Juicy Bits

221: somewhere under

QuiltCon is this week.  If you don't know, it's the first quilters' conference put on by the Modern Quilt Guild.  A weekend of workshops, lectures, a juried quilt show, shopping, and partying like it's 1985.  Woo hoo!

I have two quilts in the show.  This one is titled Somewhere Under and I've been waiting to show it for a while now.  Not to be all braggy, but I'm in love with it.  :)  The combination of the slightly off-beat vivid colors and the simple, graphic design that's just a little askew for added quirkiness, really does it for me.

This is the second quilt I've done entirely of solids. (Actually I added a couple of prints to the back...shhh...)

The quilting is my graphic version of clouds.  Maybe I'll do a little tutorial on it if there's enough interest.

And it's kinda 2-sided with a large version of the block on the back.

When it came to binding I decided using anything but white would box it in too much, but I wanted some definition so I added a flange.  It's mostly green with a couple of little pieced spots.

I'm working on a pattern for this and you can expect to see something in the Spring.

JT

201: color theory for quilters

Hi all.

This past weekend I had the opportunity to teach Color Theory for the Modern Quilter to the Philly Modern Quilt Guild at a mini sewing retreat.  So much fun.

It turns out I could talk all day about color.  No big surprise there.  I think the members all left with at least a bit of a new way to look at color when quilting.  We covered all the basics from the color wheels to color combinations, and even did some exercises to help everyone look at color more objectively.

Then I got to stay the rest of the day and enjoy some sewing time as well as a workshop from the lovely Sujata Shah on gentle curved piecing.  I decided to step outside my comfort zone and not think or plan at all before sewing.  I gave myself all of 5 minutes to pick the fabrics.  And then I just started.  It was an easy enough method (cutting several layers at once and then shuffling them) and I enjoyed her simple no-pin method to sewing the curves. 

The results I'm still not sure about.  Part of the problem was I didn't really have much of the grey fabrics with me and those were the ones I wanted to use the most of.  I'll be sticking it up on my design wall and probably doing a bit more playing with it to see if it's becomes something interesting.  I've never had this experience with a quilt before: as I was working on it I just sort of thought "eh. it's OK" but every time I walked away and came back I found myself immediately liking it more.  Maybe its just the colors.  We shall see.

Now if I could only get my voice back.... :)

JT

174: unicorns and rainbows party part 2: the day

As I mentioned, the day was darned near perfect.  Here's how it went:

Set-up, and more frantic set-up in the morning.

Then, we had gorgeous face painting as the kids arrived.

The craft project was painting unicorn or dragon t-shirts with freezer paper stencils.  

There were many creative outcomes.

 And, though the pictures don't show it, you should believe me when I tell you the smocks were a rainbow of solid-colored t-shirts (from Goodwill).  Yes, that's how far I take it.

Next up was a treasure hunt for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.  HUGE hit.  The kids were running all over the house and yard hunting for the next clue.  

I made them all up, and they even rhymed.

They were hidden in places like the mailbox, a backpack, the climber, and the pot of (chocolate) gold was in the fireplace.  Such a simple activity that was so much fun.  I'm sure we'll do one again at the kids' request.

After that it was time to enjoy treats and cake.  

I have to say I think people were more impressed with my ability to cut semi-intact slices of the overly tall cake, than with my ability to bake it.  :)

Then afterwards the kids enjoyed some running and playing in the yard on such a beautiful day. 

I can hardly believe my little girl is 6 (and really now, she's half way to 7!)

Haven't come up with a definite plan for next year yet...I'll keep you posted.

JT

 

 

 

173: unicorns and rainbows party part 1: the details

 Finally.

I've been holding on to these pictures for a while now.  I just really needed to edit them down a bit.  There were so many good ones that I find it nearly impossible to choose.

Anyway, as the title implies, this year Aurora chose a unicorns and rainbows party.  Actually she chose unicorns and I convinced her to add the rainbows by describing the candy buffet. She had been reading this series of books about a unicorn school and was really into them.  And who can't get behind that idea?  And for the boys, dragons were permitted to attend.

