You know what I love?

Ara Jane and her amazing style. And the fact that this is how she starts each blog post. Telling you something she loves. How positive is that?

I met Ara Jane earlier this summer at our retreat and got lucky enough to have her draw my name in our recent swap as part of the do.Good Stitches Love circle.

Ara Jane professed in her card that she might have gone a little overboard, and she did, in the best way! Not only did she send me some of her delicious granola (we had this on the retreat and I have yet to try the recipe for myself) and some Theo chocolate bars (oh, the hazelnut one is my favorite so far!), but she also sent me some lovely green yarn.

And of course, there are handmades:

There's this embroidered hoop featuring the ever-awesome Treat Yo Self phrase (Monica's blog post has the video if you need a Parks & Rec fix). Ara Jane's embroidery is beautiful, and I actually have no hoops adorning my walls. So, yay for that!!

And the pillow.
Oh, the pillow.

I love the geese.
I love the colors.
I love the fabrics (this is my first dose of in-real-life Chicopee, and I must get that black voltage dot!).
I love her hand-stitching.

I love that Ara Jane's personality really shines through in these gifts.

Thank you again, Ara Jane!

Received!

I received my Modernista swap package this week, and I couldn't be more thrilled with it! Safiya Alyse made my gifts.

Would you look at this quilting??

Safiya made me a sewing machine cover with wonky stars, and each area is separately quilted! Wowza.

It fits in with the rest of my colorful mini quilts I've received from friends.

She also sent me this fun project bag (from Ayumi's lunch bag tutorial. I just love the texty print she used! Yes, this will work very well to carry my knitting about!

Sometimes, signing up for a public swap can be a little risky, and you aren't guaranteed to love what you receive. But sometimes, the person works hard to make something you will love and enjoy, and it's clear Safiya put so much care into these fun things. Her quilting is inspiring! I need to start practicing some FMQ...

Thank you again, Safiya!

Coasters from Casey!

Casey and I decided to do a swap, and she made me these super fun crocheted coasters! I love them so much. They are so colorful and happy. Thank you, Casey!

I haven't fulfilled my end of the bargain, but I'm working on it! I'll share Casey's gift when she receives it, in the next few weeks.

Little swaps like this make my day!

A wedding quilt

I've been meaning to blog about this for just over three weeks now. Trouble is, I didn't get around to taking pictures, and I hadn't received the wedding photos. And this is the kind of thing you need pictures of, because words just aren't enough. So, first, a picture:

Each block in this quilt was made with different hands. It's a lengthy list, but I want to individually mention each person involved in this project:

Amanda
Amanda
Amy
Beth
Betty (my grandmother
Bryanna
Chawne
Chris
Cindy (my mom)
Fi
Freida
Gabriella
Jen
Jessica
Jill (my sister)
Jules
Kaelin
Liz
Maureen
Melissa
Nicke
Paula
Rachel
Robin
Safieh
Sally
Sam
Sara
Tammy

I cannot thank you all enough for making this quilt for us!
It's so beautiful, and when I opened it at the wedding, I was shocked, touched, and overwhelmed.

The colors are, of course, PERFECT! And the stars. oh. the stars. I love that each quilter shared a little piece of themselves in this quilt.

Nicke organized this endeavor, and quilted it! We've had so much fun enjoying each block.

Jules made the binding, and Nicke shipped it to Amy, who surprised me with it. Kaelin has devilishly named it, "The Babymaker". My mom especially loved that!

Thank you, friends! It means so much that you would do this for us, and give us good wishes for our marriage.

One last photo: this is CJ, Elliott's adorable dog, who is living with his parents for the time being. Since we will be living at my townhome (with no yard), he can't stay with us. We'll be visiting him often, though!

From Ayumi

We are in the final countdown for the wedding!
Elliott and I had a very productive weekend, but still managed to find some fun.

And I had some very fun mail arrive to get the weekend started!

A couple of weeks ago, I was perusing etsy, and found myself in Ayumi's shop. I saw the cutest little pincushion, and truly couldn't resist, so I bought it.

I didn't realize, but I guess it hadn't been in her shop for long, so I really lucked out!

It arrived, and look! It's just so fun. I love Ayumi's style, and of course, I covet her stash! She packed so many gorgeous scraps into this little cushion.

So, the package seemed a little heavy for just a pincushion, and that's because Ayumi made us a wedding present!

Look! It is so freaking cute! Ayumi used the new pattern from Sew-ichigo, a venture by Penny and Kerry. I'm not sure I'm quite up to the challenge of this pattern, but I'm going to give it a try soon!

