i need an update

liberty, liberty, liberty! from sewing room birmingham

those of you who come here to read but don't comment, that's totally fine by me! you're welcome in this space. i'm past the point of needing feedback here, although i still really enjoy it when it happens. those that do comment, i'm having some difficulties with replies these days. read on. i'll throw in some gratuitous photos of what i stashed in 2024 as eye candy, but mostly i have some questions for you today.

blog friends, i am sorely out of date when it comes to blogging tech. gone are the days when i knew what was what and kept up on the latest happenings in the blogger world. it's not my platform anymore and my know-how has disappeared. i just pop in here to make my posts like i always have, but i am completely out of touch with other bloggers. i do all my (limited) quilt socializing on instagram and know a bit about the ebbs and flows there. true confessions - jolene at blue elephant stitches and rachel at stitched in color are the only blogs i occasionally read anymore. but i am having a renewed interest in blogs lately and it seems hard to find them or connect.

heather ross and low-volumes from nova quilts

there are still about 100 people subscribed to this blog (whatever that means or how it works anymore, i don't know). my posts' stats tell me posts get anywhere from 60-100 visits, on average. i have one regular commenter (hi, julierose!) and a few other random ones. this is a big change from my early blogging days, pre-instagram. i'm saying all this because although my purposes for blogging have changed, i do recognize there is a very small audience here and that is meaningful to me. if you do me the honor of a comment, i sincerely appreciate it and want to reply. 

i'm having problems with the reply these days and since i'm so out of touch, i no longer know how to fix it. here's the deal - all the comments i've received lately (which still get delivered to me via email) have come listed as no-reply blogger comments, meaning i can't send them an email reply. once apon a time, i knew how to fix this for them, but i'm starting to think it's now a problem on my end and i have no clue what to do! the fixes i know are outdated by more than a decade.

find me cosmo japanese fabrics from cottage couture fabrics

then earlier today i went to the profile of a commenter (kathy s) and connected to her blog, but when i left a comment, it published me as anonymous even though i logged in to my google account. i'm so confused! and i don't know how to fix any of this so that i can reconnect to readers or other bloggers.

heather bailey's new collection "wild abandon"

i'm also really curious how people are getting here. i know bloglovin' isn't a thing anymore, so how are people subscribed here? i put the widget up myself, but i no longer remember what that's all about! so how are the rest of you that are still active in the blog world still finding and staying updated with blogs? 

you other bloggers, what's your experience like - are your readers your same old circles or are new people getting involved? do you interact much with readers? i'm so curious. once apon a time, when blogging was the main format for connecting, things were so interactive and different for me. now that i have a renewed interest in blogging as my instagram experience is loosing favor, i wonder what's going on here anymore. please share!

good habits

sewing isn't all just sitting at the machine and zipping fabrics through.

there are maintenance chores to be done on a sewing machine to keep it in good running order and little clean ups constantly needed to maintain a creative space one can actually move around in.

i have developed at least one good machine maintenance habit: i clean out the lint regularly.

i don't change needles often enough or oil the machine as much as i probably should, but i do have a habit of swiping out all the lint each time i change the bobbin. i keep the lint brush close by and use it whenever i have the bobbin case open.

what are your best and worse habits?
how do you make them part of your sewing routine?

quilting sightings and stuff

since enjoying the success of this green pitcher as a thread catcher, i've acquired a bit more inexpensive pottery bits at marshall's to dress up and organize my sewing area: the other pot i am using for spools, the top-most yellow bowl is pieces for my machine, the leaf plate has my binding pincushion (i've been using it for a pincushion since i haven't made one yet) and various pins, there's a small flower bowl for floss, and the yellow bowl at the bottom is for any bits i need for whatever project i have on the machine at the time. form and function here, folks.

since it's summer, i've dug out my headbands and worn them a bit. i really wanted to wear one to dress up my striped tee the other day. somehow i convinced myself that the yellow and pink headband coordinated with the neon orange tee! can you believe it. not even close, is it? really, in my half-dark bathroom it looked similar. but with my hair covering most of the band, only that completely unmatching pink rose showed. i am strange on occasion, it's true. my kids would be right to challenge my fashion sense here.

quilt sightings:

 d#1 taking a sunday nap with the abbey lane diamond quilt.

d#2 curled up with "out on a limb" for a judy blume read. cozy!

those family room quilts are starting to see a lot of real use. hurray! the kids finally seem to realize they're there and for their use.