While the party followed a VERY hectic summer and Theo's party, it went off with very limited hiccups.  Much less stressed out that at Theo's.  That's not to say it wasn't a boatload of work.  This stuff doesn't just happen, people.  :)

The day was darned near perfect.  Great weather.  Great Friends.  Great fun.  The kids enjoyed a day full of sugar as well as a craft and even a treasure hunt for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

I asked everyone to come dressed all in one color so we could be our own rainbow...

 You'll find the sources and inspiration at the bottom of this post, and I'll be back soon with a summary of the day's events.

 Photography: Evan Foster

Invitations: custom made by me

Dessert Table: inspired by the infamous Amy Atlas

Uncicorn cookies: made by me, inspired by this photo

Yarn balloons: made by Aurora and me, tutorial found here

Paper mobiles: tutorial found here

Cake: made by me, lots of inspiration around the web

Craft: freezer paper stenciling (tutorial found here), used unicorn clip art found here, and a dragon I drew

Face painting: Bella Facia

Favors: a bag filled with a unicorn lollipop, mini unicorn (or dragon) coloring book (available on amazon), set of mini rainbow markers, rainbow and unicorn stickers, wooden unicorn to color and a sewn matchbook notebook (tutorial found here) - plus a whole container full of the candy!

161: glamping bohemian style

Have you heard of glamping?  Probably not.  Everyone seems to go "huh?" when I say it, so I'll enlighten you.

It's camping but with style. i.e. glamour camping.  And if you know me, you know that styling a campsite isn't really a stretch.  Everything is better when done with a little flair, right?

So, you've gathered it's not exactly "roughing it".  In general, when we go camping I have rules:

1. Queen size air mattress

2. Wooded campsite

3. Campground must have flushing toilets

4. Campground must have hot showers

I think for most, glamping is about bringing a level of refinery to camping.  Real dishes.  Bed linens, not sleeping bags. Extra furniture. Etc.

For me it was about creating a look.  And if you remember, I've been lusting after the look of a gypsy caravan.  Very bohemian and colorful.  That's what I went for here.  

How'd I do?

Now, please don't be fooled by these pictures.  Our campsite looked like this for about 15 minutes total.  Then the rain came, and the trying to cook for 9 people (we went with my parents and some friends), and the kids playing in the mud... but the color was always there.

This was the "living room" tent which was useful when it was buggy, rainy, or we didn't want the kids playing in the dirt.  Sadly it collapsed from the weight of the rain on the roof after a few days and was no more.

If you were wondering, we went camping at Half Moon Pond State Park, VT.  It was a lovely quite campground with a nice smallish pond.  The big drawback was it was far from anything, and with 3 kids under 6, we really wanted to go "do something" more than just hang at the campsite.  We did go to Burlington which was cool.

It was a fun trip, but I think once a year camping with the kids is my limit.  The packing and unpacking is just too much...

JT

157: city quilts blog tour and giveaway

If you didn't notice, the last post was "coming soon" preview.  This is the real deal.

I promise I have some more personal posts coming up to show you what I've been doing this summer, but for now I want to talk about this book, City Quilts by Cherri House.

Truth be told, I rarely actually read quilt books.  They're usually just eye candy for me.  Most often inspiration, and occasionally a pattern I follow.  But I did read City Quilts cover-to-cover and I absolutely enjoyed it.  Cherri has some amazing discussion of color theory and even how she gathered the inspiration for the quilts themselves.

Anyway, you can read the book for yourself, but I was able to ask Cherri a few more questions to get to know her better:

First congratulations on a stunning book.  The quilts and inspirational photos are gorgeous. 

Thank you so much!

I love the use of all solids and I particularly enjoyed your discussions of color theory as it applies to quilts.  So my first question has to do with just that.  You talked about creating a glow within your quilts through value and contrast.  I love how many of your quilts have an unexpected spark of color.  My question is how do you get the balance right so that spark isn't out of place?

Good question, a little challenging to answer though.  Generally, in order to achieve a spark of color that is in balance with the rest of the composition; the colors have to relate to one another in some manner.  Either in the same color family, adjacent on the color wheel, opposites on the color wheel, something that will allow everyone to play together well, but still provide enough interest, and variance to not be flat, but also not overtake the whole piece.  It is a matter of fine tuning.  I have found that you can get away with a lot in terms of color, as long as you have a bridge from color to color. 

 

Next, how long do you typically work on a quilt?  Not when you have a book deadline, but just generally.  Not number of hours, per se, but how long you keep at a project and how much other stuff do you have going in the mean time.

