste just like a gourmet, homemade version of my beloved Reese's PBCs! I'm in heaven!

So here's how I did it......

Ingredients:
-1/2 cup granulated sugar
-3/4 cup brown sugar
-1/2 cup butter (softened)
-1/2 cup peanut butter
-1 cup flour
-Canola Oil
-Chocolate chips
Mix the butter and peanut butter together.

Add the sugars and mix 'em up.

Add the flour and stir, stir, stir.

Put the bowl of dough in the fridge for about 2-3 hours.
Roll dough into balls about 1 - 1 1/2" wide. Place on cookie sheet covered with parchment or wax paper. You should have about 24 dough balls once you're done.

Don't eat them yet! Put them back in the fridge for about 2-3 hours.

Now's the fun part! Pour some chocolate chips in a large mug or a 2 cup measuring cup or some other microwave safe thing-a-ma-jig. Microwave for 20 seconds. Stir. Microwave 10 more seconds. Stir. Then 10 more seconds if you need to. You get the picture. Always microwave your chocolate in short 10 second bursts or it will turn into a disgusting glob of goo! Then I added some Canola Oil (just a little bit - about 1/2 tsp per cup of chips) and mixed it up. This got the chocolate nice and thin and easier to work with. Add more or less Canola Oil if you need to.

Then, one at a time, drop your peanut butter balls into the melted chocolate. Nudge it around with a spoon to make sure it gets completely covered. Scoop 'em back out with a spoon and let the excess drip back into the cup. Place your chocolate covered masterpiece on the wax paper covered cookie sheet and move onto the next one. You can also add a few sprinkles to the top for some added pizazz! I would dip 5, add sprinkles, dip 5 add sprinkles, etc.

And I apologize for the lack of pictures of the chocolate melting and dipping steps. Ya gotta work fast when it involves melted chocolate and I freaked out and forgot to take pictures!

Add more chips and/or re-heat the chocolate if needed. And remember - 10 seconds at a time or you'll have a nasty glob of goo and nobody likes a nasty glob of goo.

Once you're done with the dipping put 'em back in the fridge until the chocolate is firm. About an hour.

Now, let the eating begin.
Aren't they delicious??? Don't they taste just like a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup??? But a more gourmet version??? Aren't you flipping out at how delicious these are???
Next, I'm gonna try and make these with sugar cookie dough....Hmmm.....I wonder how that will turn out. I think sugar cookie dough will taste great dipped in chocolate. I'll let ya know how they turn out.

For now, I've gotta go do an extra workout to make up for all the Cookie Dough Truffles I've been eating.

Happy Snacking,
Jenny

A Day In The Life Of Emma Jane

2011-04-25T17:01:00.011-05:00

It's a beautiful spring day today! Can we go to the beach and play? Can we? Can we? Huh? Huh?
It's kind of hot out....I'm just gonna dip my feet in to cool off....
Wait a minute....
Sammy.....where are you going??? My feet won't touch the ground if I come out that far....
O.K. I guess I'll try......Here I come.......
I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!
Yay! I did it! But I'm exhausted now. Let's go home.....
C'mon Daddy....We're tired and ready to go home and take a nap....
Life is ruff.

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. I'm a YouTube star! You can see a short video of me doing the Doggy Paddle here.

The Easter Tree!

2011-04-24T13:31:00.011-05:00

Happy Easter! I'm one of those people who likes to have a tree (or two or three) for every holiday. And this is my Easter tree. I just finished those ornaments yesterday - nothing like getting something done just in the nick of time!

If it looks familiar that's because Martha Stewart magazine had a tree like this on the cover about four years ago and that's where I got the idea and the directions. You can see the directions on Martha's website here.

Each styrofoam egg is slowly and tediously wrapped with perle cotton thread and Tacky Glue....o.k.....it wasn't that bad....it only took about 30 minutes per egg.....
And then I added all sorts of pretty ribbon and flower embellishments from Tinsel Trading Company and Michaels.....and I even dyed some leaves with Rit Dye so they'd perfectly match the green thread on some of the eggs.....
And now they're all happily perched on my fluffy white feather tree....

I hope you're having a wonderful Easter weekend. I'm gonna go nibble on some Easter candy now!
Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Mon Ami

2011-04-15T11:08:00.008-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! I am soooo in love with this new pattern called "Mon Ami" by the Vintage Spool. You know I love anything French! And you know I love pink! And this pattern is a perfect combination of two of my favorite things.
It's romantic and playful and charming and overflowing with adorable Parisian inspired images. There's an adorable Eiffel Tower with a pink bow.....
And an artists palette that you would use to paint your masterpiece as you sat in a little cafe overlooking the Seine.....
And there's even a dog! Yeah....it's a poodle....not a Cavalier. But I guess that's o.k. because Poodles are French. But if anyone ever makes a British themed quilt they better put a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in it!
And guess what - this weekend we're having an early Easter sale. We figured a lot of you will be too busy to shop next weekend with Easter activities so we're having our sale early. And I just gasped at the thought of anyone being too busy to shop - that would be terrible! Anyway, the Discount Code is Easter2011 and you'll get 20% OFF everything in your order. So now is the perfect time to grab one of these patterns!

I'm gonna go put some thought into designing a British themed quilt with a Cavalier right in the middle of it!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Peasant Blouse Love.....

2011-04-11T12:58:00.008-05:00

I am in LOVE with my new Funked Out Peasant Blouse! I made this last weekend and I've already worn it three times.
I'm embarrassed to say that I "started" this over a year ago. It was actually Emma's Pick Of The Week on November 9, 2009 when I had just cut out the Soiree fabric.....
And then.....somehow.....it got tucked away and forgotten about. And I started other projects. Which aren't finished yet either. And then I randomly decided to go back and finish this project. Please tell me I'm not the only one who does things like this! Please! Pretty please!

Anyway....here's one of those fabulous self-portraits of me wearing the blouse. Of course I decided that I HAD to have a picture of me in the blouse the second after John left for a week long work trip.
I think it's comfortable, cute, flattering and feminine. And it made me finally conquer my nemesis - ZIPPERS! For the first time in 30-some years I feel like I've finally properly installed a zipper. Yay for simple victories!

