Pieces

Critters

Alert!  New critters at Piece by Piece from Michael Miller....

How about this crazy weather.  My kid in  DC is talking about the sunny 80 degree days and here as spring officially starts we have this...

so, so pretty and don't you love how quiet it is when it is snowy?  How can something so quiet and peace inspiring give you such a scare,  See this?

See the tire tracks...they are where we stopped trying to "gun" our way up our steep driveway.  See those cables sticking up out of the snow...they were making smoke and crackles and really beautiful light shows in the snow.  Whew.... good thing that after all these years together he still listens to me and did "stop now" when I yelled at him and we didn't run into the live downed power lines and drag them along with us. This is spring????

Thanks for the recommendations about blog reading.  Keep them coming....

What are you reading?

Do you follow a lot of blogs or have just a few favorites?  I plan to update my list of blogs and would love to know what fabric related blogs are your favorites.  Comment to this post or send me an email about your favorites and I'll check them out and update the blog list here.  

 

Petal power! Mrs. P created this beauty.  It is so fresh and springy and would really cheer up a room.  Wouldn't it be lovely to sleep under this bed of petals especially during this season of pouring rain.   It will stop raining someday, but in the meantime there is some sewing going on. Here's a look at some of the projects that have been keeping people busy lately.

Nice bag, Betty. 

Paula has been working hard on this scrappy improvised sampler quilt.
  Some very lucky person is going to receive this as a gift.  I really like the feel of this quilt.

Speaking of gifts, Sarah made these for baby shower gifts.  SO cute.

At the shop, we finished this baby quilt made from the Leftovers pattern from Modern Quilt Relish.

What are you sewing during these rainy rainy days?  Bring it in and show us...  We love to see what is going on.

 

Happy Meals

A while back I posted some pictures of a collection from Moda that I was particularly smitten with called A Stitch in Color.  I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it but then Kelly showed me how to make double sided napkins and that was it.  The perfect opportunity to use lots of different prints - 20 to be exact.  And why stop at napkins, wouldn't double sided placemats be a good idea too? I think that this...

will make some pretty happy meals.  Hmmm, maybe I need to have a dinner party...

PS - Kelly will be teaching the napkin class this spring.

 

I was reading in the paper about the solar storm that we was predicted for today.  Apparently there was potential for the magnetic fields to disrupt utility grids, airline flights, satellite grids and GPS services.  When I read that I thought AHA!  That's what is responsible for everything arriving at the shop all at once.  Deliveries that were expected to occur over several weeks all came at once and there is new fabric stacked up everywhere waiting for us to get it put away.  Here are some of the highlights...

I love Anna Griffin's designs.  They are exquisitely designed with great attention to detail.  The elegant Asian-inspired collection called Honoka is a perfect example.

You have to see the fish close up - exquisite.  Also from Anna Griffen is the Palmer group - classic Hawaii.  (I predict a certain gentlemen customer we know will be making one of his shirts from one of these.)

From Dear Stella came some lovely color collections.  Whether you like it warm or cool, it's all good.

Lizzy House has a new group called Hello Pilgrim.  I don't get the connection with the name but I really like the colors.  There are some great basics and colors to go with each of the main prints.

We also have a great quick pick up project using Moda's Hello Luscious line.  You can get a jelly roll, this project sheet

and add some yardage for borders, etc. and you can whip up this quilt - it is luscious isn't it?

Stay tuned for pictures of the rest...

 

 

Love this Trash

Thanks, thanks and thanks again for making this leap year day a memorable event.  Our rotary cutters were smokin' - Kelly and Kesch were cutting machines.  You saved some money and we made lots of room for new stuff, like this...

Just in are these great fabrics from the Parsons Gray collection.  In case you didn't know, Amy Butler is nolt the only talented designer in her household.  These were designed by her husband, David. Several options for these are roaming around in my head.  I can see quilts, bags, and skirts.  Oh - and that one with the plus signs would make a pretty cool pillow for "HIS" chair....

Random thoughts occupying my brain keeping me from being very productive today....

Some of you have heard me talk about the adventures (misadventures?) of my adult-like sons.  Even though they seem to think it is ok to live on the other side of the continent from me I am happy that they like to get together way over there and do stuff together. I see that they found the more significant sites of Boston to visit....

 

OK - is anyone else besides me willing to reveal a little something about your age and also what a silly love-struck girl you once were and admit you are singing "I'm a Believer" inside your head today?  Davey Jones' passing makes me feel old.  I never missed an episode of the Monkees... 

Extra Wide

Regularly people ask why Piece by Piece doesn't have extra wide fabrics that can be used for backs of quilts.  The reason is that I don't find many that I think work well with the contemporary colors and designs of the fabrics in the shop. But, maybe that is changing.

These lovely dots arrived today and I'm hoping it is a sign of things to come, that we will see more extra wide fabrics we can love.  These are 108" wide so that means no seams (yeah) for most quilts and it is more econimical than buying the yardage needed for a large back from regular fabrics (yeah, again). 

We finished a new shop sample this week.  The pattern is Boardwalk from Fun Quilts and the fabric comes from Dear Stella's Palladium collection. 

I really like this soft yellow and gray pallette, it is soothing.  We have more of this fabric on the way and will have some kits put together to grab and make your own.

Fly Away....

Hey folks, it is no joke.  Rotary cutters are sharp, really sharp. They cut fabric beautifully and without them our craft would be much more difficult  - but don't ever take them for granted.

