You like me. You really, really like me.

Remember when Sally Field accepted the Oscar for Norma Rae and that's what she said?
Well, maybe I feel a little like Sally right now, but without the excessive melodrama because I'm just not like that. I'm really, really not.
Anyway, I've been nominated for a Poppy in the category of Favourite Textiles(I intentionally spelled favorite the "other" way because that's how the Poppies spell it)
Don't know what The Poppies are(other than a field of lovely, but sleep inducing flowers in The Wizard of Oz)? No worries. Learn everything there is to know here. And if you're so inclined, you can vote for me by clicking through here or through the Poppie Portal I added to the right-hand sidebar.
Since I can't imagine a post without a few pretty images to look at, I'm including some shots of some recent creations, several of which already reside in Ye Oldde Etsy Shoppe while others will be making their way there throughout the week.

Two Places at Once

Isn't it great that the internet makes it possible for me to do something that I never can manage in the non-virtual world? I can be both here, blathering in this space and at Whip Up guest blogging over there. I've never been more efficient than I am at this very minute.
Anyway, I put together a little post about my book, Color Your Cloth, and dyeing fabric. I also designed a special pattern just for my guest blogging gig. It's free and available as a PDF from Whip Up.
I had mentioned previously that I was madly in love with the Baktus scarf. The free knitting pattern for that is available on flickr. When Kathreen from Whip Up asked if I'd like to do a guest post about my book, I decided that I wanted to create a special pattern as part of the post. I'd been thinking about how to adapt the Baktus scarf to fabric and wrote to Strikkelise, the scarf's designer, to get permission to rework the pattern in cotton.



Since the focus of the post was hand dyed fabric and crafting with it, I patterned some cotton with a stamp I created by gluing a pair of wine corks to the back of a letterpress stamp I bought on Etsy. Instructions for making stamps out of all sorts of commonly available objects are found in the book. I then backed the patterned front with a hand dyed solid and I had my very own fabric Baktus.



I hope that some of you who've enjoyed making the knitted version will be inspired to sew a Baktus.
Before you decide though, head on over to Whip Up to read my post, check out the free pattern and...oh yeah...enter the give away for a free copy of Color Your Cloth.

As Easy as it Looks

It's been cold here. Every time I turn on the news I hear about how cold it is in Florida and how unusual that kind of extreme cold is. Well, it has been cold like that here, except we're not getting nearly as much coverage.
This unusual drop in temperatures prompted us to bring out a little something extra to make sitting in our newly painted living room, complete with now-filled aquarium(though no fish yet) more pleasant.



You might remember this quilt from the post that featured it on my daughter's bed and..oh...the cover of my book. Now it's gracing the couch along with a new pillow or two and it looks good there. So good that I'm not returning it to my middle's bed even though the thermometer isn't dipping quite so low.
Actually, seeing the quilt on the couch and, more importantly, cuddling underneath it, reminded me that I still had a few leftover blocks from the quilt's initial making.
It took a while to find them and there were only three, so I decided a fourth block was needed.



I've thought about the "rejected" block off and on since I made the quilt and came up with several ideas of how to incorporate them into something else. But these plans were rejected as well. It took seeing the finished quilt laid out to realize that the best solution was also the simplest.



I quilted the pillow top in the same pattern I used for the quilt and then selected the backing fabric.




It was only after I'd started attaching the zipper to the backing that it dawned on me that the pattern in the fabric mimicked the quilting pattern on the pillow top. All the parts just seemed to fit together easily.
I wish I could figure out how to make that happen all the time.

Happiness is a Whole Bunch of Fish

Before I get into this post, I wanted to answer a couple questions from the previous one. The sewing table is called the Arrow Olivia Sewing Cabinet and I purchased mine at Ready to Sew Bernina in Cedar Park (Texas, that is).

"It'll make me so happy." That's what my husband said when he proposed the idea of adding a second one. I had to laugh, but I wasn't so sure. I did finally agree to it but with two caveats. I've gotta give the guy credit. He definitely fulfilled his side of the bargain.
He did this:



So, now we have this:



The "this" I'm referring to is the aquarium.
A few weeks back, my husband made a heartfelt plea for a second fish tank. We currently have a 55-gallon tank stocked with what look to me like happy, little fish. But, he really wanted another one, so I said that if he could figure out what to do with the books and bookshelf that a 6-foot aquarium would likely displace and paint the room, then I would make room in my home and heart for more fish.
I mostly wanted to paint the room because I felt like it was a natural part of the remodel process. Now that I've actually had to help him move the tank into the house, I realize that it was a now or never situation. That tank is the heaviest thing I've ever had to help move and that's without any water. If we hadn't painted now, we never would because you just don't move that puppy around.
Naturally, new wall color necessitates the creation of a few new things.



So far just one new thing, but I'm working on at least one other pillow.



This one features some of my hand dyed fabrics including two twinkle circles and a few commercial prints.



I backed it with a simple, graphic fabric in shades of gray and bound the whole thing with some hand dyed linen in yellow.
My couch is gray, my wall are now yellow. Now I'm so happy!

Green is the new blue

At least in my world it is. Blue used to be my go-to color and, while I still love it, green has been appearing regularly in the things I make lately.



