A NEW JOURNEY BEGINS...

It's been quite a year and as 2011 comes to a close, I am just really grateful that I made it through!  The changes I spoke of several posts back are manifesting themselves nicely.  I am in the process of deciding on a new name for what will turn out to be, I think, the biggest project of my life.  I had hoped to continue to do it from this blog, but it is so radically different from what I am doing now that it really does not make sense to do that.  I am hopeful that I will still do posts here, too, though my track record of late isn't very good.  As I said before, I will continue to sew and create for my clients' homes AND I will be writing.  

Make 2012 the best year of your life!!!

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS

Wishing everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a 

Joyous New Year!!!

GIVE-A-WAYS AT BELLA RUSTICA

Treat yourself to a look at Bella Rustica Market - weekly give-a-ways through Christmas and her signature burlap pillows are two for one for another week. Limited to stock on hand so hurry...

WELCOME BABY

Just when I put it out into the 'world' that I intend to start doing more writing, I seem to have frozen up.  Oh, there's a reason for it and, I promise, I will get to it one of these days.  That day is not today, however. 

 Today, I'll post about the crib skirt and bumpers I did recently.  Of course, they took me far longer that I would ever have thought possible.  That would be due to the fact that my brain is on a bit of a holiday.  

(More on that in a future post.) 

 I had an existing crib set to copy, so I didn't have to truly figure out how to make it.  It was very clever the way it was done, though, and how the bumper ties on.  It was one long 'cushion' with two loops on one end and ties on the other to make the rectangular shape. The skirt, welting and ties are of the same contrasting fabric.

   I made the bumper with a zipper that runs the entire length so that the inside 'pillows' can be removed and the bumper washed.

With as much trouble as this job gave me, I was very pleasantly surprised at how good it all turned out.

Another close-up of the ties attaching the bumper to the crib rails.

My client is having a boy in January and his new room is ready and waiting his much anticipated arrival.

CHANGE IS IN THE AIR

 You may be wondering, why all the quotes?  Well, as the title of my post says, CHANGE IS IN THE AIR.  For several years now, I have been slightly (not a lot, just a little) dissatisfied with what I have been doing.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE what I do AND I've felt that something needed to change.  I just wasn't sure how to go about making the shift.  I am currently in the middle of making that shift.  Almost 7 weeks ago I went through an extremely traumatic event.  I am still dealing with it and, unfortunately, will be for some time to come.  I will continue to sew (for now) and will slowly transition to what I've been longing to do.  Actually, there are several things I will be pursuing:  photography (which will most likely involve custom fabrics) and writing.  Let's just say that I have a lot to say and leave it at that for now.  Since I will not be giving up what I have been doing for the last 20 years, I will continue to post about my various jobs.  I will also begin to have more varied posts.  I hope that those of you who have followed me for the last few years will continue to do so.  The subject matter I will be writing about is very personal and I am hopeful that while it helps me to deal with what has happened, it will also be helpful to many others.  I apologize for being somewhat cryptic here and I promise it will all become clear in the next several days.  The urge to share has become overwhelming, and I plan to listen more closely than I ever have before to what my mind, body and spirit are telling me to do.

In case any of you are not familiar with Pinterest, all of the preceding quotes came from there.  

A LA JOLLA FAMILY ROOM

Love seat slipcovered in red/white ticking.  Throw pillows that incorporate all the fabrics used in the room.  A great way to tie everything together.

Queen Anne's chair with yellow/white check.

 Notice how the slipcover follows the woodwork on the front of the seat.

One of two wings chairs slipcovered in this Ralph Lauren stripe w/ floral pattern.

 The whole room:  3 completely different fabrics and all go together beautifully.

PILLOWS GALORE

My client needed these pillows in a hurry.  Her client's home was to be photographed and the original date was moved up, which meant I had to sew fast.  There were 7 total pillows and I knew that I could easily make them all in one day if I absolutely had to.  Turned out I had to!

 I decided to make these two first as they were much more complicated than the others.  As I was working on them, I kept thinking, why does she want them this way?  They were a pain and I thought the fabric was interesting enough without adding a band of fabric with another trim on top.  Well, when I finished them, I understood.  They turned out really nicely and looked much better than I thought they would.  Perhaps this is why I am the seamstress and not the designer?  I think they turned out even better than the designer thought they would.  Funny how that works.

These 4 were pretty easy, just brush fringe and zipper closure.

 One side was blue tweed and the other was blue silk.

And last, but not least, one in a gold tweed with brush fringe.

Close up of fringe.

Don't know when the photos will be in the magazine, or, for that matter, what magazine they will be in.  I forgot to ask.  I was just happy to get them done in time.

