Work In Progress Wednesday - Align Twice, Sew Once

I decided to get brave on Block #2 of my Madhuri quilt and use a directional print in the block's "frame" and.....well.....it definitely involved more mental gymnastics than using solids.  The most important thing I learned from this block is to double check the "alignment" of your directional print before you sew any diagonals.  Just hold your fingers down where your plan on sewing, flip the fabric open using your fingers as a seam and make sure that your print is going in the right direction.  And yes.....I learned this the hard way.  I sewed all of the "frame" pieces for this block, CUT off the excess fabric from the diagonal seams and then realized I'd done them ALL wrong.  Yup.  Time to start over!  Oops!

Soooo....the moral of my story is NOT to scare you off from making this quilt.  Far from it.  It's a GORGEOUS quilt and I'm having so much fun making it.  I just want to let you know this isn't a quilt you can rush through.  You just need to slow down.....be methodical......carefully double check before you sew.  So instead of saying "measure twice, cut once" I'll just say "align twice, sew once." 

And if you look closely you'll see that most of the frame pieces aren't even attached to the center of the block yet!  This is kind of like a dress rehearsal to make sure I don't mess up again!

This week's stats:
Active WIPs:  UP TO 7! 
-Madhuri Quilt - almost done with 2 blocks 
-Little Lady - Haven't touched it in a week! 
-Going Coastal Granny Square Quilt - STILL ready to be sandwiched and pinned!
-Dollhouse Bakery - Oh how I miss "playing" with my dollhouses!
-Hooterville:  On the hand quilting phase....but haven't touched it in months
-Little White Dollhouse - STILL sitting next to my sewing machine.  
 -Vintage Valentine:  In a box....patiently waiting....
Must Make:  14  
Back Burner WIPs:  4
Ready To Go: 12
New Projects:  None
Forgotten/Abandoned Projects:  None!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S.  The quilt pattern I'm using is called Camping In Style by This and That Designs.  The fabric is the Madhuri collection by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake Designs.

The Next Work In Progres.....

We have a winner!  Camping In Style in the Madhuri fabric collection is going to be my next pieced Work In Progress.  It won the "vote" by a very small margin with Victory Garden nipping at it's heels.

The first block is almost done and I already have a great piece of advice for anyone who is thinking about attempting this quilt:  Use solids or small, non-directional prints for the "frames" on the blocks until you get the hang of making them.  I can't even imagine the mental gymnastics I would have had to perform to figure out how to deal with a directional print on this first block.  It took a few extra brain cells just to figure out how to make it with solid borders....not many extra brain cells....just a few. 

So far I can say that you don't need to be intimidated by this pattern.  It only looks complicated.  If you just go slow, read the directions and think each step through before you sew the next seam you should be fine!

And now I need to go fix that seam in the aqua border on the right side of the block.  That puckering is driving my CRAZY!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S.  I'm using a Madhuri Fat Quarter Bundle and some Moda Bella Solids including Goldenrod, Light Lime and Robin's Egg.  I will probably use Muslin Mates White Swirls as my white as that has become my "go to" white for quilts these days.

Growing Up

My sweet little boy is growing up so fast!  It seems like he changed from a chubby baby into a long and lanky "teenager" overnight!  He's now able to take flying leaps off of things that once seemed impossibly huge to him.  He is eager and carefree and full of sweetness and love.  His mind and heart only seem to know happiness and joy.

He is also very hard to photograph while awake!  I've had some requests for more action shots of Baxter but so far I've only been able to capture new images of His Royal Cuteness while sleeping. But isn't he oh so cute as he blissfully dreams of his next big adventure???

Morning snuggles with Baxter

Hugs from me and puppy kisses from Baxter,
Jenny

Work In Progress Wednesday - Testing The Waters

I finally pulled out a needle and thread for the first time in about 3 months!  I decided that my first venture back into the quilting and sewing world should be something very simple.....very easy....very mindless - it's like I just want to dip my toes in the shallow end of the pool to test the waters.  I'll dive into the deep end head first on another day!  So the hand ties on the Little Lady quilt seemed like the best place to start.  I've only done a few ties but at least it's something.  I'm slowly but surely getting back in the quilting groove.  And I didn't realize how much I missed it until I started doing it again!  Funny how that works, isn't it?!

