SOCIAL MEDIA

Sunday, March 31, 2013

My new look!!! The story of the new logo!



As many of you must have noticed... I have changed my logo!

This has been planned for quite a while!

Today on 31.3.13 I will be starting my etsy shop too... edit : wont be able to do it as I fell down the stairs and hurt my bottom real hard. Cannot sit for longer hours... Maybe I'll do it in a couple of weeks :(

So what's with my new logo?



If you see closely, you can see that it is an elephant with a internet cursor at his feet!


The Elephant symbolizes Lord Ganpati since we worship him before we start anything new. And the cursor "hand" at his feet is his loyal carrier - the mouse! I feel it is a modern version of the traditional symbolism in India - Same as my work is the modern version of the traditional quilting styles!

Do you like my new look???


Friday, March 29, 2013

I have fallen off!!!

I fell off the wagon... completely!

For the past 2 weeks, I had not touched the sewing machine and used the computer sparingly too!

Everyone at the house was falling sick!

First it was me, then DH, then kiddo!

To top that I was away, helping my mom settle into her new home...  It was all so busy! I left home to go to her leaving my kid with a bleeding nose... And came back to a night full of frighteningly high temperature which would not come down in spite of 2 doses of paracetamol and a cool water wipe! Finally kiddo settled down in the early hours of morning after a cup of tea and both me and DH breathed a sigh of relief!

He has a viral infection! And is till in bed, running fever off and on and being his own cranky self! We bought him a couple of new games to play in bed and that seems to have made a difference!

Things are gradually getting back to normal!

 

Have I made anything??? 

LOL!
You kidding, right? But I did manage to make these 2 sleeping bags yesterday...  One for a boy and 1 for a girl...

The first is a boy bag! I used a panel (I cannot remember the name of the fabric) for the front and some gorgeous Indian Voile for the back... I used a fleece batting for it and lined it with some super-soft red flannel.


The other one is a girl bag. Since the other stuff that I'll be making for this little lady is grey, pink & white, I used this fabric from my stash to make the sleeping bag. This is for a very dear friend's daughter! (Who also happens to be my cousin - the baby that is - since her father is my mother's cousin but DH's friend!)




I also realized that I had not drawn the winner for the FQS Fun Fridays! - March



And the winner is


who said


Congratulations Fenna, get back t me with your address and the fabric will be on its way to you!

Cheers!!!

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Sew Think Thursday : Week # 9

I cannot believe it has been 9 weeks since Emily's Linky party has started!

So here's one more thing to think about...

Today's question is

If you were a quilt block which one would you be?

  

 I love this question! ~~ Okay! I say that for all the questions that Emily posts! But yes, I do love them!
She sure gets those grey cells in the brains all over the world acting up!

So if I were a quilt block what would I be?

I think I am a very complex person! I have too many straits and not all of them are apparent. But I also know that when they all come together and synchronize - they create magic - they make me capable of reaching goals that have been distant for a long time. They help me do things that I have never dared before!

Considering all that and the fact that the simple facade that I usually present has a lot of complex layers underneath this is the quilt block I think I'd be!

A Cathedral Window Block!


So what quilt block are you???
Join the fun here.

Friday, March 22, 2013

FQS Fun Fridays!!! - March

It is That Time Of The Month!!!

The time when you strech your brains and dig into virtual fabric showrooms and come out with the most amazing answers!!!

LOL!

Its time for FQS Fun Fridays!!!




Here's our designer(s) for this month that you have to identify


Who are they???

And identify 2 of the fabrics that they have designed from the following 5.

#1


#2


#3


#4


#5


To win, Leave a comment with 2 things :
1. Name of the Designer
2. Identify the two fabrics designed by the designer out of the five shown above.

I will be drawing 1 lucky winner from all the correct entries on Tuesday 26th March 6.00 am (IST)

 The winner will get half yard cuts of the two fabrics of today's designer!

Have fun!

Cheers!!!


Once again, I have turned the comments moderation on! So don't worry that others will read your comment and answer. :)


Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Google Reader

Now that Google Reader is about to go... What alternative are you choosing?

I recently started looking at bloglovin... Haven'r really  looked long enough to make up an opinion about it...


 
Saturday, March 16, 2013

Quilting Day!

Its national quilting day!!!

What am I up to? Well, I have orders for 2 quilts that I am currently working on!~

But there's something else that I'm doing too...

But I wont tell you that!




Why would I tell you a way to win a lot of prizes???

And even if I did, you will surely not believe me that you only have to open this link and enter to win!

(Prizes could or couldn't include some awesome stuff from companies we know and love like Bernina, GAmmill, Superior Threads, AccuQuilt, C&T Publishing, RJR Fabric.


Ricky and Alex could have gift baskets to give away too.  


and the grand prize is surely not a new Bernina 550QE sewing machine!


I'd better enter the giveaway myself so that I have less competition!!!

So DONT, I repeat, DONT visit The Quilt Show and enter the competition!


 Have fun!!!

Keep Quilting!!!

Friday, March 15, 2013

Sew Thinky Thursday : Week # 7

Emily has a knack of bringing out the best (and in today's case the worst) in us.



Her question today for the Sew Thinky Thursday is

Bad sewing habits. Do you have them? Share with us, what are your worst habits when it comes to sewing?

Have you noticed I always manage to answer the STT Question on a Friday morning?



 My worst sewing habit... Do I have one? I doubt...

I have many... LOL!

1. I turn the iron on to press my seams and have left it on for quite some time (minutes, hours, days... you get the picture?) I recently damaged my iron because of this and had to buy a new one! So far (since 8 days out of which 5 I spent in bed with a Viral Infection) I have turned it off every time I left!

