A Magical Sale!

Happy Saturday!

To celebrate the holiday weekend I decided to have a little sale in my Etsy shop for my Potter Patterns! September 1st is the day all wizards head to King's Cross and get on the train to go back to school. It's also my younger sister's birthday - I created the original embroideries for her birthday last year. Use the code HogwartsExpress to receive 20% off your purchase through Monday September 3rd! That makes the complete bundle of 8 patterns only $24. Hot damn.

**Tune in Monday to find out how many different HST layouts I auditioned for my latest quilt before I decided what I wanted. I even have crappy cell phone pictures for your viewing pleasure. I know, I know, I'm too good to all of you...can posts even get any more exciting around here?!

***Don't answer that.

My sewing machine was feeling so neglected!

Today I've planned to be extremely sewing-productive. I got up super early, gathered and made sustenance in the solid and liquid form, and mapped out my day at the machine.

I don't want to hand-stitch anything for at least two weeks. I love handwork, I do**. But if I had to guesstimate how much embroidery I've done over the past two weeks I'd say it's taken at least 24 hours. That's right. I've lost a WHOLE DAY to embroidery. Machine sewing, pleeasseee.

**Case in point: I could not be more pleased with all my Potter Patterns, and I love that they're hung right next to my sewing machine. And today's the last day you can get the 8-pattern bundle for $28!

This is what sewing at midnight looks like...

Except...I just embroidered a little bit for my Winterkist project [my day is next Wednesday! I'm a little obsessed with my project...]. Hey! If you did some embroidery or other handwork, you should show it off at There and Back's Handmade Parade! Be cool like me! :)

And this is what sewing at 1 am looks like...

Oh and I also sewed lots of nine-patches last night. I need 56 of those blocks for my queen-sized quilt. I didn't feel like moving my furniture to lay out the quilt, so I chose the method of just pulling random squares and sewing with abandon. Ok, maybe not abandon, because as you can see I laid them out a bit. Each stack has multiple prints of the same color within it. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't end up with 10 squares of that Washi print with the last nine-patch or something horrific like that.

I've never done that kind of sewing before, because I tend to like a balanced randomness [I think that's an oxymoron?]. But I sewed after I watched Project Runway, and decided to be a wild quilter [an example of what non-quilters think is an oxymoron, ha!].

Um, only a million more blocks to sew. Did I mention this needs to be finished by next week?

Potter Pattern Reveal, Day 2!

We're at Day 2 of the Potter Pattern reveals [check out Day 1 here]! Plus they all go on sale today, so check out the information at the bottom for details.

Riddikulus:

This is the simplest pattern in the batch and is an excellent pattern to start with if it's your first time embroidering, as it only requires backstitch and a tiny bit of satin stitch! In fact, it was Jessica's first time embroidering! Look at her even stitching on the lettering! Crazy.

Quidditch:

This pattern contains a broomstick, Quidditch hoops, and a Snitch! You can stitch them together or separately. I absolutely loveeee the texture of all the motifs in this pattern. But I don't love how the wings of my Snitch look a little messy; I started to get antsy after days and days of stitching Potter Patterns. Jennifer tested this pattern for me, and she chose the broomstick...considering she just moved to Maui and also tested a quilt pattern for someone else, she's pretty much Superwoman right now. And how cute is her broomstick?! I love that she added extra twigs at the bottom to give it a little more fullness!

Expecto Patronum:

Beth's daughters are Harry Potter fans and they helped her pick the pattern to test! If you're a fan of the stories then you know the significance of this spell, but I love the safety and reassurance of the spell in the books, and hopefully you can feel some of that magic when you stitch this up! Next time I think I'll make my own Patronus with smaller French Knot eyeballs, so he doesn't have a perpetually surprised look on his face, ha! :)

Always:

This is my favorite pattern. I cry every time I reach this part in the books, without fail, despite the fact that I've read all the books probably hundreds of times. I worked the longest on this pattern because I wanted to convey a really ethereal magic; I hope you find it as beautiful as I do! This pattern finishes at about 14" across, so it's at least double the size of all the other patterns. As such, I asked two people to test the pattern. Katie's is the top and Fiona's is the bottom. Katie named her doe Herman! I love how she individualized it. And Fiona added some seed beads to her version, which I LOVE. Plus she's using her stitchery on a memory box, as she doesn't have HP-aged kids anymore. It's great that this can be used for a more mainstream purpose!