And even though I haven't been making progress on any of my projects lately, my stats have still changed a little over the last few months.  A few projects were removed from the Must Make list.  And a few new ones were added to the Must Make list.  And since I currently have no pieced projects in the works that means it's time to pick a new one to start on.  My rule that I try to follow is that I shouldn't have more than one of any type of project going on at the same time.  Did that make sense?  I mean that I only want to have one pieced quilt in progress.  One applique quilt in progress.  One hand tied quilt in progress, etc, etc.  Now.... please note that I said I TRY to follow that rule.  I don't always ever do it.  But it's my goal. 

Active WIPs:  6  
-Little Lady - Hand ties are back in progress!
-Going Coastal Granny Square Quilt - Ready to be sandwiched and pinned!
-Dollhouse Bakery - Oh how I miss "playing" with my dollhouses!
-Hooterville:  On the hand quilting phase
-Little White Dollhouse - Sitting next to my sewing machine.  They're keeping each other company.
-Vintage Valentine:  I've started prepping freezer paper templates! 
Must Make:  14  
Back Burner WIPs:  4
Ready To Go: 12
New Projects:  None
Forgotten/Abandoned Projects: Haven't found any

Anyway....these are the five pieced quilts on my "Must Make" list.  One of these is about to get promoted to "Active Work In Progress."  Here they are in no particular order.  So tell me.....which one do you think I should make next?

Quilt Option #1:  Victory Garden in reds and blues from my stash.....

Quilt Option #2:  Chain Reaction in pink, aqua, lime, orange, red and lavender with a grey background using fabrics from my stash.  I saw a Chain Reaction quilt using these colors on Pinterest and fell IN LOVE!

Quilt Option #3:  A Swoon quilt using Old New 30s and a few fabrics from my stash....

Option #4:  Around The Block using the brand new Sweet Things collection by Lakehouse Dry Goods.  I know I shouldn't say this.....and I know that I should love all my fabrics equally.....but that Petal Pink Rows of Cupcakes fabric is my favorite fabric in the history of ever!

Quilt Option #5:  A Camping In Style Quilt using the new Madhuri Collection by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake.  I'd use the large florals and fussy cut the elephants for the centers of the blocks.  And I'd use the smaller prints and a few solids for the block "frames."

Soooooo......what do you think?

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

The World of Downton Abbey

Wow!  Where do I begin?  This is such an amazing little story!

Back in February Col Sew Fab went on a skiing "Mancation" with some friends.  And I happened to post on Facebook that while he was off having a "boys weekend" I was going to have a girly Staycation.  It was going to be full of sewing and working on my dollhouses and watching lots of t.v. marathons including shows like Vampire Diaries, Revenge, Game of Thrones and Downton Abbey.  Yeah....I know....that's a strange combination of shows....but variety is the spice of life, right?!

A lovely woman named Claire in England saw this and remembered that I mentioned Downton Abbey.  I've never met Claire in real life.  She's just a person who I've chatted with and laughed with and joked with online.  But this incredibly thoughtful woman decided to send me a gift.  I was thrilled to get a package covered in "Royal Mail" stamps and I tore it open and discovered this book inside!  Love it!  How fun!

And then papers started falling out of the book and I discovered that they were all tucked in front of this page.....

It says:
To Jen,
With Best Wishes
Julian Fellowes
Puddletown
15th March 2013

Hmmmm....Julian Fellowes.....Julian Fellowes......that name sounds really familiar....

Google to the rescue!

Oh. My. GOSH!  Thank you Wikipedia!

Oh yeah....of course!  Julian Fellowes is the man who CREATED Downton Abbey!!!  That's why his name sounded so familiar.  He also won an Oscar for his screenwriting work on Gosford Park.  And he's done screenwriting work for other movies such as Vanity Fair, The Tourist and The Young Victoria!  And he's a member of the House of Lords (the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom).

