During Quiet Time

Skating on Frog Pond

2012-01-27T08:04:00.005-05:00

I have exciting news! I designed this paper pieced iceskate block and pillow pattern for issue 8 of Fat Quarterly. The issue is all about paper piecing. I took a quick look through the ezine and there are some great projects in there!

My project was inspired by a New England tradition, skating on Frog Pond at the Boston Common. I designed a paper pieced iceskate; the traditional white figure skating sort.

I really enjoyed embellishing it. I added eyelets and brads and embroidery for laces.

The iceskate block is bordered by a "frame" using drunkard's path blocks at the corners. I used my Accuquilt Go Baby for those. I love the way that the "frame" worked and can see using that again in combination with other blocks.

Issue 8 was sent to subscribers today and is available for general sale on Tuesday, January 31 right here. There is still time to sew this wintery pillow before spring! If you make one, please add a picture to the During Quiet Time flickr group and the Fat Quarterly flickr group.

iPhone Pouch

2012-01-26T12:35:00.002-05:00

If you click over to the Basic Grey blog today, you will find my free pattern for an iphone pouch. I know, it isn't terribly new. I've had the tutorial up on the right hand side of my blog for a number of months now. But this has been one of my most popular tutorials so I enhanced it bit to include directions for using a button closure. You will find those changes at the end of the pattern. So you can make it one of two ways, velcro or button! Enjoy!

Swap with Kerry

2012-01-25T08:57:00.003-05:00

Again, I am counting my blessings for all the wonderful people I have met through blogging. How else would I have met Kerry in the UK from over here in New England? It's not likely given the fact that I never travel! Kerry and I have been talking about a swap since sometime this fall and I can now report that it is complete! We both received our packages. This is the mini scalloped dresden bag that I made for Kerry. I used my free pattern but reduced it by 66% for the body and 75% for the flap (I think, but forgive me if I am slightly off if you try it because I forgot to write it down). As I said in an earlier post, I first mistakenly reduced the flap by the same percentage and ended up with a flap that was much too small.

It became this little coin purse/wallet.

I was the lucky recipient of this beautiful frame pouch. It's so incredibly soft and I love the vintage fabrics she used and the delicate handstitches around the perfect petals. I think it is funny that she included my initials as I did her's...that wasn't a planned part of the swap! It's lined in a beautiful sewing print too.

She also included a drawstring bag made from this vintage print. She thought it would appeal to my curator side and she was correct!

And look at all those fabric goodies and chocolate! I was most spoiled. It's going to be hard to cut into those fabrics as I love them so much.
Thank you Kerry for this fantastic swap, and for your friendship!

Seam Ripper Alert!

2012-01-24T13:16:00.004-05:00

Seam ripper alert! My husband fired up the wood stove in the barn this weekend and spent some time by his lathe making another batch of seam rippers for my Etsy shop. You can find them listed here.

Yesterday evening, this surprise came for me in the mail! It's an out of the blue, just because surprise from my friend KT. Look at the mini spectrum in tiny stacked coins! And I love the material with the thimble and zipper. She even used precious bits of out of print material. Thank you KT for a wonderful surprise!
I've included a hint as to what I am working on in the photo above. I cut into Blitzen!

Knitting Project Bag

2012-01-23T13:35:00.003-05:00

Allison has received her knitting project bag so I can share it with you now. For the second time, I cut into my Yuwa alphabet panel from Sew Fresh Fabrics. I didn't regret cutting into it to make Penny's library bag so I did it again! This time, I used the "Y" for "yarn." Allison had asked me to use her favorite colors of yellow, pink, red and blue for the bag but the "Y" panel had orange and green balls of yarn. The picture was to perfect not to use so I embroidered over the print to change the yarn colors.

The front of the bag is a log cabin style block and the back is simply pieced with a solid stripe on which I stamped "knit purl."
I find myself wondering what project Allison will use it for first!

Winner!

2012-01-23T13:17:00.004-05:00

Who says that the first to comment never wins? The "Walk in the Woods" charm pack plus one other charm pack of your choice from Quilted Treasures goes to:

1 Kelsey Jan 20, 2012 05:05 AM
Nothing handmade planned....but I did see an adorable pillow on pinterest I would like to make if I have time!

Thank you Kristina from Sew Domestic for this great giveaway. I hope you have all had a chance to visit Quilted Treasures. Here are a few of my favorites:

I love this Curio Fat Quarter Bundle from Basic Grey.

And my kids would love, love, love it if I made them a quilt from "Welcome to Bear Country." I wish I enjoyed reading these books as much as they like having me read them. They are among my least favorite but they adore them!

This Kokka Hello Kitty print would make such an adorable back pack for a little girl, wouldn't it?

Happy shopping!

Stash Trad Bee-Arkansas Traveller

2012-01-22T15:26:00.004-05:00

I finished up my February block for the Stash Trad Bee. It's the Arkansas Traveller which you might remember from the Summer Sampler Series. Lee from Fresh Pieced has a tutorial for the block here and this block happens to be made for her! She asked for beachy shades of blues and sea foam green and beige/sand. It's meant to be a part of a beachy quilt for her sister. I really think that MY sister would like these colors too.

Introducing Kristina from Sew Domestic (and a giveaway!)

2012-01-20T07:29:00.007-05:00

Do you happen to remember this little beauty? It's the doll quilt I received in DQS11 from Kristina of Sew Domestic. Today, I am happy to introduce Kristina as a sponsor for During Quiet Time. She wrote up a little guest post:

"Sometimes you just get lucky.
The internet can be such a powerful thing! I was lucky enough to get Amy as my partner for DQS11 (Doll Quilt Swap.) When I received her list of requests and looked at her inspiration mosaic I was pretty pumped to get started on the project. I spent a lot of time on her blog investigating her likes. I realized we had a lot in common which made the process even more fun. I felt lucky.
I have been a reader of During Quiet Time ever since and am so excited to be a new sponsor here! Amy’s work is colorful, inspiring and just plain fun. I adore her original screenprinted fabric and clever designs, sewing and quilting alike. It’s just good stuff. She’s good stuff. She definitely inspires me.
I’d love to extend an invitation to you to visit my blog Sew Domestic. It started as a quilting blog, but has transformed into more of a lifestyle blog. I am a wife, mother and web manager at a quilt shop. I share a lot about my daughters, my love of organization + quilting + scrapbooking and some of the yummy stuff (in my opinion) I like to make for dinner! Bottom line, I love to make stuff. My ultimate goal is to find balance in it all so that my family is taken care of and my creative spirit is fulfilled + happy.

(Kristina's Little Leaves Quilt)
So grateful to have an amazing job that I love. My mother in law owns Quilted Treasures Quilt Shop in Rogers, Minnesota (near Minneapolis). I have been lucky enough to work beside her for the past seven years, whoa!! I forgot how long its actually been! Anyways, I started out cutting fabric and assembling quilt kits and have worked my way up to managing our website and helping plan events, classes and inventory. We are also now offering Long Arm Quilting Services which has been such an awesome life skill to learn! We specialize in Quilt Kits and Installment/Block of the Month Programs. Our Minky Tube Scarves have also been a huge hit! One of my other responsibilities is managing our etsy shop. I pull together specialty fabric bundles and list stuff that I think is cool. Fun huh? I sure hope you like what you see and stop back often!
Be sure to stay in touch…I’d love to hear from you!!"
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/sewdomestic
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/kristinawilberg/
Flickr Gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kristinawilberg/sets/

Thank you Kristina! Kristina is also offering a fun giveaway! The winner will receive a "Walk in the Woods" charm pack plus a charm pack of her choice from Quilted Treasures on Etsy.

To enter please just leave a comment and let us know if you are making anything handmade for Valentine's Day this year. I'll announce a winner on Monday (1/23).

Another Sneak Peek

2012-01-18T14:45:00.002-05:00

This one's for you Allison! This is a sneak peek of Allison's zippered knitting project bag. Her favorite color is yellow and she also likes red, pink and robin's egg blue. She picked the DS Fabric as a favorite so I built around that print. I'll show pictures just as soon as she receives it!

The Plunge

2012-01-17T21:25:00.004-05:00

Well, I took the social media plunge. I might live to regret it. I have been avoiding Facebook for ages now but finally caved because I wanted to join Pinterest. To join Pinterest, you have to have a Facebook account. Then to top it off, Aurifil was having a contest with really great thread prizes but again, you needed a Facebook page! Since I had to set one up, my friend Vanessa told me that I should really have a During Quiet Time facebook page too. So I do. I have three followers and one of them is my husband. Care to help me up those numbers a bit? I added a "Like" button on the right hand sidebar down below my followers button. Right above that, you will see a button for following me on Pinterest. Should you choose to like me on Facebook, maybe you could go the extra mile and click on my Aurifil entry and vote? My computer geek husband is so proud.

Edited to add, the link to my facebook page is here.
I have no idea why my Facebook button isn't showing up! I can see it at home but my husband can't see it from work either. We will work on that.

It's Christmas Again

2012-01-17T14:20:00.003-05:00

I received some adorable Christmas material from BasicGrey! This is their new line of fabric called Blitzen. It will be available in June 2012.

I love the range of colors...deep reds, greens in so many shades, grey and white. These are really my kind of Christmas colors. They are traditional with a twist.

And who wouldn't smile when looking at these little snowmen? My favorite part? Look at the selvages! Blitzen has snowman selvages. I just love that!
I am looking forward to working with this fabric even though Christmas as past for this year. Some projects using Blitzen are sure to pop up over the next few months. Right now I have to go work on another little private swap item. This time, I am swapping with Allison. She is knitting me something! I am making her a zippered bag to hold her knitting projects.

Sneak Peek for Kerry

2012-01-16T11:36:00.002-05:00

You might recall that I am working on a swap project to send Kerry. She asked me to make one of my scalloped dresden bags (see tutorial link in sidebar) at about 3/4 size. I tried simply copying the pattern pieces at 66% but the dresden flap ended up much too small. I wasn't thinking about the fact that the dresden has so many seam allowances and therefore, couldn't simply be copied at a smaller percent. I believe it was about 75% that finally worked out correctly. So I started off with a mistake resulting in a cute little mini mini dresden. Since it was personalized with a "K" I decided to applique it onto a little wallet/change purse to coordinate with her bag. I think it is sweet! I'm sending this out tomorrow and when Kerry receives it, I will show the full picture of the wallet along with the bag.

New Seam Rippers

2012-01-15T20:51:00.002-05:00

How's this for glitzy? Mark has been working on filling a few custom seam ripper orders but threw in a couple of extras that looked like fun to him. If you are new to my blog, my husband makes these hand turned acrylic handled seam rippers and they are sold in my Etsy stop from time to time. This new acrylic is a gold and silver glitter. Boy does it sparkle. I think to use this seam ripper, one should be wearing black heels and have a manicure.

This is another new color called Marinara. It really looks just the color of Italian tomato sauce.
The two seam rippers shown here are in my shop.

Jeannie's Quilt

2012-01-11T17:27:00.008-05:00

I bet you've been wondering where I have been. I'm not normally quiet for a whole week! I've been busy finishing up a six week collaborative project. You know how it's so easy to get down in the dumps thinking of all the horrible things going on in the world and all the terrible people doing awful things? Every now and then it is nice to have an experience like this that reminds you how wonderful and loving and caring people can be.
I had the pleasure of meeting Jeannie nearly two years ago through blogging or Flickr. I am not even sure how we met, but am so grateful that we did. She is such a wonderful supporter of all my crafty efforts. She always has positive comments that she leaves here on my blog and on each and every picture I post to Flickr. She has tested my patterns on more than one occassion and always does it so quickly. Jeannie also has a huge heart. She is so upbeat and cheery that you would never know that she is often working on very little sleep. She helps her daughter care for her very sick granddaughter around the clock. They have numerous doctor's appointments and treatments. Recently, she has really been stretched thin. Her granddaughter's health has been failing and I thought it was high time someone take care of Jeannie. Since she is too far away for me to cook for her, I did what any quilter would. I decided to make a quilt.

