Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Adventures in Embroidery...

Posted by Strlady at 5:00 AM 3 comments
It's nice to have had a long weekend to enjoy. After the storms we saw in Texas last week...

This was taken from my back porch.

I was ready for some of this:


I decided to work on my daughter's quilt but got sidetracked. You see, while I was off at Market a few weeks ago I got to chatting with the darling Gail Pan who designs some outstanding embroidery work like this one:


I had a bug about working on some embroidery this year but after seeing her work in person and seeing all the other wonderful quilts using embroidery as embellishments, I knew I had to dive in.


Isn't he cute?

Well I put that aside when I realized that I needed to get going with a special birthday present... Can't show you pics of that, but while I was working on this 'special' project I learned a lot about embroidery.

Things that I have learned as I teach myself to embroider

1) Read the instructions of the products you are using. They may save your final project...
2) Don't compromise your stitch length for speed. You will regret it when you look back at your work...
3) Visual tutorials make a BIG difference.
4) When it comes to curves, do as you would while driving a car, go slow to avoid derailing!!
5) Don't be a cheap A** and get good thread!

More on these points later in the week.

Hope you had a great Memorial Day weekend and that your week started on a good footing!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

A bit more on my trip to Market..

Posted by Strlady at 4:19 PM 5 comments
Yesterday I mentioned that I had met Tara Lynn Darr of Sew Unique Creations. Her book is such a treat, here is a sneak peak of the projects you'll find in it.


My sister, the new Vanna!

A few booths (beside Fig Tree's) that I remembered to photograph
Kathy Schmitz - What a charming lady.


She was just so down to earth and fun to chat with.
She has some ornaments coming out for those embroidery buffs.

Got to express a bit of admiration to Julie Herman from JayBird Quilts.


I have followed her blog since forever and have really loved seeing her go from blogger to designer.

Then there was Sweetwater. Their new line Hometown was the hottest ticket around.


Loved Sunkissed (still cannot find any pattern worthy of cutting into it) and Hometown is just as delicious.

And then there was Tula Pink's Prince Charming.


They won 2nd place on best booth. No wonder on that account, it was wall to wall Princes! Her new line reminds me of Neptune which I never got to touch. I will need some of this one so I don't find myself kicking myself later.

Besides the quilts in the books I chatted about yesterday, here are a few quilts that have made it to my must make before I croak list.

Quilts I want to make:


French vintage by Thimble Creek Quilts was made with French General fabric.
Is it just me or does French General have a monopoly on making all quilts look fantastic? Someone should look into that because I didn't buy their Petite Ecole line and I'm worried I might see a quilt I need to make using that line. I also hesitated on their new line and by the time I got back to the table at Sample Spree they were all gone. I felt a bit sick. The good thing is that it hasn't hit the stores yet, so there is still hope.


This one is a BOM from This and That made with Etchings by Three Sisters.
I kept going back to the This and That booth to look at the pattern and I picked up a flyer at Sample Spree but I could not nail down why I liked it so much. It was your typical pieced BOM pattern. That was until I saw that the fabric used was Three Sisters. I am a bit of a three sister's addict.


This one is a mystery. I don't know the designer but I saw it last year and was loving it. Since I had just started piecing Opening Day I was not too insistent on this one but this year I pouted a bit and my sister (Vanna again in this picture) ordered the pattern and will be carrying it. I am soo excited! I can't wait for it to come in!


This little one comes in the same pattern! It's a Two-fer!


Last but not least, continuing in my quest to be an applique'r,
I picked up Edyta Sitar's Reaching Out

Can you believe that she made that using a fusible applique method?
Here is a CloseUp:


She makes you feel you can tackle anything.

I really didn't buy much (Wedding bells on the horizon makes you a bit more careful with the budget) but I did break down and picked up a Fat Eighth of Ruby by Camille and Bonnie.


I don't know if I am totally in love with it yet, but I picked it up in case I have a fit later because I need it.

Of course, I already mentioned my obsession with Three Sisters.


