For the Love of Shibori!

Last week I finished up my newest small batch gift set, Shibori LOVE!

I had pulled fabrics and carefully sourced coordinating supplies to begin making these weeks ago, just before I got sick again, so it feels extra good to have finished up this project!

Last week I shared a quick sale on my Instagram feed and this morning I added the few I have left to my Etsy Shop and I'm excited to share all the details here on the blog!





I have always loved the way Shibori looks, whether on clothing, home décor or accessories. The mix of white and indigo dye is always so beautiful!



To date, I've made two quilt tops using April Rhodes Observer fabrics for Art Gallery Fabrics. The main print, Indigo Window Crystal is a favorite of mine and has all the beauty of a hand dyed shibori textile without the work. Love that!



It was this print from Observer that inspired this gift set collection, and I was so thrilled to have found the perfect handcrafted sketchbook journal to include, with sixty blank pages perfect for writing and doodling with a beautiful Shibori dyed cover!







Along with each patchwork quilted bag and handcrafted sketchbook, I'm including a lovely indigo & white zipper pull, Fanned Tassel Charm that I picked up from my favorite store, Anthropolgie! These retail for $18 a piece but I was lucky to snag just enough during a recent sale for this Shibori Love collection!





Zipper colors include black, light blue and grey. Each bag is finished with a flat bottom making these perfect for cosmetics, craft projects and travel. These measure big, around 11"x12" and both sides are made of a similar patchwork pattern of flying geese and stripes. Some are lined with the Observer cotton canvas and others with AGF's heavy duty denim, making each bag sturdy and durable!



Follow this link to find them in my Etsy Shop -- Shibori Patchwork Gift Set

For those ordering today, I'll include one Fat Quarter cut of ANY of my Art Gallery Fabrics! Just add in the comment section of the order the name of the print you'd like to receive and I will be happy to include that as my gift to you for supporting my handmade work!

xo Maureen

Indigo Blue : :

These rainy days have inspired my next small batch collection, Indigo Blue!

I'm such a fan of Japanese Shibori dyeing, but haven't yet found the time to try it like I had hoped to over the Summer. Thankfully for folks like me, who love the look but don't have time to dye my own fabrics, April Rhodes created the Observer collection for Art Gallery Fabrics that is full of beautiful blue patterns!



I love the fresh color palette of calm to deep blues and this fabric pull inspired me to do a little reading up on Indigo.



Indigo is the color of wisdom and intuition. It represents an inner awareness of spirituality, gives an ability for planning the future, and brings about a love of rituals. Those who feel connected to indigo are faithful, idealistic, and intuitive. They are truthful by nature and have sincere personalities.

Learning these things about Indigo inspired me to seek out these Shibori Tie-Dye Journals to pair with the quilted zipper pouch bags I plan to make with these fabrics. How special it will be to include one of these beautiful handcrafted journals as part of each Indigo Blue gift set, perfect for fellow Indigo lovers' writing, sketching and doodling!





To complete this set, I sourced out the perfect Indigo cotton and mirrored glass Fanned Tassel Charm to add to the zippers on each bag!



My hope is to start working on these tonight or tomorrow to have ready for sale next week!



xo Maureen  

From Scraps : :

I've always stored my fabric scraps in one big basket. All of the collections I use and all of the colors mix together. It has never once occurred to me to store them any differently. When the basket looks full, I bundle up the scraps to offer in a destash. Waste not, want not, right?! Well, when you love making stuff, as I clearly do, it doesn't take long for a big basket of scraps to become a heaping mess. So in an effort to control the overflow, I've decided that with each newly finish quilt top, I'll make a matching pillow from scraps before moving onto the next collection and project. I'm not sure how long this will last, but I promise to give it a good try!

First up, an Observer pillow!



I still had several 8" HST units leftover from making two new quilt tops using this collection -- Diamond Trails and Chevron Angle, in case you missed them! Using those scraps, along with the Observer drawstring backpack scraps and a variation of one of my favorite pillow patterns, the the Hip Holiday Quilted Patchwork Pillow tutorial I designed for ThermoWeb, I made a large 18" quilted pillow cover.