2. Like many others, I do not change my sewing needle as often as I should. How else can I justify using the same "stretch" needle for FMQ-ing for the past 6 months?

3. I do a lot of impulse shopping. I admit, I buy a lot of fabric because I like it and not targeted at some project. I do that probably because it takes a long time for fabric to reach here! But now I think I will first decide the projects and then do my shopping! That will hopefully make me more productive. $$ spent on fabric and Rupees earned from work should match - if nothing else! (Who cares about the exchange rate?)

There are many more, but I think 3 is a good number to stop at. Or else, all my newly gained fans are going to run away top speed!

What are your bad habits?

Let us share!!!
Sunday, March 10, 2013

A Sunday Post??? How could I not...

A post on a Sunday???

Yeah, unless it is a life and death situation, I do not actually post on a Sunday Morning (normally if you see it here it is a scheduled post!)

So whats so special about today???
 



Here's a glimpse





Now you'd ask what it is...

Well, it is a feature in one of the leading national newspapers in India!!!

Eeeks!!! I'm super excited!

Here is a link to the original article!

Not much that I can say, other than - Thank You Sundari Shivasubbu for the feature! It sure has boosted my morale!

Cheers!!!


Friday, March 8, 2013

Sew Thinky Thursdays : Week # 6

Another Thursday and its time to think with Emily!


Here's her question for today:

What is your favorite color of Kona Cotton*? How much of it do you keep in your stash? Is there a solid that you always find yourself running out of?


To be honest, my experience with Kona Solids is very limited!

I have used Bella Solids more (Thanks to the Bella Parade Season 1 & 2). Two Jelly Rolls (or Roll Ups as Robert Kauffman calls them) is all that I have of Kona Solids!

But I do have something else to share with you! 

We get some of the most awesomest solids in India! And all for 1-3 $ a yard!!!

This is what out fabric shops look like!


And yes, the place where I buy, the guy actually climbs onto tables to get me the fabric I need.

Here's my stash of solids...


And now sorted by color!


And here are my current favorite colors


Quantity-wise apart from the white - I have the green in maximum quantity (its is supposed to be the backing of a quilt!)

But I do tend to run out on this color a lot more often!



Can you believe
1. These are all BLACK
2. They all look the same to the naked eye!
3. I can NEVER find more than 1 yard when I NEED it
4. when I buy new one, it does not match!

Whats your solid story???

We'd like to hear it too!

Friday, March 1, 2013

A Self Portrait Quilt Along!


In January, we kicked off the Self Portrait Quilt along on Facebook.

It was a closed group and no peeking outside the group was allowed!

I had some fabulous students who made awesome quilts!!!

It was an experience that I can never forget!

 

Firstly, I am in no way an expert on Portrait Quilts. There were many in the group who were much more talented than me. The question was only to give them a little nudge!

I decided that it has to be a Self Portrait! Why a self portrait?
This was my message to the group right in the beginning

"A few of you have apprehensions about choosing your own picture... I can understand... Its not usually a routine that we fuss over ourselves... Especially when we have a hobby that is as time and energy consuming as ours, we tend to devote every free moment (of effort as well as thoughts) towards the people we think we ignore! But don't you think, we should change the way we think - just a little bit! Yes, it will really boost our morals if we give ourselves not just a little importance - but a little more time too! So if you think you do not have a perfect picture - go and get a head shot! If you want to make a gift for your husband - what better gift than an actual sized quilt of you (gives a whole new meaning to "slept with my wife" - LOL)? Maybe a quilt with your face for your baby's room! Or just so that you can finally enter the show and win a ribbon! Go ahead ladies' do it! Immortalize yourself! You can always make your husbands/babies/parents quilts later!"

Though there were some who sqirmed in their seats, eventually everyone got to their cutting mats (and ironing boards and sewing machines) and started working on their quilts!


I'm amazed at the talent of these girls! And their sense of community. All along the way, they were encouraging each other, sharing their experiences that even helped me learn quite a many new things... Did you know you can use MS Excel to print your image in parts so that when combined it will be a one huge picture? I didn't, but I do know how now!

Here's a gallery of some of their works!

We had prizes along the way. Sponsored by Aurifil threads and Fat Quarter Shop.
The first was for the first person to complete the quilt.
It was won by Suzanne. She was the first to finish hers... Can you believe that this is her first attempt at machine quilting?


Up close was Daren. I loved how she improvised with the scarf to cover "grey" parts of her neck from the photo.


 Then was Gayle.I loved the innocence of the photo which she has kept intact in the quilt too. She gave me the brilliant idea of using tulle to hold the raw edge applique pieces together.

This one's by Michelle. I just loved the photo. Its so glamorous and the fact that she made it in pink makes it look so desirable!


Caz made hers using fewer colors and I really like the effect of it! She did a marvellous job with the quilting too!



Then there's Laura. She chose an older photo and it sure is a very good choice. She did a great job adjusting the light and contrast on the original one.


Gay too made a fabulous job. Just look at the super-thin spectacles! She should have kept the road runner though! (There was a shadow of the RR shape in her hair. She became so conscious about it that she cut it off!)


Janice also did a splendid job on hers!


Nicole started off, but got overwhelmed due to the sheer number of pieces and has been editing her image to re-do it ever since.

I will be doing individual posts about these girls and the many more from the group who have been workign on their quilts real hard!

Stay tuned for those posts.

And for those who could not join the quilt along... From 31.3.13, I will be offering one to one coaching to make these quilts. Please email me for details. Or wait for my etsy shop to come up.

Cheers!!!