A VERY ROMANTIC BEDROOM

I looked through ALL 354 previous posts to make sure I never posted these pictures before.  I couldn't find that I had, but, if for some reason I did, please forgive me.  This bedroom, well, at least the bed, was so pretty it deserves a second look.

 As pretty as it is and as nice as it turned out, the process of getting it to this point was not so fun.  The fabric for the panels is sheer, my least favorite kind of fabric to work with.  And as if that wasn't enough, the tabs had to actually work.  The canopy was permanently together, so faking it wasn't an option.

 The funny thing is when I measured and figured out how much fabric we would need and how many buttons and tabs (96!) there would be, I somehow 'forgot' that if I needed 96 buttons, that meant I would have to make 96 buttonholes!  Yikes, that's a whole lot of buttonholes!  Not to mention 96 buttons to sew on.

The end result was worth it.  It gave a romantic feel to an otherwise not-so-romantic bedroom, which is why I have only pictures of the bed.

A FITTED BEDSPREAD

 Okay, I know this is not the most exciting thing I ever posted.  And with everything being the same color, well, that doesn't help it either.  Still, I was very happy with how it all turned out.  As was the client, which is even more important!

 Flanged pillow shams and a pillow tuck.

The split AND fitted corners gave me trouble.  That is, until I realized I could treat it as a giant ottoman with corners that were only sewn part of the way down.  Once I figured it out, I couldn't understand why I thought it was so difficult.  I was making it harder that it actually was.

I promise next post will be more exciting!

WHITE LINEN WING CHAIR SLIPCOVER

 White linen slipcovers never go out of style!  With the short, gathered skirt, this wing chair is updated and ready for anything.  

 This time, instead of covering buttons with the linen, my client wanted abalone buttons.  It makes a nice change and adds interest to the back of the chair.

 Close-up of shell buttons.

The 'man' of the house, Bailey, on 'his' new, luckily washable, throne.

THE COOLEST THING -- MAYBE EVER

 I took this picture with my new camera (thanks, Bill!) a couple of weeks ago.  The orchids were awfully pretty on their own, but you know me and Photoshop.

This is one of the versions I came up with.  Not entirely sure how I got the colors this way, but I was thrilled with it.  The others were pretty nice, too.

This, though, is what is so cool:  I had fabric made with my photo!  Most everyone has probably heard of Spoonflower, the web site that allows you to make your own fabric.  Well, I finally decided to give it a try.  I am beyond happy with the results.  The best part is I can now offer custom fabric for my custom home furnishings!  Just imagine the possibilities - personalized, custom toiles; your own dog or cat or child on fabric for a favorite chair; your favorite picture from a trip forever memorialized on a duvet cover;  vintage photo draperies.  The possibilities are endless.  I am so excited about this.  All I need is a photo to begin the process.

THE TAVERN - CORONADO

One of the newest restaurants to open in Coronado is called The Tavern.  It is located across from the Hotel Del Coronado at 1310 Orange Avenue.  I had the honor of making the cushions for the banquets and booths.  We are talking 23 cushions, some quite long.  It was a challenge, but, it seems, most of my jobs are in some way a challenge.  An even bigger challenge was taking photographs once the cushions were in place.  The restaurant is dark, the fabric is dark brown (thank goodness for the contrast welt) and the wood is brown.  Still, it all looks great.

The table tops in the booth area are a beautiful turquoise.

 The floors are made from recycled basketball flooring.  Very cool!  And it adds some color to the space.

Had I made just one cushion here, it would have been 344" long!  Instead, I made 4 that were still 86" each.

The cushions in my workroom before being transported to their new home.

On opening night...Bill Harris, me and Laura Petersen.

ELEGANT ISLAND LIVING

Kim Kelly and Bella Rustica are at it again.  To get the entire story, go to her blog and read about the transformation of her new house on Saint Simons Island, Georgia.  The small part I played in the renovation is captured in the pictures below.  Although I haven't seen it in person yet, Kim's style is recognizable anywhere and, though it now has some beach touches that she didn't really use in her house here in Coronado, it is still pure Kim Kelly!

This is a shot from the living room into the kitchen, where the burlap (yes, burlap!) roman shade that I made is sort of visible.  Talk about a pain to sew.  Personally, I can't stand burlap to begin with.  I know a lot of people love it, but it's scratch-y and it comes in colors I am not crazy about.  And it is hard to sew.  It shifts and sheds and is generally more of a challenge than I like.  Still, when she ask me to do it, of course, I said, YES!  

 Here you can just see the bottom of the shade, but what's really cool is her new sink.  Love it!

 Another view of said burlap roman shade.

 Living room with ottoman I did before she left for Georgia.

Linen duvet cover on bed.