Oh, and if you're wondering....the blouse itself was pretty easy (Confident Beginner and above) to put together and took just a few hours. And I love it so much that I've already started my second blouse - aqua Soiree fabrics and short sleeves (it comes with options for two sleeve lengths - short or the 3/4 length). It also looks great in all one fabric if you're not into the "multiple fabrics in one blouse" thing.
I highly recommend this pattern and I'm already putting together fabric combinations for blouse #3!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

April 2011 Giveaway - Montego Batiks

2011-04-04T15:26:00.004-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The Winner is Kate R who said "These fabrics are great! I love the look of batiks but haven't made anything with them. I need to get started :)" Kate R also had an extra entry for e-mailing 3 friends about the Giveaway. Congratulations Kate!
Happy April! Yet again, I apologize for the delay in posting April's Giveaway. If you read my last Blog Post, "Bella The Bunny" you'll understand why! Anyway, this month we're giving away a Montego Batiks Fat Quarter Bundle full of rich, tropical prints and colors.

Here's how to enter:

-Leave a blog comment for one entry
-Tweet about this giveaway for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on your blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own Blog or Twitter or Facebook account.....So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least friends about this giveaway.

So you can earn up to FIVE chances to win this bundle!!!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example....leave your first blog comment about whatever crosses your mind for your first entry. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I facebooked this" so I know that you get extra chances to win.

The Giveaway ends on April 30, 2011. The winner will be chosen on May 1, 2011.

Thanks for participating and thanks for always leaving such great comments on my blog!

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Bella The Bunny

2011-04-04T10:18:00.003-05:00

Big sigh.....my Sweet Bella went to Bunny Heaven last Wednesday, March 30. She was 7 1/2 yrs old (pretty old for a bunny!) but it was still very unexpected. She had been running and playing and eating and happy just the day before. She was my 30th Birthday present from John.
She and Emma were best friends. They made quite the cute odd couple! Emma would happily run out to Bella's cage every morning to greet her. For a few days after we lost Bella, Emma would slowly go to the cage and quietly sniff for a long time. Now, Emma just seems to be in a deep blue funk and won't go near the bunny cage. My poor baby! She misses her friend!
And this is just to show you how dang cute bunnies are when they wash their little faces.

We'll miss our sweet Bella but she lived a good, long bunny life with lots of furry friends, carrots and parsley and a cage with a view of the beach! She truly was our "Beach Bunny."

Jenny

P.S. I've been distracting myself by starting lots of new sewing projects. So, I'll have lots of fun, happy, sewing stuff to show you soon.

Emma's Pick of The Week - Spring Green!

2011-03-24T14:48:00.007-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Have ya missed me? Well, I'm back and better than ever! I turned 5 yrs old on March 13 and a fabulous birthday party was thrown in my honor.
I had lots of yummy cake and got lots of new toys. And then we spent the weekend puttering in the garden and planting new flowers to celebrate the official start of spring.
And around here, we also celebrate the start of spring with pretty, fresh, springy fabric. This is the brand new Luck Of The Irish Fat Quarter Bundle......
And this is the Walk In The Park Fat Quarter Bundle. It was inspired by the Zoo Fabric from Kate Spain's Central Park Collection.....
I hope you're having a wonderful spring and that things are starting to turn green wherever you're at! And now it's time for me to go dig some holes in the freshly planted flower beds! See ya next week.

XOXO,
Emma Jane

March 2011 Giveaway....And An Apology!

2011-03-09T12:45:00.004-06:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner is Becky who said "Glad to hear that you are healing from your accident. I love Kate Spain's fabric designs. Take care!" Congratulations Becky!
Happy March! I apologize for this post being so late. If you read my last blog post, A Very Unfortunate Rotary Cutter Accident, you'll understand why! Anyway, this month we're giving away a Central Park Fat Quarter Bundle by Kate Spain. It's so fresh and springy and bright and happy!

Here's how to enter:

-Leave a blog comment for one entry
-Tweet about this giveaway for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this giveaway on your blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or twitter or Facebook account......So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least three friends about this giveaway.

So you can earn up to FIVE chances to win this bundle!!!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for each additional entry that you do. For example....leave your first blog comment about whatever crosses your mind for your first entry. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I facebooked this" so I know that you get extra chances to win.

The Giveaway ends on March 31, 2011. The winner will be chosen on April 1, 2011.

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. Thank you for all the sweet comments about my rotary cutter accident! I'm healing well and I really appreciate all the support and well wishes. You guys are awesome!

My Very Unfortunate Rotary Cutter Accident

2011-03-03T16:10:00.007-06:00

Oh.....where do I begin???? I should start with a warning. This post is a cautionary tale about a very unfortunate rotary cutter accident that I had yesterday. Soooo.....if you're squeamish and you don't like the b-word (that red, liquid stuff) don't say I didn't warn you!
I woke up this morning wishing really, really hard that what had happened yesterday was a dream. No such luck. I was in a hurry and cutting fabric really fast. I was holding my ruler with my left hand and going full force and full speed with the rotary cutter in my right hand. The rotary cutter "jumped" off the edge of the ruler and went right into my finger.

After much screaming and running around in hysterics I finally looked at my finger. Big mistake. That only led to more hysterics. I had a massive "U" shaped cut on the side of my finger that was down to the bone. Basically, I half-severed my finger. And I was home alone.

I tried to get in touch with John for about two hours. The bleeding wouldn't stop and I was obviously in a lot of pain. He finally saw all my frantic messages as he was about to go fly in the F-15 (he's a Fighter Pilot). Oops - bad timing. I told him to go fly anyway but being the dedicated sweetie that he is he came rushing home to help me.

He called his best friend (who's a doctor) and he got us an appointment with a specialist.....two hours away. I begged and pleaded with the doctor to not do stitches - I couldn't take anymore pain today! My obvious show of wimp-i-ness paid off and I got those tape strip stitches instead and a nice, big, cushy bandage and they sent me on my way.

John took me out to my favorite pizza place after and then I went to bed and slept for 12 hours.

Soooo.....obviously the moral of the story is be VERY careful when you're playing with sharp objects. I managed to cut an artery (that explains the bleeding for hours and hours) and go down to the bone in less than a second. Fortunately, I missed the major nerves and ligaments so I don't need surgery and should regain full function of my finger in about two weeks.

In Summary....

