Away In the Woods blog

Guess what I'm doing......

Anyone that knows Alex Anderson can tell you she is an industry unto herself... She has so many cool things going on, and thankfully in my case cannot do everything herself. So I get to help! Alex is redoing one of her many books with beautiful bright fabrics... I can't wait. But today I'm doing paper piecing clean up.. here is a peek at one of the quilts redone....

Ok so it's the back... I'll give you a sneek peek at the front. Only if you promise not to tell!!

Keep a look out for when it comes out...C & T Publishing will have all the news... tell your local quilt shop to keep an eye out too.. you won't want to miss it!

Cutting continuous fabric strips for knitting

I looked and looked for a good tutorial on this and couldn't find one so I'm attempting this myself. Let me know what you think. First shore up the edge of the fabric so you have a nice clean edge.

I put the folded edge of the fabric at the top and the salvages at the bottom. Using your ruler, and rotary cutter, cut through only the top folded edge. Start at the bottom but not at the edge. Cut up from the bottom a little.

Move your ruler over every inch or however wide you are cutting your strips and cut up from the bottom and through the folded edge at the top all the way across your fabric. 

Ok, so I didn't do a great job of perfect measuring, but you get the point.

This is what your fabric should look like when you are done. Now open up your fabric so each end looks like this. You will then want to cut through every other joint.

Now do it again at the other end. But pull the first strip down so you can see where to cut. It will be the second cut over.

The first strip on the right is from the other side. I moved over two slits and cut... then skipped a slit and cut the last one.

You should now have one continuous strip of fabric. The joints will look like this.

I cut a little closer to the edge. Don't cut too close or you might rip the fabric and then have to join it together either by sewing or tying. 

So ends my first tutorial! Hope it helps someone out there in internet land!

Furoshiki gift wrap

While stumbling around on the net the other day, I came across a wonderful website called furoshiki.com. Furoshiki is a Japanese gift wrap technique with cloth. Being a quilt shop, I thought it would be a great gift wrap for quilters. furoshiki.com  sells very pretty silks to do your furoshiki wraps in. But also on the site is a techniques area. You can see all kinds of ways to wrap gifts. Another place is Japan's Minister of the Environment's site . It is a quick page you can print out and add to your gift wrap for the next person. You can wrap anything from wine bottles to watermelon. Search the word furoshiki and all kinds of cool sites come up. There is even a youtube video on how to fold gift wrap in a few different ways. Check it out! 
 

When you go shopping, you can use this instead of another plastic bag.

Pineneedlers Guild Block of the month

I don't get to go our guild meeting very often, but I went last month. I liked the block of the month pattern so I decided to give it a try. Here is my take on it. Everyone got a piece of black and white fabric (about 4 different fabrics). I chose this one. Here is my block. Everyone will know it's mine because of the colorful fabrics. 

I used a hemming stitch to applique it on. I love the look the outline gives it. I think it is a blind hem stitch. Give it a try sometime. 

  Here is a closer look.

Cutting continuous fabric strips for knitting

I looked and looked for a good tutorial on this and couldn't find one so I'm attempting this myself. Let me know what you think. First shore up the edge of the fabric so you have a nice clean edge.

I put the folded edge of the fabric at the top and the salvages at the bottom. Using your ruler, and rotary cutter, cut through only the top folded edge. Start at the bottom but not at the edge. Cut up from the bottom a little.

Move your ruler over every inch or however wide you are cutting your strips and cut up from the bottom and through the folded edge at the top all the way across your fabric. 

Ok, so I didn't do a great job of perfect measuring, but you get the point.

This is what your fabric should look like when you are done. Now open up your fabric so each end looks like this. You will then want to cut through every other joint.

Now do it again at the other end. But pull the first strip down so you can see where to cut. It will be the second cut over.

The first strip on the right is from the other side. I moved over two slits and cut... then skipped a slit and cut the last one.

You should now have one continuous strip of fabric. The joints will look like this.

I cut a little closer to the edge. Don't cut too close or you might rip the fabric and then have to join it together either by sewing or tying. 

So ends my first tutorial! Hope it helps someone out there in internet land!

