Baby shower block and Thangles

I get so much satisfaction from taking place in a group made quilt.  Some of my Verb friends are working on a little quilt for a new baby, so I got the opportunity to participate and make a block.

I decided to get SUPER fancy and use Thangles to put some half square triangles into the block. 

And wow, did I get fancy.  Maybe TOO fancy.  Ok, definitely too fancy.

Thangles are pretty cool - they are paper foundation base that you sew fabric to that helps you make half square triangles without wasting fabric.  I have used them before on several projects and find them to be pretty handy. 

They've been around for a long time and they come in different sizes so you can work them into whatever you are doing.  I used 3/4" finished size.

The fabrics I choose to use for the thangles are awesome and beautiful (and Japanese of course), and even look pretty good together until you attach them to each other and eat up seam allowance.

Once you actually sew them into the block, the fabrics need to be significantly different from each other, and also relatively un-busy in pattern.

I'll have to show the final block, but it turned out that my fabrics were too busy to really stand out. 

Live and learn. 

Liesl by CoCo Knits: a sweater just in time for fall, and a lesson on what not to say to a woman

I finally finished knitting a sweater for myself, just in time for autumn.

The pattern is by Julie Weisenberger of Coco Knits and is called Liesl.

I used natural dyed sock yarn (super wash Merino) in the Octavia colorway by Verb.

Knitting this sweater was EXTREMELY enjoyable.  Even as somebody who doesn't really know how to knit, it was a piece of cake and I loved every last stitch of it. 

This is the first full sized knit garment I have made for an adult.

When the top of the tank was finally sewn together, I modeled it for my sons and said, "What do you think of this new sweater that I knit?"

The three year old looked up at me with his beautiful blue eyes and said:

 "Oh Mommy I really like it...you look like you have a baby in your belly!"

Alrightythen. 

I'm trying to be objective here (maybe I knit it, so I'm biased?)  I don't think it makes me look any bigger than I am.  Judge for yourself on my project page on ravelry if you dare to see the full photo.  Pls note that I AM NOT pregnant.

We did proceed to have that conversation that stems on the central concept that you should not imply that a woman might be pregnant unless you see an actual dangling head sticking out.

Sigh...I hope he learns a thing or two about women along the way, if only for the sake of my wanting grandchildren in another 30 years.

Handmade Tooth Fairy Pillow

It's rare that I have a true 'sewing emergency' but we had two this week.  

The first one happened when I realized my son was out of clean school uniform shorts which caused me to quickly convert a pair of his old pants from last year.  It's still roasting hot here.

The second one came yesterday morning when he said, "Mommy, my front tooth hurts, and it wiggles!"  Oh my goodness, I haven't made him a tooth fairy pillow yet and the big event is coming soon!!

I have been waiting for this happy day since the moment I became a parent.  I was so filled with maternal pride the day his first baby tooth made it through his gummy smile. 

I am even more thrilled now that he is on the verge of a visit from the tooth fairy.

You could of course buy a tooth fairy pillow, but I have been looking forward to making one for so long that it was a real treat to actually sit down and sew it together. 

There's a pocket for the tooth, and the first initial of his first name on the pocket.  I used embroidery floss to give the little tooth a face.  All the fabrics are hand dyed felted wool.  The handle on top is PurlSoho's Linen Ribbon (a dream to work with, really).

We have been reading a couple of books in anticipation of this happy day:

The Tooth Book by Theo Lesieg - a real classic, even reminds you not to bite your dentist.

My Milk Toof by Inhae Lee - our overall favorite book right now.  Just hilarious, well done, awesome photos, entertaining for both kids and adults.  I must have in your children's library.

One final word of wisdom that will make my dad smile, and you groan:  (apologies and advance)

Be true to your teeth or they'll be false to you!

Harvest Season

This year our harvest has been bountiful.

I'm not a huge fan of store-bought tomatoes, but I can eat the home grown version like they are going out of style. 

My sons do all the work in the garden so each and every fruit that comes out of there is like a little trophy proving that they did something right and that their hard work and dedication is putting dinner on the table in a delicious way. 

We usually grow heirloom tomatoes, but didn't have the time to start my favorite variety (Marianna's Peace) from seed this year.  We ended up with an interesting collection of various kinds though and they all worked out quite well.

I've been working on another class sample for a paper piecing class, so keeping busy with my sewing machine in the evenings.  It looks really cute so far.  Paper piecing is one of my favorite methods of quilting.  No guess work, no oops - my points don't match, just 100% perfect every time. 