-Rotary Cutters are not your friend

-Tylenol with Codeine is your friend

-Please, please learn from my stupidity and clumsiness and be careful when you're playing with sharp objects!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S. One of my Facebook friends just told me about these amazing Klutz Gloves. They're cut resistant gloves that have some stainless steel in them and rubber grips. They're made to prevent this exact sort of thing. You will see them in the shop VERY soon!

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Central Park

2011-02-16T13:43:00.006-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Now that I'm all recovered after surgery, Mommy and Daddy are all better after a very long and nasty bout with the flu and the weather here in northwest Florida is starting to get nice.....well, I'm ready for a nice long walk in the park. And of course that also means that I want to introduce you to the Central Park Collection by Kate Spain for Moda.....
Isn't it gorgeous and fresh and springy??? Obviously, my favorite fabric from the collection is Ivory Reservoir Zoo.....
And my Mommy's favorite fabric is Plaza Bridle Path. She thinks it will be perfect for a sundress....
And we also love the huge and happy flowers in Reservoir North Meadow....
I'm gonna grab my leash and collar and head on out to enjoy this beautiful day! See ya next week.

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. No Fat Quarter Bundles were harmed (or dirtied) in the making of this Pick Of The Week. The fabric is always protected from my long, beautiful fur with plastic bags!

February 2010 Giveaway - Lakehouse Totes on Bolts

2011-02-01T18:03:00.003-06:00

We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to Pam who said "I have been entering a lot of giveaways lately - a great way to find new blogs." Thank you to everyone who entered! I love to read all your wonderful comments.

Happy February! This month we're giving away a Fun Flowers Totes on Bolts Kit by Lakehouse Dry Goods. The winner will get to choose if they want a black or white tote kit. All the bright and happy flowers are a great reminder that spring is coming very soon!

Here's how to enter:

-Leave a blog comment for one entry
-Tweet about this Giveaway for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on your Blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own Blog or Twitter or Facebook account.....So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends and told them about this.

Soooo.....you can "earn" up to FIVE chances to win this kit!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for every additional entry you do. For example....Leave your first blog comment about whatever crosses your mind for your first entry. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this" etc. so I know that you get extra chances to win.

And you may notice the handy dandy little grey buttons at the bottom of each blog post for Twitter, Facebook, etc. It's just a simple way to spread the word!

The Giveaway ends on February 28, 2011. The winner will be chosen on March 1, 2011.

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Take Me To Paris!!!

2011-01-27T15:11:00.009-06:00

Hey there! It's me, Emma Jane! I've had a really rough week! I got surgery on Monday and I've been sleeping most of the week and dreaming about taking a trip to Paris when I feel better. I wasn't up for posing for a fancy picture with some fabric.....so this picture of me passed out on my Daddy's jacket surrounded by my "get well" presents will have to do. And since I won't be going to Paris anytime soon the Penelope Collection by Lakehouse Dry Goods will have to satisfy my craving for all things French......
And I know I shouldn't play favorites.......but could anything be better than this Bebe Tea Dainties fabric? It's pink and covered in French pastries.....it can't get any better than that!
And it looks adorable with the Bebe Confisserie Stripe....
And these delicate Parchment Roses.....
And we're planning on using the Penelope fabrics to make "A Girl In Paris" by Fig Tree Quilts.....
Hopefully we'll be able to show you some progress on that in the coming months. But right now, I'm going to go put on a sassy beret, sip some champagne, eat some pastries and pretend I'm in Paris!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. If you're wondering what kind of surgery I had.....well......it's kind of un-lady like and icky. So, if you want to know.....if you're really curious.....if you have dogs.....and if you're not eating anything right now.....you can take a peek at this link describing the surgery I had. And don't say I didn't warn you!

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Hopping Down The Bunny Trail

2011-01-19T12:49:00.009-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! If you're completely sick of all the cold and snow I have the perfect thing to cheer you up and remind you that spring is coming soon! It's the new Easter Wishes pattern by the Vintage Spool....
The Vintage Spool makes the most amazingly detailed and beautiful applique quilt patterns! And of course this Easter one is full of adorable bunnies....
And chicks.....
If you have a lot of pastels in your fabric stash this quilt is a great way to use them. Or you could take a peek at some of the fabrics from the Doll Dresses 1 or Dolly Dresses 2 Collections. There's even some Robin Baby Bunny fabric in the Doll Dresses Collection.....
But I'm going to be VERY patient and wait for the arrival of Annie's Farm Stand by Lakehouse Dry Goods...
It should be here this spring and I think this fabric will make a perfect Easter Wishes Quilt. And that gives me a few months to get all of my applique templates ready!
And did you know my BFF is a bunny? Bella definitely gives this Pick Of The Week her seal of approval!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Henrietta Whiskers - Block One

2011-01-16T15:14:00.011-06:00

I'd like to introduce you to the oh so adorable HenriettaWhiskers! She's a sweet little squirrel created by Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs and is part of her 2011 Mystery Block Of The Month.
This year, it's an autumn themed quilt and oh by the way....did I mention that it's a FREE download on Anne's blog??? A new block will be available on the 5th of every month. You can download the first block here.
Well, I fell in love with little Henrietta the moment I saw her. But I usually work in pastels or brights. I don't have a lot of dark or muted or autumny fabrics in my stash. Soooo.....my version of an autumn quilt includes lots of lavender, celery & moss green, soft pumpkin, butter yellow, aqua and of course a little pink.....
I had my layout done and my pieces cut.....ohhhh....about an hour after I saw Anne's big reveal of Henrietta....
And Block One of Henrietta is now done.
That's actually supposed to be a bouquet of autumn leaves that Henrietta is holding. But in my Henrietta's world the autumn leaves turn pink!

Now that Block One of Henrietta Whiskers is done I'm getting back to my pink and green Hooterville Quilt. Hopefully, I'll be able to show you some preppy pink and green owls very soon!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Party! Party! Party!

