Leafy layers of tracing paper with final modifications blanket my studio. When this design is finished, I will have one more print to go.
I lay in bed this morning with my eyes closed for half an hour letting impressions of that final print soak into the backs of my eyelids. These images are elusive and transforming. Remember that Michael Jackson video where one person morphed into the next, over and over—Black or White? Like that.
The trick is to jot these ideas down without indulging in them just yet. I'm saving the last print for dessert.
One petal reads "Yes," the other says "Same"—don't mistake it for "Sane." I'm not there yet, but getting very close.
I'm in the thick of designing new prints. The one I'm working on right now will probably take me all week—at minimum. This pushes me awfully close to my target date, but the print is gorgeous, so I'm taking the gamble.
The other designs are close. I can see the light. As long as I work through the dark, right?
In other news, we survived Spring Break. I look forward to having the kids around. But wow, this week, I'm more ready than ever for them to head back to school. A snippet of quiet, a splinter, a shard, a crumb, would be oh so lovely. Tomorrow is the day.
Check out the current issue of Where Women Create magazine—that’s me on the cover below. Included are the first public photos of our company workspace, a.k.a. HB headquarters, as well as photos of my home studio. See our design space, the online store’s fulfillment area, the amazing worktables Isaac completed last spring, and more. The article covers my typical workday, juggling kids, artwork, employees, licensees, etc. I've been holding off showing you my new space till this issue hit newstands. I'm glad it's here!
If you are new to Where Women Create, rush to get your first copy. Seriously. Each issue is more like a book than a magazine, thick with beautiful images and inspiring stories. The cover price is bit higher than other magazines—in order to keep the issues from being bogged down with a gazillion advertisements, and to make space for much more content than other magazines have—completely worth the price. If you're looking for a signed copy, we have a handful available. Just a handful though.
The magazine’s founder, Jo Packham, has a long history in book publishing. Where Women Create is her first magazine title, sprung from a book by the same name. This year, she has launched her newest project, Where Women Cook, a sister magazine to Where Women Create. Read up on your favorite foodies. Drool over pages of mouth-watering recipes. This new title promises to be just as inspirational—especially if you're into food—and who isn't?
Jo, along with Nancy Soriano (love Nancy too!), former Editor-in-Chief of Country Living Magazine and current Publishing Director of Craft for F & W Media, are the founders of The Creative Connection conference held last month in Minneapolis. I attended the conference last year as a Panelist and had intended to be there this year as well. Everyone featured in this month’s Where Women Create magazine was there for an autograph party on Friday night and several participated in classes, forums, panels, and so forth. I was home feeding the newborn.
It’s a fantastic event that I lend my enthusiastic support to. If you have the opportunity to attend next year’s conference, do. Follow the event’s twitter chatter by entering the hashtag #tcce11 over on Twitter. To find out more about next year’s conference, check the Creative Connection website for updates. Also, if you're in Orlando this weekend, head to the Southern Women's Show to meet Jo and her team. Where Women Create has a full schedule of events and meet-n-greets planned for the show's stage.
Thank you, Jo, for the honor of being your cover gal for this issue. It’s been a delight getting to know you this year.
It's official. My first collection of home decor fabrics is in the works. I mailed out the artwork earlier this week. I'm so excited. And relieved. That last part of the design process is pretty grueling.
I can't show any sneak peeks till the copyright process is completed. I can let it slip that one of the prints is called Cakewalk. A great name with an even-better history. (There are no cake illustrations involved though.) I love learning about weird stuff.
Here's the skinny.
The cakewalk is a dance from the civil-war era. It was a tradition begun by slaves which developed into a parody of high society ballroom dancing and dandy mannerisms. Instead of taking offense, plantation owners encouraged the comedic dance. Many would host Sunday cakewalk contests to determine who could high-kick, saunter, curtsy, and tip his hat to best effect. The prize was usually a cake wrapped in cabbage (I'm guessing early Saran Wrap here). It is from this tradition comes the saying, "That takes the cake!"
The dance hit the mainstream around 1890 or so -- Victorian society was due for some silliness.
The high-stepping march of a band majorette stems from the cakewalk as well.
After discovering old-timey cakewalk footage on You Tube yesterday, Isaac and I took a stab at the dance ourselves. Right here in my office. Flag that one for the next church talent show, right? If you need a stress relief, I highly recommend it. Odds are you'll win a good belly laugh and burn off some cake while you're at it. Then again, you might need to be punch-drunk with exhaustion to fully understand.
I'm sitting at my new desk with my toes nestled in a cream shag rug.
It's my first full day working from the new studio. We still have a
lot of painting and decorating to do before this place feels like home,
but the shag rug is a cozy start -- along with my green, crocheted,
doily coaster.
