April/May Newsletter Preview! New Fabric Line Preview!!

Hi there! I hope everyone is doing well. The weather here has been crazy- just 2 weeks ago, my daughter was home from school due to a late-season snow storm, and today it is going all the way to 85 degrees! And while we are basking in the sun and heat here on the East Coast of the U.S., I hear that some parts of the country are having record snow and ice right now!! But I do love the warm weather, I have all the windows open and I'm enjoying the heat. I am a little disappointed that tomorrow it is going to be seasonably cooler, with highs only in the 60's...

My daughter, husband, and I are working feverishly to get the next issue of the newsletter done... I am *hoping* it will go out next week. Here is just some of what you will find in this issue:

Plus, be the very first to see my newest fabric line which will debut at Spring International Quilt Market in May! (That's right- you can see it even before the shop owners will be able to order it at the  trade show....)

If you would like a FREE subscription to the newsletter, please sign up at the top right sidebar of this blog. To see previous issues of the newsletter, click here.

Are you already a subscriber to the newsletter? Tell us what is your favorite thing about it!

Many of you know, because I've mentioned it a few times, that I am redoing my blog and website. For the most part, the fun part (i.e. the colors, design, etc.) is done, and now it's time for the hard part- getting together all of the copy (text), photos, etc. It will take up a good amount of my time over the next week or so, so I will be "recycling" some older blog posts (hey, recycling is good for the environment, right??) So please stick with me as we get the new site up and running....

In the Studio Today: Appliqued Butterfly Project & New Art

It's been kind of a weird week here. Some of you may have seen on Facebook that I got called for jury duty on Tuesday. I arrived at the courthouse at 1 pm as instructed, and was met with a line out the door for people just trying to get into the courthouse. Hmmm... that seemed odd. Then they ushered us into a room in the basement which was about 100 degrees and standing room only- at least a hundred people in there and they were bringing in more chairs. Curious-er and curious-er.... I was getting the feeling that this wasn't a breaking-and-entering sort of trial. When they announced that they were running over an hour late because the judge was still with the morning's groups of potential jurors, I knew for sure something was up.

After waiting 3 hours, we went into the courtroom. First I saw a group of people which I assumed were family members, then we met the judge, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and 3 defendants, and found out it was a murder trial. I will be honest and tell you that the whole thing made me really uncomfortable... a little too "real life," you know? The defendants were all young men, about my daughter's age, it's possible that she even went to high school with them. When they turned to address the potential jurors, I got a little choked up... I wondered if they were born into different families in a different city where they might be right now instead of here....  I was relieved to be excused during the first round (due to a scheduling conflict on my part.) I think I would make a terrible juror. I don't know how objective I could be, I think I would spend the rest of my life second-guessing my decision. I frankly don't want the responsibility of deciding whether or not these young men would spend the rest of their lives behind bars. Or what if I voted to acquit them- would that mean justice for the victim and their family??? So while I sat there I just prayed that I would be put on the jury if God had a purpose for me being there, or that I would be excused if not. So I got my answer. Then I said some prayers for the judge, lawyers, defendants, and of course all of the families involved. It will weigh on me over the next few weeks as the trial progresses......

Has anyone ever been a juror, especially on an important trial? How did you feel about it- did you find it fascinating? exhausting? confusing? All of the above?? How did you handle it? I'm just curious- I think it would have been really interesting, but the fact that there are real people involved, instead of actors in an episode of Law & Order, puts things in a different light.

Anyway, onto happier news.... I have actually carved out a little time for painting this week, which I haven't done in it-seems-like-forever. I started this back in the fall, and then I got busy and set it aside. I forced myself to work on it this week, and as soon as I got started, I remembered the joy that I feel when I pick up my brushes and paints and colored pencils.... ahhhhh... the world just melts away.... I really needed that this week....

I also squeezed in a little time for sewing and started to work on a project for my next newsletter. Machine applique- instant gratification, ha ha. Click here for a tutorial on machine applique if you'd like some tips on how I do it, or if you've never done it but would like to give it a try.

What do you do to relax when the world is weighing heavy on you?
I hope you all have a good week and a Happy Easter!

Snow Day!

So, it's the 6th day of Spring, and this is what it looks like:

Unbelievable! We got hardly a flake of snow all winter, and on March 25, less than a week from Easter, this is what happens.... weird. I had an appointment today which I cancelled; daughter's school is actually in session today but I kept her home (she drives herself to school and I didn't want her out in the weather.) So she is baking cookies and I am drinking tea and doing all of those cozy "snow day" things that we didn't get to do all winter :) When my kids were little, I used to look forward to snow days, when we would all just stay in and read and watch movies and do crafts and drink hot chocolate and eat soup.... and then the kids would go outside to play in the snow, and you know you spent more time getting them dressed and then undressed than they actually spent playing...

