because we FELT like it

Even though it has been weirdly warm here for almost December, I am thrilled that the holly trees around our yard have yielded a beautiful backdrop for the handiwork du jour. Especially since I haven't managed to get our trees up yet. Hopefully this weekend. I'm pretty sure that felt was created for Christmas ornaments. It has such warm, childlike texture and is so forgiving as a hand-busying material. As soon as Juliana and I started in on these goodies, all the kids wanted in on the action.



I know I've been talking about the flea market non-stop this week, but some vintage buttons I found there have a great new home on this little tree ornament. It's perfect for the one-of-a-kind buttons in your stash that you can't seem to find a garment home for, or are too worried about the wear and tear that putting them on clothing would involve. It's a keepsake this way. I also cut up a striped sweater from the Gap, that has lately been a moth's dinner, to use in some other spots. See it as a scarf on the hat? Fun.

I am working on a tutorial to give you for the little garland I made. It was so much fun and really requires only the basics in terms of materials and stitching! I can't wait to share with you! Also gonna slap up some cut-out patterns for some fun ornament shapes too. There are endless color combos available and at 20cents per 9x12 piece, its about the most economical thing I've made with the kids lately.

Wait till you see the cute things my bunch has been making with oh-so fab felt. None of them can get enough of it. It's my new bargaining tool to get their rooms clean and their homework done.

So add felt ornaments to your list of addictives, trust me. xoxo,AM

The Christmas Coat

As promised, I've tracked down the girl in order to share this other fun flea market find. Juliana and my mom came with me on the fleabitten excursion. We dug through rack after rack of vintage clothing, laughing mostly. Me sounding more like my mom all the time with phrases starting with "oh I remember when we wore this...". We had Juliana completely amused. I stumbled across this awesome coat and as soon as I showed it to Juliana it became a blur of red and green before my eyes as she threw it on in haste and ran over to a mirror.



Every woman in the nearby cocked their head sideways and said nice things, and how it was perfect for her, cute, adorable, wished they could pull it off, etc. Juliana's eyes were big and her smiled restrained with the prospect of wearing vintage to highschool. Is there anything cooler? It was cool when I did it. It's like a right of passage for a girl to start thriftshopping at this age. It's so funny.

However, buying it is one thing, having the guts to wear it is another. She started wavering just slightly when we got it home, asking if maybe we should cut down the size of the collar. I didn't completely refuse, but let her know that there is something special about leaving it the way it is. She kinda didn't trust me. So in Juliana style, she surfed the web, found out about the maker of the coat and also found this one which made her feel really cool. In fact when she first found it there was a more colorful plaid version that is now unavailable. Did you see the price tag? We paid 24$ for ours.



Of course I love teaching her the value of a dollar in such a quirky colorful enviroment. We all hovered a little longer, each at different booths...me with buttons, textiles, and furniture, my mom with antiques, Juliana with the jewelry and clothing. I guess I should appreciate that we all love it equally, and can stay for hours on end, striking up conversations and giggles based on whatever is in front of us.

Learning the value of a dollar is a good thing, learning the value of a daughter is a greater thing.

xo,AM

Tidy Treasure Hunt

So like I mentioned, my long weekend included a long visit to the flea market. Is it becoming cliche to say I scour flea markets? Doesn't everyone?? Anyway, I particularly like having a mission when I go. One mission this go-round was finding little things to hold littler things.



Two of those little things turned up under a bunch of lesser things on a dollar table. It was one of those jolting rushes of excitement too, wondering why no one had snagged these precious boxes already. Then you see the long lines at the corndog stand and it makes sense. The blue one is so pleasantly scandinavian. And while I don't think its authentic or even actually handpainted, I was encouraged by the made in norway pressed into the bottom.



Mission number two was to find a big thing to hold lots of other things. The old little red bookshelf in the playroom was suffering from being stuffed. Hmmm. Just like everyone else thanksgiving weekend. Anyway this new blue one is wonderfully roomy and has space for more books. To think I was acutally considering getting rid of some books. Then, oh riiiight, it hit me. Bigger shelf.



As our kids grow up, the furniture is needing to grow up a bit too. Our playroom is slowly becoming more of a cheerful family room, and doesn't so much look like a daycare anymore. Still sounds like one. Just not nearly as clean. In fact somedays I'm pretty sure I don't even meet the licensing requirements on the adult-to-child ratio.



