HELLOmynameisHeather

Shredded

I just counted and we own a total of 13 rolling office chairs.  That's a lot of office chairs.  Of course, the one I prefer at the moment is shredded and hideous.  It's the ugliest chair of the bunch.

My neck and arm are all out-of-whack from trotting all over NYC with two heavy bags.  This chair holds me together best.  It's a bit out-of-place in my studio though.  So, today, I'm slip-covering it. 

No big style-ambition this time.  I'll be glad to take it from hideous to mediocre.

Yep, that's exposed foam in the back there.

Dark Chocolate, Light Sewing

I'm back from a delicious weekend away.  After my collection shipped off to the mill, Isaac treated me to a stay at a local resort where I slept in, swam laps, ate out, and shopped all evening - both days.  It was bliss.

Now, I'm onto the next wave of things, which involves some significant sewing - hallelujah.  I'm making 7 mystery projects for the cover of a upcoming pattern.

And, as we're mid-stream in setting up a new computer for me, I've got my sewing machine and current computer stacked on one table.  There are serious acrobatics involved in getting to my keyboard just now.  I can't be bothered to set up a separate table for my computer;  I'd rather stretch and hurdle.  This way I can sew, blog, sew, tweet, sew, and so on.

I'm getting my sewjo back -- and cuddling up to my kids, my dogs, my chocolate stash, & this here blog.  Feels good. 

Confucius say:  Beware the clearance Easter candy row at Target.

Flirty Skirt, Dirty Dirt

My friend, Jill, has two cute little girls and she always has them dolled up to the nines.  (And she's the best hair-bow-maker around -- a new bow for every outfit.)  Jill watched Charlotte a couple of times a week last year.  During that time her girls became like sisters to Charlotte -- and Jill really did a great job of keeping them all busy and entertained with swimming, carousel-ing, park-time, etc.  So, as a heart-felt thank you to Jill, I designed her girls some matching, skirty outfits.

The tee shirts -- Talk about a high impact-to-effort ratio, decorating tee-shirts can be easy-peasy.  I fused floral elements from my Rose Bouquet print from Pop Garden to each store-bought tee shirt using fusible web.  I then stitched around the edges of each fused piece (with a ball-point needle installed in my machine to prevent holes from forming in the knit material.)  There are at least three or four flowers in this print that make perfect appliques. 

The two skirts -- I had a lot of fun putting the fabric combinations together.  I wanted them to match each other, but not really match.  I didn't draft a pattern as they're just sewn from various rectangles.  I probably should have jotted down some measurements as I went.  However, my friend Jona does have pattern for a similar skirt all ready to go - The Edith Twirl.  (Check out the embroidery on those Edith under-skirts.)

The floral print in the skirt above is probably my favorite print from Pop Garden.  It's soft and romantic, yet electric and sassy.  And the ziggity Zag Stripe to the right is entirely too fun to sew with.  I still need to bind a quilt in this print and see what it does. Fussy-cut quilt blocks made with this fabric could result in some interesting effects too.  More sewing, more sewing.

I'm not sure if I scratched that dern sewing itch well enough with this one project, but I expect to do more sewing once my next fabric collection is off to the mill here soon. And OH, it's pretty.  And sweet.  Sweet and pretty.  That's all I'm going to say.  Like that housekeeper-lady says in The Parent Trap, "I'm not saying a word."

What else, what else?  OH!  I should have mentioned this first -- yikes.  Tara's baby girl, Grace, was born this week!!  And she's stinkin' beautiful.  Which is really unfair to the other bruised, swollen newborns in the nursery.  I mean, come on -- tilting, exotic eyes, high cheekbones, a perfectly-shaped head covered with beautiful, dark hair.  At three weeks early, we were only caught slightly off-guard.  Isaac's been phone-interviewing for a new Office Assitant this week and then final interviews are next week.  Tara will be back in a few months in a new position.  We'll miss her while she's away smooching on that sweet, new baby.

We're really overlapping about five or six projects at the moment.  And as I'm not so great at falling asleep when I'm excited about a project - or six projects, imagine my self-satisfaction at rolling out of bed on time this morning for my 8 o'clock tap class -- jazz hands!  : )

And then there's the yard.  Wednesday was Fill-the-Raised-Garden-with-Dirt Day.  Thursday was Move-the-Big-Rocks-Around Day.  (Isaac might as well have been at Disneyland.  He wouldn't climb down from that bulldozer for anything.)  Yesterday was Rake-the-Dirt-All-Smooth Day.  And today has been Form-the-Perfectly-Curved-Curbing Day.  Isaac's ready to move onto Install-the-Five-Valve-Sprinkler-System Day, but I'm entirely ready for a break, so we've pacted to give ourselves a week of Avoid-the-Yardwork-Alltogether Days so we can celebrate Get-Back-to-What-We-Should-Have-Been-Doing Day - which may evolve into a week-long celebration in the end.