2011-01-13T16:14:00.006-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! And it's party time! It's Mommy's birthday tomorrow and we are going to celebrate! She's off making a cake right now.....she said something about vanilla cake with raspberry filling and buttercream frosting....and maybe a little coconut on top. Soooo.....I was inspired to pick the Sweet Shop Fat Quarter Bundle as my pick of the week....
This bundle just oozes sweet, sugary goodness. And this sweet Pink Tiny Ticking is making me think of the pink and white layers in that vanilla raspberry cake being made in the kitchen right now.....
I'm gonna go see if Mommy needs any help licking cake batter out of the bowls. See ya next week!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Love Is In The Air

2011-01-06T14:37:00.009-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Valentine's Day is approaching fast and that means I'm giving out lots of puppy smooches! It also means that it's time to start making cute little projects with pink and red fabrics. This Sugar & Spice Fat Quarter Bundle is perfect for Valentine's Day.....
Wouldn't it look adorable in the "Something Sweet" quilt???
And if you need something to wear for a hot date on Valentine's Day (or any night for that matter) this Proper Attire skirt is just right....
It's classy and feminine but flirty and fun at the same time. I think it would be perfect in Red Damask.....
Or maybe Fire Mod Blooms......
Or Petal Flora would be great too....
And now, will someone Puh-leaze take that ridiculous bow off my head?! It's messing up my fur!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Happy New Year 2011!

2011-01-02T14:40:00.021-06:00

Happy New Year Everybody! I know it's just another date on the calendar but I love the idea of a clean slate and a fresh start. And after such a.....shall we say "odd" year last year I'm looking forward to starting anew!

But I better tell you about the cupcakes before I start rambling on about New Years stuff! I made those on New Year's Eve so we'd have a yummy treat to go with our champagne. And if you're wondering......we just stay home for New Year's Eve, make a nice dinner and have some champagne. Simple. Easy. Relaxed.

The directions for the cupcakes are in the awesome book "Hello, Cupcake." But for some reason I was the only one who ate a cupcake! Everyone else said "Too cute, can't do it!" Come on.....just look at that face......he wants you to nibble on his sweet, sugary little coconut covered face....
Oh well.....that just means there are more cupcakes for me!

Anyway, how was your year last year? Mine was interesting. It started like a sledge hammer to my life and ended like a nice, warm cozy hug. Here's what I did in 2010......

-Awesome 10 day ski trip to Telluride for my birthday on January 14. So. Much. Fun. (Obviously that wasn't part of the sledge hammer).

-Got a kidney stone on January 24. Yes, that's where the sledge hammer comes in. OUCH.

-Max went to Doggy Heaven on February 28. He would have turned 9 years old on March 1.

-Sammy came into our life exactly one month later. She was more of a tornado and less of a sledge hammer!

-John got a 6 month very hard, very time consuming job assignment and I barely saw him from April through September.

-John was able to escape for 1 week in June and we went to the Bahamas. Ahhhh....a whole week of boats, beaches, bikinis and tropical drinks!
-John had his Fini-Flight in the F-15 at Tyndall. He still gets to fly on occasion but the F-15's have all left Tyndall - boo hoo!
-John had some work trips to Washington, DC and Tucson, AZ in the fall and I tagged along. And I went to Quilt Market in Houston and John tagged along.

-I moved to Tyndall in November so John and I could actually spend some time together.

-We had a relaxing end to the year with lots of time off, lots of relaxing, lots of good food, lots of fun holidays and a lot less stress!

And now here we are ready to start a new year. My main goal for the year is to SEW MORE! And yes I also have all the usual goals/resolutions of lose the holiday weight (while continuing to eat cupcakes), fix up the house, get more organized, etc. But right now all I want to do is plan lots of sewing projects for 2011!

First up is Hooterville. I've been dying to make a Hooterville Quilt since it first came out.
And I keep looking at this bucket full of Lakehouse fabrics that I've been hoarding for years and years and I keep thinking that a bright, preppy, pink & green Hooterville Quilt just might be the cutest thing ever.
Then I want to make something with Penelope once it arrives later this month! I've been waiting for this fabric since I first saw it at Quilt Market in May!!!
And the second Penelope arrives I'm going to start making a pink and black Girl In Paris Quilt. I think that fabric and this pattern are perfect together!
I've also been wanting to make a State Fair Quilt.....
Using my Tickled Pink & Aqua Fat Quarter Bundle.....
And I'd love to finish some of the zillions of projects that I've already started that are in various stages of completion!

Oh, and do you remember how last year I said I wanted to make a new kit for the shop once a month.....ummm......yeah.....that didn't go as planned. So, hopefully this year I'll reach that goal!

That's what I've got planned so far. What are your plans for the New Year???

Happy New Year and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

January 2011 Giveaway - Isabella

2011-01-02T14:10:00.007-06:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is thegoose who said "I gave up on resolutions years ago, so I can't tell you that, but I can tell you that with this lovely material I would make a quilt." Thegoose also earned extra entries because she e-mailed her friends about the Giveaway! Congratulations!
Happy January! This month we're giving away a 9 piece Pink Isabella Fat Quarter Bundle by Lila Tueller. This seems like the perfect fabric collection to chase away any winter blahs!

Here's how to enter:

-Leave a blog comment about your New Year's resolution or what you want to make with Isabella or whatever thought crosses your mind for one entry
-Tweet about this Giveaway for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on your Blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own Blog or Twitter or Facebook account.....So, you can receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends and told them about this.

Soooo.....you can "earn" up to FIVE chances to win this bundle!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for every additional entry you do. For example....Leave your first blog comment about whatever crosses your mind for your first entry. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this," etc. so I know that you get extra chances to win.

And you may notice the handy dandy little grey buttons at the bottom of each blog post for Twitter, Facebook, etc. It's just a simple way to spread the word!

The Giveaway ends on January 31, 2011. The winner will be chosen on February 1, 2011.

Good Luck and Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Hot Pink Is A Neutral!

2010-12-30T16:57:00.009-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! And I've completely flipped for this new Amy Butler Pink & Brown Fat Quarter Bundle that I created with my Mommy today. We put together a bunch of pink, brown and green fabrics from various Amy Butler collections (Midwest Modern 2, Love and Soul Blossom) and this is what we came up with up......

I love it so much that I've already claimed one for myself! Next I'm going to grab some of the Carmine Fuchsia Trees fabric from the brand new Soul Blossom Collection....
And then I'm going to grab some Cherry Laurel Dots because my motto is "hot pink is a neutral" and it goes with everything.....
And because you can never have enough pink in your life I'm also taking some Cerise Pink Passion Lily.....
I'm going to try and get into an upright position now and figure out what I'm going to do with all my new pink fabric.....

