I'm so excited!

I noticed that Nova spilled the beans on her blog and Chrissie has a link on her blog, so I guess it's safe to share some news that has me very excited!

See this adorable book...

I got to be a part of it! Last year, the lovely Chrissie Grace herself asked if I would be interested in contributing to a book she was writing about quilt swaps.  Have you seen Chrissie's other books?  Yes, I was interested!  I was in some very good company too. It still doesn't feel real to have participated in something like this with Chrissie and some of the coolest bloggers out there.

I haven't seen a copy of the book in person yet, but from the preview at Amazon, it looks amazing!  The illustrations are beautiful, the photographs are inspiring, and the text is clearly written.  I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.  The publication date is November 8th, which is not very far away. (I'm grinning right now.)

I'm sure I'll be mentioning this lovely book again soon, but I just wanted to share since I am so excited.

Oh and and that orange hexie flower on the cover... I made it!  Eeeek!  (Yes, I'm grinning again.)

Katie Jump Rope + Linen = Love

Yesterday's snowfall was a record for the DFW area. The official total was 12.5"! School is out again today, so all the neighborhood the kids are having a blast playing outside.

Here's my most recent fabric purchase.

Well, this is some of it. I decided that since I missed out on Flea Market Fancy, I'm not going to miss out Katie Jump Rope. The stash above is from three different places with two more orders on the way. I was able to find everything with the exception of two of the dot prints (the yellow and the light blue/green).

I want to make a quilt for my bed and it's king size. My dream pattern is the Single Girl quilt, but I've read that it can be a little on the challenging side. So, I've had this quilt at Wise Craft bookmarked for a while which has the same feel as the Single Girl pattern, but looks much easier. The pattern is called the Marquee Quilt and it's in the Modern Quilt Workshop book from FunQuilts.  I ordered the book but decided I wanted to play with the fabrics right away.

Using 100% linen on the front of a kind sized quilt may end up being much too expensive, but wouldn't it be gorgeous! I decided to try some of the fabrics with linen while I wait for the book to arrive.

After some quick pattern drafting, I had a design that worked and feels a little like the Marquee quilt.

I love the way the front turned out. Love it! I was tempted not to wash it, but I went ahead. It's in the washer now, so I'm anxious to see how it looks washed. Hopefully I'll have the pillow assembled tomorrow to show you.

The Holiday Spirit

I could not be more excited about what's going on over at Oh, Fransson!. Have you seen the beautiful wall quilt that Elizabeth is working on for me? It's absolutely wonderful! I could not be more thrilled or feel more humbled by her generosity.

I think the holiday snuck up on me this year.  Christmas is almost here and I still have so many things to do!  There are...

cards to be mailed,

quilt sandwiches to be made,

yarns to be knitted,

books to be read,

and gifts to be purchased.

But today, like yesterday, this is what I'll be doing...

working!

The company I freelance for has me working on holiday 2010 projects.  Right now, I'm in the middle of a collection of plush animal floor cushions.  After that, it's on to the holiday themed pillows.  Me personally, I'd just like to finish holiday 2009!

New books and a string quilt

I've been adding to my craft book stash on a regular basis lately.  I probably spend more on books than I do on fabric or yarn.  Here are my most recent purchases.

I pre-ordered One Yard Wonders and it's a beautiful book.  It's spiral bound, so it lays flat.  It came with patterns and is nicely photographed.  But, there aren't as many fresh ideas as I had hoped to see.  I think it would be great for a beginning seamstress and would serve as a great reference for loads of basic patterns.  I can't wait to make the fabric origami box (on the cover).  


The Sweater Chop Shop was worth every penny.  I love it.  I've got a stash of old sweaters that I started collecting a few years back for felted projects, and this gives me some great ideas.  I highly recommend this one.


Color Your Cloth is another gorgeous book.  Even if I never dye a single piece of fabric, I'll enjoy having this one just because it's beautiful to look through.  I love the colors and can't wait to try some of the techniques.  I have a friend from Indonesia who brought me some batik wax and a Tianjin from a recent trip home.  I just had them on display, but now I think I'll use them!


On another note, here's the string quilt I started a few weeks ago.  I'm going pretty slow, but I love the way it's coming together.  I cut into some of my Heather Bailey stash (Fresh Cut) and I'm glad I did because I love the subtle colors.  I think I've got fewer than 50 blocks to go.  

I'm anxious to finish up some UFO's this week.  I want to quilt my scrappy log cabin and try to finish the Green Gable sweater I started last summer.  Maybe I'll go look for something to finish right now.