Holly Blog

My Favorite Things...238...Chalk Drawings on the Sidewalk

People ask me alot "What inspires you?"  Almost anything, anywhere.

I saw this recently while walking the dogs at a nearby school after hours.  The campus one of those idyllic California schools that are so very special.  Lots of gardens & outdoor space, covered walkways between small buildings, artwork hung in the classroom windows, courtyards filled with flowering plants, grassy lawns, sunshine and the evidence of kids & creativity blossoming everywhere.

This little drawing reminded me that I used to love to color up a storm on the sidewalks when I was a kid.  It makes me so happy to see a spontaneous use of color...

Summer is officially here...what inspires you?

:o)

H2

 

 

My Favorite Things...237...Roses from the Garden

These SweetHeart Roses remind me so much of the lush flowers in our Penelope series...And by-golly, it's that time...Penelope 4 5 & 6 are being packed & readied to leave our warehouse on the East Coast as I write...

Even better, I have done a few new designs that can use any of your favorite Penelope Fabrics...(1,2,3,4,5 or 6...) These quilts weren't in the latest Penelope 4, 5, 6 sales booklets, so your LQS hadn't seen them until last week in Kansas City at Jennifer's booth...

That's the Big News...Jennifer Bosworth of Shabby Fabrics has graciously taken on the writing & publishing of my quilt designs.  This is a huge relief to me on so many levels...writing patterns has always been a challenge.  I've received my share of hate mail over patterns that took me weeks & months to conceptualize, write, check, re-check & re-check again...And when I am wrting patterns, I am not designing fabric & quilts...Of course those of you who have seen how Jennifer writes a quilt pattern or her beautiful Block of the Month programs...know why I am clicking my heels!

Thank you Jennfier for freeing  me up to do more of the projects that I have been thinking about for years, but haven't had the time to focus on...I am chomping at the bit to do my first Block of the Month...I can't wait.

Here's the first two of my quilt designs that Shabby Fabrics Pattern Company will be publishing that use new Penelope Fabrics.  First, the "Teacup Star" quilt...

 

Second, the Scrap Happy Baskets quilt...

Lots more on my favorite Penelope fabrics, projects & people too, coming up...

Back soon...H2

My Favorite Things...214...Annie's Farm Stand

It's been an embarrassingly long time since I last posted...This past summer was one of the worst I've ever experienced here on the east coast.  The heat, the humidity & (resulting heat rash in unsightly places)...I'd like to just cross off the last 3 months right off of my calender.  With not much nice to say, I mostly just stayed inside in the AC and got to work...

I was nostalgic for summer shares (eons ago)...I had with really great housemates...bike rides to the beach, lazy days with a good book under an umbrella in the sand, the Barefoot Contessa (before Ina was a star), tag sales & most of all the dozens of farm stands that were all over the east end of Long Island...They sold everything from Blueberry Crumb pies to bouquets of Zinnia's.

I did do my share of (almost nocturnal) flea marketing...the beauty of this activity to me, is that by the time the heat and sun are out in full, I'm back in my car and on my way home.

My ever growing dolly dresses collection, other flea market goodies and a nostalgia for simpler times (and cooler summers) inspired my latest collection:  "Annie's Farm Stand".

Here's a little peek at the covers from the latest "Annie's" booklets that have just gone out to our sales reps, (so that they could be shown to independent quilt shops near you--just ask if they ordered it!)...

Annie's Farm Stand is divided into smaller "grouplets" by color...it will be arriving from March to May 2010.

The front cover tells the first part of the color story...

"Annie's" back cover completes the color palette...

If you'd like a better look at the fabrics from Annie's Farm Stand, we have the new swatch pages up on the LakeHouse website.  You can also download a mini swatch sheet for AFS, by clicking on the icon on the right side column this blog.

I'll have more pictures of new projects etc, as we roll on into Fall Quilt Market in Houston...it's that time again!

back in two shakes (fer sure)

;o)

H2

My Favorite Things...212...Pretty Packages!

Do you know what this is?  This little bundle of joy is a new design that we are calling totes on bolts* -- Let me explain...

