Charm Madness : Week 2 Giveaway Post

Happy Easter!  I hope that you're continuing to enjoy the Charm Madness Blog Hop so far.   Who knew all that you could do with some 5 inch squares?!

For this week's giveaway, please comment here ON THIS POST and tell us which project in the Charm Madness hop has been your favorite so far.

The prize this week is a $25 gift certificate to our shop - Sew Lux Fabric!

Post your comment by 11:59 PM EST on Tuesday, 4/2.  We'll select a winner using random.org and will announce the winner on Wednesday, 4/3/13.

This contest is now closed.  Winner will be posted on 4/3/13.

My Sew South Recap

 

Amazing embroidered notebook cover by my secret sister, Xandi.

Three Reasons Why I’ll Be First in Line to Go Back to Sew South

1. The Best Format

Jennifer from Ellison Lane Quilts did an absolutely amazing job organizing the first ever Sew South Retreat.  Jennifer designed a true retreat.  It’s wasn’t a weekend of lectures.  It wasn’t a stiff conference.  It wasn’t competitive.  It was a sew-all-weekend–in-your-yoga-pants-and-slippers event.  We had classes and we had free sewing time.  We made a mess (which I think our hotel rep was a little stressed about) and it didn’t matter that we were all covered in thread and bits of fabric.  In our real lives, it can be hard to carve out that time to just sit and sew and it was nice to not worry about much except trying not to break a needle while installing a zipper.

2. It was a Skill Builder Event

I love that this retreat wasn’t just about quilting or one “type” of sewing.  We learned paper piecing.  We had total newbies to paper piecing who felt accomplished after the project and we had old hats at paper piecing who learned a few tricks.  We had a pajama pants class – many of us had never sewn clothes or used that weird foot for our machine to roll the seams.  We made an amazing assortment of clutches.  And while they look complicated, it was pretty easy and not as intimidating as I expected.

Diane who taught our clutch class with all of our clutches

My clutch - made with a FQ I got in the FQ swap while at Sew South. 

We also made a quilted duffle bag.  In fact, it might be better to say we survived making a quilted duffle bag.  It’s huge.  It was a beast to wrangle under our machines.  It had zippers (new to many folks) and pockets and pleats.  And we did it.  (Personally, I would’ve quit this project if it had not been for the positive peer pressure from my neighbors …  “She can do it, so can I!”)  Thank goodness we had a great teacher in Lindsay. We survived it together and cheered each time another woman finished her bag.

My damn bag duffle bag. :-) I used some long hoarded Paula Prass for this one.

See more of what I made on my Instagram here.

3.  Sew South was a Community, not a Conference

I am not sure that I can really put into words what I experienced at this retreat.  I will do my best, though, to share how it played out for me ...

I signed up for Sew South because it was in my home state and admittedly, I wanted to meet some of those “big bloggers” that I heard were going.  I really can’t get to the west coast very easily (or at a reasonable cost) and for a 2.5 hour drive there was really no excuse.  Initially, I didn’t get a roommate because I didn’t want it to be awkward.  But as the event got closer, I went out on a limb and reached out to someone who got a ticket late and agreed to room with another girl three days before the conference.  (Yes, I “researched” her blog before sending that email!  LOL)  

As a self-proclaimed introvert, I drove to Charlotte nervous about the conference.  Was I cool enough to stitch with the cool kids?  Would these women like me?  Would I find someone to eat dinner with?  Would I be the only one who came without all my prep work done?  Would I be the only one without a QAYG Weekender bag?

Once I got to the hotel (which was beautiful and had great staff), I met Amy and we took a quick trip to the local Joanns on the hunt for some pre-quilted fabric.  (No dice.)  We got back in time for cocktail reception and I found that everyone was friendly.  I met a few familiar online faces and that settled my nerves.  My roommate checked in and we joked about checking each other’s blogs out before agreeing to room.  We both have family in NJ and our moms sew too.  I calmed down a little. And from there … it was easy.  

Dinner with new friends.  Setting up our machines.  Getting started on finishing up my prep work (along with lots of other people)!  I checked in with my husband about 10:30 PM and he asked what I was doing, I said “We’re all in here sewing.”  He replied, “Oh my gosh, you found your people.  You’re probably in heaven.”  How very true!  