I want to thank all of my fabulous testers! You all were invaluable in streamlining the patterns so that anyone who purchases them can be assured of a quality product!

All 8 patterns are now on sale at my Etsy shop and my Craftsy Pattern Shop! I'm celebrating the release with a special sale of a bundle of all the patterns. The bundle is $28 from today through Friday August 10th! That's a total of $2.80 per pattern [as the Quidditch set is 3 patterns in one!]. The Etsy shop and Craftsy Pattern shop will also have each pattern listed separately for sale if you only want a couple. I will also be selling completed hoops that are stitched-to-order with the option for custom colors on some patterns.

I'm so excited and happy to share my Harry Potter and stitching love with everyone! :)

Potter Pattern Reveal, Day 1!

I'm so excited to share these with you! These Potter Patterns have been my biggest behind-the-scenes project all summer, and I have spent countless hours drawing, stitching, designing, and working on the computer to bring a clean, professional product to you all!

I've decided I was utterly crazy to work on 8 patterns all at once because it was a huge undertaking. And while I always knew that making patterns of any kind took a long time, I have such respect for those who do it for a living, especially after this whole experience.

I still want to talk more about my pattern-making experience, but I'll save that for another day. Until then, here's the first 4 of 8 patterns that will be available for sale tomorrow!

Each pattern is anywhere from 10-14 pages and includes pictures of my sample on the pattern cover and in a hoop on the wall, supply list, tips for tracing your pattern, pattern notes, ideas for individualizing your pattern, suggested DMC floss colors, stitch guide, black and white pattern for tracing, reverse black and white pattern for iron-on transfer, and color pattern with recommended stitches.

Orchideus:

My favorite thing about this pattern is that you could totally use it even if you're not a Harry Potter fan! Those bunches of flowers would look great on all sorts of things :) Jenni stitched this up for me and I have to show two pictures from her because that second one is probably the most perfect detail embroidery shot I've ever seen!

Wingardium Leviosa: 

Stephanie tested this pattern for me, and she was invaluable in making some extra notes in the pattern to make it easier for you all to stitch! Plus how clean and fantastic does her embroidery look?! I did change some things after she stitched up her test pattern, so you'll notice that her feather has a stem stitch outline, but after some careful consideration I switched the pattern up so that there is no outline. Of course you can still choose to outline the feather, but I like the more ragged look of no outline...somehow it's more "feathery" to me.

Lumos:

Lumos was one of the first patterns that I came up with last year, but it has evolved over the year to the current pattern. Rebekah tested this for me, and look, she's already even got it sewn into a block. She told me she's thinking about making it into a pouch. This is another pattern that alerted me to the fact that my original pattern drawings might be a little confusing, which is why her radiating blue portion is lines instead of satin stitch like the pattern cover. I still think it looks great though! Plus, um, hellooo French Knot pro! If you want to perfect your French Knots, this is the pattern for you!

Alohomora:

This pattern is excellent if you're just getting into embroidery. It's short and sweet but helps you build some great embroidery skills including stem stitch, backstitch, satin stitch, and a few French Knots! Colby stitched this up for me and look how great it looks! How does she get all the wrinkles out?! No matter how much steam I use I cannot get the most stubborn hoop wrinkles out.

Come back tomorrow for the other 4 patterns, plus the information on the introductory pattern bundle! All patterns will go on sale tomorrow :)

Mustchache Mini Twins

I've never sewed something twice. Well, I've sewed the same seam many times when I mess up, but I've never duplicated a completed project. Until now.

Someone contacted me a few weeks ago and requested that I make another mustache mini. I said sure!

