Round & Round- Sewing & Traveling!!

If you are like me, you enjoy having something to do with your hands while traveling...that is if you are fortunate enough to be in the passenger seat! Here, on top of my handy atlas (i love my atlas-even though my dear husband & darling daughter both have GPS on their fancy phones-I like the old fashioned visual overview of a GIANT Rand-McNally!) is a pillow I made & embellished....around & around & around!

You can always find endless uses for beautiful vintage pearl buttons! I raided my collection yet again but was entertained for many hours with this pillow!

Here is the built-in door "caddy" (I am thinking that someone should design a better travel holder! maybe a soft one with pockets to hold everything from thread, scissors to buttons?) Sounds like a good project for later!

*Note-I finally finished the pillow & was a little sad to see it go at a recent show...a nice lady purchased it plus 2 other gold ball pillows with buttons & beads to group as a set. At least they have a happy home & will all be together!!

Happy Sewing & Travel!
-EE

ilovefiberart FUN with Garden Deva!

If there is anything more fun than sewing & making art & craft...it is doing it with great friends! Last weekend's Garden Deva show in Tulsa was a grand success, with fun had by all! Lisa Regan aka the Garden Deva once again showed that she is a generous supporter of local artists, musicians & craftspeople by hosting 2 days of party & show.

Suzi Swinford's & Joe Staskal's incredible pottery & stoneware were among my favorites! Also, Lisa Regan's furniture & fireplace screens, horse sculpture garden-stakes, Maggie Connolly's jewelry, Angie of Blair B Design's relic jewelry & Terri Higgs' silk scarves were amazing!

Here is a shot of my booth, with Suzi Swinford next to me & Lisa Regan's whimsical Garden Deva Sculptures on the wall behind. How about that neon PINK tree? I found that, as well as a pretty PURPLE one at Garden Ridge...already lit & on sale for $29.!

This artist knits & spins..with live demonstrations on her wheel!

Shopping & getting into the spirit!

More show photos & Suzi at her booth.

Maggie Connolly & her terrific silver & recycled jewelry....

Milling about with Betty Boop on her handbag....

Angie B. with one of my teeny-tiny embroidered birds-in-acorn hat nest...she attached one to a delicate square-beaded rosary chain for her beloved daughter Blair, for whom her company is named.
Happy & inspired crafting & collaborating!
-EE

CD and Ornament Class!

Last week we met in a local sewing/software store to create silk & velvet ornaments from ilovefiberart.com CD Volume 1 (see store). The classroom at B-Sew Inn was light and cheery, with Christmas decorations hung and festive holiday music playing. Our group was a delightful band of sewers/crafters with a wide range of experience and lots of fun stories from all! I loved getting tips from them on beading, bag making, pincushions, and other various topics!

Thank you Ladies! I can't wait 'til the next one! We'll make "Present" or "Gift Box" pillows for home and holiday decorating! -EE

Boho Dollmaking

Muslin doll shapes have always intrigued me. You know the craft store variety: made in China, I think. Well, I decided to start making my own, partly to have them when needed for my doll cupcakes (see ilovefiberart index page), but mostly to have new three dimensional objects to embroider & embellish!

This girl is "Go Veggie" Boho girl. I just drew an outline of an inflated stick figure (email or better-yet-blog me & I'll send you pattern!) Then I sewed outline on double fabric, right sides together, leaving opening on doll's side. Turn inside out, stuff & close. I used eyelash yarn for her hair, embroidered bird & tiny embroidered "mixed bag" plus trading beads for her embellishment. Use your favorite quilting or sewing scraps for these...I have made several now in different sizes...I may even string the tiny ones together to make a little angel garland for my tree! (I will post that, of course!)

Happy dollmaking!
-EE

Button-Button Treasure Boxes

Who's Got The Buttons? While perusing a few art-worthy sites this morning (anything to procrastinate a little & enjoy my warm Tazo tea!), I realized that the blogs that I found most interesting share a little, inspire a lot & teach me something new...so here goes....

peace, love , sweater blog looked fun & made me feel warm & fuzzy about earth-friendly parenting-which I am all in favor of.

