BOOK REVIEW: SEASIDE HOME!

My passion for quilting is quickly taking over my life and my spare time.  I recently had the opportunity to review a new book entitled SEASIDE HOME by Susanne Woods and, oh, my!  I'm excited to tell you it is fabulous!  I'm an interior designer living on the Gulf Coast of Florida and I was instantly drawn to the title, SEASIDE HOME!  Yes, it was a craft book but there surely must be something inside that could relate to decorating the interior of a home!  And I wasn't disappointed! 

My husband and I lived in England for 3 years with the Air Force and the first craft listed in the book is by Jenny Arnott.  It's a Beach Hut Pillow reminiscent of the seashore changing huts we saw on the beaches of the North Sea!  It brought back so many memories for me that I think that will be my first project.  You can learn more about Jenny and the pillow at jennyarnott.blogspot.com

All of the 25 projects in the book have easy instructions and templates that you can use in your designs! I can't wait to get started! In fact, I may just have to go out and purchase SEASIDE HOME to have in my library! Enjoy!

TEA LEAVES

 This is a photo of my quilt, TEA LEAVES that I created from two bali pops and a few yards of 2 other fabrics.  I just love the colors and design of it and would like to develop a pattern and put it out there.  Why not?  I could use some help in this area!  Happy Quilting

PUTTING PATTERNS TOGETHER IN QUILTS!

          As an interior designer, I am skilled in selecting fabrics with different patterns to come together in a pleasing combination for your home!  As I started quilting, this skill has easily transported itself into selecting fabrics for a pleasing quilt.  This is illustrated today on the Clotilde website, www.clotilde.com.  When you go to this site, they have a new section featuring a trio of quilt fabrics.  I wish I was adept at transporting these pictures into this blog, but sadly I am not.  However, you can go to Clotilde and look at the 4 sets of 3 fabrics that they've put together.
          In each set, there is one statement print.  This is the largest pattern from which you will pull the colors and patterns for the other two fabrics.  My favorite is the  Sugar and Spice trio of cuts.  The statement print is a medium floral design.  The first complementary fabric is a blue background with red polka dots!  The dots repeat the circular design of the flowers and the blue pulls from the print.  The second complementary fabric is a blue and white stripe of varying widths, again a great choice!  Note that the dominant color of all three fabrics together is blue, and the accent colors are white and red.  In design, I always suggest that at least half to 2/3 of a room should be all one color or shades of one color, in this case, blue.  The other third of the room is made of accent colors, in this case, red and white.  If you follow this guide when selecting your fabrics for you next quilt, you can't go wrong!  Two thirds of your quilt should be all one color or shades of the same color and the remaining third, the accent colors. 
Happy Quilting!