This article originally appeared on Craft Critique. After it appeared, Jami Peterson, Managing Editor of The Stampers Sampler, requested four books with stamping on them for that publication. I created four brand new books for her and shipped them this morning. I'll let you know when the issue hits newstands. In the meantime, you can see a layout of mine on page 80-81 of the current issue of Somerset Memories which is put out by the same company. On the cover of the magazine it says, "New Feature: Anatomy of a Page." That's my page that's featured! You can see... Read more →

I thought I'd share some photos of a fabric book I made for my Mother for Mother's Day. It's a concertina and I like that it stands up on its own (nice for display). I took a wonderful poem that she wrote and simply illustrated it. Here are the pics: Read more →

Last night, I went to my TAAB Quilt Critique Meeting. It was a good meeting (I always feel so motivated afterwards). Today, I find myself thinking a lot about one of the comments made last night. One of the ladies in the group, showed us some New York Beauty blocks she made in beautiful bright colors and wild prints. She then asked the following question, "Do you think this is serious work?" Hmmm. What does that mean? Serious work? She explained, "Serious work. Something that can be displayed in a serious gallery or exhibit. You know, serious work." I pointed... Read more →

All of my quilting work is very clearly influenced by my deep devotion to, and torrid love affair with, scrapbooking. Most of my work includes either photos or text, and many of the pieces are autobiographical. This new quilt is no exception. It is titled "Bedtime Stories." The dedication on the back reads: "For my Father who told the stories. Thank you!" I used snippets of text from my five favorite childhood tales: How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Where The Wild Things Are, Julierella (an adaptation of Cinderella my Father made up), Green Eggs and Ham, and Goodnight Moon. Technically... Read more →

I have long lusted after Hambly's overlays. But, I have also long obeyed a dollar rule in my scrapbook spending ($1/one page -- so an item that costs $5.99 must be able to be used on six pages). The overlays cost more than $1. Boo Hoo! But, the other day, I noticed that Just Let Me Scrapbook carries a few of the overlays. So, I put in a request for one of them with my design team order. I was thrilled when it arrived, but I was also paralyzed. I was afraid of "ruining" it. I mean, I had one... Read more →

A young woman who was working on her senior thesis about feminist art, sent me a short questionnaire. I thought the questions were interesting and figured I'd share: 1) When did you begin quilting? Summer 2005 2) What/Who inspired you to begin quilting? I simply always wanted to. I’m pretty crafty and have tried my hand at a multitude of crafts over the years. Quilting was always on my “to do” list. I bought quilting books years before I started quilting. 3) How did you learn? Slowly! Actually, I didn’t even know how to use a sewing machine, so that... Read more →

Whoa! Today's class with Jean Littlejohn was a mind blowing experience. I feel like I have been opened up -- something has been sparked and my mind is racing with ideas and projects! What an amazing experience. I am going to show you a sample of what we did in class, but it's not finished. I still need to do some machine sewing and beading. A lot of both, actually. But, here are photos: This sample is made from felt, gold leafing, fibers, chiffon, and a bit of machine stitching. But, it is made on The Embellisher by Baby Lock.... Read more →

Jan Beaney is one half of the fiber arts duo known as "Double Trouble Enterprises." Jan (on the R) and Jean Littlejohn (on the L) are well known for their amazing surface design. They are in demand as teachers and lecturers and their self-published books are legendary treasures. Well, today I had the extraordinary pleasure of taking a class from Jan at The City Quilter. The class was described as follows: "Using a comparatively new water soluble fabric, students will be encouraged to create patterned and textured fabrics by combining appliqué, beading, hand and machine stitching." Very cool, right? Well,... Read more →

I've started a new weekly challenge at The All American Scrapbook Co. It's called "The List of Three Challenge." Every Wednesday, I post a list of three items, techniques, and/or tools. This was the first one: 1. Paint Watercolor, acrylic, tempura, latex, spray paint…use whatever you’ve got sitting around. Here’s an idea: use acrylic paint, like you would an ink pad, and paint the edges of a photo mat or other item to add contrast and dimension to your page. 2. Flowers I’m sure you have silk flowers, paper flowers, metal flowers, rub-on flowers, sticker flowers, flower paper…lots and lots... Read more →

I went to a taping of the Martha Stewart TV show today. The studio is in Chelsea and Martha was kicking off "Scrapbooking Week" in this episode, which will air on Monday, May 7. I didn't bring my camera, so I don't have any photos, but I thought I'd share the experience for those of you who are curious. We were instructed to show up at the studio by 12:30pm. The show would tape at 2pm. What to wear: "Dress your Best! Cute jeans, chic dress, or a fun outfit - bright colors photograph best, and we ask that you... Read more →