Have a very Happy New Year! I'll see you in 2011!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-27T13:59:00.007-06:00

Merry Christmas! And Ahhhhhhhhh!!! Look what I found under the tree on Christmas morning - A brand new Hot Pink Hello Kitty Bike!!! It's every girls dream come true! I dropped everything I was holding and screamed like a little girl when I saw it! John hid the bike at the neighbors house and then snuck out at 4:00 a.m. to get it and put it under the tree! How sweet is that???

And I may regret posting this next picture.....of me.....with no makeup.....on Christmas morning! But oh well.....I'm too excited to use common sense right now!
And did ya notice my outfit??? Yes - I put on an outfit to match my new bike!

And guess what else I found under the tree! A pink gift basket from Wine Country Gift Baskets full of snacks and goodies with a bottle of PINK Hello Kitty Champagne in it.....
Amazing! How does John find these things???

Oh, and I got John a Kinect for the XBox for Christmas. That thing is amazing....and so much fun....and exhausting!

After playing with our new toys all day we had a wonderful dinner of tenderloin, gourmet mac & cheese, roast green beans and sauteed mushrooms followed by chocolate souffles! Yummy!

Emma spent her day carrying her new toys, one by one to the bedroom....and then feel asleep completely exhausted surrounded by her new "friends."
I hope you had a wonderful holiday too!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!
Jenny

Whew....What A Week!

2010-12-19T17:43:00.013-06:00

Wow! It has been quite a crazy week around here! It all started last Sunday when I attempted to decorate the Christmas tree. I turned on "Elf", made myself a cup of hot cocoa and happily started pulling out all the ornaments. You'd think that decorating a Christmas tree would be a safe and fun activity wouldn't you??? But nooooo.....not when the Queen of Clumsy is involved! I managed to smack myself right in the eye with a tree branch and scratched my cornea! Ouch! Don't worry - I'm o.k. now! And I didn't let the tree win! I eventually got all those ornaments on it and I won!
Then a few days later little Miss Don't I Look All Sweet And Cute And Innocent decided to jump ACROSS the coffee table and knock over a glass of RED wine. Yup. Red.
The glass shattered and red wine and broken glass ended up all over me, our white sofa, white chair and white ottoman, the carpet, the Christmas cards I was addressing, some paperwork, a silk and linen cross-stitch I was working on and my fluffy white bathrobe. And Emma also got covered in red wine, got scared, ran off and hopped onto our white bedding! And seriously.....the glass was only half full.....but it looked like a full bottle or two had been sprayed over the entire house!

After two days of doing laundry I put the freshly cleaned slipcovers back on the furniture. And Emma immediately jumped onto the ottoman with muddy paws. Shortly after that I locked my keys in the car. First time in my life I've ever done that! Serenity Now!!!

Well, I was trying to look at the bright side. John had been gone all week on a work trip in Oregon and was supposed to get home Saturday morning after catching a Red Eye flight on Friday night. Yay! I'd have my sweetie back home to comfort me! No such luck. Delays and bad weather and flight cancellations have kept him in Oregon ALL weekend. He finally got a flight out on Sunday and sent me this lovely picture of the plane he is taking from Klamath Falls, OR to Portland (the first of 3 flights he has to take to get from Oregon to Florida).....
Ummmmm......seriously dude.....you're gonna get on that plane??? John's a pilot so this didn't bother him in the least. I'm feeling lightheaded just looking at that!

So, after all the insanity of the week I decided to take the weekend OFF! I normally spend the weekends working and doing errands and chores. But instead I had my own little perfect Jenny "Staycation" this weekend. I worked on a quilt that I started a few years......
Yeah....I'm the type of person who starts a project, gets distracted by another project and then finishes the original project a few years later. But, eventually those bits of fabric that were cut into squares two years ago will look like this.....
And I had lots of help with my quilt in the form of Bailey sitting in the window over my sewing table acting as supervisor......
And my sweet puppers, Emma laying at my feet.....
Oh....and did you notice the perfect spot on top of Emma's head??? Yes, Emma is perfect. In every way.

And since my week definitely called for some chocolate and sugar therapy I made these to soothe my wearied soul.....
They're called Candy Bar Brownies and they taste like a fancy Snickers bar! I was gonna post the recipe but it's really long and complicated. If you want the recipe please send me an e-mail and I'm more than happy to send it to you! But be warned.....these aren't easy to make. Four layers.....and each layer involves slowly and carefully melting something.......and you need to let each layer cool/set before adding the next one. Ugh. A lotta work but they are SOOOOO worth it!

I think I'm gonna go have some Candy Bar Brownies for dinner with some red wine.....in a sippy cup! Here's to hoping that this coming week is a little less "eventful."

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Lakehouse Fun & Fast Flowers

2010-12-15T09:40:00.012-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! I'm so excited about these awesome new kits by Holly Holderman of Lakehouse Dry Goods! The first one is the Fast Flowers Kit and it's part of a special event called Brownie Points over on "Aunt" Holly's Blog.
Aunt Holly is going to donate $5 to Alaqua Animal Refuge for every quilt kit sold!!! You may remember that Alaqua is where we got my new sister Sammy. You can read about that here. And don't forget to head over to Holly's Blog to read all about the quilt and the Brownie Points Blog-a-thon!
The Fast Flowers Quilt is actually big enough for a twin size bed. How cute is this bedroom???
We also have some adorable new Totes On Bolts Kits by Lakehouse.....
These kits are really cool because you can arrange the different fabrics about a million different ways to make your bag completely unique. Just look at all these possibilities.....
And there's even a kit to make an apron using the same adorable fabric.....
Whew....I'm exhausted now. I'm gonna go snuggle up in my favorite Lakehouse Quilt and take a nap.....
See ya next week!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. As always I give you the "No Dog Hair Or Drool On Your Fabric Guarantee." The Fun Flowers Kit that I'm drooling on is mine, mine, mine!

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Isabella

2010-12-06T14:44:00.006-06:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Have you missed me??? Well, I'm back! We're settled into the new house, most of the boxes are unpacked and I've selected my new favorite sleeping spot. All is right in my world again!

