Market Prep, Part 3.
Hanging out on THE GOOD side for a change...

I decided to give my fingers, eyes and ever-diminishing sanity a break and work on a fun project that definitely falls on THE GOOD category... another patchwork pillow, this time showcasing the softer shades of Andalucia.



In the "Petal" colorway, you will find soft pinks, flirty fuschias, citrusy greens and crisp whites. Bright oranges and chocolate browns make cameo appearances every now & then too, so they can play well with the deeper shades of the collection.



I got news yesterday that the sample yardage should be arriving late next week so I got brave again and put scissors to my strike-offs. You may notice that the patchwork in this pillow is not perfectly matched, which, believe me, bothers me more than it will ever bother you. But the pieces I had left of some fabrics were so tiny that I couldn't even get a perfect 4" square out of them, so I had to borrow space from others...



I love how well this medium pink baby-wale cord plays with the quilting cottons... so soft to the touch. I can totally see a girlie nursery decorated in these colors/prints.



Candy, my Papin Pullip doll, even came out to play. She thinks this pillow is hers but she may have to fight Sophie, the "Queen of Pink," for it.



I'm thinking Candy may need a new outfit made to match the rest of this décor, but I'm not good with sewing teeny-tiny things. Anyone out there up to the challenge? I'd love to bring her along with me to Market. She is excellent company... hardly ever disagrees! ;)



Finally I wanted to share a Pumpkin Fair find from this weekend. Yes, we went to a Pumpkin Fair but it was so rainy and muddy and yucky outside that I didn't dare bring my SLR with me so there are no good pictures to share, but something good did come out of our little outing. I came across a local artisan mother & daughter team selling these adorable bracelets made out of old typewriter keys... how cool is this?! I fell in love with this one immediately and clutched it close so no one would swipe it from me.





They were also selling these clever photo holders made from vintage cameras. One of these days I will share with you my extensive collection of vintage cameras. I actually had one just like this one already but was surprised to see this one come with the original flash bulb (my other one has no bulb).



Me thinks my new Andalucia Moo cards (should be here soon!) will look smashing displayed on this old Kodak Duaflex II.

Check it out!

Well, the strike offs never came today... darn FedEx!!!! The tracking info still shows it in Memphis, TN... WTH!? So, I can't share any new Andalucia pictures with you today, but what I can share is this wonderful interview over at Boutique Buyers Blog. This is my first interview that focuses solely on my fabric design and it was so fun to do. If you want to learn a bit more about my background & experience and some history regarding Andalucia and fabric design in general, head on over to Boutique Buyers Blog and check it out.

psssst... there are a couple of discount codes at the end of the interview. And just so you know, when it gets to be a bit closer to Quilt Market, I will be closing both of my Etsy stores to concentrate on all the time-consuming preparations for the show, so if there is anything you want, I suggest you grab it now because I won't have any time to make or send anything out later. ;)

Frantic Friday

I was awakened this morning by the sound of Sydney screaming her little head off Daddy, Daddy, Daaaaaaddy! as she pounded on the front door. I didn't panic because this has happened before, just usually not this early. It was 6:45 am and I was enjoying my last few days of sleeping in before the school year begins (I don't ask for much, people!) Sydney gets upset when she wakes up after Jon has already left. Jon works out in the mornings before going to work and sometimes Sydney wakes up before he leaves and they have a few minutes of QT before he takes off. That usually involves Jon playing with her, giving her breakfast and then setting her up to watch a movie so that Sophie and I can sleep in a little bit longer... and I love him for that. But not this morning. Apparently she had just missed him and watched him drive off from the front window, so I spent the first half-hour or so of my day trying to console my frantic 3-year old... waaaaaaaah!

Just to give you a glimpse of Sydney's personality... if you follow me on twitter you have already seen this, but for the rest of you who don't I thought it was worth repeating. This was her a couple of days ago:

Me: Sydney, could you please pick up your dirty dishes.
Sydney: Sorry, we're closed!

She's 3, people, threeeeee! Yup!

But aside from my rude awakening, the rest of my day promises to be just as frantic as the first few minutes. My 2nd strike-offs (a.k.a. restrikes) arrive today. And just like last time, I have a tracking number from Kathy Miller but I promised myself I would not stand like a dork by my door pacing for these all day. Maybe any other day would've been OK, but not today. And that doesn't mean I'm not excited about them. I am. Not like my loss of all bodily functions that occurred last time but still very excited! Can't wait to see the new & improved ANDALUCIA (the way I intended it)... I promise to share some pictures. :)

It just so happens that today I have a frantic day scheduled. Yep, I somehow managed to leave all things for the last minute and now it's all piled up. I have to turn in Sydney's pre-school registration papers as soon as the school opens (which should be in a few minutes) together with a check so large that my hand actually shook as I wrote it. Gulp! Then I have to drive across town to turn in my Gym registration papers because my Free trial membership is just about over and I don't want to go a day without working out. Only 7 days left till the wedding... I can't slack off now! And then I have to drive to the other side of town to register Sophie for the next session of swim lessons which starts in just a couple of days.

