Favorite Sewing Books - post 7 - One Yard Wonders

Oh do I love this book!
It's another one that has gotten dog eared by my carting it around everywhere.
(True confession, I leave the house with at least one extra bag almost every time I leave - that has a sewing book and at least 2 projects to work on. This one has been in the bag a lot.)

I've made the cutest casserole holders from patterns in this. I learned about this book by hearing the podcast on Craftsanity and I love the fact that this is a truly collaborative effort by tons of designers. And so many projects? wow.

favorite Sewing Books - post 6- Block Party

This book is an exciting view into the world of the new online quilting bee (like the two I am in!!). It's not only got the 12 projects that the women made, it's got the stories of their journey - their inspiration and it's really neat to see how the bee quilts turned out with 12 pairs of hands involved.

And yes, mine is signed (by Alissa). Which is always fun.

Favorite Sewing Books - post 5- Modern Log Cabin Quilting

I haven't made any of the quilts in this book yet -it just came out.
But I have lots of pages marked.
Log Cabin quilts are fun to make and these are so fresh and revitalized.
Nuf said.

Favorite Sewing Books - post 4- Sew What Skirts

I'll confess I first picked up this book to see if it was giving away my Libby Dibby pattern. (it doesn't) But I ended up buying it because it's awesome.

I haven't made one of the skirts as they're presented. But the directions and know-how that are shared in this book are amazing and clear and valuable and I have at least 4 or 5 skirts I have made using the techniques I learned by reading this book - yes - ACTUALLY READING the book and not just looking at the photos.

favorite Sewing Books - post 3 - Anna Maria Horner

It SEAMS TO ME] that everyone loves this book.
Ever since I first read about her in Home Companion magazine (Tori had passed the article onto me), I was in love with all things AnnaMaria Horner. I listened to the Craftsanity podcasts with her and I decided I had a hobby crush on AMH.

This book is sheer eye candy. Absolutely fabulous.

Favorite Sewing Books - post 2 - Bend the Rules Sewing

This sewing book is literally so dogeared and worn from being taken to the beach and played with that it has to be #2 to be shared.
I actually have made a number of projects in this book. They're fun, fast, and really inspiring.

Highly recommend.
Amy Karol is candid and whimsical and I love this book. Even if it has sand in the creases.

Favorite sewing books

I have a thing for books with pictures. Actually I have a thing for books. But lately, sewing and craft books have been really a passion for me. I love the inspiration, the photos, the ideas - often I don't even follow the patterns - it's more about seeing the items and making things based on my inspiration from them.

I probably have 30-40 sewing books alone. (The first of which was my Denyse Schmidt book!)
That is not mentioning the 50-60 crafting/sewing/quilting magazines I also hang onto.
Now here's the problem. I have all of them, but have I really made something from them? Inspired by, yes, but wouldn't it be good to actually use the books? (I think so)

I have been wanting to challenge myself lately to make at least 1 item from each book, magazine, etc - that I've bought. Just one. So that puts me out at um. well - if I gave myself a month for each project - well, I guess I would be busy for about um (I hate math)... wait a sec... a decade or two? oy.
Okay, not going to do that.

Instead, I'm going to just share with you some of my favorite books and resources. If I had time to sit down and not chase a little baby tornado around (today I caught him trying to throw Z's snowglobes from a stool) - I would review even the top 10.
I'll try.
But I don't really have much time.
So instead, I'm going to just point you to them and when I get the chance, I'll write reviews. And you'll have to trust me that if they weren't my favorites,  and really worth buying... well, I wouldn't share them. ok? (not that you asked)
One of the cool things about being in the LAMQG is that I've been able to meet a number of the authors of the books that I love as they are either fellow members or speakers who visit our meetings to give talks.
That said, I have to start with Denyse Schmidt's book.

I bought this book YEARS before I ever thought I'd really make a quilt. I would periodically look through it and drool.  I can't say I have actually made any projects from it - but I can say that I still consider buying this book a valuable part of my quilting journey.
A fellow member and acquaintance of mine, Jenny, is actually working her way -Julie and Julia style through the book... woot! What a great idea!
Here's her finished quilt.

I have the coolest friends - Tori writes another book

My friend, Tori, rocks.

But if you're a long time reader here, you know that. Tori and I met in college - we had our painting studios next to each other, and then when I was a textile designer vacating my Santa Monica position for the same job in Chicago, she was my replacement. So we sat next to each other, two engaged girls, planning our weddings and traveling together as little textile designers to exotic locales - like sweaty mills in Georgia, meetings in Seattle, conventions in Chicago and one fun trip to Vail.
The next few years, we were peers - working with each other over a long distance... both loving design, but rapidly growing more and more tired of corporate life and we both ended up leaving our jobs and starting our own design businesses within a year.
Tori started her stationery company which has really done some amazing things over the past 5 years.
In her journeys, she's also been able to meet some other incredibly amazing stationery artists and after realizing how the word about them needs to get out, she wrote her first book - Today's Top Stationery Designers. It's great! What a beautifully published book and a great resource for both inspiration and some fun places to shop.

