14 months later...Yes!

14 months ago, I posted this dream of mine. To re-do some of my own furniture in the beautiful bright fabrics that come out of Rowan and Westminster fabrics - like Amy Butler. Rory laughed back then. Now he agrees that it's a good idea. My kitchen is about to get a makeover! The photo above shows the one yard wonder kitchen chair cover - which is my submission for the upcoming one-yard wonders 2 book. I will be doing a demo and hands-on workshop at Buttercuppity on April 7th.
Now I just have to pause the duffle factory long enough to recover 6 of our big parsons chairs. I bought 9 yards of fabric at Buttercuppity the other day for them. Here is a photo of what I am calling the duffle factory. Some new fabrics in the works that will be ready to ship duffles unless someone buys them before they are ready. If that happens, my ready to ship dream will remain a dream for a while longer.

She would look good in a potato sack...

I grew up with the notion that that was the ultimate compliment. If you could make burlap look good, baby, you got it. Meet Amy Butler, she makes burlap look good. People often ask me where I get the great fabrics for my bags. If you are in Spokane, the only place to get it is The Top Stitch. The owner, Carrie Jarvis, gives sewing lessons too. The shop, in its new location at 3808 N Monroe, is roomy, well lit, and chock full of fabrics that make aprons look good enough to wear out of the house. I have to admit that the burlap was not my idea. These bags are part of a custom order I made for a great gal on the East Coast. I am headed from here to post photos and a funny listing for her in my shop. Thank you Carrie, and thank you Amy Butler for making me look good, even in a potato sack.

On the Ball Decorating

As an upholsterer and slipcoverer, it is very hard to admit this, but right now I am sitting on an exercise ball, and I like it! Inspired by a marathon running co-worker, Rory picked up a 65cm exercise ball to use at his office. He made the fatal mistake of inflating it at the house. Now all of us want it. I am seriously thinking about how our kitchen table would look surrounded by big blue balls instead of chairs. If I am thinking this now, that means 3 years from now, Pottery Barn will be selling them in white and gold. Meanwhile, I am rethinking my green plan for the aircraft carrier (that's the name of the boring green couch in our living room - see Cabin Fever Decorating.) I may have to go with blue. I do like how those Amy Butler fabrics look on the blue chair (I am pretending the bags are pillows.) Now there is a contest at Apartment Therapy called do it now. Nothing like a challenge (and prizes) to get me off the dime- and on the ball.

2008 The Year of the Apron

If you sew, you know what I am talking about - the year of the apron. Flickr is a great place to check out if you want to be inspired by aprons or anything else you have a mind to search.

All of the kids in our family are future business owners. Hailey, who is 10, has her heart and mind set on being a pastry chef. It is wonderful to see how confident she is as she moves and works around the kitchen. This is my Christmas gift to her and I can post it here because she isn't a blog reader, yet. She got a blue parakeet for her birthday, so that is why he's on the pocket. It's a very simple apron design, featuring Amy Butler fabrics, that will look really cute on her.

cupcake infant hat by onasmallscale
Keep baking, Hailey, you are wonderful!

artwork on canvas by GeminiStudio

How to make a quilted scarf

Here is the "How to" for making this quilted cotton, fleece backed scarf. This will make a great gift for people, like me, who like a colorful creative look, and want to keep warm this Winter. Since fleece is water resistant, this makes it onto the practical peoples gift list as well.

This scarf is using up Amy Butler fabric scraps from tea party chairs and fleece scraps from compact travel changing pad bags.


My daughter gave it to one of her 8 year old friends at a recent birthday party, but only after putting in an order for "one just like it only in turquoise."

1. Cutting one long edge with a pinking blade, (a decorative zig-zag cut) make your base of fleece about 1/2" wider than you want the finished width. I pieced mine by cutting ends on the bias and stitching together, without overlapping edges, with a walking zig-zag stitch. That is a stitch that has 3 little stitches inside each zig or zag. If you don't have that stitch, a regular zig-zag can work too. Also, if you start with enough fleece, (I was using up scraps) then you don't have to piece it together.





2. Piece your cottons together and finish by pressing seams open and pressing edges under all around. Can you tell I like bias cuts this year? Again, I was using scraps from other projects.

Note: I made the length of the cotton 12" shorter than the fleece to allow for a 6" fringe to be cut of the fleece at the ends.

3. With wrong sides together, stitch the cotton to the fleece. Start with the long edge that is finished with the pinking blade, and stitch the folded under cotton close to that edge, then go all the way around the four sides. Again, I used the running zig-zag.

I think you can see the stitch in this photo. The reason I like that stitch is that it gives a nice flat finish to the cotton while allowing the fleece to stretch. A straight stitch can't do that, and a regular zig-zag doesn't finish as well.

4. Trim the other long edge of the fleece close to the cotton with the pinking blade. Now you have nice, soft, pinked edges.

5. Quilt the cotton to the fleece as you like. For this one, my quilting is fairly open. It looks random from the back, but from the front it is following the designs on the fabrics. Remember that the more quilting you do, the less you will be able to enjoy the water wicking properties of the fleece. Keep the quilting light if you are going to be in a wet climate.

6. Cut the uncovered ends of the fleece into fringe, as shown.

Here is a fuller view of the finished scarf, hanging on our soon to be Christmas tree, at the tree farm.