honeycombs wall quilt

For a dear friend's birthday this month, I stitched up a small wall quilt, using prints by Umbrella Prints from my fabric shop and some scraps of chambray.

Inspired by Betsy's honeycombs, I stitched up my own by hand, using an English paper-piecing technique.

I then machine-appliqued the honeycombs to my quilt top and did echo quilting around the edges.

I stuck with my now-favorite rounded corners, and used up the rest of the binding I had made for this quilt. I used a coordinating vintage blue print for the backing, and I added both a label and a hanging sleeve.

I loved having the chance to work with these prints (they're among my favorites) and I'm happy to report that the birthday girl loved her gift.

free shipping week!

Now through Friday, October 4, I'm offering free domestic and international shipping in my Etsy shop! Simply enter the coupon code YAYFREESHIP at checkout. I've got lots of pretty fabrics by Umbrella Prints in stock, including a few fat quarter packs, along with quilts and pillows. All orders will ship on Saturday, October 5.

Happy shopping!

hello embroidery sampler

Last week, I had the pleasure of teaching a group of 15+ students the joys of basic hand embroidery in the Spoonflower Greenhouse. For the class, I created a simple sampler, which incorporated four basic stitches: back stitch, detached chain stitch, fern stitch and French knots. I designed the pattern in Illustrator, with the help of a friend, and printed it on Spoonflower's linen-cotton canvas, a great fabric for stitching on.

The class was a lot of fun, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and learn a few new stitches. In case you're interested in stitching up your own sampler, I've posted the design for sale on the Spoonflower web site. It fits perfectly on an 8" x 8" swatch, and can easily be framed in a 6" embroidery hoop.

salty oat: the fabric shop!

Today, I'm so excited to announce the next phase of Salty Oat: an online fabric shop! I've always loved screen-printed fabrics (both their modern aesthetic and their handmade, earth-friendly nature), but have often been unable to find the designers I love in shops in the U.S. So, I decided to do something about it, and am so excited to add the first batch of screen-printed fat quarters to my virtual shelves.

You can now purchase prints by Umbrella Prints in the shop, including a few from their newest collection, Floating World, which launched just last week. Umbrella Prints makes beautiful, organic fabrics and is run by two talented women, Amy and Carly. I've loved working with their fabrics, and competing in their annual Trimmings Competition (you can see my past entries here and here). 

I have a few other designers lined up for the shop, which I'll be adding in the coming months. If you have any favorite independent designers you'd love to see in the shop, please let me know!

triangle baby quilt

Little Bits Quilting Bee is by far one of my favorite quilting books. Its pages are filled with quilts that feature a fresh, modern perspective; its author, Kathreen Ricketson, had such an amazing style. I recently finished this triangle baby quilt---my second quilt using one of the book's patterns (my Prismatic quilt was the first)---and love how it turned out.

The front features triangles cut from a reproduction print charm pack that I picked up in New Hampshire at Keepsake Quilting's annual summer tent sale, arranged in color order.

I backed it with an apple print by Alexander Henry and quilted it with straight lines that follow the angles of the triangles' sides. Inspired by my Craftsy class potholder, I rounded the corners and bound the quilt with a red-and-white bias tape. The rounded corners are probably my favorite part.

You can find the quilt for sale in my Etsy shop.

open studio this friday!

For the past two months, I've been dividing my time between my home studio and a new shared studio in downtown Cary, which is part of the co-working space Gather. Moving into the new studio has been just the kick in the pants I needed to try out some new things, including reopening my Etsy shop and stocking it with previously unfinished projects, and re-imagining the future of Salty Oat---with more details to come soon (there's a mini hint in the photo above)! I'll also be teaching two classes at Gather this fall, and will share details about those in the coming months.

In the meantime, this Friday is Gather's grand opening, and I hope you'll stop by and say hello! I'll have my wares for sale, including some pieces that aren't currently available in my Etsy shop, and there will be food trucks, coffee, local vendors, and more. It promises to be a fun night!

log cabin baby quilt

I first made the blocks for this quilt three (three?!) years ago, as part of a mystery quilt along that never finished. I finally pulled all of the blocks out this summer, and made a soft and crinkly baby quilt.

I paired the Heather Bailey, Amy Butler, and Cloud9 prints in the quilt top with another Amy Butler print on the back.

I quilted it in straight lines with green thread, and bound it with a blue and white seersucker for a bit of unexpected texture. 

You can find the quilt for sale in my Etsy shop here.