New Fabrics! This item is from the Lori Holt "Farmers Daughter" line and I love the way that it turned out! The outer bag fabric is one of Lori's Home Decor fabrics, a cotton twill that makes up beautifully. I kept the pincushion simple since the bag fabric is busy and I added yellow ruler tape measure trim and a handy needle minder ringed with a ruched flower. The bag is a bit deeper in order to take advantage of the full patchwork star on the outer bag. Love it! 

Missing John

It was on this day three years ago that my older brother, John, was run down by a hit and run driver in New Orleans. It was his birthday. He died four days later of a non-survivable head injury. The woman who hit him has still not been brought to justice. She initially pleaded not guilty then later changed her plea to guilty. Then she flipped her plea again and went back to not guilty. So,... a pre-trial hearing occurs next month and a trial date has been set in April. It has been a bit of a roller coaster these many months but I am hoping that there will be justice for John. Adding an early photo of he and I.

John was an extremely talented musician who lived a simple life revolving around making music and creating art. He was a lifelong lover of animals of all sorts.

He did not have to die. But someone thought it was OK to run him down then drive away as if nothing happened. I am haunted by thoughts of what might have been different if she had called for an ambulance and he had gotten immediate medical treatment instead of laying in the street alone for who knows how long.

Happy Birthday, John. I miss you every day.

 

 

How many pincushion does one person need? The answer is,... as many as you want! I've have these little beauties presently listed in my Etsy shop, Curry Bungalow .

It's a Grand old flag!

Life keeps getting in the way of my posting here but I wanted to share this little beauty.  I was captivated by the beautiful flag/floral fabric from Minnick and Simpson from the moment I saw it. As one who has lived outside of the United States, I have a special affinity for the image of our flag.  Add some beautiful floral elements and I'm totally on board!  I finished this one today and listed it in my Etsy shop, Curry Bungalow.

Sigh...

I added a little red beaded ring around the handy needle minder for a little extra added pizazz! And the old phrase is so true. It's a GRAND OLD FLAG!

 

Curry Bungalow's Annual Black Friday Pattern Sale starts NOW! All patterns, both printed and digital downloads are 25% off through December 2nd. These pretty and practical items make perfect gifts for your favorite person who sews, quilts or does any kind of needlework. And who doesn't love a beautiful handmade gift? Scroll to see the designs below. Available in my Etsy shop at www.etsy.com/shop/currybungalow

My Favorite Season is October

I am always a little sad when the warm weather is done but how can you not love seeing your world preparing for cooler days?  Fall color is just beginning to appear here in our corner of Oregon and the air "feels" different.  There is an earthy scent with just a tiny hint of HORSE.  I love that smell! We have our first freeze warning tonight and that means that we just might have our first fire in the fireplace this evening!  

I have just finished up a huge order of 22 pincushions for one of my fabulous repeat buyers. Phew!!! She ordered these as retreat gifts. Just imagine how many wonderful things will be made by the new owners of these little beauties! I’ve made a few extras and have just listed them in my Etsy shop.

 

My Tula Period

If Picasso had a "Blue Period", then I must be in a "Tula Period".  I'm a bit late to the Tula Pink party but I am so happy to be now in attendance.   Her designs and use of color, LOTS OF COLOR, really get to me.  For someone who has been all matchy-matchy and a little on the pastel side for my entire life, using her fabrics is almost a bit liberating!  Her color combinations are often referred to as being "unexpected" and that's the perfect description in my opinion.  Thank you, Tula Pink, for helping me to loosen up a bit!

New Wristlet Key Fobs in my Etsy shop! Made from the new exquisitely detailed “Curiouser and Curiouser” jacquard ribbons designed by Tula Pink.  These measure 1.5" wide and 6" long. Aren't they divine?!?

 

I Can't Stop !

I can't stop!  I just love making pincushions. They may be small but they can pack a lot of punch!  There are so many possibilities in shapes, colors, prints, fillings and embellishments. Any old pincushion will hold your pins but a pretty pincushion holds them in style! This one is my latest, made primarily from "Jardin de Fleurs" fabrics from French General.  I've finished the hand stitched rosette with an exquisite vintage mirror backed button from my collection.  Just listed in my Etsy shop, 

Curry Bungalow.

A New Year - New Opportunities !

Happy New Year – 2021! I am feeling very positive and hopeful. A new year gives us all the opportunity to turn the page and begin a new chapter, to do better and to be better. I don’t make resolutions, per se, but I do set goals, both personally and business wise and I am looking forward to what the new year will bring.

2020 has been a very good year for my Etsy shop with my highest revenue ever! How lucky am I to actually make money doing something that I love doing? People appeared to be at home more and were clearly doing more sewing according to my sales numbers. It warms my heart to think that so many were making time to sew, a pastime that has given me so much enjoyment for most of my life.

My Top Nine photos from Instagram for 2020 was not necessarily my personal top nine, but I love looking back, even from the first day of the new year. Onward and upward!

