To Quilt Market We Go!

Last weekend I road-tripped to Houston to see all the news in quilting and also fabric, sewing patterns, trim and craft books. As you might imagine, I took hundreds of photos so I'll be sharing more throughout the week. Here are some gorgeous highlights of all the delish eye candy that I spotted like the circa 52 by monaluna for birch fabrics organic (available in november) pictured above. The new Ruby Star Shining by Melody Miller for Kokka featured on a vintage suitcase (below) was one of the show darlings.

Sarai Mitnick was there signing her new sewing book, The Colette Sewing Handbook: Inspired Styles and Classic Techniques for the New Seamstress, and showcasing her collection of beautiful sewing patterns. Here are her frocks...

Natalie Lymer was there with her sweet Woodland collection. The embroidery patterns were pure sweetness.

Of course, you already know how we feel about Anna Maria. Here is the bag that I stole off of the wall in her booth. Just kidding. However, if you felt the stunning velveteen, I doubt you would have blamed me. Yes, there is much much more from Anna Maria's booth to come. Want to see more...


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Floriani Heat N Shrink and Free-Motion Quilting

I've told you how much I love hanging out like a shameless groupie in my local sewing shop, Arlington Sewing Machine Supply Company, so when my friend Emily asked me to tag along while she bought her first sewing machine, I jumped. It seems I can't walk into that place without getting schooled. And I mean that in the best possible way.

While Shannon helped Emily load up on supplies, Carla pulled me aside to show me the cutest lil' girl nightgown that a customer had made. The nightgown featured a yoke with sweet puckered fabric. It looked a little smocked, a little quilted and all the way adorable. Then they showed me how she did it with Floriani Heat N Shrink. Have you seen this stuff? Take a look at the process and tell me what to do with my flowers...

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Yarn Bombing: Dallas' Winspear Opera House Has Me 'Hooked'

Like all of us with an eye for the crafty, I've been intrigued by yarn bombing over the past few years. There is something so whimsical and marvelously frivolous about putting all of that work into a piece of temporary art. It's like cake decorating to me in a way. Making a moment in time magical with something beautiful. So I couldn't help but take a 'million' pictures of the yarn-bombed grounds of the Winspear Opera House, an installation inspired by their latest production, Hair. It was just so happy and beautiful. Does this inspire you to 'bomb' something? Wouldn't it be fun to crochet up a sweater for your front yard Oak? Or surprise a Fall birthday friend with a granny-squared mailbox? Maybe that half-finished afghan would be enough to cover your lawn flamingo? No surface is safe!

See my gallery of yarn-bomb photos...

Coral is the Color

We are updating Scarlet's room now that she is a Big Girl, and we've decided CORAL is the way to go. Above are my inspiration rooms I've been collecting over on Prudent Baby's pinterest boards.

Coral straddles that line between girly-pink and grown-up red, with a modern and happy feel. Everything is coming up CORAL. I love this color for modern nurseries, bright accessories, kitchens, living rooms, and even on my feet. From shoes to chairs to itty bitty baby pants, Here are 20 color-colored finds (and where to buy 'em) that make me smile: Coral is the Color.

Jacinda and Jaime's Adventures in Television

Jacinda and I don't get to see each other too often these days, what with her shacked up in Dallas and me homesteading in Los Angeles. But every now and then a fun opportunity comes up for us to get together in another city and enjoy champagne and craftiness and eating cheese until 2 a.m. in hotel rooms in our sweats. So when PBS invited us to head out to Cleveland and do some sewing tutorials for their awesome TV show It's Sew Easy, we jumped at the chance!


But first we had an incident while getting prettied up for TV. As I said on facebook, I need a caption for this picture but I was (and still am) laughing too hard... suggestions welcome. I think that so far "Bless You" is my fave...


We are still unable to take a picture in which one of us is not laughing and staring off into space.


Backstage we got to play with a whole suite of fancy-schmancy Brother Sewing & Embroidery Machines (I'm totally into the new Laura Ashley Limited Edition Isodore that we sneak-peeked)...


Also shooting the same day were some amazing ladies and gentlemen, including Trish Preston from Two Peas in A Pod designs, Eileen Roche from Designs in Machine Embroidery Magazine, George and Virginia Siciliano, AND we got a pro lesson in embroidery (and scrunchie-making tricks) from Brother's very own expert and prudent-mama-in-charge, June.


The magical sewing table was rearranged for each of our projects to accommodate two sewists (or one sewist and one Prudent Mama cracking jokes while the other one tried to sew)...


I so wish I could tell you about the amazing super-adorable tute Jacinda prepared for the show, but alas I am sworn to secrecy! You best check your local listings for when It's Sew Easy is on in your area, and we will keep you posted on when our segments will air!