banner update #2

my blog banner was feeling too cluttered so i updated it. once again i have traded sewing time for blog time. i guess blogging is a hobby, too, but somehow i always feel cheated when i give too much time to it. anywho, i thought i'd explain the new banner because i did put a lot of thought into the selections.

starting on the left.

the title block is a photo of my very most favorite ever print, meadow dot in mint from sandi henderson's meadowsweet2 collection for micheal miller fabrics. sadly, it is out of print now and although i have already used it in a number of projects i find i am not yet tired of it and craving more. but i can't find it anywhere. and i've looked. this search led me to a new friendship and something else super special, but i'll explain that later. (lucy, you angel!) so if you or anyone you know has even scraps of this fabric, please contact me. i'll pay handsomely.

in the photo, the very most favorite fabric ever is featured in a 4sq blanket, sort of a specialty of mine. you can see a gallery of 4sqs i've made and find a detailed tutorial for them on my 4 square baby blanket page (here). it's perfect for beginners or just a quick baby gift.

moving right.

the top photo in the second column is a little dolly quilt i finished last week. it's my first ever fmq project. you can read about it here.

this banner contains a lot of "first" and "favorite" and "ever"s.

but not the next photo, bottom photo in the second column.
this is a 4sq i made for my friend becca's baby boy last year.
it was my 16th 4sq and becca's 4th baby, 2nd boy.
but the grey dot flannel on the back from robert kauffman is my favorite ever backing to use, so i guess i squeezed an "ever" in there.










moving center.

the wildly scrappy quilt hanging from a tree, "out on a limb", is my first ever pattern i designed and made myself. (huh, i just realized the photo styling is a pun on the name. i did not realize that before. cool beans.)

well, actually, i guess i did make up the "six and one half dozen" pattern first, but not exactly. i just kind of made that up as i went.

 "out on a limb" is the first quilt i sketched out on paper and did all the math to plan. i'm rather attached to it. i named the pattern "cinched" and hope to someday make it again, along with a tutorial for it.



heading right again.

 top photo, 4th column
daughter #4 holding some fat quarter selections she made two summers ago.
they have yet to be made into anything, dang it. if i recall correctly, they were to be a doll blanket.

i included this photo because it shows one of my kids and sewing with my kids/their sewing is a part of what this blog is about.

also, i liked the green, which fits my color scheme for the blog. win/win.



middle photo, 4th column
daughter #1 modelling a sunday hostess apron i made from heather ross's excellent book, weekend sewing. not the first time i did this pattern, but the first time i accidentally sewed with the fabric upside down. to balance out my gaff, it was also the first time i thought (all on my own!) to move the needle to the far right position to allow me to get super close to the edge while sewing.

next time i photograph an apron, i'm going to include props like a wooden spoon and a mixing bowl. that'd be fun.

bottom photo, 4th column
the very first thing i ever sewed as an adult when i decided to get into sewing: a headband. my seesters and i made a bunch at our family's annual girls weekend in 2010. you can read about that and how my sewing journey began here.



a little more right.
fifth column
i've ventured out into half square triangles (hst's) this year. it's a big move for me.
i've even made tutorials to show two methods of creating them.
you can see them here and here.

also, i thoroughly enjoy chain piecing. whenever i pull it off the machine it reminds me of bunting and i always take pictures of it. some are pretty goofy. this one's not too bad.
having my daughter hold the "bunting" was a much better choice than hanging it from the chandelier. mercy.




far right.
final photo
this group of fabrics is my first ever fabric purchase, the beginnings of my now sizable hoard stash.

interestingly enough, it's mostly heather bailey and sandi henderson, who continue to be my favorite designers. it also includes some script prints, which i've recently taken a liking to, also.

since i never broke into this pile, i'm looking for a project that will feature all of them.
i think that'd be a pretty awesome quilt.

so that's my new, slightly less cluttered looking banner.
it's kind of a patchwork of my sewing experience, isn't it?

what a junkie

this photo is to taunt liz and encourage her in our naughty purchase habits

so i've been acting like a total fabric/quilting junkie for the last few days. my mr. accompanied our eldest son on a scout campout (what an awesome dad!) and i took full advantage of his absence to do my thing as much as i pleased.

day one, i congratulated myself on taking the kids to swim lessons clear across town (normally his job) and feeding them two wonderful meals (they got breakfast themselves). this completely justified putting the little ones in front of the tv on a not-tv day so i could sew and staying up too late exploring quilty blogland. all-in-all, i felt pretty balanced. but i also woke-up with a sewing/computer hangover.

