Chain Piecing: You may have heard about it in relation to some super complicated quilt—must be something that you’re not ready for—right?
Wrong!
Chain piecing is often used with intricate quilts or tiny piecing, but don’t let that keep you from giving it a try. When it comes down to it, chain piecing is really a simple technique that makes any quilt project more quick and efficient! (Continue reading…)
A lot of blood, sweat, and tears goes into every pattern I release (and maybe a few cookies too…brain food!). I make each design at least once (usually twice), and sometimes 3 times to make sure that everything is perfect when you purchase a hard copy or PDF pattern from my shop. Every time I release a new pattern my release and pattern say “tested for accuracy.” But what does that actually mean? Today, I want to share with you how I ensure that every pattern comes out picture perfect: fabric requirements are accurate, cutting instructions make sense, and everything as clear as possible. I want sewing my patterns to be fun and relaxing—and that means that every part of my pattern matters. None of my patterns would be quite so polished without the help and varying skill levels, techniques, and ideas that come from my pattern testers! (Continue reading…)
After finally hanging up the valance in my bathroom (it’s been on the project list for about 2 years now…) I was just tickled with the look—it really brought everything together, but something still wasn’t quite right! I needed to add a little more fabric to the space, just to add that one last touch. I remembered a trick that I had seen my mom do to some of her kitchen towels and knew it was perfect! I was off to HomeGoods in no time, picking out the perfect plain old towels to transform into my final accent in the bathroom!
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“Did you weed the flowerbed out front?”
“Uh…no.”
“Me neither…you don’t think the neighbors weeded, do you?”
“Well, that’s embarrassing” (Continue reading…)
The big reveal is finally here! That’s right—the wee babe is almost 2 months old and I’m just waiting until now to show you her lovely little nursery. It’s like newborns take over your life or something…
But really, we are so excited to finally be able to hold our little ladybug and we thoroughly enjoy every sweet moment we get with her. This nursery was certainly a labor of love, and I’m so excited to finally be able to share it with her and now you too! So here it is: our Hot Air Balloon Nursery… (Continue reading…)
Greenery: wandering trough the woods, breathing in the fresh scent after a rainstorm, sounds of lingering raindrops gently falling from leaf to leaf and finally to the forest floor, the squish of moss under your feet — the color that surrounds you while you adventure in the great outdoors. (Continue reading…)
Today is all about returning back to the basics! Some of you may have experience with a color wheel, but I’d be willing to bet that a majority of quilters, sewists, and DIYers have never thought much about this useful tool. It’s incredibly helpful for those of us that like to sew with solid fabrics, rather than prints, or for those times when you just can’t find the right inspiration and have to come up with a color scheme on your own. Plus, knowing the rules of color gives you a lot of freedom to branch out and try color combinations that you might have not otherwise tried! So, today I give you an intro to color theory and how to use the color wheel. (Continue reading…)
As you may know, I recently took a cross country train trip with my Husband, Steven in June. I can’t wait to tell you about the whole trip, but today I wanted to show you one of the most inspiring places that we visited along the way! We went to Mission San Xavier Del Bac in Tucson Arizona. There was lots of inspiration to be had on the entire trip, but this was an especially magical place. With painted stucco and Native-American inspired designs, I found a way to bear the heat and really soak in the beauty of this place. (Continue reading…)
I counted the pews leading up to ours, like I did every Sunday. It wasn’t Sunday, and there was nothing familiar about the sanctuary today. This church held so many memories for my life; dragging a bag full of coloring books and projects to work on during the sermon, racing with all my might to show everyone the date that parents wrote in my Bible on the day that I was saved, inching closer to my Mom so I could hear her sing. So many vivid, velvet memories, but not today. Today felt like burlap, my skin raw from tears. Today was stale, today was confusing, today was different. (Continue reading…)
Father’s Day is almost here! Regardless of what you make or get for this Father’s Day, make sure to thank your dad. I’ve often noticed that Mother’s Day honors our mothers, and they deserve it. But often, Father’s Day is a call for dads to do, be, and get better. But I say, every other day of the year, our parents (mothers and fathers) strive to be the best they can be. Let’s take this Father’s Day to honor our dads for being the irreplaceable man in our lives. For every sacrifice he’s made, for every night shift, overtime, and sleepless night spent awake for my sake. To have a father is one of the best things in life—make sure that he knows that. (Continue reading…)
My husband always finds the most interesting articles! It probably has something to do with actually knowing how to use Twitter, but I digress—he’s the best at finding information that I love. Today an article popped up in my inbox titled The Subtle Design Features That Make Cities Feel More Hostile: Think your city doesn’t like you? You’re right. After reading it, I wondered if there are ways that we make our homes feel hostile without even knowing it. Here are the top 6 most common mistakes that I’ve discovered, making our homes feel unfriendly, even if we aren’t aware of it and how to fix them to make your home more welcoming: (Continue reading…)
I don’t know about you, but I grew up with the most amazing porch in the entire world—wooden porch swing, iced tea, and all! Even if you didn’t have the privilege of this sort of upbringing, you know what I’m talking about, and I know it’s what we both are craving! When standards are set that high, it’s hard to think that my 5’x5′ slab of concrete will ever satisfy, but I believe that with the right accessories any shape and any size of front porch can feel just like we want. With a little help from Diana over at Our Vintage Home, I’ll show you how to get the look of that cozy front porch anywhere! (Continue reading…)
