Etched (And What I'm Doing in June)

This week I had the chance to play with some fabric designed by the wonderful people at Hawthorne Threads. They were kind enough to send me two pieces from their new Etched collection to make into something fun. I had originally planned to turn these into a little clutch, but they turned out to be exactly what I needed to corral all my planning supplies for one of the biggest projects I've ever tackled: our family's upcoming move to Texas this June.

But first let's talk about the fabric. I would agree with some other reviewers that the Hawthorne Threads fabric is a little stiffer than your typical designer quilting cotton, but since I was using the prints to make a large pouch, that wasn't a problem for me. I paired Vanes in Tulip with Essex linen in Flax for the exterior, saving the charcoal Hexie Bramble print for the pouch lining. A grey zipper accented with a leather pull was the final touch. The finished pouch is 13 x 16" -- just the right size to hold my master planning binder, moving box inventory, and any other papers I don't want to lose along the way.

Etched is the latest collection designed by Hawthorne Threads, coming out this month, and I think it's their best yet. The simplicity of the prints and the pairing of just a few well chosen colors (charcoal, glacier blue, indigo, and tulip) on white make them absolutely perfect for modern accessories and home decor projects.

So Texas... Our family is really excited about making our first out-of-state move this summer, but the process is pretty overwhelming. Between managing the house, home schooling the girls, sewing, blogging, working on upcoming promotional stuff for my book, and now starting the process of purging and packing...well, life is more than a little crazy these days. I'm learning to take things one day at a time -- sometimes one hour at a time. And let's just say that I'm definitely keeping Diet Coke and Ghirardelli Chocolate in business...

Happy weekend