day two, i fed myself spiritually as i tried to overcome the hangover. i think i was dehydrated. and my poor hands and arms were leaning toward tendinitis. so i made my mom give me an in-depth arm/hand massage when she came over. then i proceeded with my plans to do nothing but sew and sew some more.

however, when i approached my nice, concealed dining room crafting spot, i realized it wasn't so . . . nice . . . or concealed. my, that happens fast!

 yes, it was a room full of rubbish. i knew something needed to be done before i could sew in it. there were several projects lounging around in store bags and other miscellaneous, non-sewing items on the table. i decided to head to joann, etc to fetch some more project bins and the floss i needed to finish off my nephew's 4sq blanket. and return some decor items that didn't work out at marshall's next door while i was at it. this was very ambitious of me.

however, i was not ambitious enough to change clothes to do it. that was above and beyond what was required. so i went in my pjs: a nice white t-shirt and grey yoga pants. it didn't totally scream "she's in her pajamas!", thus it was acceptable to me. i slipped on my sporty comfy mom shoes to complete the outfit. i considered quickly tying a scarf around my neck but figured that would totally give me away as trying to look like i'd made some efforts at grooming when i hadn't. i'd share a picture, but it was still too scary a sight to post on a blog dedicated to pretty sewing stuff. just imagine, if you will.

i was so good at both stores. no purchases beyond those i went for. i think i was blessed to not be attracted to any items i didn't need because i can't explain it otherwise. i was drawn to a few new craft books, but refrained, knowing i could get them cheaper online. to be perfectly honest, i did also snag this:

i have a sometimes crush on mollie makes, a british crafting mag. sometimes it's too kitschy for me. this issue was perfect. i knew daughter #1 would love the doggie finger puppets. so it went in the basket, too. other than that, i stuck to the plan: returns (money back?!), project bins, floss. period.

okay, quick sidetrack here: while i was looking up the link to the mag, look what i spied on their site.

 aren't these ladies adorable? they are a new betty doll to be featured in the next issue. i guess i better keep my eyes open for it. too cute.

so i went to the store in my pjs and was a conservative shopper.

and when i got home, a neat little square package from fabric.com was sitting on my doorstep.

repeat of opening photo for reference

last week, for some really good reason i can't remember at all now, i went on fabric.com and saw a holiday weekend coupon. and i made a selection of (stacks, l to r) amy butler, some botanical and handscript prints, valori wells's "caravan", and some of anna maria horner's "loulouthi" and "field study" lines. i also got that mod orange print just for the heck of it. my favorite print, i think is the amy butler butterfly from the "alchemy" collection (on top). i think the idea i had for most of this was to make something similar to rachel (stitched in color) 's colorbrick quilt, with some modifications of my own, of course. i want to do a combo of bricks and strips. it's sketched out already in my notebook.

it was completely naughty, i know. admittedly, i'm a total junkie. my main problem, as i see it, is that my mind creates far faster than my poor little hands can. it's years ahead of the digits. if i could just make the quilts as quickly as i could design them and purchase the goods, all would be well.

back to my good deeds for the day.
i sorted that new box of fabric and got to work on the "hidden" dining room craft elements.

 i made a new basket for my fmq items. when i tried to photograph it, my bestest little sewing helper stepped in to offer her assistance. i look forward to the day she learns the skill of "putting back" in addition to "taking out." i threw my lens cap out of reach, pointing it out to her. that did the trick. she can't stand it to be off the camera.

 with her out of the way just long enough, i could properly photograph the contents of the basket: scratch paper for doodling practice, books, supreme slider, quilting needles, fm foot, some aurafil thread i've been meaning to try. everything in one spot for my next adventure.

 i put those new project bins to use and cleaned up the old ones. this stack more or less represents all the projects i've got going or plan to start soon. there are also a few that are just sorting of various kinds.

after slaving away for hours (or maybe just one), i got the room back into acceptable order. it still doesn't look like someones nice dining room, but neither does it resemble a crafting heap, either. much better.

scrap sorting and inspiration

 

every sewer has scraps. many people save some of the large pieces that are obviously still useful. lots of the little stuff just gets thrown away. i understand the mentality of not wanting to deal with scraps. i really do. but i just can't part with them. when i've invested in designer fabrics, every little piece is precious to me. i know it could be used for something if i just hang on to it. there are problems with this, however. like piles of little bits that stick around forever. messes. 

