Greetings from Fall Quilt Market!

Posted on November 4, 2012 by admin

Finally I’m getting the chance to blog about our visit to Houston last weekend! As you’ve probably heard downtown New Yorkers like Marty and me only got power back yesterday. Above is a photo I took of my favorite booth by Mary Jane. She’s one of the Moda designers and her theme was Glamping!

I was happy to learn from my fabric licensee Windham that near their booth Susie Seligman was making some fun shirts mixing my Bon Vivant fabrics with some Japanese ones! She also has a Fiber Art Furniture studio in Indiana.

I loved this cozy cabin booth too by Parson Gray (David Butler) for Freespirit! His collection is called Seven Wonders and I think people are going to have a blast with it. David also shared his new CD with us. His band is The Black Owls!

We also enjoyed meeting Sarah Watson – one of the new designers for Art Gallery Fabrics! Congrats to her on her new line and individual booth award!

One of the most amazing quilts displayed was Berne House Quilt. 156 blocks were made by these Swiss designers and in 2010 they were sewn together in this stunning composition – including the Berne clocktower!

We also loved this modern spectrum style quilt! It was a great show and got to meet both Debbie Outlaw from Moda and Nancy Weber from Checkers to talk about my 4 patterns! Will keep you posted..

After market we headed to Hugo’s in the Montrose neighborhood – for authentic and inspired Mexican cuisine & to see their famous Day of the Dead shrine!

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Our 4th Pattern is here – for a Project Tote!

Posted on October 26, 2012 by admin

Marty and I will be leaving for International Quilt Market tommorrow and we’re taking samples of our fourth home sewing pattern! It started as a display sample in the teal and brown skus of my Bon Vivant collection for Windham Fabrics. That sample was given away by Ryan Walsh after he did a blog post on me. A talented sewist Sharon Tuckey won it and I asked her if she wanted to collaborate on a pattern with me.

Meanwhile back in NYC I was starting to work on special rosettes with my friend Myra Martin. This one ended up being a fun a decorative closure! For a tutorial on making this type Coco Rosette in the search bar. Once Sharon and I worked out the pattern and instructions I asked Jennifer Herrick at Lola Pink Fabrics if they could test it for me.

I was so excited she said “Sure” and worked up a new plan to make the bag on the right with my grey paisley and red floral from Bon Vivant. I sent along some black vintage buttons for her to choose from. Jennifer did such a lovely job and another of Myra’s pin on rosettes makes a cute embellishment! Many thanks to all who helped make this product such a success!

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Monet’s Garden at NY Botanical!

Posted on October 7, 2012 by admin

I finally snuck out of my studio last Friday and headed to see NY Botanical’s tribute to Claude Monet’s garden at Giverny!

Lush plantings and Monet’s favorite classical music filled the conservatories!

You could actually walk across the bridge was built to resemble the one at Giverny so I did!

Then I walked outside to see the giant reflecting pools planted with waterlillies. These were in the “hardy” section.

At the second pool it was a treat to see the vibrant and exotic tropical waterlillies!

Love the shape and color of these lily pads!

I’d highly suggest a visit if you’re in the NY area – the exhibit will be on display until October 21st!

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A Bon Vivant Picnic in the Park!

Posted on August 28, 2012 by admin

Before I send this wedding gift off to Katie & Zach I thought I’d share with you how you could use my Bon Vivant fabrics from Windham to spiff up a plain picnic basket. I headed to Washington Square and mocked up this little vignette. You could line the basket with my grey Golightly paisley, make a blanket with one of the red fabrics (like the poodles), and whip up some black composition notebook texture napkins (fray or pink the edges). Add some coordinating melamine, acrylic glasses, and your favorite snacks & bevs. This could also be used for tailgating (thanks to Marcia for inspiring me)! Let’s hope for lots of Indian summer so we can dine outside!

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A Sparkling 50th!

Posted on August 26, 2012 by admin

Last night we celebrated our dear friend Eric’s 50th birthday at Amanda and Grady’s lovely home! Being the “Bubbly” guy he is, Eric was in his element!

Eric’s brilliant wife Ramona created this effervescent confection made up of mini macarons, cupcakes, and tarts! It was all too delicious..

Those little champagne bottles were actually the birthday candles! It was so great to see everyone and we were up way too late!

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Our 3rd Pattern – A Bib & Burp Cloth Set!