On the inspiring subject, I love Johanna Parker's work in progress photos she shares on her blog, In "A Frenzy to Finish" (August 2008), you can see the artist at work...something I love & appreciate! So, here is a peek at what is in the works here this week-directly from my kitchen table! One of these days I will share some images from my messy sewing workroom/studio (my daughter's friend commented that it looks like the mom's studio in "Yours, Mine and Ours"..you know Renee Russo's piles & piles of fabric-If only my room were that tidy!)

OK..now the project part...these are treasure boxes I am making for a studio show at Garden Deva Sculpture Company. Though I am making pillows & fiber pieces, I love doing mixed media, too. Garden Deva aka Lisa Regan, has been written up in various magazine including Southern Living. She is a very talented metal sculpture artist, recognized on a national level for her work...and she really know how to throw a party! Her 2-day Studio "Party" is local music, local food & lots of handmade art. If you are in the Tulsa area in early November, come by for fun & local flavor!

To make these tiny treasure boxes you need only buttons or beads, plain brown paper mache boxes (approx. 1 3/4" x 2 1/2") from your local craft store (they run about 99 cents & are sometimes on sale for 1/2 price!!), glue (I use E6000 after a little incident with Gorilla Glue that I won't mention!), acrylic paint, & embellishments for the top, if desired. I attached tiny embroidered birds, my new favorite three-dimensional art perched upon little wool or silk fiber-filled acorn "hats" retrieved from my back yard. I painted these with gold paint, & glued them into center. You could easily use bird beads or charms.


First, paint boxes, inside & out & let dry. Then glue buttons or beads on one side of box at a time & let dry before turning box. Be careful when you attach buttons to back side of box that they don't restrict the opening of finished box. Glue a rectangle or four tiny dots of felt on bottom if you need to cover sticky part where price label was attached on paper mache box.

Fill with treasures of your choice. I think I will include the mini red velvet stuffed hearts that we made last Valentines Day! (see Feb. 2009 post).

Good Luck & Have Fun revisiting your button stashes!
-EE

Love to Ride

In honor of this week's Grand Nationals Morgan World Championship horse show & with thanks to my amazing embroidery software & my dear friend Jan Eckardt Butler's fine porcelain horses, these horse themed Mixed Bags are now available*...in store & by special order.

Other breeds & disciplines, even special custom wording available by order. Please email with any questions! elaine@ilovefiberart.com

Thanks & Happy, Healthy Horses!
-EE

*These designs are original & copyrighted by Emmons & Eckardt Studios.

Glowing Gomez needs your vote!

"Glowing Gomez", actually, his talented creator Johanna Parker is nominated for Martha Stewart's "Dreamers into Doers"award. Please visit her website at johannaparkerdesign.com to cast your vote-but hurry! The contest ends on October 2nd @ 5pm EST. If you miss the opportunity to vote, take a look at her beautiful site & blog anyway: www.johannaparkerdesign.blogspot.com !

Johanna lives in Colorado (where I met her several years ago) & does fine paper mache, vintage inspired folk art. She does Halloween & other seasonal items which are prized by collectors across the country. She has been featured in numerous magazines & does seasonal shows, including the FABULOUS Halloween & Vine in Petaluma, CA. Not only is she extremely gifted as an artist, but is a genuinely nice person too!

Good Luck Johanna!
-EE

Travel Kits!

Travel Kits!

After inquiries about kits that do not require a sewing machine, we have added a couple of kits that you hand sewers will love!

I have a friend who, with her husband, retired early & is seeing America by driving their RV on various scenic & historical routes (Lewis & Clark Expedition trail, Santa Fe trail, & last week- the Oregon/Washington coast...including Forks, Washington where there was a "Twilight" Festival going on...not quite so historic but appeals to my teenage daughter: a Stephanie Meyer fan!)

Back to travel kits...

After hearing from my friend & others, we now have a few selections in ilovefiberart store for those of you who don't readily have access to a sewing machine-or electricity on a consistent basis. We have Travel Beaded Strawberry Kit with machine sewing step already done, Travel Strawberry Trio kit & Travel Tiny Cupcake Kit! All you need is a needle, thread & a bit of batting!

Happy Travels!
-EE

Make These Prayer Pockets!