(Remember A Christmas Story? 

Ralphie: "My kid brother Randy looked like a tick about to pop.")

So daughter is using her Snow Day to make biscotti (no complaints here...)

We've been busy working on the next newsletter which will come out mid-April. It has a late Spring/early Summer theme. There is a wonderful cookie recipe which I am including- we had a family dinner yesterday after church and everyone sampled them and thought they were delicious- so apparently we have a winner!

Last November, a lot of you gave me suggestions for a new newsletter name... we are still thinking about changing the name, it will probably reflect my new tag line... but I am still mulling over the possibilities. I will have to make up my mind by mid-April when the next issue comes out!

For now, I am doing 2 versions of the newsletter- an email version which you can read right in your inbox, and a magazine version which looks like a real magazine (I love the magazine)!

If you'd like to see our last issue of our digital magazine newsletter, click here.
To see the email version, click here.
You can sign up for your FREE subscription to both versions by clicking here.

What's the weather like where you are today? What are you going to be creative?

WooHoo! Giveaway Time!

Thanks to everyone for your great feedback regarding the Newsletter we sent out last week! So now, a little "reward" for you...

Here is the giveaway prize:

A collection of 10 spools of Aurifil thread, the adorable book "Sewing Bits & Pieces" by Sandi Henderson, and a collection of patterns. Retail value is approximately $75.00.

Second prize will be a collection of patterns. Retail value is approximately $25.00.

To enter, comment on this post and tell me which version of the newsletter you liked best and why (links to both versions are below.) Also if you could tell me what is your favorite feature for this issue, that would be very helpful also. (And any other thoughts or ideas regarding future issues are always welcome!)

Please comment by 11:59 pm EST on Monday, February 11, 2013.

Winners will be chosen at random.

Here are links to both versions of the newsletter- the email version and the magazine version.

Email  

Magazine 

(And if you're not a subscriber yet but would like to be, click here. It's free.)

Good luck!

February Newsletter Is On It's Way! (& Giveaway Info)

I don't think it's a big secret here that I have been working on putting my newsletter in a magazine format... I've only mentioned it, like, a million times (sorry....) But, it's finally going out tomorrow! Here is the cover for our first ever magazine-format issue:

Back in November I asked for your opinions and feedback regarding the newsletter. There are several reasons I wanted to do the newsletter in this new format: 

1) I wanted it to be prettier and easier to read than the email version. You will be able to flip through the pages, instead of scrolling, scrolling, scrolling.... and scrolling down some more as you must do with the email version. 

2) I wanted to be able to put most of the content in one place so that you don't have to click outside the email for patterns, recipes, etc. In the magazine, almost everything is included. (You will still be able to click from the magazine to various links.... but these are "extras," not links that are necessary to use the content of the magazine.)

3) I wanted to be able to fit more content into each issue. With the magazine, I can include more step-by-step photos for projects & recipes which I can't do with the email version.

4) With the magazine format, it will be much easier for you to save and print out the parts of the issue that you want to keep (for example, projects and recipes). See below for a more detailed explanation of that.

5) I just wanted an excuse to design a pretty cover for every issue :)

For this issue- we have done both versions (the email version as in the past, and the new magazine version.) When you get your email, at the very top you will have the option of clicking over to the magazine, or just scrolling down and reading it within your email. Most of the content is the same. I hope you will look at both versions and tell me which one you like best (and I am REALLY hoping you like the magazine...)

Some of you had mentioned back in November that you like to get the email so you can hold onto it and read it later. Even if we do the magazine, you will ALWAYS get an email to let you know that the issue has been released, and then with just one click you can read the magazine. And the link to the issue will be good forever- so you can put all of those emails in a file and refer to them whenever you want. You will also have the option of downloading the issue as a PDF, so you can store it on your computer for future reference if you would like. Finally, you can print selected pages from your PDF- for example, if there is a recipe that you want to print out to use, you can print out just that page. And even though the page will be in color, you can choose to print in gray scale (black & white) so you don't use up your valuable colored ink (when you print, just go to your "printer properties" and select gray scale and you are good to go.)

I think that all-in-all, this is going to make the newsletter much more user-friendly and attractive.

