Zakka Apron

I've been needing a new full apron, so I decided to tweak this week's Zakka project to fit the bill. My design was completely improvised, but it seems to work. The top of the apron is a Happy Go Lucky print, the skirt is from Lori Holt's darling Bake Sale collection, and the sash is a large dot fabric from Oh, Deer that I've been saving for a while. I love to pull prints from different collections and watch them play together!

I just made one block for a small pocket, but it was so fun to sew. It seems like every one of the projects in this book is absolutely perfect for fussy cutting.

I always say that quilters are some of the nicest people in the world, and you all just reminded me again why I say it. Your sweet comments and emails after my post on Friday were such an encouragement to me. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. Things are looking up. The car is fixed and the internet is working again, both of which go a long way toward making life a whole lot easier. I'm even in the middle of a quilt top using my blogger bundle, and I can't wait to share it with you next week. Mostly I'm reminded how much I have to be grateful for, and that definitely includes all of you. We may be long distance, online, possibly-never-going-to-actually-meet-in-person friends, but I'm so thankful for your friendship just the same.

Linking up to the Zakka Along.

The Week

Well, I'll tell you...it's been quite the week around here. Our internet service has been dying a slow death, which is why the blog has been a bit more quiet than usual. Every time the internet is working, I'm in the middle of something, and every time I'm ready to post, it's down. A new internet router is supposedly coming to our rescue and should be arriving by mail tomorrow. Unfortunately the old router and our car's transmission seem to have made a suicide pact when we weren't looking, so we're taking our minivan in for what will in all likelihood be the most expensive auto service appointment in history tomorrow morning. Perhaps all this explains why I suddenly wanted to burst into happy tears when I found this package in my mailbox today.

This is my California Road Trip blogger bundle that I put together for Jennifer at Tactile Fabrics, and I have to say, it looks even better in person than it did on the computer screen. I can hardly wait to start cutting out pieces for a summer quilt from this happy little stack of fabrics. It looks like the bundles are definitely selling, so head over to Jennifer's shop if you want to grab one for yourself before they're gone. You can get a fat eighth bundle for as little as $16.25, which should still (hopefully) be in even my price range after we get tomorrow's repair bill from the auto shop.



I also wanted to show you this wristlet that I made on Sunday night for a friend of mine. I used a navy print from Bonnie and Camille's Happy Go Lucky line, definitely one of my favorite fabric collections of the past year. My friend and her husband love to travel -- in fact, he just finished leading a tour group through historical European sites relating to the Reformation -- so I tucked a little travel journal inside just for fun.

My dad and I were commiserating over the dinner table this evening about the unending parade of disasters we've had this week -- did I mention that his recliner broke beyond repair last night? seriously -- and I couldn't believe the list as I ticked off everything that had died over the past seven days. My dad just shook his head, "Ah, the week of death..." Then he grinned, "Well, as long as none of us dies, I think we're doing okay."

And now I'd better press the "publish" button before my computer blows up or something...

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday.

Blogger Bundle & Zakka Set

I'm thrilled to announce that my blogger bundle is now up for sale at Tactile Fabrics on Etsy! Jennifer was kind enough to let me have some fun with the wonderful modern prints she has to offer in her shop, and I absolutely love the result. California Road Trip is a fabric stack that reminds me of many a trip I've taken on Pacific Coast Highway, my home state's famous Route 1. I chose a palette of aqua, yellow, orange, cream, and white -- with a few text prints in there too (you know I couldn't resist!). It's everything that reminds me of summer, and I can't wait to get one of these bundles myself to start working on a picnic quilt to use with the kids. You can buy either a fat quarter or fat eighth set, depending on where your fabric budget is this month. If you make anything with this stack, please do share pictures with me. I hope you enjoy it!

I ran out of time for last week's Zakka project, but I'm back on schedule with today's adorable tea cozy set. Picking out the fabrics always takes the most time, but what fun it all is!

I switched the order of "tea" and the teacup only because I liked the colors better this way. I've been saving some of these prints for a while, and it's great to finally see them in use.

I absolutely love this teabag caddy. Such a simple but incredibly useful project. Wouldn't a larger version of this be perfect for holding note cards?

I used a hair elastic instead of string, and the button is from a set that I purchased on Etsy from RetroNaNa. She has an incredible selection of buttons on there if you have time to take a peek.



And don't forget that this is week 3 of the Let's Get Acquainted New Blogger Blog Hop. Stop by Plum and June to see all the great bloggers who are sharing with us today!

Linking up with the Zakka Along and the Let's Get Acquainted Monday Linkup.