I picked the Greek Cross block because it is simple, can be made by quilters of various skill levels and there is a tutorial available right here (thanks Faith). Since I wanted to invite others to make blocks for the quilt, this seemed the perfect choice. I started by inviting people that I knew Jeannie was friendly with and then I hunted around through her Flickr contacts and noticed who commented on the pictures she posted and invited some more people to the group. In turn, they recommended a few more people. Before I knew it, I had a group of 22 wonderful women happy to contribute to the quilt. 21 of us made blocks, someone paid for the batting, another made the binding, and many contributed to the costs of making and sending the quilt. I was overwhelmed by their support and actually started to worry that the quilt was going to get to be too big!

I asked that the blocks have scrappy grey corners and white background with brightly colored crosses. Jeannie loves color; the more the better.

I hope this quilt comforts Jeannie. Making it certainly brought joy to my heart. It was wonderful to see how many people so willingly stepped forward to help me. I'd like to thank each of the participants as listed here:

LilyClaire on Facebook
PattyAnnD
100billionstars
chriso10kids
{Leila} Where Orchids Grow
LBG Studio
Noodlehead
redthimble
ayumills
verykerryberry
dutchcomfort
Arbonnegirl
aaaandreaaaa
applekrisp
cindys0707
keykalou
chickenjulie
amydunn
lizh2
LethargicLass
love2quilt7

The Back

2012-01-08T14:04:00.002-05:00

A couple of you pointed out that I neglected to show a full view of the back of my courthouse steps quilt. You would think that with all those photos, I would have taken one of the back! I didn't though. I snapped a quilt picture beside our barn.

I am starting to put together a mini Scalloped Dresden Bag (see my tutorials) for a private swap with Kerry. She requested a mid to dark grey for the body of the bag so I pulled the grey crossweave that you can see in the background a stack of prints and solids in some of her favorite colors. I'll wait to see what Kerry thinks before continuing. Is it too dark for you Kerry?

Courthouse Steps Quilt Complete!

2012-01-06T13:30:00.003-05:00

Forgive me, there are going to be a lot of pictures. I enjoy taking pictures of completed quilts as much as I enjoy making them. My husband and daughter and I took a walk this morning at a local state park. Because it was so cold, we had the place to ourselves so we didn't feel too silly taking quilt pictures! Above is one of my favorites. The quilt is hanging over the roof supports of an old greenhouse that is dug into the ground. Mark hopped in and took the picture.

Here is the obligatory quilt roll shot. You can see the binding here. I am really happy with my binding choice. I love polka dot bindings and the greys in these dots work so well with the quilt. The fabric is Juicy Blossoms Grey Dot.

The backing is pieced. I used the full width of Echo and then a strip of Kona Mustard with an improv pieced strip to fill out the width.

I mentioned that I asked Rita for her opinion on the quilting. She suggested turning the quilt so that the colors are in vertical lines rather than horizontal. When I hung it on the barn, I hadn't really thought much about direction. I was more anxious to get back inside where it was warm and to get a picture before the quilt blew away. Since the quilt measures 60" square, it doesn't really matter. But I did need to pick a direction since my backing print is directional. I looked at the quilt both ways and I decided to go with Rita's suggestion because it makes the grey a more even player when it is hung this way. She suggested straight lines through the colored sections. I did this and also varied the width of the lines as I did the width of the steps in the piecing. I used a light grey thread on the top and a mustard thread in the bobbin.
The spray basting worked well with the shifty materials and there are no puckers, front or back. I may be a convert.

I promised a list of fabrics. This is nearly complete:

Kona Azure
Kona Aqua
Kona Ice Frappe
Kona Mustard
Kona Raffia
Kona Medium Grey
Kona Ash
Kona Coral
Cross Weave Aqua
Cross Weave Red Yellow
Kaffe Fasset Shot Cotton in Tobacco
Kaffe Fasset Shot Cotton in Galvanized
Alexander Henry Heath grey
Alexander Henry Heath black
Art Gallery Pure Elements in Ash
Robert Kaufman Quilter's Linen Grey
Circa 1934 Gold Solid
Aqua Essex Linen
Orange Essex Linen
Aqua Linen Texture by P and B Textiles
Juicy Blossoms Grey Dot
Echo Florine Brass Mesh

I found the majority of these fabrics at my go to source for solids, Marmalade Fabrics, where Tammy was kind enough to help me find the Orange Essex Linen and Red Yellow Cross Weave to coordinate with the Kona Coral. The other fabrics were purchased from the Fat Quarter Shop, Fresh Squeezed Fabrics, Sew Modern and Fresh Modern Fabric.

Spray Basting

2012-01-05T13:19:00.002-05:00

Thank you for all the nice compliments on my Courthouse Steps quilt top. I pieced together a backing using Kona mustard and an Echo print. I spent an evening pin basting ever so carefully. Then when I started to quilt, the top started shifting terribly even though the pins were fairly closely spaced. I had to unpick 3 rows of quilting stitches and remove all the pins. Then I decided to try spray basting. It seems to be working. Thank goodness! I think that all the shifting was caused by the number of linens and crossweaves that I used in the top.
I consulted with Rita, the queen of straight line quilting, for quilting ideas. She had a great suggestion. I hope I can show you soon! Now that my basting issues appear to be resolved, it's moving along pretty quickly.
I have also managed to identify all the fabrics I used with the exception of just two, thanks in part toTammy. I will share that list as well.

Courthouse Steps Quilt Top

2012-01-02T13:20:00.004-05:00

I just finished my courthouse steps quilt top! I started collecting fabrics for this quilt in the fall. I didn't start sewing till last month and it went slowly with the holidays and school vacation thrown in there. But it is complete now and just the way I had pictured it which is always a nice surprise.

I used many, many shades of each of four colors: grey, mustard, aqua and coral. I will make a list of the fabrics used and share them when I finish the quilt. I am still working on compliling the list and wishing I had done so as I went along.

I used the basic design of the traditional courthouse steps block but varied the width of my strips from 1" up to 3." The quilt top measures 60" square. I have a backing fabric all picked out but need to piece a strip to complete it. I am a bit stumped in terms of quilting. I'd welcome suggestions!

Where do you get your labels?

2011-12-31T13:14:00.002-05:00

I add a "made During Quiet Time" label to nearly every project I make. The labels that I use are sent to me flat. I iron them in half and then stitch them into the seam of pouches...

potholders...

coasters...pillows, quilt bindings, everything! And the single most asked question on my blog is "Where do you get your labels?"

My labels are purchased from the Custom Couture Label Company on Etsy. Not only do I love their labels but they are work at home moms from NH, just one state over from me. I like supporting other moms who are home doing what they love while caring for those they love.
I just recently reordered labels and they have changed a little bit. The labels I had ordered in the past were 100% cotton. At the moment, they are unable to print those but you can still order your own labels sheets of that material and print them at home if you have an inkjet printer. You can find those here. The labels that are now produced on matte polyester satin. You can purchase them using this listing. My labels measure 1 3/4" square and fold along the centerline so that the text can be seen on both sides (which is great for pouches or potholders where they are sewn into an outside seam). If you want a similar layout, just let Dianna know as she has my order on file and will be able to help you achieve something similar. Dianna told me that the new satin labels are even more popular with her customers than the labels that they had been printing. I think that the addition of labels like these really adds a professional look to your projects. And I just noticed that there is a sale going on now through January 2! You can get 20% off your order by including the code "newyear."
The Custom Couture Label Company will be listed in my sidebar along with my other wonderful sponsors for awhile in case you can't find this post when you are ready to order labels for your projects. Dianna is wonderful to work with. She is prompt and provides a label proof before printing to catch any miscommunications or typos in time. I highly recommend the Custom Couture Label Company!

Blogger's Choice Fat Quarter Bundle Contest

2011-12-30T11:21:00.003-05:00

Have you heard about the fun contest at Quokka Quilts? The Fat Quarter Shop is offering a chance to design a Blogger's Choice Fat Quarter Bundle with 12 prints and 3 solids. I would love to make about 20 of these! It's so hard to just go with one color scheme and feel. This is what I have settled on for my entry. What a smart move for the Fat Quarter shop. Entering this contest means spending A LOT of time on their web site browsing fabrics and you end up finding all sort of things you didn't know existed.

Sew What: Rosy Wedge Bag

2011-12-28T19:55:00.003-05:00

I recently joined the BasicGrey Altered Arts design team! Each month, I will be designing a project using their fabric products and notions for the "Sew What" series on the BasicGrey blog.
I'm calling this the Rosy Wedge Bag. It's a simple, cute, boxy zippered bag that can hold a surprising amount of stuff! The exterior print is Blissful Bubblegum from the Hello Luscious line. I love the flower. It's a BasicGrey product called Blush in Bloom. Product links are included in my post as well as full, step by step directions for making the bag. I hope you enjoy it!

Petticoat in the Shop

2011-12-28T08:40:00.003-05:00

Have you recovered from all the holiday craziness? I think I am just about there but still a little bit tired from a 3 am wake up thanks to a super excited 6 year old on Christmas morning.
I just wanted to let you know that I have managed to print and heat set a number of pieces of my latest screenprinted design, "Petticoat" and it is available in my shop. I am offering it in a number of combinations of size and color. If you don't see what you are looking for, let me know because I might be able to set up a custom listing. I have more prints than I listed. I tend to update quantities as they sell rather than listing it all at once.

Village Ornaments Printable

2011-12-25T21:37:00.004-05:00

While Christmas cleaning, I came across the patterns I drafted last year to make village ornaments. I had intended to make the patterns into a free printable in time for Christmas crafting but forgot all about them. Rather than let it go another year, I thought I would do that now. You have plenty of time to make them now before next Christmas!

The printable can be downloaded here. It includes a pattern for a small house, a townhouse, a barn, a church and a Federal style house/mansion. Mine were cut from a tissue box, assembled with a hot glue gun, and decorated with acrylic paints, varnish, stickers, sequins and puffy snow glue.
Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T09:05:00.002-05:00

1. Christmas Origami, 2. Winter Wash Half Apron for the Holidays, 3. Red and Linen Finnish Stars, 4. Cocorico Block-Vintage Christmas for Melinda, 5. Christmas Countdown with Nordic Holiday by BasicGrey, 6. Winter Wash Pillow Cover, 7. Christmas Origami Continues, 8. Candy Cane Love Socking, 9. Little House Ornaments, 10. Tree Ornament in Mustard Petticoat, 11. Winter Wash Pillow #2, 12. Fabric Finnish Star Ornament, 13. Ladybug Walnut Shell Ornaments

Here's a little mosaic of my Christmas makes for this year. I wish you a very Merry Christmas! I am sure I will be back before you know it with some post holiday pictures. Enjoy your holiday everyone!

Vintage Christmas Cocorico Bee Block

2011-12-21T14:45:00.002-05:00

Melinda asked us to create 12.5" blocks with a Vintage Christmas feel. She said that she likes aqua, red and green for Christmas. Among her inspirational images, there was a definite theme of colored lights. I recently saw a gift tag where the top of the tag was white, the bottom red, and lights alternated along the line. I thought it had a nice, clean, graphic look to it and tried to create my own version of that. I used a mini green rick rack for the cord. Melinda enjoys Christmas music so after wracking my brain and my husband's brain and my mother's too, my mom finally thought of a Christmas song mentioning lights. I stamped the verse from "Silver Bells" using my black screen printing ink and heat set it with an iron. I hope this suits her and works with the other blocks in her quilt.

Handshaped Wooden Buttons

2011-12-18T20:24:00.002-05:00

My husband and I have been assembling a secret Christmas gift and needed just the right buttons. When we couldn't find them, Mark decided to make them. These buttons are hand shaped with rounded edges.