The Mouse that got away

I awoke this morning about 2:30Am to the sound of tinkling water. Now, I had a cat named Punkin that potty trained herself. She is gone now but.. I was laying there thinking " has one of the other kids learned to use the potty?" Kids meaning cats at my house. The actual kids have moved away by now. So I grab my glasses and look down the hall to see if a kitty is perched on the side of the potty. But I see nothing thru the night lite. So I tiptoe down the hall to the bathroom hoping to catch my smart feline unawares at his or her perch. No such luck. However, I'm still hearing the tinkling sound. So I finally give in and turn on the light. There looking over the side of the potty is my slinky orange cat Alex. I look inside and see this poor mouse swimming for his life. Ok, so how did he get into the potty you ask? Could he have jumped thinking it was a safe place? Or did Alex the cat put him there on purpose for the entertainment value. (Cats are so cruel). Well we may never know.. the cat and the mouse are not talking. But needless to say I took the mouse by the tail and put him outside for another chance at freedom.

I can say life in a house with 4 cats is never boring. I have had mice jump down from the ledge in my shower at me, found numerous body parts in the morning.. saved birds, weasels and so much more. If they weren't so loving and furry... could we still love them for all the savagery they do?

My daily color therapy

I was wandering around my quilt shop the other day and I kept noticing all the wonderful solid fabrics in bright colors. I decided to cut a stack of 1/2 yard cuts and take them home. Some are batiks and some are marbled cottons. I will probably never use them... I'm too stingy!

Here they are all stacked nice and pretty with a bow. I see these every morning first thing. Even on a cold dark day they cheer me up! Need some inspiration? Stack your own little fabric present to yourself and put it on a shelf...

Thank you Teddy!

Having a retail store, I get quite a few sales calls from companies wanting me to purchase their products for my store. One of my favorites is Melissa and Doug Toy Company. I've decided they must be a great company because of Teddy. Teddy is my sales guy that calls from time to time. You might think he only calls to sell me more stuff. But I find that that isn't always the case. Lately he has been a great way for me to focus on keeping positive in a scary retail environment. I just can't say anything negative with him on the phone. We talk about what is going on in my store and he always makes me laugh. I hear the other sales people in the background singing and obviously having a great time at work. What an inspiration! Even when I had a hard time paying my bill, John in accounting was patient and understanding. Trying to do what would work for both them and me. They have helped me keep merchandise in my store when everyone else had given up. Consequently, anytime a customer brings up a Melissa and Doug toy, I make a point to tell them they are supporting a wonderful company. So thank you Teddy for bringing a smile to my face and being a wonderful example for your company. Yea Teddy!!

Hey Teddy, if you read my blog start at the beginning in June 2008.

We are the Economy!

Every year usually the second weekend of September, quilt shops in my area from Auburn to my shop in Groveland have what we quilters call a Shop Hop. Ours is the Mother Lode Fabric Frenzy. This year we only had 7 stores. It was nice because it seems every year participants complain that there are too many stores and it is 2 hours from the two furthest points. Quilters go to every shop participating and carry a passport to have stamped at each store. A winner is drawn and prizes are awarded. This year our event was on September 11 to the 13th. It is always nice to meet new people and see participants from previous years.  The one comment I kept hearing is with the bad economy.. we aren't spending as much. I finally decided to educate some of my shop hoppers on the economy. "What is the economy I asked." Not many could answer. "The economy is You!" Every time you decided not to purchase something because of "the economy". You add to the problem. People don't understand that the economy is not some mysterious entity  floating around in space somewhere. It is all of us! When we decide not to spend..there is a ripple effect far reaching to everyone. Even back to your paycheck. A customer decides not to buy that quilting kit, so I don't buy coffee for the next week at the local coffee shop, so they don't spend as much on school clothes for kids, and so on and so on... So next time you complain about the economy, remember what it really is... it is all of us. Always was and always will be.

Picking on Etsy

While stumbling on-line the other day I ran across an article by Slate/Double X putting down Etsy. "Etsy peddles a false feminist fantasy ". I'm reading along and starting to agree... getting into it.. and then I noticed a sticky note next to my computer. I have stickies all over the place.

It said: 1. learn to take better photos. 2. find 10 things you love to make. Make 5 of them under 10.00 each. 3. read Etsy tips on selling. 4. learn, learn learn. 

I realized that I may not make the big bucks on Etsy. However, I can use Etsy for a measly 20 cents per listing to learn how to do this better. So what if I don't sell lots of stuff right away. Eventually as I learn to do a better job.. it should show in my sales. I began to see Etsy as a wonderful and cheap web learning tool. So to Slate/Double X... maybe the fantasy is false but what a great way to learn something new.