I think I'm doing my new year nesting a little early this winter. I'm wanting things in their tidy little spots. Trying to simplify our days a bit. Proabably just my standard clearing-the-way-for-creative-time routine. Packing my guilt over a less than well-kept house into a pretty little blue box. Should do it for now.

We also tidied Juliana up with some vintage duds compliments of the Nashville Flea Market. I'll share as soon as I can find her.

xoox,AM

A much needed break

What happened to the weekend?? Five days of food, family, morning coffee, evening wine and midnight snacks came and went like pumpkin pie. It was so good to have a break from the normal steady hum of our daily machine.

No lunch money. No homework. No school bus stops. No deadlines.

Instead we cooked like we meant it. Talked with pleasant pauses in bewteen different threads of thought. Taught the kids what a good western was. Got bored. That was weird.

Don't get me wrong, I stayed busy in a relaxing sorta way. I'll be sharing my weekend flea market finds, quilting results, and the beginnings of our holiday decorating all this week.

Hope you all had a wonderful break from the norm. Thanks for letting me know that I'm linked on your fabulous sites! That list I started doubled over the weekend because of your updates!!

Here's just a sampling of our long and relaxing weekend! xoxo,AM

Thankful for YOU!

Pull up a chair, let me says thanks and lets talk about how super you are.



Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving filled with warmth and the simplicity of pure happiness.

I wanted to THANK all these folks for linking me on their sites. What a wonderful welcome I've been given to blog land, thanks to so many of you. I'm sure I have missed some, so please post a comment and let me knowif I'm on your roll call!!!

Heather Bailey
Allsorts
WhoisTracy
HyggeHouse
Craftydad
Joybucket
DearDaisyCottage
Etches-Johnson
Knittingnonpareil
Erika.Bonhamfoundation
Pannzy
QuiltersBuzz
Purlbee
Chefmessy
CraftySynergy
LamplightDesigns
CrazymomQuilts
OneHourCraft
Elisalou
EclecticDay
PureStyle
JenDuncan
ILoveIt
KraftyKuka
MaggieGraceCreates
Gardfamily5
Portakalagaci
SeedpodBooksandart
BaliwickDesigns
SweetRepeats
OrangeBlossomGoddess
LottieLulu
Cottage Bethy
TinyStitchesintheCountry
Life
RagDollQuilting
Poppalina
Evidently
QuiltFabricDelights
Jujulovespolkadots
RoxyCraft
Black-dog-Knits
Yesnomaeb
DiMill
Cilooette
my-quest-for-life
Amy Butler Design
HouseonahillRoad

My tummy will likely be too stuffed for me to reach the keyboard for the next several days. So I will catch you next week!

ENJOY!
with love, Anna Maria

Whats in your bucket??

This could be a new personality test.

Three questions:

1- Have you ever spent 40$ on a bucket?
2- How many times?
3- What do you use the bucket for?



My answers:

1- Yes
2- Once so far, but planning my next purchase now.
3- Napkins.

Now what does that say about me? I know what my husband thinks question number 1 says about me. But that's obvious. I am always intriqued by where people put their napkins. A standard napkin holder in this house would need to be replenished on an hourly basis. A bucket seemed like a good idea. I have to be honest and say that I had absolutely no clue why I was buying it when I bought it. It is just so beautiful. I'm pretty sure its covered with a vintage wallpaper. The company name has worn off the bottom.

I know that both you and I could figure a way to make some of these....but every now and then, its just so fun to make a purchase like this out of the sheer appreciation of the object. Even if you could make it. Buying it is luxury. Go see these....they are sooo coool. And covered with fabric not paper.....in fact it seems like the owner approached me at a trade show once to inquire about using my designs.....gotta get in touch with her.

Oh and if you wanna get in touch with lots and lots of creative people doing lots and lots of diverse things... visit Crafty Synergy! I've been modestly featured today, so if you are not sick of me yet, go have a looksy.

BTW it seems like Blogliners are not getting my updates reported to them...at least those of you with an Atom feed....which is most of you. I've put in notice to Bloglines to see what's up and hopefully it will be fixed soon. We should not have FEED problems during Thanksgiving!!

Overlooked

Finally made it into the garden today. It's been weeks and weeks. Late fall is not the most inticing time to dig in. Most of the plants have gone dormant or close. There's just a bunch of clearing out to do, that is sort of tedious. It's toil that has rewards too far off in the future to really appreciate right now. Not so much in the way of glorious color these days.