Mark added little "dimples" by the button holes for added interest. The buttons are sanded smooth and sprayed with a clear enamel finish.

While he was at it, he made some extra buttons for my shop. You can find them here. I think that they would be so perfect for handknits. In fact, they really make me wish that my knitting skills were such that I could easily whip up a cowl or sweater just to use some.

Stash Trad Bee Block

2011-12-17T08:33:00.002-05:00

I wanted to leave something prettier than the Random Number Generator up on my blog so I thought I would share this bee block that I just popped in the mail. This one is heading to Lynne of Lily's Quilts. She has a tutorial for the block here if you'd like to make one. Lynne asked us to use Kona Charcoal for the neutral and then our own scraps. I wasn't sure where to start with a color scheme so I asked for some of her favorite colors and then it was easy to get going!

Giveaway Day Winner

2011-12-16T19:50:00.003-05:00

I am amazed that 737 of you entered to win my handprinted fabric and my husband's hand turned seam ripper. Thank you for visiting my blog this week during the giveaway and for all the nice comments left for me and Mark.
The lucky winner is

310 Jill aka ThatMoxieGirl Designs said...
Wow! I can't wait to dive into your tutorials. My goal is to do some selfish sewing in 2012!

Christmas Origami Continues

2011-12-15T13:23:00.002-05:00

I loved the look of the flowers I showed this morning made with text from discarded books but I wanted to see what they looked like in color too! Again, I followed the tutorial here.

Typically, thin paper is recommended for origami and for good reason. However, I tried them using some double sided cardstock from BasicGrey's Nordic Holiday line. Specifically, I used "Half Pipe," "Lift Ticket," "Sweater Weather," and "Catching Air." They were less forgiving than the thin paper. It was also harder to make a nice edge. I'd recommend using a bone folder to avoid sore thumbs! I made one of the flowers using a 3 1/2" square as the tutorial calls for but then made the others a little bigger to better use the size of the scrapbooking paper and to make it easier to fold.

I am not sure what I am going to do with these yet. They would be pretty on the top of packages, resting on a shelf, nestled into the branches on the tree, or attached to florist picks and added to Christmas centerpieces. I love them!

Christmas Origami

2011-12-15T08:23:00.002-05:00

When I saw this tutorial, I needed to make one! Aren't they beautiful?

They are simple to make but you do need a little bit of patience or perseverance in the face of tedium/boredom. Each flower ball requires the folding of 72 pieces of paper. But they are totally worth it in my opinion. I can see so many variations in my mind too.

Today I would like to challenge my friend Michele of Michele Made Me to make one out of her colorful junkmail. Have you seen her junkmail snowflakes? They are genius. Get folding Michele! (I hope you play along. After all, I did play along with your tissue box challenge and the recycled jeans challenge...) Can't wait to see it!

Last Minute Tutus

2011-12-14T12:59:00.003-05:00

When I posted pictures of Penelope and the library book bag that I made her for Christmas, Carol said that Penny looked like a girl who would like a tutu and that I should make her one for Christmas. I thought that my Christmas sewing was done and I was fully into Christmas baking. Today we are decorating sugar cookies and recently the kids helped create this gingerbread train station.

But once Carol mentioned the tutus, I felt compelled to make them because Penny IS the kinda girl who would love a tutu. And her older sister outgrew her tutu so she should have one too.
They really are easy. I just made an elastic waistband and knotted on strips of tulle. I didn't realize that you could buy tulle already in strips in the bridal section of JoAnns. I didn't fancy the idea of cutting strips of tulle. The strips made it a breeze. Thanks Carol...but no more ideas now because I need to be done Christmas sewing.

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day

2011-12-12T06:00:00.006-05:00

Welcome to During Quiet Time! I am participating in Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day again this year.

Here is my offering! My giveaway IS open to international readers.

If you are new to my blog, I enjoy hand printing fabric. My designs are all original and made with care. I print on an Essex blend with high quality, heat set silkscreen inks. All fabrics are prewashed and ready to be used in your sewing creations! My package includes one piece of my Defining Kokeshi silkscreen in black, one piece of Vintage Collection in royal blue, and scraps of My Happy Place and Petticoat in mustard and petal.

My husband makes hand turned seam rippers on his lathe in our barn. The handles are acrylic and polished to a beautiful shine. The hardware is good quality and the seam rippers sell faster than he can make them. This particular seam ripper didn't make it past quality control (me). He did a perfect job handturning the handle but the coloration of the blank didn't please me. The stripes give way to a grey area in one spot. This works for you though as we decided to give it away! I can guarantee that it works just as well as the others and looks perfectly perfect from most every angle (except that one!).

I'd love it if you would follow During Quiet Time or take a peek in my shop. However, all that is required to win is a simple comment. Please tell me what your sewing resolution would be for the New Year, should you choose to make one. Maybe you are going to finish up all your WIPs? Maybe you aren't buying fabric but working from your stash? You tell me for a chance to win. I will leave this giveaway open till Dec. 16th at 5:00 pm. I will pick a winner using the Random Number Generator.
Thanks for visiting! Happy Holidays!

Editted to add: My husband sells his seam rippers in my Etsy shop. For those who have gone looking for them, they are sold out at the moment. He will be making more and they will be listed after Christmas. He also accepts custom orders. Just send me an Etsy convo and we can arrange for that. Thanks for all of your inquiries.

Another Edit: SMS asks that the giveaways close at 5 today PST. I was forgetting the time zone difference. I will draw a winner this evening at about 8:00 my time and will post the winner here!

This giveaway is now closed.
The winner is
310 Jill aka ThatMoxieGirl Designs said...
Wow! I can't wait to dive into your tutorials. My goal is to do some selfish sewing in 2012!

Inset Zip Pouch

2011-12-10T08:25:00.003-05:00

I made my first Inset Zip Pouch, pattern by Keyka Lou. I've been wanting to try this pattern for awhile because I have never installed an inset zipper. The directions were clear, as I have come to expect from Keyka Lou patterns, and the pouch came together without a hitch. I like this pattern because it allows you to feature a small bit of a special fabric. I used my mustard Petticoat screenprint for the center panel.

I used Anna Maria Horner voile for the exterior because it was such a good match and a Jennifer Paganelli Queen Street print in pink for the interior. The mustard zippers from Zipit are the perfect match for mustard Petticoat!

Because She's So Cute

2011-12-09T14:43:00.002-05:00

Penny has been wanting a library bag like her big brother and sister. I decided I would make one as one of her Christmas presents since there isn't much a third child "needs." Now she will be able to fill her very own bag with books on our weekly trip to the library.
I had a really hard time cutting into my Alphabet Panel from Yuwa of Japan but thought it would be so sweet for a little one's book bag. But seriously, look at this face....

how could I not?

For the Love of Invisible Zippers

2011-12-08T13:10:00.005-05:00

Last year, right before Christmas, I installed my first invisible zipper. I haven't made a single envelope closure style pillow cover since! I love, love, love invisible zippers. First off, I love the challenge of getting it as invisible as possible with just the little pull dangling off the end. Secondly, it allows me to make an 18" pillow cover backing with just a fat quarter! And finally, I think it provides such a nice and professional looking finish.
Well, sometime between my last order of zippers from Zipit and my most recent order, Jennie started carrying invisible zippers! I have to share my excitement with you because second to my love of invisible zippers is my love of a bargain. I had been paying $2.99 for a single 12" invisible zipper at my local big box sewing supply store. Check this out...ten 16" invisible zippers for $8.00. That's 80 cents per zipper! I must use at least two invisible zippers a month. This is a significant savings!

A bit of Petticoat

2011-12-06T14:41:00.003-05:00

I know I said that my screenprinted fabric, "Petticoat," would be available the first week in December. Clearly I had lost my mind. Who makes that sort of definite statement with Christmas just weeks away?

You will find a bit of Petticoat in my shop this week. I listed some yesterday and a bit has sold already and there is a bit left. There will be a lot more later. This time I am not going to say when! My guess is that it might come after the holidays.

I hope you are all enjoying your Christmas preparations!

Seam Ripper Joy

2011-12-05T09:08:00.003-05:00

Joy is a new, handturned, acrylic handled seam ripper available right here. Mark has finished his last batch of seam rippers for this year. He will accept custom orders for the new year but there will be no more seam rippers available before Christmas. This time, he added a couple made from African Rosewood as well! I ship first class with delivery confirmation for domestic packages. I mail the same day whenever possible so the packages should have time to travel!

Winter Wash Half Apron

2011-12-01T20:18:00.004-05:00

Ever since I first printed my Winter Wash silkscreens earlier this month, I knew I wanted to make another two tiered/double skirted half apron (similar to the one I made with my Vintage Collection print). This time I used a red and white Nordic snowflake print for the apron. The top layer of the half apron skirt is a fat quarter panel of my Winter Wash print cut with rounded edges and lined with bleached linen. I did that for two reasons. For one, it makes for a nice finished edge. Secondly, the bold red and white design would have shown through the white Essex.

Since I don't wear aprons while I cook, I put this apron in my shop and tried to size it such that it would fit a wide range of body types. The gathered waist band measured 15 1/2" and there are 37 1/2" long ties on either side. They can be wrapped around and tied in front or tied behind.
I'm having fun exploring different possibilities for this print!
Oh, and the cookies seen in the first picture are today's bit of baking for the freezer stash. They are snickerdoodles...recipe here.

Seam Rippers-Move Quickly!

2011-12-01T08:43:00.003-05:00

My husband completed two more seam rippers. There is a pink (SOLD) and a dark aqua with black swirl. I have shown aqua with black swirl before which is a bit lighter in color. This one is a touch deeper.

After this, I believe we will have exactly 7 more to post before Christmas.

Petticoat

2011-11-30T13:53:00.003-05:00

Thank you to all of you who participated in my Name that Print game! I have decided to name my new screenprint "Petticoat." Now, first robinde mentioned a couple of names with Petticoat in them but not alone. Then Leila suggested simply Petticoat. To be fair, I will send both of you some pieces of the fabric. Email me and let me know your addresses and color preferences.
I liked many of the other names. There were a lot of citrus, or at very least fruit related ideas. I thought that many of them were cute names but since I intended the print to be rows of eyelet, I preferred "Petticoat."
I am printing this design in four colors. From left to right they are Dove, Petal, Mustard and Aqua. A couple of them are hand mixed colors so they will vary from one printing to the next.

I feel like a hamster on a wheel these days with all that is going on. I haven't had much time for sewing but I did find just enough time to make a simple ornament using Mustard Petticoat. I hand sewed little red glass beads here and there, stitched, turned and stuffed. I think it is sweet in it's simplicity. I didn't intend for this to be a seasonal print but due to the fact that Christmas is coming, I started seeing the scallops as roping or garland and then my thoughts turned to Christmas trees.

Thank you to everyone who has been shopping in my Etsy shop for Christmas! I am surprisingly busy packaging these days, compared to my norm. I am getting lots and lots of emails about the seam rippers that my husband is making. They are a hot item! I am even finding myself emailing husbands to arrange for secret sales. I am feeling quite elf like these days. The centermost seam ripper in the image above is still available. The others sold before I got a chance to mention them here.

We have a couple of recent custom orders to fill and then there will be handful of seam rippers left to list in the shop; probably by the beginning of next week. My husband doesn't think he will be able to do any more than that till after Christmas. At that point, he is willing to take custom orders once again. Between now and then, it will be first come first serve so keep checking the shop.

