It's almost end of April. So many things going on in the last 3 weeks or so. For one, my younger son was hospitalized for typhoid. In the beginning the doctor suspected to be dengue, but Alhamdulillah it was ruled out the next day after the second blood test. And then the LS General election which happened on 18th and 23rd. Of course I don't have a voting rights but still the excitement caught on. I mostly followed the news on twitter. I also followed the Indonesian Election news which was quite "entertaining". I don't usually follow political news, but then nowadays being ignorant is no longer cool, right?! Anyway, I hope you're all made a smart choice and who ever win will fight for the people!
On creative side, in between completing custom orders, I made a few wallets for the shop. I really this simple slim wallet. I don't carry a lot of cards besides debit card, credit card and ID Card. Most of the shops I frequented usually have the membership record by phone number, so we don't necessarily have to present the cards. I love this system!
In the above wallet, I combined linen and handloom fabric because it matched nicely! Handloom is one fabric I always love and frequently buy. I love handloom tunics/dress too.
Next one, I made this super cute ellie wallet! As usual I tidy up my stash from time to time whenever I feel uninspired and I found this print. I thought of combine it with green one but I love the grey star fabric too.
Maybe next time I can make it with a green combo? What do you think?
And then I saw this cute snoopy fabric in my stash and of course I had to make another wallet!
And the log cabin sling bag is done and on it's way to the new owner. I took a bit of time to complete this one and happy that I did.
Quilting taught me to be patient. From cutting the small pieces of fabrics and putting them together and finally make them into a final product is a learning process.
"It's coming from you, it's your style. It's the same with art. When you keep doing it, you start to see your own style. It's all you. You will find your color. When you have the rhythm, you have a wisdom" - Jeon In Kwon
Happy Holi to my Indian friends! And if you plan to sew something this long weekends, I am currently running a HOLI special for All the Pdf Sewing Pattern in my shop! Grab one and start sewing for your loved ones! Ah the coupon code is HOLIHAI. The sale will be valid through Monday!
You also can find the link on the right panel of the blog. And if you have any question, you can always email me!
In the meantime, I almost finish with my pending orders. Well, February indeed was a busy month for me. I thank God for that.
I am also happy that I finished off a couple of prints. Those who know me, I hoarded quite a lot of fabrics whenever I travel abroad with the plan to make wallets. Well, the plan is still on, but the sewing has been very slow lately.
This travel print is the new print and I will be listing it in the shop shortly. Sewing the same pattern using different print really made me so happy. Because I get to use up my stash! Ha!
Now, I have this log cabin bag to complete. I'm a little bit behind the schedule this time. I always love the patchwork making process, but when it comes to quilting it, I always think like 100 times even for the smallest project. After perusing pinterest, youtube and blogs and asking opinions from my expert friends, I finally decided to do the echo quilting!..well, more about it in the next post. Now, I better finish the bag!
I've been pretty busy editing and tweaking the shops these days, especially the SEO. It is something that keep us, etsy sellers, be on our toes all the time, like literally. The works include, retaking photos, editing, etc etc. Believe me, have an online shops nowadays is not just putting up a pretty photos!
Like these linen fabrics which are so very pretty in reality and they are block printed!! The fabric texture is simply gorgeous.
Linen fibers are hollow, moving air and moisture naturally. During the colder months, layer linen blankets or a throw to retain heat and warmth from your body. Linen reacts to the season and the body in contact with the cloth to give the best of all circumstances. Linen is a natural insulator. It is valued for its ability to keep cool in the summer months and trap warmth in colder weather. This is all achieved through the natural properties of the fiber itself. (source)
The gorgeous linen fabrics are practically perfect for anything. You can make a matching dress with your daughters, or a tie for your man or boys!! I made a couple of passport wallets and my clients loved them!!
The Japanese linen is really a dream to work with. They simply look beautiful. The pink and blue fishes among the monochrome one made this fabric more attractive.
as if to say, "It's alright to be different"!
Yes just be yourself!!
I decided to go with the blue because it matched perfectly with the blue handloom ikat!!
You can even carry your phone or passport using this wallet.
I was undecided with the binding then I decided to use the same fish fabric. You know what? I made the bias binding from 10" square and it was more than enough to bind one wallet!! I am so excited! Because I often think that I need at least a fat quarter!
The wallet is now available in ETSY SHOP. I still have a bit of the fabric, if you love fish or fishing and would like to make a passport holder instead, I can do that too!
And if you want to try to make the wallet, you can find the pattern at the right panel of this blog or you can get it in ETSY or CRAFTSY.
Go and make special mother's day gift for your Mom this year!
Hello, Last month, I went to see Tokyo Quilt Festival in Tokyo Japan again with a couple of friends from Indonesia. It was rather sudden decision. My dear hubby asked me if I'd like to go again and I grabbed the opportunity with both hands! ha! I traveled with mbak Belly last year too, so this was our second Japan trip together! I had 2 missions this time! First, I want to meet Suzuko Koseki again and show my passport wallet I made with her fabrics!! I was so excited (despite having cough and cold). Suzuko Koseki has a distinct quilt style. Or maybe it's just me. I could recognize her work even before I saw the information written on the special booth.
This year's Theme was Little Women. You can read the details about it inHERE
I love how simple yet attractive her quilts are.
Thank you mbak Belly for taking this photo for me!
I love how the Japanese make everything so intricately beautiful and beautifully displayed. The quilts displayed are mostly hand quilted and hand applique with uniformly spaced stitches and not a single thread shown on the appliques. One must see closely to see that the leaves are stitched and not glued.
I then made my way to La Clochette, Suzuko Koseki booth, and I bought quite a few of her fabrics. I did not see her in the booth, so I asked the lady there if she will come back. She could not speak English and tried her best to explain to me where she's gone.
I showed her my wallet and there was another Japanese lady, who speak quite good English, told me, that Ms. Koseki was giving lectures in her special booth. Then she sweetly told me to wait, she will take me and introduce me to her, since she's the student of Koseki Sensei.
I wish I could understand Japanese
We went and listened to her lectures and this generous lady, translated (in general) of what was being said. Generally, Ms. Koseki was explaining the making process of the quilts being displayed in the booth. The most difficult part was to draw the face of the 4 women who each has a distinct character. It certainly took a lot of hard work to be able to capture that in a quilt.
Thank you!!
Afterwards, I was introduced and interacted for a while with Ms. Koseki. I felt so humbled when she took my wallet and inspected it, she gave me a thumbs-up and told me to come again next year (I hope hubby will take the hint!!) . I felt like a kindergarten kid who got her first 100 mark LOL.
The sweet Japanese Lady
I love the hospitality of Japan and how down to earth and humble they are. All the extraordinaire quilters I met in the show this and last year, left me speechless. We can certainly learn one or ten things from them!
Another best thing was I get to meet Vatsala Kamat of Tsala Studio. A quilt shop owner in Bangelore. I always admired her Japanese style works. I hope to see you soon in India!
I hope to be able to go back again next year! Maybe I can join a workshop or two or even visit La Clochette store! That would be awesome, right?
If you want to see the quilts photos (and some of my weird photos), you can see them HERE.
Hello, I am so happy to finally finished this bag. For you who follow my Instagram must have seen I posted this sling bag progress from a few months ago.
I followed this tutorial for the log cabin bag. The original was for mini tote bag but I thought the size is good for sling bag. It was really satisfying to work with small strip of fabrics.
I used up my fat eighth bundle and very happy with the result!
The machine quilting took a bit of time since I did it in between working on my custom orders.
I added one interior zipper pocket and one slip pocket in the interior and also top zipper. The bag is just enough to carry your smartphone and mini wallet or maybe a notebook.
I am hoping to make more of this bag this year. Make sure you subscribe to my blog or follow my instagram to get first update when new bags are up for sale ;)
Let me know what do you think in the comments below!
.heic)
