Milo & Moxie

I am so excited to share my new pattern with you! Say Hi to Milo and Moxie, Doxie Softies (Phew. Say that 5 times fast). Dachshunds are some of the cutest pups on the planet, and these two will look adorable on your little one's bed or shelf. They have 2 legs, so they do need help to stand, and join the ranks of my easier sewing patterns, perfect for beginners. The cute felt bone pattern is included.

You will love how quickly these guys sews up, so grab some felt, a pattern, your favorite prints, and get stitching!

Milo & Moxie are made with Spring Promise from Blend Fabrics.

Happy Stitching!

Kim

long time no see

It's been awfully quiet around these here parts, and I'm sorry about that. I'm working on several projects right now and they are mostly Top Secret so I haven't been able to share them just yet. But I can give you a sneak peak of my next pattern, which will be ready soon!

This is my sleepy doxie softie, and you can also expect to see a boy version. Both the softie and the bunting are made with the brand spanking new Spring Promise by Ana Davis. This collection is beautiful, it has a very Fairy Tale feeling and I only wish I had a little girl's room to decorate with these fabrics! Spring Promise is supposed to ship in May, so keep an eye out for it!

I will have more things to show you soon, but in the meantime, put this sweet pup on your To Do list, because I'll have this pattern ready for you within a few weeks, hooray!

Happy Stitching,

Kim

corrections and a tutorial

So you may have heard about this gorgeous book, Zakka Style. And I may have already mentioned that one of my projects is included. It was so much fun to be part of this book!

Well, you know how I am about making sure that my instructions are crystal clear so that anybody can follow them…I had already planned on doing a tutorial for the binding around the edge of my Patchwork Potholders, because this step can be a little tricky, but when I looked over the instructions in the book I realized that that those binding instructions do not work for this project. I’m very sorry for time anyone may have spent ripping seams or frustration that may have arisen from attempting the binding as directed. So, below you will find my instructions as originally intended, corrected and expanded, along with a photo tutorial.

Patchwork Potholder Binding Tutorial and Corrections

The short and sweet instructions for those of you who are experienced with binding quilts:
1. The binding for the pockets should be 2 1/2” wide before folding, sewn with a 3/8” seam allowance.
2. The binding for the potholder should be 3” wide and 30” long (cut on the bias), sewn with a 3/8” seam allowance.

The expanded instructions:
1. The binding for the pockets should be 2 1/2” wide, or 1 1/4” wide when folded once for single fold binding. (You can follow the instructions below for how to attach the binding on each set of pocket pieces, the seam allowances are the same. Put the pockets on the potholder before you sew the outside binding.)

2. For the outside edge of the potholder, cut a strip of linen that is 3” wide and 30” long, on the bias. I used a wider strip than you would for a quilt because all the layers that are inside the potholder, plus the pockets, require the binding to be a bit wider so that it will fit around the thickness.

3. Fold the binding in half lengthwise, wrong sides together, and press with a hot iron.

4. Using binding clips (or barrettes), clip the binding around the edge of the potholder, raw edges together. Mark where the strips overlap with a fabric pen.

5. Open the bottom strip so it is right side up. Open the top strip so that the right sides of the strips are together, placing the two strips perpendicular to each other as pictured, right next to the mark you made in Step 4. Make sure the binding is not twisted.

6. Carefully move your binding strip to your sewing machine and sew a diagonal seam from where you marked the edge of the binding, to the opposite corner.

7. Refold the binding and re-clip it around the potholder to make sure that you got the length right and that the strip isn’t twisted.

8. Open the binding strip, trim the seam allowance and press it open, then refold and press the binding.

9. Repin the binding to the potholder, raw edges together. Sew the binding to the potholder with a 3/8” seam allowance.

10. Fold the binding over the edge of the potholder and finish by hand with ladder stitches on the back (see the end of my Easter Egg tutorial for how to do this, it's a little tough to demonstrate this stitch with linen on linen!). My favorite tool for handstitching is my leather thimble (first photo), it really does make the job much more pleasant!

Also, I just found out that there will be a Zakka Style sew-along starting April 2, with different bloggers sewing each project from the book. So grab your copy today, and remember to sew along with Penny (aka sewtakeahike) starting June 25th when she makes my Patchwork Potholders!

Happy stitching!
Kim

P.S. The fabrics above are from Maude Asbury's Kitchy Kitchen collection for Blend. I am so smitten with these prints--keep an eye out for more projects with them!

P.P.S. Please let me know if you have any other questions that I could answer about this project!

Today's Specials

For all you felt (and dessert) lovers out there, I've added a few new items to the Retro Mama "menu", expanding my wool blend color palette to 40 colors!

Try the Lemon Chiffon (as seen in my new Spring Pastel collection, 4th color down, a soft buttery yellow)

Or maybe feast your tastebuds on Peachy Keen, Butternut, Hazelnut, Café Latté, Caramel, and Brown Sugar.