Make These Prayer Pockets!
These tiny treasures are made of silk & are embroidered with initials for a personalized touch. You can make them in fabric of your choice, of course, & embellish them or hand embroider if you prefer! For pdf of pattern below, please email me @ elaine@ilovefiberart.com & I will send it to you!
If machine embroidering, allow 1 5/8" width for each letter or design. Cut apart into 1 5/8" x 6 1/2" strips. You may serge the edges of these strips or leave them raw.



IMPORTANT NOTE: Top of flap is actually opposite end of design on strip!! Hint:First fold raw strip & look at so that this makes sense! Fold angled top flap, right sides together & stitch on dotted lines.








Then fold up bottom half of pocket right sides together with facing tucked under to conceal raw or serged edge.



Sew side seams, right sides together.

Turn inside out. Embellish with tiny pearls or seed beads if you desire. Fill with your favorite verse, a personal note, or other treasure.





* "Love One Another" "Wait, Pray....Pray, Wait"
EE

"cupcakes & cherries" Welcome Home!

"cupcakes & cherries"
Welcome Home!

As Quilt Quest 2008 (www.robertkaufman.com/quiltquest/2008/) wraps up its year long coast-to-coast travel schedule, I realize how much more touring this 1st Place mini quilt & ice cream cone purse have done than I have lately! Exciting destinations included: Original Sewing & Quilt Festivals, Road to California, Original Creative Festivals, Pioneer Florida Museum, QuiltFest, & various guild shows. Thank you to everyone who went out to see this exhibit & who attended these fine shows! Thanks also for your kind reviews of show & work, including Purple Fan.

The good news is that as they return home this month , I can complete patterns & begin to offer classes for both! BTW: I will be teaching ilovefiberart ornament & cupcake classes at B-Sew Inn in Oklahoma City & Tulsa in October & November!
Speaking of classes: After attending yesterday's webinar training on Bernina's new DesignerPlus Version 6 software, I can't wait to see it arrive in stores! It offers many new features such as Corel Draw essentials, 11 new fonts, freehand sketching (no repeated left-right clicking!), 106 new embroidery designs, morphing, pattern carving & echo, "halo" quilting outlining of designs (loved this feature!). The smoothing tool looks like something I could use too, as my freehand drawing seems to be less steady these days! If you love to create your own embroidery designs, as I do, take a look at this product. The next webinar is Sept. 16th 12-1pm CST. berninausa
-EE

Folk Art & Fiddles

Ahhh, Summer............105 degrees & counting. This amazing painting by Woodie Long is entitled "Plowing" & is very inspirational as is his fabulous gallery in Santa Rosa Beach, FL. (can't you just feel the heat?) i LOVE folk art almost as much as fiber! Woodie's mastery of color is evident here in his skillful, yet childlike interpretations of Southern life. We visited his studio/gallery last week while on the road. His wife, Dot was there & filled us in on his latest.

Here is a painted vintage purse he signed for me many years ago,

plus the painting "10 Musicians"...which leads me to the inspirational part. I think folk art & fiddles might by good pillow themes for fall. I'll get to work on these & post the results! Stay cool in the meantime-in the heat, that is.
EE

Feb FAB Silk & Velvet $5 SPECIAL!! free how-tos & pattern!

Happy February!

We have survived the days of ice & no school & now have time to make valentines! Using your own fabric or the special "Feb. FAB silk & velvet $5" -in "store"), here are the easy steps!

Cut silk or other fabric into 8" x 5 1/4" rectangle. Fold, stitch on wrong side, with right sides together, leaving opening for turning. Clip corners. Turn right side out.

Fill with good quality lavender (from health food store or grocery store) or stuffing, or your choice of fill. Close opening.

Draw heart pattern on heavy paper (or email me for pdf): approx. 2 1/4" X 2 1/8" & cut out. Trace onto sticky stabilizer backed velvet or other fabric. Cut out.

Sew close to edge, trim & clip curves, "v" & point of heart.

Turn right side out, stuff & close.
Attach heart to pillow with tiny stitches in-between.

Cut piece of ribbon 19 1/2". Tie around heart & pillow into bow.