I love Ayumi's gift. It's so fun, and I love that she even made the mixer match mine! The stamping is my favorite little detail, though!

Thanks again, Ayumi!

I have a few things to share this week, and I hope I can find the time to make that happen! <3

From Rue and Rachel

When you are regularly order things online (for a wedding and maybe some occasional fabric), it's hard to keep up with what packages you should be getting. The other day I got one in a small flat rate priority mail box, that puzzled me upon arrival.

It was something from Chicago. Then I recognized the name and was even more puzzled.

Rue and I had already completed our swap, so what was she sending me?

Apparently, Rue and Rachel conspired to surprise me with a wedding gift.

A handmade shawl, to be exact.

Not only did they share knitting duties on this gorgeous shawl, but the yarn is handspun, by Rue.

Incredible.

I wish I could really show you the depth of this color, but the yarn is a gray with subtle flecks of blue, green, pink.
And soft. So soft.

The sneaky girls perused my ravelry favorites and saw that I enjoyed the Citron shawl, but I haven't knitted the pattern.

I love this shawl, because it was knit with love and hope.

I hope the wedding venue is chilly enough that I can wear this that day, and remember how each stitch was knit by my friends, Rachel and Rue.

Thank you both. You are incredible!
As soon as I can, I'll share a picture of me wearing it.

Hopefully, it will be from the wedding, which is less than three. weeks. away!

Received: From Sara and Rue

Today is my sister's birthday. Happy birthday, Jiller!

Also, thanks for your kind words on my tutorial. I was nervous about posting it, but I'm glad it's done!

I want to share two very happy packages I recently received. One, handspun yarn from Rue, in exchange for the mini quilt I made Tadpole.

Rue is such an even spinner, and the yarn is so soft! I have misplaced the card with yardage and fiber content, but I'm sure I'll find it as I pack away my room. Rue also sent along some local treats, which have been (almost) devoured. She sent some incredible espresso shortbread and a chocolate bacon bar. Yeah, I said it. BACON. And it was delicious.

Thanks again, Rue! It was so fun swapping with you!

Two, from Sara, a mini quilt and a pillow cover.

She used selvages to make this pillow cover, and look at her quilting! It's so beautiful. This was a bonus gift (!) to say congratulations to Elliott and I. Elliott actually liked this pillow better than the mini quilt, so I know he won't mind if this gets planted on our couch!

As for the mini, well, the scrappiness is out of control awesome. I love it so, and the fact that she used so many teeny tiny pieces and abandoned blocks (based on Chawne's very cool method) just makes it all the more special. Sara entered Jennifer's Modern Mini Challenge. I've got my fingers crossed for her!

Thanks again, Sara! Your package should be arriving any day!

A tale of two minis

How was your weekend?? Did you get to be crafty?
I accomplished a few things, including falling down the last three stairs in my townhome. Stupid slippery socks. I have a couple of bruises, but I'm okay! I'm moving slowly this morning, though.

Today, I want to share two mini quilts with you. One was for a friend, and the other was from a friend.

You may have noticed in my mosaic, but I recently knit a second pair of Toast mitts for my friend/fellow guild member, Tammy.

I used some of the handspun from Sam. We made a trade last year, and this was one of the skeins she sent.

I wasn't expecting anything in return for the mitts; Tammy just wanted a pair, and is hoping to learn to knit soon.

She surprised me with the cutest mini at our February meeting.

Look! She used Kelly's LOVE pattern, and also pebble quilted for the first time. I love it, and it was so sweet of Tammy to make me a little treat!

My pal Kaelin has been on a sewing hiatus, due to a neck injury. She was sentenced to six weeks of no-sewing, which is, luckily, almost over. Some of her friends conspired to make her a care package, and I made her a mini quilt. I didn't want to give it away, but I did, reluctantly. She received it last week, so I can share it with you!

I'm so obsessed with wonky stars, guys. I can't even tell you!

Kaelin is very into navy/pink right now, so I used some favorite fabrics in those colors and densely quilted this. The fabrics include: Dear Stella stars (love!), Metro Modern circles, and a fireworks print I picked up at Sewing Summit. There's no selvage, but I wish I knew what it was! I'd love to get some more of that print!

I love the way the quilting turned out. I wouldn't want to densely quilt a larger size project, but on a mini, it's not too time-consuming.