So much depends on the quilt, the fabric, and my passion for a project.  Sometimes I will knock out a quilt in a few days, and others will take well over a year.  Not necessarily working on the quilt, but living with the fabric, before deciding it's fate.  Some fabrics I get, and I know exactly what the end result will be, and off I go without any hesitation.  Other times it is a matter of studying the fabric, and trying to find the perfect pattern, perfect solution, perfect everything.  My quilt queue is quite long though, there are always new projects vying for attention.

And finally, I'll go back to color and ask you a tough one: do you have a favorite color?  Why is it your favorite?

I'm asked this question all the time, and I'm always stumped for an answer. But I know now, I have the definitive answer.  Barbie pink from this 1971 Barbie.  I had this Barbie, and I loved it so much!  Whenever I see this color pink, it fills me with happiness!  This is breaking news, you know; never been revealed kind of stuff...for all those inquiring minds!

Don't forget to stop by the other blogs on the tour for more insight about the book and Cherri.  And for more chances to win.

July 12th - Cheryl Arkison http://naptimequilter.blogspot.com/
July 13th - Amy Lobsiger http://mrsschmenkmanquilts.wordpress.com/
July 14th - Stefanie Roman http://littleladypatchwork.blogspot.com/
July 15th - Pat Sloan http://patsloan.typepad.com/
July 16th - Spool http://www.spoolsewing.com/blog/
July 17th - Allie/Robert Kaufman http://www.swatchandstitch.com/
July 18th - John/Fat Quarterly http://blog.fatquarterly.com/
July 19th - Emily Cier http://carolinapatchworks.com/blog/
July 20th - Sarah/Josh Sewer Sewist http://www.sewer-sewist.com/
July 21st - Julie / Jaybird http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/
July 22nd - Vickie Eapen http://www.spunsugarquilt.com/
July 23rd - Jessica Levitt http://juicy-bits.typepad.com/

July 24th - Kim Kight http://www.trueup.net/

The giveaway is for a copy of the book provided by C&T Publishing and also a fat quarter pack of Kona Solids provided by Robert Kauffman.

 

All you have to do is leave a comment here before Thurs July 29th and one of the prizes could be yours.  Maybe you can tell me a quilt or other project that you've used solids in?

JT

151: starting and stopping

Here's a project I began a while back.  Like 6 months or more.  Remember when I taught myself to crochet?

Well, I did a few hats and scarves and stuff, then I decide to move right on to a whole blanket.

It's based on this lovely inspiration.

And this has some instructions.

But you can see I went for a more limited palette.  Maybe I should have photographed it on white so you could get the idea...

 

I had no pattern to work from.  So it took me a while to get it "just right".  Or the way I want it anyway.

I could possibly someday write a pattern if anyone's interested, but I don't think I have too many crocheting followers.  And it will probably be a while.  And I'm telling you it's not the best.  And I'm still working on figuring out the continuous method for all the white that joins the circles.  So that's a lot of buts/ands.

Anyway, I've done about 50 circles so far.  Seriously I'd better write down the pattern because I've stopped working on it for a while and by the time I get back to it, I'll probably forget it.

 

I estimate I have like 175 more to make.  Yikes!

Most of these already have the ends weaved in.  I have to say that's the part that sucks the most.  It takes nearly as long as the actual crocheting.

JT

p.s. Did you notice I refrained from talking about how infrequently I've been posting lately?  You did?  Oh, well, I guess I blew that now.  

No really, I'm trying not to whine about my failings as a blogger and just go with the flow.  I'm super-busy and will be for at least the next two months, so set your expectations low.  

But, I have been working hard on the next fabric collection, for those of you that care.

150: no room for purple

My stash is officially too big.  

Yeah, right, like THAT's possible.  

But it has been growing quite a bit lately.  See how pretty?

I have it organized by designer for those I have more than 5 or 6 prints from.  See how Amy Butler and Kaffe Fassat get 2 full stacks each? 

Then the misc. stuff gets stacked by color.  And right now I have no room for my purple stack.  It's just kinda hanging out on top of one of the cabinets.  Of course I really just need to re-organize.  I have more cabinet space that, once cleaned out, I'm sure will fit the whole rainbow.