-- Which reminds me that I need to park a camera up here if my photos are to match up with my chit-chat now and again. Here are a few Nicey Jane pillows and a full-size Nicey Jane quilt. Recognize the settee, updated & reupholstered in a french-gray velveteen? --
The hardest thing to get used to is the glorious quiet. Who knew quiet could be so distracting.
My studio at home is smack-dab in the middle of the house, with two
wide, arched entrances and no doors. I'm used to Isaac's music and
loud-talk from the other room, dogs barking at the front door, Dora the
Explorer calling out from the family room and Charlotte playing at my
elbows. Oh, and four phones and a fax machine ringing intermittently.
Charlotte will still play at my elbows here, as she should. She has
discovered a 'cave' at the back of my display dress form. She rounds
up my threesock-doll bats and lets her imagination trot along. The beefy warehouse shelving makes for fabulous bunk beds too, I'm told. For turtles, elephants, bats, and little children.
The rest of the happy rackity-clackity will stay put at home. I'll still be there most of the time to enjoy it.
Gotta run. My mom is on her way over for a lunch date.
She's gussied up and ready for her big debut. Meet Nicey Jane™, my
new fabric collection for Free Spirit. Nicey is sassy, sweet, and ready
to sew. In other words, check your local fabric store, as Nicey Jane
arrived this week.
These new prints are available in two color palettes. We'll call the pink/olive/tangerine palette Kissing Boothand the blue/gray/gold palette Porch Swing. Along with florals, geometrics, and stripes, there are also a handful of Nicey Jane cotton solids -- which are batting their threads at me now, calling, "Sew with me, Heather. Forget that computer and run away with me."
In a couple of weeks, there will also be eight 58" wide laminated
cottons (similar to oil cloth, but light-weight and super-duper supple
-- must touch). I'm excited that the finish is light-weight enough to
be gathered. Once I finish up my stationery design work this month,
I'm going to sew up a Smarty Girl book bag with the laminated cotton and give a full report. I also have some raincoat plans and a kid's booster seat to make.
(I never did show off my birthday bicycle,
did I? Nicey is doing the job for me now. Yep, that's my
pinkity-pink-ol bike there. I never would have guessed I'd go for a
pink bike. Would have guessed orange. Or khaki. Or bright yellow. I
love it though. Wait till you see the bicycle saddlebags I'm planning
to make out of this print -- but in laminate. Oh yah.)
Back to the fabric, shall we?
The collection tells the story of small-town girl, Nicey Jane. Nicey
heads to the city on Friday nights to swing dance with her beau -- but
not before hanging the laundry to dry & enjoying an afternoon
picnic on the farm. The prints are named for Nicey's story: Hello
Roses, Hop Dot, Swing Toss, Wash-Day Ticking, Welcome Road, Picnic
Bouquet, Slim Dandy, Dream Dot, Church Flowers, Pocketbook, and Lindy
Leaf.
(The Lindy Hop is my mom's favorite dance. She tried to teach me some moves on the family room rug when I was little. Tried. The Lindy is dang-tricky.)
Now for dessert, a little Nicey Jane video. Be patient with the resolution; I uploaded this piece to YouTube instead of hosting it on my own site so it can be shared, embedded in other blogs, watched a gazillion times, etc. I have Isaac to thank for the wink -- you'll see.
For second dessert (what would a Hobbit
call a second dessert?), I believe I'm in the mood for a celebratory
giveaway. New fabric has arrrived -- and it's Christmas time -- a dangerous combination. So, three prizes! One $50 gift certificate and two $25 gift certificates to The Heather Bailey Store.
To enter, leave a comment. Tell us something fun, or interesting, or weird, or clever, or
something kind someone has done for you. Something like that. I do read all of the
comments. I'll go first (see comments).
Happy holidays, my friends. I'm off to stir some hot cocoa with a
candy cane and find myself a pair of slippers. It's cold outside.
I'm
off to Houston for Quilt Market. The stars have aligned. As such, I
am thrilled to debut a new feature fabric collection, a palette of
cotton solids and an assortment of delicious, laminated prints (my
samples arrived at the studio just yesterday). I also have several
fun, new sewing patterns to share (Henrietta is one of six new patterns).
If you're heading to Market
this weekend, stop on by booth #s 1957,59 for a hello -- and a first
peek at my upcoming collection, Nicey Jane™.
Bring smelling salts. These fabrics may cause fainting -- they're stinkin' gorgeous.
Such great feedback on the turtles!
It sounds like a lot of these names are making their way back into
fashion: Henrietta, Matilda, Penelope, Harriet, Eloise. How awesome
is that?!
Here in the studio, I have
a quilt in the works, several aprons, handbags, blankets,
basket-liners. It's like bathing in ice cream. Wait till you see what
I mean.