A Gift; One for me, One for you

2011-11-29T15:09:00.005-05:00

Earlier this fall, I had started up a Hanging Hoop Wall Pocket swap and Erin from Why Not Sew? was my partner. Due to unforseen circumstances, she wasn't in a position to finish her swap on time. I told her that as the swap leader and as her partner, I was completely excusing her and that she was free to put the swap out of her mind and deal with what she had going on. Well, she did that for a time but ultimately ignored me and I found this gift in my mailbox yesterday. It's a sweet doll quilt with aqua crosses. You can see it on her blog here. I really meant it when I told her not to worry about the swap. But I am grateful for this beautiful little quilt meant just for me. Thanks Erin!
And now, I believe I mentioned a gift for you? Visit my friend Pomona's blog for a chance to win a Ruched Happy Bag or Hexiecase pattern in plenty of time to make some for Christmas gifts! Tell her I said hi!

Winter Wash Pillow #2

2011-11-28T19:11:00.003-05:00

A bit ago, I made a pillow cover using my Winter Wash screenprint in Stormy Blue. I knew at the time that I wanted to make a second pillow cover using the Winterberry red version. My goal with the stormy pillow was to add dimension with no added color. This time, I wanted to create a very traditional, sort of homey Christmas pillow in red and green.

I embroidered some snowflakes in the sky and also used three of BasicGrey's vintage buttons as snowflakes. I added a touch of embroidery to the woolens in green embroidery floss.

I filled in the white stripes of the girl's scarf with green embroidery and used red french knots at the top of the tassels. I also stitched a tiny red button onto the coat.

I then added some details to the landscape using free motion quilting, as I did with my first pillow. I forgot to take a picture of the pillow back but it is a very traditional Christmas stripe in red and green with holly and berries.
I gave this pillow to my mother as an early Christmas gift so that she could enjoy it throughout the Advent season rather than receiving it just in time to put it away!

Did you notice my blog's new look? The header has been improved and the sidebar is finally all sorted out. I have been struggling with it for some time now but my wonderful friend and former neighbor, Sally, is a web designer and helped me out! I haven't seen Sally in nearly three years now because she and her family moved to London. I miss her but working with her even long distance was fun! Thank you Sally!

Welcome Fresh Squeezed Fabrics!

2011-11-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

I'm happy to welcome Fresh Squeezed Fabrics as a new sponsor of During Quiet Time. Fresh Squeezed Fabrics is an Etsy shop run by a lovely lady named Randi who blogs at i have to say.... In November, she was featured on The Name Game at Live a Colorful Life. There is a great interview there where she tells us a bit about herself and her shop.
If you already follow Randi's blog, then you know that she just finished up a big Black Friday sale. But if you are new to her blog and shop, you are in luck! She has offered a 10% discount to everyone through Friday using the code "quiettime10."

There are plenty of beautiful fabrics there to tempt you. Here are a few that are tempting me. I love this stack of Ruby.

Oh, and how about some Cabbages and Roses precuts?

And this stack from Lakehouse Dry Goods makes me smile.

Happy shopping!

(While you are shopping on Etsy, check out my Etsy shop for CyberMonday savings as well! See banner at top for coupon code.)

A Few More Bags

2011-11-26T20:12:00.005-05:00

Today I added a couple more bags to my shop, just in time for Christmas shopping. These are likely to be it for the season as I have a few pressing things to do...like my own Christmas shopping, baking, and all that good stuff! I made two cosmetic bags that stand on their own due to gussets on the bottom. They provide lots of room for bottles of body spray, travel size shampoo or conditioner and hairbrushes.

Both bags feature my silkscreened fabric, "My Happy Place" in the center of the bag front. They are sewn up in the red and aqua color scheme that is so appealing!

And I made one more Ruched Happy Bag, this time in Melissa Averinos' Dazzle.
Thank you to everyone who purchased a Ruched Happy Bag pattern over the last week. I hope you are all enjoying sewing them up for holiday gifts!

You might want to check out my Hexiecase pattern too. They would make wonderful Christmas gifts as well. I simply haven't made any for my shop because I don't think that they would ship well without losing their shape.

I wanted to mention that all the zippers used in these bags and any bags I have made for the past year or more have come from my new sponsor, Zipit! Jennie has such a wonderful supply of zippers at a phenomenal savings over the big box fabric stores. She also ships quickly in boxes covered in adorable Japanese tape. I highly recommend checking out her shop if you haven't already. You'll never be able to run into the fabric store for a zipper again without cringing at the price you are about to pay!

Kindness

2011-11-26T08:27:00.003-05:00

I am the recipient of a tremendous act of kindness and am feeling very special indeed. A couple of rounds ago, a woman named Linda joined my Potholder Pass swap on Flickr. Since meeting her, she has been such a supporter of my work, especially my fabric printing. She recently asked for my address because she wanted to send me a "mini" something. Well, yesterday I received this "mini" rug! It must be about 2 1/2 feet wide and is so incredibly soft! She made it from an upcycled Martha Stewart linen blend. It's crocheted with a large hook. She also included a mini measuring tape twill because it looked like something I would love (and do!). She said she sent this to me due to MY kindness...I think she got things backwards. I am so blessed with wonderful friendships due to blogging. Thank you Linda.

Kokeshi Tooth Fairy Pillows

2011-11-25T13:50:00.004-05:00

I've been wanting to make these for ages and finally did! Do you know a little girl about age five who will be losing her first tooth soon? Does your little girl leave her tooth for the tooth fairy in a plastic baggie? No more! These unique little pillows are so sweet and will hold her tooth till the fairy comes to replace it with a coin or bill. I have added a few of these to my shop.

I also made a couple more of my popular Kokeshi doll pincushions. They are oversized so you can avoid sticking the cute doll with your pins. Also, I like a pincushion with room for lots of pins! I have added chevron loops to the sides to up the cuteness factor.

If you'd like to make your own pincushion or tooth fairy pillow, you can also find my "Defining Kokeshi" silk screen prints in my shop. From one panel, you can fussy cut three dolls and make three pincushions and/or tooth fairy pillows, reserving the large kokeshi doll for another project. You do need to forfeit the little doll in the center of the panel for this project though. The panels are printed in three colors: fuchsia, black and sherbet.

Don't forget that I am also selling pillow kits that use this whole panel. You have time to sew one of these for a Christmas gift! And, if not, my two sample pillows are also in my shop.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T07:32:00.003-05:00

Name that Print

2011-11-23T08:46:00.005-05:00

First off, there are three more seam rippers listed in the shop. We have an orange with black swirl and two new colors, orange marmalade and amethyst swirl. There will be more in the next week or so but I am listing them as they come as many people are ordering them for Christmas gifts and I want to make sure they arrive in time!

This is my new screenprint! It's a repeating row of eyelet. My plan is to print it in three to four colors and it will be available at the beginning of December. I am horrible at naming designs. All I've got for this one is "Eyelet." Name this print and you will receive a free piece in the color of your choice! Let the naming begin!

Bags for My Shop

2011-11-22T13:37:00.003-05:00

I got into the bag making mode the other day so I made up three more Ruched Happy Bags for my shop. This first bag is made from Jennifer Paganelli's Queen Street collection. I made a similar version in laminate several months ago. This time, I modified the pattern slightly by adding piping between the focal band and the gathered body of the bag.

This bag is made from Anna Maria Horner's Loulouthi collection, also with pink piping.

And finally, I have this cute squirrel and acorn bag. I know we are on the verge of winter but it is technically fall for another month and I was dying to use a bit of this beautiful ribbon trim. I appliqued an acorn using scraps of wool felt.
Thank you to all of you who visit my shop. I really appreciate it.
Now I am off to make some apple sauce. I imagine that many of you are busy in the kitchen today!

Edited to Add: The bags are sold.

Zippers and Curves and FM Quilting oh my!

2011-11-21T13:31:00.004-05:00

I hate a post without pictures so this is a peek of the quilt I have just started. I doubt that I will get too far until after the holidays. It will be my first solids quilt (provided you call the Heath texture, as I do, and not a pattern).

The winner of the Sew Fresh Fabrics Daiwabo fabric giveaway is lucky #19, Pippablue!

pippablue said...
What a fab giveaway! My worst sewing fear is FMQ. I can never seem to get even stitches and I'm always afraid I'll ruin a quilt if I try it!

I enjoyed reading all of your comments. It seems that zippers, curves and free motion quilting are terrifying to many of you followed closely by simply cutting or using your fabric, buttonholes, and the reception of things that you have made. I had to say that I felt sad when I read that people were worried that their work wasn't good enough or that people wouldn't like things that they made as gifts. I think handmade gifts are such treasures. I hope you will not stop making them!

Ruched Happy Bags

2011-11-20T08:01:00.004-05:00

I'm making a few Ruched Happy Bags from my pattern, available here. I have made quite a few of these now but still enjoy making them. This time, I didn't use my handprinted material for the focal band and instead, added some flowers.
The bag on the left is made with Echo on the bottom and a dot from Circa 1934 for the band. The beautiful flower is by BasicGrey. It's also lined with a Circa 1934 print. I think that this one is going to my son's teacher for her Christmas gift. The bag on the right is a combination of Bliss and Hello Luscious fabrics. I made the raw edge petal flower and cut a wool felt leaf.

My husband has added a woodstove to his workshop in the barn so that he can continue working out there in the winter without painfully cold fingers. His seam ripper production has increased and there will be some listed in my shop over the next week or two, just in time for Christmas. This deep blue sea seam ripper is available at the moment. The seam rippers are much larger than the little plastic ones, and are easier to hold. They are hand turned on his lathe from an acrylic blank.

I hope you are enjoying your weekend! You can still enter the Sew Fresh Fabric giveaway in the post below. I will choose a winner tomorrow.

Giveaway! Diawabo Fabrics from Japan

2011-11-17T13:35:00.006-05:00

Peg and Becca from Sew Fresh Fabrics are now carrying Diawabo and Yuwa fabrics from Japan! How awesome is that? For me it means fabrics from Japan shipped to me from right down the road. In an effort to keep you from feeling to jealous about that, I can't enter this giveaway, but you can!

This print is my absolute favorite. It's Daiwabo Japan Sewing Notions from Fumika Oishi. I just ordered some in advance of the giveaway in case you guys sell them out!

If you haven't ordered from Sew Fresh Fabrics before, you don't know what you are missing. They have a wonderful selection of fabrics (now even better with these Japanese prints) and they are so wonderfully friendly.

The winner of the giveaway (to be drawn on Monday) will win the fat quarter stack pictured at the top of this blog post. It's a great variety of prints. I have a fondness for the elephants. To enter, please just leave one comment telling me your biggest sewing inhibition/fear. I will tell you that mine is putting zippers in garments. In pouches it's no problem but they are so challenging for me in clothing!

There is another Sew Fresh Fabric giveaway on One Shabby Chick's blog! You can try to win Yuwa there!

Winners of Lovin' Loulouthi Giveaway from Tuesday are at the end of this post and have been notified.

Candy Cane Love

2011-11-17T08:21:00.005-05:00

Today Kerry is releasing her second foundation pieced pattern, a perfectly Christmassy item called Candy Cane Love! Kerry has designed the pattern such that you can use just one candy cane for your project as I did OR mirror image candy canes to create a heart. She shows you how to make a little bag using the double candy cane image here. This pattern is a little more difficult than her last Winter Woolies design but it is very doable. Don't be scared off!

As soon as Kerry told me that her new pattern was a candy cane, I knew I had to use Mrs. March's Sweet Treat Candy Shop by Lecien that I had picked up at Sew Fresh Fabrics a few months ago. It was perfect for the project! I had just a fat quarter but it was enough for a stocking with coordinating cuff made from BasicGrey's Hello Luscious. I used tape measure twill for the hanger and attached it with one of BasicGrey's essential buttons.

The candy cane is pieced with muslin and various bits of pink with a natural essex linen background.
Now, head on over to Kerry's blog and let her know what you think!

Red and Linen Finnish Stars

2011-11-16T13:29:00.002-05:00

Last week I shared my secret for making fabric Finnish star ornaments. I gave away both of the ornaments that I showed so I wanted to make one more for us to keep. At the same time, I made one for my mom. Ours are red and natural linen, a favorite Christmas combination of mine.