OUCH!

Even experienced sewists can have an accident and it hurts. I'm so sorry Tracy that things were off for you today for that brief second.  I'm glad it wasn't more serious and that you will be using your pointer finger again soon. In the meantime, I'm pretty sure you can't cook, clean, grocery shop, wash clothes or vacuum or pay bills.  Let this be a lesson to all of us....

The Two Ems

Our two favorite M companies; Michael Miller and Moda delivered big this last week also.  A feast for the eyes is the latest from Laura Gunn.  Her prints are always special.

Also from Michael Miller is the much anticipated Backyard Baby and Bella Butterfly.  In case you missed it, MM had a contest for new fabric designers to submit a baby boy print.  The public was invited to vote for the favorite design and the winner's fabric design was printed by Michael Miller along with companion prints.  We have quite a large collection from these lines - the highlights are...

You HAVE to feel these, they have a lovely hand.

From Moda came Reunion which features the return of the color Navy to the scene.  For whatever reason it was absent for a while, but it is back.

We also received some jelly rolls and charm packs from Moda but the accompanying yardage has not arrived yet so I will wait for them.

And last but absolutely not least, take a look at this "shop project".  I think everyone had their hand in this at some point or another and I think it came out really well.  Nice job, ladies - who knew Kesch was a paper piecing machine.

We made up some jelly rolls of the strips used in this quilt so you could grab one, pick the background color of your choice and make one of your own.

Speaking of paper-piecing, Tracy made this beauty. (pardon the tacky hang job)

I think I am caught up with the highlights of the last few weeks for the moment - oh wait.  What about the super bowl surprise class?  Did they have a good time or what?

I wasn't able to be here that day, but they reportedly kept the end-zone dance in check, there were no "excessive celebration" violations.

BTW - I apologize for my spelling impairment in the last post... proffreedding was never my strong.suit.

 

 

Generousity

Today was donation day sewing at the shop and I was struck by this image.  There was something about her red sweater and the really lovely black featherweight with the gold embellishment that caught my eye.  What they were sewing was also really impressive. They finished this top...

 

 

 

 

And made great progress on another.  These quilts will go to kids who graduate from the independent living program.  When they graduate they will move from being cared for by a loving foster family to starting their lives as independent young adults. If you would like to help, call the shop or check the calendar for the next donation day.  Big, big thanks to Kelly for organizing and leading this effort!

So Many New Things

So many new fabrics have arrived in the last few weeks while I was focused elsewhere that it is going to take a little bit to catch up.  And may I say (once again) that we are so lucky to have as much variety as we do in our fabric choices today. 

 

While I was checking in the new batch that arrived Tuesday I contemplated what pattern I would chose for each group.  If only I could actually get all these done.  The fabrics above is called Caimen and comes from the house designers at Westminster.  I think it is just screaming to be used in one of our favorite patterns - Sidelights.  I'm leaning towards the purples,...

 

The next box revealed Cosmos by Dan Bennett also from Westminster.  I find this reall interesting and think that the border print would look great in the pattern TV Dinners.  Really, we may have to make this.

As if that wasn't enough goodness for one day in the last box we found Verona from Riley Blake.

So, so pretty, but I couldn't choose between these two patterns to feature this collection.  What would you do?

FYI - The next class schedule is in the chaos stage....

but I'm confident I will pull it all together!  A sneak peek...

A Little Break

It has been a little while since I posted here, but that doesn't mean there isn't anything going on.  Lots of new fabrics have been delivered in the last couple of weeks and several projects have been completed but I've been preoccupied.

In one week

Two friends

Two memorial services

Too sad...

I'll regain focus soon and get the camera out again. 

Making things easier...

We finally got a few Sewline Needle Threaders in to test drive and all of us at the shop agree - we need one.  Of course, it really threads a needle, and it is a needle case with a magnet and thread cutter.  And if that wasn't enough it is really sleek looking (love the color)and very portable. If you are threading challenged, this might just be the cool new toy that makes your life a little easier. 

 

Just in - Good Fortune by Kate Spain!  Beautiful colors and mix of small and large prints.

A spectacular quilt made by Ann...

 

 

 

Thanks to the Volunteers

Thanks to the ladies who ventured out on this wet wet day to help make quilts for the first "donation day" of 2012.  They got an impressive amount of work done.

We are making quilts for teens in the Looking Glass Independent Living program that they will receive when they graduate from the program in the spring.  These young adults will then be transitioning from living in foster care to living on their own.  The quilts donated last year were much appreciated as these kids went off to school or set up in their first apartment.  Next month we'll be sewing on Feb 16, maybe we will see you then?

Do you need some animals to fill that ark you are building because you think it just might rain like this forever? 

These pictures of David Walker's critters do not do them justice. They are even more fun in person.

There is no denying it now.  We are IN it.  We have hit the gray, dark and rainy days the Willamette Valleys is known for.  BUT - there is relief. 

This collection from Moda and Malka Dubrawsky is so vibrant that we put it right in the window so that it will brighten the view (from both sides).  If you are not familiar with her work, check out her blog.

Another bright addition to the shop this week is Stockholm from Kaufman.

Looks like the cover of the latest issue of Stitch magazine was designed for this collection.

Finally, once again I am impressed with what you all do with your treasures from thhe shop.  Dawn - this is an awesome bag...