Book Review

As I mention in my sidebar, I am a Librarian by trade.  I get the luxury of selecting the books for my library's collection.  so, naturally, my library has an excellent quilting section!

We recently got in an excellent book:  Modern Patchwork: 12 Quilts to take You Beyond the Basics by Elizabeth Hartman


Great modern quilts and excellent advise.  This one got my creative juices flowing.

Trying Some Things Out

I was trying out a few things with this journal cover.  I thought the block was the right size for the front...obviously I was wrong.  My new machine is much more touchy about sewing through the leather than my old, cheapo machines.  But I don't think it is bad looking, and I learned a few things along the way.

The real question is, how much to charge for it?  I usually charge about $15 for my fabric journal covers, but $20 may be too much.

Embellish or Not?

So, I spent the majority of my Sunday choosing and cutting fabric to increase my inventory of iPad covers and journal covers to sell.  I tried this time to think more like the average consumer rather than with my unique aesthetic.  I am not sure I completely succeeded in that, but there are definitely a variety of materials.  Then I ran across my stash of embellishments.  I also ran across some light weight leather and suede.

Now, I could use trims and things to make these items more unique and special...
Or, I could keep them simple and more plain.  Maybe a mix of both?

What would you do?

It has not been a good year to sell handmade items in my area.  I am still willing to give this a chance, but I am cautious.  People say they like what I make, but they don't buy.  Is it the economy?  Is it my taste in materials? 

Quilt Show!

Most of my haul from the Hershey Quilt Show.  I also purchased a hand dyed flannel quilt kit that they will ship to me for free because they had run out.  Gorgeous watercolor inspired blocks with white sashing.

Lots of sample fabrics for a class I am going to take in a few weeks.  It's called The Artful Eye - art quilting.  Looking very forward to that.

On Point Wins!

On point wins!  And I think 2 borders is enough.  The clock fabric is cool, but this baby is big enough.  I do my own quilting, so I need it to be manageable.  74X62 - a big twin.  Not bad.

Now, for backing.  I am thinking either flannel or fleece?  What do you think?  The denim seams are a bit bumpy, so I thought batting plus fleece would make it more comfy.

Dr. Who and Blue Jeans

This is a fun pattern I found and decided that Dr. Who needed to be paired with Blue Jeans scraps.  Original pattern calls for the blocks to be on point, but I am torn.  Which do you think looks better?

I LUV the Dr. Who fabric - too darned cute.






Borders?

Silk

These are the first blocks from a kit I purchased while in Kansas this summer.  I saw a sample of this quilt on the wall there and I literally started to drool, it is just so beautiful.  Purple being my favorite color and silk being just gorgeous.  i will likely name the quilt something appropriate to the visit.  My blogging/husky owning pal, KZK, brought me to this shop, which is her local place.  It was a wonderful shop and the folks there were extremely helpful, allowing me to spend lots of money!