I will try not to....

Wednesday, June 30, 2010
...only post stuff that I am putting in my Etsy shop. I just hate a good photo to go to waste. For the next week or so I will be posting stuff to the shop so most of my photo taking time will be wrapped up with that.
Here is my second offering:



Made with fabric from the "Nest" collection by Valori Wells and a bit of "Dill Blossom" from Kaufman.

Now I've Gone and Done it!

Tuesday, June 29, 2010
... well... I did it a few weeks ago actually. I opened an Etsy shop. There is nothing in it yet but I am going to remedy that tonight by posting this bag for sale:

This is how lovely that Brooklyn Heights Fabric looks made into something. So go enter my giveaway but hurry tomorrow is the last day.

Did you ever wonder why I have such a silly name for my blog? It is because at the time I was making jewelry (especially bracelets) and handbags more than I was quilting, hence "Arm Candy".


I am in the process of photographing more bags and my jewelry for inclusion in my shop. I hope to be making updates daily for the next week or two.




Mama's got a brand new bag!

Thursday, June 24, 2010
I know... so cliche...


Lot's of things to share and ... Finally!!!... the giveaway.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Hi Everyone,

Been super busy here. Our trip to Italy feels like it is sneaking up on me way too fast. I wanted to make some things for the girls (SILs and MIL) to take on the trip. I had been  promising my Dear MIL a new tote bag for summer. She loves warm tones and this Poppy fabric, by Laura Gunn, is perfect:



Then I wanted to make the Dear SILs some lingerie bags, so that the airport baggage handlers wouldn't handle our unmentionables :)



I put tiny little undies and bras on them (including lace on the top of the panties) ;P Aren't they cute??

Now the new project... Beth at Love Laugh Quilt wanted some company on a stripe project, so a few of us are playing along. This morning I thought I would take a pic of my stripes:



Then I thought I would just cut into one of them and make one block, to see how it would come out:




Oops, got a little carried away. Before I started the project I made up my mind that I wasn't going to tear my hair out if the miters didn't perfectly match up. I am glad, because they aren't perfect, but they are really cute. I think it is amazing how even the ones that I didn't think I would like came out so pretty. The rust and green fabric, I thought would be boring, but it isn't at all.



The one on the top left doesn't perfectly match in the center, but it isn't bad. The one in the lower left isn't wrong either. I am using Kaffe Fassett's Earthy Mitered Boxes (from Simple Shapes...) as an inspiration, and he has a few like this in the quilt. I am not sure if I like it, but I will make a few more... if they don't make the front they will work on the back.



See the rust and green is really nice!

Okay so now on to the important part.... I am giving away 6 coordinating fat quarters of Kitty Yoshida's newest fabric line "Brooklyn Heights". I know, it is gorgeous (perfect for a fall/winter handbag)!



You can get three entries by doing the following:

1. Leave a comment about anything you like here on my blog.
2. Blog about it on your blog.
3. Become a follower or tell me that you already are.

To get all three entries you will have to leave three seperate comments for me here. That's it... easy peasey... I will leave this open until next Wednesday (6/30) at midnight PST. Good luck!


Talk soon!

Erin's Quilt... finally!

Friday, June 18, 2010
Sorry I have been gone so long. I was on the big push to get Erin's quilt finished. I had the top done forever but was trying to get the backing fabric and batting sorted. I started it in September and finished the binding last night.


I worked on this in the mornings before she got up for school. I was trying to get it done for her Birthday... oh well 5 months late isn't too bad ;P


It came out even better than I had hoped and she loves it. Have I mentioned how picky she is? Now she can finally get rid of her purple butterfly quilt she has had since she was 5. Oh joy for a 12 (nearly 13) yr old.



I used the fabric above, "Sound Waves", as the inpiration for the quilting. I did random wavy lines all the way across the quilt. It only took me about 4 hrs to quilt it.

I haven't forgotten that I promised a give away (and I am a week late) but it will have to wait a little longer. I promise it is coming though so hang in there.

Talk soon...

What to do with leftovers from the Hexagon Quilt Along... a mini tutorial

Friday, June 4, 2010
Here is the block I made with some of my leftovers:



If you would like to make a block like this from your leftovers you can follow along here.

First take 12 of your leftover triangle hexie wedges and arrance them in a pleasing manner. To make the star put two of the long wedge pieces facing each other to make a diamond then make some more diamonds until you have six that go together in a nice design.

You will need to cut two 4 1/2 inch strips from your background fabric. I actually got almost all of it out of 1 strip. If you have a strip and a scrap, that you can cut one triangle out of, you can save on cutting the second strip.


Take one of your half hexies that is sewn together and use it as a pattern to cut a template. I used template plastic but you can just use paper if you want.


You will need 4 of these pieces for the block. This will go on your 4 1/2 inch strip. You can flip and cut just like you do with your triangles for the quilt along.


I like to use my ruler along the edge of the template so that I can rotary cut. Then cut 4 triangles from the strip and scrap/second strip. (Sorry no pic for that... just do it the same way you did for the quilt along)


Now lay out your rows. Here are rows 1 and 2.


Here are rows 3 and 4. Sew the rows together matching seams and ends.


When you are done it will look like this.

Lay your ruler on top of each of the sides and trim straight. Don't forget to make sure you have 1/4" seam allowance at the points.


TA DA! This would make a great quick bed size quilt. The block is 14x16 and being rectangle would be perfect for a twin size bed. I think it would be neat in Amish solids. Anyway.... hope you like.

You can find the tutorial for the quilt along as well as all of the amazing Julie's (Jaybird Quilts) tutorials here:

Psst. Come back next week for a give away.

The San Francisco Bay Area Modern Quilt Guild

Tuesday, June 1, 2010
We are trying to get the word out about the Modern Quilt Guild here in SF Bay Area. If you are interested in meeting with us and you are in the area please email me. Also we have sub-groups since we are widespread.

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