It's All About The Fabric

Are you familiar with Amy Friend's blog "During Quiet Time"...well, if you are not, you should be! Amy's blog is always full of fun sewing/quilting tutorials and amazing paper piecing patterns - I enjoy her creative ideas and interesting posts...she is continually working on the best projects. Recently Amy moved her blog...and when she did, she had a fabulous giveaway...and (believe it or not) I was the recipient of a fabulous fat quarter pack from Sew Me A Song on Etsy. Yep, I was the LUCKY winner of a FQ bundle of six Yuwa prints....and they are perfect for me! Plus, I think Sew Me A Song is going to be my new favorite Etsy shop to find unique fabrics (I've already marked her shop as a favorite and have a GIANT wish list)...she specializes in Japanese and contemporary cloth...and she has lots of those sought after texty/wordy prints that seem to be all the rage right now. I love to do fussy cutting, so her selection of fabrics are right up my alley. I am trying to decide how to use these inspiring fabrics that arrived in my mailbox this week (again, I am a lucky girl!)...maybe a new journal cover...what do you think - any creative ideas for me??

I have been diligently trying to use fabrics in my stash and cut down on quilty purchases...in fact, I haven't done very much stash enhancement this year (which is why it was AWESOME to win some new prints), but yesterday I met my girlfriends at a favorite local quilt shop and "my arm was twisted" to make a few purchases. They had the Moda pre-cuts for Nature's Basket, the new fabric line by Blackbird Designs, so I had to purchase a couple charm packs to use for items in my Etsy shop...although the colors are pretty much identical to their Blueberry Crumb Cake line, the prints were fresh and new...and when yardage is available, I will definitely have to add some to my shopping cart...

I also fell in love with Winter's Lane by Kate & Birdie Paper Co. for Moda - I picked up several fat quarters and a charm pack in this lovely collection; they will be perfect for winter decorating...I can see a few pillows and maybe a table runner in this lovely collection of prints...

Finally - I picked up a couple new fat quarters from the Esprit De Noel Collection by the French General for Moda...I would have liked to purchase more, but I was doing my best to stay within a budget... after all, who can resist French General fabrics - these two were my favorites (left). I also picked up a fat quarter from The Sweet Things Collection by Holly Holderman for Lakehouse Dry Goods (right)...because it was just too cute to resist...purple gingham birds and rick rack flower stems...seriously...if money was readily available, I would buy this entire collection...totally adorable!

Yes, I definitely have plenty of inspiration for some weekend sewing/quilting...now to make the time. I have some Blue Ribbon Designs work I *must* attend to, but then I am planning for some "me time"...plus I still have more quilting to do on the April project I shared with you last week. So, for now, I am off to do a little work, then I have some afternoon time scheduled with my husband...he is taking me out for sushi at one of our favorite places. Enjoy your weekend...take a little time to do something "just for you"....