Hiatus

Here is a link to a tutorial I did a while back on free motion quilting with a standard sewing machine, if you would like to take a look.

How to....
DO FREE MOTION QUILTING ON A STANDARD SEWING MACHINE

I will be taking this week off from blogging to have more time to focus on the upcoming Resurrection/Easter celebration with my family.  I hope you all have a restful and meaningful holiday.

 Happy Sewing ♥

Homestyle ~ Part II

As promised, here is the next installment of Homestyle, featuring Etsians included in a recent treasury I made.  I think you will find some fabulous items among these talented artisans.

First up is a pillow from Folk City which has been created with an eclectic mix of vintage and new textiles: bark cloth, salvaged bits of crochet and lace, ribbon, and vintage buttons.

 This adorable pincushion (as mentioned before, I have a thing for pincushions) is made by The Blue Daisy.

I just love the drape and color of this bag by Hello Me.

The lovely vintage crewel work is done by Sew Up Scale, a fellow teammate on the Quiltsy Team.  It still seems funny to me to call something made in the 1970's "vintage."

Debi Designs, another fellow Quiltsy Team member, made this wonderful wall artquilt.

Finally, wouldn't you just love a pair of these stunning wire wrapped citrine earrings from the Vicki Orion shop?  I know I would!  Interesting to me is that Vicki lives in Chugiak Alaska, which is near my childhood home in Anchorage.

I've enjoyed sharing these items, and hope you have found some new favorites too.

Happy Sewing ♥

Homestyle Treasury

As I was trying to decide on something to blog about, and thinking it was time to feature more artisans, it occurred to me, why not feature the artists in a treasury I've recently made.  So here are the first 6, including alternates:

I absolutely love this soup bowl.  It is made by JN Pottery.  What a great design. While you are perusing her shop, check out the unique salt cellar too.

Kim's Crafty Apple made this adorable owl.  Owls are all the rage right now, and this is a cute one!

Nestle and Soar 's featured item sold out, so I've included another wonderful item from her shop.  I love the colors and textures of her folk art pillows.

Recently I bought a wristlet similar to the one pictured for my mom from Antique Basket Lady.  My mom likes to travel light on her walks, so this size is perfect for her.

Another alternate in my treasury is this summertime necklace suitable for jeans and a beach party from Aysetugrul's shop.

Last is this pillow from The Modern Quilter.  I love the Kaffe Fassett fabrics she used. 

I hope you will check out the shops links of these artisans for more examples of their work. More items from the treasury will be shown in future posts.

Happy Sewing ♥

The Best Way to Get Things Done

I've been neglecting my kimbuktu website since I've starting blogging, and opening the fabric shop.  So last night I did some work on it, added a few fabrics for sale, made a few small changes. I still want to revamp the front page, and add more items for sale, but at least I got a start.  Which reminds me of a quote I like:

The best way to get something done, is to start it.

Unknown source

 A shipment came in today with two new kona cotton crush colors - China Blue, and Natural.  These are 55" wide, and softly textured.  They would be great for baby quilts, or slings, and I'm sure many other things as well.

Speaking of getting something done, my goal is to finish our taxes tonight, so I guess I best get started.

Happy Sewing ♥

 

 

Sewing and Crafting Tools

I am not ashamed to say that I love tools - sewing and crafting tools that is.  So to add to my collection, and maybe some of yours, I have added a supplies and tools section to my fabric shop.

This first tool is a variation of the standard yo-yo maker, only this one makes butterfly shapes.

These are little butterflies, suitable for hair barrettes or greeting cards, maybe an embellishment on a bag.  The finished size is approximately 1 1/4 x 1 1/2 [30 x 40 mm]. Both sides of the finished butterfly are usable and instructions are included with the tool.

This next tool I can personally vouch for because I have a pair, and they are my favorite snips.  I like that they have a safety cap, and a slot on the case for attaching to a lanyard.  They are made by Gingher and have very sharp points for pulling threads and reaching into tight spots for thread cutting.

I haven't tried either of the next two tools, although I plan to when I have time.  The smocking stickers make easier work of hand smocking.  This set is in a honeycomb pattern.


And the Rose Maker makes lovely rosette flowers out of your favorite fabric scraps which can be used in a variety of sewing, home decor, and crafting projects.

More shapes and sizes of the yo-yo makers, and rose makers are available in my shop, as well as items such as batting, rotary blades, and quilter's gloves.  I will be adding to the stock often, so please check back now and then.

Happy Sewing ♥

& the Winner Is....

Hope you all had a happy First Day of Spring and National Quilting Day yesterday.  I did no quilting because it was also my birthday, and I was busy enjoying my family and the gorgeous spring weather.  I hope you all enjoyed the day as well.


On to the Giveaway...instead of numbers, we used the first 20 letters of the alphabet, each letter corresponding to a number, A=1, B=2, and so on.  Sew without further ado, the winner (chosen by random drawing from a plastic bucket by a two year old) is:

ZudaGay who left the the first comment: "I LOVE quilts because they are a delight to your senses. Not only can you touch them and feel their warmth each one is a visual work of art."