And I'm looking to do March of the Tools again this year.  One more day till March.  There are a number of gizmos, gadgets, thing-a-majigs and who-z-whatzits I'm excited to share.  I'll have the badge back up in my sidebar later today.  I'd love for you to join me - yes, please join me.  Infact, email me to let me know you're doing March of the Tools too and I'll post a link to your blog on the March of the Tools page so we can all see who is playing along and get some leads on new, must-have tools.

Red, Green & Golden Delicious

Wait a minute.  I haven't ever shown the apple pincushion that comes in the Fresh Picked Pincushions sewing pattern.  What's up with that?  The apple is certainly worthy of the pincushion parade that tromped through my blog last summer.

Look, here's a mob of spirited green apples having a parade of their own. Carrying their champion on their shoulders, they chant "Teacher oh so bright & lofty, here's an apple, sweet & softy," "Apple, Granny, sweet & tart, thanks for making me so smart," and "Macintosh, Gravenstein, Gra-nny Smith, 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, fifth!"  Sounds like they're suggesting sewn apples as holiday teacher gifts this year.  I'm thinking I agree with the apples (though they could certainly use some slogan suggestions.)

Maybe something more scholastic:  "How many apples make a pi(e)? Three point one four -- one five!"

Oh my, there goes one rowdy fellow shouting, "Apples are red, apples are green, here's my gift, although you're mean."  What a rotten thing to say.

I could go on, but one more bad slogan might spoil the bunch.

Emergency Velvet

So, it was late.  Too late for shopping.  Too late for humans to be awake, really.  And though I have a broad assortment of felts, I just couldn't find ones that worked well as stems on my latest pincushions. So look what I discovered in my bleary-eyed desperation -- 1.5" wide velvet ribbon works too. 

I've been hoarding this emerald green piece for a few years now.  I had meant to use it in my hair for a Scarlet O'Hara moment, but I don't have the wardrobe for that kind of sass.  It also reminds me of the hat Rhett bought for her -- the one she puts on upside-down. Anyhow.

Prepping for Market again.  We're just about ready to launch our wholesale program.  Should be this week.  This means you'll soon be able to find my patterns and other upcoming whatnots at your local stores - yay!  We'll be at the Westminster/Free Spirit booth throughout Market, so tell your local store-owners to come find us there and we'll get them all set up.  If you're a retailer who has emailed us about pattern-purchasing, expect an email within the week with details on how to place an order.  We've had to construct policies, protocols and a website, set up emails, get all of the appropriate record-keeping systems in place, etc, etc. We're just about there.  If you have any questions about wholesale, email info@HeatherBaileyWholesale.com. 

Okay, so while we were in Cottonwood, I picked up a new pair of scissors.  They're Hon brand and they're pretty great.  Even the very tippy-tip of the scissors cuts well. They're not as pretty as Ginghers, but I'm thinkin I like them too.  Anyone familiar with this brand? 

Square Deal

Some of you may remember this pattern from last summer.  I wrote up the directions for one of Better Homes & Gardens' magazines.  Well, today I have it all formatted for you as a free pattern download.  If you downloaded it from BHG's site before, please replace your copy with this new one as their pdf was sizing the pattern pieces all funky from what I heard. 

Come to think of it, I reformatted a couple of the other free patterns in my sidebar long about last January.  I don't believe I mentioned it back then.  Many of you already have the new versions, but if you downloaded the headband pattern or the Freshcut quilt pattern when they were first posted, you might want to download them again for a spruced up version.

...just a fun lil' somefin'.

Every sewer should have a cute pincushion -- or several cute pincushions if you ask me.  Follow this link to download the Square Deal pincushion pattern, or click on the photo below.

Been having sweet times with the kids lately.  With summer break just about over here, Elijah & I are trying to wrap up Inkheart, which we've been reading off & on since summer began.  It's well-written & interesting, but slow-to-action.  True, that could be somewhat due to our intermittent reading schedule. We've also purchased The Deathly Hallows on cd.  Isaac's mid-way through loading the cds into iTunes, but we've caught up to him and are content with the immediacy of listening by cd for now. - - - Wow, that JK Rowling.  What can I say?   She really gets it, every nuance.  Friendship, temptation, imperfection, heroism, humor, struggle, tragedy, triumph, loyalty, love, purpose, and human nature.  She is truly inspired.

On the book front, I also had the pleasure of meeting J.S. Lewis a couple of months back at a writer's conference I attended with my mother (my mom's a talented writer -- I'll have to sneak one her poems or stories onto my blog sometime so you can see).  He is a quippy, sarcastic, funny guy (best presentation there).  Elijah whipped right through Revenge of the Shadow King and is hoping to get the other volumes soon.  J.S. sketched out a gargoyle for Elijah on the inside cover. Now how cool is that.

Charlotte's still in princess mode and she has become a champion knot-tyer.  Every day she re-decorates the banisters with interlaced ribbon in preparation for The Royal Birthday Party.  I've lost track of just how old I am now that I've celebrated several birthdays a day for weeks.  Presents wrapped in fabric, party hats, cake (the ribbon loop is the candle we must blow out & each ring is a slice we must pretend to eat).  It's very involved. 

We're having a good time.