And let me just say that my
mother is a SAINT. She's doing more sewing than I am this week. I'm
juggling contracts left and right, interviews, booth plans, model
chasing (see yesterday's tweets), pattern covers, sample design -- that kind of stuff. All fun, but a juggle nonetheless. Thank heaven for mom!
Here it is, my live interview on NBC's Studio 5 in Salt Lake City. Catch a glimpse of my next mini pattern. Try not to glimpse the ribbon dangling from my shirt sleeve though.
Written instructions for the Pop Garden scrap flowers featured on the video can be found here. I had an incredible time in Utah this weekend. I met many fun entrepreneurs & was showered with some amazing presents -- necklaces, notecards, homemade games, tee-shirts, chocolate. The Sweet Tooth Fairy's Double Fudge Cake Bites made my night on Thursday. Imagine oreo-cookie-flavored cake with a truffle-chocolate shell. Yeah. Holy happiness, Batman.
I don't even know where to begin with all of the adventures
I went on this month. I may have to grant myself a
Get-Out-of-Jail-Free card and skip immediately past Go -- at least till
I'm caught up on some design projects.
This
weekend I went through the first round of strike-offs for my next
fabric collection. Gah! I normally wouldn't mention strike-offs
because, really, it will be months before the fabrics are available.
But, gah! They're gorgeous. I'm ready to fly over to the mill and
screen the prints myself if it will speed things up. I'm dying to sew
with this fabric.
See,
now I feel better, and you feel worse. Which is why I normally don't
say anything. But, that's what I'm working on today. And that's where
my brain is.
I'm also thinking about a giveaway to celebrate my blogiversary. It's been 3 years now. So, how does this sound for a prize?
Leave a comment, telling us what your first sewing project was -- or if
you don't sew, what your first sewing project might be -- or if you
don't plan to sew, why not!? Or your favorite remedy for puffy eyes.
I don't know, tell us something interesting. Or just say, 'Hi.' That
works too.
I'll let this go through Thursday night MST, then hand it over to the Random Number Generator for an edict.
I may hand out a couple of extra giveaways too. I tend to do that.
The photos? Some shots from my weekend in Pittsburgh. What a beautiful city!
I'm
back. I know I never mentioned that I was leaving, but you figured
that out, right? I spent a week in Houston at Quilt Market with my
sew-good friends. Laura,
Isaac's sister, flew in to assist me and we had more fun than two
people should on a business trip. I met Laura 16 years ago, when I
first met Isaac. We're two weeks apart in age and are good, good
friends. More on Laura later -- or earlier. She tends to pop into
posts regularly around here.
My new sewing patterns are now available wholesale to retailers.
We've built some amazing new systems to support our wholesale program,
including an online ordering system. We were at Market to introduce
that program and my sewing patterns to the sewing/quilting industry. I
can't say what a thrill it is to have such robust systems in place.
Now I can really go to town on design, while Tara and Rachel keep
order-delivery running smoothly.
I came home to the Halloween rush and a week of Fall activities. We
barely fit pumpkin-carving in for all of the parties and events going
on. However, carving your pumpkins on Halloween day does mean they're
fresh and spritely for trick-or-treating -- especially when the
weather's been in the mid-90s all week. My jack-o-lantern has
eyelashes and cheeks and Elijah gave his a friendly uni-brow.
I'm excited to be back. I've got my kids under my wing, my home
mostly back together and a mind full of projects to get started on.
So, guys! It sounds like Pop Garden & Bijoux are starting to
hit stores. Several shops have emailed me about how their phones are
ringing off the hook with calls from you blog-readers -- just pacing for these
fabrics. Nadine, from Material Girls Quilting in Utah, emailed me with
news that many of my fabrics were delivered today and that before she even had
them unpacked, one customer purchased 28 yards of Pop Garden
alone. Nadine says she's been receiving
several calls a day in anticipation of my new collections. I think I
might just have to make my way up there & meet these girls
sometime. Sounds like there's some wild-sewing taking place in South
Jordan, Utah.
I
can't say how important it is to support your neighbor- hood fabric
shops, like Nadine's. They are your best source for technical help,
for fabric & supplies, and for the cheerleading we all need to get
through our projects sometimes. Fabric and quilt shops are a great hub
for finding comradery with women who share the same interests as you,
and can help provide the community that we, as women, thrive on.
I've started a list of shops that will be carrying my new fabric collections. Free
Spirit doesn't have an easy way to deliver store info until after orders
have been shipped, so it will likely be another week or two before we
receive the full list of stores. If you have a local shop that's expecting my
fabrics, please drop us a note with their name, address, phone #, etc.,
so we can add them to the list. (The link is in my sidebar.) Who
knows, perhaps you'll discover a new shop in your area. I just recently found a
quilt shop near me that I had no idea was there.