There was a lot of sewing between that Thursday evening and Sunday morning.  Lots of laughter and easy friendships, too.  My roommate, Christen, and I were like BFF and the two girls behind us Robyn & Sarah were fast friends too.  Probably no one would have guessed that we had just met our roommates (now more like close friends) upon our arrival in Charlotte.

By the end of the weekend, that was the feeling I think so many of us had.  “We found our people.”  It didn’t matter that some of us were grandmas and others of us not yet married.  That some of us had kids and others of us didn’t.  It didn’t matter whether we were archaeologists, soap makers, home makers, nurses, bankers, and teachers in regular life.  As Ginny said, we all spoke the common language of fabric and thread.  

I believe as women we are created to thrive off of community and a sense of belonging.  We crave that connection with others.  We want to use our gifts and talents, be appreciated for them, and be cheered on.  We want to feel like others “get us.”  We need that.  We’ve all connected online – through blogging, Flickr, swaps, etc.  But there’s nothing like sewing in the same room with your sisters-in-stitches.  And Sew South was all of that.  

I left Charlotte feeling inspired, renewed, and connected. And I can't wait to go back.

Bonus Reason:
Great Sponsors! Jennifer secured quite a few sponsors for this retreat and it really helped to make it amazing. Pellon provided a lot of materials for our bags and clutches.  

They even sent these cute little product samplers that I heard were hand assembled by one of their employees.

Dritz gave us super cute Omnigrid mini cutting mats and a cool new rotary cutter. It works a little differently than I was used to, but now its my new favorite.

And then ... there was Jennifer's Favorite Things Swag Bag. Oh. my. goodness!!! Good thing we made that huge bag!

The sponsors really outdid themselves in helping Jennifer make this event a success! I even got a copy of the Stitch magazine that my roommate Christen had a project in!

In case you couldn't tell... Sew South was amazing! If you get the chance to go, Do it! I can't wait to meet you there!

I will share more soon about the swaps and such that I participated in. :-)

Happy Sewing, y'all! :-)

Charm Madness : Lattice Quilt

Happy Saturday, y'all!  We're continuing the Charm Madness blog hop today with a fun lattice quilt from Stacey at The Tilted Quilt.  I love the effect that this pattern creates!  I also love that she included a ruffle along the edge the quilt.  :-)

Stop by and visit Stacey and say hello!

Tomorrow, we'll have a giveaway post here on our blog.  See you then!

Charm Madness : Make a Bunting

It's another day and that means another great tutorial in the Charm Madness Blog Hop series!

Lindsay over at Craft Buds is sharing this really fun, fast, and super cute bunting tutorial.  I love these as a quick project for a party or just something cute for your sewing space.


Stop by her post at Craft Buds to see how quickly and easily this comes together!

Bundle Sale Going on Now

Our bundle bin is out-of-control, y'all!  Not only that, but we will be revamping our Curated Collections and FQ Frenzy bundle programs in April and need to make some room in our bundle bin.

Save an additional 10% on our already great prices on these bundles - including Curated Collections, FQ Frenzys and Moda FQ club bundles.  Discount will be applied automatically when items are added to your cart.  No coupon code is needed!  Offer good while supplies last or until 3/31.  All bundles that are included in the sale can be found on this page here.

Charm Madness : Project Link Up

It's time to open up our Charm Madness Project Link Up!  :-)

Share your own charm square-based project by linking up your project post on the Linky below.  You have until 11:59 PM on 4/6/13 before the Linky closes to be entered to win a $25 gift certificate to Sew Lux Fabric.

4/2/13 - Updated to Add:  Since we're doing this link up in conjunction with a giveaway, please enter only one post/project.  You are welcome to recap your projects in one post on your blog and then enter that blog post. Thanks for your understanding!  :-)

Charm Madness : Wedge Pillow

Today, we have another great stop on the Charm Madness blog hop.  Our friend, Kelsey, over at Kelsey Sews, whipped up this beautiful (and easy) wedge pillow tutorial.

I love quick and easy pillows!  A fast project is always good for that sense of accomplishment and a new pillow cover brightens up your favorite space.