Claire included a sweet note in the book with a wonderful story!  The little library in her village was being threatened with closure but the locals wanted to save it.  They held a fundraiser which Claire catered for free.  And Julian, who lives in the next village over, came to the fundraiser to give a talk about his career and Downton Abbey.  And Claire had Julian sign a book for me.  And she sent it to me all the way from England.  Just because she wanted to thank me for some blog and Facebook posts which she enjoyed.

Knock me over with a feather.  It's moments like these that you're reminded that there are so many truly kind, gracious, generous, thoughtful, lovely people in the world.  People who will cater a fundraising party for free.  People who will send a gift to someone they've never met.  People who will give a speech to try to save the library in the neighboring village. Simply amazing people.

So if you didn't already love Downton Abbey enough.....you can love it even more now because the creator is a truly good person with a kind heart!

And finally - Thank you so much Claire!  Your kindness is inspiring!  I am thrilled beyond words!!! 

Hugs,
Jenny

July Giveaway - Madhuri Fat Quarter Bundle

 We Have A Winner!

The winner is Amanda who said "I want to make a skirt of the pink main floral! I super love this collection, I'd prob make a quilt from fat quarters. I love the colors and the tonal elephants."  Congratulations Amanda!

 

Happy July!  It's been waaaaayyyyy too long since we've had a Giveaway, don't you think?!  And we have so much to celebrate right now - new puppies, new houses, surviving the move to California, being halfway through the year and Sew Fab's 4th birthday!  Well.....the birthday was actually on June 1st but since I was a wee bit busy preparing to move across the country on short notice at that time I actually forgot about Sew Fab's B-Day!  Oops!  So, this year we'll just pretend that the birthday is on July 1st!  Better late than never, right?!

To celebrate, we're going to give away a 12 piece Madhuri Fat Quarter Bundle by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake.  I just love all of the bright, juicy, summery colors in this collection!  

And the selvage.....oh my.....the selvage on these prints is just amazing!  There is a rainbow of elephants on the selvage.  Selvage collectors rejoice!  It's total cuteness overload! 

As always, just leave a comment to be entered to win.  I'd love to hear what you want to make with the Madhuri collection.  A quilt?  Do you have a specific pattern in mind?  Or maybe a sundress?  Or maybe a tote bag?  Or do you just need to get your hands on some and see it in real life to find your inspiration?

I'm thinking this fabric would look great in the Camping In Style quilt pattern that I just ordered for the shop (I'll let you know when it arrives).  I think the larger floral and elephant prints would look great in the center parts of the blocks and the smaller prints and some solids would look great as the thinner "frame" portion of the blocks.  What do you think?

We'll pick a winner on Monday, July 8 so please leave your comment on or before Sunday, July 7.  Good luck!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S.  As you probably already know, the selvage "dots" only shows the colors in THAT print.  So the prints with fewer colors won't have as many elephants on the selvage.

Puppy Love

Oh Baxter....my sweet, precious, curious, innocent, trusting, tender, playful and unbelievably adorable puppy!  He is just what I needed.  I love everything about this little guy.  I want to spend every second of the day just soaking up all of that cuteness and kissing his soft, little face a million times.  He is the breath of fresh air that we needed after a rough couple of months.

I love the way he makes teeny, tiny, little squeaks when I pick him up.  I love the way he sweetly snuggles up next to me in the morning and lays his head beside mine on the pillow.  I love his "new puppy smell."  I love everything about him!!!  He's total puppy perfection!

Hugs,
Jenny

P.S.  I know he looks like he's on some sort of flying saucer in that last photo but he really is just floating on the pool!  I call that "his first swimming lesson."

Random Thoughts On Moving

So we're here.  We finally made it.  We are now living in California.  Still sounds weird every time I say it or think it.  I haven't really had time to adjust or let that fact sink in.  But I'm hoping the wild roller coasterish lifestyle of the last two months is quietly coming to an end and we can start to create a new normal.  A much calmer new normal.

So here are my random thoughts on California and moving and life in general right now in no particular order.  Remember....my mind is still a jumbled mess after everything that's happened so bear with me folks!