I already have 3 shelves in another cabinet with novelties and 30s reproductions.

And I never showed you my new cutting table did I?  Well, I'm not going to now because it's too much of a mess.  But the cubbies underneath house my scraps and all my beautiful Kona solids.

 

I really have been busy sewing lately, but sadly, it's nothing I can show you just yet.

JT

148: roller coaster in my mind

Let's take a little trip in the mind of Jessica, shall we? Often it's a whirlwind ride, so you may want to hold on.

I guess I should preface this by telling you my mind races from subject to subject a lot of the time.  When I bring up a seemingly unrelated subject to my husband he'll sometimes ask "how did you get there?"  So I tell him.  It's usually about a dozen steps that I hopped through in about 10 seconds. 

Am I the only one like this?  I do wish I could shut it off sometimes...it makes falling asleep at night much more difficult.

Anyway, back to our little trip.  This one wasn't so fast, but rather a bit obsessive.

It all started with this photo:

I saw this lovely gypsy caravan inspiration over at an adorable blog, li'l magoolie. And I'm in love.  Seriously.  Madly.  Deeply.

I feel I NEED one of these in my backyard.  So I promptly started designing a playhouse for Aurora and Theo (OK, fine, for me really) based on these gorgeous bright colors.  I started figuring out how I was going to get my dad to help me build it.  I couldn't wait to have the fun of painting it all those colors and sewing curtains and cushions etc.

You'll see that Miko Design had the same inspiration for a great recycled version for her daughter's playhouse.

The plan was definitely to have one with a full size bed in the back so we could have sleepovers in it.  Sure, Aurora could do that with her friends into her teen years, but I also just dream of sleeping in such a place.  I guess camping out in your own back yard seems strange, but...cool, no?

Anyway, I obsessed over all these pictures and the idea.  Then I moved on to playhouse plans.  None are really quite right but I was thinking of what I could adapt.  Then I started looking at shed plans because maybe those would be more flexible.

Then I spoke with my dad about it and we thought maybe it really would be cool to have it on wheels so we could bring it camping.  This led to the idea of refurbishing an RV of some kind.  I start looking around, and who doesn't want one of these cool vintage Airstreams?

But I don't actually need a bathroom in it.  And, yes, they're WAY too expensive.  But what about a regular RV?  Let's check out craig's list shall we?  I see some real options for older ones people want to get rid of.  That would be kinda fun to redo.

Right about now I realized that I can't actually build such a structure in my yard or park an RV without out approval from the stupid, f***ing, homeowners association board.  I can't even put out a statue without their say so.  I hate it!  So I pull out the by-laws to see what I can and can't do.  Definitely a no go.  Grrr...

So now what?  How about moving?  I start looking at what's for sale in our immediate area.  In the end I like the idea of piece of property still in range of the same elementary school, that is plenty big enough to build our dream house with pool etc.  And of course a gypsy caravan.  That was the whole point right?

So, tommorrow I'm going out with the real estate agent to look at a few places.  Will anything actually come of it?  I don't know, but I'm so mad at being limited right now, that it actually makes me want to move.

And my husband is sort of in a dazed shock, like "um, what just happened?  You see one picture you like and suddenly we're building a new house?"  Poor guy.

JT

P.S. I know I owe you giveaway details, but that should be coming soon.  It might be over at a different site, but I'll let you know...

114: a closer look

Phew!  What a whirlwind I've been going through.  Yesterday my husband was saying how it seems like we're always in the midst of big "push" to get something done.  That's not exactly true, but it sure does feel like it lately.

Anyway, I've been quite busy designing, planning, sewing etc for Theo's birthday.  He's two today!  (well, yesterday by the time I get this post up).  I'll have lots of details of the whole construction-themed shindig soonish.  I'm playing catch-up with pictures right now.  

And in the midst of that we all picked up and flew to FL for 2 nights for my Grandmother's funeral.  It was actually really nice to see all my extended family (my dad is 1 of 8 kids!) but it was quite a bit of dragging the kids all over the place and we got back the night before the party...so now you know why I'm exhausted...