Right before we packed up to move we received boxes full of the most beautiful new Lila Tueller fabric called "Isabella." Here it is in the blue colorway.....
And the pink colorway.....
And don't you think Isabella would make an adorable City Market Tote....
Or maybe a Funked Out Peasant Blouse....
I can't wait to dig into this new fabric collection. But right now, I'm off to go meet the new dogs in the neighborhood. See ya next week!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Happy 1st Birthday Sammy!

2010-12-05T17:22:00.008-06:00

We celebrated Sammy's 1st Birthday on Wednesday, December 1! Our little puppy is all grown up......although she thinks she's still a small dog.

We had cake and presents......
The candle on the cake was VERY scary......but licking frosting off of Daddy's finger seemed to make everything better.....
We sang Happy Birthday and then it was time to eat the cake......
Nom...nom....nom......
Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a good photo of two dogs furiously eating birthday cake? We'll just say this is one of those artsy action shots that I made blurry on purpose....
And then it was time for a post party nap on top of the sofa cushion. Because 60 lb dogs should be laying on top of the sofa cushion.
Happy Birthday Sweet Sammy! We're so happy you're a part of this family!

Jenny

December 2010 Giveaway - Soul Blossom Fat Quarter Bundle

2010-12-01T15:50:00.007-06:00

We Have A Winner!

The winner (selected by Random Number Generator) is SewCalGal who said "Beautiful Fabric" and she also wrote about the Giveaway on her Blog. Congratulations!

Happy December! This month we're giving away an 18 piece Soul Blossom Fat Quarter Bundle by Amy Butler. Now....before you get all excited.....as of December 1 (the day I'm writing this) Soul Blossom isn't even here yet. It's supposed to arrive sometime in December. So it should be here by the time this Giveaway is over. Obviously, I'll let you know the moment it arrives!

It's here! It's here! It's here! Soul Blossom arrived on December 10!!!

This month we're changing things up again! Here's how to enter.....

-Leave a blog comment for one entry
-Tweet about this giveaway on Twitter for another entry
-Facebook: Mention this giveaway on Facebook for another entry
-Mention this Giveaway on your own blog for another entry
-And I know not everyone has their own blog or Twitter or Facebook account. So, you can also receive an extra entry if you let me know that you e-mailed at least 3 friends and told them about this.

Soooo......you can "earn" up to five chances to win this bundle!!!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please be sure to leave a blog comment for every additional entry you do. For example....leave your first blog comment saying whatever crosses your mind for your first entry. But be sure to leave another comment saying "I tweeted this" or "I Facebooked this", etc. so I know that you get extra chances to win!

And you may notice the handy-dandy little grey buttons at the bottom of each blog post for Twitter, Facebook, etc. It's just a simple way to spread the word!

The Giveaway ends on December 31, 2010. The winner will be chosen on January 1, 2011.

And last months Giveaway was awesome! I loved reading all of your comments and hearing about what fabrics you like. I'm going to get as many of those collections as possible! But if you're wondering......Central Park by Kate Spain and Montego Batiks by Moda were the runaway favorites. Sugar & Spice by Riley Blake, Sanctuary by Patty Young and Sweet Nothings by Riley Blake were also in the top five.

Thanks for participating and Happy Sewing!
Jenny

Quilt Market Houston 2010

2010-11-14T09:04:00.035-06:00

Quilt Market in Houston was great and I think it's about time that I showed you all the pictures! Actually.....it started out not that great.....I came down with a pretty bad cold right before I left for Houston. But looking at all the beautiful new fabrics and quilts seemed to magically heal me!

Amy Butler had an amazing booth showing her new Soul Blossom line which is expected in the shop in December. She won 1st Place for Best Booth - no surprise there!
And Amy's booth from another angle.....
And another angle.....
And here I am with the incredibly tall, sweet and talented Amy.....
And here are some Soul Blossom swatches to get you even more anxious for the arrival of this collection.....
Next up is Tula Pink and her Pinktastic, Pinkalicious, Pinktabulous booth that resembles a Parisienne Salon......
And here I am with Tula Pink who is another tall and talented designer. And very generous! She was giving away pink M & M's printed with the words "Tula Pink." So cool!
Bari J's booth was absolutely adorable and I really think that I need one of those zig zag quilts in my new living room.....
And here I am with the incredibly sweet Bari. I just love her beautiful logo that's above our heads......
It was great to see Kate Spain's Central Park Collection in person. The colors and prints are so fresh and springy and I can't believe that we have to wait until January for this fabric. I want it now!
Here is a better image of some of the Central Park fabrics. Some of the Quilt Market photos were taken with my iPhone so they're a little hard to see.....
And here I am with Kate. I had such a great time talking with her! She actually used to work for the company that makes Hello Kitty! And you may know that I am a Hello Kitty fanatic! We're still laughing about our shared Hello Kitty interest over Twitter!
Lila Tueller had an absolutely gorgeous booth at Riley Blake showing her new Isabella Collection.....
I'm absolutely flipping out over her new London Peasant dress pattern.....
And here is London in another colorway.....
Isabella should be here in a few days and I can't wait for her arrival!
Art Gallery had the most amazing, creative and inspiring displays for their fabrics. I love the "Keep Calm and Carry On" sign.....
And how cute is this??? Flowers and fabric "pastries" in France. Ooh la la.....
Pillow and Maxfield had such a bright and happy booth at Michael Miller showing their Gypsy Bandana Collection. And I wish I would have taken a picture of the Pillow & Maxfield ladies - they are such a cheerful and enthusiastic pair! Their personalities definitely match their fabrics.....
And here I am with Jon and Patty Young. This picture may have been taken on Halloween......or it may just be their normal attire.....I'll let you decide......
Patty was showing her new Sanctuary Collection with Michael Miller. I am absolutely drooling over the orchid print. It's the fabric used in the dress on the left side of the photo....
Here's a sneak peek of Sanctuary. It's so dreamy and beautiful and soothing.....
And finally we have Lakehouse! They were showing the new Annie's Farm Stand Collection which is due out in the spring. This quilt is a panel with some applique flowers.....
And this is the new version of the Cherry Baby quilt which came out a few years ago.....
And finally we have their new Annie's Argyle Quilt which has about 30 yards of Ric Rac on it!
Here are some "swatches" of Annie's Farm Stand. Ahhhh......I am sooooo in love with this fabric!
And I have to end this post by thanking John (my Sweetie) for going to Quilt Market! He'd been out of town for two weeks on a work trip prior to Quilt Market. He went home for less than 12 hours and then came to Houston to join me! How sweet is that?! He's definitely a "keeper."

