nanaCompany

merry bonbon air mail

My last post was written in haste because I was rushing to get to the doctor's office, which led to a visit to the hospital ~ turns out baby and I are fine, but there is a new complication with this pregnancy and now I'm on modified bedrest.   Boooooo.  That means there are lots of things I can't do anymore, but I'm still allowed to make dinner every night so it can't be that bad, right?  ;)  And if I can make dinner, then I can sew. 

So you've seen how I've used this fabric to make "patches" on my sewn items.  I simply cut out a patch that I like, iron some Wonder Under on the back (or any other paper backed fusible web), iron into place and stitch to secure.

While I have no more of this print on the white background to sell, I just remembered I'd bought the same print in "linen"... so there are 4 "fat eighths" now in the shop.  Each piece is approximately 9" x 22" and includes at least one row of the Merry BonBon circle cancellation stamps.  Made by Lecien and impossible to find, make sure to pick it up fast if you want some, because I won't be selling any more.

NOTE: this fabric sold out within minutes and I no longer have any to sell, sorry.

Cheers!  xo amy

Zakka Style winner!

Okay, wow, so we all love color.  Thanks so much to all of you for entering the giveaway!  Red and aqua was probably mentioned most, and some added in pink...

Source: creaturecomfortsblog.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

Another really popular color combination? Yellow and gray...

Source: hostessblog.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

But the winner... she loves purple and green...

Source: decor8blog.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

Congratulations to Miriam in Portugal who has won a copy of the book Zakka Style and the little elephant bookmark made by me from a pattern in the book.

xo amy

1, 2, 3...

The other day I was at babyGap admiring their bibs when I remembered ~ save your money, girl.  Make your own.   So, in my stash I found the perfect dusky flower print from French General (Pom Pom de Paris), sat down, drew a pattern and stitched it up.  Then I found a bag of Livi's baby things and pulled out an old knit dress and a swiss dot bubble onesie that are both stained down the front ~ perfect for cutting up and giving new life.  So I made two more bibs...

The two knit bibs are truly special because the dress I made them from was bought nearly 16 years ago from babyGap and both my daughters wore it.  First it was Anne's... (see her in it here in 1997).  And then Livi wore it in 2009... (see here).  Call me cheap or call me crafty, I was pleased as punch to give new life to this little dress that now all 3 of my daughters will get to share.  It was a little hard cutting into it at first ~ but once you get started it's nothing.  The ruffles on these bibs were made from the dress hem, and the back of the pink one is lined with Livi's old bubble onesie.  I'd bought two of those adorable rompers at the time, and one is still in perfect condition so I'll get to see the new baby (who still has no name!) wearing it, too.

I love the bibs.  And they just happen to look perfect with the little things I did buy from the Gap this week...

Happy Friday!

1. Hand Pieced Quilt-A-Long Block #5 Granny Square, 2. me by Damnmeandyou, 3. {201} a handful of radishes., 4. finished rose, 5. IMG_9956, 6. Vignette 1, 7. Untitled, 8. Blue Bouquet Vintage Wallpaper, 9. rose garland (hand embroidery pattern/transfer), 10. Yo-Yo Garland, 11. Untitled, 12. Untitled, 13. Vintage grandmother's flower garden quilt

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

xo amy

:: Zakka Style giveaway!

Have you seen the book, "Zakka Style: 24 Projects Stitched with Ease to Give, Use, & Enjoy"? I just got my copy in the mail and I am truly in love with this craft book.  It's compiled by Rashida Coleman-Hale and boy did she do a great job.  Never mind that I got to be a part of it ~ yep, I've got a project in it (thanks so much, Rashida!) ~ I would've wanted this book anyway.  Zakka which translates from Japanese to "many things" or "sundries" is a style I particularly love.  When I hear the word I think: simple, charming, handmade... and that's what's in this book.

My contribution was this cute little cookie sack...

See it on the back cover!

This book is chock-full of simple and sweet zakka projects and what's really cool is that many are made by my friends ~ like this bread basket made by Rachel Roxburgh...

Perfection.  I so want to make one of those.  Actually I want to make one of everything in the book!  And I've already got started...

See the page below... it's like the cutest bookmark ever, designed by Kat Mew, and it charmed me to pieces.  So I just had to make one!

And I'm happy to give it away to one of you, along with a copy of this awesome book.

C'mon.  These two want a new home.  All you have to do is leave a comment here at the end of this post... tell me your favorite color combination!  The winner will be chosen at random.  Comment by next Monday, February 27th and I'll announce the winner on Tuesday.  Cool?

have a great week! xo amy

a postcard from Paris

Seems longer to me, but one month ago ~ excited and armed with inspiration ~ I set out to make a Valentine's Day postcard pillow for Liv.  Instead, she's getting a springtime postcard pillow that she can use all year...

And after fiddling and stitching, ripping and re-stitching, I really like it.  Really, really.

Here are some of the details:

I changed the stamp from flowers to the Eiffel Tower...

If you look very closely here, you'll see the pencil mark inside my "cancellation stamp" that I stitched in, didn't like and ripped out.  After the first wash, that line will disappear.

Here is the little house patch down in the corner that keeps getting cut off in my pics:

Not very good pics, but you get the idea.  I was inspired by a Dottie Angel apron for the base, and had an idea to use the white lace around the postcard as if it were tape.  But the "postcard" needed more framing, so I added the pink stripes, thinking of washi tape.  Love it.

Whew, I'm so glad it's done!  And just so you know, Olivia sleeps on two pillows... both are rather flat.  This one goes on the bottom and the pink dotty one back there behind it (that I made for her when she slept in the bassinet) goes on top.  So she won't really be putting her face on all those postcard stitches.  And she spends half the night in my bed, anyway.  There's another story.

There are a few minutes left of Friday so, here are my faves this week:

1. Coffee ♥, 2. ♥♥♥ - Christiane Dahlbeck (from the book "Fadenspiel"), 3. peter cotton tail, 4. Amy Borrell, 5. Untitled, 6. Project 365 - Day 168, 7. inspiration from sanctuary, 8. tooth pillow, 9. The sweet one , 10. Granny Squares, 11. flora the explorer, 12. old rabbit toy, 13. happy valentine's day, flickr peeps!

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

p.s.  After a trip to the doctor's office to find out Nicholas has an ear infection, we're all on the mend now.  Have a great weekend!!  xo amy

Wishing you all...

... a day full of love.  Happy Valentine's Day.

I rather feel like crap.  Sadly, we passed on our colds to the little ones.  Nicholas had a fever and a bad nasty cough and runny nose all weekend, then quite suddenly Livi got a stomach bug and passed it onto me.  I wish I were sewing but laying down feels really good.

I love the names you've given me.  I've read them all aloud to my husband and he smiles and says us ladies must all be watching the same movies and reading the same books.  I said, yes, I think we are.  ;)  For the moment, we're carefully weighing Chloe Sofia and Maria Rose.  I prefer Chloe, I think, and he prefers Maria.  But, my girlfriend reminded me that since I have the greater burden in the pregnancy and delivery of our little baby, I should be able to choose the name... right??!  Fair?  Ha!  We'll see...

Well the sewing of the postcard thingy continues and I hope it'll be finished soon.  I had planned for it to be a Valentine's Day postcard, but as I'm a little late, I'm changing the "message" altogether.  In the meantime, I got some new fabric to play with...

Random basics to help with the two baby quilts I've got coming up.  One is a custom order, and one for me!  (And btw, the little pink basket is at the dollar spot at Target right now.)

Happy Valentines Day to you all!

xo amy

:: ready for the weekend

I know it's only February but here in LA we've been enjoying summer weather.  Better than summer weather!  Last week the beach was amazing and just yesterday I was at the park, happily working on the doll quilt when my kids complained it was too hot and wanted to go home.  That custom order doll quilt, by the way, is all finished.  (Remember Justine, I won't be sad if you don't like it!)

I've always wanted to do blocks on point and this is my very first time.  Pretty cute, eh?  I'd love to do a much larger version some day.  This one is meant for an actual doll bed and measures about 18" x 14".  It is backed with pink polka dots.

And I have another project in the works.  Remember the postcard inspiration?  Here's a sneak peek of mine...

This weekend I have lots of plans... to finish the above thingy,  spend some time at the beach, a bit of furniture restoration on an old Pottery Barn dresser we got off Craig's list, and a trip to the library.  We'll see what I actually get done ~ ha!

And, thank you so much for the congratulations, continued prayers and good baby girl vibes!  Now, we have to get serious about deciding on a name, which isn't so easy this time around.   Olivia wants us to name her Barbie.  Her second choice is Sally.  My husband quipped that we could call her, "the girl whose name must not be mentioned" (yes, we watch a lot of Harry Potter).  Grandma likes the name Sophia.  I don't know (I'm woefully shaking my head).  I'd love to hear some of your favorite girl names.  Seriously, throw some at me.

And have a great weekend!

1. fabric covered notebooks, 2. Dream Dress, 3. Little sheep, 4. Heidi & Finn Pinafore Pattern, 5. Bolsa Wishes*, 6. i can't look at a flower without thinking of you.........he told me..., 7. such light, springy colors, 8. living room, 9. paper flowers, 10. Vintage Laundry Labels, 11. original art work, 12. granny square blocks! :), 13. autumn quilt

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

xo amy

bring on the pink!

I can feel this tiny baby in my belly kicking me with its tiny feet.  My husband felt it today, too, for the first time.  It's funny because our little baby is about 8 oz. right now and I'm like an old pro, having been kicked before by as big as a 10 lb. 2 oz. baby Nicholas in my belly!  So when I feel these little jabs, it's like, aww that tickles!  Well, today was the "big" ultrasound.  Baby is perfectly healthy and so far, so am I.  She's a miracle, to be sure and yes, she's a she.  Bring on the pink!  (I can't wait to start sewing and shopping.)

Source: gap.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

Source: boligpluss.no via Amy on Pinterest

 

Source: flickr.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

This week I've been struggling for inspiration, but I found it finally and sewed up a custom order doll quilt that's on the list.  I wasn't given much direction but I was told "pink" so what I made is kinda colorful with a pink background.   I honestly won't mind if the customer doesn't like it because then I can keep it for myself.  Here's a sneak peek...

All it needs is the binding and quilting.  Ahem, it would have been done by now, but I stitched on a bad choice of binding (confirmed by my husband) and had to tear it off.  (I know that's two in a row, but I still have hope this isn't going to become a regular thing with me... ;)

Enjoy the rest of the week!

xo amy

I chose blue

Sometimes you gotta move fast to do something right...

... 'cause if you wait too long it might never get done at all.  I chose solid blue.  It looks so vintage in person.  So what I wanted.  The red binding came off in less than an hour.  Olivia put on an old movie, "The Black Cauldron" and we chatted away while I ripped stitches... I even managed to poke myself in the face with the seam ripper at one point... ouch!  I really get into my work ;)

xo amy

cook me a meal and I'll make you a...

You might think I'm crazy (and you may be right!) or you might think, um yes... but I'm going to change the binding on the hexagon doll quilt I just finished (see the post below).  After seeing it in pics, I realize the look I'm going for isn't quite there and it's because of the red binding.  I think an aqua blue or pink might be just right.  Scroll down, take a look... do you agree?

Well, I get to check one thing off my list today.  A few weeks back a new friend invited us over for lunch, cooking for hours to create a Persian food feast (in the beginning of this pregnancy I craved middle eastern food more than anything ~ kabob, basmati rice).  Her kitchen was cheerful and bright and she was wearing the cutest apron so I knew immediately I could make her a little something as thanks.

Cook me a meal and I'll make you a...

... hotpad!

An oversized hotpad, perhaps.  It's about 12" x 12", but perfect for big platters of food, like the ones she served at our lunch.  I'm getting hungry as I write this...  Alright, we are off to let the kids ride bikes at the beach ~ off for some much needed fresh air.  But I leave you, of course, with a little Friday inspiration:

1. Miss Etoile Spring 2012, 2. Laundry bag with embroidery, 3. happy birthday, 4. Yay!, 5. Halfway finished, 6. Naturally Scented fabric softener/ over 3000 views, thank you., 7. Untitled, 8. abundance - the whole lot of them, 9. Good Morning Again!!! I deleted this by accident !!!, 10. Vintage Sheet Lap Quilt, 11. Tomato Circus In Town, 12. shabby chic table cloth, 13. Spoonful Zine Quote

Created with fd's Flickr Toys

Happy weekend!  xo amy