Tori has followed up her first book with a second now. And it's equally as wonderful.
I really loved reading about the artists - their inspiration, how they got started and seeing the images about their design spaces - aren't we all wanting to peek into creative studios?

Don't I have good reason to be proud of this creative author?
I think so.  She's always been the one to keep me inspired and informed about design trends she sees... Now she can inform you too.

642 things to draw

Some days are less creative than others. I recently bought this book with the idea that simply drawing is good for the soul. It's turned Into an awesome family sketchbook... Sketches take 5 minutes to do and are so calming...

Even if I'm drawing a rolling pin, cereal or knitting needles... It does something good inside me to sit  and draw... Especially on a day that seems less creative than I'd like.

Z's drawing here was under the caption "feelings" - so he decided to draw what he thinks are "dog feelings" by facial expressions.

Mimi's page said "Olympics" - so she drew Dorothy Hammill, figure skating in an arena... Now we just have to get Daddy on board...

It's Black History Month

February is Black History Month and though I have respected it, I'm embarrassed to say I haven't ever participated. Mimi's school (which is truly multi-cultural, and mostly African American) embraces the occasion to really celebrate this month.... It's exciting to see her learning from the perspective of her African American teacher and I love knowing that her teacher can teach things we cannot. Our life is very mulit-cultural. I was always a minority in every school I went to up until college. Our neighbors do not look like us, but they embrace us and we are surrounded by people that help us to see outside of ourselves.

I've been reading "Same Kind of Different as Me" and I took a detour and just powered through "The Help."  I'm proud to read books like these; books about change, progress and paradigm shifts from a very checkered and embarrassing past.  It's important to remember that just a few years ago, things were still REALLY bad.  *Oh, and another amazing book I read a few years ago is this abridged (though not short!) version of Nelson Mandela's Autobiography. * Times have changed, but there still is a long way to go. I'm writing this from what many people consider "the hood" - the church that holds the preschool my son attends was the first church in Los Angeles to integrate.  MLK Jr himself used to visit there regularly in the height of the civil rights wars. I don't live far from where the riots occurred in LA during my senior year in high school - things are definitely changing, but we are foolish to think that everything is hunk dory. I have race issues that play themselves out on my front lawn. (Don't think that I am kidding about this, I mean literally on my front lawn).  Two of the six people who live in my home are African American. I can't pretend this is not a part of my world.

 I'm not saying that the entire month of February needs to be a focus on one thing... Valentine's Day and my Leap Year Un-birthday are also in this month, too... but I think from now on, I am going to try and read at least one book on Black History every February.  I've also been talking to some of my neighborhood activists about what I can do - and what we can do as a family to support those in our community who need an extra lift.

I encourage you to pray about what you can do. Or maybe, just read a book that opens your heart.

Art books for kids

I was thinking the other day, along the lines of my kids' art drawer ... And I was thinking about some of our favorite project books. Thought I'd share them with you. These are all really great books. And the "Best Craft Book Ever" is so great, I agree with it's title, for sure.

The Kathy Ross books are old school, and I think out of print, but they are so great. (find them on eBay or amazon)

I won the Rosie O'Donnell one as part of a giveaway on Mod Podge Rocks, and it's also really got some fun projects in it.

The toddler art books I found really resourceful when I used to do children's ministry - toddlers are so unpredictable, their art projects are different than bigger kids and these had some projects in them that were very resourceful and clever.

Momma daughter crafting

This morning I was showing Mimi and her pals (who are hosting us in Chicago) a little lesson on vintage yoyos. I showed them how I brought a little pile of them on my trip to sketch... Here is the Design Director working on a flower she saw on one of the yoyos.

The other pic is a book I picked up at the American Girl store yesterday full of great re-purposed crafts right up our alley. Can't wait to do those as projects...

Trying to keep it all inspired - one yard wonders

I know, I've been neglecting you, little blog... Which just goes to show I've also been neglecting me.

Ace is not what I'd call an easy baby. Sweet - yes... Easy - absolutely not. We are sleep deprived and ache-y. Every night I look at my to do list of awesome projects and I sit down to catch my breath after the "bedtime battle" and I crash hard core.
This morning I'm trying just to peek at a stack of my favorite books with Ace on my lap (not going so well)... But at least I can show you this book...
"one yard wonders" by Rebecca Yaker and Patricia Hoskins. What's fun about this book (Besides all the awesome projects) is that it's basically a collaboration of many many different bloggers and artists sending in their ideas... There are 101 of them, whereas most of these project books are in the 30-50 range. (and the Barnes & Noble version has 5 extra)...
Super fun and cute. You can also hear a funny interview with one of the authors on Craftsanity
Happy reading!