I always dread the start of the school year though, when our family schedule tightens up and our son is gone all day.  We love Elijah's school, but why can't the school day be 4 or 5 hours long, max? Someone should start a charter school with more sane hours, so kids can spend more time with their families during the week.  Has anyone heard of such a thing?  Home-schooling isn't the best match for Elijah.  He thrives on daily interaction with other kids (and teachers) and we haven't ended up with enough kids in our family to satisfy that social thing.  Where's the happy medium?   Volunteering at school has always helped.

You know, that's it -- I'm doing more of that this year.  Before Charlotte was born, I was helping at the school every week.  Elijah just loved it & I miss it.  So there we are.

Oh Yes, The Class...

Before things get even crazier around here, I must report that the pincushion class was fantastic fun.  Everyone received a bag full of goodies, including kits for a red strawberry & a velvety, pink one.  There were laminated recipe cards, strawberry-shaped needlebooks, and fruit pincushion patterns to boot. Two students even flew in from across the country to take my class. With less than a week's notice, they were signed up and on their ways from Pittsburgh & Fort Worth!  Now that's spontaneous -- and entirely flattering.  Hi Katri & Ruth!

To see more photos and read my post on the class, click here.

Pincushion Class - June 28th

What an awesome response -- thank you all for your enthusiastic feedback on my new fabric collections.  I'm thrilled to release them; it's painful to keep such an exciting secret to myself for so long.  I'm going to keep the contest going through the weekend so everyone will get a chance to participate, so expect news on the winners come Monday or so.

And yes, I'm back in the blog saddle again, as promised.  I have tons of things to post about these days, one of which is the class I'm teaching next weekend at Blissful Living Studio (part of Domestic Bliss).  We're going to have a summery, pincushion-y, strawberry-y fun-fest, making luscious, velvet strawberry pincushions, chatting with girlfriends & sharing my favorite Strawberry Pretzel Dessert ice cream (homemade!) -- recipe coming up next. 

The class includes a pattern for a pear, an apple, a tomato & two strawberry pincushions (yes, my pear design now has friends -- and they'll all be available in the same sewing pattern in the next couple of weeks).  I'll bring the supplies for making our strawberry pincushions -- and I'll bring the ice cream.  While everyone's busy stitching away on their strawberries, I'll go over the instructions for making the other fruit pincushions included in the pattern.

Kristin has an amazing talent for putting events together.  I'm pretty sure she has some other fun flourishes to add to the class as well. We'll have a good time. 

So, if you're in the area & would like to attend, contact Blissful Living & sign up.  Here's their adorable invitation.

I'll see you there.

-- & a link to the Blissful Living blog --

Immunity?

I went out of town for most of two weeks and came back to a backlog of everything.  We did kick off summer with an awesome day in the rain at Disneyland (lots of rain, but that was kind of fun -- no complaints).   

At home, we've had puppies to train, more summer plans to secure, patterns to complete (THAT'S RIGHT -- I have four patterns written -- they're out with pattern testers).  I figured I could secure myself some absent-blogger immunity with that news.  Granted?  Say yes.  They should be available before the month is over.

Then I sat down yesterday with the goal to post a preview of my two new fabric collections, but my computer kept crashing -- probably a dozen times.  I finally gave up & decided to embroider something -- on the couch -- I hardly ever make my way to the couch.  (Have I mentioned how much I love to embroider?  It's like coloring in slow motion -- very soothing -- great for when your computer is on the fritz.)  Now I'm set up on a different computer & back to assembling images for that fabric preview.  Just popping in for a Hello. 

Hello.

Les Machines

Found my card reader.  And I'm doing what I can to hop back on the tool train too.  I receive regular requests for sewing machine recommendations, but am a little shy about recommending a starter sewing machine as I've been entirely spoiled on the sewing machine front and haven't had to shop for a starter sewing machine for, well two decades almost & I'm not that old!   

I have three sewing machines and two sergers.  My newest machine is a Bernina Artista 640.  The coolest thing about this one is that I can design embroideries on my computer & then stitch them out at will. Of course, I confess, I've only done this once so far.  But that's because I've been designing more than sewing in recent months. (Isaac wrote an article for Sew News about how to interface with these machines if you're a Mac user & not on PCs. The embroidery I designed for that article is available as a free download in my sidebar under "Free Embroidery File.")  Anyhow, I'm not up to a comprehensive, statistical review, but I can say that Berninas are a very pleasant machine to sew on.

Speaking of Berninas -- Quick story -- Partway through my Apparel Design degree our workshop space was re-outfitted with an army of new Bernina 1620s.  Reading through the manual late one night (many all-nighters were pulled at school - Project Runway pretty much wraps up the experience), there was a mention of 'memorized buttonholes,' but the instructions weren't clear what exactly those were or how to set the machine to do it.  Oh, but the idea of 'memorized buttonholes!'  I proceeded to poke & prod & tap out all manner of button sequences before I was successful.  I think it took me an hour or so to break the code.  Completely worth it!  And, of course, I got to be Santa Claus the next day showing my friends that new technology.  We all took a renewed interest in buttons that season.