Let me know about your favorite online stores as well! Have you
seen the collections for pre-sale anywhere else? With Freshcut, there
were a number of online stores allowing pre-orders.
Pop Garden & Bijoux are currently Free Spirit's best-selling
collections -- yes! As such, these fabrics shouldn't be too hard to
track down here soon. Not like Freshcut -- which is growing more &
more scarce now that it's no longer in production.
As soon as we're able to photograph some fat-quarter packs and
designer doses for the HB store, we're going to move the individual
fabric swatches of Pop Garden & Bijoux to a free-standing page for
project-planning and whatnot. Maybe I can get
Jenny B to teach me how to code the page so you can move the swatches
around -- wouldn't that be too cool? At that point, we'll only be
selling Freshcut by the yard and select combinations of Pop Garden
& Bijoux. I expect we should have those fat-quarter stacks in place by the end of next week.
Anyhow. I'm hoping a comprehensive store list will help address
those of you who have emailed about having a hard time finding what you
need. Please let us know who we're missing. Email storelist@heatherbailey.com.
We can always wait for the info from Free Spirit, but would love to get
the store list fleshed out sooner, if possible, so you'll know which
stores will have the collections here soon.
Introducing Pop Garden & Bijoux, my
new fabric collections for Free Spirit -- 'sister collections' to mix
& match. Click on the photo above for a fabulous & not-so-shy
preview of all of the prints in the combined collections.
Fresh
flowers in three playful palettes to keep your projects lively and your
sewing spirits high. Inspired by the first burst of Spring, Pop Garden
captures the energy of a garden in fresh bloom. Mix prints for a
custom bouquet of fabric. Lively & fresh --- you'll love these!
bi•jou[be-zhoo]; n. pl. bi•joux [French] 1. a jewel or a trinket 2. anything small and of elegant workmanship A
collection of "jewels or trinkets" to customize your bouquet of prints
and add a bit of sparkle. Designed with quilters & crafters in
mind, Bijoux presents a wide palette of small-scale, cut-able prints to
mix with today's modern, large-scale florals. a.k.a. "almost-solids,"
"mix-ins," "palette-builders," "pretty ditties," etc.
• • •Coming to Independent Fabric Stores -- End of July 2008• • • -- for wholesale information,click here--
And I've re-designed my blog -- it's a blogiversary tradition. But,
this time I had some serious fun & added all sorts of bells &
whistles. So, re-fresh your page or clear your cache if needed.
Here's hoping everything is in working order.
I'm feeling thankful this week -- just so grateful for the goodness
that exists in the world. My last attempt at a post (it was never
posted) sounded something like the Gettysburg Address. I can't decide
if it's powerful & poetic or just plain sappy, so it'll have to
wait. And, seeing as my blog has now turned two and I'm feeling gushy
& grateful -- well, I'm thinking a giveaway will suit the occasion. Three giveaways! What do you think?
This time I won't ask you to suffer through your embarrassing
stories or tell me a dumb joke (though you really should go have a read
through those horrifying stories & stupid jokes if you haven't already). Leave a
comment & I'll ask the random number generator for help in choosing. I wish I
could do a thousand giveaways. Wouldn't that be cool? Perhaps one day.
Each box will be a mish-mash of hoo-hahs & what-nots (good
ones), whatever I'm feeling like when I pack them up, but I'll be sure
to include your favorite color of Trash Ties, a new pincushion &
some Freshcut. I'll even include a precious couple of bits &
scraps from my own samples of Pop Garden & Bijoux (I only have a
small piece of each fabric until the first print run hits the states on
big barges next month).
Thank you for hanging around & for going out of your way to send
kind notes, leave thoughtful comments, & name my dogs. Thank you
for your friendship. I wish you all lived on my street & we met up
for play dates at the park or lunch on the town twice a week -- or we
could hang upside down from trees together & knit. I've always
wanted to try that. (Perhaps I should I explain that one, huh? -- I
had a dream once that I was hanging upside down with my legs hooked
over a tree limb & knitting -- some half-awake amalgamation of
childhood jungle-gym memories & a my love to make stuff. It was a
pleasant dream. Would be so much nicer with friends though ; )
So, I guess this post is now a fabric-release-, new-blog-look-, mushy-giveaway- extravaganza.
This will be an exciting next month. Lots of big debuts in June/July!
Have a hunt around my new links & see if you can discover some
previews of what we've been up to the last while & what's about to
pop. I'll feature the new fabric collections in more detail over the
next few weeks -- just needed to catch up with you guys first. I'm
back in the blog saddle now -- whoa, Nelly!