-Moving is hard.  Really, really, REALLY hard.  Especially when it's on short notice.  And across the country.  And when your beloved kitty unexpectedly dies in the middle of the whole situation.  I knew moving was going to be hard.  But I had no idea it was going to be THAT hard.  I'm glad "pre-move me" didn't fully understand what she was in for!

-Moving is also exhausting.  For the last two months we've been getting up early, staying up late and we've been busy, busy, busy all day long with no days off.  It's been a test of our endurance and I think we passed with flying colors!

-We drove 36 hours, 2400 miles in 3 days.  Yes.  We did the drive from Florida to California in THREE days.  With two dogs and two cats.  They did amazingly well.  But it was still quite an unforgettable experience and hopefully we'll still be talking about "that time we drove from Florida to California in three days" when we're in our eighties and sipping pina coladas on the beach!

-Trader Joe's is awesome.  Really, really awesome.

-This is the first week in forever that I've had a little bit of time to myself.  For weeks and weeks life was full of movers and repair guys and painters and workmen and boxes and trash bags and an endless stream of various people in the house.  And they all had lots of questions - What is this?  Where does this go?  Which light needs to be fixed?  The questions never stopped.  But this week has been heaven - just me, the pets, the quilt shop and Col. Sew Fab.  Life almost feels.....dare I say....NORMAL!

-Hopefully next week will be even more normal!  I'll get back on my regular schedule that Col. Sew Fab made for me.  I'll re-start marathon training after those plans had to be put on hold for the move.  I'll start ordering new fabrics for the shop.  And I'll start blogging about quilts and dollhouses and fabric and crafty stuff again!  And puppies.  Lots of blogging about puppies too!

-It's hot here.  But I'm used to the heat.  I lived in Florida for the last 13 years.  What is really difficult for me is how dry it is.  I'm not adapting quickly.  I can't seem to drink enough water.  I'm always thirsty.  I thought dry heat was supposed to be easier to deal with than humid heat!  And something about the dry heat is sneaky.....I don't realize how hot I am until I'm about to overheat and pass out....and it makes it impossible for me to decide if I'm thirsty, hungry or tired.  It's very confusing...... 

-But there is a good side to the dry heat!  In Florida, the humid summer heat makes it hot ALL. THE. TIME.  It's not just hot in the afternoon.  In Florida, it was unbearably hot late at night.  It was hot in the early morning.  It was hot in the shade.  But here.....here we wake up to these fabulously crisp, cooler mornings even on the days when it's going to be over 100 degrees!  So this little chickadee is going to have to become an early bird so I can fulfill my passion for running during the glorious morning weather.

-At 5:00 p.m. every day I realize that it's already cocktail hour back "home" in Florida.

-We have WAY too much stuff.  You just don't realize how much stuff you have until you have to move it all!  It's time to simplify, pare down, let go and get rid of all those things that I've realized just aren't as important as I thought they once were. I feel lighter and freer already!

-The movers packed a bag of trash.  Yes, seriously.  They packed a bag of trash. 

- How long can I use the excuse "we just moved" for any sort of air-headed behavior?

-I love our new neighborhood.  I've gone running through it a few times this week.  It's quiet and serene and full of older, well maintained homes, lots of big trees, green lawns, flowers and there's some sort of huge orchard all along the edge of the neighborhood.  I caught a teeny glimpse of something orange and round nestled in the branches of one of the trees the other day.  Oh, I hope it's an orange grove!  Wouldn't that be gorgeous once it's in full bloom?!

 

-When I leave our neighborhood to go run errands I drive on a road with a view of the Sierra Nevadas off in the distance.  Ummm.....wow!  So amazing!

-Puppies are awesome.  Really, really awesome.  Puppies make the whole world seem like it's full of rainbows and chocolate rivers and cotton candy clouds.

-I haven't sewn anything in over two months.  I haven't worked on my dollhouses in over two months.  I haven't done anything crafty or fun or just for ME in two months.  I miss fabric.  I miss paint.  I miss needles and thread.  I'm hoping to change that sad state of affairs this weekend!