Anyhow... sewing with a quality machine is really important, especially if you're new to sewing.  I've taught many people to sew who were originally convinced they were stinky sewers.  In every case I recall, it was their cheapy cheap sewing machines taunting them. The machines would lock up & the threads would get all tangled.  Hands in the air, "I stink!" I'd re-thread the machine & get them going again, only for the machine to grunt & groan once more.  "My friend, it's your machine that stinks!  Here, try mine."  "Oh, hmmm, maybe I can sew."  Yes, I've witnessed this many times.

Of course, you don't need that Cadillac up there in order to be successful either.  Most new sewers should look for a machine with a straight stitch, a zig-zag stitch, buttonhole capability, back-stitch button, ability to change needle position, interchangeable feet, etc. But go with one of the better brands.  (Can't say just which models though as I haven't researched any of this lately.)  Get a good quality machine so you're more likely to succeed & to like yourself as a sewer.

Otherwise, just know that if you're learning to sew with a $50 machine from the drugstore that half of your sewing battles are not your fault.  Blame the machine.  That works too.  And don't give up sewing!

My other machines...
• Viking #1+ Sewing Machine - Not as new as the Artista 640, so it's not in prime position anymore, but I still like this machine a lot.  This is the machine I take out when a friend comes over to sew.  And I like to do buttonholes on this one too (out of familiarity, I think).
• Bernina 840 Sewing Machine - Old machine.  It was old when I got it too.  But it has metal parts! And everyone I've ever heard discuss this machine has given it the - same - exact - nickname -, "workhorse," which really weirds me out. I've lent this machine out to many friends who were learning to sew. And this is the machine I do all of my upholstery and slip-cover sewing on.  It's not an industrial machine, but it's tough.
• Bernina 2500 DCET Serger - Haven't mastered this one yet, but it does all of those cool hem stitches for sewing with knits.  I like to keep this one set on a cover stitch and use my other serger for overlock, so I don't have to switch the threading around too much.  See, totally spoiled.
• Bernette 234 Serger - I love this serger. Just a good, straight-forward machine that's easy to troubleshoot.  Perhaps its our history though.  Loyalty.  I bought this one used.  It was the summer I turned 20.  I had already survived one fashion show in college (huge collection, one-of-a-kind hand-sweaters too, so tiring!) & I knew I'd be putting together another collection the following year.  This serger was my ticket to sewing at home & pulling fewer all-nighters at school (yes, those were crazy-fun, but I was newly-married & trying to be more sensible). It was $200 or $250 at the time, which was about as much as we paid in rent, but neither of us flinched.  It was a good call.

So, those are my machines, a couple of which came as presents from my generous MIL who opted to be paid in machines in exchange for design work (machine embroidery, I think) over the years .  She's just about outfitted all of her daughters with top-of-the-line machines now.  Ridiculously fabulous & indulgent pursuit, don't you think?  Yes, there were times when my sewing machine was worth more than my car.  Not the nicest cars back then though.   

I'll take some photos of my other machines & mix them into this post later this week to break up all this text. I could probably go on, but I'm actually sewing today & am anxious to get back to it.  I'll upload some N.Carolina photos for next time too.

Free Download!

So, look what I found!, a download of the pincushion pattern I wrote for Better Homes & Gardens' Quilts & More. I've probably had over four dozen requests for this pattern in my inbox, but am under contract to not release it for a few months.  I had no idea it was up on their site and available all of this time.

I'm not sure how much longer they'll have it posted, so go get a copy.

Fun little stocking stuffer!

The Mermaid

Pure elation!  Do you see it?  And I thought I'd have a little pirate girl, or a piggy, or a little cardboard robot girl with a polka-dot bow.  No, Charlotte was very clear that she wanted to be a mermaid.  And somehow the timing worked out well this year, so I went all out!

I created the tail texture by running gathering stitches in a fanned-out pattern.  Huge relief that it worked as planned!  The skirt is supposed to be the ocean, but I didn't quite get to the seaweed and fish I had in mind.  I love the color variegation there though - makes for great interpretive water.

I made a removable plastic sleeve for the fin so Charlotte could enjoy her Halloween without being barked at about dragging her tail.  It worked out swimmingly -- though the tail stayed off the ground anyhow as she pranced around in just about the same pose as you see in this photo. Crazy cute!

I drafted the pattern for the bodice and went a bit nuts with ruffles and trim.  At one place in the sleeve seam there's something like 12 layers (a couple sets of doubled ruffles & piping, trim, & the usual stuff).  I had to outfit Charlotte with a sleeved dance leotard underneath to keep her little arms comfortable.  And dance she has, in full regalia, on Halloween and every day since.

Isaac's contribution was the crown.  I handed him the materials and said, "Go for it!" 

He responsed, "What's wrong with this one?" (The original plastic crown underneath all of the goop). 

"Nothing's wrong with it, but it could be so much more mermaid-y."

"Ya, I guess," he said, but then proceeded to spend the next thirty or forty minutes deeply enthralled, improving in every way my original plan.  He even got out the drill so the button shanks on the back of the crown jewels would nest into the plastic just so.  I mean he really got into it.  He's proud of that crown.