Then I have to meet a refrigerator repair man back at the house sometime between noon and 3. Don't you just love that? Jon tried replacing our water filter and just in the motion of him pulling the old one out and inserting the new one, it just decided to stop working altogether. Lovely!

I'm hoping the restrikes will arrive sometime between noon and 3 also so I can actually kill 2 birds with one stone, because at some point today I also need to take Sophie school supply shopping. Yah, loads of fun!

But before I leave you I did want to mention some awesome resells I spotted on eBay. If you have or know a little princess who wears 18M, 2T or 3T clothes and is in dire need of some adorable, pre-loved MODKIDs, don't miss these great deals offered by some customers of mine.


Off to start my day. Hope your Friday is less frantic than mine.

Introducing... ANDALUCIA

Taste the spicy ceviche
found in Sevilla’s bustling sidewalk cafés.

Take in the colors of Granada’s Alhambra palace,
a spectacular remnant of its Moorish past.

Splash in the azure waters of the Mediterranean Sea.... and...

Lounge in Cordoba’s famous “patios”
where the whitewashed walls proudly display endless pots
of geraniums, bougainvillea and carnations.

Several months of research, daydreaming, doodling and finally putting designs on paper produced this collection of 40 prints (10 designs in 4 colorways) that is sure to tantalize your senses and make you dream of exotic lands and lush landscapes.

I've just received my first round of strike offs, which in the fabric design world it just pretty much means a proof of each design on fabric that you get to either approve or make changes to before it goes to production. So, I received 40 half-yard cuts that I have gone through over the past couple of days with a fine-toothed comb to make sure all colors, graphics, scale and positioning are perfect. A few changes were made (not as many as I anticipated) and they will shortly be on their way back to the mill for the second round of strike-offs.

If all goes as planned, I will have actual yardage to play with in the next couple of months. But since patience is not my virtue and I was DYING to see how some of the projects in my head would look with actual fabric, I have decided to make Photoshop my friend (well, Photoshop has always been my friend, but right now it's my BFF!) and play around with some of these ideas. What do you think???

Concept chair design for Andalucia using Moorish Tile in Fire colorway and Mod Dots in Fire colorway:



Same chair but using Moorish Tile in Aqua colorway and Mod Dots in Aqua colorway:



Concept stripwork pillow design for Andalucia using (from left to right): Tiny Dots, Birdie Damask, Flowery Stripe, Flora and Tiny Dots in the Earth colorway:



Concept lamp designs for Andalucia using (clockwise front to back) Mod Blooms, Jester (look familiar?!?!) and Tiny Flower:



Concept children's nursery decor for Andalucia using Mod Dots in Aqua colorway:



And, of course, you'd better believe I will be doing tons of children clothing designs with my own fabric, LOL! All in due time. As a matter of fact, since (again) patience is not my virtue, I might actually make a little Sydney-sized patchwork dress with the little pieces of fabric I will have left from the strike-off process. We'll see if time permits. :)

OH, and in case you were wondering, none of these projects I've shown you up here are the special side project that I've been teasing you guys about. That one is actually already produced and will be available for purchase soon. I just have to make some tweaks to the website and get things more "in order" before I can reveal it... soon! :)

OK, I am anxious to hear what you guys think of Andalucia now that it's been presented in full splendor.

Andalucia will make it's debut at the International Quilt Market/Fall in Houston, Texas on October 25-27, 2008. Fabric will be available to purchase in stores a few weeks later.

my name on selvedge

OMG OMG OMG! i've just experienced every possible human and inhuman emotion imaginable...


i laughed (like a nervous kind of excited giggle)


i cried (from happiness... like when you give birth or watch a best friend get married)


and i peed (not on the fabric... LOL... i just think all those emotions got to me)


and i almost vomited (not because there was anything bad or gross but, again, all those emotions got to me ... i'm an emotional kind of girl)

we are off to chicago right now for the weekend, but when I return on sunday i will give ANDALUCIA a proper introduction. as for now enjoy these sneaks.


there is a ton more where these came from... 40 total prints! WHOA!
(color are way off here (blown out)... no time to edit pictures but will share more soon)
CIAO!

Pacing

My strike offs arrive today. I'm freaking out. Literally. I can't get anything done cause I keep looking out the window for the truck. I've refreshed the stupid UPS tracking screen like a bazillion times and it still says "out for delivery." ARGH!

But in other news, no one has guessed yet what my Andalucia-related side project is yet. One person came very close, though, in the vicinity but not quite there. LOL! So there is still a chance to own you very own... somethin'. And don't worry, you don't need to know how to sew or make anything at all to appreciate this somethin'-somethin' (oooh, I just gave you guys a big clue!) so go ahead leave a comment here and place your guess. At least it will keep me entertained until my strike offs arrive. eeeeek!

Everything is ready to go here in my studio. I've been shooting pictures and designing website pages non-stop for 3 days in anticipation of the big reveal. :)