craft in action

Isn't this why we all spend hours sewing up things like quilts and toys and clothes?

Please excuse me for my lack of posting. Part of it is due to being in a bit of a funk (long story short-- Avery and Claire are now spending more time with their birth father, which has resulted in a good amount of anxiety on my end). I'm also spending the majority of my free time during weekends and naptimes running my butt off (last Saturday was a half marathon, and this Saturday we're scheduled to do 230 minutes). But the best reason is that I'm sewing for a special little person who is about to be born. I don't want his mom (yes, Katrina, I'm talking about you) to see photos of his wee little things before she receives them in person. But within a couple of weeks I'll be able to share.

I hope you're all having a good week so far! Go make something!

ready

The eggs are colored.

The rabbits are ready.

Happy Easter! I hope your day is full of chocolate bunnies and jelly beans! :)

bunny stuffing

I truly hope you didn't click on over here hoping for an Easter recipe!

If you couldn't tell, I'm a bit pattern crazy recently. They are helping me learn to be patient and follow directions. I haven't felt up to working on my ongoing quilts quite yet, so I've been doing things like pouches and bags. I really wanted to sew something up for each of the kids for Easter this year and I decided to give a first try to softies. I settled on the fantastic Jack Rabbit and Rufus the Dog patterns from Hop, Skip, Jump.

As you can see, I'm using more of my fab DS Quilts fabric. Claire went nuts for the blue floral that is in the ears, so her bunny will get a skirt out of it (and I might even make Claire one to match!). I woke up an hour early and used the time to cut out all of the pieces. They sewed up so quickly during naptime this morning that I thought, "Hey! I'm going to get this done in no time!" Then I started stuffing. And stuffing. And swearing a little bit. And then I thought, "I don't think the kids are going to get bunnies this year after all." I could not get the fill into those tiny little stuffing holes in the arms and legs.

So I figured out a solution that is probably obvious to those of you who have made softies before. There are probably even better tricks out there (if so, please share them with me!). This is what I did:

I took the Dritz 1/2" turning tube thing that I had also used to turn the ears and limbs all right side out. I stuck it in the hole and pushed it down so it was all the way at the end of the leg/arm.

Then I grabbed a wad of stuffing (I'm using a bamboo blend that I picked up on sale at Jo-Ann's the other day) and stuffed it down the tube with the wooden stick. Then I did it over and over again.

It saved my sanity, and now the kids will all get bunnies. Hooray!

And now it's time for the winner of the 101 Patchwork Projects & Quilts magazine. The random number generator has spoken, and the winner is Emily off MLE Knits! Congrats!

Denyse Schmidt at JoAnn Fabrics

First, thank you for all of the nice comments yesterday! The giveaway for 101 Patchwork Projects is still going on, so pop over here to enter if you haven't had a chance yet.
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If you are a fabric junkie like me, then you know Denyse Schmidt has just released a new line at Jo-Ann Fabrics of all places! Seeing how Alaska stores always seem to get things late (or get left out of the fun completely) you can imagine how thrilled I was to find all of the prints yesterday. I showed some restraint and only got 15 of the prints instead of the 21 available. The quality is fantastic! Super exciting.

I'm really trying to use even little bits of new fabric as it comes in, so this morning I tried a new pattern with it-- the Keyka Lou inset zipper pouch.



There were quite a few pieces to cut, but once that was done it sewed up very quickly. The zipped opening does end up a bit small for my liking, but it's still a great pouch. Next I'll try the clutch to see if I like that size better.

101 reasons to do a happy dance

I just received my copies of Quilting Arts special publication 101 Patchwork Projects & Quilts in the mail. And guess what? I've got two projects in it!!!

The first is a simplified version of Rob's mountain quilt, called Modern Mountains.

The second is a version of the mini quilt I made for Cooper, called "Rolling on Through."

There is such a wide range of projects in this one magazine. Definitely one to check out! It's available in stores starting today, but I've got an extra copy to give away! Just leave me a comment. I'll draw a name on Thursday! Now, please excuse me. I feel a little jig coming on.

a pretty pouch

When I got my partner assignment yesterday for the Pretty {little} Pouch swap, I couldn't help but head straight to my sewing room and try out an idea that was brewing. A little log cabin, some hand stitching, and a some happy polka dots, and here it is:

I will admit that I want to make oodles more of these. Oodles. So plan to see lots of pouches on these pages in the future!

some small things, and your favorite fabric shops

My recent order from Wondrous Woven Fabrics. Yum-o!

Thanks to all who commented on my last post to share your favorite fabric shops. Here are the ones that you suggested :

Hawthorne Threads
Quilt Home
eQuilter.com
Fabric Shack
Fort Worth Fabric Studio
Canton Village Quilt Works
The Quilted Castle
Nido
Sew Fresh Fabrics
Delta Patchwork
Hancocks of Paducah
Burgundy Buttons
Keepsake Quilting
Connecting Threads
Fabric Worm
J&O Fabrics

And the list from my previous post:

Pink Chalk Fabrics
Sew Mama Sew
Purl Soho
Lily Bella Fabrics
Fabric Shoppe
Wondrous Woven Fabrics

In an effort to get out of my sewing slump and actually cut the fabrics that continue to pile up on my shelves, I've been doing some smaller projects this week.

We have a new table runner:

I'm trying to figure out the best recipe for a flat bottom pouch:

And even though Nova has essentially ruined it for everyone with her luscious pile of goodies, I'm working on my Umbrella Prints Trimming challenge projects. Here's a sneak peek of my progress so far:

You should check out the flickr pool of everything that is being made with these itty bitty scraps. Inspiring!
What are you up to this weekend? I've fully commited now to doing the full Mayor's Marathon in June instead of the half marathon, so I'll be running my tush off in the morning and hoping I still have something left in my legs for a day of spring skiing. Have a good one!

a note about buying fabric

The mailman just dropped this lovely bundle of fabrics on my doorstep. I've placed many orders from Kathy at Pink Chalk Fabrics over the years and I plan to make many more. Some of these fabrics were on sale, many were out of stock in other shops, and others are simply stash builders. The solids on the top are part of the new Monthly Solids Club that Kathy has started. I love that there are Free Spirit solids in this mix, as I've never bought them before.

I mention Kathy specifically because she is the absolute best when it comes to customer service. I've chimed in on a couple of discussions recently on flickr regarding the atrocious packaging from a certain online fabric mega-store. I've only ordered from them twice, but have been appalled at the way they run their business. The fabric I've received has been incorrect, rolled into a ball, and shipped in a trash can liner. I've heard similar stories from many others. Sure, they've replaced my missing fabric and let me keep the wrong ones, and their prices are often hard to resist. But I want to receive the fabric I've ordered the first time. I want the fabric, which I've spent a lot of money on, to be packaged properly. That's why I have made a commitment to buy from smaller businesses like Pink Chalk Fabrics, and others who provide great customer service. This includes supporting my local quilt shops too. Some of my favorites:

Pink Chalk Fabrics
Sew Mama Sew
Purl Soho
Lily Bella Fabrics
Fabric Shoppe
Wondrous Woven Fabrics

Which online fabric shops do you love? We all spend a lot on our fabric, so I think we should spread the word about stores that treat us right and give them our business.