Digging around, rooting out weeds, clearing leaves, trimmimg and pruning gets my mind wondering. It's pretty nice actually, just occupying myself and helping along my own little piece of earth. I do tend to get caught up out there sometimes, romanticizing a pretty mundane process into something monumental. Maybe gardening is deserving of grand thoughts and maybe its not. I'm sure there are volumes written on the subject much more eloquent than my own. But in the spirit of being thankful for simple things I did think it was worth having a look at.

Those berries I picked have the most beautiful frosty purpley wintery blue I've ever seen. In fact the photo does no justice in the late afternoon light. To look at them up close its like there's a dim light inside each one. I haven't a clue what they are, I just found them on a bushy vine growing in a woodsier part of the yard.



And though I know there is a way to harvest zinnias and replant, all I did was pop off the flower heads in hopes of seeding them next summer. Most likely I'm too late in picking them. I have a tendency to just get a small piece of how to do something then try to figure it out alone, instead of seeking out the exact and appropriate way to do it. It's most likely pride or laziness or both for me. Reminds me of Heather refusing to learn to bind a quilt properly at first from her mom. I think our own wheels just get spinning and we don't want to jump off the merry-go-round long enough to learn how to hold the pony reins...we'd rather just fall off or figure it out ourselves.

Anyway. There is such gorgeous architecture in every little thing in my garden. What design there is in even the overlooked and weeded out items. It is the base of all design really, and where so many of us creatives get our inspiration on how to compose, build, draw and just put elements of any media together. A floral print. A floral crochet pattern. A vine repeat in knitting or embroidery.

And we do it over and over and over again just like the seasons. Love it.

xoxox, Anna Maria

Already Thankful

I am so glad our calenders remind us to be thankful at least once a year. Life seems to go by at such a fast pace, that I forget about the simple things that make me and my family happy. I forget to look at my children when their speaking to me instead of straight through them trying to finish my own interrupted thought and still comprehend what they are talking to me about. I am thankful they are talking to me.



I'm thankful for the permission to slow down and bake that is granted to me when spots appear on my bananas, like they have today. I am thankful that Eleni calls it "nama bread", and really don't look forward to her pronouncing it correctly. I am thankful for the new kitchen I have to bake it in.

Simple things.

This morning I ran into what should have been a really simple situation and it turned out to be sooo complicated and so ridiculous. I am not a fan of writing about negative stuff, but I can't let this go. I am not a Wal-mart shopper, I just don't like getting tires, bras, and cream cheese in the same place. It just doesn't seem right. More power to you if it works out for you. I'll try to keep this short.

I was there to pick up my contacts which I reluctantly ordered through their vision center, only because my friend is the optometrist that has an office in the Wal-mart. Well, I paid for them last week, got a call they were in, went today to pick them up but they wouldn't give them to me. There apparently has to be a "licensed optician" on hand to dispense them to you. My contacts were there, they were paid for, I was there, they are my contacts, but no one would hand them to me. And the "licensed optician" was not due in for another 4 hours.

Let's just leave that situation like that. Annoying, yes. But fine. Whatever. As I was trying to understand these people, Eleni was yanking on my hand and whining to go see this obnoxious Santa display. Then when I was wrapping up with the non-licensed people and making note of the random and very inconvenient hours of the licensed people, Eleni finally broke free and ran over towards the display. Looking back to be sure that I was following her or not too mad at her, she failed to see a big plastic trash can in her path. She turned just in time in her little jog to smash right into it, knocking it over along with about six brooms that were propped up next to it. Of course there were tears, she was holding her lip in pain, but she was fine, it was a lightweight and almost empty trashcan. Well the greeter that was standing there ran off and got on the phone and called for a manager. When I apologized for the mess and tried to make my way out of the store, she said "oh no, no you can't leave now, the manager's coming!" Thouroughly confused, I asked her to clarify, apologized again and continued to comfort Eleni who really wanted to go home...like me.

She told me we had to fill out an incident report becasue Eleni got hurt. I must have looked shocked, which I was. I assured the woman, I think her name tag said Helen, that Eleni (which is greek for Helen...hmmm) was fine, completely fine, and I didn't have any need for the manager. But she assured me that some people say they are fine and then go to the doctor and find out they are not fine. And this with attitude. ATTITUDE. Can you imagine?? I was being given attitude from Helen the greeter because Eleni was FINE and I thought that an INCIDENT report may be a little much. Then I got my favorite: "I'm just doing what I'm told m'am." It wasn't enough that Eleni was fine, Wal-mart wanted me to enter into a contractual agreement with them saying that she was fine, and that if she ever isn't fine it isn't their fault.