Cutting out 1.5 inch squares doesn't really make a dent in my scraps. I tried to use the same fabrics that were in my original, but this time I actually had enough purple scraps for that color to make a fair showing! There are 104 different fabric squares in this tiny little mini.

 

 

This was the 4th time cross-stitching my fabric? must.stash pattern, and I've almost got it memorized, so that's fun.

I love the back, and plan to make a pillow with the one remaining strip of that Washi tape fabric that I have.

I added hanging pockets in the top corners, so the customer can insert a dowel rod if she'd like. Also, for the first time EVER I hand-sewed the binding down. Ok, I've done it on a pillow before too, but seriously, it took me as long to do this itty bitty quilt as it would be to machine quilt a generous throw size. While I was stitching I decided that I don't enjoy that kind of hand-work. It reminds me of why I always ran cross-country and not track...I hated running around that stupid oval track. I'd rather have some changes in scenery! I enjoy embroidery and cross-stitching and hexies because it's a different pattern or fabric each time. Binding...yuck.

And here it is with the original. I'm glad I went subdued with the binding, as it doesn't take away from the colorful squares!

This little mini is in the mail, headed to someone that I hope will enjoy it as  much as I enjoy mine :)

There are now several custom mini listing in my Etsy shop if you're interested in getting one for your own fabric stash!

*Linked with Fabric Tuesday!

Mustaches.

Happy day-after-Valentines! Poor February 15th never gets any lovin'.

While yet another Wednesday has rolled around [seriously, this year is already flying by!], I'm afraid I do not have too too much to show for it. This past week has been a crazy mash-up of changing my schedule for my boyfriend's new job [I like to make him breakfast and stuff], being responsible for $3500+ worth of Girl Scout cookies, cookie booths and Girl Scout meetings, etc...

But I have had one solid day of sewing, and I worked to finish my For the Love of solids big item. I've decided to leave the quilting as is, without adding any more to it, because I would hate for it all to be overwhelming. Today's plan is to take the last few steps to turn it into a pillow cover.

I also finished my small item for the swap [the deadline isn't until March, so I feel very pleased with myself that I'm so ahead of the game!]. 

The cross-stitch was so well-received that I took my pencil-and-graph-paper-scribbles and used a professional cross-stitch program to turn it into a pattern. I included the DMC floss numbers that I used, as well as a page of basic cross-stitch instructions and tips that I have for this specific pattern. I think it's an excellent pattern for a beginner and has a younger feel to it. So it is posted for sale in my Etsy shop for $3, which gets you a photo of my finished product, the pattern and stitch key, tips, and basic cross-stitch instructions, all in PDF form via email. [I like to download it to my phone and stitch at coffeehouses]. So consider getting one for yourself for your fabric stash/wall decoration, or for a friend with cheeky humor!

Ok, does anyone else think of Tom Selleck when they think of mustaches? Just me? Alright.

We were doing this at 11 pm, hence the bad lighting.

And finally, to hopefully bring a smile to your Wednesday, my other fabric project this week was to help my little sister make some valentines. She's editor of her school paper, and likes to keep morale up [they often stay late into the night when the paper goes to press] by giving her staff food. So she found an idea on Pinterest for lollipops made into superheroes. The original photo used cardstock and printed templates for capes and masks. I said, pffffftttt, we can use fabric scraps! So she raided my scrap bins and cut the pieces to size and I cut a little slit to slide the fabric up the stick and then hot glued the front to sort of look like the cape was tied around the superhero's "neck". I also burned my fingers a bunch, but that part is not in the instructions. Then we tied black ribbon to be the "masks". At home she added "Have a super day" to finish these little cuties up!

And now, to finish my non-sewing WIP of the day...laundry. Ew.

[Go to Lee's to check out the other WIP posts. No laundry over there.]


**Edited: I'm also linking up at Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday since my hoop art was a finish! And, because I like to keep it real, I didn't finish the laundry. In fact, there's piles of clean laundry that need to be folded/hung up and I've been avoiding eye contact with them. I thiiink that if you do that long enough then the laundry fairy rolls around and takes care of it, yes?