Heaven on earth for this little control freak!

Speaking of paper piecing, I am itching to do a few blocks from this now out of print book by Shirley Liby called "Paper Pieced Sea and Shore".  Have you seen her books? 

It seems like they were all published some time ago (mid 1990's), but I really want to get my hands on all of them.  If you have some of these little gems taking up shelf space in your quilt studio and you're looking to find them a good home...look no more!  I'll adopt them!

Quilted Ornaments

On Sunday, November 20th, I'll be teaching a class on making patchwork ball ornaments at A Verb for Keeping Warm.

I just finished this adorable little class sample and couldn't wait to share a photo of it for you. 

For those of you who live in Northern California, I would love to meet you in class.  These make the cutest little gifts and you can whip them up in no time.  I'm also going to discuss inking on fabric techniques in class too, so that will be an added bonus.

Enrollment is now open!

Hope that your weekend has allowed you some time for sewing.

Japanese Taupe Fabric: where to get it

Above is a photo of my son's 3 yr old signature quilt block with well wishes from family and friends.  The '3' is appliqued down and the fabric is Daiwabo yarn dyed.  It's got a thick weave but I didn't have a super hard time working with it.

It's not easy to get Japanese Taupe fabric if you are marooned here in the US (or other countries, for that matter) as opposed to those lucky ones that actually live in Japan.

The  quilt shop that I teach at has a small but growing collection of Japanese taupes which is great, but if you don't live in Oakland, California....there is a fresh option out there online.

One World Fabrics is the new kid on the block with some very interesting Japanese taupe fabrics - both prints and yarn dyed. 

You can see their entire collection here - lots to choose from.  The owner, Steven, also has an interesting blog with a focus on Japanese quilting.

Steven is kind enough to read my blog, and has created a coupon code for readers of Quilt Otaku.  If you are like me, and cannot resist picking up just a couple more pieces of taupe fabric (or a boat load of them!) you can use the coupon code "otaku15" to get 15% off your first order between now and Dec 31, 2011.

If that isn't a green light to start holiday shopping for yourself, I don't know what is.

I haven't ordered yet, but I am thinking I may need to pick up a few things...I'm a HUGE sucker for the yarn dyed fabrics - especially love this one - and they really are hard to get your hands on.  One World's prices for these sorts of fabrics are also below what I've usually seen, so that is nice too.

Thanks for your cool offer Steven, and best of luck launching your new taupe-a-licious shop!

Birthday Quilt Block

The kid birthday extravaganza has finally drawn to a close.

I for one will miss this time of the year.  As soon as it's over I feel a small twinge of relief as the prep and execution is complete but there is a big swell of sadness as it really is my most favorite couple days of the year.

We had a gathering for some of the boy's school friends at the ice rink, and even some tiny 2-yr-olds got out there and scooted around on the ice.  It was magical.  My older son decided he can now skate without leaning on the 5 gallon buckets or clinging on the side of the wall.  I was so proud.

All four grandparents were present and accounted for which was the icing on the cake of the entire event.

I made birthday signature blocks for them and will be adding them to the collection of blocks.  On their 16th birthday I'll turn them all into a quilt to enjoy the history of all the celebrations of the past.  I like to use a black size 05 pigma pen for the inking, and I iron on some freezer paper to the back for added stability.

The kids to came to the party were sent home with handmade goodie bags.  I was so rushed to get everything together I didn't get a good photo of all 20+ of them together, but I will have to show them to you anyhow in a future post.

Birthday Signature Quilt - more blocks

Getting ready for more birthdays around here.  My sons' back to back parties are just around the corner.  I'm digging up their birthday signature blocks, prep'ing new ones, and gearing up for some serious boy party fun.

Let the cupcakes roll!

I decided to made handmade goodie bag pouches to put the little party favors in.  Crazy?  Perhaps.  I did finish them all up tonight, so I'm feeling quite pleased. 

Quilt blocks from past years are out on my bed in the photo.  The set on the left of obviously the older one's blocks.  I used hand dyed fabrics from Primrose Gradations (a company that unfortunately doesn't exist anymore) for the applique numbers.  For the blocks on the right, I'm using Daiwabo Japanese yarn dyed fabrics.

Long weekend R&R

This 3 day weekend was really restful and more or less spent with my boys.

A couple of weeks back we had silhouette artist Karl Johnson create cut-outs of our boys, and I'm really happy with the results.  It was fun to have them done in person and the cut outs do look like them.

