Welcome!

Hi everyone!

Happy Monday! We hope everyone has had a fantastic weekend. Today is the epitome of a Winter Wonderland here; soft and fluffy pure white snow – so pretty to look (from indoors at least…it’s a bit chilly!). It’s definitely beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Be sure to check out all our past DIY projects for some amazing gift ideas, as well as the following How To’s Days. We’ve got some crafty and fun ideas ahead for you!

“Oh, Christmas isn’t just a day, it’s a frame of mind… and that’s what’s been changing. That’s why I’m glad I’m here, maybe I can do something about it” – Kris Kringle, Miracle on 34th Street.

It’s also time for another Holiday question! Today’s question is: Tell us about your favorite Christmas gift. Please let us know in the comments below!

I’d say mine would be a doll I had seen at a local, artisan show. I was around 8 or 9 and was starting to “question” the existence of Santa Clause. I only told my parents that I loved the doll when we had left, and thought to myself that if Santa Clause was truly real I would receive the doll for Christmas. Come Christmas morning, my sister and I ran down the stairs to see Santa’s signature wrapping paper and note, and giddily started to open presents when my parents awoke. I will always remember the exact feeling unwrapping one particular gift; a mix of amazement, shock, and complete bliss. I had received the doll from the artisan fair, and in that moment knew I should never of doubted Santa. Even though I am older now, that memory will always remind me of the true magic of Christmas. Let’s read our Design Studio team’s stories:

Marion: My favorite Christmas gift was given to me by my sister-in-law. It is a second or third-hand complete works of Shakespeare. It is a massive, dog-eared, tiny-printed book. She wasn’t sure if I would like it because some people may get offended by secondhand gifts, but that’s what made it all the more awesome – because it has history.

Valeria: There really is not much of a story behind the gift, aside from it being completely amazing: The Hawaiian Barbie and Tropical Hut!

Juan: A handmade, wooden bus that I received when I was a little boy. It is my favorite because I know the guy who made it and I would tell him that I wanted one of my own. On that Christmas morning, I was so excited when I saw my very own wooden bus under the tree!

Shannen: My Grandmother loved to knit & when she passed away, my dad received 5 homemade knitted afghans. When I was young, they were my favorite blankets to cuddle up with. Last year, my dad me one of these afghans to pass onto the next generation. It was a (happy) emotional moment with my family that I will never forget.

Time for this week’s Moody Monday! Today we are sharing with you our Dream a Little Dream by Heather Rosas moodboard. Dream a Little Dream is a charming and sweet collection of little forest animals and night-themed wonders. With it’s soft and muted pastel color palette, it  is another perfect collection for a baby’s nursery…boy or girl! The adorable moons and stars make for wonderful inspirations for kiddies to dream their little hearts out…no dream is too big or impossible to achieve.

Dream a Little Dream is a mixture of pastel and darker hues, but yellows and blues are prominent amidst the collection. A fun kids collection is reminiscent of this color palette was one seen at the Vogue Bambini’s Miss Blumarine Jeans x ki6 NYC show. There was a full array of colors and textures at the show, but the navy and mustard outfits especially stood out to us and reminded us of the hues in Dream a Little Dream. The collection was overall very feminine and sweet; you can check out the full collection here.

Thank you for reading another Moody Monday! We hope it has inspired you for this upcoming, wonderful week. Have a great one!

Happy Sewing!

Hi everyone!

Happy Monday! We hope everyone has had a restful weekend, and is having a great start to the week. It is now officially December, so let the countdown to Christmas begin!! “First we’ll make snow angels for two hours, then we’ll go ice skating, then we’ll eat a whole roll of Tollhouse Cookie-dough as fast as we can, and then we’ll snuggle” – Buddy, Elf Movie.

To kick off the countdown, we thought it would be fun to ask some fun holiday questions on the blog to get everyone even more excited for the upcoming festivities. Today’s question is: What is your favorite holiday treat? Yup, this is definitely a difficult one because there are so. many. yummy. treats. to choose from!! So, we won’t mind if you share a few ;)

For myself, I’d definitely have to say it’s a toss up between holiday puppy chow (muddy buddies) and my grandma’s fruitcake (…aka not your pre-packaged door stopper. Think lots of roasted pecans & walnuts, raisins, and candied fruit encrusted in sweet, buttery cake goodness…yummers!). We’ve also got our Design Studio team to share in the fun too, so scroll down for their yummy holiday treats:

Valeria: Panettone!! :)

Juan: Natilla y Buñuelos! :)

Marion: I can’t get enough of my Mum’s shortbread; I’m convinced it’s the best in the world. In fact, I may or may not have stolen several batches from the freezer in the days leading up to Christmases past …

Andra: It’s definitely hard to choose, but I must say that these last couple of years I’ve been obsessed with eggnog, yum. Another holiday classic that I look forward to are Romanian cabbage rolls; a delicious combination of pickled cabbage, pork, beef, seasoning and tomato sauce, not to mention that our family recipe is the best! oh man, now I can’t wait to get home and have some…om nom nom ;)

Shannen: I actually have 2 favorite holiday treats…On Christmas morning my dad makes fried bread-dough using the maple syrup he boiled from last spring. For Christmas dinner, my family doesn’t do the traditional large homemade dinner- in fact, my parents always found ordering Chinese take-out as a solution to keeping the day relaxing instead of stressing about a perfect meal. As odd as it may sound  – I have looked forward to this tradition every year for the past 15 years. 