-My office/studio is a mess.  A disaster area.  I'm currently using the dining room table as my office.  I unpacked and organized the kitchen first.  Then the bathroom.  Then my shop.  Then the bedroom.  And now I'm losing steam.  I have to keep trying to find motivation in the fact that I'll be able to resume my crafty, creative life only after that room is under control.

-I need a Staycation.  I really, REALLY need a Staycation.  So don't be surprised when I start talking about my "much needed Staycation" in July.  And maybe it will be an extra long one.  And maybe I will call it "Pupternity Leave" instead.  Doesn't everyone deserve a week off to bond with their new puppy?!

If you've made it to end of this post I'm really, really impressed.  Unless you're my Mom.  I know she's going to read the whole thing.  Thanks Mom!  But if you're someone else (including Col. Sew Fab who says he prefers my shorter posts) I applaud your dedication to reading this whole rambling, chaotic, stream of random thoughts!  You rock!

Hugs from Cali,
Jenny

It's A Boy!!!

I have so many stories to tell you and so much has happened lately and my mind is a jumbled chaotic mess but all I can focus on right now is MY NEW PUPPY!  I finally have another Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in my life! 

Emma and I went to pick him up three days ago and it was love at first sight when we met him!   I drove over FIVE hours away to pick him up in the San Bernardino Mountains (gorgeous area by the way).  It actually took SIX hours to get home because the GPS took me by Los Angeles DURING rush hour.  Eeek!  Kind of a scary experience for a small town girl with no sense of direction and a car sick puppy!  The GPS and I are currently not on speaking terms.

He absolutely adores Emma and does everything she does.  I'm so excited that Emma has a "mini-me" who worships the ground her paws walk on.

And she is such a good big sister to him.  She's so tolerant and patient and she happily "volunteered" to sleep in the crate with him for moral support during his first few nights here.

And are you ready to get some major goosebumps???!!!  Do you remember how Daisy sent me a sign that our new house in California was THE ONE?  After that happened I actually thought to myself "I wonder if Daisy is going to send me a puppy too....."  And guess what - She did!  This puppy was born on March 26.....and guess who else was born on March 26.....Yup....Daisy!  The new puppy and Daisy share a birthday.   Do you have goosebumps yet???

So now that you've all been properly introduced to the incredibly sweet, smart and stunning Sir Baxter Buckingham Puddingstone III I need to get back to staring at him as he sleeps on a down pillow beside me.

Hugs,
Jenny

P.S.  We're going to call him Baxter for short.  And there was no Sir Baxter Buckingham Puddingstone I or II.  My cousin came up with the idea to give him an outrageously long name with Sir at the front and III at the end.  And I reserve the right to change the name if I come up with something better in the next week!  He doesn't know his name yet so it won't be a problem for him.

P.P.S.S.  Don't worry about Emma!  She's not sad in that first photo.  We'd woken up at 5:00 a.m., driven 5 hours and entered a home that had 7 Cavaliers in it.  She was just exhausted and a wee bit overwhelmed!

Moving Fast

Things are starting to move pretty fast around here....

Our "real" house in Destin has been packed up and is now completely empty.....

Our icky, little, 70 year old Air Force Base house on the water that we've been living in for three years is going to be packed up this week.....

And if all goes according to plan we'll be saying goodbye to Florida on Saturday and starting the long cross country journey to California in a rented van with two dogs, two cats and hopefully enough movies, sewing projects, toys and books to keep us all sane!

As unreal as it seems, we should be at our new house in California in about ten days.  TEN DAYS!   And did I tell you that the new house has a laundry room???  Not a laundry closet.  Not a washer and dryer in the kitchen.  A real, honest to goodness laundry room.   I've never had one of those before.  When people ask me to tell them about the new house that's usually the first thing I mention!  And I say it with pride like it's the fanciest, most luxurious thing ever!  And don't even get me started on the master bathroom tonight.  It's so flippin' fabulous that it get's it's very own blog post.

Hugs,
Jenny (aka - The Girl Who's Moving To A House With A Real Laundry Room)