 

the good news is there are lots of ideas out there for using scraps. just google it; you'll see.

 

or check out this beautiful book, sunday morning quilts, by amanda jean nyberg and cheryl arkison.

i can not wait until i have enough scraps to make some of these amazing quilts. but i just haven't been quilting long enough or made enough scraps yet. in the meantime, i diligently store every single bit of fabric scrap i produce. amanda jean and cheryl not only show you what to do with your scraps in their book, they also help you classify and store those lovely little bits.

for now, my system is pretty simple. i have a large white wire basket (found at marshall's) where i throw pieces as i work on my projects. it sits under the dining table where i work, so it is readily at hand.

 

certain types of scraps are further sorted and housed in sterilite see-through plastic boxes i got at joann.

 

i keep all selvages so some day i can make one of those awesome selvage quilts i've seen in blogland. the selvage blog is a great place to get an idea of just how many things selvages can do.

those pretty little triangles that are born every time i make binding go in a box all their own so i can make a specific quilt in sunday morning quilts. i love that it will be a sort of scrapbook of all my quilting projects.

and i even keep all the skinny, stringy pieces that are just too little for anything at all. i keep them for stuffing other projects. i also throw all of my cut threads in here, too. i don't remember who gave me the idea to use those pieces for stuffing, but i think it's brilliant.

like i said, i keep every little bit. all of it. even the threads.

and this morning, when i was sorting scraps from yesterday's quilt class, my 5 yr old daughter (#4) begged "the skinny pieces" off of me. pretty please, mama? i was loathe to give them to her since i do have plans for them, but i swallowed my greed and shared. even my heather bailey strings. ouch.

 

she made off with quite a stash of my super skinny strings and told me she was going to make necklaces out of them. can't wait to see how that turns out. i love all the crafty self-initiative she has had lately.

crafty hiding space in my dining room sewing area

does this look like a sewing area to you?

no? good.

because it's part of my dining room.

i have a dedicated sewing space in a corner of my bawthroom where i store most of my stash and where i used to mostly sew. that worked great whenever the girls were bathing in there, but i found that at other times, when i had a big project going on a saturday or if jill came over to sew on fridays, that i wanted to be in the main part of the house rather than in the upper corner, hidden away in my bawthroom. i could keep tabs on the kids and be available to everyone if i worked in the dining room. plus there was a lot more room to spread out in there.

the obvious downside to this arrangement was that my sewing took over the dining table and a large portion of the room. we have a kitchen table in the green room off the kitchen (too big for a nook and we eat more than breakfast there, so it's not a breakfast room - what to call it?!) we eat everyday meals in the green room, not the dining room, so my sewing sprawl wasn't a problem that interfered with our family meals. but it did put a stop to the occasional formal meals on sundays or holidays that we use the dining table for. and the dining room is visible from the entryway, so my mess was noticeable as soon as anyone walked in the door. not cool.

to contain and hide the mess, i invested in some inexpensive shelving units and milk crate baskets from target. i already had one of these units in the room for a nature center and i thought it worked nicely. (nature center idea from mariah bruehl's excellent book, playful learning and ecourse, learning spaces.)

i got two more units to put on the west wall under my genealogy chart and heritage photos (pictured above). all the bits from the projects i'm working on are hidden away in the milk crates, as well as my project life supplies, some cookbooks, and a few other sewing tools. a peek into some of the baskets:

i keep my scrap basket and cutting mat under the dining table when not in use. the sewing machine is on top of the table at the far end. it's still in the open, but not nearly as messy looking as it was before. my mr. said it was acceptable. our house is definitely lived in and a work-in-progress type family home, but we'd also like it to be comfortably clean, especially in the guest spaces. maybe some day we will get the built-ins we'd like for this room, but for now this is a happy compromise. my stuff is there, but not readily visible, and can be quickly cleaned up when needed.

i also like that the shelving top gives me sort of a sideboard for holiday decorating rather than using the table top, which wasn't working very well. off season, it houses some of my white cake stands and my current project life book.

unfortunately, daughter #5 thinks it's a great play space. she stands on some project boxes i had tucked away out of sight and plays on the cakestands. oh, naughty girl.

she thinks the sound my threads make banging against the ceramicware is awesome. i don't agree.

something must be done with this cute little monster!
but i don't think she'll fit in any of the baskets or cubbies.

blog changes

 i have got my apron on and i am cleaning up this place. things are going to look different.

