~ Coastal Sunglass Cases ~

So ... I have been busy.  Busy picking a new set of fabrics every 30 minutes which pretty much put me in a heavenly state.  The picking of fabrics is my favorite part of this process, although all the others fall closely behind.

I have been busy making eyeglass/sunglass cases that are now for sale on my Etsy Shop.

First: Octopi, as seen above.

Next: Sea Horses.

And last but not least: Surfboards.

And just in case you were wondering ... the tornado that attacked my fabric shelves during this process ... was tamed.  

It was a very good week.

~ Wall Art in Valentine Pinks ~

In honor of this week of pink and ... love ... I am putting this lovely beauty onto my Etsy Shop this week.

And, as promised, I am also putting the pattern for her on sale this week for only $4!
(That's 50% off people ... no coupon required.)

I love the combination of the stripes and dots along with the lovely Moda florals.

Go here for the quilt.
Go here for the pattern.

The back is as lovely as the front and showcases the quilting quite nicely. 

And so I wish you a romantic and inspiring week.

The heart (above) always touches my heart (inside) because my daughter made it for me in elementary school.
She will turn 36 next month.

~ Sea-sonal Topiary ~

Whew.  I finished it.  I sewed down most of the binding last night ...

 ... while handing out candy to my four (count 'em 4!) groups of trick-or-treaters. I was actually pretty excited since that was four (count 'em 4!) times the number of groups I had last year.
My house is not really easy to get to.

 I just love my new tablerunner ... and the pattern that is available for you, so that you too can have a lovely Coastal Christmas.
No matter where you live.

It took me some time because I fused and then quilted 55 scallop shells onto my topiary.

It was a wonderful exercise in machine quilting.  That is not usually my favorite part of the process but in this case it was just one of my favorite parts.
Actually, I have to say that I enjoyed every part of making this one.
  

In fact, the back brings me a lot of JOY also.

So ... what do you think?  Did I do my original inspiration justice?
Thank you again to Romantic Homes ... November 2011.

Please stop by my Etsy Shop and pick up a pattern.
Now that Halloween is over you can officially jump feet first into the Holidays.

I have.

~ The Autumn Seashore ~

Here is my design wall this morning.

The temps will still hit the 90s this week here in southern Cal ...

... but I am officially declaring it autumn.

In trying to decide just how I would merge this season with the sea, I chose to light up some jack o'lanterns with sea life. Then while in the process of drawing said pumpkins, I remembered that I had drawn pumpkins before.
In another life, under another (pattern) name, I had published a pattern for a 90s era folk-art fall wall hanging.  I have long since grown weary of the fabrics in it, but I decided that since I had drawn the pumpkins in the first place ... I could copy my own design.




Then ... I started thinking ... why not copy the whole dang thing?
I knew I wanted calmer sea colors and I wanted to add some light to the pumpkins, but it seemed a good idea not to try and reinvent this particular wheel.

So I got out my pattern and I followed it.
  

Having recently been to the beach and become fond of all the lovely lavender, I knew what color the flowers would be.

I kept my print palette to dots, stripes and solids.

I vow to have this pattern up on my Etsy Shop ...
not next week, but the week after.

Next week I will be immersed in a class taught by this master quilter.

I feel cooler already!

~ Bluebirds of Gratitude ~

Here is the quilt I have hanging on the guest room wall. I designed it and began the applique process in 2008 and finished it in 2009. I call it Bluebirds of Gratitude. I am grateful that the birds are flying home.

The birds themselves are hand-appliqued. The rest was pieced/quilted by my trusty machine.

The colors, of course, are part of the charm. I can NOT have enough green and blue in my life.

The only fabric I went out and purchased was for the borders. Every other blue, green ... and brown was just sitting around on my shelves begging to be part of this quilt.

Believe me ... fabric is loud.

I loved making this quilt.

I love birds.

And you?

Linking to
Sew Happy Geek
 Creative ME
Made by you Mondays
 Tuesday's Treasures
Coastal Charm
White Wednesdays

~ Butterflies ARE Free ~

 My title may be a reference to a 60's movie with Goldie Hawn, but try not to let that date me, and cause a flurry while you rush to find a calculator. I just noticed that I had more than my share of butterfly pictures.  All of the quilt ones are from a sample I did at the store in AZ where I used to work.  The whole purpose was to make them in different styles ... and yes they actually went into the same quilt.  Odd, but true.

 This picture is of a sidewalk I walk on every single morning here in SoCal Land.  More butterflies.

 More fabrics.  More fun.

 A "Butterfly Bench" ... also on my morning walk. My grandkids are quite enamored of them.

Butterflies are also Bright!

This is all in honor of the fact that it could possibly be back in the 90's this week.  It just seemed wrong to post any pictures of the frost on the pumpkins.

Happy ... whatever season you want it to be.

~ Crisp ~

Here is a tip for the day, whether or not you are a sewer/quilter/crafter. This tip is for anyone who fancies herself "a wearer-of-unwrinkled-clothing".

Best Press is the only thing I starch with. No yucky white residue and it comes in lovely scents (or a lack thereof, if that's what you want.) My favorite scent is Caribbean Beach which I buy by the gallon.

I use it consistently to stiffen up a background block in order to machine applique on it. I also use it to put a nice crease in my sleeve.

All Good.