This weekend I did a small bit of quilting, a bunch of spinning (which I will need to elaborate on in my next post) and a LOT of eating. 

I try not to put a bunch of food photos up on my blog because when I'm surfing out there looking for cool crafty inspiration the last thing on earth I want to do is get hungry.  I may have to share my recipe for ratatouille with you.  We have so many veggies coming out of the garden right now, it was an awesome way to eat them up and only makes a single dirty pot.  Interested? 

Hope your weekend was awesome.

Oh and if you haven't smelled the flowers above yet, they are Chocolate Cosmos and yes they really do smell like chocolate!

The F Word

Yesterday afternoon my son came home from first grade and said, "Mommy, there are some naughty kids in my school that say bad words.  They even say the F-word!".

I, of course, was shocked since after all this is only first grade.  In my mind I am already wondering if I need to transfer him from public school to to a Christian school or become the room volunteer mom or someting in order to figure out what is going on.  You know I'm always up for a little PANIC!!!

I took a deep breath and asked, "Honey, what is the F-word anyhow?  Can you tell me what it is that we are talking about here?"

He was reluctant to share it with me because it is "soooo baaaaad" but he eventually said in a very quiet voice:  "Fart!"

I did not burst out laughing because in our house we say 'fluff' instead of that other ugly word.

Whew, bullet dodged, at least for now.

The photo above is my little man, complete with Mommy Baby Monster dolls that I made to match his PJ's.  They are his #1 favorite stuffed animal right now (score one for me!).

Recovering right along

Well, my fingers have finally recovered from posting such a GIANT blog post last time about all my Yoko Saito books. Thanks to those of you who actually made it through and appreciated it...you are hard core!

I managed to finish my first full sized adult knitted garment recently - it's the Liesl pattern by Coco Knits. It was very mindless, even for me, a pretty much non-knitter. I have to figure out how to seam it and then get on to blocking so I can impress my knitting friends by showing them that I actually knit something (finally!). Maybe I'll model it for you sometime soon. Perhaps I would freak you out by appearing on my own blog ala Martha Stewart.

I have also been working on some applique signature blocks for my up-coming son's birthdays. I even slipped in a block for my sister's girl since my sister is on the busy side these days with her new baby. Something tells me I may end up doing them for her even when she doesn't have a new baby, but I will confess I enjoy it so it's all good.

Last week we lost the father of a dear family friend, so I'm posting a photo of some flowers above in his honor to cheer up those who have had a very sad week. The green flowers are called 'green trick'. I found them to be quite unusual and really pretty. My kids said they think they look like grass. Here's to recovering right along as best we can.

New classes, modern house quilt blocks, and A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 9 - final (陽子斉藤)

Well, for those of you who guessed that I couldn't last that long doing a post every single day...you were right. I am WAY too busy for that sort of thing. What was I ever thinking?!

Ok so enough with the Yoko A Day, I'm done, I'm throwing in the towel. It was fun while it lasted, but jeez I just cannot do a post every day.

At the end of this post I'm including info on all the other books Yoko Saito has ever written, that I know of, that I own. There is one more out there that I don't own yet, but...I have the feeling that ugly little situation may not continue for long. If you know of the existance a book by Yoko Saito that I haven't listed in a recent post, pls do let me know so I can look into that.

In other news, I am teaching a few new classes up at A Verb For Keeping Warm. (yeah!) The first one is a machine quilt-along this coming Sunday, where folks can join and work on their in-progress projects. I am also booked for teaching some introduction to quilting classes in October. Join us if you live locally, it will be good fun.

We will be working on more applique this Sunday at Verb in the modern house applique class too. I'm using Japanese Taupe fabrics in the block this month again, as you can tell in the block above.

On to the final info about Yoko Saito Books: (if you seriously read the rest of this, I give you a gold star)
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Yoko Saito: 9th book review

Title: (unfortunately, your guess is better than mine on this one, could not figure it out although there is some more info here...I'll bet that Julie knows!!)

ISBN: 978-4-14-031126-4

Summary: Items are made out of triangle and square pieces. Projects in this book are not super complex, and there is not a lot of applique. That said, this is probably the best of all her books in terms of showing you methods used for hand piecing, and tools used. Photos are great so you can really understand what is going on (even w/ zero understanding of Japanese - trust me on this, I should know).