I also wanted to let you know that I have printed some generously sized fat quarters for my shop with my "Winter Wash" screenprint. The design is printed in the lower two thirds of the fabric, approximately in the center. This makes the fat quarter useful for pillow covers, aprons and more.

There is still time to enter the Marmalade Fabrics giveaway! See the post below. If anyone is having trouble downloading the pdf files from my site, please just email me and I will be happy to send you the files. For some reason, some people can open them without a problem and others cannot. I have yet to figure out why.

Lovin' Loulouthi Pillow Tutorial and Marmalade Fabrics Giveaway!

2011-11-15T06:00:00.003-05:00

I've partnered with Tammy from Marmalade Fabrics to bring you a free tutorial for not one but two pillow covers plus a giveaway! Marmalade Fabrics will be selling kits for each of the pillows but two lucky winners will win one pillow kit each!

My inspiration for designing these pillows was the Hugs and Kisses fabric pattern in the Loulouthi line by Anna Maria Horner (seen in the right in this photo with the Xs and Os). One pillow is generally based on an "X" design so I am calling that one Kisses. The other is made of four o's, hence the name Hugs. Both pillows were made with prints from the Juliana colorway of Loulouthi.

I think a lot of us have been scared away by the large scale patterns of this fabric line. I've heard a lot of people say that they need to be cut in big pieces and made into simple quilts in order to properly show them off. I think that is one way to work with them but I think that these pillow show that it isn't the only way. I love, love, love it in strings. And I think that the "Curated Blooms" is perfect for fussy cutting into tiny squares (centermost fabric in the Hugs pillow). These pillows are backed in one of the larger scale prints, "Clippings in Passion," which allows it to shine a bit. It's the best of both worlds.

Maybe you'd like to whip one up for a Christmas present?

The Hugs pillow is beginner friendly. Each quadrant is simply pieced with squares and HST (half square triangles). The centers are fussy cut for a great effect. I chose to quilt in a circular pattern, beginning with a sort of half heart design in keeping with my theme. In addition to Loulouthi, this pillow includes a bit of Medium Aqua Essex Linen, a favorite of mine.

The Kisses pillow is foundation pieced and best for a sewer with a little bit of experience. You will need to create 8 triangular paper templates through which you will stitch in order to piece each section of the pillow. It's important to accurately piece in order to match all those seams along the hypotenuse of the triangles. This one is quilted with straight line quilting 1/4" from the seams.

The free tutorial for the Lovin' Loulouthi Pillow Set is available as a pdf download right here. The tutorial includes directions to make both 18" pillow covers and install an invisible zipper.

If you'd like to order a kit from Tammy, pop over to her site and she will take great care of you. Her customer service is tops. You will have a hard time getting out of her shop without adding other items to your cart though; be forewarned.

Now, who would like to win a kit? If you'd like to enter to win a free Lovin' Loulouthi pillow kit, just leave a comment below and tell me which kit you'd like to try. For a second comment, let me know that you are a follower. For a third comment, visit Marmalade Fabrics and tell me what fabric you love.

I will draw a lucky winner on Friday, November 18th.

Edited with two winners:

The first winner of a Lovin' Loulouthi Pillow Cover fabric kit from Marmalade Fabrics is
#63 Mimi said...
I am a happy follower! Yay
Mimi said in her previous comment that she liked both designs and couldn't decide. I like that! Thanks Mimi.

And when does this ever happen? The second winner is 190 of 190!

190 Pam said...
I'm a new follower.

Welcome Pam!
I will be in touch with both winners to collect your information and pass it on to Tammy.

Winter Wash Pillow Cover in Stormy Blue

2011-11-10T21:25:00.004-05:00

It's so hard to get decent pictures this time of year! It's even harder when taking pictures of something white. This is the best I could do.
In addition to printing my "Winter Wash" design on tea towels, I also want to make it available roughly centered left to right on the lower two thirds of a 20" high by 26" wide panel. It's a generous enough size to be used in a number of ways. I'd love to use it as an apron over a little girl's velveteen skirt. It would also make a fantastic adult apron. And of course, there is the pillow cover option. Here I cut a panel to 18" x 18" in order to make a pillow cover.

I wanted to embellish the pillow cover without adding any color. I quilted using my free motion presser foot and made and uneven foreground, a bark look to the trees, the texture of hair on the girl, and swirls from the sky for falling snow. Then I embroidered some snowflakes in white. They were just done improvisationally which means that no two are alike but the symmetry might be off! I added clear glass beads here and there for sparkles in the snow. I love the simplicity of it.

The back is the scarf print from the Sherbet Pips line.

I showed the pillow to my husband and he asked who it was for. I told him that I didn't know yet and he said that we should keep it. I took that as quite a compliment. He also said that as he looked at it, he kept noticing new surprises. Not bad from a husband huh?

I am willing to take special orders for these panels at the moment but will have some for general sale in the shop within the week. I just have a few commitments to get to first!

BasicGrey Booth at Quilt Market

2011-11-09T09:03:00.005-05:00

I am so grateful to Laurie, the President of our Boston Modern Quilt Guild, for taking these pictures for me at the BasicGrey booth at Quilt Market. I made the sampler canvas with poofy flowers inside the wooden box.

Here it is again...I drew helpful circles and arrows lest your eyes travel to other projects, ha, ha, ha. The pincushion and thread catcher to the left of the canvas was a sample that I put together to showcase some of BasicGrey's vintage canvas patches. The design idea for the thread catcher was used with the gracious permission of Krista of Poppyprint.

Here are a couple views of the thread catcher taken before it left for market. I don't know how Krista gets good pictures of her thread catchers. They are not easy to photograph at all!

And finally, I made the sampler canvas that is hung horizontally. It looks a bit sideways to me as I intended for it to be vertical. However, I can clearly remember my art teachers telling me that a good composition looks balanced no matter which way you hold it. So, I am going to take it as a compliment that it looks as good on its side as it does right side up!

Whimsical Walnut Shell Ornament Fun

2011-11-08T07:41:00.007-05:00

My most recent foray into ornament making was was the direct result of reading Franklin's Thanksgiving to my children the other day. In the book, Franklin (the turtle if you are not familiar) was making corn husk dolls at school. The illustration showed corn husk turtles with walnut shells. I decided that I wanted to use walnut shells to make some fun little turtle ornaments for the tree.

Here they are in their natural habitat! I painted the shells with acrylic paints and then varnished them. This little craft can easily become a family affair. My son helped me crack the walnut shells and empty the meat from the shells. My husband helped eat up the walnuts. Kids could help with the painting. You will need to drill a hole into the shell for the hanger so that's a job for a grown up. The heads are fabric balls that are then hot glued to the walnuts. To make that easier, you could use pom poms.

I was then inspired to make a few ladybugs. They have embroidery floss antennae.

While I was painting the turtle shells, one of the kids asked what I was doing with the yellow shells, making a bee? Well, the green just didn't have enough coats yet so it appeared yellow...but a bee, how genius!

So a bee came next. The bee was tricky because it required a perfectly cracked walnut shell. I could have left it whole but I didn't like the idea of storing a nut in our attic when it wasn't on the tree. I thought it might be too appealing to little creatures.

These ornaments are my children's absolute favorites. I can completely see it. They definitely have kid appeal. Each of them has chosen one for the tree.

Fabric Finnish Star Ornaments

2011-11-07T09:33:00.003-05:00

Last year, I made some large Finnish paper stars that were just beautiful following this tutorial. They work out wonderfully using paper and I can just picture them in some of the fabulous new double sided holiday scrapbooking cardstock. But, I wanted to try making fabric ornament versions on a smaller scale. There was a lot of trial and error involved.

First I cut the dimensions in half. I used 12 pieces cut 1/4" wide by 6" long. For my first attempt, I fused two pieces of fabric together with a layer of Steam a Seam. The result was an ornament that was too flimsy.

Next, I tried using some Pellon Peltex 72 F Double-Sided Fusible inbetween the two layers of fabric. This ornament holds its shape really well but it is too clunky for my liking. You can see the interfacing layer.

My last and final attempt was to return to my first plan and use a layer of Steam a Seam fusible webbing inbetween the two layers of fabric but then I saturated the fabric strips on both sides with a fabric stiffening product by Plaid called Stiffy. It worked really well. The ornaments are light, airy, and not clunky but hold their shape. They are, however, tedious. It makes me think that perhaps just sticking with paper Finnish stars is the way to go! Nothing ventured, nothing gained though right?

Holiday Shop Update

2011-11-05T14:40:00.002-04:00

You are never too old to listen to your mother right? Mine told me to list my Christmas items in my shop today because people were starting to shop for Christmas. Point well taken! This is just a quick post to let you know that I have listed a few holiday items in my Etsy shop. There is a set of mug rugs like the one above, with my handprinted snowflake linocut design.

There are a few varieties of gift bags featuring the snowflake linocut, once again, and my pinecone linocut too. They are tied with beautiful satin ribbons.

I also have a small number of Kokeshi doll ornaments like those you see above and below. They are silkscreen designs.

I haven't started shopping for Christmas. Have you? I am beginning to feel a need to get started!

Introducing "Winter Wash"

2011-11-03T13:39:00.003-04:00

I am happy to introduce my newest screenprint today! I call this one "Winter Wash." I am printing it on white 100% linen tea towels in two colorways, Stormy Blue and Winterberry.

Printed in winterberry it looks especially suited for the holidays and even Valentine's Day with the heart mittens on the line.

Printed in stormy blue, it suits the whole winter through!

"Winter Wash" is my own hand drawn, original design. I based the figure on a photograph taken earlier this fall of my youngest child reaching to pick an apple in the orchard. In this drawing, she is portrayed a bit older. This little girl is dressed in winter clothes, hanging winter woolens on the line. I added some whimsical touches like her bird friend who sits on the line to keep her company and the ribbons holding the clothesline to the tree trunks.

I make my own screenprints using a photo emulsion process. I print each towel by hand and heat set the ink following the manufacturer's directions. All of this happens right here in my pet free smoke free home.
"Winter Wash" tea towels are now available in my Etsy shop. Perhaps they will suit someone on your holiday list?

Perfect Fabric/Pattern Combo

2011-11-02T13:11:00.003-04:00

Have you ever seen a pattern and immediately known what fabric you wanted to use? Have you ever set eyes upon a fabric perfect for a particular pattern? The other day I was looking at the selection at Sew Fresh Fabrics on Etsy and came across Flour Sacks from Floursack by Windham Fabrics and immediately wanted to pair it with Keyka Lou's Grocery Bag pattern.

I made a second with Tossed Bread from Floursacks by Windham Fabrics.
I love the pattern and love the fabrics. These bags will join my others, made from the same pattern, and will help me through the holiday season when we end up needing more groceries for baking and such!

Pine Tree Block and Fresh Sewing Day

2011-11-01T13:23:00.002-04:00

This is a traditional pine tree block, finishing at 10 1/2" square, made for Krista for the month of November in the Stash Trad Bee. She selected the block and asked us to make the tree trunk from a black print, the large triangle from a stripe and to make the rest as scrappy as possible using one color family. We pick our color. I think that this quilt will be wonderful and I can't wait to see it together!
Here are my October projects at a glance:

1. Harry Potter for Halloween, 2. Hanging Hoop Wall Pocket Swap #2, 3. Picadilly by BasicGrey Sampler Canvas, 4. Little House Ornaments, 5. Tiny Little Cathedral Windows Pincushion, 6. Hello Luscious Laurel Sampler, 7. Rook Sampler using Hello Luscious by BasicGrey, 8. Cocorico Block for Krista, Let's Hit the Slopes, 9. Fun with Acorn Caps, 10. Saffron Sampler with Vintage Buttons by BasicGrey, 11. Rook Sampler using Curio by BasicGrey, 12. A pillow for Caroline, 13. Armrest Pincushion with Vintage Patches, 14. Armrest Pincushion with Vintage Patches, 15. Christmas Countdown with Nordic Holiday by BasicGrey, 16. Winter Woolies, pattern by verrykerryberry

I'm linking up here to Lynne's Fresh Sewing Day. I tried this last month but made a mistake in the last window of my mosaic and couldn't bear to make it again. I had better luck today!