So, off I go to Portland! I'll be debuting two new fabric
collections which I'm absolutely itching to share with you. I'll be
back early next week with the full, colorful release. Then there's
some more big stuff in the month to follow. You'll see ; )
If you're heading to Quilt Market this week, come visit me at the Westminster/Free Spirit booth. I'll show you what I've been up to --
I didn't realize it until later, but "Random Debris" was a pretty
sad-sounding post title, huh? That wasn't my intention. We're doing
quite well for all of the hubbub. My dad's heart tests went well and
he was released from the hospital on his birthday - best present
possible. Home-cooked meal at our house & chocolate cake too.
Four family birthdays this week in fact, and one little baby girl on
her way. Lots of birthdays, lots of design projects, lots of catching
up, lots of Lotsa.
I'm heading out to North Carolina in the morning for Donna's big
shindig. Humorously, business trips seem to be my best chance to
relax. It's those long plane rides: sketchbook, embroidery,
audiobooks, iTune movies for my Nano. I'm all set. Watched a rental from iTunes on my way to the Country Living event last month. Pretty
cool. I just wish they'd give you longer than 24 hours to complete a
movie once you start watching it.
Last
shot of the day and it was remarkable we got anything as it was pretty
dark by that time. It looks like I'm kicking my leg up in a pose, but
I'm really just keeping my balance. Isaac says this adds to the
50s-postcard-feeling we've got going on here - happy girl in skirt
packing licorice-laden picnic into outrageously-fabulous orange truck.
Sounds good to me.
This is the parting shot from an 8-page feature in the current Mary
Engelbreit's Home Companion magazine. The April/May 2008 issue just
hit news stands this week. To help answer questions about the article
& to help keep up with all of the new visitors popping in (Hello
friends!), I've put together some information about the projects &
patterns featured in the article. Here's a link to that info page.
And congrats to my talented husband for a beautiful cover!
Home Companion is an amazing magazine. If you've never picked up a copy before, do it! You'll think, "Dang-shoot, I've been missing out!" Then you just might have to track down all of the previous issues & catch up.
There's also a little spot about my blog in the March issue of Creating
Keepsakes magazine. A few of the editors from the magazine approached
me at The Cheesecake Factory while I was in Anaheim a couple of weeks
ago. They handed me an issue of the magazine and said," Well, I guess this was
fortuitous timing! Congrats on your new scrapbook collection." Odd to
be spotted in public, but kinda fun too. And the paper-craft crowd
seems just as fabulous as the fabric crowd; cool ladies having
all-together too much fun (well, mostly ladies). Oh to get invited on
a trip to Italy; it seems paper-crafters know how to go all-out!
Enough
about TV and movies, right? Can anyone tell I've had buttoned lips
(for forever it seems)? At last, here's something I can show, my new
Freshcut logo.
And you'll notice, there's the official HB logo up there too. That
was a long time in the works. Or I should say that I was effectively
putting off that task for a long time. Defining yourself in type is
surprisingly tricky.
Are you an all-caps kind of girl or scrolly & silly? Modern?
Vintage? Modern & vintage? Romantic? Floofy? Straight-forward?
And when you've answered these sorts of questions, then you have to
figure out how to translate that personality into type.
Kinda fun too. Fun enough to do again.
So, what's the new Freshcut logo for? Hmmm. Well, that I'm hoping to announce next week.
There are lots of ways of dealing with the aftermath of Halloween
-- the candy. Isaac and I let our kids have at it for a couple of days
and then get rid of what's left. I have some friends who stage it out,
dishing one candy per day
for who-knows-how-long. Then there's the pick-out- your-favorite-insert # here-
pieces method. Makes for a good alternate discussion topic amongst
mommies when you've already memorized everyone's birth stories!
Ok, being a bit sarcastic, yes. We have plenty of other things to
talk about than birth and candy! In fact, we didn't discuss birth or
candy at all last weekend in Houston. Oh wait, I did hear how Anna's fourth baby was her most difficult delivery. But beyond that brief interlude, it was all art and schoolmarms.
I probably had too much fun at Market. My next fabric line didn't
quite make it in time to be released this Market, so I was free to hang
out as I pleased.
I met some new friends and some old ones too. If you haven't seen Liesl's new company,
go take a peek! My gush over her paper dolls was a bit embarrassing in
hindsight. I even ran to get my sketchbook to show her all the paper
dolls I've been sketching. Just to prove, "You see, I'm not just
saying that I'm excited about your paper dolls! I really am." Ridiculous. Liesl, forgive me. And what a sweetheart and smart. She's really got things together.
Hmmm. I don't know that I'm up for listing everyone
this time. The list keeps getting longer. I'd rather just report my
embarrassing moments : ) I was a bit sleep deprived and shouldn't have
been in a professional setting that last day. Nothing horrible... I
just get a little too excited about things like thread and Japanese
fabric, you see. I've got to chill.
I figure I now have six months to rest up for before Portland (yah, right). My eyes and my stomach are set on this chocolate palace for an evening escape.
Had the best time showing Laura around too! So fun.
