I Think It's Spring!

I think it's about 60 degrees outside but quite windy.  Most of the snow that accumulated over the Winter is gone.  The Robins sing like crazy in the morning and I noticed yesterday that I have tulips starting to peek out the ground.  I think it's Spring!  At least for today!!!

And speaking of Spring, I thought I'd share this pretty Easter Bunny Hanging Decoration that Mom made from a vintage quilt:

Mom hand appliqued that little bunny on!  Excellent work for someone with limited vision!

I've been stitching on my yellow Crazy Quilt block and have an update photo today:

The seam treatments are all from my Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatment books.  I have one more seam to stitch and then I can add beads and sequins!

Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 3

I'm pleased to announce that Volume 3 of Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments is now available:

I've done another 180 all new charted borders for stitching crazy quilt seams with my Waste Canvas technique.  Please note, there are no directions in this volume.  Full directions for working with Waste Canvas are available in Volume 1. 

Here is my latest project using the borders from my latest volume:

And here is another photo of the same borders with the beads:

Be sure to click on the photos so you can see the borders closeup!

Cat Doll for Cover of Volume 3

This is the cat doll that I did for the cover of Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 3:

I'm happy to say that Volume 3 is done!  The cover photo is taken and we're putting it together.  If all goes well, I expect to have it available by the weekend.

And if no one minds that I pat myself on the back, I believe this is the best collection of borders that I've done yet!  I've already stitched a few and can't wait to stitch some more!

I spent 6 hours sewing up some new blocks today so I'm ready to stitch!!!

And, I've already started on another book for crazy quilting.  No, not borders.  You'll have to keep your eyes open for hints in upcoming blog posts!

Praying Mantis

I found this beautiful creature sitting on the front of my house this morning:

I you haven't seen a Praying Mantis before, they're about 4 inches long and totally harmless.  This little ones have always been one of my favorites in the bug world!

In other news, Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 3 is well under way.  I expect to have it finished in another week or 2.  I stitched up the cat doll for the cover:

I'll get him sewn up in the next few days.  For now, I'm back to work on a few more borders.

4th Of July Decorations

A busy day yesterday!  I baked 2 double batches of muffins, did some laundry, made sure I had time to walk and spent the entire day listing our 4th of July decorations.  I didn't get to doing any stitching but I do feel like I accomplished a lot!

Here are mom's 4th of July door hangings:

And here are my 4th of July Crazy Quilt Door Pillows:

All are available at Kitty And Me Designs website as well as at Etsy.

In other news, Volume 1 of Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments is now available at Magcloud.

This means it can be delivered as a bound book!  We'll be getting Volume 2 ready and available soon too.  Then one by one, we'll be rereleasing my counted cross stitch patterns.

I have a lot going on here but for now, I need some stitching time.  I'm off to work on my strawberry project!

More Crazy Quilt Hearts

I spent most of yesterday morning stitching and completed this little green Crazy Quilt Heart:

I'll spend some time over the weekend getting my last few projects sewn up and finished.

Here are close up photos of the embroidered seams worked with my Waste Canvas Technique:

And speaking of Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments, I will be starting on Volume 3 of my EBook next week!  Many of the borders that you've been seeing here on my blog will be included in this upcoming book!

Crazy Quilt Gatherings Volume #3 August 2011

The new issue of Crazy Quilt Gatherings magazine is now available!

Be sure to see Mary Anne Richardson's review of Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 2 EBOOK!

Gatherings Magazine is available to order from Magcloud.

Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 2 - Now Available!

It's been many years in the making but I'm pleased to announce that Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments Volume 2 is now available in our Boutique!!!

This volume has 180 all new charted borders for working crazy quilt seams with my Waste Canvas Technique.  There are no instructions in volume 2.  The instructions are available in Volume 1.

Stitching on crazy quilt seams with waste canvas creates perfectly sized and spaced stitches everytime!  And there are no limits to the beautiful borders that can be created!  Enjoy!!!

Crazy Quilt Gatherings Issue 2 is Now Available!

Good news everyone!  Pat Winter has released Issue 2 of her Crazy Quilt Gatherings magazine!

I did a page of all new Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments for this issue! 

Be sure to order this Summer 2011 issue of Pat's magazine!  Whether you're a crazy quilter or you just want a magazine full of beautiful embroidered eye candy, you will love this gorgeous magazine!

Marie Antoinette Crazy Quilt Block #8

Being that today is the first full day of Spring, I thought I'd better get a move on with my Marie Antoinette Crazy Quilt!

After running into town this morning and doing some paperwork, I took several hours for myself and started stitching.  This is the block with the lace & trims:

And here it is with the seams embroidered:

Can you find the borders that are from my Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatment book?

Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments - Rereleased!!

I've had several requests over the past few weeks for my Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments book.  I decided to re-release it:



It's available through me via email.  Click on the tab at the top of this page for details.

And speaking of those tabs, yes, I did it myself!!!  It took me awhile to figure out how to do it but my determination paid off!!!  And I was able to neaten up my sidebar a little bit!

Also coming soon is another new feature, Notes From Mom!  My mom is going start blogging here on my blog.  I made a tab at the top of the page for her posts.  She'll be discussing how she uses her creativity to cope with her BiPolar disorder, she'll talk about her impaired vision and how she can still sew, embroidery and make her Tussy Mussy's and she'll talk about her gorgeous seeing eye dog.  I'm sure she'll share a few recipes and other interesting things as well.

Be sure to stop by on Saturday for my Pink Saturday blog post!  I have something new and gorgeous to share.  And then Sunday is the 15th!!  Guest Blogger day!  Some of you already know my next Guest Blogger but for those of you who don't, you're in for a real treat!!!!

