2013 Feedback Winner

Awhile ago, I asked for y'all's feedback on collections we should order from our rep for the early part of 2013 ...


I somehow totally missed choosing and posting a winner ... but I consulted with Mr. Random and commenter #10 is the winner!

Congrats to Deanna!  :-)  I will be emailing you a $15 gift certificate code for our shop!

We did order several collections when we last met with our rep - you can see what's coming soon here.

And believe it or not, she's already sent us info on Christmas collections for 2013!  (Oh my goodness!)

Hope you are all having a fabulous final day of 2012!

Happy sewing! :-)

Shop Update: Last Chance Overload!

We went through all the inventory today ... and there is an ABUNDANCE of remnants and assorted end of bolts, last bundles, etc.  I've been busy adding them to the shop and as of this moment, there are over 85 items in the Last Chance section - all at least 10% off!

I will be continuing to add new last chance pieces tomorrow as well ... but wanted to let you know to check it out and keep scrolling all. the. way. to. the. bottom!  :-) 

There are also lots of new baby car seat quilt kits - eight great new color options!  I have two friends that have already had babies since Christmas day and two more due in the next month ... lots of sewing to do around here!

Hope your last day of 2012 is awesome!

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

Christmas Joy Quilt

Well ... we've dug our way out of the wrapping paper, bags, and assorted bows and tissue.  I still haven't taken down the trees and decorations yet, but maybe tomorrow.

I did finish my quilt the day after Christmas and here it is ...

It seems really small when my giant, 6'4"husband holds it up.  But it is a decent size lap quilt. :-)

I decided to call it "Christmas Joy" instead of what I will be calling the pattern ("Holiday Hustle") when I get around to doing a tutorial for this one.  :-)

This quilt was easy ... and uses one charm pack, some Bella white solid for sashing, and Joy yardage for the border, binding, and backing.

I just did some free motion stippling on this one and it washed up and crinkled nicely.  :-)

I am happy to report it was very well received and even warranted a "best gift ever" comment.  Love it when that happens.  :-)

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!  Hope you have a wonderful day with friends and family! :-)

p.s. Like my new quilting bee ornament!? :-)

Superwoman no more ...

Merry Christmas Eve, y'all!  :-)

Well, I am not superwoman.  I realized last night when we got home well after 9 pm that I just wasn't going to make it.  Oh well ... This one is basted and ready to be finished ...

... on December 26th!  :-)  For now, I will just enjoy the holiday ...

Happy (last minute) Sewing! :-)

Better Under Pressure ...

Hi again ... world's best procrastinator here to share my latest last minute project!  LOL

I've been hemmin' and hawin' about what to make and today it was time to just go for it.  I have two-and-a-half of five projects I'd really like to complete by Christmas done, but we'll see how much I can get done tomorrow!  This is the biggest one in progress ...

My Joy charm pack put to good use after several sketches for the design.

All the blocks are now pieced.  Just have to run over to the shop to get more fabric in the morning - need sashing and borders and backing.

Anyone else crazy enough to try and crank out a quilt between now and Christmas!?  I will just keep telling myself that I just work better under pressure.

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Granny Gone Wrong

I love Granny blocks.  They are so fun and can look so different depending on the prints you choose.  I especially love that mini charm packs make it so easy to just get started.

I was playing around a few weeks ago for a mini quilt kit sample and I got all the way to the point of adding borders when I realized Granny had gone wrong ... 

Yup ... I managed to flip two of the squares when I was stitching my rows together.  But at this point, I wasn't about to take it all apart!  I did manage to salvage it for a slightly different version of the project and will share about that soon. :-)

Anyone else ever get to the point of no return when you finally realized the mistake?

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

Scrappy Gift Tag Tutorial

So getting sick the week before Christmas is a crafter's nightmare for sure.  Yep ... I came down with the crud on Saturday and haven't done much since.  I think I am finally back on the upswing but we'll see how the rest of the day goes.  

I did play around the weekend before last with a little scrappy gift tag idea.  Here's a quick tutorial for you ... 

Ok, so a card stock rectangle and a strip of green cut with pinking shears (solid works great since we'll see both sides).  My strip is about 1/2 inch or so wide. 