Sad, sad, sad. I am thankful for small little shops that barely make rent some months but will take care of your needs and actually bend down to make sure your kids are okay when they get hurt. Who knew Wal-mart was now training their greeters to be paralegals. I just walked away stunned. I didn't wait for the manager. I really do hope Helen didn't get in trouble for that. But I was not going to be held hostage with a crying toddler, no contacts and Helen while the manager walked from what was likely an office that is located a good mile ana half away from the front door.

I am thankful that I came home to a happy, normal and safe house where fat lips and bumped heads are not only manageable but come standard. I am thankful for the simple pleasures that will take place around our 10 foot long old farm table next week.

And I hate to bore you with this, but THANK YOU for accomodating today's story of complications!

xoxox, AM

Cozy Noseys and Other Progress

How did the weather know that I finished Isabela's scarf last night?? We woke up to a cold, wet, and windy morning, one perfect for the yo-baby accessory. She was thrilled to snuggle and pose. I need to find the perfect yarn color to do one for Eleni.



As you mommies know, there is no doing something for one and not the others.....the boys however don't care, and Juliana has about 17 different scarves started all laying around her room like landmines, knitting needles attached. She just goes from one to the other like a granny with short term memory loss. I mean that in the best way. I am a lucky person if thats all it takes to keep her happy. Speaking of happy...



I found these cute buttons and adorable little Christmas-y print to put with mine for Eleni's apron. Aren't they all so happy together?! Can't wait to get started on that, I'm thinking it'll be the ruffley-er sort. I love translating their personalities and individuality into frocks and such that I make for them.

Last but not least, I finished my first Bohemian quilt top with a new pattern I designed and have packed it up and sent to Gina for her to work her long-arm magic. I can't wait to get it back and feel all the bumpy fun of the quilting stiches over my work. I'll share a full shot once it's back. It's going in a local gallery show that I participate in every Holiday season. I usually do paintings, but thought this would be an interesting departure from the norm.



So much fun sewing lately, and I need to remind myself to be keeping up with my other work on some giftware projects. Just got word that I'll have these fun holiday designs on wrap, boxes and giftbags for Holiday 2007. Yippee!

xoxo, AM

Board Meeting

Well the weekend brought a few things off the drawing board and onto the ironing board. None is complete but all are having fun sitting next to one another. Today's line up at the board meeting is a pieced little person apron, a yo-baby scarf (yep, named it myself) and a new quilt.



The apron pattern has been fun to work on and try on Isabela as I fine-tune the fitting. It's reversible and no strings attached. It's a slip over the head style that she can manage herself. I chose some of my Bohemian fabrics in a somewhat Christmas-y palette and added that red and white one too, upping the silliness factor. Each girl will get her own in due time for elf training.



With the yo-baby scarf I am, once again, compensating for my lack of crochet skills by adding a dash of fabric. But ya know, so be it. It will be super cute with this, and those fancy crochet skills will come in time, I imagine. I sandwiched the end of the scarf between double rows of yo-yo's. Yo-yo's might possibly be the best in-front-of-the-tv endeavor. Another night on the couch with Leo cozy at my feet may get the other end of the scarf finished.

I'm designing a new quilt pattern as well, and trying it out with my Bohemian fabrics first because I've never had the chance to make my own quilt with that range. I designed a diamond pattern quilt for Free Spirit, but one of their people put it together, as I was swamped with other product development at the time. So this is a treat. Speaking of treats, I can't wait until my Chocolate Lollipop cuts of fabric get here!! I will have the first of the yardage in January, but may be able to have some smaller cuts within a few weeks!!! Joy.

A final report from all members at the board meeting shall be forthcoming!

xo,AM

Pajama surprise

I know that you all have heard enough about Quilt Market by now from several people most likely. But a lingering detail of my trip arrived at my door yesterday. I left my pajamas in mine and Heather's hotel room and she sent them back to me. I don't even know why I had pajamas with me, considering we didn't sleep. Out of the kindness of her heart she couldn't send them back alone. She had to put something in with it. How cute are these little vintage buttons?! They're as cute as a...well a button. There they are sittin' on my jamas. And aren't those cute jamas?



Last spring when I was in New York, I was strolling through the Soho Anthropologie, and found that same print on plates. It was the exact same print. So funny. I love seeing prints pop up here and there. Oh and I also just got this invite in the mail yesterday! Same print! Weird, two things of the same print arrived in the mail yesterday. My friends will look at me so funny when I make a remark about their clothing or something in their house, and say "oh I have that print on a kitchen towel from a few years ago." You just store print data in your head after awhile. I am sure some of you do the same!