You can see all 40 colors on my new color card below (click for a larger image)

Several doll makers have requested skin colors, so I've also added a new doll sampler to the shop

I will be adding a handful of color cards to my shop for purchase, or you can make your own by downloading the PDF swatch card for free and assembling it as you purchase felts.

Bon appétit!
Kim

the big three oh oh oh

I always throw myself a little imaginary party when I hit a fun milestone, although I'd be lying if I didn't admit that actual Thin Mints were involved in my latest party. Apparently Indiana is a big Girl Scout state--you can't leave the house without running into a cookie stand outside of stores. Not that I'm complaining.

This week's celebration is because I have had over 3000 sales at Etsy! In addition to treating myself to a few cookies, I've allowed myself some much desired time to sew.

I'm frequently asked about fabrics for softies, so I'm always keeping a lookout for the "perfect" prints for my soft toys. It's not an easy task. I love bold, bright prints, but they are often so busy that the embroidered eyes get lost in the pattern. And finding cute fabrics for boys is a whole 'nother thing. But lo and behold, my friends at the brand-new Blend Fabrics sent over some gorgeous prints from this talented gal's Magic Garden collection, and they are indeed perfect.

See? {love}

Things are busy busy busy, and with about 15 projects in various stages of completion, I'm getting so anxious to show them to you guys! So I'd best get back to work sewing/drafting/writing, which is also an excellent excuse to catch up on some old-new favorite shows.

In the meantime, keep yourself busy by stocking up on patterns and felt during the last days of my spring sale! Use the code LEAP15 at checkout from my Etsy shop for 15% off your order through Thursday, 3/8. The patterns in my sidebar are pre-discounted.

Happy stitching!
Kim

Happy Almost Leap Day!

In celebration of Leap Day, and also because it's (sortofnearly) Spring and I want to give you a reason to jump into sewing, I'm having a

Use the code LEAP15 for 15% off all felt and patterns at my Etsy shop. The sale runs through Thursday 3/8/12. The patterns on my blog are already discounted, no need for a code. So...

Hoppy stitching!
Kim

love-ly day

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you're spending it with your sweetheart...

XOXOXO
Kim

A little winter sunshine

If you were wondering about my shop announcement last week, we just returned from gorgeous Florida! It isn't especially cold here in Indiana this winter, but it was still wonderful to get away from the unrelenting drizzle and enjoy sunshine, blue skies, and 70 degree weather. We embarked on our (now) annual family trek to Disney World, and again experienced amazing improvements from both of our kiddos. As you may remember, our boys are both autistic, and not only was this trip a vacation, it was also a year's worth of therapy crammed into a week. Entirely worth every sore muscle from pushing a 60 lb. kid around in a stroller all day.

The highlights:

Remembering to not step on the metal plate below this umbrella in order to avoid literally Singing in the Rain (Hollywood Studios)

Getting an earful from the 3 amigos that my clever husband called over to us just as I was opening a package of cookies. If you want to see Kim squeal and freak out, just watch what happens when birds approach her while she's holding food (long story short: picture an 11 year old Kim innocently eating french fries + a vicious pack of seagulls at Sea World. Yeah.)

The expression on this guy's face on the carrousel

The expression on this guy's face at the Primeval Whirl (I have just one word for this ride: Dramamine)

Ice cream cookie sandwich from Sleepy Hollow at the Magic Kingdom

And speaking of cramming, I have no idea how these guys all fit in one teacup. But the result? Best tea party ever.

If you're not a Disney nut like me, then thanks for humoring me with this post. If you are a Disney nut, then you'll definitely want to read this book for planning your next trip, and subscribe to Touring Plans if you are interested in finding less crowded dates to visit. And if you want to keep up-to-date on the new Fantasyland expansion, keep an eye on this website.

Happy stitching!
Kim

finding Bliss

It's been rough-going, attempting to emerge from my post-Christmas cookie haze. There hasn't been time to spend in my sewing room with the kids home from school (more on that later), and we've all been fighting cold after flu after gosh knows what other plagues the boys brought back with them from their vector school buddies. So it was with great joy that I discovered the Fat Quarter Shop had provided a great excuse to play with fabric without getting my (hopefully non-contagious by now) germs all over it.

I started with 2 gorgeous prints from Liz Scott's new Domestic Bliss line and expanded on her fab color scheme. Then added a dash of spring green--yummy! And, apparently, rather fashionable as well.

This is making me want to sew right now.

Go play with fabric!
Kim

Merry Happy New Year

2012 is approaching fast--get a fresh start on your New Year's crafting by stocking up on patterns and felt! Use promo code FRESH15 for 15% off your order at my Etsy shop now through Jan. 1. Patterns in my sidebar are already discounted, no code is necessry.

Happy Crafty Holidays!
Kim

P.S. Zakka Style is now available through Amazon (link in my sidebar)!