I love the colors of this collection so much! The smoky blue and mustard yellow combo will forever be one of my favorites. Since the Observer HST scraps that I used for the pillow top had just one yellow print, I decided to quilt this pillow using the same yellow color Aurifil 50wt thread from my Bohemian Garden thread collection to match!



I finished the pillow with a very scrappy pieced together back, including the very last of those HSTs, hooray!



Art Gallery's Solid Smooth Denims pair so perfectly with this collection, I decided to finish this pillow off with quilt binding in my personal favorite denim, Cool Foliage!



This pillow is being added to the pile of finished pillows I've been collecting to offer in a sale a little closer to the holidays. I really love how it turned out and it makes me extra delighted knowing I made it all from scraps!

Happy sewing!  ♡ Maureen  

A Chevron Angle Quilt Top : :

I'm so excited to share my second Observer fabrics quilt top today! I had previously blogged that I was planning another Diamond Weave quilt with the large HSTs I had leftover from making my first Observer quilt top, Diamond Trails. The make eight at a time half square triangle method yielded a hefty stack of extras that I couldn't let go to waist!



To help me calculate just how much and of which prints I would need to turn these HSTs into a new Diamond Weave I started to make a quick mockup of the pattern. As I was playing I stumbled upon a new design idea that I loved just as much, but all that was needed were just 8" square patches to pair with the already made HSTs. Easy & fast!

Here you can see both the grid I made of the fabric placement layout and the digital quilt pattern.



Following the diagram, I cut my squares and sewed my quilt top together in just a couple of hours and I love how it turned out!





These prints blend together so seamlessly you can barely see the quilt block seams!





Both of the Observer quilt tops I made measure 62" x 74." Here's a reminder of the first one incase you missed it!



Now I've successfully utilized every last 8" HST I initially made, using the last four in a pillow I hope to finish this afternoon to share next week, hooray!

♡ Maureen  

A Fabric GIVEAWAY : :

It's Fabric Giveaway Friday!  



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My sponsor the Knotted Thread is run by Jenn, a fabric lover with a passion for sewing! In her shop you'll find both bundles and single cuts of Fat Quarters, Half Yards, Yards, and Yardage, as well as some of Jenn's very own handmade items up or sale!! Designer fabrics include many of our favorites -- Free Spirit, Moda, and Riley Blake Designs just to name a few! 

Be sure visit the Knotted Thread blog to sign up for the new monthly Newsletter, HERE!
  
SHOP  *  BLOG  *  FACEBOOK  *  INSTAGRAM 
 

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We hope you enjoy visiting the Knotted Thread sites!! 

For this week's Fabric Giveaway Friday, the Knotted Thread is offering a generous complete Fat Quarter bundle of the Observer fabric collection by April Rhodes for AGF to one lucky MCH reader!

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Enter to win!

Here's how,

 
1. Simply leave a comment here in this post! (one entry)2. Visit The Knotted Thread HERE and sign up to receive their new monthly Newsletter OR follow them on Instagram HERE! Just let me know that you did by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry)3. My followers get a third entry! Just let me know that you do by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry)
4. Help spread the word!! I know that many of you already do, so I thought it would be nice to add that as another way to enter! Whether by Instagram, tweet, facebook, pin, blog, etc... (optional extra entry) 

That’s 4 possible entries! Enter now through Monday, September 19th!! Winner will be picked at random and I will announce their name at the bottom of this post, here on the blog!

* Note * This giveaway is open to EVERYONE! If you're a "no reply" or anonymous commenter, please remember to include your email address in your comment!

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A BIG thanks to all who entered our Giveaway! This week's lucky winner is commenter, Judy Forkner! Congratulations Judy, I will be in touch!

♡ Maureen 

A Fabric GIVEAWAY : :

It's Fabric Giveaway Friday!  

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My sponsor Llama Fabrics is a wonderful online Etsy fabric shop full of the most beautiful photos of each season's "must have" fabrics! Offerings include collections by Tula Pink, Leah Duncan, Jeni Baker, Anna Maria Horner and more, all from our favorite manufacturers Art Gallery Fabrics, Free Spirit, and Michael Miller, just to name a few! New fabrics are added often, sure be sure to follow Llama Fabrics!
  
