Alex & Shirley

Wow. I wrote this post on October 16, 2017. It was sitting in my drafts folder. It still holds true as it does for today March 12, 2018 plus a bit of updating. As I was taking photographs this weekend I thought about the right time to introduce the new venture, Alex & Shirley. I couldn't wait. 

Be bold.

Be kind.

Be true.

For Alex's 8th grade graduation video, I put in some words of wisdom. Later, I started a new idea pod with a thought to share Alex's love for fashion and fun. Don't worry, Adam is there but he is a behind-the-scenes kind of guy. He designed the logo and he has been helping with the photography and graphics. 

How did it all start? Last year while I was working on a new book I wasn't sure that I wanted to put it out for the world to see. It sat there all beautiful and fun but I felt that at that moment I lacked the heart to bring it to market. Also, most of my time and energy was being driven to help my boys with school. They say that parental commitment lessons as our children get older. I have to say that the opposite is true. There are just different things to keep on top of.  

I continued to do other projects but things took a turn this past spring. My girlfriend Roopa and I started talking about our boys' future and about us being left after they headed away to school. I had been thinking about setting up a kids' brand for a long time and that came up in the conversation. I wanted to be a fashion designer and architect from the age of seven but I went down different paths. Years later I wanted to do a design book about boys but it was rejected . Fast forward to now, the ideas really seamed less crazy in that conversation and we started talking about what we could do. Our husbands are totally supportive and they know that there's no stopping us. Deep down though, I think that they want to retire. LOL.

In the past few months and weeks we have taken more steps to making the products a real thing. I dissolved my old business and my accountant registered a new entity for me. The Alex & Shirley brand is my new reality but I will still be designing quilts and such.  It is so scary but so very exciting. I firmly believe that life should be parts of both. Roopa and I have collaborated for the past year and a half. She has been sourcing fabric and things for me during her travels while I've learned how to design and make tech packs. Pre-production for the first Alex & Shirley product is in progress. OMG!

Linen and cotton swatches.

Roopa and I know that this new venture will keep us super busy! If it doesn't, we know that we tried. I believe that trying is always better than wondering what if.

xo, LLDB

What Stirs My Heart

Another new beginning. I seem to repeat this often. Fact of the matter is that I always have some sort of new beginning because life happens to send big curves my way all the time. I am not really a dramatic person so is it just me? LOL

This past January Henry Glass and I parted ways amicably. Rapid changes in the industry have been going on. You can read a message from Scott Fortunoff, Vice-President of Henry Glass & Co. here. . In addition, each of our own visions and needs seemed to grow toward very different goals. I still love many of the people I dealt with in the past 15 years that I was associated with Henry Glass. Many of them became like family. After all I met one of the Design Directors, Karen, at my very first market. Thank you for that. 

So fast forward to April. Where am I? I can say that I am excited and scared all at the same time. I believe that is a good thing for me though. I thrive on being uncomfortable and edgy. I have a million ideas flowing through my brain. Rushing is perhaps the better adjective. The more challenging part is putting it all together. You may have heard me talk about my design process in interviews that I have done. All of the ideas are in my head. It is arranged, designed and re-arranged up there in my noggin. A couple of weeks ago I flew away to see a couple of friends so that I could get grounded a bit. 

Many things are influencing me right now. I purchased the magnificent book, Wonderland by Kirsty Mitchell. I felt the need to be moved in a profound way and Kirsty Mitchell's book did just that. Her story felt like mine except that it was my father who was the one who influenced me and the one who I miss. Her story was as strong as the art. 

Photograph from the book Wonderland by Kristy Mitchell.

Photograph from the book Wonderland by Kristy Mitchell.

In January I felt uncertain about my future for literally two seconds. I asked around to see if there was a new home where I could fit into but it didn't feel like a road that I wanted to go down again in the immediate future. Of course if a perfect opportunity comes around and teases me, I will take a look. 