If you are not subscribed yet (it's FREE), just click here. The newsletter comes out about 7 times per year and is filled with projects, recipes, and inspiration. (And I won't bother you with any other emails other than the newsletter- I hate a full inbox just like you do!) You can see previous issues here.

If you have any questions or comments, you can ask in the comment section below, or email me.

Finally, don't forget about the giveaway going on at Hopeful Threads- enter to win my Happy Town fabric!

AND, check out my interview at the Henry Glass blog.

Newsletter Preview & My New Red Le Creuset Pot

I'm back... again, I hope you are still enjoying the "Throwback Posts" (aka Oldies but Goodies) that I have been putting up. It's just been so busy here, so much going on "behind the scenes" that I just haven't had a chance to do a lot of new posts.

Samantha & I have been doing an awful lot for the newsletter. There are some fun changes coming- the next issue (February) will be both in magazine format AND (hopefully) in the email format. I will be looking for feedback as to which one everyone prefers- so I hope you won't be shy with your opinions (oh, I know you won't be, based on your feedback at the end of last November!). Although it's been a lot of work, it's been really fun putting the magazine together. Samantha came over on Saturday and we worked on it for hours, in addition to the hours that we had spent working on it separately over the last couple of weeks. We are trying to get the hang of doing the layout differently than we had previously... hopefully next time it won't take quite as long. It's looking really good and I'm so excited to launch it and see what you all think :)

So, there has been cooking and crafting going on... projects to try, fabric to play with, illustrations to draw and recipes to taste....

And in the midst of all that, I'm still working on the pattern that I told you about a couple of weeks ago... Oh and working on the new website (which is still several months down the road, but lots of planning to do). So yes- busy busy busy- but in a good way, a fun way. Not feeling overwhelmed (yet), just having fun with all the activities going on. To be honest, I like it better when I'm working on a few things at the same time- If I have to just paint, or just sew, or just sit on the computer for days on end (which is what happens when I have a deadline looming), I get tired and cranky. But with a lot of different things going on, I never get bored :)

Monday we took my grandmother out to lunch for her 87th birthday. I can't believe I forgot to take a picture, I'm so annoyed with myself. But she had 3 grandchildren (including me) and 4 great grandchildren (including my daughter Megan) in attendance. The waiters sang Happy Birthday to her and she looked a little annoyed, ha ha! We laughed a lot and had a great time.

One new thing that I wanted to "show off" to you today is one of my Christmas presents that I got last month. I had been wanting one for a long time... and I finally got one... in RED- my favorite color...

My new Le Creuset pot. It's cast iron and has a lid that doubles as a skillet, and it weighs about a hundred pounds (Ok maybe a little less than that.) Everything tastes so much better cooked in this- I think because of the way the cast iron distributes the heat and gets super hot. You can use it on the stove top and the oven- so far I usually start whatever I'm making on the stove, then put it in the oven to finish cooking. 

Last night I made a chicken stew (which is really just chicken soup with a few tablespoons of flour thrown in to thicken the broth into gravy.) When it was almost done, I put some layers of Phyllo dough on top (I had a few sheets leftover from a recipe last week), brushing with melted butter in between the layers. Then I popped it back in the oven uncovered for the last 15 minutes of baking so the Phyllo got nice and flaky. Yum!

So far I have used my new "toy" to make the chicken stew, a sausage and bean casserole, and beef burgundy- all delicious. 

What is your favorite tool in the kitchen- the one that you use all the time and couldn't live without? What is your favorite comfort food?????

Painting, Writing, Baking & Trying to Focus

After all of the sewing that I did last week, this week I am writing patterns- sooooo, there's not much exciting going on here!

I did find some time to do some quick illustrations for the February Newsletter (sign up for your free subscription here)....

And I finished up 2 quilts for my next pattern so I could get them off to the quilter.....

Today, I am planning on working on some recipes for the newsletter, too. I tried one out over the weekend, and it was kind of a fail. So back to the kitchen. Good thing my family and friends don't mind eating the "mistakes."

How is everyone's 2013 going so far? So far, mine has been..... pretty much like 2012! Meaning, no huge changes. I don't make resolutions anymore- I resolved to give them up a long time ago, ha ha! I never kept them for more than 3 days anyway :). I do have some new things planned for this year, though. I mentioned in my last post that I am going to do my patterns differently, so that will be a little bit of a challenge but I am pretty excited about it- I hope you will find them to be beautiful and an excellent value for your money.

