2012 Long Beach Quilt Show

So did you make it to the 2012 Long Beach International Quilt show?  It was tiring but definitely a lot of fun. Here we are at the Sewing Party booth.

It was a little bit of a challenge for me last Thursday evening (Preview Night) as I had sort of sprained my left foot the evening before.  I was concerned about being on my feet and making it worse.  But, I did ice, compress and elevate my foot so it wasn't too bad.  A bag of vegetables had to be sacrificed in the process but oh well.

It was definitely nice seeing some of our vendor friends especially Carrie Bloomston of Such Designs.

We first met Carrie last year and immediately loved her and her patterns.  Sewing Party carries a few of her patterns and have made kits, as well.  Carrie's mom didn't come to the show this year and I missed her.  Her mom is just so  friendly, lovely and generous.  Hope to see her again next year!

Here's Carrie in front of her new patter- Giggle and Squeak.  It is so cute in person and I am thinking of making it for my godson.  You can make it for both a little boy or girl.  I love that it is whimsical without being too cutesy.

It was also great to meet Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts.  I have been a fan of Julie's patterns for a while and was really excited to pick up her first book, Skip the Borders.

Here she is signing a book for me.

Julie and her boyfriend Lawrence are also in Generation Q magazine and Lawrence had generously offered to autograph a copy for me.

They make such a cute pair.  I believe they are first time vendors at the show.

It was also great meeting Jeff and Debbie of Metropolitan Quilt.  I first discovered Metropolitan Quilt patterns in Portland lat year.  I picked up the Eiffel Tower pattern (big surprise) at the Pine Needle last year and Lumineux this year.   

Debbie shared with me that she used to manage Hollyhill Quilt Shoppe prior to venturing out and starting her own company.  

And finally, I am lusting after these silk dupioni fat quarters from The Quilter Studio.  They were selling these gorgeous coordinated fat quarters in a tin box and it was so difficult to make a decision.

(Photos from the Internet)

Holy cow!  Talk about analysis paralysis.  I couldn't decide which one was my favorite.  I figured I am just going to put them on my Wish List and decide later.  

Here are a couple of photos from the internet of what you can do with them.  The patterns were designed by Blue Underground Studios specifically for the silk dupioni boxed sets.  Aren't they just luscious?

I will post photos of the beautiful quilts from the show/exhibit soon.  

Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee

This year marks the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne and the UK  and its commonwealth countries are celebrating her Diamond Jubilee.  I was very inspired by Pam Kitty Morning's jubilee pillows that I decided to make a couple of my own.

I hauled out some of my pink, red, white and blue stash and this is what I decided to use for this project.

Check out the tiny soldier fabric.  Isn't it just perfect?  I found that at M&L for less than $5.00 per yard!  Ooh, that just made my day.

So, first up, I wanted to make a Union Jack pillow.  This is a little tricky because all flags are rectangular and I had to tweak it for a square pillow.  I wanted the proportions to be as authentic as possible.  So I drew the flag on paper first and then calculated how much fabric I needed and how to cut and piece them back together.

Ta Da!  I just love how this came out.

Then, I decided to make a Queen Elizabeth pillow using the second set of fabrics and here is what I came up with.

The center is supposed to be the queen's silhouette framed by an oval scallop frame.  However, there isn't enough of a contrast and the background was too busy so I decided to change just the center fabric.  

Here's the tricky part, I I had to cut a center oval and either applique or piece it on.  And to just fuse the blue oval border might not look to "finished" since the seam would show through so I decided to applique the blue frame on instead.

Here it is.

I included the queen's monogram and also embroidered the words "Diamond Jubilee 1952-2012".  Too bad the photo doesn't really show the embroidery on top.  By the way, the red fabric in the center is from JoAnn's.

Here are my Jubilee pillows.  I love them and I'm glad I pushed myself to design my own patterns.

Now, I'm seriously considering making a London inspired quilt..  I would have to design and execute my own applique pattern and that is sort of intimidating because I CAN"T DRAW!  But London is one of my favorite cities.  In fact, it is the first European city I visited.  So, I'll seriously consider taking on that project.

The Long Beach Quilt Show starts next Thursday.  I will be working at the Sewing Party booth on Thursday (preview night) and Sunday.  So,  If you are in the area, I hope you stop by and say hi.

I've Been a Busy Bee

I got another quilt top completed.  Yipee!  This is a Block of the Month project I started last November and I got it completed yesterday.  This project is from Keepsake Cottage in Bothell, WA (one of my most favorite stores in the world!).  

The pattern is called Berries and Bluebirds by Gail Pan and here is a photo of her quilt.

But I much prefer the bright colors that Keepsake Cottage chose for this Block of the Month.  Here are a few close up pictures of the quilt top.