I am working on my ideas right now. Some work will be commercial and other things will evolve from this process. I started out publishing patterns and writing books and I know something like that is still part of me. The differences are still evolving. Things are different in this quilting industry of ours. I have always been a bit of an outsider and sometimes I feel that social media takes away from the authenticity and value of our art. Don't get me wrong, I understand the importance of it all. I just don't always feel like I have to give everything away to get people to follow me or pretend to be something that isn't at the core of my being. 

Tell me about where you are at. Do you like one art form like quilting, sewing, knitting, etc. or do you like to have a lot of things going one? Do you still buy patterns and books? Do you like video classes? Do you read blogs? Are you feeling inspired or are you in a rut?

xo, LLDB

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Can it be only a week before Christmas? Yikes. I have only worked on letting the winners know that they won the stuff from the blog hop in oh ... September. I know. Sad but true. I have barely been on my own social media for a while. Too much going on in the background. 

Hopefully I will get my butt in gear in January. It has been a year of health issues too and I finally have a handle on it. Thankfully not too serious. The one that I will talk about a bit are my allergies. Nickel and rubber. Think needles, running shoes and my steering wheel. On the plus side I can only wear expensive shoes, diamonds, platinum and 18K gold. I am working it all out and will get back to designing after the holidays. 

Meanwhile I worked on some digital work for Henry Glass. Check them out will you? Click here to get to the Henry Glass & Co. digital catalog page. Subscribe there to see the latest releases.

xo, LLDB

Thankful

The Jaftex 85th Anniversary Blog Hop is going strong and we're onto day 18. It is going so fast and I am constantly inspired by each post. Have you been entering the individual giveaways in addition to the really big one? Read all about it here.

Today I am feeling a little reflective. Normally my life is chaotic at best and generally I can find some balance but the mess of this and that caught up to me today. I think that a lot of things collided in the past week or so and I decided to step back, take a hard look and take control of everything. I am trying to find balance between taking care of my kids' needs, being a somewhat single parent because my husband commutes out of state, and running my business. There are a million of other more personal things too but with thinking it out, I believe that I have a grip on things and my perspective has taken shape. Call it a mid-week crisis. LOL

My balance is based on the fact that I am grateful for my boys. Big A does not care for me to talk much about him publicly and I respect that. Little A lets me get away with it a bit more but he sure is getting good at negotiating what does or does not go public. Although I have my own designing life, they inspire me daily. They challenge me daily. They love me unconditionally daily. They are a good part of who I am and have been my rock for they past 6 months. Both boys have been helpful through a few health issues with me this past year and they have been my little (big) helpers for this blog hop. 

Their sweet deeds do indeed bring things into perspective. I am thankful. 

Thank you boys. 

Love you the mostest.

xo, LLDB

Happy Birthday Jaftex!

Giveaways co-sponsored by Janome Sewing Machines, Aurifil and Schmetz Needles. Other prizes sponsored by It's A Rubber Duckie World.

Good Monday morning! Welcome to my edition of the Jaftex 85th Anniversary blog hop. I hope that you are having great fun. For those of you who don't know me, I am a quilt, sewing, knitting and all-round creative designer. I write books, design for magazines and work on fun projects for companies like Henry Glass & Co. I am happy that you are here and that this blog party has launched because chasing people like my good friend,  Mark LIpinski, was getting exhausting. Calling him 5,000 times can tire a girl out.

The marketing group at Jaftex started working on this blog hop months ago. Thanks to Vanessa Denniston, Rose Fenton and Katie Winn. This all would not have happened without the support of the Fortunoff family. Thanks to Robert, Scott and Greg. Thanks to the designers, bloggers for their amazing projects and to the Jaftex family. Tegan Montgomery-Williams, thanks for going out and taking photographs with me. Of course special thanks to our co-sponsors, Janome, Aurifil and Schmetz Needles. Make sure that you enter to win the amazing prizes. See the widget below.

Sample of a special anniversary fabric that was designed using old photographs from the Fortunoff family.