This is a picture taken by Penny Sturges at her QuiltsIllustrated studio.  We've been keeping a secret...

Penny has a new tote pattern called Veranda PS021, it's uber-cute --self ruffles, fabric covered buttons, pockets galore, just adorable.  For years Pen's been talking about doing panels with LakeHouse designs on them to make her tote bags out of.  But it wasn't until perilously close to Spring Quilt Market, that she gave me the info on the pieces to make her new tote. Then it was my job to see how to fit all of the pieces for a tote bag on a few panels...That's how we got the name totes on bolts*, get it?

I don't mind telling you, it was a lot more challenging that I thought it would be. 

The first reason for the difficulty is that tote bags use up a lot more fabric than you'd think.  Also, we wanted to figure out a way to build in some options for the way you put the fabric together on the bag so that the finished products wouldn't all look alike...In the end we came up with over a dozen different ways to put the different designs together on a bag!

Penny was also working on her new Vera apron PS005 at the same time and miraculously, she got that pattern to work with the same 3 totes on bolts* panels!  Even better, the 3 new Veranda panels make her best selling PS026 Mini Bow Tucks bag, too...believe it or not.

Here is a few shot of Penny's new Veranda bag in our booth at Spring Quilt Market made up in the new Veranda Style Panel--Fun Flowers Design:

 
Shown above are three variations of the bag made with the Veranda Panel.  We had 12 different variations on the bags shown on our display wall.  You'll notice that this new panel grouping comes in two different bright colorways -- on white called "WOW" & on black called "BOB".

More shots of our Spring Market booth...know that I am long overdue, since we've been scooped by several of my quilting buddies & shop owners who attended the show -- Jen & Julie to name a couple... I'm fairly confident that they didn't tell you the whole story behind the projects in the booth though...

The 12 Veranda bags on our feature wall at SQM are all different from each other...

The quilt on the left was designed by me for Beth Hayes at McCall's Quilting.  It will be in the February 2011 issue, newsstand November.  The middle quilt is by my friend Rachel Griffith of psIquilt, it will be in McCall's Quick Quilts in the January 2011 issue, newsstand October.  The Pinwheel Party Panel quilt on the right is made with another new panel that I designed with our new Pinwheel Party panel -- LH10027 that made it specifically for your LQS to see this fun new quilt at Spring Market (sort of a "thank you note" for the success of the Fun Flowers line!) it will be in stores in early December.  You'll be able to download the FREE pattern for this quilt by following links from the side column of my blog...We'll have this up within the next two weeks.

 
The table skirts were made from shipping samples of the Fun Flowers fabrics we received only 5 days before we left for SQM...The scalloped edging was made from an extra long row of the Fun Flowers Charmers fabric -- LH10004, tops were made from the BG dot pullout -- LH09031 (of the scallop edging) and the "tucked in place pleated skirt" (so easy), was made from favorite Ric Rac fabric -- LH10007

Many thanks to Darla Padilla of Wildflower Quilting for her talent & diligence with our quilts in the last 10 days before market.  It was about as tight as it's ever been, sample-fabric-wise, but we made it with time to spare.

I've so much to do post-market, that I've not yet taken so much as a day off, thank goodness it's a holiday weekend.

Lots more to show and tell you...

back in two shakes...H2

PS  You can see more about the NEW Veranda panel sets and the NEW Pinwheel Party panel on our website within two weeks, they will be noted as "Fun Flowers 4 December 2010 delivery".

PPS * means made with love & other good stuff

My Favorite Things...209...Deliciously Excessive!

Not to sound like a broken record or anything, bu-ut...Pastries, aka Patisserie are the nectar of the gods, IMHO, mousse-y things, creamy things, crunchy, crispy, chocolate-y things...Paris...like I've said before, what's not to love about a city that has a pastry shop on every block?

Here's a peek at another inspiration sheet from Penelope, with the new Patisserie, because Paris without Pastries, ho hum...

This is my favorite color palette from the collection...I just love PINK, and all new cakes too.