I am also looking to re-do my blog and website this year- which let me tell you is really overwhelming! Like..... I lay awake at night bed wondering how I am going to do it, in the midst of getting everything else done. You know how that is- that you feel that you really need to move on, but you can't seem to find the time for the new stuff because there's still so much stuff in your day-to-day life that you have to handle? And that is when you start to feel like you are just running on a treadmill- working and working and working but not getting anywhere. That is how I have been feeling.... so I have to figure out a way to find make time for the new stuff I want to explore.... Of course that means that some old stuff is going to have to go- and that is scary. I have ideas that I have been turning over in my head over the last several months. Oh there just aren't enough hours in the day to do everything I want to do! Maybe that is the hardest part- deciding which things to focus on, and letting the other things go.

Of course there are some things that are just a "no-brainer"- like I could watch a little less TV. Or get up a bit earlier. Or spend less time on Facebook.

(Brings to mind a saying I heard the other day:
Don't give up what you really want for what you want right now.
Yes!)

How do you get past the "planning" stage into the "doing" stage? When you have lots of ideas, how do you decide which is the best to focus on? And what have you given up in order to make more time and energy for those things?

Newsletter LUV & Visit to the Christmas Tree Farm

Thank you for all of your suggestions! While the intention of my post was not to elicit compliments, you all warmed my heart and showed me some LUV! I am overwhelmed by your kindness and truly appreciate your nice comments and encouragement- we spend a lot of time making the newsletter the best that we possibly can, and it's nice to know that people like it... I have really enjoyed reading over all of your comments and suggestions, and over the next several months I am sure that we will be implementing many of them. (By the way, if you haven't entered the giveaway yet, you have until Tuesday at 11:59 pm EST. Click here for details.)

And by "we," I mean my whole family works on the newsletter in some capacity. I develop recipes & projects, write the instructions and the rest of the "copy," and do the illustrations and artwork that we use to "decorate" the newsletter. My husband handles all of the technical stuff- laying out content, scheduling, following up on statistics, etc. My oldest daughter, Samantha, who is also a guest blogger here every Friday, does the beautiful color celebration collages for every issue and also helps develop recipes and projects. My youngest daughter, who is 17, does some graphic work in PhotoShop and also helps with the recipes. So you see, it takes a village to write a newsletter! My many, many thanks to them for helping out with "Mom's project."

On Saturday, we went to the Christmas tree farm that we go to every year. The weather was warm- a little too warm for Christmas time activities, if you ask me- but we were happy that daughter Samantha and son-in-law Jeff were able to go with us. We chose our tree, and Sam and Jeff picked out their very first tree together.

When you get to the farm, you climb on a wagon pulled by a tractor. They drive you out to the middle of the farm and drop you off. It smells so good and pine-y! Then, you start looking for your perfect tree....

 (My 2 favorite girls in the world....)

(Jeff and Sam look for their first tree....)

When you find your tree, one of the workers cuts it down for you (they don't trust the general public with chain saws.... gee I can't imagine why....)

Then they put your initials on the bottom of the tree, and throw it on the wagon for you, and you get back on the wagon and ride back up with your tree...

(Someone had a nice suggestion for Sam and Jeff, that they cut the bottom off their tree when they get home, put a hole in the wooden disc with their initials, and have an ornament from their first tree forever...)

They put the tree in a bundler. It goes in like this:

And then it comes out like this:

All bundled up and ready to go on top of your car.

While you are waiting for them to bundle your tree, you pay for it and have complimentary coffee, hot cocoa and cookies.

When I was a kid, we always had a fake tree, and I never visited a tree farm until about 10 years ago- now it is one of our favorite family traditions.... I can't imagine a Christmas without it.

What's your favorite holiday family tradition?

Your Suggestions, Please! & A Giveaway, Too!

Hey there, everyone! I am in need of your help! I am incredibly fortunate & blessed to be able to spend my days in my studio and kitchen, dreaming up new creations and projects. Putting together the newsletter is another thing that I really enjoy doing- it allows me to "play" in lots of different mediums and then share it all with you, my lovely readers! I do truly appreciate that you take the time to read what I've written in my blog and newsletter. That being said- I'd like to make the blog and newsletter even better! I would love your feedback. We are planning on rolling out some changes in the next several months to make both the blog and the newsletter more attractive and easy to utilize.  (But the Newsletter will remain FREE, published about 7 times per year. If you are not already a subscriber but would like to be, you can sign up here.)

(If you would like to see previous issues, click here to go to the Newsletter archives.)

Right now the Newsletter features recipes, simple craft projects and decorating ideas, etc.

• Is there anything else you'd like to see? Other topics you'd like to see covered?
• What do you like most about the Newsletter?
• Is there anything you wish we'd just rid of?  (Please be honest- if there is something you dislike or find distracting, we would like to know...)
• Should it be longer? shorter?
• More photos? Less photos?
• Do you have suggestions for changing the format?

