E Block Pillow Rises From Dead

I mentioned last time that I'm clearing out spaces and discovering all manner of unfinished and near finished projects. Actually I'm slightly astounded by how far along a project can be and still be abandoned. This pillow top, constructed out of my hand dyed and patterned fabrics was 99% complete and yet I didn't take it all the way to the goal line. Go figure?

I'm glad I unearthed it though, finished a seam or two, quilted, and backed it because it makes a lovely pillow.
There's also something weirdly satisfying about reviving a nearly dead project and making use of it. It's like cutting up holey clothes to work into patchwork. It just appeals to us(you know who you are) in a very basic way.

Also, lest you think this is the only project receiving a healthy dose of resuscitation, I'm working on an abandoned dress as well as have the potential for 4 other pillow tops.  And, that might be a conservative estimate. Seems like what I thought was not a hot idea in the past looks downright brilliant to me now!
Before I conclude this entry I should say that, if you like the pattern you see in this pillow, you'll be happy with at least one of the patterns in my newest collection for Moda. The collection doesn't preview until the Fall, but this print, in various wonderful colors, is definitely included.

What's on My Wall

News Flash: I'm selling my house. Or, more accurately, I'm getting my house ready to sell. The market is super hot(Yay!) here in Austin, Texas and with it being just myself and my daughter, I'm ready to downsize a bit. So, in preparation for putting it on the market, I'm clearing out stuff. Sound simple so far? Yeah, not so simple.
I'm not by nature a sentimental person. I don't hang on to every picture my girls ever drew or every garment they wore. Truth be told, I'm pretty ruthless when it comes to discarding things. Haven't used it in the past few years? Add it to the giveaway pile. No anxiety. No regrets.
Except when it comes to fabric and sewn bits and pieces. 
Right now I'm clearing my studio space and I keep coming across an idea just barely sketched out in needle and thread, but, hey, maybe I could rescue it from the land of unrealized and bring it to it's much deserved fruition. At least that's the way my thinking goes.

In fairness to my semi-delusional self, I do have some base standards. I will completely abandon a stray block or two that I knew, even at the time I fist conceived the idea, I have no real interest in. I'm also pretty good about casting off project beginnings that were so complicated that I abandoned them because I could feel my blood pressure rising at the thought of working on them.

So, with that justification, I'm working on finishing or, in some cases, re-imagining some of these ideas. Is this the best use of my time? Uh...no, I should be culling things down, not creating, but if I were that singly focused, I probably wouldn't have come up with these ideas in the first place.

Pick Me! Pick Me!

Moment of honesty here: I get so tickled by those of you who add the words, "pick me!" to your comments. You all do realize that I pick the winner based on random.org's generated number, right? I don't actually "pick" anyone, but, man, I do appreciate your enthusiasm. 

Anyhoo...without further ado, here are our winners:

cindy said...
Love this new line! Would be fun to play with.... I adored your last line of fabrics also!!

 Patti said...
Gorgeous fabrics! Thanks for a wonderful giveaway.

Cindy and Patti, please email me at malka@stitchindye.com with your mailing address and I'll pass that on to Tammy at Marmalade Fabric. Congratulations and enjoy your fabric.

Although announcing a winner should be enough for me, I want to share something more here today. As some of you may know I had the distinct pleasure of teaching 3 days worth of workshops at Quilt Con this past February. All my workshops focused on dyeing techniques and I wanted to share some images from my Itajime (clamped shape resist) class. I was so inspired by the work the students made in all 3 classes, but only thought to whip out my phone and take pictures at the class I'm featuring. I definitely wish I'd documented the other two, but at least I have these.
So, here they are. Enjoy!

 

Charms and Barres

Little side note before I get into the heart of this post: My hobo bag that's featured on the cover of Tricia Waddell's new book, The Best of Stitch: Bags to Sew, came back to me yesterday and, within minutes of opening the package, I  loaded it full of yoga supplies and headed off to class. I'm so happy to have it back!

Anyway, back to my real point or rather points for being here today.

This:

and this:

One explanation at a time.
The first image is of a simple quilt I'm calling Baby Barres using the solids from my Simple Marks collection for Moda. For those of you who knit and read the Purl Bee, you might just recognize the inspiration for this baby quilt. It's my sewn and quilted take on the Super Easy Baby Blanket.
I've long been influenced by knitting patterns, though why I knit in Texas remains mysterious to me. Be that as it may, knitted and crocheted designs often inspire me.
It's incredibly easy to make, just seam together 6 full length, quarter yard pieces (9" x 44"), along their long ends and, voila, you have your pieced top.
I remember the first time I saw the knitted version on the Purl Bee. I thought it was so simple and really quite beautiful in its simplicity. Well, I think this version captures that. Also, you can really adjust the basic design to suit your tastes just by selecting different solids. And, for those of you who love the quilting part of quilt making, this design is great place to let your stitching prowess show. So, give it a try and let me know what you think.

As for the second image, well, that there is a pair of charm packs of my Simple Marks Summer line slated to be released this April. This pair is being offered to two of my lovely readers by a terrific sponsor, Marmalade Fabrics. I had the pleasure of meeting the lovely Tammy, proprietress of Marmalade Fabrics, at Quilt Con a couple of weeks ago and she's just as fabulous in person as she's been over the phone and via email over the past year or so.
So, if you'd like a chance to win one of these, leave a comment and I'll pick and announce a winner on Friday.

Half Moon Rising Hobo Bag

Oh my, 450 eager sewers vying for Simple Marks fabric! Thank goodness for Random.org. in selecting a winner.

And, our winner is:
Jenny Larking said...I love the Simple Marks range. They are so vibrant.

Yay! Jenny, please email me at malka@stitchindye.com with you home address and I'll get those fat quarters to you lickety split.

Announcing a winner is super fun, but today is doubly great because I have another announcement to make. I actually came to find out about this somewhat by accident. Several months ago, I was contacted by the talented Tricia Waddell, former editor of Stitch Magazine, and all around creative gal, asking if I would contribute a bag design to her upcoming book. Now Tricia is one of my favorite people in this business and has always been so supportive of my work. In fact, I've never deleted a particular email she once sent me and often turn to it when I need a little professional boost. So, you can imagine, that I was very excited to be a part of her project. Anyway, long story semi-short, I created a hobo-style patchwork bag, wrote up the instructions, and sent both off to Tricia for inclusion in her book. I didin't give that project much thought until last week when I was flipping through the catalog for QuiltCon and saw an advertisement for this book:

Not only was I happy to be reminded of the project, but I was thrilled to discover that my bag is on the cover. Yes, that is my Half Moon Rising Hobo Bag on the cover! The Best of Stitch Bags to Sew is slated for release in early May and I hope that some of you get the chance to check it out and make some of the projects included. I, for one, am excited to craft some new bags as well as get this one back for use this summer.

Friendship Blog Hop Block and Giveaway

Wow! You folks are eager beavers. I've been getting emails asking where my post for the Moda blog hop is since 7:30 this morning. Cool. I like enthusiasm.
So, without further ado, here's my block:

And click here to access the PDF instructions for this block.

As for the giveaway, I didn't want to waste a precious second taking pictures of the incredibly generous stack of Simple Marks fat quarters that Moda is giving away, but, if you'd like a chance to win, leave a comment and I'll pick a winner and post that next Monday....But not before 12:00 pm CST.

12.4.12

Hadn't posted pictures of these lovelies yet, so today seemed a good a day as any. That and the weather today is practically the same as the day I took these photos in October. What's the deal with that? Where's my winter in Texas?