As today is Monday, we’ve also got another Moody Monday for you! Today we are sharing with you our Birds of a Feather by Allison Cole mood board, a collection of tribal influence with its rustic colors. Birds of a Feather features a multitude of feathers, birds, floral prints, and butterflies to create lovely designs that are perfect for any little girl or boy’s room decor or apparel. Such a sweet and rich collection!

From the runway, we saw lots of tribal-inspired prints and silhouettes for the upcoming season but there is one that definitely sparks our interest! Mara Hoffman’s Fall/Winter 2013 RTW collection featured a strong assortment of colors and patterns that definitely had a tribal feel, especially having used textiles from Turkey and Uzbekistan. All the pieces were flowing, soft, and draped beautiful with striking prints. We are definitely inspired! To see the full collection, be sure to click here.

We hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Moody Monday post! Have you entered our Star Trek fabric giveaway yet? We are giving away 6 yards of our Star Trek fabric. Let us know who your favorite Star Trek character is here. Good Luck! We are announcing the winner this Wednesday, so be sure to enter before then :)

Happy Sewing!

Hi everyone!

Happy Monday! Wishing everyone a blissful start to the week. We cannot believe that Christmas is officially a month away (seriously, where did the time go?!). We are so excited and happily getting into the holiday spirit, but there is still much to do! We’ve got lots of beautiful DIY projects in the works though…the perfect gifts for anyone!

And to add a little inspiration to your day, we’ve got today’s Moody Monday for you. Today we are sharing with you our The Design Studio Collection moodboard! The Design Studio Collection is a brilliant and bold collection, not just in color but also in print and patterns. The collection is a wonderful mix of chevrons, herringbone, hexagon, and fan prints in unexpected black, grey, yellow, and turquoise color combinations. The designs are vibrant and exuberant, adding some cheer to any home decor or wardrobe project! Have we got your gears turning for some amazing DIY gifts planned? ;)

Our eclectic collection is reminiscent of Oscar de la Renta’s Spring 2013 RTW collection. Oscar used a mix of black, turquoise, yellow, and pink hues in his garments but varied with bold patterns. The silhouettes were classic and simple, but the fantastical prints made them even more special. The thick black stripes, the tulle turquoise dresses, and the ensembles of grey & yellow mixes make for the perfect supplement to our The Design Studio Collection! Be sure to check out the full Oscar de la Renta collection here.

We hope our collection and moodboard has given you a bit of inspiration this Monday! Here’s to a great start to another wonderful week. Until next time!

Happy Sewing!

Hi everyone!

Happy Monday!! Hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Here’s to conquering another great workweek! In the midst of another Monday, we’ve got another moodboard to add some sparkle to your day. Today we have decided to share with you our Imaginarium moodboard from our Spring 2013 collection.

Our Imaginarium collection is a perfect blend of turquoise, pink, and yellow with grey and white.  Because of the pastel colors, Imaginarium is just right for making any new baby feel happy and comforted, while still keeping a modern feel to the room. The adorable monkeys, elephants, and giraffes amongst this design encapsulates a snuggly and soft feel…the perfect fabric for a new baby’s nursery and matching accessories!

If you can dress to the nines, then why shouldn’t your little kiddos too? One big trend that we’ve seen lately is designer clothing for kids, from Milly NY, Marc Jacobs, and even Gaultier joining the bandwagon. Just last month, Vogue Bambini and Petite Parade presented Kids Fashion Week in NYC. One collection that stood out to us and reminded us of our Imaginarium collection was Lilly Pulitzer’s Swarovski x Lilly Pulitzer for Kids collection. The collection showcased some pretty and sweet dresses, dowsed with classic Lilly floral prints, in more subdued, fluttery colors. All the dresses looked oh-so-adorable and innocent, and would make any little girl feel like a princess. You can check out more on the Kids Fashion Week NYC here.

We hope you found some inspiration in today’s Moody Monday post. Remember that inspiration can be found anywhere, even in the places you least expect it.

PS: Have you seen yesterday’s Winsday? You could win our Birds of a Feather FQ Bundle by telling us what you would create with the fabric. Comment and enter on the blog post here. Good luck! We will be announcing the winner on next week’s Winsday post.

Happy Sewing!

Hi everyone!

Happy Monday! We hope you are all having a great start to the week. As well, Happy Remembrance Day! We want to thank all the brave men and women who serve and have served our country. Lest We Forget.

Another amazing group of people we want to commemorate are all those partaking in Movember! In summary, thousands of people (both men and women – hey mo sistas!)  around the world collaborate together in bringing awareness to men’s health in an entertaining and engaging way. On November 1st, the razors come out and men begin clean shaven as they endure the month of November growing out their ‘staches. The movement to grow out their mustaches began as a way to prompt conversation, which in turn would lead to the education on men’s health. It now touches thousands of people worldwide who join in spreading the awareness and raising funds. To find out more on Movember and how , click here! Be sure to support all those involved with Movember this year.

Our Portland by Allison Cole collection that came out for Fall 2013 includes some pretty dashing ‘staches. Portland is an eclectic and hip collection of donuts, bicycles, scooters, and polaroid cameras – everything to satisfy the needs of all hipsters (and hipster-ettes!). We mustache you a question though…what is your favorite print from Portland? Shave your answer, and tell us below in the comments!

Our moodboard encapsulates the essence of a true hipster perfectly – over-sized glasses and all! Our Portland collection would make the sweetest dress or bow-tie for any future hipster in your life. Be sure to find out more on Allison Cole’s whereabouts by following her on twitter, facebook, and instagram. We really hope you enjoy this week’s moodboard post, but alas until next time…we mustache! ;)

Happy Sewing!