actually, i was wearing the apron because i was baking orange-infused scones and making them into strawberry shortcakes. but it was a more exciting intro and better photos than my old blog screen look. and the baking was much less impressive than it sounds yet every bit as delicious as it looks.

i signed on for a blog design course, blog (design) love, that i saw elise blaha cripe and elsie larson were offering mainly because i wanted to make my own banner for this blog, but also because i was interested in customizing it a bit in other spots. it wasn't that expensive and i was intriqued.

that's all rather silly since no one really reads this blog but me and i already have a ton of things to do. why would i spend time designing a new blog look just for me? well, it sounded fun. and it is. and i'm learning a lot from the course, which so far rocks. already i've gotten some great insight into making the blog more "me" style-wise. now, i'm just starting to get into the techi part of it. html code here i come!

original look

since i was writing this blog for me and didn't have much time to do that, i didn't spend much effort on the look when setting it up. i picked a color combo i liked (red and a light blue, or at least it was supposed to be) and got as close to that as possible with the colors in the template as best i understood how. it was good enough. but red and aqua are everywhere and it was starting to bother me. even before the course, i had a new color formula picked out: red, lemon yellow, grass green, lipstick pink.

first attempt at update - color story change

this week i started putting that into play on the blog just through the template tool. it's okay. sorta. but i want it better because it really looks watermelon-ish to me. so please don't judge elsie and elise's excellent class on what you see now. i haven't really started.

some content changes i have made include revamping my "about" page to more accurately reflect who i am and what this blog is about. it's evolving and i need to streamline my text more, but i'm liking it.

i moved the long story of "how i came to sewing" from the about page to it's own post here and added some more photos for interest.

i created a page (with photos) for tutorials and removed the links to them from the sidebar. now you can access them from the tab at the page's top.

the apron page has become the gallery page because i plan to use it to feature any sewing projects that are not 4sqs or quilts. i do create those on special occasions.

i widened the content column so now i can use larger photos.

the sidebar has been tweaked a bit with lots more plans to be executed soon. i have ideas about pages, new ones and changes. but next up, i hope, is a custom photo banner.

since starting this post, i got my wish. after a few hours (i'm brand new to photoshop), and a few (several) goof ups, i have a new blog banner header which showcases my work and of which i am fond. yay for me!

my house could really use some clean up and decorating but today i'd rather do the blog.

so i've spent most of my creative friday in my office at the computer. the kids took care of themselves. in fact, numbers 3 - 6 scoured the house for our four tea sets (where did they all go?) and put together a tea party. so cute.

new reader's guide

splish, splash, stash was started in february 2011 when my sewing projects were beginning to take over my private family blog, which was supposed to be telling the story of our family, not just my quilting. i decided to give sewing it's own space in a public blog where i could connect with other sewers online. and here we are.

this blog is where i catalogue my sewing projects, record my works in progress (wip's), share some tutorials and patterns i've created, talk about crafting with my kids, expose my mistakes/learning opportunities (home ec moments, i call them), and let you in on my related product and internet finds.

in addition to posts, i've got pages, which you can access by the tabs at the top of the blog, that feature information about this blog, my kids/crew, my sewing spot, products i use, crafting books in my personal library, and tutorials or patterns i've created, as well as pages that feature sewing projects i've completed such as the super-easy 4 square baby blankets, quilts, and aprons.

i write this blog for myself because i really enjoy recording my sewing journey. also, i think it just might be interesting to my posterity some day to know about this side of the lady they know as mom/grandma/etc and the story behind the items i've made for them.

you're welcome to read, too. some posts you might enjoy are soho, purl and makie; gettin' craftsy and some discount links; 3 ways to use heartstrings;  quilting vs. scrapbooking; wip wednesday and 100 days with ann; sew on the go, and mommies multitask. 

happy sewing, y'all!

attn: followers

to all my new followers, thank you! i sure hope you find this worthwhile browsing on occasion. you all have a treat coming from me, but i need some info first. leave me a comment with your favorite fabric designer, your current favorite line, or at least tell me which of the fabrics i've featured so far you like so i have an idea what to send you. i'm not making any promises, but i'll try to match you up with something along those lines.

***edited to note: first 5 followers are shannon, jen, bran, amy s., and mel.
"jen" and martha, please email me your contact information so i can mail your surprise when it's completed.
thanks again, ladies. i'm excited to make new friends here and share my adventures with you. i'd love this to be interactive, so please feel free to comment all you want and i'll respond as best i can directly in the comments section of the posts.