Holly Blog

244...My Favorite Things...Hearts A Plenty!

It's been so long...and just when I thought things couldn't get any crazier, things did...so it's wonderful to be back.

The Sweet Little Words Quilt from the March/April edition of McCall's Quilting was just returned to me.  It was so precious, I had to call Pam and have her come over to see it in person and snap a few shots to show you...The Pam Kitty Love color palette is positively radiant!

Kudos to Pam Kitty for her lovely, seemingly effortless photos.

Here are some close-ups of Nubin Jensen's delightful quilting...

And a big shout-out to Fat Quarter Shop's Debra Taylor, for her lightning-fast precision piecing...

Hugs all around for all you gals, it takes a dedicated & experienced team to meet the time demands of quilt magazine projects!  In case you haven't actually seen the magazine article, the Sweet Little Words Quilt is being offered as a kit (with two different border color options!).  To see the kit info, just click here.

In addition to all of the quilty-love excitement, there's been friends visiting from out of town, we've been putting the final touches on the Sweet Things collection, had several bouts of frozen pipes at the studio, and our mascot -- a Border Collie/Terrier mix who demands (seemingly endless) hours of exercise on every chilly day we have.  I could go on, but let's get to the really good stuff...

Alice Waters of Chez Panisse, who is a renowned chef from Berkeley California, says that the secret to being a good cook is knowing how to shop (for the best quality ingredients).

People often ask me about my design inspiration & secrets...Yes, there are tales of travels, flea markets & tiny one-of-a-kind boutiques, on quiet, tucked-away-streets in Europe.  More often than not, inspiration sort of "bonks me on the head" while I am walking down the street minding my own business, and *poof* something catches my attention out of the corner of my eye.  Or like the other day, at a little mom & pop store called Andy's Local Market near where I walk my dogs.  Getting a morning coffee, and what did I see amongst an adorable display of Valentine's Day trinkets & treats...?

Naturally, I thought of Pam, & our recent Pam Kitty Love collection...called her immediately.

We came up with the idea to offer all of you a chance to win your very own Pam Kitty Love LunchBox...

So here's the deal...Tell us a wonderful Valentine's story...it could be true romance...a tale about the power of love, or a rom-com, like a first date story that went awry, or a true tale about one of your most beloved & favorite critters.  Make it good, really, really good...and then tell us your story in our comments bar...and we may pick you!

The deadline is Thursday February 14th

The winner will be announced on Tuesday February 19th

Be there, or be square.

(Or keep carrying your lunch in a boring paper bag to work...)

*<:@)

H2

PS~Pam, this one's for you WoOoF!

PPS  thanks to Goji, for being such a willing subject

:oP

 

 

My Favorite Things...242...Pretty Pictures taken in a Secret Garden

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I thought I'd show you all some pretty pictures taken by none-other than our fabulous "resident" blogging queen aka "Pam Kitty" (& photo-savant) Pam Vieira-McInnis, at a secret garden that I stumbled upon recently here in Marin County CA.

This is the new "Scrap Happy Basket Quilt" (designed by yours truly).  The New Applique' Pattern for it which BTW uses fabrics from my new Penelope 4 -- 5 -- 6 collection (that has just been delivered to independent quilt shops near you), has been written & published by our friend Jennifer Bosworth over at Shabby Fabrics.  Psst: if you haven't heard the good word...Jennifer writes a great pattern!

Here's a little close up of the quilt...

I just LOVE all of the fabrics in this quilt...the colors are OH SO HOME DEC!  IMHO, all of the prettiest colors for a warm & inviting home.  I think Jennifer might even have a few kits left, too...? Check her stock, by clicking here. 

On another note, on the home front today, things started off with a splash.  I was brushing my teeth when "El Bandito", my Milo rescue kitty (the only truly clumsy cat I have ever known) fell in to the toilet feet first while trying to jump up on the bathroom sink (trying to get a better look sniff at what he thought I was putting in my mouth (mint ice cream -- whatttt ?).  (This would also explain the times in recent months that I have sat down on a less-dry-toilet seat in that same bathroom...)

Here's more pictures taken by Auntie Pam, the day of our photoshoot last week of Bandito...

Is it just me or does that little black chin make you think of C Everett Koop...?

LOL

;oP

H2

PS, Pam Kitty will be making a table runner from blocks using the Scrap Happy Quilt pattern (in yet another bee-u-t-ful Penelope colorway...I'll announce the specifics of this VERY SOON!  OH & YES, you heard it here first:  there will be another FQ bundle giveaway too!

 

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 writing 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)