I

I have not yet decided on a name for this quilt but I will be basting it tomorrow and will most probably be quilting it myself.  I have another completed quilt top to machine quilt so it will probably take 2-3 months before I get to sew the binding on.

And since I'm on my "brights phase", check out these fabrics I bought.  I just love fabric with rose prints.  I can't wait to show you what I've done with them.  

I've been on a creative roll, so I also made this huge paper flower for my wall.  I purchased some sheet music from an antique store for 10 cents a piece and got this done in about an hour.

Here it is on my wall with another flower made from encyclopedia pages.  Which one do you prefer?

And finally, I've got to show you this cute little trash can I got for $1.50!!!

How cute is that?  Till next time. 

J'Adore Marie Claire Idees

I spent part of the weekend in Coronado Island, San Diego and picked up this gorgeous issue of Marie Claire Idees.  •Swoon•

This is a French craft magazine and the photos are absolutely yummy!  Wish I can find this in Orange County.  Barnes and Nobles doesn't carry it. :-(


Here's a peek inside.

I'm planning to spend some time sewing on the 4th of July.  Hope you are too!

Reusable Bag with Pouch Tutorial

I have a trunk load of reusable bags to take to the grocery store but these don't really work for the mall.  And I really did not want to come home with yet another Macy's paper bag or tiny Sephora bag which I couldn't really reuse.  So, I played around and made a tote bag which folds into a small pouch.  It fits perfectly in my purse.  The concept of this tote bag is very similar to a quillow, so let's get started.

Materials:
3/4 yd cotton fabric (44" wide)
1.5 yd cotton strap

Step 1:  Make a tote bag.
From the cotton fabric, cut a piece measuring 20"W x 40" L and fold it in half lengthwise to make a piece 20 x 20.

Next, sew or serge down both sides.

Next, box the bottom of the bag.  To do this, match the side seam and bottom seam of the bag forming a triangle.

Pin it and draw a line perpendicular to the top of the triangle.  I wanted my bag on the roomier side so the base of my triangle is about 6.5" wide.  Draw a line.

Then sew or serge on the line.

The body of the tote bag is now complete.

Step 2:  Make the pocket piece.
Cut a piece of fabric 7 1/2"W x 12"L.  Fold one edge over 1/4" and fold over again and sew down this seam.

Next, take up the side with the finished seam up the other edge and leave about 1 1/2" allowance on top.  (Note:  In this photo, the top edge is quite huge.  I was still playing with the size and should have taken the photo after I trimmed the top edge to the right length).

Sew or serge both sides.  You may cover the seam with bias binding if you wish.

Turn the pocket inside out. Finished size is 7"W x 6.5"L.  Make sure you have a 1 1/2 inches above the finished edge of the pocket.

Step 3:  Make the top flap for the tote bag.
Cut a piece of fabric 41" x 2 1/2".

From the wrong side, fold up a 1/4 inch of fabric and iron it to form a crease.

Sew or serge the 2 short ends.  You now have a long continuous band about 2 1/4' x 40".

Step 4:  Putting it all together.
Find the midpoint of the tote bag and mark it with a pin.  Make sure you have the right side of the bag facing you.

Find the midpoint of the pocket and mark it with a pin.  Lay the pocket piece on top of the tote bag and match the pins.  Make sure you have the pocket facing towards the tote bag, not facing you.

Cut 2 straps 21"long each.  Pin to the left and right of the pocket piece.  (I realized I should have used a different fabric for the pocket so you can see it better but hopefully you can see the pocket piece in the center).

Pin the straps on the tote bag to the left and right of the pocket piece.  Make sure the straps are down towards the bottom of the bag and the ends are facing up and extending about 1" above the edge of the tote bag.

Next, lay down the top flap; wrong side of the fabric facing out.  Make sure the raw edge is pinned to the top edge of the tote bag, not the edge with 1/4" turned under.

Pin all around the bag and sew along the top edge, removing pins as you go.

Now flip the top edge over.  Top stitch along the edge.  Make sure the pocket piece is not stitched down.  Note that there is about 1 inch clearance from the edge of the tote to the opening of the pocket.

Turn your tote bag inside out and top stitch along the edge where you've got the 1/4 turned under.

You may reinforce the straps and sew them down if you wish.

Now, you're all done.  

Step 5:  Folding your tote bag.
Lay out your tote bag with the pocket facing up.

Fold in both sides towards the center. Lay the handles facing towards the bottom of the bag.

Take the bottom of the bag to the top edge then fold this piece again in half.

Now take the left bottom edge and tuck it into the left upper corner of the pocket.  Tuck the rest to form a rectangle.

Tada!  Here's your reusable tote bag with built in pouch.

You can always adjust the size of the tote bag and the straps but you get the concept.   I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.