SHOP  *  INSTAGRAM  *  FACEBOOK
 

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We hope you enjoy visiting Llama Fabric's sites!! 

This week, Llama Fabrics is offering the ENTIRE Fat Eighth bundle of the TWENTY beautiful, new prints that make up the Observer collection by designer April Rhodes for Art Gallery Fabrics, PLUS TWELVE coordinating Pure Element solids! YES! This Giveaway  includes a total of THIRTY-TWO prints & solids that make up this lovely custom bundle only available at Llama Fabrics! How amazing and generous!!

You can find this wonderful collection available in a large variety of bundle options and as single cuts of your choosing in the Llama Fabric Shop!! 

Enter to win! 

Here's how,

 
1. Simply leave a comment here under this post! (one entry)
2. Follow Llama Fabrics on Facebook and/or Instagram! Just let me know that you did by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry) 

3. My followers get a third entry! If you follow here, on Instagram, or on Facebook just let me know by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry)

4. Help spread the word!! I know that many of you already do, so I thought it would be nice to add that as another way to enter! Whether by Instagram, tweet, Facebook, pin, blog, etc... (optional extra entry) 

That’s 4 possible entries! Enter now through Monday, August 29th! The winner will be picked next week at random and I will announce their name at the bottom of this post, here on the blog.

* Note * This giveaway is open to EVERYONE! If you're a "no reply" or anonymous commenter, please remember to include your email address in your comment! 

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Thank you to all who entered our Giveaway! This week's lucky winner is commenter, Donna W!  Please check your email as soon as you can and respond with your shipping info, and Llama Fabrics will send your prize!  ♡ Maureen

AGF Stash -- Observer : :

There's nothing that sparks my creativity more than a fresh bundle of fabric! When April Rhodes' new Observer collection first arrived earlier this month, I wasted no time turning those beauties into a new quilt top! Using big 18" squares of each Observer print and the "Eight At a Time" method for making eight half square triangles at once, I quickly had more than enough HSTs needed to create the quilt top I had sketched out, with plenty of 8" trimmed & ready-to-sew units leftover.





From that first half yard bundle of Observer, all that remained was a pile of narrow strip scraps and a whole lotta HSTs. While I was trying to figure out a way to combine the leftover HSTs with these scraps, a commenter either here or on my Instagram mentioned what an amazing Diamond Weave Quilt this collection would make. Yes!! That idea was such a great one that my mind has been stuck there ever since! But, I'd need MORE Observer...

More for Diamond Weave quilt making.



More for backing my first Observer quilt.



More for Observer quilt bindings.



And, even a little Observer canvas for pillow backings and an upholstery project I'm hoping to tackle soon.



I think these Observer fabrics will keep me busy for a little while, and I hope you're inspired by these amazing fabrics that are so inspiring me!

My kiddos head back to school this Thursday, so I'm not looking to find much sewing time until then. It's been a wonderful, fun, & busy Summer, but I have to say -- I'm really looking forward to the return of a routine schedule! Who's with me?

XO Maureen  

An Observer Quilt Top : :

This past Saturday we took a daytrip to one of our most beloved places to visit, Allegany State Park. Knowing we'd likely hike our favorite trail, the Bear Caves, where the kids love to explore amidst the hemlock forest and naturally formed caves, I brought along my newly finished Observer quilt top!



The forest backdrop was the perfect place to photograph the Earthy colors, pretty indigo and natural tie-dye look of this collection!





This quilt top pattern is simple, made up of large HSTs (half square triangle units) measuring 8" each. I arranged them in a layout that would showcase the four main colors that make up this collection -- khaki, mustard, dusty blue, and dark navy, and I love how it turned it out!





It was so much fun to watch the kids journey through the woods and to see Kevin climb the giant trail boulders hoping I'd get a cool shot from below!





I'm waiting for more Observer fabrics to arrive so I can finish it up, I can't wait! In the meantime I'll have to come up with a clever name for this new quilt pattern, any suggestions? I hear this beautiful collection is due to arrive in stores next week, so be sure to keep an eye out!

♡ Maureen