Check out Kelsey's project here and say hello!

Charm Madness : Week 1 Giveaway Winner

Thanks to all of you who are following along on the Charm Madness Blog Hop!  I loved reading all your comments about what you like making with charm squares.  :-)

We drew a winner for the $25 Sew Lux Gift Certificate and the winner is ... 

... Pat V!  Congrats, Pat!  Look for an email from me shortly!

Happy Sewing! :-) 

New Bolts in the Shop!

I just love some Moda mail!  We have over 60 new bolts in the shop, including three beautiful collections.

I absolutely love, love, love the Spring House line from Stephanie Ryan.  It's so resorty, Lily-like, and just down right pretty!  I also love that the prints look a little textured.  I am even contemplating making the Weekender bag out of this line.  What do you think?

Check out all the pretty florals, tonals, and chevrons in the collection here.

Then there is the uber fun Glamping collection from Mary Jane.  We chose this great novelty print as well as some great coordinating prints that are perfect for stash building.

And let's not forget Basic Grey's PB&J line.  Love everything about this one!  Great florals, alphabets, and coordinating prints. I also love the navy and aqua color palette that much of this line has.









I hope you are having fun on the Charm Madness Blog Hop!  We'll see you tomorrow with the next stop and I'll post the Week 1 giveaway winner tomorrow afternoon as well!

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Charm Madness : Paper Pieced Tote

Happy Tuesday, y'all!  We're back on the Charm Madness train today and Lori over at Lori H. Designs delivers with this super fun paper pieced hexagon tote.

I'm a total sucker for hexagons and who doesn't love a great bag?!

If you don't know how to English Paper Piece (aka "EPP"), don't worry ... Lori has a tutorial for that too.  It's easy and portable.  :-)

Stop on by and visit Lori.

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Charm Madness : Week 1 Giveaway Post

Hi friends!  I apologize for not getting this posted earlier today.  I just got back from Sew South today and believe it or not, only spent about 10 minutes on my computer in the last 72 hours!  I had a total blast, but that deserves a post all its on later this week.

Anyway, I hope that you've been enjoying the Charm Madness Blog Hop so far.  I think this past week has been a great start - beautiful and easy projects!

For this week's giveaway, please comment here ON THIS POST and tell us your favorite thing to make with charms. 

The prize this week is a $25 gift certificate to our shop - Sew Lux Fabric!

Post your comment by 11:59 PM EST on Tuesday, 3/26.  We'll select a winner using random.org and will announce the winner on Wednesday, 3/27/13.

This Giveaway is now closed!  Winner will be posted shortly.

Charm Madness : Oh Deer Sewing Machine Cover

I am little late in posting this one, but I sure hope that you stopped by Jenelle's blog on Friday to check out her awesome sewing machine cover tutorial using Oh Deer by Momo.  If you've never visited Jenelle before you'll love how great she is at explaining projects through photos and directions.  And I think its so fun how she made hour glass blocks with the dots and deer prints.  The cuteness is killing me for real!

Hop on over and check it out!

Back shortly to post this week's giveaway post. :-)

Charm Madness : Charm-ing Apron in 30 Minutes

Charm Madness is off to a great start!  We're thrilled to have Rhonda from Quilter in the Gap share a project today.  We've all headed a quick gift or just something fun that we can sew in a hurry and feel accomplished!  :-)  Today, Rhonda has the cutest apron tutorial.  Stop by and check it out and say hello to Rhonda.

Happy Sewing! :-)

A few Shop Updates

Hi again everyone!  I just wanted to pop in and share a few shop updates.  First, the Charm Madness sale ends tomorrow 3/22 at 11:59 PM.

Also, 2wenty Thr3e yardage is now available!  I love the colors and prints in this one.  So fun!

And finally, a shipping update.  I'm at Sew South this weekend and Linda had to unexpectedly go out of town at the same time.  :-/

So, all orders placed now through Sunday will ship on Monday, 3/25.  We're sorry for any inconvenience this causes!

