Joyful Journaling

Happy Tuesday friends! If you follow my social media, then you may have heard my extremely happy news - I finally got my fancy sewing machine back from repair in mid-March and I have been sewing up a storm daily. I was worried when it took months for repair, but the backordered parts finally arrived and my machine is sewing perfectly again. I have been making and listing a lot of items in my Etsy Shop and working on a few client orders...plus I have been working on projects for Poppie Cotton and ThermOWeb...and making a few gifts and personal projects. I have even been making time for new cross stitch designs and ideas. With the crazy new night schedule, I find spending time in my studio is keeping me sane and happy. I was also able to take four days off and help my local quilt shop (The Quilted Sunflower) for the Ad Astra shop hop, which is always inspiring and fun. It has been refreshing to take a step away from needlework finishing and some of the more cumbersome client projects and work on things that truly bring me joy. Here are just a few of the photos I can share...

Another project I worked on was this special framed piece for my mother-in-law - a gift for her birthday. Half of the heart is a map of where we live and half of the heart is a map of where she lives. I was quite happy with how it turned out...

Finally, you may remember this pillow I designed in December, playing around in my studio for the Poppie Cotton Christmas Countdown Challenge. I decided to enter it in the Nancy Zieman Productions 2023 Pillow Sewing Challenge. You could enter one photo of one pillow that was made in the last year and write one or two sentences about it.

This was my entry:
My Pink House Pillow is an original design, has an envelope back and uses a 12” x 12” pillow form. My pillow features fusible appliqué with blanket stitching, rick rack around the perimeter and a ¼” button for the doorknob.

The winners were announced in a blog post on March 26th, and I was on the list! I am receiving a June Tailor prize package, including: Quilt As You Go Morning Blend Table Runner package; Quilt As You Go Venice Placemat (set of 6) package; Quilt As You Go Venice Table Runner package and Magic Seam Wand. I haven't received my prize package yet, but I am looking forward to it!

Thank you for visiting with me today! I will be back on Thursday to share my latest ThermOWeb project tutorial with you. A little hint...my project is for Houses Make a Home Week...and you can see it on the ThermOWeb Blog on Wednesday. Until then, I wish you a happy and creative week...

Studio Samplings and a Much Needed Break

Greetings friends! I am headed to Florida for some family time, along with a little rest and relaxation...I leave bright and REALLY early tomorrow (Monday) morning...but before I take off for a week, I wanted to stop by for a visit. There have been so many creative things going on in the Blue Ribbon Designs Studio - projects for ThermOWeb, Poppie Cotton, and something special coming up for Oliso…plus creating for my Etsy Shop...along with a few client orders that I managed to fit in during the last few weeks of madness. I thought I would stop by and share a few photos - these were all for clients and for my Etsy Shop...sewing, quilting and needlework finishing...the needlework finishing is not my stitching, just my finishing work...

A few notes before the photos:
While I am out of my office/studio, I will have very limited (if any) access to correspondence, so please be patient if you send me a message/comment/inquiry that requires a response. All shippable items will be deactivated in my Etsy Shop. Shippable items (paper patterns/charts, project bags, Stitch Starter Rulers, etc.) will return on Saturday, February 25th. All digital items will continue to be available. I will respond to all messages, comments and emails in the order received on February 25th. Thank you so much for your patience!

I have a blog post scheduled for while I am away - one you won't want to miss - it is a special project I did for Oliso (you know, the makers of the Auto-Lift Smart Irons...and as I have shared many times, my very favorite irons) - so please stop by on February 23rd to see my creativity at work!

Okay, now on to the eye candy...

This is my Forty-Five Tote Bag, custom created in a special size 
for a client. You can find the pattern here:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/941372669/forty-five-tote-bag-quilt-pattern

An 18th Century Pinwheel by The Goode Huswife

These are my cross stitch design "Sunflower Delivery"...
you can find the pattern here:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1117678715/sunflower-delivery-brd-128-counted-cross

Grateful Heart Sampler

Joy of Christmas

Thanks for visiting with me today - I hope you are feeling inspired. I've scheduled the Oliso post for Thursday, February 23rd...so stop back and visit with me! I'll return to my studio on Saturday, February 25th and I'm sure I'll be back to blog soon, with TONS of fun and creative things to share with you! Have a wonderful and productive week....

Plenty of Pretty Project Bags

Happy Friday friends! Today, I am stopping by to show you piles of recent project bag finishes. I completed a couple large orders for my zippered project bags this past week (and one piece of needlework finishing, which I'll add to this post)..it is always enjoyable to work with the fabulous fabrics my clients supply for their custom bags...even when they send directional prints and prints with straight lines, it is still fun to play with all the different patterns and styles. I am still taking custom project bag orders on a limited basis (the client supplies their own fabrics) - if this is something you might be interested in, send me an email and I will reply with details (pricing, time frame, fabric amounts, etc.). This batch of photos also includes a bunch of Blackbird Designs bags I created for my Etsy Shop (these sold out immediately, but I do have plans for more real soon!). Here are a few photos of a sampling of my most recent custom project bags...

I have another large pile of bags ready to cut and sew over the next week for my Etsy Shop, along with a few client orders...so, my sewing machine will be humming along.

For now, it is back to organizing the garage and finishing up some yardwork - trying to get everything done outside earlier in the day, because the temperatures here have been brutal! I also have a tutorial video to finish editing today. I'll be back again soon when I have more to share...have a great weekend!