Fold and press the strip into a tree shape.

Lay the tree on the card stock and stitch it down.  (Tip: Use an old need when sewing on paper.)

I used a corner rounder and a oval punch to finish up my tag. 

Then cut out some little circles from another scrap to make ornaments.  I used some cherries - the circles are so small it won't matter that its not Christmas-y.

Place the ornaments where you want them and then just do a quick straight stitch back and forth over each ornament to tack them down. I did rough up the edges of the tree with my fingernail to fray the fabric a little and give some more texture to it.

Then write a message on the bottom, add some ribbon to tie on the package and you are all set!

Hope you enjoyed this quick little tutorial.  :-) 

Happy Sewing! :-) 

Oh My Dots (and Cupcakes and More)

Hey friends!

So how about that herringbone tutorial!?  I still can't get over how Jess got that fab project from just 6 FQ.  :-)   There are still a few kits left in the shop.

We've gotten a lot of visits from Brown in the past few days.  And I am really excited to announce that my perfect dot print has arrived in the shop ....

... I give you the pink tonal dot from Cherry on Top!  I love pink.  I love dots.  And this print goes oh so well with our shop color scheme!  ;-)  Let's just say I ordered two bolts.  (Since I am thinking about wallpapering my sewing space with one of the bolts.  Kidding.  Maybe...)

Anyway, Cherry on Top is here - cupcakes, owls, dots and tiny florals.  Lots of fun prints for your next cute project.

We also got in some selected prints from The Morris Apprentice for those of you that love Barbara Brackman.

Paris Flea Market from 3 Sisters is being reprinted - the precuts are here.  Yardage coming in January.

And Apple Jack by Tim + Beck is also here ... love these great jacks prints.  Totally stashable!

And, very excited that our Honey, Honey by Kate Spain precuts will likely be here next week.

And we've restocked the Riley Blake Chevron in Aqua and Grey.  (Red is still backordered - sorry!)

I will be working on some bundles and new baby car seat and stroller organizer kits in the coming days.

That's all for tonight ... hope you are having a wonderful start to your week!

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Design Challenge Tutorial : Holiday Herringbone Kitchen Mat

Hello!  My name is Jessica and I blog over at SewCraftyJess.  I am thrilled to be here guest posting at Sew Lux and have a fun holiday floor mat tutorial to help get your kitchen in the holiday spirit!

   

When Chrissy asked if I'd like to take part in the design challenge guest blogger series, I immediately jumped at the chance, and when I found out I would be posting in December, I knew I wanted to work with these beautiful fun and festive Kate Spain Joy fat quarters. 

Before we get started, I just want to let everyone know that we will be using just about every last usable inch of these 6 fat quarters, so trim sparingly, and measure twice, and cut once!  Just for fun, we'll also break a few quilty rules to stretch every last ounce of fabric but you know what they say, rules ARE meant to be broken.  So without further ado, lets get stitching!

Holiday Herringbone Kitchen Mat

You will need:

(6) coordinating fat quarters

(2) pieces cotton batting measuring 33" x 21"

Quilting Ruler at least 24" long with a 60 degree marking

Coordinating Thread

Cutting Instructions:

Press all (6) fat quarters, and stack on top of each other on your cutting mat, right sides up, making sure to line up the edges as best as possible.  We will be cutting all (6) layers at the same time to save on cutting time.

From all (6) fat quarters cut:

• (1) strip measuring 1.5" x 22"
• subcut into (3) strips measuring 1.5" x 7.25" - this should yield a total of (18) 1.5" x 7.25" strips
• (1) strip measuring 2" x 22"
• subcut into (3) strips measuring 2" x 7.25" - this should yield a total of (18) 2" x 7.25" strips
• (1) strip measuring 2.5" x 22" 
• subcut into (3) strips measuring 2.5" x 7.25" - this should yield a total of (18) 2.5" x 7.25" strips
• (1) strip measuring 3" x 22" 
• subcut into (1) strip measuring 3" x 7.25" - this should yield a total of (6) 3" x 7.25" strips
• from remaining 3" x 15" strip, cut down to measure 2.5" x 15"
• subcut 2.5" x 15" strip into (2) strips measuring 2.5" x 7.25" this should yield a total of (12) 2.5" x 7.25" strips

You should now have (6) remaining fat eighths measuring appx 9" x 22"

Select (1) remaining fat eighth and cut:

• (1) strip measuring 1.5" x 22"
• subcut into (3) strips measuring 1.5" x 7.25"
• (3) strips measuring 2.5" x 22" - set aside for binding

Select (1) remaining fat eighth and cut:

• (1) strip measuring 2" x 22" 
• subcut into (3) strips measuring 2" x 7.25"
• set aside remaining 7" x 22" for backing

Select (1) remaining fat eighth and cut:

• (1) strip measuring 3" x 22"
• subcut (1) strip measuring 3" x 7.25"
• cut remaining 3" x 15" down to measure 2.5" x 15"- set aside for binding
• (2) strips measuring 2.5" x 22" - set aside for binding

Set aside remaining (3) fat eighths of fabric for backing.

Whew!  Now that our cutting is done, lets get sewing.

Piecing Instructions:

use a scant 1/4" seam throughout

1.  Sort your various widths of 7.25" strips into 7 piles, with each pile consisting of:

• (1) 3" x 7.25" strip
• (4) 2.5" x 7.25" strips
• (3) 2" x 7.25" strips
• (3) 1.5" x 7.25" strips

2.  Each stack will become one herringbone column in our mat.  Select one stack of fabrics to work with and set the remaining 6 stacks aside.  We now will angle one short edge of our fabric to help simplify the angled piecing process.  Using your quilting ruler, align the 60 degree mark with the bottom edge of your fabric as pictured below.  To save cutting time, I stacked like sizes in each fabric pile and cut all at once.

 

3.  Please note, as I am left handed, things may look backwards!  This is ok.  I aligned my ruler to cut the left short edge of the fabric at a 60 degree angle, if you are right handed it may be easier to cut the right short edge.  This is fine, as long as you are consistent with what edge you cut throughout the tutorial.

4.  Once you have cut a 60 degree angle on one side of all strips in the first stack, we will piece together our strips.  Select two fabric strips, right sides together, and align the angled edges by over lapping the pointed edge 1/4" as pictured below.  Begin sewing where the arrow is pointing, and continue sewing as the dotted line shows.

5.  Press seams open or to one side, which ever you prefer.  Your two fabrics should look like the picture below, with your angled edges lining up.

6.  Repeat steps 4 and 5 until all (11) strips are pieced together. The result should look like this:

7.  Align the long straight edge and trim to 4.75" wide.  Don't panic if your straight edge is a little wonky, we are working with bias seams here, so straighten as best you can.

8.  Now we will trim our strip into a rectangular shape.  Trim one angled short edge to form a 90 degree angle as shown below.

9.  Measure and trim to 18.5" wide, as pictured below.

10.  Repeat steps 2-9 with (3) additional stacks of strips.

11.  With the remaining (3) stacks of fabric, we will now create the second half of the herringbone shape.  To do this, select one stack of fabric, and as in step 2, stack like sizes of strips, but place on cutting mat right side down.  Align the bottom long edge of your fabric strip with the 60 degree mark on your ruler, and trim to a 60 degree angle.  Repeat this process with the remaining (3) sizes of strips.

12.  Piece together all (11) fabric strips in the pile in the same manner described in step 4.

13.  Repeat steps 7-9 to result in a rectangle measuring 4.75" x 18.5"

14.  Repeat process described in steps 11-13 with remaining (2) fabric stacks.

15.  Arrange your herringbone columns, alternating the direction of the angle as shown below:

16.  Sew together columns.  Resulting mat top should measure appx 30" x 18.5"

17. To construct backing, sew together the (3) 9" x 22" fabric pieces, and (1) 7" x 22" fabric piece you previously set aside for backing, along the 22" edge.

18.  To make the binding, we will break a quilting rule, and instead of sewing together your set aside binding fabric on a 90 degree angle, like usual, we are going to straight stitch the strips together using a 1/4" seam {{insert gasp, hopefully  the quilting gods are looking the other direction!}}  Again all in the name of stretching our fat quarters!

19.  Create your quilt sandwich, first layering your backing fabric right side down, then both layers of batting (I like some cushion in my floor mats!) and then the quilt top right side up.  Be careful when aligning your quilt sandwich, as there isn't much room for error.

20.  Quilt and bind and desired, stand back and admire your work!

Design Challenge : December's Featured Blogger

We're excited to bring you another project in our Design Challenge Series, in which we ask a blogger to come up with a tutorial using 6 FQs.  Check out the previous posts here.  

This month, we welcome Jess from SewCraftyJess.  She was kind enough to answer some questions for us.

Hi everyone!  My name is Jessica and I blog over at SewCraftyJess.  By day I work as an audiologist, treating hearing and balance disorders, and by night I huddle down in my sewing room and stitch away!  I live outside of Pittsburgh with my husband who is very supportive and tolerant of my sewing and quilting obsession, and more importantly turns a blind eye to my compulsion to buy pretty fabric.  We have two fur-babies, a 5 year old black Lab named Zoey, and a 3 1/2 year old yellow Lab named Bella. 


I've been sewing for just about three years, after receiving a sewing machine for Christmas.  After taking an intro to sewing, and then a quilting class at Joann's I was hooked!  I really enjoy the moments I can steal each day to be creative, whether it be sewing, sketching quilt ideas, or writing patterns.

Where do you find inspiration for your sewing/quilting projects?

I really think you can find inspiration in just about anything in every day life!  Sometimes its tile work on the floor that sparks an idea or color palate for a quilt, or like my most recent quilt pattern that's in the works, this fun interlocking patchwork design was inspired by a lamp shade design I had seen somewhere!  I am constantly cleaning out my purse and finding random scraps of paper with quilty scribbles on them.

Photo courtesy of Jess Kelly

What is your favorite color combination?

I am constantly drawn to turquoise and aqua.  It is by far the color that I have the most of in my stash, and always find myself purchasing at least one new print on each fabric shopping trip.  I'm currently digging aqua, yellow and light/medium grey, I just love how soft and pretty these colors are together.

Photo courtesy of Jess Kelly

What is your favorite sewing supply/room organizational tip?

I won't even begin to pretend that my sewing room is in pristine order with nothing out of place, but I do my best to corral the mess as best as possible.  I find that the trickiest part for me, is making the best use of the limited space I have available.  It killed me seeing all that wasted space under my ironing board that is a permanent fixture down in my sewing room, so I created my own ironing board, with storage shelves underneath.  This is a huge space saver, and also helped to organize my overwhelming amount of scraps that seem to multiply on a daily basis.  I find I use my scraps more, as they are nicely organized and sorted by color.  You can read more about how I did this here.  

Photo courtesy of Jess Kelly

What is on your "quilt bucket list?"

I'd love to make a king size quilt for our bed!  The largest size quilt I've made to date is a queen size (my Swoon), which is on a bed in one of our spare rooms, but I really want to make a quilt that we can snuggle with on a regular basis.  Perhaps this will be my goal for 2013.

Thanks so much for joining us this month, Jess!

For her project, Jess selected this awesome bundle of Christmas prints - and just wait until you see her project with these tomorrow!

Bundles are available here and will be on sale through Saturday, 12/15/12.

Stop by tomorrow to see Jess's project tutorial.

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

December Curated Collections

Happy December everyone!  Are you counting down the days until Christmas (or maybe the days left to craft the perfect gift)?  I am so excited to share that we have four beautiful Curated Collections this month!  Amy, Jenelle, and Jennie are back this month and we're welcoming Nancy as our Guest Curator for December!  Here they are ... 

Christmas in the Cascades by Jenelle of Echinops & Aster

Jingle by Amy of Stitchery Dickory Dock

Winter Evenings by Jennie of Clover & Violet

Coastal Waters by Owen's Olivia

Aren't they beautiful?!  They are on sale through December 15th and will be available while supplies last!

Some other new things in the shop - Kissing Booth yardage by Basic Grey and a few new notions including paper piecing templates and new kinds of Tiger Tape!

Happy Sewing!  :-)