Jaftex Corp. was founded in the 1930’s when Jacob A. Fortunoff started selling fabric on the streets of New York.  At that time, the mainstay of the business was women’s sleepwear and lingerie.  In the 80’s, Jacob’s grandson, Robert, dramatically changed the business of the company.  The business focus was transferred to the over the counter quilt industry when Robert purchased companies like A.E. Nathan, Henry Glass, Stylemaker, Chanteclaire, Fabric Editions/Studioe and more recently The Blank Quilting Corp.  Robert is now joined by his two sons, Scott and Greg.  Scott currently is the President of Studioe Fabrics, The Blank Quilting Corp. & A.E. Nathan Co., Inc.  Greg just joined the business in late 2014 and has successfully spearheaded the company’s foray in to precut fabrics among other contributions.

I just realized that the blog hop would be on the 8th on Day 8. It is also Little A's birthday. For me that is super lucky and if there are no more posts after this one that means that I won a lottery. Just kidding. I wish Little A a very happy birthday. Yes, ice cream and sprinkles are allowed on your special day,

Little A assisted me while Big A was at camp. I photographed the projects from this blog hop for the look book that we will be releasing next month. We walked through Bryant Park and he even gave me some art direction. You know where he gets that from!

Let's get to my project. I got to work with Peppered Cottons. It was my first time using Pepper's fabrics and they were great to work with. The palette that Vanessa chose to send out was gorgeous. My brother and I love fountain pens. We text daily about them. No one can pry me away from my Lamy 2000 or vintage Parker 51 pens. I wanted a pen roll that so that I could carry the pens with me when I am out and about. 

I did a talk at the Newtown Quilt Guild recently and I told them that I don't love piecing. I much prefer applique. I should have said that I did not mind HST using paper templates. 

I wanted something bright inside but I couldn't decide on just one color. Yes, that was something else that I told the guild. More is more!

Update: Photos of the bundles that I am giving away.

I am going to give away two bundles of the Studioe Fabrics that I used. One lucky winner will win both bundles so that you can make something fun. Just send some birthday wishes here for Jaftex and Little A. You have until midnight September 30, 2015 to enter. US residents only unless you are willing to pay actual postage.

Jodie Davis visited my studio with her crew.

I was talking business with my friend Jodie Davis last week. She has been in another exciting creative road and she sent over a bunch of these adorable duckies to celebrate Alex's birthday. All you have to do is leave a comment below and I will select 6 winners. Also, Martha Walker's post was delayed yesterday. I am going to give away a rubber duck over in her comments section. Go and give her some love. You have until midnight of September 30, 2015 to comment. US residents only unless you are willing to pay actual postage. Please note that your entry may not appear right away because I moderate the comments. Be patient. Thanks

Here is the list of participants in the blog hop. Check in each day to see the special projects that were designed for the Jaftex 85th Anniversary Blog Hop.

September 1 - Kim Diehl guest posting @ American Patchwork & Quilting

September 2 - Pepper @ Pepper at the Quilt Studio

September 3 - Anjeanette @ Anjeanette Klinder 

September 4 - Leanne @ The Whole Country Caboodle   

September 5 - Mark @ Mark Lipinski's Blog

September 6 - Heather @ Heather Kojan Quilts  

September 7 - Heather @ Trends and Traditions  

September 7 - Martha @ Wagons West Designs  

September 8 - Linda @ Linda Lum DeBono 

September 9 - Heidi @ Red Letter Quilts 

September 10 - Jill @ Jillily Studios  

September 10 - Dana @ My Lazy Daisy  

September 11 - Penny @ Sew Simple Designs  

September 12 - Ida @ Cowtown Quilts 

September 13 - Liz and Beth @ Lizzie B Cre8ive  

September 14 - Melissa @ Sew Bitter Sweet Designs

September 15 - Yvonne @ Quilting Jetgirl    

September 16 - Amy @ Kati Cupcake 

September 16 - