From the Messy Desk of Ms. Crafty McBusyLady

I could start this blog entry with a cascade of apologies and reasons why I haven't posted anything since last year, but I would be boring you and ignoring the array of amazing projects that are in the process of being created!

It is now March 2012, and judging from the state of my work table, preparation for Spring Quilt Market is in full swing. As some of you may know, my first cotton collection for Benartex Fabrics is overseas being printed and I'm eagerly awaiting my shipment of sample yardage. I must begin sewing up my sample projects the moment that yardage arrives, so I've been spending every weekday drafting my new sewing patterns and making up prototypes. Of all the things I do for my business, this is the most exciting! I love immersing myself in piles of fabric, stacks of patterns, and the mission to create lots of new somethings.

As usual, I can't show you photos just yet, but I can hint about what I'm working on at least. The cotton collection for Benartex will feature peacocks, borders, and feathers. The prints are geared toward multiple uses, not just quilting, so the projects will range from stuffed toys to clothes to home decor. Don't worry - I can't keep all this secret forever!  There will be many photos and details to come.

One of my favorite decorative projects I'm working on is a patchwork pillow sham for throw pillows.  Since the final patterns will be scaled for various sizes from 12" to 20" square, I have a nice fat stack of pillow forms taking up space on one of my desk chairs! These samples are a real treat to work on, as I get to use up some of my stashed conversational cottons that have been waiting for just the right project.  I can't wait to share these designs with everyone - they're going to be easy to make and enviably adorable, If I do say so myself.

In all I hope to unveil at least seven new sewing projects at Spring Quilt Market.  Given that all of this is happening at tax time and concurrent with starting art for another new collection of cotton fabrics, you might be wondering how I'm able to pack so much work into so little time. To be honest, it requires a specialized working method called "drawing in front of the TV watching Netflix a couple of times a week".

Yes, I just said watching movies is my key to success.  Sure, there are long stretches of me working away for hours at my Mac or my sewing machine. But really, the real work happens when I'm re-watching Wes Anderson films and waiting for Moonrise Kingdom to arrive at my local theater (or when I'm viewing Dune for the zillionth time, take your pick).  I guess I grew up drawing on typing paper on a clipboard in front of the TV, since it was always on back then.  It helps my analytical brain take a vacation while my hands find the right lines to use - That's really important since my analytical brain seems to work overtime these days!  Today I did more work during a repeat screening of The Royal Tenenbaums than I have in the last week.  How's that for methodology?

Well, breaktime is almost over and there are stacks of fabric on the ironing board calling my name.  Don't worry, I won't wait five months before I write another post.  This updating of my blog might even turn into a daily habit... we'll see!

Happiness is a Smaller Stash

In the last month that I've been away from writing blog posts, I have been a very busy lady.  My first collection of cotton fabric has been edited and approved and sent off to press.  My home office has moved from upstairs to downstairs.  My stash of fabric is smaller... and life is good!

As a born pack rat married to a tidy person, it has taken me years and quite a lot of effort to part with stash fabrics (yarn and paper, too).  I didn't intend to hoard things, I'm just a magpie with more creativity and enthusiasm than I had time and energy to finish things.  I have been a natural and enthusiastic collector of craft materials for most of my life.  So, as I undertook the three-week process of moving my studio to the downstairs common area of my house, I made a lot of decisions about what was really important and where I wanted to focus my creative efforts and energy.  It was time to do a purge.

Every box was gone through - Scrapbook paper that I had collected in college while I was still scrapping with a friend as a social activity got savagely cut.  Excess yarn that was never going to find its way to my needles went to triage.  Outdated software manuals went to recycle... and my Mount Everest of fabric was reduced to a manageable collection of vintage gems and useful basics, with room for projects in progress.

Since I was in junior high, I've had a huge stash of fabric - most of it never got used.  It was always about 80% stash.  This time I took the opportunity to ask myself, "What do you REALLY want?"  and I answered "I want to be the lady who decides on a dress to make, then goes out and buys the fabric and finishes it before I start another one."  So far so good.  It's my new mantra. 

I know, I can sense many of you fellow pack rats and collectors out there cringing... but understand that I didn't throw away everything.  I kept important pieces, inspiring bits, and a few indulgences.  I am, after all, a collector and curator.  The major difference now is that I have space for the things that matter and a cleaner, clearer space where I can create without so much clutter. 

NEW PATTERN! The Patchwork Owl Family

The original 2007 Owl Pattern

It's not exactly a new pattern, but it may as well be... The re-release of my very popular Patchwork Owl Family sewing pattern happened a few months ago and I'm still very excited about it!  What is this pattern, you ask?  Why have you re-released it?  What's the big deal about a bunch of stuffed owls, anyway? 

Back in 2007, when I was selling fabric at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics, I realized that a lot of the customers were asking for stuffed toy patterns but there weren't a lot of choices in the store.  I assembled my experience and skills and designed a pattern that would reflect my love of owls and hopefully would appeal to the varied customer base at the fabric store.  I also tried to make the owls something that a customer could easily make with common fabrics - quilting cotton and felt.  After a few weeks of rigorous testing, writing, and illustrating, I released the original 101 Owl Family Pattern, which was something of a local overnight success.  We could not keep them in the store - I was always selling more than I could make in my spare time.  This success led to a couple of spin-offs:  The Baby Owl Kit and later a kit designed especially for the clothing and accessory store Anthropologie. 

Fast forward to late 2010.  Fresh from International Quilt Market and a few years of fabric design school, I decided to update my small line of patterns and expand the offerings.  After months of looking through my customer feedback notes while I was designing fabric, I finally had a real gem:  The revised Patchwork Owl Family pattern.  So... other than a pretty new hand-painted cover and some slick graphics, what does this re-release have that the original lacked?

The 2011 Re-Release

I really listened to my customers - spoken and unspoken feedback was really important to the re-design process.  The most important change was in the back pieces.  In the original version, a gap was to be left in the curved side of the owl to allow for turning and stuffing.  While this was adequate for this purpose, many customers weren't able to preserve the curve when the gap was sewn shut.  By making the back neck seam straight and building in a turning and stuffing gap into that seam, everyone can now have a perfect curve all the way around the owl!  Plus the straight gap is easier to stuff through and sew closed at the very end.

Also updated is the front body assembly.  Previous versions of this pattern called for stitching the wings onto a body piece in an applique-like fashion.  This wasted fabric and was difficult for some beginning seamsters to accomplish, so I straightened the wing-to-tummy seams and simplified the construction. 

Almost everything else about the owls is the same, except for a lot of little details that most people might not notice.  The detailed step-by-step instructions are now lovingly drawn by hand and show every important little detail of the construction.  These illustrations are now a little larger than those in the original pattern (along with the font size) - a plus to all of us who need a bit of magnification (do you see me raising my hand and adjusting my glasses?). 

(L) A fresh basket of new owls. 
(R) The improved back stuffing gap of the revised owl design.

I hope that new and return customers will enjoy my fresh new updates to this pattern.  It's a fun project to make, and was designed to be a relaxing and rewarding project for any occasion or time of the year.  For more information or to purchase this pattern, please visit my Etsy store.

Learning Product Photography In An Afternoon

Sometimes my own can-do spirit is enough to get a project done... and sometimes I need to call in my reinforcements!  Such is the case with photographing my projects and products.  Despite having received four whole years of visual arts training in college, I somehow dodged basic photography!  Unbelievable.  This is when my friend and crafting colleague Christina over at Meadowlarking came to my rescue with an afternoon-long photography lesson! 

I just happened to have a bright and beautiful new apron sample on hand for the lesson, with which I learned that bright green summer leaves can sometimes make the best backdrop for vibrantly colored cottons... who knew?

This is my standard Flat Front Apron pattern, due for re-release by mid-July of this year.  I've been busy sewing up trunk show samples; this one features a bright Moda polka dot and the periwinkle Paradise Garden print from Amy Butler's Love Collection.  Summery, isn't it?  I can't wait to sew up and photograph the rest of my sample aprons - they are a motley group of colorful and witty cotton things.  There are no holds barred when choosing fun and bright fabrics for aprons... the brighter and more outlandish, the better.

As cute (and addictive to make) as these aprons are, they're notoriously difficult to photograph, making them the perfect photography student challenge.  We folded, we draped, we hung this apron on a hanger.  Christina suggested folding the apron in half and swept the ties to the side and - voila! - instantly more photo-friendly.

Of course, just getting the apron folded wasn't the only challenge... In learning how to best photograph the fabric, I also learned how to block and direct excess light using a piece of foam board... here you can see me acting as the gleeful photographer's assistant, blocking out all the dappled sunlight from our cheerfully-colored apron model.

While I am ultimately better trained to sew these projects than to photograph them, I came away from my lesson knowing my camera a bit better, and a I had more confidence about photographing lots of my upcoming projects.  I also have more enthusiasm, which only bolsters my can-do spirit!  Lights, camera, action!...  Awesome product photos, here I come!

My First Adventures In Hawaiian Quilting

You know that you're addicted to sewing when you take your quilting with you on vacation to the Big Island of Hawaii.  ...and what better project to take than a Hawaiian appliqued quilt block?  In case you aren't familiar with Hawaiian quilting, there is a great history and a lot of resources for you over at Poakalani.net (they also publish a wonderful series of pattern books that include instructions).  Simply stated, the Hawaiian quilting tradition that is practiced today arose from the teaching of traditional western applique quilting techniques to the islanders of Hawaii, who then combined this western technique with traditional Polynesian tapa cloth motifs.

My first project is a 22" sampler, which will be used as a throw pillow sham when complete.  The artwork starts with a 1/8th pie segment template that is used to cut the folded cotton, much as you would a tissue paper snowflake.  The design of this block is the Guava pattern by Apapane Quilting; you can see my work in the first stages, with the light yellow applique aligned on the creased backing fabric:

The next step in the applique process is to thoroughly hand-baste the applique fabric onto the backing.  I've basted loosely in the middle, just enough to keep things in place while I stitch:

No hoops are used while sewing the applique to the backing.  Here I am using a hand-sewing needle to needle-turn the edges of the applique under 1/8" and stitch by hand with a tiny pick stitch all the way around the motif.  Initially the turning was difficult and not as smooth as I'd like, but my stitches and turns are looking better as I near completion of the applique process!

Here you can see some of the finished applique work - mostly tidy, but the parts that are a little rough won't look as obvious after the next step of hand-quilting.  I'm loving the summery colors of citron and pale yellow here - bright reminders of breezy, sunny days stitching on the lanai!