And yes, there were plenty of perfectly polite, well-mannered, calm
conversations as well. I've just got to get more sleep next time!
New bells & whistles -- ever-changing selection of photos from
my Flickr groups in the side bar. Every time you refresh the page,
there's a new selection of goodies. (It's been a couple of weeks since
I added them, but you know.)
I'm so impressed with the hundreds of projects you guys have posted
-- and such an amazing variety at that! Scroll down a bit and you'll
see links to each of these Flickr groups: Freshcut & fabulous!,
Hooray for Headbands, and Bitty Booties. I mentioned the impressive
Bitty Booties pool once before, but haven't mentioned any of them
nearly enough, especially the Freshcut & fabulous! pool. Hundreds
& hundreds of amazing projects: quilts, clothing, purses, piggies,
dog collars, you name it.
If you're looking for a spark of inspiration, click on the mosaic
above or follow this link. And, of course, if you haven't already,
join the group (it's free) and add your own photos to the pool. Jump
in, the water's nice.
I so need to pop my head in here. Hello. Hello. Hi. I'm still kickin', still alive.
I'm making about 75 kits for my hands-on class in Florida, hence the plump
fabric rolls. I'm putting the finishing touches on the sewing pattern
for the kits as well (getting closer to publishing). Then there's the
style guides for Trash Ties and their cute little pink boxes, Trash
Ties booth design, brochure, order forms, press release, press kits,
etc. Are you spinning with me yet?
Once those things are taken care of, it's back to outlining my 3
other lecture/classes for Florida and putting together all necessary
visuals, handouts and fun surprises for those classes. All of this by
Monday morning when my plane takes off. I'll be back at the end of
next week for one day before heading out to Vegas to introduce Trash
Ties to the beauty industry.
Come July 18th, I can jump off the treadmill for a couple of weeks -
squeeze my kids extra, make real food for dinner and paint a room or
something -- shake things up. I have a gaggle of family (including Laura - yay!) coming to town
at the beginning of August and I couldn't be more excited to play,
play, play!
It's official. Trash Ties is moving forward. Afterall, we now have shirts.* What's more official than that?
Tuesday was a big day. Big day! I shipped out my fabric designs
(see that mysterious tube down there) and we finished up the design of
our Trash Ties boxes (which required a big two-day photoshoot last week
-- a different one -- things were just too hectic to blog). It was an all-nighter
for me on Monday to get both
projects out the door on time. I really need to cut that out! It's
been absolutely crazy around here. I did go to bed at 8pm last night
though -- oh so nice.
Today was several hours of forgiveness cleaning, followed by
booth design & some shopping with a friend. It was nice to get out of the studio for a
bit. It's been a long, hard push these last few weeks. I'll take
cleaning and more work (but different work) as my break for now. I'm
tough. And I did pick up some more straws -- you know how I feel about straws : )
We should have the beginnings of a Trash Ties website up soon? and I promise to reveal all. It'll be good for me to record
some of my experiences there. It's been an interesting and colorful
adventure -- and likely to get even more so.
I think I just might sneak out to a movie one of these nights though -- shhh.
Across
the country and back again in one day plus. I had just enough time
outdoors to snap a photo of this dancing flower outside the
Philadelphia airport. It's got some serious moves -- the same sort of
joyfulness I was going for with the mum print below. I was happy to
see that flowers break-dance in nature the way they do in my
imagination.
I had the limo driver take this other picture. Look at that lush green
grass and those trees. Those trees! I should have packed a picnic and
a good book.
I had a great time, though. Pennsylvania was green and friendly.
The historical buildings and countryside farms on the East -- they
drive me batty -- love the details and the stories. I did, however,
make it safely past the rental car booths and onto my engagement.
Here's a true find. Who starts their own shoe
company? Amazing.
These polkadotties are all Carrie Miner's doing.
They're called Puddle Jumpers. Carrie is a single mom of two adopted
daughters from China. She runs her shoe business out of Utah and has
an incredible story. We spoke on the phone a few weeks back and I was
so impressed. If your daughter/niece/ grandaughter isn't sporting
polkadot mary janes yet, then it's about time, don't you think? Wow.
And Adorn. Boy am I late on this one. You guys have been telling
me for weeks to go check out the Summer 07 issue of Adorn for a happy
Freshcut™ surprise. You were right. They did an article where four
designers interpretted the same bag pattern, all using my fabrics. And
look, designer No. 4 was none other than the fabulous Ms.
Congdon. Lisa, is this the project you emailed me
about a while back? Wow, so look at all those fabrics there and I
didn't even do the sewing. Yes, this issue's still on newstands -- great magazine, by the way.