******Also, right now the entire newsletter lands directly in your inbox- would you be opposed to having to click over to your browser (i.e. the interwebs) to view the newsletter? By placing the newsletter in a magazine format on the internet, it would be more attractive and easier to read, but would require you to click away from the email- would this discourage you from reading it? (This is a very important question- your feedback will determine the new format we choose for the newsletter.)

Oh, and I'm so tired of saying "Newsletter" over and over- so boring! I would love some suggestions for a new name. Something catchy, or homey & comforting, or relating to creativity....

So in order to entice you to respond (and not very subtly, either!) I am hosting a Giveaway...
Leave a comment here with your suggestions, or email me your suggestions (subject line: Suggestions Giveaway). There will be 2 winners- one will be my favorite suggestion, and the other will be randomly chosen from all comments and emails, so everyone will have a chance. If you have any suggestion- even if it seems small or you don't think it's great- please let me know! You never know where the best ideas will come from! (I've been referring mostly to the Newsletter, but I would also love your suggestions regarding my blog- content, layout, colors, frequency of posts, etc.)

Please comment or email by Tuesday December 4, 2012 (11:59 pm EST) to be entered in the Giveaway. (Of course, after that deadline, I would still be most interested in your feedback- any time...)

Oh wait! I almost forgot! Each prize will include:

• A collection of Aurifil Thread- 10 yummy spools
• An autographed copy of my book, Fruitful Hands
• A starter kit for making paper-pieced hexi's 
• A fabric panel from my Oh Holy Night fabric collection

These are fabulous prizes- the retail value on each prize is $75.00. Wow!

Thank you in advance for taking the time to give me your ideas and suggestions- it is truly, truly appreciated (big hug here)!

So........ since we are talking about the Newsletter, here is a preview of what's in store for the December issue, which will go out at the beginning of next week. (The subscription is free- you can sign up in the upper right bar of this blog. By signing up, you will only get the newsletter approximately every other month, no other emails from me- unless something incredible happens that I have to share, like if Brad Pitt and George Clooney are both my houseguests for the weekend, I will probably let you know... otherwise, I won't clutter up your inbox....)

December's Newsletter will feature:

Our family recipe for Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Free Printable Holly-day Tags

Instructions to make your own (inexpensive) Sparkly Tree Forest

Holiday Kitty & Friends Pattern

We celebrate festive RED....

Recipe for Apple Hazelnut Gorgonzola Mini Tarts

(a scrumptious appetizer for your holiday get togethers.....)

PLUS: Details about our upcoming sale....

Thanks for your participation and good luck on the Giveaway!!!

(Feel free to pass this on to your friends via email, Facebook, Twitter, etc. 

I would love lots & lots of feedback... Thank you.)

Frankenstorm and November Newsletter are Coming!

As I write this, here on the east coast of the United States we are waiting for Hurricane Sandy, or as it has been dubbed by the local weather people, "Frankenstorm," to arrive. We have plenty of water, batteries for the flashlights, canned food... The electric company called yesterday to tell us to expect widespread outages (not a good sign), and Saturday we got the call that daughter's school has been cancelled for both today and tomorrow. They are calling for 80 mile per hour sustained winds and storm surges of 6 feet and more. Many areas are under mandatory evacuation. Please pray with us that everyone stays safe and that there are no serious injuries or fatalities from this storm.

In the meantime, I am working on the November Newsletter. It's a welcome diversion from all of the weather reports. If all goes as planned (we'll see....), the newsletter will be arriving in subscribers' in-boxes on Thursday, November 1. And it's FREE....

Caramel & Chocolate Covered Pears Recipe
(Click here for recipe)

Ideas for your Thanksgiving Table

Wool Acorn Pillow Pattern

Count Blessings Embroidery Pattern

For the month of November, we celebrate the color Brown.

If you're not a subscriber yet, you can sign up for free on the upper right bar of this blog.

And if you are on the east coast, stay dry and safe :)

The Newsletter Is Coming....

Hey folks! The September Newsletter will be going out this week!  We have been very hard at work for this one! Here's what's in store:

 Apple Pie Cupcake Recipe

Free Stitchery Pattern

Instructions for 2 (count 'em- 2) fast and fun Back-To-School craft projects

 Celebrating the color Gold for September

The Newsletter is Free! If you are not already a subscriber, you can sign up in the upper right bar of this blog page. We would love to have to you as part of our little community....