Now, master cooks we are not. Certainly, bakers, not even close! And yet something possesses us each year right around this time to get out the recipes and the crazy ideas and choose a candy of some kind to make for all of the teachers and school folks who educate our children throughout the year. It has to be something different each year and everyone in the family has to participate in the process.  Sounds like a noble task, doesn't it? Well, some years it goes better than others. This year, no one is fessing up to…

One of our newest patterns, Amelia & Me, just got finished up a few weeks ago and started shipping last week. It is one of my favorite pattern covers with my daughter on it. I think she looks very Southern Belle, doesn't she? Maybe its just me, I am a bit biased after all! As soon as it started shipping, we had a sudden freeze in Northern California where we live and somehow the sending out of a sweet spring girls hat pattern, just didn't sound right [even though I know stores will be using it…

So our newest issue of Fresh Vintage… issue #14, has finally started to ship. We have all of the auto shipments out and most of the stores and distributors out the door as of yesterday morning! Halleluiah! Now this was definitely a labor of love this time around, I tell ya. Haven't had this many snags with the printing and delivery of a pattern for quite a while. But its all done so its all good and we're MOVING ON, as my husband says. For those of you who have been asking and emailing, the…

Now I know you are thinking to yourself… didn't you already tell us about the tree skirt?  Didn't you already show us the tree skirt? How much more tree skirt do we need to see? Well… after taking 87 1/2 pictures of said tree skirt, I feel compelled to show a whole "montage" of tree skirt photos, just because, because I can! Can you tell I am happy with my tree skirt? The real reason for all this excitement I think, is that I hardly ever sew for my own…

While wandering around Chelsea in London, I found one of the places I have loved for years without ever having been there. I have the books, browse the sites and the store was just, if not more, magical. An entire wall of pillows, racks of fabrics, dozens of vignettes. Wonderful ideas for home and children and office. I think I spent 2 hrs in there just looking around. The Designer's Guild founded by Tricia Guild was a treasure trove of visual goodies.  Unfortunately they wouldn't allow me to take any pictures indoors so most of…