I really enjoyed hearing what all of you love about quilts and quilting.  Here are a few more of the comments:

Desiree said...I learned to quilt around 12 yrs old and I've been in love ever since! I love fabric, the textures, even the smells of different materials. I love the relaxation of cutting out pieces. I love the finished product, that my family usually tries to keep. : ) I love everything about quilting!...except when I need to use the seam ripper LOL!

MoranArtandQuilts said... I love quilting because it keeps me sane!!

 

StitchinByTheLake said... It's the peace - stitching calms me and centers me and peace overtakes me. blessings, marlene

 

Please be sure to read the rest of the wonderful comments, and thank you all for participating.

Happy Sewing ♥

National Quilting Day!

National Quilting Day is celebrated each year on the third Saturday of March.  This year, the third Saturday in March is also the First Day of Spring, and, coincidentally, my Birthday.  So I have not one, but three, reasons to celebrate!

It's a Good Time for a Giveaway!

Leave a comment about what you love about quilts, or quilting, and you will be entered to win some of the newest fabrics in my  fabric shop - Jason Yenter's Eclectic Garden.  The drawing will be made by a random number selector (my two year old granddaughter) on March 20th, and I will post the winner Sunday evening the 21st.

Leave a comment and be entered to win

1/3 yd of each of these beautiful fabrics from

In the Beginning. (total of 1 Yard of fabric)

 
Now, check out these lovely quilted items from the Quiltsy Team on Etsy:

 

This one of a kind quilt was started in October 2008 by the Quiltsy Team. Many of us have been touched by Breast Cancer, and we wanted to do something to make a difference. With the project inspired by Whimbrella and a generous donation of theme fabric, volunteers came forth to make individually made and designed blocks. We ended up with 20 members making 22 blocks. This quilt was sold in the Quiltsy Team Shop, and the proceeds donated for cancer research.

 I have a "thing" for pincushions, and this is a sweet quilted one is from Debi Designs.

Here's a purpley batik quilt from Fabric Elements.

And this beauty is made by NeedleLove2.

You can find many more wonderful quilted works by typing "Quiltsy Team" in the search bar on Etsy.

Please don't forget to leave your comment on what you like

about quilts, or quilting for a chance to win some gorgeous fabric.

Happy Sewing ♥

 

Exposed!

It has been an exciting weekend!  Many Etsy quilters have been featured in a Storque article titled "All in Stitches"  which has resulted in lots of exposure, compliments, and sales.  I am honored to have one of my bags among the chosen quilted items, and even more thrilled because it was nominated by a customer.

Speaking of "Exposed," here I am, surrounded by fabric as usual, in one of Vicki Diane's special Artists Exposed treasuries.
 

I am also feeling very honored to have my work included in several blogs this week.  The Selvage Blog is one of my "must stop-in everyday" blogs.  Karen Griska featured the little selvage skirt I made for my littlest granddaughter on her always interesting blog. 

Nora Marie from Creations by Nora Marie also included the selvage skirt on her fun blog in an article about selvages.

Sewing Granny from the Quiltsy Team on Etsy included some items from my Kimbuktu shop on her blog - Mona's HandCrafted Gifts and Quilts .  She offers a variety of quilted items in her sweet shop.

 And last, but not least, Kris Bizzarri included my Spring Green quilt on her lovely blog.  She has been busy making beautiful pillow covers like this one  for her Etsy Shop.

I thank each of you, from the bottom of my Heart.  I really appreciate your kindnesses.

Happy Sewing ♥

Q U I L T a L I C I O U S !

In honor of National Quilting Day (March 20), I put together a treasury of Quilted lovelies from the Quiltsy Team on Etsy.  Following are the featured items and links to their shops:

Moran Art and Quilts

Kim's Crafty Apple

Betsy's Quilting Art

Quiltfinger

Artfully Sew

Post Card Lady

Quilting Frenzy

Sewing Granny

Creations by Nora Marie

Ann's QuiltnStuff

Stash This

Mama Rabbit's Workshop

There you have it, twelve quilted lovelies.

  I hope you enjoyed this quilt gallery tour.

Can Spring Be Far Behind?

I received an email overnight letting me know that one of my Batik Bundles has been featured in a lovely blog called Simply Said.  Such a nice surprise to wake up to on a Monday morning!

My blog hostess makes unique and fabulous cards like the one below, which you can purchase from  her Etsy shop - Simply Inviting.

It was a beautiful weekend here, a herald of Spring. to come.  The temperatures were in the 50's with  blue skies and sunshine.  I was able to finish up the custom shower curtain I had been working on, and made a couple of scrub hats for my husband's job.  Plus we took a walk in the sunshine together, which was a rare treat! And we finally figured out how to use the video conferencing call feature on our computer, and were able to see and chat with our littlest granddaughter.

Next it is time to tackle those taxes, ugh!  

I hope you all have a bright and happy beginning to your week.

Happy Sewing ♥