And speaking of, Amy Butler just posted a very informative letter to her fans on the Quilters Buzz about the process of creating a fabric collection by in part using vintage documentary prints of decades ago. It's a very valid and very effective way to create a beautiful overall collection. You should go read!

OH YEA!! And while you're there, today's Quilter's Buzz post is a little more visiting time with me and Heather. Lovin' that love! Thanks Gina!!

Stay in your pajamas all weekend!!! xoxox, Anna Maria

Drawing on the past

First, as a mom, let me say thanks. Your comments of encouragement for and to Juliana has kept her in the studio more, and inspired her greatly. Although she can barely fit in here because of her new head size. I am also fighting for real estate at the cutting table lately. Teasing of course, she is so flattered and surprised at all the fuss.



Watching her make and seeing her progress, had me thinking of what I was doing at her age. I knew very early I wanted to be an artist, never even considered anything else. When I was cleaning and reorganizing my studio several weeks ago, I found an envelope from my first college drawing class. I thought it would be nice to share.



Our assignement was to do pencil drawings of 12 specific objects...plant life, box, clothing, shoes, woodgrain, etc. I was 19 at the time and already pregnant with Juliana. I have always been a perfectionist and extremely self-critical. This is both good and bad when you're an artist. I actually wasn't very pleased with the outcome of my drawing assignment. I remember really stressing over them. I spent so much time reworking, staying up late, though my pregnant (and somewhat scared because of that) self was exhausted after long hours in studio classes and sore from sitting on those horrible wooden drawing horses. I saved the item on the drawing list that I thought would be my favorite for last...the clothing. Having spent so much time on the others, I never finished the last one. I was horrified.



Because I had a very strict teacher, my grade indeed suffered for being incomplete. I couldn't stand it. I felt I had failed.

I see these drawings with such different eyes today. I am so proud of them. I am so proud of the gone 19 yr old ambitious me. I want to go back and encourage myself like you all did for Juliana. Having gained discernment for design in the 15 years since that project, I see that the most interesting one is the one I didn't finish. The rest just did what they were told. That one was left in its beautiful yet to be realized state. I tend to throw symbolism around too much, but I liken that unfinished drawing to the unfinished me...leaving room for growth and for a new life, for my Juliana.

I always thought that I would finish that drawing, but so glad I didn't. In fact I bought some frames today to make an arrangement on my studio wall as a reminder not to be so hard on myself. And to look forward to what will fill in the empty spaces ahead.

Embrace your unfinished self!!!
xo,AM

Gray Day

Not one to be left out, my darling Juliana had her own spot in our weekend-long sewing spree. As I had mentioned here, she combs mags in search of inspiration. Though I may just be a very proud mommy, I dare say she has quite an eye for trend. She is really my main consultant on coolness factor these days. The endearing thing about her fashion sense is that she is smart enough even at 14 to translate inspiration into something appropriate for her and does not seem to dress for attention or conforming like so many girls her age. She just plain loves the process of making something herself or composing whats out there...where does she get that? Hmm.



Speaking of not looking for attention, she really sunk into the gray background we are experiencing outside in Tennessee today. We discussed the how the look of this dress is so old and so new. It's so farm and so city. If she'd carried a bucket with it it would look like she's on her way to the cows. But carrying this tote that she made all by herself (good girl) she looks like she's on her way to anywhere.



And she shares my appreciation of these prints. We both noticed how the orange flowers on gray pop like our fall trees against the sky. We both loved it. I offerred just a few hints here and there on the construction and she was quickly cutting, stitching, clipping, pinning and pressing with no pattern like her mommy.


Outside of her borrowing my favorite boots the look is totally her. Homemade. Comfortable. Sweet.

Hope your day is bright or at least a welcome gray where you are!!

xoox,AM

Playful Patches

Well if Friday was a busy cold coffee day, then today is a fun hot cocoa day. My little patchworks grew up to be cozy coats for my sweetiegirls. They were sooo excited, which says enough to me about the level of success here.



I will not lie, they took alot of time. The design and construction was pretty basic but the difficulty came in working with the thickness of the quilted material. I love, though, that I basically made the fabric, such a different experiece than just using one fabric to begin with.

Both of them are pieced with mine and Denyse's fabrics and I think they work so well together. When I was at the fabric store looking for the trim material, the women could not believe that I would dare cut into the patchwork. I tried to explain that I have no shortage of fabric to work with, but they were down right distressed. I should go share these photos with them.



