Books & Bananas

I am happy to announce that two more books to which I have contributed patterns have been released this month! The first one I would like to share with you is "Pretty Little Cozies" and I am proud to say that my cozy has made it on the cover! I couldn't bring myself to part with the cozy yet so here is the actual cozy with the book! I haven't decided yet if I want to keep the cozy for my own french press but I do know that I will keep it in case I need any extra photos when I am ready to design its PatchworkPottery Pattern booklet.

My Monkey Quilt pattern is finally available in "Quilts, BABY!" by Lark Books. I am so utterly thrilled with this book and would buy it even if I wasn't in it! The book includes 20 amazing baby quilt projects! What's more fun is that there is a baby picture of each designer and a "behind the seams" short interview. I love my baby picture. I didn't realize until after I sent the picture in that I have a banana sticker on my forehead... how perfect is that for a Monkey Quilt!!!

I am listing these two books along with "Pretty Little Potholders" and "Pretty Little Purses & Pouches" in my SHOP. Each book contains one or two of my patterns along with many other great & creative projects. I will sign the books and also include a little surprise! There is a list of all these books with links for more information on my sidebar.

Since several of my patterns have been published, I am very curious to see what wonderful things are created with them! Please add photos of your creations to my PatchworkPottery Patterns Flickr group. Links to my Flickr Groups can also be found on my sidebar.

And before I go, I'd like to share a funny little story about baby me & bananas! First you need to know that I do not use foul language at all... When I was a baby just old enough to talk, my parents offered me a brown banana. To their surprise I replied, "I don't want no shitty banana!"

Enjoy your afternoon tea & quilted crafts :o)

Butterfly & Greedy Fox

I haven't posted much lately so I feel as if I need to catch up by posting lots of stuff in a few days! As you have probably noticed, I am a rather sporadic blogger & crafter! I tend to craft, flickr or blog only when the mood strikes...

This was my inspiration for the following shabby chic butterfly potholder. A vintage bedsheet, super yummy striped linen from Japan and linen rickrack from Finland :o)

My friend claimed ownership of the butterfly as soon as she saw it sitting on my side table! There are two others that will hopefully make it into my shop!

Here it is in its natural habitat...

This is what I brought home after a visit to Dressew in downtown Vancouver. The entire bottom floor is trims, buttons & other notions!

Hey Fox... Those are MINE!

I think he's in heaven... I know I am :o)

Enjoy your afternoon tea & quilted crafts :o)

Red

How could I possibly relate all these random photos? I know! They all have red in them!

A cupcake pincushion on a new stack of fabric cut from old shirts...

A future wall organizer with teacup pockets...

A little bird & a detail shot of a teacup pouch that I made last month for a swap with Anna in France...

A custom house tape measure I made this week...

Yes, there are some more tape measures on the way!

Enjoy your afternoon tea & quilted crafts :o)

Spring Things

Spring has arrived at last and I am filling my days with Spring Things. The days of sun and warmth are more frequent now and instead of sitting at my sewing machine I have fun filling teapots with flowers that Claire has carefully picked from our yard. What better use for a teapot that dribbles!

We turned over a garden in the corner of our backyard and dream of harvesting fresh vegetables throughout summer and fall. It doesn't look like much but was a patch of grass and overgrown weeds a couple weeks ago. I will take some more photos once things start growing.

Claire has almost outgrown the skirts that I made for her last summer. I have chosen fabric for two new ones including a patchwork skirt using these Japanese fabrics I purchased from Matatabi. I also bought some brighter polkadot, check & stripey fabrics that absolutely reminded me of Spring!

And now I will share a bit of our Easter with you... I made a stuffed & lavender-filled fabric Easter egg for my Mom this Easter to go with her mug of flower seeds since she doesn't like chocolate. I wrapped it in a very sweet French Chocolate bag that I found at a local Japanese dollar store.

Claire had fun on her Easter egg hunt at Grandma & Grandpa's house, and she drew this wonderful picture of the Easter bunny for them.

I don't remember ever drawing this good when I was 4 1/2 years old! That's her own writing too! Yes, I am a proud mommy. I can't believe she will be starting school in September. She is growing up so fast! I look forward to the days when I will have more time to focus on designing & quilting :o)

Enjoy your afternoon tea & quilted crafts :o)