Yay! I did it. Live TV. Of course, I forgot to bring a camera, so all I have is this goofball shot from my cell phone. But, hey, it works. They already have the segment up on the internet. Now you guys can see how tired I look from many near-all-nighters this week (fabrics, fabrics, fabrics).
I was their featured "mom-preneur." The set was surprisingly mellow and everything was easy-peasy. I've always loved the hubbub of film and tv. I wanted to get in there and start wheeling cameras around, then have my shot at that teleprompter. How do those things work, anyhow? Fun, fun.
So here's what to do. Follow this link and then look for the scroll-box on the right. Select the clip called, "5/15 Sonoran Living Segment 5." And there I am. Then, come back and shout, "Huzzah!"
Go easy on me. xo--Heather
5/19 Update: It looks like the video is now offline. I'll contact the station and see if there's any way to post it directly on my blog. I'll let you know if I hear anything.
5/25 Update: Oh, look, it's still on ABC's server. Here's the link.
This is my favorite bouquet of all time -- peonies with those yellow ball- thingies mixed in. When I left town, the peonies were electric pink. Now they're a romantic white. I hope I age as gracefully.
I had a blast at Quilt Market. I met up with my new Westminster family and was charmed by their vision for Free Spirit. Days were packed with new friends and big discussions. Evenings were busy with fancy dinners, even bigger discussions and a peppering of giggles.
Ms. Purl, Joelle Hoverson, has a book on the way - watch out! Amy's having bags made. Anna's in the rug business. Sandi's getting fabric going. Lots of energy. And, thank heaven for that, as I slept a total of 10 hours over three nights. Yikes.
I'm glad to be home, on the other side of a long string of commitments, de-mucking from the photoshoot and gathering strength for a final push on my next fabric line. I am amazed and honored by the enthusiasm I received from sales reps, quilt shops and sewers this weekend. I guess there were a few months there where Freshcut was hard to get. The transition to Westminster threw a few kinks in the system and a majority of shops who ordered Freshcut months ago are just now receiving the line. So much newness and excitement.
In fact, in one wave of gittiness, wrapping quilts around ourselves and posing for snapshots, we knocked over a heavy wooden pillar which clocked me in the foot. How does a quarter-inch wound yield a 5" bruise? Ah, the mysteries of life.
Looking at that photo of Charlotte playing with her kitty doll (in my last post) reminded me of the treasure trove of Freshcut projects I haven't shown you yet. Last October, when my sample fabric came in, I went into a creative frenzy and made up all kinds of fun projects to photograph for an inspiration book. I kept the photos aside for a bit, hoping to put together an amazing website with all-new photography. But, seeing as it's been nearly six whole months and my website is still on the backburner, why wait any longer?
So, here's the quick little kitty who dreams of birdies - orange ones. This ruffled blankie is pre-doll-quilt-craze of '07. The weekend I made this, I was miserably sick with Strep and could barely move. The design of the quilt (being mainly applique) was majorly determined by my need to remain on the couch and my inability to pull myself up to the sewing machine. The birdies hearken back to the ones I began to stitch on this blanket, but haven't shown you yet either (they don't have eyes yet). Terrible, I know. I confess all.
But there's hope. I made up two more doll quilts last weekend at the impassioned request of my good friend's daughters. I needed a break and doll blankies did the trick. My point? I figured I better show the original birdie blankie before posting its derivatives. Isn't it tweet? (Love those orange roses on the bed too.)
The CEO of SVP (Singer Viking Pfaff, I think) Sewing Machines gave Martha an apron made from my groovy floral fabric (to the right) and my crest design (in this strawberry photo). I was on the road to L.A. when it aired, but thanks to several early-morning emails from the East coast, I had it recorded. They didn't mention my name or anything, so it's really not such a big deal. Just a bit fun.
Of course, if I had posted about this yesterday, you could have seen the video on Martha's site, but it looks like it got bumped today. Ah well, April 3rd was a whole three days ago, after all.
Update: The video does still exist. Here's the link. It's the segment called, "Sewing Machines."
Another Update: This just in... Jay Leno's doing a spoof on the Martha Stewart apron segment on The Tonight Show this evening (Monday, April 9th). If you're on the west coast, you should still be able to catch it.
One More: The Jay Leno bit was a hoot. They digitally swapped out the apron's print for a woman's silhouette in lingerie. Can't find it on YouTube for you, but the whole monologue can be picked up on iTunes.
We made it through the dentist appointment. And though I'm utterly bewildered, it seems that Charlotte's already "over it" and has moved on. Teeth, no teeth -- whatever.
And, yes, they were both removed. Well, mostly. One tooth was already so broken-up that the root stayed put. Her gums will grow over it, preventing infection. The root will eventually dissolve or get bulldozed-on-up by her future tooth. It took three bouts of restraint - xrays, numbing routine & extraction - just gentle hands, no straps - and each only lasted about a minute. Only a minute! Yes, I'm still a bit mortified, but relieved that it wasn't worse. Thank you for your love and concern. It's amazing how many of you have endured the same disgrace. We'll see how we fare over time -- I'm sure we'll adjust, as so many of you have. Still sad, though.