I made a little hanger, which I sewed into the binding, and bound it with some jelly roll strips of the new Pezzy Prints. The back fabric is Lecien My Folklore.

I'm linking up with Megan today!

Stella +

Happy Valentine's Day! Do you remember the Echo pillow I sent Nicke? Ah, I'm still so in love with that yellow stitching.
Well, last week, I got my lovely pillow! Nicke knew I would fall for a gray and yellow plus pillow. She was right.

She used some lovely prints, including Dear Stella, Amy Butler, Ruby and others.

Nicke handquilted around some of the pluses, and it just looks lovely! She also included an invisible zipper, which looks masterful!

I would certainly call this a successful swap! Nicke is so much fun, and I feel lucky to count her as my friend.

I am a leaf

So, as promised, I'm here to share with you the mini that Amanda made for me.
First, have you watched Firefly?
If you haven't, I highly recommend it. There's only one season (it got axed, and was followed by a movie, Serenity, a few years later). It's a fun sci-fi show!

Amanda incorporated our shared love of the show with a mini quilt. Amanda picked a quote (from Serenity) from the character, Wash, and embroidered it in a happy yellow thread.

Even better, she used pieces from the ever-amazing Good Folks line, by Anna Maria Horner (along with some other AMH goodies). She paper pieced the curvy triangles, which you can see her working on here. I just love it! She included those fun little fabric pieces of Firefly characters, found on Spoonflower.

She also included a skein of Malabrigo Worsted in Sauterne. Ah, yellow. How I love you. I've said this before, I know, but I love our crafty community. To find others that share a love for sewing, knitting, quilting, embroidery, crochet, spinning, creating, etc. well, it's an awesome feeling. Thanks again, Amanda, for a very happy swap (oh, and psst! she's destashing some Mendocino at the moment!)!

Happy mail, part two

Do you know Chicken Julie? She is amazing, as evidenced here. We met on flickr a few years back, and I've adored her ever since. We decided to do a little swap last year, because she wanted some fingerless mitts. She made me a little mini and a tee-shirt for Oliver.

We decided to swap again, and she blew. me. away.

Just look at the loveliness.

The way she uses selvages is so inspiring. I love the plus/cross design she created with her rainbow pieces.

And look at the quilting. Just look!

As if the mini wasn't enough, Julie also sent along some extras:

She made some matching selvage potholders, an adorable black and white fabric, some homemade washi tape, and some jam (not pictured)!

Jules, you are awesome! I sent her package out today, and I'll share that with you later this week!

*Total tangent, but I looked up the proper spelling of selvage/selvedge. Apparently, both are correct! I always wondered. Selvage is the US version of the word, and selvedge is the British equivalent. Who knew??

Happy mail, part one

This was a week of ups and downs, but I've been lucky to have some happy mail this week. Surprise mail always brings a smile to my face! It's nice to see something other than bills occasionally! First up, on Wednesday, after getting home super late, I received two surprise packages (and a fabric package, *cough cough*!).

The first was from Ella. You may remember the Bohus Pillow I made for her in December.

She found these adorable Munki Munki pajamas at Marshall's and got me a pair! Fabulous! I think that headband is especially awesome!

The second package was from Sharon, one of my Sewing Summit peeps.

She sent this fun gift, with a frog tape measure, stitch markers, a handmade pouch (made by another friend), and a coffee cozy she knit using the stitch pattern from my scarf pattern!

She also sent this beautiful sock yarn. It's Brown Sheep Company yarn. I didn't look at the details yet, but it feels like 100% wool.

Thanks to both of you for having perfect timing!!

Happenings

I hope those of you that celebrate Christmas had a lovely one! My weekend was hectic, but very enjoyable. After traveling most of the weekend, I was happy to pull up to my house Sunday night. I had a few packages waiting for me when I arrived, so it was like Christmas all over again!

I received this special package from my good friend Rachel. She shared some homemade huckleberry jam, one of her signature calendars, and two skeins of Brooklyn Tweed Loft! Wow. Rachel is such an amazing person. I so admire that she loves her work, and I always enjoy seeing what crafty things she's doing. Thanks again, Rachel! I'm touched.

You may remember the Echino stag and Melody Miller tea cup pouches I made a few weeks ago? Those were for Rachel, along with one of my coffee (or tea) cozies)!

My other package was a large box of fabric from Pink Castle Fabrics.

Half Moon Modern scissors and the green chevron print. These prints are so bright!