Otto the Dog

This is a project I did forever ago, and tonight I am busy working on some more Christmas gifts and a few new projects which I can blog about later, but I wanted to share this easy, sweet little project that I made back in the days WAY before I was sewing...
We love the Todd Parr books about Otto the Dog, and a certain little friend of ours, named TT, was a huge fan of the book we gave her for her first birthday. Apparently, she carried the hard-backed book around with her everywhere the family went. My girlfriend, TT's mom, was mystified that the book was TT's first lovey. So... when we next visited our friends, I brought this little guy to make it easier on momma... All I used was different colored felt, stuffing and embroidery thread. But it made such a happy little impression. I still smile when I see this pic and when I was going through old pics the other night, I reminded myself to post this.

My summer reading list.

I haven't really read for pleasure in years. With two munchkins, three moves, a business, 2 blogs, learning how to sew, getting certified for fost/adopt, and various part-time jobs and volunteer stuff... I just haven't read for fun since I was pregnant the first time 5 years ago. (other than the requisite parenting books - Healthy Sleep Habits, Girlfriends' Guide to pregnancy, and lots of other books that seem to have blended together so I can't even remember them)... Though I still remember with great fondness the last book I read before Mimi's birth, a beautiful autobiography of Nelson Mandela.
But this summer has been different. We've travelled. Without the kids. Which means time on airplanes, quiet moments and exposure to bestsellers while walking through the airports - without chasing anyone.
My initial reading began at the end of our Italy trip. During the trip, we spent most of our time doing things... and I actually spent time sketching, when we had down time - that was marvelous.

Anyhow- where was I? Oh yes. Well, I originally brought "Under the Tuscan Sun" to read on the trip, but I left it and my journal, - oh yes, my journal - and my favorite tiny Bible, on the first airplane on the way over... ...never to be heard from again. I'd sewn the cutest little envelope pouch for them all to travel safely in with some of my favorite pens. ARGH. ( I will shed no more tears about this!) ... so that book did not get read. I still haven't replaced any of them. part of me is still grieving them. sigh.
So I picked up "Eat Pray Love" in the airport. Which was compelling, but I didn't agree with any of the author's philosophy. Though her journey was interesting and well documented - I found it was not what I was looking for. I did , however, love that 1/3 of the book was set in Italy... and that made me decide that I needed to prolong my vacation by reading books about Italy and set in Italy.
So I picked up these two gems.... ...both of which were great fun to read and offered mini history lessons about Renaissance Italy. Signora da Vinci and The Glassblower of Murano... Then I got turned onto the Twilight Series. (I know, I've already said too much about them) Suffice it to say, my postings have been sparse, partly because everything other than Twilight has been sparse. I'm in between books 3 & 4 right now, and loving every minute. (Please see this post here, for a perfect representation of my situation, by another blogger) - oh, and there was a brief section in New Moon that also satisfied my Italian urges...

And though summer is almost over... we're looking at a whole new season of life in the fall which might allow for sewing, blogging and reading to co-exist.... Mimi starts kindergarten and Z will be in preschool for 4 days a week. That means time for me! (Though with the fost/adopt possibility, there's not really anything set in stone right now - we could be growing the family in the fall... you'll know for sure if that happens.) Until then, here's my current book list... of things I have either on my nightstand, in my book bag, or in my cart at Amazon.

1. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
2. Under the Tuscan Sun
3. The Time Travelers Wife
4. Common Sense Parenting (required reading for our classes)
5. The Agony and the Ecstasy

phew... I better get on it!... oh... and do YOU have any recommendations for me?

More Japanese book inspiration

So, If you are a Facebook friend of mine, you've likely seen my recent confession about obsessing over craft books and mags in different languages. I've been subscribed to Marie Claire Idees for a few years now (published in French, of which I know none) - renewing the subscription is itself an adventure (though my hyperlink just taught me I could have ordered it through amazon!)... but the ideas there are way more creative and geared into my personal aesthetic (a little sweeter and lighter than some of the craft mags around that try to navigate craftiness without cheese - I think they sometimes end up a little jaded)
So, I pore over the magazine, carrying it with me everywhere for a few weeks, saving the issues and pulling them out a few seasons or years later. I just love them.

Well - last week, I stumbled into a Japanese bookstore that had a whole crafter's section. Wow. Talk about a whole new realm. I'm not super into the polished/perfect/plastic side of the Japanese aesthetic - but there is another school of Japanese design called Wabi Sabi that I studied a little in my Milliken days - one that loves vintage, the hand of the designer, and appreciates wear on designed items. This is probably what is feeding the sweet books that I picked up at this store. It took a while, but I settled on three. (None of which I can read the titles). They are simply delicious. Fresh, pale, clean, sweet - with an affinity for American craft, but with a definite Japanese hand.
I'm in love.

Mad Props for my friend

Okay, so it isn't enough that she's an incredible stationery designer... Tori Higa is a great artist (she's done some great work for us!), a mommy, a friend, and now a published author!

Hooray for my design buddy - I've watched her work through getting this book made, been with her while she schmoozed with candidates for her book at trade shows (she's not really a schmoozer, but we did meet some of them in person...) and I am so proud to see that this book is available for pre-order. (I'm so the first in line...)

Tori Higa...
I'm your biggest fan!