Running now, late for set up.  More tonight...lots more to show & tell.

;o)

H2

My Favorite Things...208...Excessively Excessive!

Good morning from Minneapolis ladies...

My first quilting starlet sighting at the hotel on Tuesday afternoon were the Me & My Sister ladies -- Mary & Barbara...they were chipper and adorable as usual, but looked a little "rode hard"...said that they had to get up at 2 am Arizona time to get to the hotel by mid afternoon. Talk about dedication...my stomach does flip flops just thinking about what that kind of loss of sleep would do to it!

Next was my old buddy & our tote bag queen Penny Sturges of Quilts Illustrated. Looking perfectly put together, dragging oodles of bags, suitcases & boxes, she showed up on our doorstep. We had to get a bigger room to acommodate all of our stuff.

Yesterday the always entertaining Pam Kitty showed up snapping photos of our booth with one hand and twittering on her phone with the other...

I already have lots of photos taken at the Walker Art museum (social commentary & criticism on this later) and the Nicolett Mall area around the convention center & our hotel (but alas no card reader to upload them to my laptop with) so I'll get you those shots asap...

Here's another little sneak peek at another of our inspiration pages from the NEW Penelope collection...

 

Penelope is such an exciting fabric grouping for me, because there are so many possibilities for color palettes.  This page is dedicated to Freddy Moran, her book with Gwen Marston "Collaborative Quilting"-- Is (I think?) where she said that red was her neutral...I have been absolutely smitten with the use of red in my quilts and fabric collections, ever since.  Kudos to you Freddy!  For me, red is the new black!  LOL...

Anyhoo, that's all for today gals, it's time for booth set up today.

back in two shakes...

H2

My Favorite Things...207...Anything worth doing is worth doing to excess!

Here's  another "composition" from the new sales booklet, that I made to show how I envisioned the colors & images going together.

 

If I do say so myself, this is sort of yummy, don't you think?

back in two shakes...

H2

My Favorite Things...206...Small Victories

This is the rear cover for the new Penelope collection...I am JUST LOVING how the NEW COLOR PALETTE...from soft to light and jewel toned, rich & dark...YUMMMMMMY!

Part Two...How I found the inspirational fabric for the Penelope line...

Can't exactly remember how things transpired verbally after that.   All I know is how fascinated I was with "the very odd artsy woman" that was now at the other end of my scraps of fabric.  I just wanted to stare at her and figure out what her story was, but I didn't want to lose my "prized fabric" to her.

I walked up to the attendant and inquired about the price.  Basia, (I found out her name later) followed closely.  In the end we vaguely discussed what we each wanted it for, and decided that I would split up the scraps with her, since all I needed was enough to see the whole repeat.

Thought that I would never see anything like Basia again in my lifetime...Boy was I wrong.  It turned out that on that particular trip to Paris, I had also planned on going to London for a few days before returning to Paris and taking my flight home.

There are a dozen or more interesting little shopping districts/neighborhoods in London that have wonderful idiosyncratic "independent" shops.  One day when I went to Sloane Square (a chi-chi little enclave made popular by Lady Di) I spotted a little jewel of a spot with luscious window displays...I went in.  It was an odd little place...one HUGE table running down the middle with all sorts of eccentricities displayed in a beautiful still life.  There before me was a pair of 18th century-inspired mules (think Marie Antoinette before the guillotine!)  It was covered in "my" fabric from the flea market in Paris. 

To make a long story even longer, apparently I didn't see the sign "DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING" right next to the shoes, and as if they had a laser system in place to catch the likes of me, a little bell went off and who rushed out of the back room, but the "artsy lady"!

Apparently I am so nondescript that she didn't recognize me from the week prior, as she scolded me and shooed me out of her museum store onto the street.

The unusual woman's name is Basia Zarzycka.  She is known for her couture "bling - cha - ching" wedding dresses and custom finery.  Her store is still in the same place just off Sloane Square. 

Here are a few pics of Basia & her "stuff"...