Posted on August 12, 2012 by admin

We’re so proud of our third pattern! Many Thanks to Jane Fried Sheinfeld of The Pieced Palette for collaborating with us on this! Our new friends Malin and Alice were so kind to model for us and we enjoyed sending them home with samples! If you’re in Manhattan it’s available at The City Quilter and if you’re near Seattle it’s always worth a trip to Pink Chalk Fabrics where they have it also or online at www.pinkchalkfabrics.com/index.php?main_page=index&Path=39_75_742

Happy Baby Sewing!

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Our 3rd Pattern is going into production!

Posted on July 2, 2012 by admin

Here’s the photo we’ll be using for our newest Bib & Burp Cloth Set pattern – Many Thanks to our new friends Malin and her daughter Alice for modeling! These newest samples were so beautifully made for us by Nancy at The City Quilter! Alice has already inspired another pattern but it’s secret for now..

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Spring Quilt Market in Kansas City!

Posted on May 21, 2012 by admin

Over the weekend I got to walk through Spring Quilt Market at Bartle Hall – here are 2 shots of a fresh looking booth by Rowan!

Love it!

Polka dots were a common theme at many fabric companies including Windham and Echino (above).

The childrens’ clothes and bags at Echino are fun and inspiring too!

I love this modern quilt made with Cotton Couture fabrics from Michael Miller! I met so many wonderful people including Melissa and Scott from Generation Q magazine and Denyse Schmidt of Quilt Alliance! It was a super show and I congratulate all the exhibitors!

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The Coco Rosette – a more decorative bag closure!

Posted on May 1, 2012 by admin

I named this rosette (designed by Myra Martin) after our french poodle Coco!

We are about to test the Picnic Tote pattern that this looks great on – will keep you posted..

Instructions – What You’ll Need:

3″ x 20″ strip of fabric 1, 3″ x 10″ strip of fabric 2, 1 semi circle of coordinating fabric 3″ along the flat edge and 2 1/2″ in diameter, 1/2 yard black or coordinating grosgrain ribbon 1 1/2″ wide, 1 fabric covered button at least 1 5/8″ wide ( if you are making it the size can be boosted with a bit of batting), 6″ black or coordinating elastic 1/4″ wide (for the loop), coordinating thread, pinking shears, and Steam Iron, and Sewing Machine

1) Fold the fabric strips in half with right sides together. Machine stitch a seam along the side to make 2 tubes.

2) Turn fabric tubes right side out and iron to flatten, making 2 ribbon-like shapes.

3) Fold fabric tubes into 2″ x 2″ loops attaching one to the next to begin building the semi- circle. Use basting stitching at the corners to secure where the loops are intersecting.

4) Fold grosgrain ribbon into slightly smaller loops to form the upper (or second) layer. Repeat basting stitch procedure to attach loops to one another. Handstitch layer 2 to layer 1.

5) Pink edges of fabric semi- circular scrap. Handstitch that shape onto the back of the rosette. Handstitch the rosette to the center of the top front edge of the bag.

6) Sew covered button onto the rosette.

7) Form the loop for the button with black or coordinating elastic. Pin the loop to the back of the bag to test where it needs to be to work properly. Once positioned precisely, sew into place.

Wear and Enjoy!

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I’ve just manufactured my second sewing pattern!

Posted on March 5, 2012 by admin

I’m so excited about the arrival of my Bon Vivant car stuffie patterns from Simplicity! I got to collaborate on this with Leslie Asch! For more of my Bon Vivant fabrics

http://www.windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=465

My sweet neighbor Sam agreed to pose as our model and he was cracking us up by yelling “Vroom and Cheese” while playing with the first sample!

I asked Cathy at The City Quilter www.cityquilter.com if someone on her staff would like to test our pattern and Nancy created the sample below using fabric from Timeless Treasures.

Many Thanks to both Cathy and Nancy for their feedback! They suggested we simplify the the base for easier assembly so we came up with a modification which you can see below:

Sam’s Mom Bess told me that the sample I gave him is now parked in his crib so I think that’s one of the best compliments yet!!

You can find this pattern at The City Quilter 133 West 25th St. New York and at Pink Chalk Fabrics 9723 Coopertop Loop Suite 205 Bainbridge Island, WA. or on their website  www.pinkchalkfabrics.com/index.php?main_page=index&Path=39_75_742 Enjoy!

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