We Forgot the Glasses!

2011-10-31T14:51:00.001-04:00

It was mentioned in the comments to my last post, that Harry Potter was missing his glasses. Ack!!! We have them but had forgotten! I made Timothy get dressed up again for a daylight shot.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T13:40:00.003-04:00

Happy Halloween! This post is brought to you courtesy of our portable generator. We were hit with a very early snow storm on Saturday night and have been without power since. Schools are closed today so I decided to get the kids dressed up and bring them to see their grandparents and the town librarian while we had time during the day. Here we have Penelope, my two year old, dressed as a most adorable little lion! I made this costume for my oldest child 7 years ago. I love that all three of them have worn it.

Here is Lily, a newly turned 6 year old, as Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She loves her dress so it was worth all the frustrating slipping and sliding and fraying involved in its creation.

And here is Timothy, 8 years old, as Harry Potter. Watch out, I think he is casting some sort of curse on you! My only contributions to his costume this year are the tie and the Gryffindor patch.

Did you notice the wand? Here is a close up. It was hand turned by Daddy. The only flaw is that Timothy happens to know all the details of Harry's wand, such as the dimensions. When Mark was done making the wand, Timothy asked how long it was. The answer was 13". Timothy then informed him that Harry's wand was only 11". Mark told him that meant that this wand was more powerful. Ha! That answer seems to had satisfied.

Here Harry is casting some sort of spell on his sisters. I wish he could make the snow disappear and the power return!
Happy Halloween!

Christmas Countdown

2011-10-29T08:07:00.003-04:00

Honestly, I don't have any more BasicGrey Samplers in the queue! I just completed this "Countdown to Christmas" sampler using a large Rook sampler and the new BasicGrey scrapbook collection called Nordic Holiday. I really love this collection. The colors are my kind of Christmas colors and the patterns are so adorable.

The concept of a Christmas Countdown was not my idea. BasicGrey asked me to make a countdown using this line and I think it's a great way to use the canvas. I got to take the idea and run with it! I first figured out how I would like to arrange the "windows" and how I could best make a window that opened and closed within an on point square. Then I decided to use some of the letter stickers to write "Hope" and "Peace" on the sides. I filled the remainder of the empty spots with diecut circles (and when I ran out of those, handcut by me circles). They are held in place by embroidered brads (love those!).
Each window has a little surprise inside. Some are shapes cut from Nordic Holiday by me, like this hat. The pom pom is a tiny essential button tied with embroidery floss.
This is a little Christmas tree with a tree trunk made from part of an exclamation point from the chipboard letter collection (also used the number the windows).
Some windows have stickers like this one or I spelled words with letter stickers like "joy" and "love."
This little bunch of holly has three enamel brads for berries.
It was a lot of fun to make!
Thanks for all the birthday wishes sent to Lily. She did have a wonderful 6th birthday yesterday. The rainbow pasta necklaces and unicorn headbands were a hit.

Armrest Pincushion with Vintage Patches

2011-10-27T08:10:00.004-04:00

I made another armrest pincushion (see here for my tutorial). They are intended to sit on the armrest of a couch or chair while you sew but my living room wasn't bright enough to accommodate an "in action" shot so you get it here, flat.
This has to be one of the most useful pincushions ever with the deep side pockets perfect for holding small projects, scissors, embroidery floss, tape measures, you get the idea. This armrest pincushion was made for the BasicGrey booth at Quilt Market this weekend. It features their canvas vintage patches.

This set of patches happens to work so well with My Happy Place screen printed fabric! Not only are the colors right, but the "organic" bit and the apple trees just seem to suit each other. I appliqued an apple and leaf with a little button inch worm on one pocket.

The other pocket has two vintage canvas patches, a touch of embroidery, and a fussy cut row of my houses and apple trees.
The bottom is Annie's Farm Stand Seed Catalog in red and white. The binding is DS Quilts. The natural colored fabric is a mixture of linen and osnaburg. The red solid and the green leaf are Hello Luscious.

A Pillow for Caroline

2011-10-25T19:53:00.003-04:00

My friend has a daughter about the same age as my Penelope. She will be turning 3 next week. I emailed my friend last week and asked if there was anything she would like Caroline to get for her birthday. Apparently she was chomping at the bit because within seconds she emailed me a link to the duvet cover she had just ordered for Caroline's big girl bed and requested a pillow. 15 minutes later we met in the library parking lot before story time and she handed me the baby quilt I made for Caroline that she plans on putting at the foot of the bed and a spare pillow form that she happened to have on hand! I love this kind of crafting enthusiasm.
My friend and I enjoy crafting for eachother's girls when gift giving occasions arise and it is no secret that we are the ones who enjoy it more than the little girls. We are taking full advantage of the moment because we know that by next year they will have fully formed opinions and gift requests of their own!
I was inspired to make this pillow by a hoop from my hanging hoop wall pocket swap and a pillow cover I saw about a year ago.

This should satisfy mommy because it matches the duvet cover and coordinates with the baby quilt. But Caroline should have fun tucking her favorite stuffed animals into the pocket of the Dresden Plate flower.

*My daughter Lily offered up her bed and stuffed animal for this photoshoot but would like to make it clear that her bear is NOT part of the present :)

Rook and Saffron Samplers

2011-10-24T21:30:00.005-04:00

If you have seen enough of my samplers for BasicGrey, it's time to avert your eyes! I hope that you are like me though and are excited to see different ways you can use the samplers to different effects. I just finished this large Rook sampler for BasicGrey using their Curio line of fabrics, essential buttons and glazed buttons. I had no other guidelines to work with so I set about creating a layout. I decided to treat the sampler sort of like a quilt. I cut one row of squares to fill out the entire opening. The next row was cut smaller so that there is a border around the fabric.

Then I highlighted one fabric that pulled in a number of the colors from the fabric line by cutting it to fill 4 squares. I embroidered around that large square with a blanket stitch and chose three essential buttons to stitch in place. In each of the smaller "quilt" squares I attached a glazed button that coordinated with the fabric in that square. I really love the way that it turned out.

My second assignment was to design a small Saffron sampler using just BasicGrey vintage buttons. It was hard to show restraint here. I wanted to throw in a little color and embroidery. Instead, I kept it to the buttons but added four petaled flower shapes cut to fit neatly within the shaped opening out of aqua wool felt.

For added interest, I attached one button with a double tie using a champagne colored floss and separated the threads.

I hear that some people are finding these samplers in their local craft stores now such as ACMoore. They would make great Christmas gifts.
Curio fabric can be purchased here.

Potholder Pass Received

2011-10-23T15:24:00.002-04:00

This package was just chock full of love and thought. My friend Lauree, knows how I love our old barn. She looked through my blog to find pictures and designed one potholder to look like our barn. She's got it down from the slant of the roof to the placement of the doors and windows. Because I love flowers, she made the second potholder in the shape of a greenhouse, personalized with our family name.
Lauree also carved a rubber stamp with the house and apple tree design from my screen printed fabric called "My Happy Place."
Thank you so much Lauree!

Total Autumnal Cuteness; An Acorn Cap Tutorial

2011-10-21T13:28:00.006-04:00

Spurred on by my children's complaints that we did not have enough fall decorations for the house, and my love of acorns, I came up with this fall garland. Acorns are irresistible aren't they? They are just plain cute. The only thing perhaps cuter, are little fabric stuffed acorn caps.

I sincerely doubt that this is an original thought. But here is what I did. I begged family to be on the lookout for acorn caps. When I had a small pile, I cut circles about 2" in diameter and took a running stitch around the perimeter.

Then I wadded up a ball of fiberfill in my hand and put it in the center of the circle and pulled the thread tight while shoving the fiberfill into the ball. Then I took many stitches back and forth to hold the shape.

Then I filled the acorn cap with hot glue and pushed the messy side of the fabric ball into the cap.

Repeat this many times over so you can create a bowl full. I then asked my husband to drill tiny holes through the caps while I ran to the store for cough medicine for our daughter (winter colds are here full force).

I strung the acorns on embroidery floss, knotting each in place with a square knot. For the center most acorns in the garland, I also attached a felt oak leaf.

I was lucky enough to have two sets of double acorn caps. I found a very green vine from the yard and cut a length of it. I then wound it into a small wreath and hot glued a felt oak leaf and a double acorn to it for a napkin ring. Repeat and you have a place setting for two!

I thought that the acorns were sweet but when my six year old got home from school and noticed the garland, she gasped and said "Mommy! This is beautiful!" It's times like this when her dramatic flair is so welcome.

Edited to add: The winner of the Winter Woolies paper pieced pattern by verykerryberry is number 29:

Jenny said...
that is such a cute table runner! I can definitely picture it on my table this Christmas! And I'd love to try my hand at paper piecing as well!

Congratulations Jenny!

Pasta Rainbow Necklaces (Tutorial)

2011-10-20T13:11:00.003-04:00

Allow me to briefly detour from my usual sewing and fabric printing posts. It's birthday time around here. In a week, I am hosting my daughter's sixth birthday party. She requested party games and crafts based on horses, pegasus and unicorns. She drew the illustration for her invitations and it was this wonderfully creative rainbow unicorn. Since she is a big time horse lover, she has already had a birthday party with a horse theme so, inspired by this card, I asked if we could include a rainbow craft and she conceded.

I decided to dye pasta in the colors of the rainbow and have the girls make jewelry with them. If you haven't dyed pasta before, here is what I did. I grabbed a ziploc plastic bag and added about a tablespoon of rubbing alcohol and then at least 8 drops of food coloring (in order to get the saturated colors I was looking for). I added a couple of handfuls of dry pasta, sealed the bag and shook them around a bit. Then I dried them on paper towel lined cookie sheets. I didn't want to use 7 plastic bags as that seemed really wasteful so I used one bag for red, then I reused it for orange just adding more yellow food coloring than red since there was already some in the bag. You can do that for all the secondary colors.

I decided to add a little glitz to some of the "beads." I happen to have glitter glue in all the colors of the rainbow. I love glitter glue because it allows you to use glitter without the mess of glitter and it doesn't flake off children's projects and end up all over the house. I painted the pasta with glitter glue in the matching color and stood them on end on waxed paper to dry.
I would have loved to make jewelry with these when I was six. Let's hope it is a hit!

VeryKerryBerry's Winter Woolies with a Giveaway

2011-10-18T13:11:00.006-04:00

First of all, thank you very much for all the nice comments on my paper pieced skier yesterday. It was an awful lot of hard work and it's really rewarding to read such nice things.
I have another paper pieced project to share with you today! I made this little quilt/table topper using VeryKerryBerry's first paper pieced pattern available for sale on Etsy. Kerry always makes the most wonderful paper pieced designs. The one that is destined to remain my all time favorite is this amazing piece. Kerry asked if I would like to test her pattern. I hope I didn't jump at that offer too quickly... Here is my version of "Winter Woolies" complete with hat, scarf and mittens in tiny paper pieced blocks.

I chose my color scheme around my desire to use this adorable BasicGrey button for the pom pom! The aquas are Hello Luscious, Dazzle and Bliss. The text fabric is Hometown and the grey is an Amy Butler solid.
This is a great beginner pattern for those who are interested in learning to paper piece. Kerry has even included paper piecing hints and coloring pages for you to use while deciding on your color selections.
Check out Kerry's wall hanging using these same blocks here.
Kerry has graciously offered a free pattern to a During Quiet Time reader! To enter, just leave a comment here and I will draw a winner on Friday, October 21 (whenever I have time on that day to do so!).
Kerry has just added, in the comment section below, her desire to give the winner her next pattern for free if he or she has already bought this one. So, there is nothing stopping you now! No need to wait till Friday. It's a win, win.