I also scored a layer cake of the amazing " A Stitch in Color", Malka's new Moda line. I have a small piece of her hand printed fabric, so I was anxious to see the Moda-printed line in person! It's vibrant, and I'm already dreaming up ways to use the prints.

I also got a couple of yards of Anna Maria Horner's beautiful new flannel, which I plan to quickly transform into new pillowcases. The thought of a flannel pillowcase seems cozy.

In other swap and gift news, I received my #ssswap last week. My secret santa was Megan!

She made me an adorable zipper pouch, and sent along some stitch markers and some homemade caramels (which have already been devoured!). Fun! Thanks, Megan. I love it all!

Last, but certainly not least, my pal Amy, made lots of these adorable pouches in different fabric combinations. She gave one to each attendee of the HMQG holiday. These are so cute, and I love the kitty print!

Well, that's all for today.
I managed to finish the big secret project, which was a quilt for my sister. She loves it, however, the weather was so dreary all weekend that no pictures exist yet!

She has promised to take some photos soon so that I can share the FO with you!

I've been thinking about my 2012 crafting goals, and I'll be sharing them with you soon.
Oh, and I have a small birthday this week, too. ;)

Talk soon!

A surprise from Jessica

Do you know Jessica? I really enjoy her blog, and her adorable crafty style. She's made some really fun things for her kiddos, and I'm really in love with her recently finished Loulouthi Tiles quilt from Rachel's free pattern.

So, several weeks ago, I sent Jessica some patterns I received at the Sewing Summit. The patterns were for little girl's clothes, and I thought she would enjoy them.

Well, fast forward to Friday afternoon, I get a surprise package from Jessica. In a completely unexpected and generous gesture, she made me a fabulous mini quilt!

How fun is that??!??

She also included a very sweet note, so thanks again, Jessica. You completely made me day!!

Yesterday, I tried to spend some time cleaning up my sewing area, and that included hanging some of my recently acquired minis.

On this wall, we have the Solids swap quilt I received from Shape Moth, and Jessica's mini.

Above my sewing area, I have the Post-Summit swap mini I received from Di. I still have two more minis to hang, so my collection is steadily growing! Ah, happy walls.

I've got lots of sew-y progress to share with you asap!

Kindred spirits

Sometimes, I forget how lucky I am to be a part of our community. I was reminded of that fact several times this week. First, when I received ShapeMoth's package, and then again, when I got an unexpected gift from Chawne If you remember, she was one of the shawl winners, and in a most generous gesture, she sent me something in return.

I am now the lucky girl with a mini-compost of my very own, as well as an amazing hand-print by Margot Bianca. There's also a wee pouch by Splityarn for me to enjoy.
Wow. Amazing. Thank you again, C, for your sweet gift!

Now, I've got a lovely space above my ironing board to enjoy.

The final reminder of community I received this week was attending my first Houston Modern Quilt Guild meeting. Meeting quilters in person was exhilarating, and made me even more excited about the upcoming Sewing Summit. In fact, I met some gals who will be attending, so I'll know a few familiar faces!

You can look at this photo to see what some of the members did with the Habitat challenge! Very cool projects going on.
I'll definitely be attending more meetings and events, and they're having meetups during the International Quilt Show, too!

For the Love of Solids - complete

Now that I've both received and sent in the Solids swap, I'd like to show you the results!
So first, I received from ShapeMoth. My package flew all the way from Germany, and it contained:

this incredible metal-frame pouch (just look at that linen!), and

this beautiful mini-quilt. I love the gradient effect and the quilting is fabulous.
Joanna really spoiled me with these lovely items!

On the other side of the swap, I sent to Krista. Krista really wanted placemats or an apron. I almost made an apron, but I was afraid not many people would have requested one, and I didn't want it to be obvious she was my partner.
So, placemats!

Krista's favorite solid is Kona Butterscotch, so I paired that with some lovely blues, yellow, and a few brighter solids.

Krista has three kids, so I wanted to make sure everyone had their own placemat.

When I made that decision, I didn't think about all of the hand sewing it would entail, but I'm so glad I didn't skimp.

These were really fun to make, and I know Krista really loves them!

I quilted each one a little differently, and bound them in various solids.

The triangle quilting was my favorite (I didn't want to let that one go!).

I also whipped up a little zippy pouch to send along, and stuffed it with some solids and a couple of prints.

Swaps are super fun, and I'm so glad I jumped in for this one.

I don't plan on joining any others until the new year, but I'm sure I will be tempted. ;)

P.S. I'm planning to post my very first tutorial here soon!

Have a great weekend!