British Country Living and Cotton Floss- oh yeah!

Vacation is nice, but then you come home to this:

Piles of mail to be sorted through! (To be honest, it was a fairly small pile, compared to what I usually come home to. Thank goodness.) However, I have forgiven the mail carrier this time, because the giant pile included something so wonderful.
First, my latest issue British Country Living- love it!!! (and you all know how I feel about magazines! By the way- I managed to read my stockpile while at the beach last week... bliss... I even read some of my magazines twice.) I tell you, I am a sucker for a beautiful cover, and this magazine does it to me every time, I just want to walk into this photo and live there....  (Oooo- wouldn't that be a cool Super Power to have- walk into a photo- Hello, British countryside in the summer! Hello, Tahiti! Hello, South of France! OK I'm getting distracted now...)

And even better, a package from Natalie in Australia:

Natalie of Cinderberry Stitches has just released her first book, called Cotton Floss, and she was so kind to send me a copy (autographed!) If you are familiar with and love her style, you won't be disappointed with this book. It is just darling! It contains lots of Natalie's signature adorable embroidery designs: little fairy girls, owls, mushrooms.... And of course you will love Natalie's bright and cheery color palettes. It's hard to choose a favorite project, but I guess I would have to pick the Market Folk Quilt, with it's fun fabrics and completely lovely embroidery designs. Make sure you grab a copy of this book and settle down with a cup of tea for an afternoon of poring and perusing. I'm sure you will love it like I do.
 

Happy Monday

This is really funny. If you like Paula Deen, or even if you don't, you will get a good laugh out of this.
Happy Monday!!!!

How To Go On Vacation

Relax on the beach....

Take in the views....

 Eat yummy food....

Go for peaceful walks and hikes...

Study the wildlife....

Maybe squeeze in a trip to an amusement park....

(Then repeat as soon as possible!!)

See previous beach vacations here and here.

Moab National Park

A few weeks ago, I took dragged my husband to Quilt Market in Salt Lake City, Utah. I told him that if he went with me, he could choose somewhere fun to go as part of the trip. He chose Arches National Park in Moab, Utah. It was stunning. The formations are massive, and as you can imagine, photos cannot begin to describe it.

Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed:
   Blessed is He who comes,
      the King in God's name!
   All's well in heaven!
      Glory in the high places!

 Some Pharisees from the crowd told Him, "Teacher, get your disciples under control!"

 But He said, "If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise."

Luke 19:37-40, The Message Bible

Cheap Chic: Fabric Covered Photo/Print Mat

I was in a furniture store a few months ago and saw some framed prints that I really liked for the beach house, but they were too expensive. I determined that "I can make that!" (How many times have we all said that? How often do we go home and Actually Make It??) This is a super simple, quick project that will add texture and interest to any photo or print you want to mat and frame.

I went online and found some reproduction prints of old sketches of sea shells. They were only $10.00 each at art.com. I got inexpensive mats and frames at Michael's, and some textured fabric at JoAnn's to cover the mats. I chose a fabric that reminded me of burlap or sea grass, since my prints were beach related. Here is how I did it:

Cut a piece of fabric that is about 1/2" to 1" larger than the outside dimensions of your mat. Place mat right side down on wrong side of fabric. Use a ruler to draw lines from corner to corner on the wrong side of the fabric. Then, draw a box that is 1/2" from inner edge of mat.

Cut fabric on lines, including the diagonal lines at the corners.

Tape 2 opposite sides of the fabric to the wrong side of the mat. (If your print or photo is an original, or is valuable, make sure to use acid free tape.)

Tape the remaining sides of fabric to the mat. You want the fabric to be pretty taut, but try not to stretch it.

Tape 2 opposite sides of the outside edges of fabric to the mat. Tape the remaining 2 sides, folding under the corners as if you were wrapping a present.

Place matted print in frame, hang, and enjoy!

In Need of a 12 Step Program

Last week I bought 4 new magazines at Barnes and Noble.

The week before last I bought 3. Two of those remain unread.

I subscribe to Country Living, British Country Living, American Patchwork & Quilting, Better Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, and Cloth, Paper, Scissors. Somehow when I ordered something totally unrelated online, I ended up with a complimentary subscription to Field and Stream. Dead serious. It arrives every month with my name right on the front cover. There is an excellent chance that there are a few others that I am forgetting right now.
When it comes to pretty pictures, I am like a moth to the flame.
I try to tell myself that they are a legitimate business expense. Market Research, yeah, that's it. But deep down I know the truth...

My name is Jacquelynne, and I am a magazine addict.

Can I get an Amen?!?!

A Fun Weekend

Friday we went to a wedding, kicked off our shoes (literally) and danced the night away (OK not the whole night, just till about 11- but that is pretty late for us!)

Saturday we managed to get up by 7 and go to the flea market and produce stand. I love the produce stand- it is one of my favorite parts of summer! All the colors and textures, so beautiful. And tasty....

Hello, tomatoes!  I can't wait to make fresh salsa out of you! And maybe some bruschetta, too!

 (I love asparagus on the grill!)

I don't really care for radishes, but the little "bouquets" sure are cute.

Local strawberries at this time of year are THE BEST.

I love, love, love lemon. In everything.


Daughter made a Foccacia with fresh rosemary from our garden. Yum. (find the recipe here).

I also managed to start a new Christmas project using wool and my Joy, Love, Peace, Noel fabric.
Hope you had a good weekend, too.

P.S. Stop by my friend Sandi's blog for a giveaway and to celebrate her 3rd Anniversary of blogging. I know you will really like her blog- she is a very busy, talented, generous lady!!!

This Week's Recap...

You know those weeks when you are super busy, but it still seems like there's nothing interesting going on? Yep, it was one of those. Mostly, I spent my time finishing up a couple of quilts using my Joy, Love, Peace, Noel fabric line and writing patterns (blech! on the pattern writing!)
Last night I dropped off a pile for my machine quilter:

 One of the quilts has embroidered blocks to match the motifs in the novelty fabric:

The quilt patterns will be available in about a month.

Maddie was her usual helpful self. Not. What is it about cats that they have to be right in the middle of whatever it is you're trying to do? But if you're not busy, they can't be bothered with you??

I also had a valuable learning experience this week. Never try to iron ribbon with the iron on the cotton/linen setting. Bad move.

 And this week I also finished up a really cute project which will be in the next online issue of Dream, Laugh, Create magazine put out by the girls at LizzieBCreative. I will let you know when the issue is available. Oh and it's FREE! Yay!

Thursday I had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen with daughter and an old college friend (let me clarify: WE are not old, just our friendship :D). You know by now that you shouldn't expect food photos from me. I am usually too busy eating it to remember to snap a photo first.

Ok, so in hindsight, it wasn't a completely uninteresting week- in fact, it was a pretty good one! Have a great weekend!