I just finished knitting this scarf for my daughter's friend. The pattern is called Baktus and I'm absolutely in love with it. First it uses one skein of yarn, so it's perfect for justifying the purchase of a single, hand-painted skein. Also, this pattern is ingenious in how it uses the yarn. You weigh your skein and, based on the weight, determine when you'll switch from increases to decreases. That means no leftover little bits to nag at you and make you feel like you should come up with something useful to do with 5 3/4 yards of extra yarn. Add to that the pattern is simple enough to be meditative. How much more ideal can a knitting pattern be? I'd be making a second one for myself right this minute if it wasn't for the fact that I'm half a sleeve away from finishing a sweater I promised my eldest would be done before the end of 2009 (note calendar date).
I'm just saying, expect more Baktuses(Bakti?)in my future, maybe even adapting this shape to create a sewn version. Who knows?



A year ago I don't think I would have made this dress in green, but I must be growing up.
I have been thinking about making this dress for way too long. It's not that the pattern is especially complicated, but I guess I just needed the right green fabric. I bought this yardage from Bolt 44, one of my favorite online fabric retailers and the pattern is Simplicity 2846. This is an easy, straightforward pattern and I'm especially fond of the way the sleeves are added to the body. I think it's a standard raglan-like construction, but there's something so logical about it that the process made me smile. The only modification I made was sewing down the darts along the collar. They just seemed to poof out a bit much for me. Being that this is Texas, I made my version in cotton, but I could see this working well in wool should you live in a geographic region where people don't scamper and hide whenever the mercury falls below 50 degrees.
Part of the joy of sewing this dress had to do with a new, green addition to my studio.



After almost 20 years of sewing I have a "real" sewing table. By real I mean not some leftover table that was destined for Goodwill or rejected by one of my kids, but a genuine meant-only-for-sewing table. This table includes a feature to set the sewing machine below the table surface so the entire table functions as an extended machine bed. The insert that matches my machine brand and model is on order so for the next few weeks I'll be using it much like I did my previous table, but my table and I are very happy together.



And ready for more green crafting.

Year End Favorites:: Quilts

One of my favorite things about this time of year is the published lists of favorites from the past year. Whether it's favorite books, music, or people or events, I love reading through these lists and comparing them with my internal rankings of stuff.
Even though it came out a couple weeks ago, I still have this year's New York Times Book Review list of top 100 books by my bedside. I'm always curious to see what they selected as the best books of the year, though, truth be told, I really only pay attention to the fiction 50 because I'm not much of a non-fiction reader. Also, I should add that if one of my favorite books is missing from the list I find myself getting pretty irate at the powers-that-be at the NY Times. I'm not usually satisfied with consulting a single list though. I peruse the NPR books list as well. It's particularly fabulous because it divides the fiction favorites into additional sub-categories like mystery and youth fiction. That allows me more opportunities to either wonder whether I'm in agreement with the choices or, if I haven't read the book, contemplate adding that title to my to-read list.
That's essentially what's so great about the end of one year and the anticipation of another, so many possibilities and opportunities. Realistically, this demarcation we call New Year is pretty arbitrary, but I'm so glad it's there because I enjoy cataloging the previous year into what's thrilled and inspired me as well as planning for the coming year.
This year I've decided that the fun should not be limited to large media outlets. I want in on the favorites list making. I've decided to make several lists pertaining to stuff I'm interested in. I'm starting with quilts and, because I've never done this before, I granted myself a special dispensation and allowed myself to choose ten favorites from more than just 2009. My selections came from my many "faves" on flickr, all 67 pages of them. I've put them together in one online gallery, titled, "Love these Quilts!".
Taking on this task did make me empathize with the mass media "selectors". I had so many amazing quilts in my favorites that I did find my head spinning a bit. The spinning was only exacerbated when I thought about all the quilts on flickr I probably had never or will never see. After some deep breaths though I persevered and assembled my wee little gallery. I hope you enjoy it, but if you don't agree with my choices, try not to get too mad at me.


Also, if you haven't entered the Lark Books quilt contest, it's not too late. The holidays are a perfect time to sneak away from the family for a bit of self-indulgent, but let's face it, sanity-preserving, crafting. The deadline is January 5, 2010. Go ahead and follow the link in the right-hand sidebar to find out everything you need to know.

Slow Going

You know what they say about best laid plans. Especially mine.
Anyway, I had planned to have most of my book projects added to my store, but there must be some big holiday coming up because I've been seeing a lot of a activity in my wee little shop and that's been keeping me busy.
So, rather than a big deluge, I've added a few things everyday.
Yesterday I uploaded images of a some new fabric offerings.



What does this have to do with the projects in my book? Nothing, but I get distracted easily.

I've apparently regained my focus because today's additions do relate to my book.




Both of these quilts are minis made out of hand dyed and patterned stripes.



Really, the biggest difference in patterning the fabrics for these quilts is that I used a small calligraphy brush for one and a wide, house painting brush for the other.



There are a lot of design possibilities though in the humble line. I'm convinced that the simplest shapes offer the most inspiration. Oftentimes the more I try to impress myself and others with complex designs, the more I'm reminded that keeping it simple is really the best way to go. The funny thing about using a simple shape or motif is that it's open to so much manipulation that it can become complex. Maybe those two ideas are actually intertwined to some degree rather than being polar opposites?