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Yoko Saito: 10th book review


Title: From American Patchwork Bed Quilts to Bags
ISBN: 4-14-031079-0

Summary: Small bags, and bed quilts, as the title says, but also backpacks. My favorite project is the bed quilt on p.43 called Farmer's Bowknot which is a signature quilt. Nice photos of how to make applique grapes on p.59.

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Yoko Saito: 11th book review



Title: Free Patterns (I think?)
ISBN: 4-579-11080-3

Summary: You know I love applique, and this book is really full of it. If applique is not your cup of tea, feel free to skip this one. For me, the photos are amazing, the projects are stunning, and I could see myself easily making each and every last one of them. Bags, small quilts, sewing box on p.22 is amazing, this is probably the most beautiful of all her books. Usage of french knots, just amazing.
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Yoko Saito: 12th book review


Title: 138 Original Applique Designs by Yoko Saito
ISBN: 978-4-529-04331-1

Summary: This is the other book that she has written that I would give 'MUST HAVE' status to, and it is in my top 5 list of favorite quilt books. These tiny block patters include botanicals, halloween, more robots, a portrait of Mozart (wow), another alphabet (yeah!), and a myriad of other adorable blocks. This one is worth the bookshelf space.
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Yoko Saito: 13th book review



Title:Study Book for Taupe Color
ISBN:978-4-86322-130-7

Summary: This book is limited to bags with a mix of applique and pieced quilting in different projects. I believe there is some extensive discussion around which taupe colors go well with other ones, but since my Japanese reading skills are lacking, this is a slightly less valuable book to somebody like me. It's still beautiful though and some of the bag patterns could easily be turned into wall hangings or quilts.
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Yoko Saito: 14th book review



Title: Walking the Green Quilt (??Seriously? don't trust me on this title please!)
ISBN: 978-4-14-031160-8

Summary: This book is a compilation of blocks that were released monthly in a Japanese Woman's magazine put out by NHK. It is really a handy place to have them all together in this book. These patterns are all botinicals, applique, and pretty detailed. Not for the faint of heart!
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Yoko Saito: 15th book review


Title: 120 Original Embroidery Designs by Yoko Saito
ISBN: 978-4-529-04653-4

Summary: Ok ok, I know I said that there were only 2 'must have' books, but if I could squeeze a 3rd one it, this would be it. I am not a huge fan of embroidery but there is a god mix of applique in here too (and thank goodness, also another alphabet). If you love embroidery, this book is for you. If you don't, it might not be your favorite book, but where else can you find an embroidery pattern for an ant farm?!
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Yoko Saito: 16th book review


Title: Yoko Saito's Scandinavian Quilts
ISBN:978-4-14-031153-0

Summary: Quilt designs inspired by Scandinavia - need I say more? Bags and small household items mostly. Lots of applique.
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Yoko Saito: 17th book review


Title: Patchwork Lessons
ISBN: 4-579-10697-0

Summary: Small projects, bags, and even a larger sawtooth star quilt on p.73 that looks like it would be fun to make. lots of great photos of 'how to' quilting techniques.
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Yoko Saito: 18th book review


Title: Patchwork Lessons 2
ISBN: 4-579-10759-4

Summary: Of her Lesson(s) books, this is my favorite one. The photos are beautiful, and there are some very detailed projects. My favorites are the acorn pillow on p.55, and the insane pine burr feathered star on p.77.
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Yoko Saito: 19th book review


Title: Patchwork Lessons 3
ISBN: 978-4-579-10892-3

Summary: small projects, bags, some applique, lots of embroidery. Best project here is probably p.53 - applique whale bag.
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Yoko Saito: 20th book review


Title: Patchwork Lesson
ISBN: 978-579-11174-9

Summary: Mostly hand piecing with a small amount of applique. Good technique photos including working with zippers, cute laundry line applique on p.35.
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Ok, DONE!

Whump! Marisa thuds on the floor from exhaustion after finishing 20 book reports and breaking all records of her longest blog post ever (after 580 posts, you would think I might have learned some self control, apparently not).

The crowd cheers with a standing ovation for the most complete list of Yoko Saito books ever mentioned on the entire internet! I wonder if Yoko Saito herself remembers writing all these books.

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 8 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Daily Quilt
ISBN: 978-4-529-04780-7

Summary: small bags, mostly with applique on them, small quilts, medium quilts - some pieced, some with applique. wall hangings, spools quilt, holiday items...some of the items look similar to projects published in day 5 of my posting about Ms. Saito's books. Cream Corn quilt on p.30 is probably my favorite thing in this book. My copy is signed by Yoko Saito herself, due to a generous blog reader. How special is that!