I'll let you know when new fabrics start coming in!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

I'm Moving!!!

2010-11-10T14:58:00.003-06:00

I'm moving! And I'm moving very soon! I'm gonna try and make a long story short because I've got A LOT to do.

So, here's the background. John and I have been together for 10 years but we've never really lived together for very long. He's a pilot. And he's in the Air National Guard at Tyndall. So, he's never in one place for very long. While he goes all over the world I've been using Destin, Florida as my "home base." But now it looks like he'll be at Tyndall for a while (he's already been there for a year). And Tyndall is 1 1/2 hours away from Destin. Oh....and did I mention that my fabric is kept in a rental property 1/2 hour away....in the opposite direction! I spend way too much time in the car! It feels like I've been driving all over the Florida panhandle for the last year.

About two weeks ago I decided that this is getting ridiculous. He's got a house over there.....I can just move over there.....I can stop driving all over the place....and we can actually spend time together at night and on weekends like normal couples do! I don't know why it took me this long to figure all this out. Oh wait....yeah I do.....the house is kinda small and about 60 years old. But take a look at the view from the backyard. Not bad, huh?

I'm moving in less than two weeks. I've done just about nothing to get ready for the move....except make big messes and piles. The house currently looks like it's been ransacked. I should probably be getting concerned at this point.....but I'm still hoping that the "packing fairies" will just appear and do everything for me!

Wish me luck! I'm gonna need it!
Jenny

Amazing New Magazine!!!

2010-11-04T17:20:00.006-05:00

Open publication - Free publishing - More happy
I just have to share my amazing new find with you. This is an incredible e-zine (online magaine) called Inspired Ideas by Amy Powers. If you cried your eyes out when Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion ended (like I did) then you will be in heaven when you see this. There are only two issues so far but they are amazing. It's full of blissful, yummy, adorable crafty inspiration. I'm in love with it.....sigh......

Happy Sewing (and Crafting!),
Jenny

P.S. Click here to go to page where you can see both issues.

November 2010 Giveaway - $50 Gift Certificate

2010-11-02T15:11:00.016-05:00

We Have A Winner!!!

The winner is Mary On Lake Pulaski who said "Let me at some Sugar and Spice and then some Central Park!" Congratulations Mary! And thank you to everyone who entered! I loved reading all of your comments! I'm going to try to get as many of those gorgeous fabric collections as possible.

Happy November! This month we're giving away another $50 Gift Certificate. But again......there is a small string attached. So, here's the story - I was just at Quilt Market over Halloween weekend getting to see all of the gorgeous new fabric collections that are going to be released soon. I know which ones I like.......but I want to know which ones YOU like! I've posted little sneak peek, snippets of some of these collections below. Just leave a comment to let me know which one/ones are your favorites and you'll be entered to win the Gift Certificate.

And you don't have to pick just one! Pick as many as you like!

The last day to enter is November 30, 2010. The winner will be announced on December 1, 2010. And if you'd like to be added to our e-mail newsletter list just send me an e-mail with the word Newsletter in the subject or text.

I can't wait to hear what you think so let's get started.......

This is Modern Affair by Art Gallery....

This is Sugar & Spice by Riley Blake.....

This is Kumari Garden by Dena Designs for Free Spirit in the Blue Colorway.....

And this is Kumari Garden in the Pink Colorway.....

This is Sanctuary by Patty Young for Michael Miller Fabrics......

This is Sweet Nothings by Riley Blake.......

This is Central Park by Kate Spain for Moda......

This is Gypsy Bandana by Pillow & Maxfield in the Jewel Colorway.....

Gypsy Bandana in the Pink Colorway......

And Gypsy Bandana in the Moon Colorway......

This is Montego Batiks by Moda.......

And last but not least.....this is Remix by Robert Kaufman.....
Thanks for participating! I can't wait to hear what you think about these new Quilt Market Collections!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T07:55:00.006-05:00

Trick or Treat!
Happy Halloween from Emma Jane the Pig......
And Sammy the Cow......
Have a fun Halloween!

Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - The Pattern Basket

2010-10-27T15:47:00.009-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! I'm spending my day protecting the laundry basket from danger. And let's be honest.....it's also really comfy to lay on all these nice, warm, clean clothes in this cozy basket. And since I'm in such a "basket-y" mood I've picked some of my favorite patterns by The Pattern Basket to show you. The first one is Frosted Squares.......
Something about that pattern makes me feel like I'm in a luscious, dreamy candy shop. And this one is the Sugar Twist Pattern.....
I love the way the pieces in the blocks look like they're wrapping around each other. And this is the Green Tea Pattern. It looks great in green but I also think it would be beautiful in blue and it would give it such a nautical feel.....
I'm gonna go back to my basket now and take my 20th nap of the day. See ya next week.

XOXO,
Emma Jane

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Packing My Bags.....Again

2010-10-17T16:59:00.004-05:00

Hey there......it's me.....Emma Jane......and I'm pouting today. Mommy and Daddy just went away to D.C. a few weeks ago. And they're going to Quilt Market in two weeks. But a few days ago Daddy found out he had to go on some work trip and stay in some fancy hotel out in Tucson next week. And he asked Mommy to go stay at the fancy hotel and spa with him. So they're going away AGAIN! And I'm getting sent off to Grandma's house AGAIN! So, I think I deserve a new bag so I can properly pack up all my toys. I think the Sun &Surf Tote by Patty Young will be perfect.....
And Patty Young also has a new handbag pattern called the Stella. If I had credit cards, a lipstick and a cell phone I'd definitely want to carry them in this cutie......
I'm gonna go stare at Mommy and make sad puppy faces at her as she happily packs her suitcase. Sigh.....

XOXO,
Emma Jane

P.S. All orders placed after Midnight (CST) on Sunday, October 17, 2010 will be shipped on Monday, October 25, 2010. Thanks for your patience.

Bright New Fat Quarter Bundles

2010-10-08T18:02:00.008-05:00

I just have to say thanks again for all the fabulous responses to my Survey last month. I was so glad to hear that you love bright fabrics because I LOVE bright fabrics too! It inspired me to create a few new Fat Quarter Bundles from some of our most popular bright fabrics.