Button Block #34

The seams on Button block #34 are covered now:



Yes, I'm going to plug my book again, Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments and mention that my seams are worked from my own charted borders using Waste Canvas. I love the perfection of the stitches and the variety of designs that can be worked using my charted borders. If you're new to my blog and are interested in learning more about my technique, click here.

I'm going to start talking more about the variations that can be created using charted borders as well as how I actually go about beading them. I do plan to put Volume 2 together in the near future and that will open even more doors to new borders and designs. I already use the borders in Volume 2 on my projects along with borders from my own personal collection.

Stay tuned!

Sewing Machine Lady Purse Continued.....

But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads?

Albert Camus

I have the seams on this design covered now:



This scanned a little dark today. Maybe because the sun is out. No complaints on that one! And now that my monster maple tree is down, I have a lot more light in here and in my kitchen!

Anyway, I plan to paint those lace pieces today and start beading on this. Most of the seam treatments are my own charted borders for waste canvas. To learn more about my technique, click here. Working with waste canvas really is an amazing technique for producing perfectly sized and spaced stitches. And as you can see, all sorts of neat borders can be achieved that aren't possible with a freehand method.

I also wanted to share pages 11 & 12 of my 1936 Herrschners Catalog:





Be sure to click on the images to go to my Flickr site where you see the larger versions. It's fun to look at the prices of these items as they were in 1936!

Button Block #28 Completed

After agreeing to get a Christmas tree yesterday and putting it up, I stitched on Button Block #28 and completed it:



Since this Button Quilt will have at least 100 blocks, I'll probably do a few more "fish under the sea" themed blocks.

My husband took a few days off so today we'll be doing some Christmas shopping. I expect to have some stitching time later to work on Button Block #29:

Another Charted Seam Treatment

I didn't get to do any stitching yesterday. I did some finishing on my sewing machine and still have the handwork to do. I also cleaned a few things out of the attic.

Anyway, for today, I'll offer you another new charted seam treatment for your crazyquilt projects:



Click on the image to go to my Flickr site where you can download the large version. Directions for working with waste canvas can be found here.

I'm off to my mom's house to make some more Glitter Cards!

Button Block #27 Completed

I finished up on Button Block #27 this morning:



Later today, I'll start on Button Block #28:



I also worked up a few new charted borders:



Click on the image to go to my Flickr site where you can download the large version. These charted borders are for working the seams with Waste Canvas. To learn more about the technique, check out my book.

Be sure to keep your eye here on my blog as I'll be adding a few additional borders over the next few days.

If you would like to see all of the Button Blocks that I've done so far, click here. There will be at least 100 Button Blocks in this quilt if not more!

CQ Mag Online

The new issue of CQ Mag Online is now available! I haven't had time yet to read through all of the articles but it looks quite promising!

One article that I'm looking forward to reading when I get back from running errands is titled, "Following In The Footsteps Of Civil War Era Crazy Quilters" by Sandra Pearce. As you know, I have a fascination with the Civil War.

There are several book reviews including Pat Winter's Gatherings book, which is still on my wish list! And my own book, "Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments" reviewed by Allison Aller:



My book covers my own special technique of working crazy quilt seams with charted borders and a product called Waste Canvas. The results are perfectly sized and spaced stitches, everytime! If you visit my blog regularly, and have seen my crazyquilting, this is how I do it and you can too! It's quite easy to do and it takes the guess work out of creating perfect and accurate stitches. If you are interested in my book, you can find it here in my Etsy shop.
If you would like to see some of my crazy quilt pieces worked with my Waste Canvas technique, you can find them here at my Flickr site.

If you haven't seen my current & ongoing project, "The Button Quilt Blocks" can be found here.

Speaking of stitching, I was tired when I got home yesterday and just didn't have the energy to stitch so I did some reading instead. I hope to have more energy for stitching this afternoon. My father is still doing well. Thank you again for your positive thoughts and well wishes.

Take It Further Challenge March & Finishes

I did some sewing yesterday and finished a few of my projects. First are my little doorknockers:





Next, I finished the Floral "A" block into a pillow/cushion for my mother for her birthday:



I didn't get to the finishing on my Spring purse yet because I need to pick up some purse handles. I expect to get that sewn up next week.

In the meantime, I have my Take It Further Challenge March block all pieced now:



You can see the little hummingbird pin that I found over the weekend. I'll start stitching on this later today.

I'd also like to mention that my "Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments" E-Book is now available in PDF format.



I want to take a moment to say thank you to Carolyn Cibik at Evening Star Designs for her kindness in offering to convert it to PDF format for me. Thank you Carolyn! I'm not a computer whiz. I know what I need to know and creating a PDF file was not one of them! I very much appreciate Carolyn's generous offer to help me.

Finally for today, there's a Flickr group set up for stitcher's who are working with the designs in the book. A few ladies have posted photos so please stop by to see how other stitcher's use the designs!

Spring Purse Continued......

I have all the seams stitched now so it's time to start embellishing!



All of the seam treatments are from Volume 2 of my Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments
E Book. Volume 1 is available here and Volume 2 will be released in late March.

I have a few chores to take care of and then I plan to spend the rest of the day stitching. I may paint that lace piece today too.

Does anyone want to guess what the focal point on this piece will be? It's not a pin and it's not something that will be embroidered on. It's an object.

Comfort Cats & Update On Floral "A" Block

I did some finishing yesterday on a few projects including these two little cat dolls for The Comfort Doll Project:



I don't know which one I love more! The yellow one is so bright and cheery but the green one so pretty with the purple embellishments! I'll package these up today and mail them to Pat later this week when I go to the Post Office again.

I also did some stitching yesterday on my Floral "A" block:



I tried every little appliqué I have and nothing seems to work to soften that hard corner at the bottom left of the "A". I have some ideas but want to do some more beading on the seam treatments before I start working on that area.