We appreciate y'all sew much!  :-)

Charm Madness : Patchwork Placemats

Hey y'all!  I had a super busy day yesterday getting ready to head to Sew South.  Yup, I'm going!  About to leave actually.  I even joined Instagram so for this ... so come along with me - I'm "sewlux" on Instagram.  :-)

Did you see these amazing placemats that Jess over at SewCraftyJess made?  Um, hello!  I love that she also used linen.  These would look great with Crossweave too.  :-)  Stop on over and check out the tutorial and say hello to Jess!

Happy Sewing! :-)

Charm Madness : Charming Lunch Tote

Hey y'all!  Our first tutorial in the Charm Madness series went live today over at our friends' Clover & Violet.  We have a soft spot for Jennie and Clara since they are a mother-daughter team just like us!  :-)

If you haven't gotten a chance to stop over there today and see this little lunch tote tutorial, you totally should.  It's super cute and so easy to do!  Jennie & Clara are great with bag patterns and have lots of patterns if you love making a pretty bag.  We even have a few kits for the lunch tote here.

And if you're hopping along, check out this tracker sheet I made to help you keep up with all the charms being used.  To enter for the grand prize drawing at the end of the hop, you'll need to know how many charms total were used in all the projects combined.  Download the file, record the number as you go and add them up.  (And in case you're wondering ... yes, I am a teacher and love documents!  :-) 

Happy Sewing!  :-)

FQ Frenzy - Spring Bouquet

Another Monday brings another FQ Frenzy bundle.  Our FQ Frenzy Bundle of the week is Spring Bouquet!  Lots of Bonnie & Camille in here and some great solids.

Available while supplies last!  Back to adding more loveliness to the shop - Boho, PB&J, more Comma and 2wenty Thr3e are all en route to the shop!

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Charm Madness Blog Hop

Are you ready?!  It's finally here ... the Charm Madness Blog Hop!  Tutorials, a Linky, giveaways, and prizes ... see the complete schedule below. And find updated links to all the posts as the blog hop progresses over the next three weeks here.

The Charm Madness Blog Hop Participants & Schedule

Tuesday 3/19 - Jennie at Clover & Violet

Wednesday, 3/20 - Jess at Sew Crafty Jess

Thursday, 3/21 - Rhonda at Quilter in the Gap

Friday, 3/22 - Jenelle at Echinops &Aster

Sunday, 3/24 - Week 1 Giveaway Post

Tuesday, 3/26 - Lori at Lori H Designs

Wednesday, 3/27 - Kelsey at Kelsey Sews

Thursday, 3/28 - Lindsay at CraftBuds/LindsaySews

Friday - 3/29 - Jennifer at That Girl, ThatQuilt

Saturday, 3/30 - Stacey at The Tilted Quilt

Sunday, 3/31 - Leona at Leona's Quilting Adventure & Week 2 Giveaway Post

Monday, 4/1 - Alyce at Blossom Heart Quilts 

Tuesday, 4/2 - Wendi at prsd4tim2

Wednesday, 4/3 - Elizabeth at Don't Call Me Betsy

Thursday, 4/4 - Ginny at Fish Creek Studio

Saturday, 4/6 - Last day to enter projects on the Linky Post
Sunday, 4/7 - Week 3 Giveaway Post

Three Ways to Win Prizes

• Enter the three weekly giveaway drawings on Sundays during the blog hop here at the Sew Lux blog.
• Link up your own charm project -  Linky post will be open for entries between 3/23 – 4/6.
• Enter the Grand Prize Winner Giveaway by counting the total number of charms used in all the blog hop tutorials.  Complete the entry form on 4/7 or 4/8.

All entry posts for prizes will be on the Sew Lux blog. 

Save on Charm Packs!

Save 10% on all charm packs and mini charm packs now through 3/22 at sewluxfabric.com.  Discount will be automatically applied at checkout.

The tutorial fun starts tomorrow!

Happy Sewing!  :-) 

It's Charm Madness Time!

I am so excited to finally introduce the blog hop I've been planning ... Charm Madness!  If you're a fan of college basketball, you know that March Madness is now in full effect and we thought it would be fun to play with that a little.  If you rearrange the letters in "March" you can make "Charm" ... so here we go!