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 7 (陽子斉藤)

Title: 156 Original Patchwork Designs by Yoko Saito
ISBN: 4-529-04188-3

Summary: Let me start by saying that there are 2 Yoko Saito books that you MUST have in your library, and this is one of those two. This includes 156 block patterns that you will find to be unique, beautiful, and if you're anything like me, you may get the urge to make every last one of them. Some of the blocks you may have seen before, but most are quite unique. She does assemble some of the blocks into small zipper bags. P51 has the coolest little robot I've ever seen on it complete with propeller on top of his head. There are animals, bugs, botanicals, geometric designs, stars, another pieced alphabet (yeah!!!). If you don't have this book, please do yourself and huge favor and get a copy. It's going to be WELL worth your bookshelf space. I hate to pick favorites, but this is in my top 5 quilt books of all time.

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 6 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Yoko Saito and Kids (I think?, your guess is probably as good as mine on this one!)
ISBN: 978-4-86322-084-3

Summary: Super cute kids quilts, including another alphabet quilt (my fav!), a log cabin baby quilt, Jack and the Beanstalk applique kids quilt, some redwork, on p.21, my favorite kids quilt by Ms. Saito - it has trees, houses, but an awesome road that you could use to run your toys all along. I have had several requests in my household to make this quilt. Mobile, backpack, kids hat, paper pieced ducky, place mat, bibs, p48 has instructions for this block that has 4 pieces in it...an unusual block but a very pretty one. I would consider paper piecing this (of course Ms. Saito hand pieces it).

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 5 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Patchwork of 1, 2, and 3 Patch Blocks

ISBN: 4-529-02567-5

Summary: Like the title says, these patterns are pretty simple. They are made from blocks in 1 shape (like 9 patches) or 2 shapes (as seen on the cover above) and even a few projects have 3 different shapes the pattern. Lots of little zipper bags, pretty much the cutest stuffed elephant you've ever seen on p32, adorable 'spools' pattern sewing pouch on p.35, pin cushion, doll quilts on p. 29, place mats, table cloth, full sized bed quilts, crib quilt...TONS of projects here. This book is older (1995) so finding it out in the wild might not be an easy task.

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 4 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Happy Patchwork
ISBN: 4-14-031112-6

Summary: Pieced alphabet (LOVE alphabets!) stars on quilts, feathered stars, small needle cases, little bags, adorable dogs and bees from what looks like to be a mix of applique and hand piecing on p.21, applique flower baskets p33, super silly and perhaps best yet Halloween quilt p36, wedding ring quilts (stunning).

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 3 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Small Quilt
ISBN: 4-529-03935-8

Summary: Includes some wool applique projects, a small quilt with star motifs (p 42. so beautiful!) usage of a zillion french knots in the border of a quilt of p. 40-41 (WOW!), small zipper bags, my favorite key ring holder cover on p33 in the shape of a small house, a wallet, a tape measure cover that looks like a dog, an adorable little zipper bag with tee pees on it...this book is certainly all over the map with lots of different projects, but well worth the addition to your library.

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 2 (陽子斉藤)

Title: Houses, houses, houses
ISBN: 4-14-031131-2

Summary: Patterns include large quilts, bags of various sizes, pillows, tons of house blocks, small amounts of embroidery here and there that is very tasteful. My favorites are the bag that includes a tree on p.12 and the placemats that include houses on p.28.

A Yoko A Day: Yoko Saito Quilt books - day 1 (陽子斉藤)

They say that an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

At the end of the summer, what could I do to spice things up and get out of the back to school funk?

How about kicking off 'A Yoko A Day'!

For the next (insert a number here) days, I'll be posting a daily blog post about a quilt book that Yoko Saito has written.

I'll be including the ISBN, and a brief summary about topics covered.

Think I can continue this for the rest of August? How many of her books do you think I have? Will I make it into Sept? Guesses out there hot shots?

Woo hoo...here we go!

Title: Basket Made From Cloth
ISBN: 978-4-579-11275-3

Summary:This book is basically about small quilted bags with a couple of small quilts, one medium sized quilt, and other small items like a needle holder and sort of a sewing box. The book includes a very large fold out pattern in the back with applique designs that are very pretty and could be used basically for any project. The handbag on p.19 is probably my favorite project, just stunning.