Let's Hit the Slopes!

2011-10-17T08:20:00.003-04:00

No, I am not going to be skiing. I have never been and have a strong preference for keeping my feet firmly planted on the ground. The idea of chair lifts scare the heck out of me! Krista, however, loves to ski and chose this as the theme for her cocorico bee month.

She provided us with a mosaic full of ski boots, ski sweaters, ski lifts, trail maps and vintage ski posters for inspiration and asked for blocks measuring no smaller than 10" on any one side and no longer than 14" on any side. I started looking through images of vintage ski posters online and decided that she needed a skier for any proper skiing quilt.

This is the design that I drafted after repeated attempts to simply my figure to the point where I could manage to sew him. I tried to keep her husband in mind as I chose my fabrics since this is a quilt that she is hoping he will love too.
I hope you love it Krista. It measures 10" x 14."

Second Hello Luscious Sampler

2011-10-14T13:21:00.002-04:00

Here is the second canvas that I made for BasicGrey exclusively using their new fabric line, Hello Luscious. I was just told to make something totally different from the last canvas. I love that kind of creative freedom! This is the 8" x 10" Laurel Canvas.

I decided that I wanted to embroider within the preprinted vine pattern. I used a simple backstitch for the vine with lazy daisy stitches for the leaves. I skipped smaller leaves but covered nearly everyone. I had no idea how long this would take when I started. I tend to underestimate time... It probably took me about 9 hours. But once I started, I couldn't very well stop. I love how the embroidery softens the canvas and adds dimension too.

I covered buttons with a green lace Hello Luscious print and stitched those into the four small circles. Then I made little raw edge flowers for each of the nine larger circles using 9 different pink fabrics from the line.

When this one gets back from Houston, I want to see if my husband can build a shadowbox frame for it so it doesn't get dusty so we can hang it in the living room which is all soft colors.
It's hard to believe that both samplers were made using the same line of fabric because they each have a different feel but yet, when side by side, they are compatible. I didn't think to take a picture of them together though!

Hello Luscious by BasicGrey

2011-10-13T13:35:00.003-04:00

BasicGrey asked me to make another one of their canvas samplers done in the same faux-cathedral windows style as my last two but this time using their brand new line of fabrics called Hello Luscious. I just love that name. I chose to use four fabrics that were primarily aqua for the backs of the circles and the various prints in green, pink and red for the "windows." All but one of the buttons that I used are also by BasicGrey.

This is the larger sized "Rook" canvas measuring 16" x 20." The larger canvas allows the fabric samples to shine a bit more than the smaller version I made initially. It also made the ironing easier with less burning of my fingertips!
This canvas will be in the BasicGrey booth in Houston later this month. How I wish I could be there with it! I have truly enjoyed working with this design for the Rook canvas but I was delighted when asked to design a second canvas anyway I liked. I was ready to try something new! I will show you the second canvas tomorrow.

Thank you to BasicGrey for allowing me to share pictures of these samplers because otherwise, my blog would be quiet as I have been busily working on nothing but for the past number of days!

Boston Modern Quilt Guild, Cathedral Windows

2011-10-12T14:23:00.002-04:00

I've been preparing to lead a workshop on Cathedral Windows quilt blocks at the Boston Modern Quilt Guild meeting this Saturday. This little piece will be my sample and I will demonstrate how to fold the fabric and handstitch the windows closed.
If you are interested in joining the Boston Modern Quilt Guild, we'd love to have you. New members are always welcome. I am in a new member, in fact! This will only be my third meeting. You can check out the Boston Modern Quilt Guild on bigtent.com or their blog.

At the guild president's advice, I am going to be teaching the more traditional way to create these blocks. But while preparing, I wanted to try another approach that was explained in a tutorial on my friend Krista's blog. I found it enjoyable too and used it to create this tiny little pincushion!
I hope you will join us on Saturday if you are from the greater Boston area! Send me an email if you have any questions.

Scalloped Dresden Bag-Reposted

2011-10-11T18:57:00.005-04:00

Just reposting for those who missed it...I shared this tutorial on Kristie's blog during "Bag Lady Week." Just download the pdf and you can get started!
Scalloped Dresden Bag Free Pattern

Warming Up

2011-10-11T14:17:00.003-04:00

I joined the Trim the Tree Handmade Ornament Swap on Flickr for the second year in a row. I am trying to back off swaps at the moment in order to have more time around the holidays but I can't resist making ornaments...or receiving them in the mail. Last year I only fit in the time to make one little house ornament so this year I started off with some little houses to warm up. I am not sure what to make next. I plan to make several and see what comments my partners might leave before deciding what to send out and what to keep or give as gifts. I always prefer to make ornaments in batches of at least three because they look cuter in groups! These little houses measure 1 3/4" wide by 4 3/4" high. The windows and doors are attached with fusible webbing and a long, narrow, zig zag stitch in black thread. The door knobs are french knots.

Get Set, Go!

2011-10-09T18:36:00.004-04:00

My husband made another batch of hand turned acrylic handled seam rippers. But man, you people are seam ripper vultures! There were seven but as I type, there are four seam rippers left, the lovely pinks, stained glass and purple silk. He is planning on making another batch in a few weeks but this is all for now.

I was asked what the blanks look like before Mark works his magic. Here are some blanks that he already precut to the correct length, drilled a hole down the center and inserted a metal tube. But basically, this is the "before."

Here is the "before" blank on the lathe.
Here he has started rounding it.
Then he shapes it.

Then he polishes it. After that, the handle comes off the lathe and he inserts the seam ripper hardware.
If you'd like a seam ripper, get set, go! They sell very quickly!

Picadilly by BasicGrey

2011-10-07T09:23:00.005-04:00

Over the summer, I designed a canvas sampler sent to me by BasicGrey. You can see what I did here. They later asked me to make another version using some of their double sided cardstock instead of fabric. They sent me their scrapbooking line called Picadilly. This line comes with some adorable brads and covered button brads that I used to secure many of the squares.

It was fun to put together this paper version. It allowed for more crisp folds than the fabric version. It was also less forgiving though!

BasicGrey describes Picadilly as "A hot cup a' chicken soup, warm buttermilk biscuits, and a cherry pie with a mound of fresh whipped cream on a glistening white countertop; you're experiencing Picadilly by BasicGrey, a symphony of sweet American coziness and down-home country-fresh flavors in lemonade yellow, cherry red, cornflower blue and new grass green." In keeping with that feeling, I took this picture of the canvas with my mother's rooster out on her sun porch.
I'm happy to be able to share this canvas with you now.

Hanging Hoop Wall Pocket Swap

2011-10-06T13:22:00.002-04:00

One of the woman in my Hanging Hoop Wall Pocket Swap informed me that her father is very ill. Since he is in the hospital right now and she is under a lot of stress (and a pregnant mother with three young children), I told her to cross this one off her list. I made this hoop for her partner and will be sending it out today. I used my Defining Kokeshi silkscreen for the background and a selection of prints in red, mustard and black for the pockets.

Here are some of my sewing tools trying it on for size.
This has been a fun swap. Click here to see some of the creative hoops others have made!

On to Belle

2011-10-04T13:09:00.003-04:00

My soon to be six-year-old daughter presented me with her book, turned to this page, and said, "I'd like to be Belle for Halloween. This is what her dress looks like." First stop: more cheap, synthetic, ravelly costume material, this time in yellow. I hate working with this stuff so much that I begged the kids to choose costumed next year that didn't need to be silky and shiny. This dress already has one spot where the fabric has pulled through the seam. I touched it up with Fray Check glue and will hope that it holds through Halloween. It's so frustrating!
I adapted a bodice pattern that we had to one that was fully lined so I didn't need to use bias tape. I also made tiny shoulder straps since it wasn't practical for her to wear a dress without straps. She was ok with that change. However, she wasn't going to let the covered buttons slide.

She drew my attention to them last night as I was working on her dress. She pointed to the picture and said, "I like how the dress has buttons here." in a slightly questioning tone. I assured her that I was two steps ahead of her and had the buttons ready to stitch on. She was pleased. If you try to cover buttons with flimsy, silky material, you will find that it doesn't work very well. I tried adding a little sheer weight iron on interfacing to the back of the fabric and then the buttons were easy to cover...just a tip for you moms with demanding princesses.

Harry Potter

2011-10-03T08:20:00.002-04:00

My son is eight years old and obsessed with Harry Potter. I am thrilled to death about that because it was Harry Potter that really got him interested in reading independently. He has always loved books and still loves being read to but it was hard to get him to want to read alone until he discovered this series. Now it is hard to get him to go to bed at a reasonable hour! Of course, he wants to be Harry Potter for Halloween.
As a mommy who can sew/craft, I feel compelled to make a least part of each costume, if not the whole thing. He will wear black pants, a white collar shirt and a grey vest so that just left the tie and the Gryffindor patch. I felt obliged to make them. I wish I hadn't after looking at how cheap they would have been to buy and how long they took to make!!
I used this great tutorial for the tie. I have used it before and it works up very nicely until you try to make it with bias cut, ravelling, slippery, Halloween costume synthetic material. Then you have a little nightmare on your hands. I decided to foundation piece the stripes on paper to keep the diagonal pattern going pretty consistently. It turned out ok. It's not perfect on the back, but the back won't show.
I thought that I could make the patch out of felt till I saw all the detail involved. Then I decided that I would have to embroider on the felt. I have very rudimentary embroidery skills but it's only a costume. I tried to simplify the patch design as much as I could while still getting the look. I am happy to say it is done because it took several hours!
Now I am working on my daughter's costume. My youngest is wearing a costume I made six years ago, phew!

During Quiet Time Flickr Group

2011-10-01T20:00:00.002-04:00

1. Kokeshi Doll, 2. clutch, 3. Shirley (freidasew) made me a purse , 4. Bitty Teapot kitchen gadgets group 1, 5. 02 Quilted [Hexie] Pouch, 6. Hexiecase!, 7. Golden Hexie Bag, 8. Fox and hens in the orchard hexie case, 9. Armrest pincushion, 10. Ruched Happy Bag, 11. New phone pouch!, 12. tea kettle block, 13. jane market bag, 14. Kindle Pouch Cover, 15. Armrest Pincushion, 16. Glass Case

I keep meaning to share some gems from myDuring Quiet Time Flickr Group but I keep forgetting. Take a peek at these creations using my patterns, tutorials, and handprinted fabrics. I love seeing what people make with them. If you have completed any During Quiet Time inspired projects, please share them in my Flickr group and I will do another roundup soon!

Happy Mail!

2011-10-01T15:25:00.003-04:00

I had a happy mail day today! I received this thread catcher from my friend, Krista. A little while ago, we agreed to swap a mini quilt for a thread catcher. I love Krista's thread catchers. The pincushion is weighted and has a non skid bottom so it stays put. And the thread catcher part is spacious (which is good because I make a huge mess while sewing). I just love the material she chose for the exterior and measuring tape trim gets me every time!

She also sent this adorable little bundle of goodies! There are buttons and trim (so cute that I will have a hard time using them), basting glue, and Poppyprint fabric! Krista prints fabric with poppy seed pods and I am lucky enough to now have a selection of her prints.

This one is my absolute favorite.

I got a good laugh when I opened this unexpected package from Kristie. She sent these notepads as a thank you for guest blogging during her Bag Lady week.
Thank you friends!