He went a bit crazy with the wand too.  Got burned in the process : (

Besides the hot-glue burns, we had extra-fun this year.  It was Charlotte's first Halloween where she understood what was up - costume, candy, costume.  What a joy to see the magic in her eyes!  She's really pretty caught up in her underwater fantasy.

And obviously, Elijah's still got the magic.  Thank heaven Jedis lead a simpler, less-layered, unglittered existence or I might not have made the deadline.  Love my twirly, big-eyed dreamers.

Speedy Re-Covery

Here's something I should have done two years ago.  One hour of frantic de-beiging and now Charlotte has a brighter place to spend her meal- times.  I went a bit groovy on impulse.  Feels good (ala James Brown). These are a couple of vintage pieces I had tucked away in the laundry room.  I love how some fabrics from the 30s have a bit of a 70s vibe. This is one of those fabrics I'd love to see reproduced so we could all get our hands on some yardage. Yardage!

Well, there it is.  One snazzy highchair cover for a baby who's probably ready to move to the kitchen table anyhow.  Sigh.

Here's the before.

Lulu Wiggins in My Head

Isn't this pillow fantastic?  I'm pretty sure I collect such things to make up for my lack of family heirlooms -- heirloom envy.  Well, and my lack of grandparents growing up.  Nope, I don't have a cherished "LW", but I can fancy this pillow was lovingly embroidered by my fictitious great aunt Lulu - Lulu Wiggins, I'm sure - and perch it in the prime position on my bed nevertheless.

I adore her choice of dusty gold and rich turquoise on fresh, rumply pink, don't you?  Another who-zee-whats-it for what's quickly becoming a trinket tour of my bedroom.

Granny Love

My mother is an amazing seamstress.  And she single-handedly takes care of all pajama needs for each of her seven grandchildren.  You should see these pjs!  Or even better, all seven kids running around in granny-made pjs.  We all live within 20 minutes of each other, so this does happen on occasion.

Anyhow, see that amazing dress up there?  It was meant to be a granny-made nightgown, but one irresistible sash and couple of matching barrettes later and here it is -- a darling little dress.  My mom called a couple of weeks ago, "Heather, I have this nightgown I'm making for Charlotte, but I think it might make an even-better dress. What do you think?  Should I do it?" 

Mom, you definitely made the right call.  The dress is beautiful and Charlotte is tickled silly with it. Thank you.

I'm a bit behind on some press stuff too, so before these issues are completely unfindable, check out my designs in the pages of:

        • Better Homes and Gardens August 2007, p. 68
        (I think there are two different covers for this issue)

        • Elegant Bride Spring 2007, pp. 186-193 -- Ooo, a Freshcut wedding!
        (follow this link -- amazing photos!)

        • Patchwork & Stitching Vol 7 No 9, pp.30-32
        (Australian magazine - Megan Butel's Freshcut quilt made the cover)

Oh yes, and please send a warm "hello" and a big round of blog love to my mom -- this is her internet debut! : )  Love you mom.

Mother Plays with Dolls

Happy Birthday to elinor today!  Isaac's mom's in town for a few days and she brought along this funny little doll, inspired by a drawing by my niece, Lily (who'll be here on Wednesday with Laura & Luke (not of the soap opera variety), but not before Evie's family (another of Isaac's fun sisters) gets here on Monday).  Isn't she fantastic?  I love her skinny, mis-matched legs (the doll's).

A few months back, I led elinor to a couple of Softies groups that had formed on Flickr and to Softies Central and the Softies Awards blog after she declared that young women were not interested in making dolls.  So not true!  She couldn't believe what she saw.  Elinor has been a many-decades pillar of the cloth-doll-making community and neither she nor her friends knew what a doll-making revival had been taking place amongst younger (generally, I think) men & women .

Her overview of "Softies" or "Stuffies" (new words for her) pointed out the naive and quirky nature of many of these stuffed creations, as well as the broad influence of Japanese illustration and design.  She was impressed by the creativity, adventure and general silliness of it all.  Aren't we all?  C'mon, stuffed food and sea creatures, fabulously silly.  Many of the best dolls remind me of children's illustrations, playful and light-hearted. 

So, anyhow, elinor's new Lily doll brought us back to that conversation and in revisiting the discussion I realized that perhaps "Softies"- makers don't exactly know yet what a resource they have in "Doll"- makers. Softies-makers are often hunting down used books from the 70s for stuffed-animal and doll patterns, but perhaps don't realize that there are Doll-makers today that can show them how to create their own vision in 3-D.  Maybe they don't even know that the Doll-makers exist.  My MIL, for instance, has several booklets on designing dolls -- Let's Face It! (designing faces), Big Fat Hairy Deal (hair tips, techniques & ideas), The Rag Doll from Plain to Fancy (body shapes, contouring), etc.

There are some fantastic techniques out there, like the joints on this Lily doll, or how to dart a foot to make a heel (these doll feet don't have any darts though).  I don't know where I'm going with this.  I guess you could say that I'm excited to see what will happen with Softies when some of these techniques are discovered.  There's some inspiring creative energy being poured into the genre as it is.  Will added technique kick things up even more or will Softies lose their wacky edge? 