Merry Christmas to Me!

 

Saw it, wanted it, bought it! Merry Christmas to me! I’ve never bought a pre-cut quilt kit before so this will be a first for me. Everything is packaged so beautifully! And the box is a gift in itself! I'll never get it done for this Christmas but there is always next year!  From Laundry Basket Quilts. 

Mini Maker Sew Along - 2020

I just finished my Mini Maker Case for my little Oliso travel iron! What a fun project it was. This is a free pattern download and Sew Along on the Lillyella Stitchery blog at https://lillyella.com/blog/ . There is also a fun Facebook group, Mini Maker Case Sew Along 2020, that you might want to take a look at to see how others are making theirs.

I am compelled to be all matchy-matchy and had previously made a thread catcher out of the same Lori Holt fabrics so these were an easy choice for me. I love the way that it turned out. I might be making another to go along with my Singer Featherweight out of those black and gold Singer fabrics.

Happy Days !

I've had a third request for another thread catcher from Moda fabric designer, Sherri McConnell. It is made from fabrics from the soon to be released "Happy Days" line by Sherri and Chelsi. She tells me that this one for her main cutting table.  

I just drool  when I think about having a sewing area so large that it can accommodate THREE thread catchers!  Then here's me,... stitching away in my sewing closet with barely enough room to put down my glass of iced tea. But I'm not complaining.  I'm fortunate to have a place to work and to do what I love and for that I am very grateful. But someday, I'd love to have a roomy sewing space.

The outer bag floral fabric color is called "Zest".  How perfect is that?  I can almost smell the lemon.  And the lining fabric is called "Stone".  That one little word describes the color perfectly.  

You can bet that I'll be anxiously awaiting the release of these delicious fabrics when they become available early next year.    

Three Big Surprises !

Three big surprises!!! The first was when THE Lori Holt purchased one of my Sew In Style Thread Catchers in fabrics of her own design from my Etsy shop. The second big surprise was actually seeing said thread catcher sitting right next to her sweet little green Featherweight in her recent YouTube video tour of her new sewing space. It’s tucked back beside her machine so I made sure to point it out for you with that big fat yellow pointing finger! The third surprise is that this incredibly talented woman sews on a tiny sewing table just like me! I guess I need to stop complaining about my tiny workspace.

It's a cute one, just gotta say!...

My Brush With Fame

You may or may not know that I am a bonafide MODAHOLIC!  I absolutely adore fabrics from Moda.  I am always looking ahead to future collections from my favorite designers to plan upcoming fabric purchases for the items that I create for my Etsy shop, Curry Bungalow.  I have been eyeing an upcoming collection from the mother/daughter Moda design team, Sherri and Chelsi called "Balboa".  Just imagine my excitement when Sherri, that's THE Sherrie McConnell from "A Quilting Life" commissioned me to make one of my Dreamy Dresden Thread Catchers using Sherri and Chelsi fabrics.  She let me know that she was sending her fabric choices my way and I was hoping, really hoping, that they would be Balboa fabrics.  And they were!  Didn't they make up beautifully?  

We agreed that I would add my new needle minder to the pincushion and that little fussy cut flower was the perfect finish.  This little beauty will be winging it's way to Sherri tomorrow.  OK, it might be going by truck but "winging it's way" just sounds way more exciting, doesn't it?  Sherri is an absolute joy to work with and it has been my sincere pleasure to make this item for her.  

And you can bet that I will be acquiring these delicious "Balboa" fabrics to my shop as soon as they become available in September!

#coronasewing

It's a lucky thing that I am a confirmed HOMEBODY!  Now I have all the time that I want to sew and then sew some more!  I've just made up this super cute Scrappy Strips Pincushion with Needle Minder.  It's perfectly posed on "Joan Marie", the Centennial Singer Featherweight that I am holding for my 16 month old grand daughter.  She and I have big  plans for this sewing machine! 

How many Pincushions Does One Person Need?

The answer to that question is,... AS MANY AS SHE WANTS!  I have the most wonderful customers! So many of my buyers return to my shop time and again to purchase. Linda C. from Texas appears to have returned the most, 26 times to be exact! She buys pincushions, thread catchers, patterns and kits and she always leaves me glowing reviews. This shows just a portion of the items that Linda has purchased. Thank you, Linda for being such a valued buyer!

Sew Very Singer !

I do this thing.  I buy fabric and then I just look at it.  I look at it for way too long!  I've had this hard to find Singer fabric for some time and didn't quite know what to do with it.  I recently located the fabrics used in the pincushion, they coordinate perfectly, and that's when I knew that my Singer fabrics wanted to be made into thread catchers.  I'm loving the way that it turned out.  Wouldn't one like this look perfect perched next to a Singer Featherweight?  This item was just listed in my Etsy shop, Curry Bungalow.  

And the pincushion looks pretty cute all by itself!

Peas and Carrots

“Little Snippets” and gray chambray go together like peas and carrots!