Jaybird Quilts

Friday, April 15, 2011

A Little Birdie Told Me... all about Urban Zoologie

My new Swatch & Stitch post is up!

Show & Tell!

One of my favorite things is seeing photos of things that YOU have made from my patterns, magazines & tutorials. Many of you send me e-mails... but you can also add them to the Jaybird Quilts Show & Tell Flickr Group. Here are some photos that have been sent to me recently!

Hugs & Kisses by Onemoe

3 in a Box by Jan

Class taught by Mi @ The RGVQG retreat in Kerville. About 100" X 100". Since this doesn't come up and over the pillows, I made a row of the blocks with the borders in a long strip to cover the pillows.

Dance Floor by Kim

Tic Tac Toe on the Go! by Steph

Dot Party by Cathy

Carnival by Rachel

100 Blocks Vol 2 by Shawna

100 Blocks Vol 2 by Sonia

If you have made something from one of my patterns or tutorials I'd love to see it!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Plaid Parade & Off the Rail are here!!

The waiting wasn't easy this week... but it was worth it!

Plaid Parade & Off the Rail are here!

With help from my mom we got them bagged...boxed...and shipped off to shops!

Here is a list of where you can buy my patterns online.

Another quilt arrived back from Angela.... which means I'm busy working on binding!

& a few packages of fabric arrived...Unfortunately I can't show any of it yet... because it's the kind of fabric that "doesn't exist yet" if you know what i mean... but you won't have to wait too long.
I also got a yummy pile of selvages from Kari for my never ending selvage quilt.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Quilt Market Update... the waiting game

4 weeks to go... and I'm in the waiting phase.

Waiting for fabric to arrive.
Waiting for quilts to come back from Angela for binding.
Waiting for boxes of patterns to arrive from the printer.
I feel like I'm waiting for the UPS man all the time.

Don't worry... I have plenty to do while I'm waiting. SO much to do that I really should stop thinking I'm waiting and get back to work!

I did take some time to prepare a few bindings... so that when quilts begin to arrive from Angela I have the binding ready to go.

*By the way*
I was shocked to get more than 75 comments on my "I'm addicted to office supplies post!" ...but it sure does feel nice to not be alone! Many of you asked about the mini-binder & page protectors. They are both Avery products and I found them at Office Max.
Mini-Binder
Mini-Page Protectors

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Guest blog post - Melanie of A Sewing Journal

Today I'd like to introduce you to Melanie. Melanie and I have "known" each other for quite a while now through the joy of blogland. She has a great style and I've found her new blog to be a place of inspiration filled with lots of fabric eye candy!

With that... here is a guest post from Melanie!

-Julie

A Sewing Journal is a blog where I document sewing projects and fabrics that I love from around the web. I think of it as a curated collection of images and ideas for sewing. I love many types of sewing and have categories that include quilts, children, women, home, eco and fabric. And although I like and respect many different styles in all those categories, I try to keep the blog focused on what one might call fresh, new looks (though, arguably, nothing's really "new" in sewing!). I have no real criteria or method to how I choose what to feature, only that it makes me say, "wow, that's great! I need to share!" Feedback from my readers tells me that people like to stop by my blog to see what's new and that they love the same things I do. I also share any sewing I'm doing.

Venti Mug Rug via Melanie on Flickr

Before starting A Sewing Journal, I ran the online fabric store, Modern Organic Fabrics. I'm still a strong supporter of organic cotton fabric and feature it heavily on my blog. And before that, I was the voice behind The Fabric Shopper blog. After running Modern Organic Fabrics for a little over a year, I realized that being a retail shop owner was not a good fit for me. I really loved, and felt I was better at, blogging. When the sadness of closing the shop wore off, I was really excited about getting back to blogging. Offline I'm the mother to three girls, ages 4-10, and we live in beautiful Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Thank you, Julie, for having me here. I really enjoy your wonderful quilts!

--

Thank you to Melanie for taking some time to write a guest post for Jaybird Quilts readers. I know there are many many blogs out there, but I suggest you add A Sewing Journal to your reading list!

Monday, April 11, 2011

Giveaway winners & giveaway updates

It's time to announce the winners of the giveaways sponsored by Fabric Shoppe!

The winner of the 1/2 yard bundle of Ty Pennington Impressions in the Ice/Persimmion colors is....

The winner of the Robert Kaufman Half to Have It Radiance bundle in Oceanic. Silk, Cotton blend is....

Congrats to tpino & Nancy! Please contact me with your information!

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Giveaway Update on the BYOG Sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop

Willa was the non-blogger winner & she has sent me a photo of her yummy goodies.

Will got 3 jelly rolls and a candy bar package. Black, Snow and Sherbet Pips for jelly rolls and the candy box included Lovely, Buttercup,Oasis and Modern Workshop. She told me that she already started to make a laptop case!

Sew Sane Jane was the blogger winner & she has posted her yummy goodies as well!

Thank you to everyone for entering the giveaways!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

I have a confession to make

I am obsessed with office supplies.

I don't know when it started... but I was young.

Back to school shopping was always something I looked forward to... and still kinda miss now that I'm not in school anymore. The Staples "It's the most wonderful time of the year" commercial with the dad dancing through the store always cracked me up. The kids looked so unhappy... but when my dad would say it was time to go to Staples my face would light up. {It still does}

As a part of market prep I've been putting some supplies aside... and purchasing a few new ones.
It's not that I needed new ones... but i needed them! ;-)
Notice the blue trend? I'm not sure why I think my office supplies need to match my logo!

One of my favorite new purchases is this mini binder.

It has half size page protectors that are exactly the size of my patterns!

Please tell me I'm not alone in the office supply addiction!!!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

this little birdie is going to market

& well I guess that isn't a surprise.

I've been to the last few quilt markets

but this time...

I'm going to have my own booth!

eek.

breathe in...breathe out!!

I have a to-do list that seems to have grown to a mile long.more quilts to makemore patterns to orderbooth decor to buy & buildpacking...shipping...and the list goes on...
One thing I don't have to worry about... I'm not shy!Here I am at The Village Quilter a few weeks ago demoing the Lazy Angle Ruler & showing off my new quilts!

That's Susan in the background. Susan owns The Village Quilter & has been a very encouraging force for me. If it wasn't for a conversation with Susan, I never would have taken the leap to have a booth at this Quilt Market.

The crowd loved my pieced backs & how I piece my labels into them.
I have a new tutorial that will be up in the next few days on how I do pieced quilt backs.

I talk with my hands!! :-)

{Thank you to Denise, a fellow Philly Modern Quilt Guild member, for taking these photos for me.}
As for Quilt Market...the countdown is officially on.5 weeks from todayI'll be in the air flying to SLCthankfully i won't be aloneCandi is coming along for the ride... the fun... the tears... the work... the play
I wouldn't be able to do it without her.
I'll post more on market prep as I get ready!

Monday, April 4, 2011

Sponsored Giveaway: Featuring Fabric Shoppe!

disclosure: this is a sponsored giveaway by Fabric Shoppe

I'd like to introduce to you...

Fabric Shoppe!!

Fabric Shoppe is an online quilt shop that specializes in modern fabrics. The #1 word I always associate with Fabric Shoppe is FUN! Jody is the woman behind it all... and she stocks her shop full of fun & bright fabrics that make me want to play.

A bit about Jody!

My name is Jody of the Fabric Shoppe! A little about me...I am married to my best friend who by trade is a pastor. We have 2 girls age 1 and almost 3. Since I was little I have had a deep love for creating and handmade! I took a quilt class at a local quilt shop in college and found that I love the possibility that a piece of fabric holds. I started the Fabric Shoppe on Etsy back in 2008 after frustrating searches for modern fabric for my handmade business. The Shoppe has since grown and I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a part of the online creative community! I blog at Everyday Beautiful! You can also follow us on facebook or twitter for sales, giveaways and to see all the new fabric lines.

In the Shoppe you will find your favorite fabrics bundled together for easy shopping. We carry a large selection of Robert Kaufman, Riley Blake, Alexander Henry, Michael Miller, Organic, Echino, and many more. We stock Kona solids, Free Spirit quilting linens and precuts for all your projects! Some of my favorites right now are this lovely Joel Dewberry bundle!

and these fun Kona Roll Ups that look delicious enough to eat :)

I love how Jody offers bundles of all sizes. In many of the fabrics you can choose FQ, half yard or full yard. You can also create your own bundle in a variety of sizes!