You know, the night I met my husband (I was 16, he was 21), he asked me what I liked to do and after a long pause I blurted, "I like to make dolls."  He replied, in a perfectly matter-of-fact fashion, "My mom likes to do that."  At the time, I supposed he was trying to repair an awkward moment.  I later learned that he was 100% unflustered by my answer.  Of course.  (And, holy cow, what an understatement... "My mom likes to do that!" ??)  Elinor is dolls. 

The Softies movement has been a hoot to follow, it brings me back to the crocheted banana slugs and Santa Frogs of my own quirky childhood ambition.  Softies, dolls, whichever term you prefer, they're a fun place to play.

Happy Birthday to elinor, who's been saying it all along, right mom?

Free Embroidery Download

I have one of those fancy-schmancy sewing machines that can output original embroidery designs.  When I first received the machine (oh, about a year ago), Isaac took it upon himself to figure out exactly how I might utilize my new Cadillac considering we're a totally-Mac family and these machines are all designed for PC users.  He signed up to write an article on the process for Sew News. All I had to do was design an embroidery and sew up something cute with it -- no problem. 

My design is now a free download.  Follow the "Sew News Rose" link over in my sidebar and you'll download a zipped folder containing several file types of the same design (.ART, .CSD, .HUS, .PCD, .PCQ, .PCS, .PEC, .PES, .SEW, .SHV, .XXX)  If you have a tricky sewing machine too, then one of these should work for you.  If you need some other sort of file type to be able to use the design, I apologize, but the above 11 file types are all we can do.

I wish I could say that digitizing embroideries is now second-nature for me, but I have some work to do before I can hatch an idea out in thread lickity-split.  I'll have to take some classes or hook up with someone who enjoys moving needle positions around.  I've got the flower-doodling part down pat... and plenty of thread.

Check out Isaac's article in the August/September '07 issue of Sew News. 

Enjoy!  (and send me photos!)

The Soap Trick

Don't struggle with obnoxiously-thin slivers of soap in the shower ever again!  You know, the dwindling remains of a bar, when the soap finally gives up the ghost and snaps in two?  Set them aside with your sewing supplies.

Waifish soap bars can be the perfect marking tool in many instances.  In fact, I find myself using soap far more often than chalk.  And there's no longer any guilt in instating a fresh bar of soap in the shower when the old one gets cumbersome.  Handy and resourceful.  Yes, there should be some sort of disclaimer here -- test it on your fabric first, etc, etc. -- but it works for me. 

My favorite little soap trick made its way into ReadyMade this month, along with a groovy illustration.  Like my favorite knot, "the soap trick" is one of those little things that makes sewing more fun.  And showering more pleasant.   

My next collection of fabric gets turned in this week.  And, yes, that's where I've been -- tending my two-dimensional garden.  As soon as the designs* are shipped out, it'll be a mad-dash to prepare three lectures and one hands-on class for these guys (attendees -- note the supply list in the sidebar) for early July, followed by the launch of Trash Ties in mid-July. Then I think I will fall over sideways for a couple of weeks before committing to anything new.

Thanks Kim, for your kind take -- this sort of thing helps keep a girl peppy and at-it -- at least for a few more weeks.

*It'll be months before we see the resulting fabric.  It's still Freshcut season :)

Playing with Pins

Looking for a sewing pick-me-up?  How about a new pincushion.  The new Summer 2007 issue of Quilts and More sports a pincushion pattern written by moi.  Aren't they cute?  And so simple.

They also did a feature on me.  Blush, blush. They asked fun questions, like "What's on your iPod?" and "What's your ideal day?"  A very comfortable interview.

Yes, there have been all sorts of 'secret' projects I haven't been able to share.  So, I've got to make a big splash of them once they come out of hiding, like this pattern.  Hence, the parade of photos.  See, I've been doing stuff.

So, go get my little pattern and cover the world in pincushions.  They make great presents too.

Ha!

Oh ya:  Local folks (Arizona), I'm going to be on TV tomorrow -- Sonoran Living.  I think it's on ABC -- sometime in the morning.  It'll be live ; )

Strings

Keeping with a theme, here's a palette of crochet yarns to go with my hooks and buttons, all singing in chorus, "It's time to play."  So, if these make up the strings section, what are the hooks and buttons -- winds and percussion?

I picked these up at a second hand shop for $5 yesterday -- pretty nice way to stash up some supplies.  The only trick was picking which bags to go home with.  They had at least ten full bags of crochet yarn to choose from.  No surprise, I went for the brights. 

But, don't expect to see any major crochet projects anytime soon-- I'm mostly interested in adding borders to things and ogling this box of colors on occasion.  The sewing box is new to me too.  It reminds me of blue eyeshadow and kneehigh sports socks, and The Brady Bunch, somehow.  Hmmm.

Also, Laura's got her new Etsy shop all decked out and she's giving away a free print to mark the occasion.  All you have to do is fess up your most embarrassing story.  Should make for some good reads, no?