But I did promise you a closer look at Timber (for Windham Fabrics) and here it is in three colorways:

Prints clockwise from top left: Gingko in Sea Glass, Dogwood in River, Pear in Mist, Magnolia in River, Bamboo in Sea Glass, Apple in Mist, Willow in Mist, Maple in River

Prints clockwise from top left: Gingko in Malibu, Dogwood in Malibu, Pear in Sugar Plum, Magnolia in Sugar Plum, Bamboo in Sugar Plum, Apple in Sienna, Willow in River, Maple in Sugar Plum

Prints clockwise from top left: Gingko in Java, Dogwood in Sienna, Magnolia in Sweetgrass, Bamboo in Java, Maple in Sweetgrass, Gingko in Sienna, Maple in Java, Willow in Sweetgrass, Pear in Sienna

I must say, the thing I'm the most excited about is to see what you all make with your fabric.  Promise me you'll send me lots of pictures, k?

And I spoke a little too soon before, I don't think the fabric will be hitting the stores much before the new year.  But I already know of two places that have ordered the whole line.  One of my favorite quilt shops on Cape Cod, Tumbleweed Quilts, and a great online store (and awesome new friend), Fabritopia.  If you're a store owner and you're ordering the whole line, let me know and I'll post a big list or something so everyone can find you!

I can't thank you all enough for your kind words on my last post.  It seems everyone believed in me even before I did.  I wish I could email you all back personally, but it just ain't gonna happen right now.  But I'll be back on track soon...

JT

109: no restraint

I can't help myself.  I remember being younger and being amazed how much fabric my Aunt could buy before using all her other stuff...but now I'm just the same.

Anyway, I was working on a project recently and wanted a little bit of a solid fabric to go with it, and I discovered I really don't have any.  Literally, I had like 6 different pieces of solid color cotton and considering how I have hundreds of prints...that was just a shame.

So when another blogger posted about Kona solids at Fabricshack.com for $3.99, I decided the time had come.  And I ordered a whole palette.  Apparently I kinda focused on blue.  I'll have to balance it more later.  

It's so fun to look at all the colors and to know when I go looking for something, I might actually have something usable in my stash.

Some of the colors were strange...which, of course, I expected.  I think my least favorite is "pistachio".  And I must say "denim" is not remotely denim colored (although it's a pretty enough blue).  The lovely people at Fabric Shack were kinda enough to label all the colors as I had requested.  Coal, teal blue, chartreuse, and squash are just yummy!

JT

103: gearing up for a giveaway

This is a just a little peek at what's coming for my 1 year blogiversay in a few weeks.

Well, that's IF I get it done in time.  But I'm trying.  I never really thought I'd giveaway a whole quilt...but, yup, I am.

And I mentioned it before, but if you lurk and you think you're gonna want in, you'd better start leaving me love notes now.  I've devised a little plan on how to pick the winner, and only those who've previously commented on my blog have a shot.

Well, I'm sure I'll make some runner up prizes for those that just find me that post.  I think part of giveaways is supposed to be about getting new readers, but I really want to give the quilt to someone who actually reads my blog...not just someone passing through.  However, it will still be somewhat random, so I won't be playing favorites...

These colors make me all happy and sunshiny, even on a rainy day!

JT

87: do you spoon?

I actually think that spoonflower itself is becoming a verb: to spoonflower.  Much to my delight, I finally spoonflowered some fabric.  But, alas, it was just a boring color test. 

 

It does look kinds pretty though, doesn’t it?  Maybe I’ll make something out of it anyway…

 

Now, for those of you who don’t know what Spoonflower is, well, where have you been?  No, really, I think I have a few family and friends type readers who aren’t deep in the crafty world who might not have heard of it.  So, it’s this awesome company that takes whatever design or picture you want and prints them onto quilter’s cotton fabric.  Sweet, huh?  And it only costs $18/yard.  So now anyone can be a fabric designer.

 

Of course I’m wondering if this adds another level of complexity to quilting since I can now design a quilt and if I can’t find the exact right fabric…well, just get it printed.  Hmmm, I’m not really sure this is a good thing….

But it will be very exciting to see my own designs on fabric, and then make something with them.  The colors did indeed come out totally different, so I’m glad I took the time to do the test.

 

Oh, and those of you who have spoonflowered fabric before…what did you do with it when you got it?  Did you wash and press it?  It feels a little stiff and kinda icky to me right now, but I’m wondering if this goes away with washing.  I think I’m afraid to wash it because it feels like the color will just wash away (I know it won’t, but try telling that to my sometimes irrational brain).