DIY Garland Bunting: 25 Free DIY Projects to Make the Sweetest, Prettiest, and Simplest Garlands

Garland bunting has taken the world of baby nursery decorating by storm for the past three years or so, but the garland trend hasn't gotten tired yet. I hope it never does, because in the mind of this die-hard DIYer, homemade garlands and baby bunting are the ideal way for anyone (no crafty skills necessary) to customize a baby or child's room. Why? Because making your own garland is simple, inexpensive, and doesn't require an MFA to add a touch of your own style and heart to the place your kid rests his or her sweet head.

What is bunting, you ask? In the US we call them "garlands", and I'm told the UK and australia prefer the term "bunting" - either way, garland/bunting is simply a series of items hanging from some sort of string. The modern baby bunting trend took off with the traditional flag-shaped pennant garland, but there are so many lovely ways to customize your own garlands (paper flowers, crochet pennants, yarn pom poms, even cupcake liners and coffee filters). I guarantee you will be surprised and delighted by the simplicity and beauty of the 25 Free DIY Bunting & Garland tutorials we've rounded up. Now, go check them out and tell me if you can resist immediately grabbing a pair of scissors and getting to work: DIY Garland Bunting: 25 Free DIY Projects to Make the Sweetest, Prettiest, and Simplest Garlands.

Garden Bounty

I've been keeping you up-to-date on our Backyard Farm adventures this summer, just like I did last year. Scarlet and I have been having a blast tending to our garden and cooking and pickling our bounty. Everything was going swimmingly, until I went on a 10-day vacation and a So-Cal summer heat wave set in. We lost a few precious leafy friends, but we also came home to a gorgeous bounty...so gorgeous I couldn't resist snapping a few pics and sharing them with you.

Indulge me as I share some pics of our garden bounty, if only you could all come over and have a taste...
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Living in a Fairytale: The World's 25 Most Magical Storybook Cottage Homes

We have entered the age of fairytales in our real-world home; each night we delve into a new story rife with magical cottages and rambling country homes. Which led me to imagining life in a storybook cottage home of our own. These 25 fairytale inspired cottage houses are real-life homes from around the world. From tiny houses, to houses in trees, to stunning cottages houses on pristine lakes, to mystical stone dwellings, these 25 Storybook Cottage Homes are fairytales come true. Take a peek: Living in a Fairytale: The World's 25 Most Magical Storybook Cottage Homes.

My Summer Vacation: More than Piña Coladas. But also Piña Coladas.

I was recently invited on a trip to Mazatlan, Mexico sponsored by the Mexico Department of Tourism. Originally, I was going to bring along the boy but realized at the last minute that he didn't have a passport. That is when my little trip to Mexico actually turned into a true vacation BUT with that freedom came a bit of responsibility.You see, I have been working on some creative projects that require more hours and inspired productivity than I can muster lately. When it turned out that I would be on my own, I knew that I had to take advantage of the change of scenery and free time and get to work. It turned out that Mazatlan was the perfect spot for making creative progress and it got me thinking about working vacations and how to get the most out of them. Mexico was ideal for my little "artist retreat" but you could even do this in your own hometown. Jaime takes her book writing to Palm Springs. If you could get away for even a day, don't you think you could be inspired to get so much done?


Here are 5 ways Mexico got my juices flowing (and many, many photos...)
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¡Mexi-Cute!: Mexican-Inspired Gifts for Baby [slideshow]

Are you annoyed with me yet? I’M IN MEXICO! LISTENING TO THE WAVES CRASH FROM MY PRIVATE PATIO! It’s good. So good. I love Mexico and it seems that lots of crafty folks are inspired by this beautiful country too. Here are some of the gorgeous mex-inspired baby goodies that I found around the inter-web. I guess you don’t have to be sipping a margarita on the beach of Mazatlan to be inspired by Mexico (but it’s nice work if you can get it.)

See the full post on Babble!

You can follow our fun group of travelers on twitter #wevisitmexico
Disclosure: I’m here on a sponsored tweet-up!

My New Backyard (and Where to Buy)

Last week I showed you the time-lapse video love letter I made to my new backyard. A month or so before that I showed you the before pictures here. Now, if you'll indulge me, here are some lovely photos by Raya of Raya Photography (she does weddings and family photography too, book her if you're in the market, she's amazing).

That's me and my friend champagne! Let me show you some more of her lovely shots and tell you where I bought everything (90% with my membership rewards points, i shelled out almost no actual cash money=if you have an amex, you'll likely be shocked by the number of places you can use those things) in case you see something you want to snag...






















To see a slideshow with links and info on where to buy just about everything on my patio, except for the DIY stuff of course, click on this link: My New Backyard: A Source List.