Saturday Fun

Ay, they're calling to me: paint, thread, buttons, hooks, hexagons.

Every once in a while I ruffle through my button drawers to tide me over until it's time to sew again.  It's like popping one of these to fix a sugar craving instead of attacking a batch of cookies. It works for a while.

But, now that I've straightened up the laundry room, mopped the floor and made space in the studio, I'm off to make something -- not sure what yet.  I just hope Charlotte's nap lasts a while today.

Check Out 'Dem Booties!

Have you seen the Bitty Booties Photo Pool lately?  There are some amazing little booties in there - almost 200 photos.  Some with amazing embroidery, some with funky embellishments, some simple, some a little wild -- so many great interpretations of a simple baby shoe (free pattern in my sidebar).  Go take a peek at the photo pool if you're expecting a baby, know someone who's expecting a baby or are just looking for crafty inspiration.  You're bound to think of someone to make shoes for once you've bathed in the cutness that is Bitty Booties.

Also tickling my fancy is this new patchwork dress from Anthropologie.  Who'd have thought a patchwork dress could look so chic?  Yes, and a little Oklahoma, but I like musicals.  I'm pencilling-in a patchwork dress for a summertime project in my fantasy craft calendar.  Who knows, some dreams come true.

Thanks for the chandelier love. And, yes, you've been heard...I'll try to get some good pictures of the studio tomorrow.  I have such a good time taking detail shots, I haven't stepped back to get the big picture. (Sounds like a metaphor for something.)

Finally, today's the last day to vote for the Bloggies.  I'm putting in a major bid for Amy Angry Chicken who's a finalist in the Best Craft Weblog category.  Just in case I'm not being obvious enough... Go vote for Amy!

Many Months Ago

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.

See you soon -- Happy Weekend!

Bang!

Yay, a new year!  Tabula Rasa.  Of course, give me one day and I'll have the whole year pencilled in.  I swear, I could keep a large team of people busy.  So many things to be excited about. 

For now, here are my last-minute home-mades for Charlotte's Christmas: a vintagey coat, cuffed gauchos and a rumpled felt flower.  I didn't get to the piggy doll I had planned (too sick).  Have I ever mentioned how obsessed with pigs my Charlotte is? 

It all started with Babe a few months back.  She quickly found a red-eyed plastic hippo doll amongst Elijah's old toys, named it Babe, and began to stroke and bottle-feed the freaky thing.  It didn't take me long to replace the hippo with a far friendlier plastic pig and a cuddly stuffed one too.  Her collection continues to grow.  So, for months now, Charlotte's pigs have gone with her everywhere.  They're all named Babe.

Anyhow, I'm so happy about this little coat.  It fulfills some deep-rooted baby-wardrobe fantasy of mine.  I think its that retro shape and those big yellow buttons.  Not to mention the sweet little girl with yarn in her hair.  I made the pants Christmas morning, after the presents, and while Isaac made breakfast.  I don't know how it happened, but they were done before breakfast.  Painless.

Even better, Charlotte now has something to wear with her brown & orange patent leather shoes.  (Of course, she's about as obsessed with her pink Crocs as she is with pigs, so fat chance she'll wear them much.)

I'm proud of these photos too.  I've gotten pretty comfortable with Isaac's Canon 10D.  I use it for most of my blog photography, but for this shoot, he insisted that I use the Canon 1D Mark II N. (It's faster and better for taking pictures of a busy little girl.)  And I did it!  And it was faster. 

So, for 2007, I think it's time I finally learn the language of Photography.  I've known Isaac for almost fifteen years and we've been married for twelve (Saturday was our anniversary).  He's been a photographer since well before we met, but I've never had a compelling reason to learn his craft until I started this blog.  And, you know, I've discovered that I quite like photography.  (See my first attempt with real equipment here.)  I can't explain F-stops, shutter speed or aperture for the life of me, but I know a few camera settings and the lighting scenarios that work for me and I just go for it.  It's about time I learn the language.  This is the year.

I've got a bunch of other goals too, but if I stay here discussing them, I'll never get to any of them.  And, since today is the big kick-off for 2007, it's time to start with a bang and get some momentum going.  Be back soon...

Happy New Year!
xo--Heather

(Edit:  More photos here and a pic of the coat's lining.  And, sorry I can't lead you to some pattern #s for these, I designed the patterns from scratch.) 

Couch Flower

...or Fleur de Divan.  (Everything sounds fancier in French.)

Looking for a quick stocking-stuffer idea?  This flower pin is a fun project to make while watching season five of 24 on dvd☺.  I cut two flower shapes out of felt and stitched a running-stitch around their perimeters.  I drew up the stitches on the top-most felt flower to curl and rumple the edges.  Then I stacked on slubby wool yarn, a vintage fabric yo-yo, a slitted circle of wool felt and a fun little button.  With a pin on the back, it's a perfect bit of pizazz for a winter coat or a holiday sweater.

Ooo, it'd also be fun to dress the top of a present with one - a 'bow' and an accessory in one!  Aw shucks, it looks like I'll have to watch a few more episodes tonight.  Of course, Isaac won't mind.  That show is addicting.