I'm heading out to L.A. again. Just for one day. But, before I go, I've got to spread the good word on an exciting and extremely flattering event taking place on eBay this week. The Material Girls Boutique Group on eBay is heading up a "launch" of mostly childrenswear all made with or inspired by my Freshcut fabric collection. To browse their creations, visit eBay and search these terms: "materialgirls FC".
I can't say what a treat it is for me to see such a variety of playful ideas spring from my artwork. Go take a peek. And if you ever hear the term "launch" come up in regards to eBay again, you'll know what one looks like. That's more than I could say a few weeks ago. Those eBay gals know how to have fun.
Well, here it is. This is where I spend my days, The Sugar Shop.
I picked up the bookshelf at a local antique store for $150. It was poorly white-washed, with gobs of butter-yellow paint slathered on the details. Isaac re-finished it for me and built the base for it to rest on. Yep, that's right. He built that footed, four-door cabinet-base up there. It now has a gently-distressed cream finish -- far better.
I store my art supplies, sewing notions and wool felt in there. The yellow boxes above hold less-frequently-used items, like velcro and grommets, linoleum blocks for stamp- carving, elastic and cording.
In fact, I have Isaac to thank for most of the other furniture as well. He not only built the cabinet, but the computer table, sewing tabletop and shelves as well. And, of course, there's the green chandelier and the turquoise mirror you know all about.
The pink walls are subtley mottled with bit of cream and a splash of funky metallic gold here and there. The large frame resting on the ribbon shelf is decorated with Isaac's grandmother's old sewing notions, and it's covered -- a fun piece to study.
A row of red-lidded jars above the computer table houses most of my ribbons. And my buttons and whatnots are tucked away in the happy green drawers on my sewing table.
The tall green work-island has a ton of storage, with cabinets and drawers on each side. I brought this piece home last summer as a solution to The Shuffle Kerfuffle. I store my sketchbooks and rulers in one drawer and keep the other drawers sacred for quick clean-ups. (Translation: they're messy-full of random un-finished projects.) These cabinets contain art papers, zippers, vintage linens, interfacings, unfinished quilt-tops and stationery.
Toss a few of my favorite things into the room, and I'm right at home: pink floral pitcher, tacky 70s apple tin, vintage red floral trays, crocheted monkey, ornate cookie tins, photos of my babies. Are you playing I Spy yet? Let's see, what else: pink toy sewing machine, antique wooden spools, gold velvet chair and a tissue-paper corsage from my son. My studio.
I thought I'd break up the long train of toys (see last three posts) with a fun little pincushion. Does anyone remember the flouncy bouncer saga and thereby neglected pincushion design? That was seven months ago. This little pincushion has remained in my cabinet since then, sewn, stuffed and tufted. All it needed was a button -- poor little pincushion. And, as luck would have it, I had just enough crafting time today to sew on a button -- so here she is, neglected no more.
I've got a friend I've been meaning to send this to -- the only blogger who knew what I was up to with Free Spirit last year (before I started my blog). If you're reading this, Amy, thanks for the happy email breaks during last year's fabric marathon. The pincushion's on its way next week : )
For the rest of you'uns, I'm posting some goofy photos I sent to her mid-process (showing Freshcut in the works). But I am in PJs, so be warned. Oh, and they're terrible pictures - they were taken with the built-in camera on my computer around midnight - no light. You might have to click on them to see what's on those papers - eek. That email was sent January 5, 2006. Here's what it said. That was twelve months ago.
As for today, I've been informed that a couple of comments have disappeared recently. At least two. So, if you've noticed that your comments haven't stuck around, please don't be offended. The only comments I've ever erased are the occassional duplicates. Typepad was down a couple of days ago and is likely the cause. I'll send them a note and see if they have any more info. Otherwise, be sure to hang around to type in the security code after you've commented. I know that I forget that step sometimes and have had to go back in and reconstruct my thoughts.
And, again, thank you for each and every comment. Such a treat! I don't have time to respond to each one individually, but I try to answer questions as much as possible and leave comments on your fabulous blogs. If you have a question that I haven't responded to yet, please feel free to send me another email. I'm working on putting up a website with some f.a.q.s to help in some cases.
Hi! I'm Heather Bailey, a fabric and lifestyle designer, an inventor, and a mother of three amazing kids. I love to create. Need to create. And I'm spreading the word on how fulfilling and necessary creativity is to the human soul. Love & nurture your family, be true & honest with your friends and make good stuff -- three necessary ingredients for a happy & beautiful life.
This, here, is my personal blog.