This one is the Rainbow 2 Fat Quarter Bundle.....
And yes, there was a Rainbow 1 Fat Quarter Bundle but it sold out super fast. It's just like a Crayola Crayon box of fabric, isn't it?

And this is the Farmer's Market 2 Fat Quarter Bundle.....
If you're a big fan of Sandi Henderson's fabrics you may notice that one of those fabrics is from her Meadowsweet Collection, not her Farmer's Market Collection. I just needed one more orangey-yellow fabric to get a good mix of colors. Don't you just love the fresh and juicy colors in this collection? Don't you wanna go on a picnic with a basket of fruit in a field of flowers right now.....or is it just me?

And I actually added this one a few weeks ago but it's bright and happy and semi-new so we'll include it in this post! It's the Santorini Mini Fat Quarter Bundle and it's full of luscious, Greek Isles, garden inspired colors.....
I can't wait to show you more new fabrics......but right now it's Friday evening.....and the dogs are staring at me.....I think they want dinner.....and there's a glass of wine, a sofa, a t.v. and a sewing project that are all calling my name.

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

Emma's Pick Of The Week - Autumn Green

2010-10-06T16:36:00.008-05:00

Hey there, it's me Emma Jane! Autumn is finally here! Are you as excited as I am? I love everything about autumn - the chill in the air, the pumpkins, the apples and all the rich, warm fall colors. The one thing I don't like is when I'm forced to dress up for Halloween.....but that's an issue for another day. Anyway, I found these fabrics from the Farmer's Market Collection that are perfect for Autumn. This Autumn Dahlia fabric is so beautiful.....
And I love the rows of apples on this Spring Apple Dot fabric......
And Peach Playful Paisley would also be great in autumn projects.....
And I must apologize for being absent the last few weeks. First, Mommy and Daddy went on vacation to DC (they had a great time, by the way). Then the computer broke, the car broke and Daddy had to get some major dental work done - Ouch! It's been a busy coupla weeks. And let's face it.....I'm a dog....I don't have thumbs.....I can't use the computer without some help!

Anyway, I'm gonna go dip those apples in some caramel and nom, nom, nom away. Will they still keep the doctor away if they're covered in caramel? I dunno but I'm gonna find out!

XOXO,
Emma Jane

The Results Are In......

2010-10-05T15:03:00.005-05:00

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in the Survey last month! I had so much fun reading your answers and this is really going to help me make the shop even better! Here are the results and I've included my answers to the questions too.

Questions #1 was "What is your favorite type of item to sew?"

-Quilts was by far the number 1 answer. No surprise there! The distant second and third were Totes/Purses and Baby Clothes/Items. And an even more distant 4th and 5th were clothes and home decor items.

-And when it comes to the type of quilt....well....pieced quilts won by a landslide with 87% of the vote. Applique got about 13%. Paper Piecing and Art Quilts got 1 vote each.

-As for me......I like to sew a little of everything. Pieced quilts, applique, clothes, purses and home decor.

Question #2 was "What is your favorite style of fabric?"

-Modern was a clear winner with 32% of the vote. Traditional came in second place with 22% of the vote. And Batiks came in third with 11% of the vote (I've been meaning to add those to the shop and it's good to know that you like them!) Rounding out the top five were Romantic with about 5% and Colorful with about 5%. A lot of you also said that it depends on the project or you don't have a favorite style.

-I'd have to say that Modern is my favorite style too. But I'm definitely also a sucker for anything sweet and feminine and romantic in pink and green.

Question #3 was "Do you have a favorite fabric or pattern designer?"

-Well....the answer was "yes" but there was no clear cut front runner. Everyone seemed to vote for a different designer. But some of the ones that got votes from a few of you were Moda (no surprise there), Amy Butler (again....no surprise), Riley Blake, Fig Tree Quilts, Kaffe Fassett, Heather Ross and Michael Miller.

-And wow.....I guess I don't have a favorite designer either. I love so many of them it's hard to choose a favorite!

Question #4 was "What are your favorite colors to use in sewing projects?"

-It was a 3 way tie for first place. The winners were brights, blues and greens. Red was a very close second place. I was very surprised to see purple in third place! Pink, earth tones, aqua/teal and orange are also popular.

-My personal favorite is pink and green (which only got 1% of the vote!) I also like brights and beachy colors and pastels.

Question #5 was "Do you like to sew for the holidays? Which holidays?"

-2/3 of you like to sew for the holidays. And Christmas was a clear cut winner with 55% of the holiday vote. Halloween came in second with about 21%. Rounding out the top five were Fall/Thanksgiving, Easter and Patriotic/4th of July.

-Yup - I LOVE to sew holiday items for any holiday!

Question #6 was "Do you prefer to buy kits or do you want to choose fabrics and patterns for yourself?"

-This is where I was shocked. Totally shocked. 71% of you prefer to choose your own fabrics, 20% said that you do both and 9% of you said that you like to buy kits. I thought that kits would be the overwhelming winner!

-Well.....before I had my own quilt shop I always wanted to buy kits! I'd occasionally substitute some fabrics that came in the kit.....but I loved the feeling of buying a new kit and having it all right there in one nice little package.

Question #7 was "Do you prefer quick and easy projects or projects that are more detailed and complicated?"

-No surprise here - 47% of you prefer quick and easy projects. 34% of you said you like to do both. And 19% prefer the more complicated, detailed and challenging projects.

-As for me.....I like to do both. Sometimes it's fun to have a challenge.....sometimes I just want to get something done and move on to the next project.

Question #8 was "Is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"

-Well gosh.....I just love you guys! So many of you posted nice little compliments there. I'm blushing.....Thanks! I'd also like to say Happy 50th Anniversary to Mary who mentioned that she celebrated that big milestone in July! And a special thank you to the five of you who mentioned Emma in your comments! And Sheila even said that she wants to see MORE of Emma on the blog! I think that's a fabulous idea!

And here's a random picture of Emma in case you don't know who she is. And because a blog post without pictures is really boring.....
Thanks again for participating in this! It was so fun to read your answers and learn more about what you like. I'm definitely going to start doing occasional surveys (maybe every 6 months) since this one turned out so great. I love to know what you're thinking!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny