nanaCompany

so much sweetness

As shocking as it may seem: Mia turned three last week.  Yes, 3.  And we celebrated her in the simplest way possible, but with all the things she asked for...

... Cake, candles, presents, balloons and chocolate coins (she listed these things to me all the days leading up to her birthday).  Mia's best loved present?  Play-doh.  That's a big wad of green play-doh in her hand in the pic above.  Such joy.  Such genuine excitement for the simplest of things.  When we brought out her birthday cake and sang to our sweet smiling girl, she stared a long time at the three sparkly candles on top but wouldn't blow them out.  We thought maybe she didn't know how.  More! she finally said.  I want more candles!!  So I plunked the rest in her cake and lit them and quite suddenly Mia knew exactly how to blow those candles out.  My funny little miracle child ~ the happiest and sweetest birthday girl.  Ever.  Now 3 (sob sob!)

 

Have you seen?

It is so much fun seeing the beautiful makes you ladies are stitching up with my book, Sweetly Stitched Handmades, and I'm really enjoying the sew-along (#SweetlyStitchedSAL) happening right now on Instagram ~ hosted by Melissa of Oh How Sweet (@ohhowsweetco on Instagram) and Anorina of Samelia's Mum (@sameliasmum on Instagram).  If you'd like to join in, it's so easy:

1. Simply sew a project from Sweetly Stitched Handmades.  You get to choose the project.

2. Take a pic for Instagram using the hashtag #SweetlyStitchedSAL.  

I get to see your makes and cheer you on, and everyone gets inspiration and support from one another.  There will be six rounds in total and each round lasts two weeks.  As a bonus, at the end of each round a project is chosen by our judge Lisa, of A Spoonful of Sugar, and is awarded a prize by me!

Here are just some of the beautiful makes from round one:

Airmail Bag by Chelle's Quilts

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On the Spot Trivet by Erin of Why Not Sew?

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On the Spot Trivet by Lisaannslife

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Home Sweet Home Embroidery by Rita Couto

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Home Sweet Home Embroidery by Sedef of Down Grapevine Lane

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On the Spot Trivet by Lisa of A Spoonful of Sugar

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Starburst Dresden Cushion by Faith Essenberg

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Stacked Hexagon Mugrug by Sally Anne Ness

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I just love them all!  To see the adorable winning project of Round 1 (and so many other gorgeous projects), check out the hashtag #SweetlyStitchedSAL and then... join in for Round 2! 

 

I stitched up another "My Sweet Home" mini quilt using Liberty patchwork and Kaufman Essex linen in slate for the center.  L's Modern Grey x's by Lecien for the binding.   

I'd finished it like this, but something didn't feel right.  So, just before sending it off to a sweet friend I decided to embroider some flowers among the words "home sweet home" ~ and then it truly felt finished.

I hope she likes it!  If you'd like to make one, too, the pattern is available in my nanaCompany shop on etsy.

xo amy

p.s. I found an old drawing that I'd offered as a free embroidery pattern long ago on flickr.  I just wanted to make it available here as well.  You can download the "lucky ladybug" PDF here.  Happy stitching!

 

Farm Girl Vintage Sew Along

Hello all!  It's another #FarmGirlFriday and my stop along the Farm Girl Vintage Sew Along!  If you don't have it yet, go get Lori Holt's third book, Farm Girl Vintage, to learn how to make 45 of the cutest blocks and also learn how to turn those blocks into beautiful finished projects.

This friday we're sewing the Crops block and ~ as can be expected from Lori ~ it's simple, cute and fun to make, with instructions for both a 6" and 12" block.  I made a 6" block.  

I used some of my new favorite Oakshott cottons with coordinated prints against a dark Kaufman Essex linen.  Added a nice thick border (Elementary by Sweetwater for Moda) and turned it into a mini.  But I didn't want to stop there!  Towards the back of Lori's book there is a picture of her Small Harvest Tablerunners and I thought to myself... yes, please.

I pulled out all of my fave pink scraps and an assortment of Riley Blake pink solids.  I used Tim Holtz' Symphony print, a blender, and a sprinkling of Bonnie Christine's Hello Bear dots as the background.  For the stem, I cut into an old prized Alexander Henry print that I've used oh-so sparingly over the years.  Color Theory Mustard Geo Mod by V and Co. for Moda is the binding.

I quilted it with organic lines and wondered if I should add some hand stitches.  What do you think?

I love it so much, I'm not sure where I'm going to put it, although odds are it will end in the girls' room.  Above their bed, most likely.  I don't know.  But one thing is for sure: Lori's book is so good.  I especially think it's perfect for new sewists who are just beginning to quilt because you can baby-step it.  Make one block and turn it into a mug rug.  Make a few more blocks, or try a more complicated block.  Make some more and turn them into a baby quilt.  When you're feeling really confident try the whole quilt!  Either way, I know you'll have fun with it.

If you'd like some more Farm Girl Vintage inspiration, also check out the Egg Basket block over at Pink Pincushion today!  And of course, visit Lori herself at Bee in My Bonnet :)

xo amy

Sweet Liberty

There was a very small, untidy shop in a rundown strip mall near where I lived years ago.  And in that shop there were three rolls of Liberty of London lawn.  I didn't know what it was at the time, but I bought yards of what they had and now keep them hoarded away from my regular stash.  They're prints I've never been able to identify.  I'd wanted to bring them to London last trip, but in my whirlwind of activity ~ forgot.  Maybe next time.

Today, I have a small but growing collection of Liberty Tana lawn.  Small by my estimation ~ about 25 half or quarter yard cuts and a bunch of scraps.   I recently came across Sew Sew n Sew, a darling shop on etsy that carries Liberty and Atsuko Matsuyama and cute cross-stitch patterns.  It's basically a little slice of heaven for me, though items ship from Hong Kong ~ which is the price one pays for the best of the cute stuff.

So, I got all these lovelies from Iris, at Sew Sew n Sew, but it's the Liberty that's got me all excited and suddenly I only want to sew with Liberty! (Because Liberty makes everything better!!  Right?!)

Have you seen some of my latest projects on Instagram?  (Come follow me.  I'm @amysinibaldi)  I've been so enjoying the Instagram quilt-along #MySmallWorldQAL ~ sewing Jen Kingwell's pattern "My Small World" from the Spring 2015 issue of Quiltmania.  It's a fun pattern, full of small pieces that won't ever bore you and it's based on one of my favorite rides at Disney (my husband proposed to me on that ride!)  I haven't been able to make much progress yet, but I love what I've got so far.

I can't wait to get back to this.  Are you quilting along?  Check out the hashtag on Instagram for more details if you'd like to join.  I also started another "My Sweet Home" mini quilt and here's a sneak peek at my progress:

On a completely different note, I recently got the chance to talk with Stephanie Kendron on her fun podcast, Modern Sewciety!

Here's the link, if you'd like to listen in!

P.s. For those of you asking about my Toshie Ishii cross stitch pattern cards that were put out by Lecien, those are virtually impossible to find now.   Ask me how, I know, but I did find one ~  Superbuzzy carries the baby pattern as well as a ton of other cute cross-stitch patterns.

xo amy