JT

55: the flirty skirty

Well, I feel like I'm seriously missing my personal goal of 2 posts per week.  It's not that I'm not doing stuff, but I haven't had many pictures to show you.  And I guess this has basically become a "show and tell" blog...which is a good thing, I think.

Anyway, I did sew this apron for use on Thanksgiving.  It's the Flirty Skirty pattern from The Apron Lady.

Of course, I did change it up a little bit.  First I made it reversible, then I tweeked the pockets a little.  

My intent was to have the 2 sides be completely different to fit my schizo style moods.  But in the end I was limited by what fabric I had on hand and the fact that I wanted the strap/ties to compliment both patterns.  So the two I choose have similar colors, but they at least they have very different "personalities".

JT

44: finally fallin'

Fall has been here for a bit now, and everybody's been posting beautiful autumn colored posts....

Well, last weekend we finally got around to doing the whole pumpkin patch thing with the kids.  Actually it's not too bad for us because there is another weekend before halloween.  Picking your own pumpkins only days before halloween can be a sad experience.  Believe me, we've done it.

Anyway, we took the kids out to a farm for the whole shebang: hayride, pumpkin picking, hay bale maze, apple cider doughnuts, etc.  

It turned out to be a glorious sunny day and much fun was had by all.

This was Theo's first time and I must say, he tripped over the vines much less than his sister did when she was one.  And he really enjoyed talking to the ladybugs!

I do enjoy this time of year.  I must remember to go out and jump (or nap) in some leaf piles...

JT

33: struggling

I'm pulling my hair out right about now.

This is going to be my first photo-less post.  I hate to do it, but I'm having issues with Typepad right now.

I really want to post the party pix for you all, but I just can't do it.  They're so beautiful when I look at them on my computer and they really suck when I post them.

This has been happening to all my photos.  I doubt you'd notice, but since Typepad changed their compose editor it's seriously desaturating my images.  So in the last 8+ posts you're getting sub-par pictures.  (Except the mug shots of the monsters b/c I did that in another program).

It's killing me.  I was sort of living with it until now, but I just can't do that to this set of photos.  They're all about the color and it's just not there.

The support people are sort of trying to help.  They claim not to see the difference as much as I do.  They say it's an issue with the color space I'm saving them in.  Could be.  The thing is I didn't change the way I did anything.  And If I now post the exact same picture already saved on my computer that I had posted before, it looks different.  How could that be, if they're not doing something to it?

So if you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.  

Otherwise please bear with me as I try to get this worked out...

JT

EDIT:  Sometimes the scientific method actually works.  After much experimenting, I discovered that the problem is with the sampling of the image to create the "thumbnail" size pictures that appear on the blog.  If I put the images in as full size at first, the color is SOOOOO much better and then I can resize as I like.  This is clearly an issue for Typepad, but at least I now have a work-around in case they never fix it.  Of course, they still look pretty bad on other computers, but I'm just going to pretend I don't know that.

21: um...wow?

OK, never in a million years did I expect to get so many readers so quickly.  It was just like 2 or 3 weeks ago I was hoping for 50 hits in one day.

So I have to say you guys are awesome.  This crafty blogland is such a wonderful place to inhabit.  Everyone is so nice, encouraging, and inspiring.

I try to be really good about replying to all the comments I get...but sorry...on this giveaway, I just can't do it.

And, I had notions of taking all the colors people submitted (or the version I see in my head anyway) and making some kind of mosaic or something for us all to share.  Yeah, not going to happen.  I was thinking like 40 or 50 comments max.  But I did pull out my trusty Pantone guide and start playing around:

So here are my colors (or they look right on my screen... probably totally different on yours):

 

Here are a few other people's favs (I won't tell you who so you can't tell me how wrong I got them):

 

Everyone's so different, huh?  And yet I love them all. 

I didn't realize this would get me thinking about colors and combinations so much.  Very interesting design exercise...

I just really loved some of the descriptions:

"The green of the maple leaves when they first open in the spring - when they are so new they are still droopy"

"basically any shade of blue that was painted in the hotel in Mamma Mia"

"the color of a late fall sky right before a storm"

"the same light blue as my little boy's eyes"

Now I really want to bust out the coloring books...

JT