Cocorico Bee: Annabel's Orchard

2011-09-29T20:10:00.002-04:00

This month, Annabel asked us to make orchard inspired blocks measuring 12" x 16" so she could make them into placemats for her large family dinners. My mind works likes this...orchard to apples to apple pie. So there you go. I sketched an apple pie, an apple, a bowl with a pastry blender in it, and a rolling pin. Then the drawing sat for 3 weeks because I was intimidated by the pie in particular.

I wanted a jagged edge for the crust. I pondered it for some time and decided to traditionally piece 1/4" finished HST. That took me an evening. And then I waited two more weeks! I finally just tackled the rest in the last couple of days and I am so pleased with the end result.

I used traditional paper piecing methods with the exception of some very tame sketching with black thread for the pastry blender.
One of my favorite features is the boxed word "Family" in the pie. It's perfect for Annabel's idea of family dinners. And I am also pleased with the way I was able to line up the little row of white dots on the pastry blender handle. Oh, and I like the slightly darker red leaf shape on the apple fabric.
Heaven forbid anyone spill anything on this placemat as it took forever to make! It's a good thing that it will live far away in Australia where I won't have to see!

From my House to Yours

2011-09-28T13:36:00.003-04:00

We are on round 9 of the Potholder Pass, my Flick swap that took off beyond my expectations. This round we are swapping "From my House to Yours" themed potholder sets and/or a set of four quilted coasters. I just signed up for the potholder swap. I had so much fun sewing for my partner.

I am not sure if my partner shares my love of miniatures and dollhouses but I think that if she does not, she is the type who would appreciate them at very least. So, I made one potholder a view inside the house, sort of dollhouse style. The furniture is just silhouetted in black except in the attic where it is dark and the boxes are bright. That's what you call artistic license. And the proportions aren't quite accurate. There was no attempt made to make them so. I am calling that whimsical! The curtains in the windows were free pieced to make them look a little more natural. The roof is one of my favorite fabrics! The chimneys are red and white chevron twill hangers. I really had a great time making these and am anxious to pop them in the mail so that my partner can receive them!

Stash Trad Bee

2011-09-27T13:22:00.003-04:00

I was invited to join the Stash Trad Bee and we start with the month of October. October is a busy month around here with a birthday and Halloween and countless other school related events so I thought I had better check this off my list! This is my block for Angela. She chose a traditional block called Cracker and mixed it up a little, having us make four smallish blocks (about 10") to create one gigantic block that she is calling Cracker Scraps. Her directions are available here if you are interested in making one of your own.

Defining Kokeshi on Natural Essex Linen

2011-09-26T14:25:00.002-04:00

I have printed a small batch of fuchsia "Defining Kokeshi" screenprints on Natural Essex Linen. I love the way the colors work together. The natural linen color softens the fuchsia. Once this Natural Essex Linen is back in stock at Marmalade Fabrics, I plans to buy more and print the black colorway as well. For now, I have used up my supply and my limited batch is in the shop. As with my other prints on linen, the price is slightly higher due to my material cost since I am not buying it in bulk (yet).

Here is a little close up on the text just because I like the way it looks!

Defining Kokeshi in the Shop!

2011-09-25T13:39:00.002-04:00

There are listings for sherbet, fuchsia and black prints of "Defining Kokeshi" in my shop now. You can purchase them individually or as a trio.

You will also find my two sample pillows for sale there as well as the pillow cover pattern kit (includes pattern and piece of "Defining Kokeshi" silkscreen). Thank you in advance!
Mark thanks you for purchasing his handturned seam rippers too. He's already working on more!

"Defining Kokeshi" Pillow Cover Pattern

2011-09-24T22:01:00.002-04:00

I just finished writing up a pattern for a project idea using a single panel of my new silkscreen design, "Defining Kokeshi." I was so excited when Monica Solorio-Snow, aka Happy Zombie, came out with her line of fabrics inspired by displays of sweet mochi confections in Japanese grocery stores, "Happy Mochi Yum Yum." I had previous freezer paper stencil and silkscreen designs using my Kokeshi doll drawings but I had it in my mind that I wanted to try something else with them. This fabric line gave me the nudge I needed to get moving. I really wanted to pair "Defining Kokeshi" with "Happy Mochi Yum Yum."

Here is what I did! I designed a pattern for a 20" pillow cover with an invisible zipper closure. To the left of the panel, I used two traditional pieced Japanese Lantern blocks. I used dense straight line quilting for the border and simple echo quilting in the center.

I love the sherbet silkscreen colorway with the blues and oranges in the "Happy Mochi Yum Yum."

And I found that the DS Quilt gingham coordinates so well with the pinks!

You can find "Happy Mochi Yum Yum" at Sew Fresh Fabrics and The Fat Quarter Shop as well as many Etsy shops. I got the adorable Chevron twill tape for the loop on the righthand side from Paper and Pinafore.
I am going to be putting this pattern in my shop as a part of a kit. You will be able to purchase the silkscreen panel and the pdf pattern full of step by step photographs and instructions. Kits should be in the shop tomorrow. The sample pillows are for sale too!

He's Been Busy!

2011-09-24T08:46:00.002-04:00

My husband has been busy in the barn turning more seam rippers on his old Craftsman lathe! We chose some new colors this time around. Aren't the fun? From left to right we have Purple Crush, Zebra Stripes, Ruby Silk, Aquarius, Aqua with Black Swirl, and Pomegranate Martini.

This is what the seam rippers look liked closed.

And then, tada, when open! I have been using my seam ripper for months now and have to say that it works really well. It's nice and sharp and I don't lose it as often since it is bigger and colorful. My husband is so pleased with the positive feedback that you have all given him. He loves to feel that his seam rippers are in such hot demand by my sewing pals. Thank you!
These seam rippers have been listed in my shop.

Marmalade Giveaway Winner!

2011-09-23T09:33:00.002-04:00

Who is the lucky winner of the Marmalade Fabric gift certificate???

It's #54, Ella said...
"Oooo.. The Theory Forest Mosaic in brown would be a perfect quilt back. Thanks for the chance to win!"
Happy shopping Ella!

Introducing "Defining Kokeshi"

2011-09-21T08:30:00.006-04:00

I've been very busy designing and printing my new silkscreen design! I'd like to introduce "Defining Kokeshi." It features five hand drawn Kokeshi doll designs and a background with repeating text. The text is a simple definition of Kokeshi that I drafted.

"Defining Kokeshi" will be printed in black for a high contrast great texty looking piece!

I am also printing in fuchsia ink; the perfectly feminine choice.

The final colorway is sherbet. It is a slightly pearlescent soft orange.

This makes for a lower contrast, softer looking print.

And there you have it! All three happy little prints together....

I hope you like them! They will be available in my shop very soon along with a pattern for a project idea.

My prints are all derived from my own original hand drawn designs. I prepare a silk screen with emulsion layers and use a photo emulsion process to burn the image onto my screen. Each print is individually pulled and later heat set. This work is done by me, in my home. The fabric is an essex blend.

{Sponsored Giveaway} Marmalade Fabrics

2011-09-18T19:06:00.006-04:00

I'm delighted to welcome a new sponsor to During Quiet Time. I was first introduced to Tammy from Marmalade Fabrics by Cindy and Krista when they started talking about her shop on their blogs. Next thing I knew, Tammy ordered a little something from my Etsy shop and commented on my blog. She seemed so nice that I decided to check out her shop and bought some fabrics to make this quilt for my husband.

I had a great customer experience. I was able to select fabrics on line that coordinated well with others that I had at home and those that I saw on the screen. Her image colors are very true to life. One fabric was back ordered so she sent my fabric immediately and put the back ordered fabric in the mail when it arrived for no extra cost. Her fabric came nicely wrapped with ribbon and a seal!
Please check out Marmalade Fabrics. I think you will be happy that you did! She has over 140 colors of Kona cotton, Essex and linen, and a wonderful selection of modern quilting fabrics. One of the newest lines in is Juicy Blossoms!

Would you be interested in a $30.00 gift certificate to Marmalade Fabrics? You would? Hop on over there and take a peek at Tammy's selection and let me know what you would buy. I will choose a winner with the random number generator on Friday September 23 (enter by Thursday evening September 22).

Share in my Glee?

2011-09-17T08:53:00.002-04:00

A little while ago, I was contacted by a UK magazine called Cross Stitcher. They asked if I would send them some images of my Vintage Collection screenprinted tea towels for a feature in their "Out there" section. The magazine is on the newsstands now! It's issue 244 and my towels are on page 14. Can you read what it says there? It says "Every month we bring you the latest high street trends, cutting edge products and inspiring ideas..." and they chose my towels! I am very excited.

Let's look a little closer...here it says "created by designer Amy Friend." If you are in the UK, check it out!!

More Fall Fashions

2011-09-16T08:51:00.003-04:00

At the beginning of each season, I usually find myself making a few new pieces of clothing for the girls. This time, they got coordinating outfits (cute!!). Lily is wearing a jumper made from corduroy from JoAnns and a coordinating Kona with lime green mini pom pom trim. She loved the material because it's covered with apples, acorns, mushrooms, deer, owls, and her favorite...the smiling bunnies. It's a super easy pattern, Simplicity 5489. I made four or five of them a few years ago in a size 5. She got about 3 years out of them. This time I jumped up to a size 7. It's a little long now (as are the shirt sleeves!) but that means she can wear it next year too.

I have three pictures of Penny to share because she really got into modelling and the pictures make me laugh. I used Made by Rae's Big Butt Baby Pants pattern again. I have made 5 pairs of pants from this pattern so far, this being number 6. She is in the largest size now, 2T.

I chose the cuffed leg version though they need not be cuffed because she apparently has long legs. I would have measured but she was napping at the time. Thankfully, they should fit through the fall and early winter and given the apple and acorn print, I wouldn't have her wear them after that. Her "cuffs" and the panel on her bottom are made with scraps from Lily's jumper.

And one last cute picture.

Easiest "No Pattern Needed" Skirt Ever

2011-09-15T13:31:00.002-04:00

Want to thrill your daughter? I whipped up this skirt in about a half hour and my five year old daughter loves it.

For the skirt, I simply took one width of fabric and seamed it. Then I made a casing for a 3/4" elastic at the top and I stitched a 1" wide hem at the bottom. Obviously, it's the pocket that steals the show. I borrowed the pocket from Jennifer Paganelli's book, Girl's World. It's found on page 84, used on the Annabel Apron with Frilly Pocket project. I made the pocket even easier by threading ribbon through the casing instead of a tiny turned pocket tie made of fabric as the pattern suggests.

Here she is before school this morning, momentarily distracted from her modelling to announce that she sees a butterfly.

Basic Grey Saffron Canvas

2011-09-13T20:48:00.008-04:00

It's a long story, but I ended up with an extra sampler canvas from Basic Grey. This one measures 8 x 10" and is the Saffron design. If you missed it, I designed another Basic Grey sampler awhile ago and you can see it here. The Saffron canvas is so different from the Rook canvas that I used the first time. The openings are not square and because this is the smaller sized canvas AND five of the nine windows have preprinted designs, it didn't seem to make sense to use this canvas for a fabric swatch sampler. As I thought about it, it occurred to me that it would be perfect for embroidery.

Due to the time of the year, I went with a fall theme. Using french knots, I embellished the flowers in all of the preprinted designs. I added one of the Basic Grey stitched buttons to the lower right opening.

In the lower left, I embroidered a little sketch of a branch with berries.

Above that opening, I stitched a little squirrel with the suggestion of grass at his feet.

And finally, in the upper right, I stitched a little yellow and black bird on a branch. The bird is holding a red leaf in his beak. It's so fitting because Penny and I found our first red leaf of the season while on a stroller walk last Friday.

I've had many people ask where they can purchase Basic Grey samplers. These canvases are a very new product and many fabric stores are still picking them up. One easy place to order them online is here.

Edited to add: For those who have asked, the squirrel, bird and branch were my own sketches not a pattern.