The Peppermint Experiment

Here's the result of my late-night rush on the fabric store for red & white striped fabric. My church is donating a decorated tree to a family in need (love this idea), so I had some friends and the teenage girls over last night to make this zany garland for contribution.  We sipped hot cocoa with homemade marshmallows (Katie-made) and sat in a circle, sewing.  Now, why can't that happen more often.  My kind of evening.

(The top garland is the ceramic one I mentioned two posts ago.)

The gingerbread house was a whole-family activity.  Thank you Costco.  Have you seen these kits?  All of the hard stuff is already done for you;  the cookies are cooked and the frosting is mixed.  Just assemble and decorate (and snack).  Elijah did most of the work, but tuckered-out before the house was gaudy enough, so Charlotte and I helped him out.  I could glue candy on things all day.  It's a lot like making yo-yos - repetitive and hynotic.

This N That

So far, so good.  Here's the state of my re-fashion at present.  The collar is made from the entire bottom band of one of the sweaters.  It can be flipped up or flipped down.  I'll see what works best once I try the thing on.  I'm thinking of stitching the yoke back to the yoke front with big red stitches and raw edges exposed, but I'm making it up as I go along, so I reserve the right to change my mind. ;-)  On a related note, check out this recent article from TIME magazine on re-fashionistas.

On the garland front, I stopped by the store last night and picked up some striped fabric.  I'll let you know how the peppermint experiment goes & take some pics.  It looks like Amanda has been in yo-yo mode as well.  She's put together a festive garland for her window frame and was sportive enough to use her treasured vintage buttons. (I can be too protective of mine.)  And Anna has made a funky felt one.

So, I'm officially proclaiming it The Year of the Garland (by no authority at all) and I'm starting a Flickr photo group for handmade/homemade garlands (not just Christmas garlands either), called Ga-ga for Garlands.  So, if you've got the garland bug, then, by edict, you must join in and show off your efforts. 

Also, Freshcut is finally up on the Free Spirit site. (Remember, you guys got the early early preview.)  The collection starts shipping out to stores just this week (not till January or February for Australia), so hopefully you'll be able to get your hands on the line soon!  I'm looking forward to seeing what Freshcut projects you come up with. 

The fabrics are also for sale at various online fabric stores, but, be warned, on some of these sites the colors are all muddy and funny - much yummier in person.  Here are some of the sites that have the line available for pre-ordering:

Flapper Girl Fabrics

The Bernina Connection

Cabbage Rose Quilting

FatQuarter Shop

Hancock's of Paducah

Quilt Fabric Delights (Australia)

Finally, I want to take a moment to thank everyone for your kind condolences these past two weeks.  I'm not finding the time to respond to each of your well-wishes individually, so please know that Isaac and I are grateful for your love and support.

Love,
Heather

Yo-Yo Garland

Tonight's the big un-boxing:  up with the shrubbery, up with the lights, up with Christmas!  Here's my most recent addition to the fanfare - the yo-yo garland. 

And, what a quick and relaxing occupation it's been; one movie rental and I was halfway done. 

I'm planning to make a red & white one as well, as I have a red & white Christmas fantasy for my kitchen table.  I just need to hunt down some red & white striped fabric and see what it does in yo-yo form.  I'm hoping for a peppermint effect.

I do have a ceramic peppermint garland, but it's seen better days.

Re-Fashion in the Works

I'm riding a small wave of winter-cleaning this week.  It's about time I box up my maternity clothes, as Charlotte's almost two!  However, I can't quite pack up these three sweaters.  I know I'll never wear them.  Never have.  They're just too boxy and big, even for maternity-wear.  And who needs three of the same thing anyhow, even if they were a bargain?

Aah, but they're wool...

So, I've decided it's time for a re-fashion, my first in a long time.  And, I've given myself two rules:

    1.  I'm not allowed to make a pattern first.  I've just got to cut into it and work it out as I go (even if I don't end up liking the result).

    2.  It must be slightly weird (again, even if I don't end up liking the result).

I'm excited to get to work on it, as I'm in need of a project of no monumental importance, a palate cleanser.  Ha!  I like that.  A palate cleanser.  Perfect.

On my way...

...to Houston.

All right, it's crazy-late.  But, I couldn't leave town without posting a project (especially after my sick-leave last week).  Here's a froofy bolster with happy pink bows.  All freshcut and perched on a glorious tuffet.  I'm "lovin' on" gold these days.  Mmm-Mmm...Yes sir!  Makes me happy.  And that monstrous vintage button...

I'll keep my ears pricked and my camera handy at Quilt Market (though convention-center lighting may not cut the mustard - heehee).  If nothing else, I should at least be able to capture Anna Maria up to something.  I've convinced her to attend and be my roomie.  Fun fun.

I'll see what I can do about an Internet connection as well, to keep them presses running, so to speak.

Oh, and one more thing... Thanks for the feel-good input. I've put together some rockin' flyers for my class.  Four pages.  Isaac thinks I should post a PDF so we can all hand them out to our friends when they say, "Blog-what?"