Tomorrow I will be posting all the wonderful bloggers who are taking part in our Charm Madness blog hop - so be sure to come on back and take a peek!  There are tutorials for almost everything - you will love it! We'll also have prizes and a chance for you to share you own fabulous charm projects with a linky during this three week blog hop.  I will also keep everything easily referenced on our Charm Madness page here.

And ... in honor of our blog hop event, we've put all charm packs and mini charm packs in the shop on sale! Save 10% on all charm packs now through 3/22/13.  No coupon code is needed - the discount will be automatically applied during checkout.

Happy Sewing!  :-)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

March Color Me Happy Club Bundle

Happy Sewing! :-)

Pinned : Easter Basket Tutorial

Hey there!

I've been sick all week ... ugh!  I think I am finally on the upswing, which is definitely a good thing since we have some exciting things happening here on Monday!  (Need a hint?  Check out the new button on the left!) 

Speaking of exciting, I've been getting a ton of those "your pin has been repinned" emails today all for this tutorial ...

I made these Easter baskets last year for a coworker's boys and I guess there's a few of y'all out there thinking about making some yourself.  So, if you're new around here and looking for a quick project, check out the tutorial here.

Happy Sewing!

FQ Frenzy : Partly Sunny

Comma by Zen Chic came in and I was taken with the slate and mustard colorway.  So taken, that we cut a limited number of bundles for this week's FQ Frenzy!

Partly Sunny is available here.  As well as yardage of these and other prints from the Comma collection.

Happy Sewing! :-)

First Quilts : The Biggest

I'm back to share another of my first quilts with you.  This one is definitely the biggest quilt I have ever made.  And honestly, I have no idea why I made this so big!  This one was probably made between 2002 and 2005, but I wasn't keeping good records then!

Anywho ... the stack and whack crazy quilt thing was pretty popular at the time.  I picked a bunch of prints based one multicolored print in the quilt and had at it.

I actually had this quilt professionally quilted and this is my favorite quilting design.  I often doodle a similar design on agendas in boring work meetings. :-)

I remember selecting a backing was a challenge since I wanted it to be just right.  The quilt shop I went to has since closed, but I still remember how sweet the owner was to take the time to help me audition so many options and finally settle on this one and the Moda Marble Dot I used for the border and binding.  I know that if Sew Lux ever opens up a retail storefront, I'll want to be as helpful to our customers as that owner was to me.

Well that is all for now.  My students and I had a very successful DECA competition earlier this week and I'm whipped!  I will be locking myself in my sewing room this weekend to finish up some projects!

Happy Sewing!  :-)

March Bundles

A new month brings a new bunch of pretty FQ stacks!  Here are the Curated Collections for March ...

I really love each of these bundles for different reasons.  Bright colors, great stashbuilders, and beautiful color schemes.  I mean, what's not to love?!  Curated Collections are available now.

We also have the new Moda FQ Club bundle available - this one features Summersville Spring by Lucie Summers. The colors are so 80's dance party to me.  And the prints we selected for the shop are just great stash builders.

Speaking of stash builders, we have a brand new club to introduce to you ... the Color Me Happy Club.  This series of bundles will be available by subscription only.  See all the details and sign up here.

Happy Sewing! :-)

First Quilts : The Most Used

Hey y'all!  Hope you are having a great weekend!

There hasn't been much sewing this week since I have been busy preparing to take some of my students to a DECA competition this week.  Since I knew there wouldn't be much new stitching going on, I thought I'd share some of my very first quilts here on the blog.  Of course, I made (and gave away) quite a few quilts before I started blogging, but I do have three of my earliest quilts still hanging around.

This quilt, while not the very first, is definitely the most used.  I sit under it all the time while watching TV, blogging, and working on the computer.  I really should make a new lap quilt for myself since its a little on the short side.

I used a basic coin quilt pattern from a quilt magazine as a pattern for this.  Although I can't remember the name of the magazine or issue number now.  This quilt is probably at least 10 years old.  At the time that I made it I was learning to free motion quilt.  Amazingly, my borders came out pretty well.

And I am sure I had no idea that piecing a stripe down the back was "modern" ... I just knew I didn't have enough blue fabric!  I've actually pieced a stripe in the back of several quilts since.

Well that's all for this quilt ... I have two other "early" quilts to share with you soon.

Happy Sewing! :-)