I love these Fat eighths that are being sold. It gives you more than a layer cake but not as much as a FQ.
Just the perfect amount to get you going.

And then I picked up the prize of the evening: Hometown by Sweetwater


My daughter had strict instructions for me going into Sample Spree. Either a sample of Tula Pink's Prince Charming or Sweetwater's Hometown.

Free Spirit was not at Sample Spree so that killed the Tula Pink idea so I headed straight to Moda's table (like the other gazillion other quilters). I was looking for just one FQ bundle of Hometown. There was NONE to be found. I crawled around the whole table, getting elbowed, pushed and shoved. While peeking under people and touching things that should have not been touched by strangers. Just when I was about to give up and was in front of the checkout person, out from my peripheral vision I caught the sight of a cardboard cover moving enough to get a glimpse of what was underneath. It was TWO bundles of Hometown. I developed some internal propulsion engines and soared over two ladies (I did apologize after) to put my hand over one of those bundles. My heart was racing, my face was flaming but I was able to hold my head high when I called my baby the next day and told her "I got your Hometown - It was no problem!" LOL! The things we do for our kids!

My trip was great! Met some outstanding quilters and made some new friends. One of my favorite meet ups happened before the craziness of market actually kicked off. On Thursday, as I touched down at the convention center, Thelma from Cupcakes 'n Daisies was heading out. I was so lucky to meet up with her for a few minutes, something that I never thought would happen with her being on the other side of the country. It was like seeing an old friend even though we had never actually "met". We have chatted so much off line and through our blogs that it felt like we already shared that first meeting before. On the downside... We were so wrapped up in chatting we forgot to take a darn picture!! LOL! Oh well, We now have a reason to meet up again. Hopefully soon!

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

So much to chat about...

Posted by Strlady at 12:22 PM 5 comments

I was there last weekend.
I got home on Monday and yesterday had to go to work.. :(
I was not very functional but what can you do?


Before I left I was busy getting ready. I sewed a couple of blouses, but only one made it to market.


My sister gave me this button last year and thought it look super cute on my new blouse.


I also decided on the layout for my Opening Day quilt. I put it away for now but that was quite time consuming. I just could not decide on that perfectly pleasing arrangement. Now that THAT is done, I can pull it out when I have time to put it together.

After I put that away and cleared out my sewing room I felt ready to tackle market and the over load of yumminess that comes with that.

Riley Blake always has the cutest props!


Michael Miller's peeps had some serious energy romping around with capes and playing the superheros.


Gail Pan who is so funny and charming! She is an inspiration to take my embroidery serious.

Aren't those elves just adorable!! I had to have it.


And I met TARA! (Ignore how unflattering the pic is for me - she looks great!). Her new book Simply Charming is just that, simply charming. They are small quilts that are so lovely! The book was on my MUST have list and I was able to have her sign it for me. Notice Two Piece Puzzle in the background. I had to have a picture.


My second favorite "Tara" quilt is Shenandoah Valley. It was just as gorgeous in person than on the pics I saw online. Now, I have my own pattern to make this beauty!


Loved Joanna's booth. That is my sister, Brenda who invited me to go with her and experience all this delicious eye candy.


I picked up this book too (Some Kind of Wonderful - Do you remember that 80's movie? That is also a favorite). It has alot of embroidery projects but they were so very pretty,
I just couldn't help myself.


I also met Camille. She is so cute! LOL! She was super busy but took a moment for a Fan girl and took a picture with me. Her new patterns are going to be a hit! Big Blocks, Big Quilts!


Can I say that meeting Monique Dillard, the genius behind my favorite tool (Fit to be Geese Rulers) was a super treat. I was able to see all the quilts from her new book Fat Quarter Winners and I walked away with my own signed copy! Her new ruler, Fit to be Quarter, is headed to a quilt shop near you and it is a must have in my arsenal of Fit to be "fill in the blank" rulers.

Okay... this post is getting WAAAY too long.

More on Market goodies later.
 

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