Isabela's is a quirky multi-toned combination which suits her exuberant personality perfectly. Eleni's precious patches are sweet and bright...just like her. I used solid corduroy for trim. Using only two buttons at the empire height allows lots of room for swishing and tumbling. The ample crossover layering in the front keeps them warm through all the fun.



A few ironies to share in relation to cold coffee and towers of laundry. My coffee maker stopped working right after I had talked about how my coffee gets cold when I get excited about my work and I ignore it! Not one to be defeated, my husband, boiled water and manually poured it through the filter to secure our fix. My mom did what she does and went and bought me a new one. So we enjoyed watching the girls frolic with hot coffee in hand. The other irony is after all my rambling about my relationship with the laundry baboon, I spent the whole weekend working on two items to add to the pile. But they are of the colorful, more fun to fold sort.

Tomorrow an update on this.

xoox, Anna Maria

Cold Coffee Friday

So its only fair that I give you a more realistic photo of my life every now and then. And since today is the first day of the kids' fall break, realism is hitting me like a freight train.... a freight train with five monkeys aboard. In anticipation of my mom visiting this weekend, I darted here, there, and everywhere around the studio to tidy up, fold laundry, and prepare for a weekend of making. She's been in Greece with my dad for a few months so there is lots of making to catch up on! I did watch my step this time. Remember the last time I was quickly tidying up in the studio in anticipation of fun?



So this is what the studio bed looks like on a more typical basis. As much as I would like to romantically convey this nook to be a spot for resting my overworked creative mind, it truly is a laundry hub most of the time. Laundry is just one of those things that becomes a nightmare in this house of seven if you let it go too long. In a weird way, I don't mind it an awful lot...the folding party anyway, its the putting away I hate. I also figured out that I have a very low tolerance for folding whites....they're just so boring. My favorite, or least annoying, is folding the little girls' silly colorful duds. They're so much cuter than everything else and makes the whole chore easier to tolerate.

Main point here, just about the only reason I can get housework done, is to clear my mind and conscience so that I can get to something more fun. Leaving too much undone around the house, and instead working on a project, is sometimes like trying to ignore a smelly baboon tapping you on the shoulder as he clears his throat. Oh thats a weird analogy.

Anytime my mom comes to visit, it is a ceremonial given that we will spend the time either gardening, home-improving, sewing, knitting, crocheting, or shopping. The shopping would usually only be for whatever items we need to do all of the above. She is the single only other person on earth who will team with me in a decsion to repaint a living room on a whim starting at 9 in the evening.... or rebuild a staircase, until Jeff thinks I'm doing it wrong and he takes over (it's kind of this trick I play).

This weekend we have stacks of not only laundry but other projects lined up waiting for us. My Juliana has requested and adorable new frock, the style of which she keenly picked up on in Lucky magazine. The fabric and buttons are bought, we just need to measure her and get to work. We'll start with sketching out just exactly what she wants and then proceed to the part where she is convinced I'm screwing the whole thing up until its done and then she'll barely eeek out a prompted and obligatory "thaaank you mooom".

So getting back to the other conversations that were happening between this and this, there was so much chatter going on the the studio last night that I could barely hear over the fun. But it produced another playful patchwork that will also follow the same big plans as this one. Although, those big plans happen to be for some little people.



But grant the weekend for mom and I to realize these mini dreams, and I will share more next week!!

OH!! And why cold coffee?? Those are days in the studio when the mere enthusiasm of what I am doing makes me forget about the usually very necessary cup of coffee. Would make a good mocha milkshake later though, as we celebrate ourselves and our creations.
xoxo, Anna

Good Conversation

As mentioned yesterday, I was so pleased to meet with the best brains in the quilting industry while I was in Houston. I drank in all these different perspectives and came home drunk with inspiration. I also came home with some fun stacks of fat quarters. My favorite being Denyse's new colorway of Flea Market Fancy. I casually tossed them on the think table where they landed next to some of mine.



Last night, as I was about to go to bed, I walked by the table and noticed how the two groups had introduced themselves to each other. I had such nice conversations with Denyse in the Free Spirit booth and at dinner one night. Our fabrics were doing the same. And just like my all-nighter with Heather, Bohemian and Flea Market Fancy stayed up all night talking. I think the conversation is beautiful, don't you? I'm a little tired today after all the fun in the studio last night, but I have even bigger patchwork plans for this piece..stay tuned!

xoxo~AnnaMaria