The Quilt Loft Grand Opening

As I've said before, there are virtually no modern quilt shops within a reasonable driving distance of my home. While I love the convenience and service I get at all my favorite online fabric shops, there's nothing like being able to hold that bolt of cloth in your hands and the see the prints with your own eyes. That's why I was absolutely ecstatic when I got an email yesterday saying that The Quilt Loft had just opened in Upland, CA -- not twenty minutes away from my home. And look at the happy stack I brought back with me after a visit!

Keri, the owner, used to work at a local quilt shop, and she noticed that a lot of customers were asking to see more modern fabric collections in stock. She's hoping to provide contemporary lines in her shop along with traditional options as well. I spotted a calendar at the register that announced a few classes starting up, and she also has a long arm machine where she offers quilting services. I snapped a few pictures inside with my cell phone so you could get a glimpse of the shop.

It was a thrill to get the chance to see some recent collections and familiar designers -- Lori Holt, Julia Rothman, Kate Spain, and Jeni Baker, to name a few. There were also spools of Aurifil thread and plenty of modern patterns on display.

If you live anywhere nearby, I encourage you to come support this little shop. And when you come, be sure to say hi. I'll be the one with my arms full of fabric.

Linking up to the Sunday Stash.

Scrappy Kaleidoscope Pillow

This scrappy little pillow just makes me happy. Lots of color, bits of fabric that I adore, a dotty frame around the front edges...

...and typewriters on the back.

Happy, happy, happy.

Linking up with Needle & Thread Thursday and Finish It Up Friday.

Chevron Baby Quilt

This little baby quilt was an absolute dream to make.

The pattern is simple to piece and quick to sew. I love the modern feel it has, even with the children's prints. You'll recognize my Bells & Whistles fabric audition from the other day with a few changes. I almost never finish a project using exactly the same fabrics I pull at the start. About half of these fabrics are organic, and I really appreciate the slightly muted colors which, for me anyway, also adds to the modern vibe. I enjoyed using the mix of low volume prints along with Kona white for the background. The binding is a typewriter key print from Type by Julia Rothman -- a fun take on an alphabet print -- and the backing is the yellow print in the center block which I picked up at the local Hobby Lobby. It was in the clearance section at a great price, and I just couldn't refuse.

I'll be handing this quilt off to my parents to deliver tomorrow morning to the expectant family, and I have to admit, it's going to be hard to say goodbye to this one. I might just need to make another for myself using some grown-up prints...

The History of Kate Spain (at Fabric Mutt)

Kate Spain's beautiful fabrics were one of my first designer purchases as a new quilter. It was all about the color for me, and maybe a little bit about the whimsical imagination she brings to every collection. Every time I see one of her prints, especially when it comes to her Terrain line, I'm reminded of storyboard art by Disney artist Mary Blair (if you're unfamiliar with her work, you can look inside this book here and preorder an updated version at a far more reasonable price here). There is such personality in the work by both of these artists, and this is probably what I love best. So here I give you the history of Kate Spain at Fabric Mutt...



Only a week or two before I started this blog, I made my fourth (and largest to that date) quilt from squares of Fandango. My husband actually picked out the fabric for this quilt. It was to be a Christmas gift for my parents-in-law, and we were looking for something that would complement the decor in their Southern Arizona home. I now look at this quilt and wish dearly that I had done so much more with it, but I was really new to quilting back then...



My sister loved the Fandango so much that I made her a table runner and place mats about a month later out of the leftovers. Believe it or not, I still have a bit of this collection in my fabric closet which I'm saving for a rainy day.



I fell hard for Good Fortune when it was released, and I was so excited to use most of two charm packs to make a lap quilt for a friend of mine who is originally from China.



For Bunny's birthday that February, I made some little pillows and felt characters as favors for her Alice in Wonderland party. The rest of the charm squares were perfect for these, and while the felt characters bit the dust soon afterward, those pillows are still going strong!



My very first tutorial was my Abacus Baby Quilt which I made with charm squares of Central Park that I got from a friend. My girls use this quilt often for tea parties with their dolls.



The most recent project I've made with Kate Spain fabrics is my Watercolor mini quilt, and it is definitely my favorite of all the ones you see here. This quilt hangs on the wall in my daughters' playroom, which used to be one of their bedrooms before they all moved into one room together. I've spent many a night looking up at this quilt while rocking a little one to sleep, and we've kept good company together. Perhaps that's part of the allure of Kate Spain's fabrics too: there's a friendliness in all of her collections that's so very hard to resist.

Be sure to visit the blog hop page here for the rest of the schedule, and so many thanks to my friend Alyce for letting me join in the fun!