Trust me ladies, the above picture of Basia with her "headdress", while eccentric and "over - the - top" IMHO, is light years away from the kabuki-faced goth get up that I first saw Basia in at Cligancourt!

 

I got these pics off Basia's website.  The eerily real poodle handbag can be yours for 10,000 pounds (that's $15,098.10 to you and me at today's exchange rate, plus of course an almost 20% VAT tax and a 5% exchange loss, of course). LMAO!!!

Guessing this is one of her wedding gowns...check out the detailing on the sleeves...part fairy princess and court jester.

Hope you enjoyed my little trip down memory lane today.  I'll be previewing more of the Penelope collection in the next week or so...so much to show & tell you...

Back in two shakes...

X;O)

My Favorite Things...205...Encore Paris!

The new Penelope sales booklet front cover.  This new collection is due out in about two weeks at Spring Quilt Market in Minneapolis. . .

Hello Ladies,

I have been in a "Paris state of mind" lately...Missing the flea markets, the patisserie, the confisserie...I could go on, but to those of you who know me, I'm a bit of a broke record when it comes to Paris.

I've named my new "Penelope en Paris"  It's the fourth intro we've done of the Teatime Floral series...The color palette is slightly muted.  It looks great in with "tea stained" fabrics. 

It all started with the piece of a slipcover that I found at a little stall at the now famous Cligancourt flea market just outside of Paris. I'll never forget the experience I had buying that scrap of fabric...

So there I am in this little lean-to fabric shop in one of the alleys in Cligancourt.  It's one of the little shanties that seem like they have been there forever.  There are all sorts of tassels, shawls & embroideries hanging in fragments from the ceiling, with piles of large fabric scraps of every description:  huge drapery panels, parts of old quilts, you name it..all over the floor.  The aisles are tight and the people, and as you might expect, are as eccentric as the day is long. 

I spotted a lovely 19th century floral scrap of cotton out of the corner of my eye.  I moved over to it and began examining it for the quality of the printing, the repeat sizes, the motifs.  I loved it, but I stood around with it in my hand, thinking about what to do with it...it seemed a little sophisticated back then.  I closed my eyes and the next thing I know I feel a tug on the fabric that I was holding.  Opening my eyes a woman in a "get up" that was a cross between Vampira & a Nicholas Nickleby character, had her paws on the fabric I had not yet relinquished.

She clearly wanted the fabric that I had in my hand, and she wasn't giving up until she had it...

I'll finish this little tome in my next blog, when I tell you the rest of the story and show you the other cover from our new sales presentation booklet....it has some unexpected twists & turns and a trip in the Chunnel...so stay tuned.

Back in two shakes...

H2

My Favorite Things...203...Fun Flowers Fabric!

For what seems like years now, people have been asking for "more brights", when are you going to do brights again?...By now, most of you have figured out that I LOVE COLOR...and that I refuse to be pigeon holed with one look or one color palette...The brights in this new collection remind me of my favorite 12 piece marker set (complete a carrying case and vinyl handle) from the Lillian Vernon catalog that my mom bought me back in 4th or 5th grade.

That color palette is still with me...

Here's the covers to the new Fun Flowers collection that will be going our to our distributors this week (to be shown to your local quilt shop owner shortly after that)...so make sure to ask your LQSO if she's seen the new Fun Flowers collection, OK?  You can tell her you saw a sneak peek of it on my blog.

Fun Flowers I (with White Backgrounds) & Fun Flowers II (with the Cocoa Backgrounds) along with our colorful Fun Flower Library of coordinates are slated to be in the stores this August.

Fun Flowers I (with White Backgrounds) & Fun Flowers III (with the Black Backgrounds) along with the same colorful Fun Flower Library of coordinates are slated to be in the stores this September.

Hope you all are as excited about this new collection as we are here...I LOVE to change things up a bit...and this new collection is just what I needed to lift my spirits, this stormy, snow covered winter.

I'll have lots more sneak peeks on Fun Flowers in the days & weeks ahead...magazine quilts, new (and not so new) quilting buddy's projects with the FFF (Fun Flowers Fabrics), so come back soon...

In two shakes...H2  :øP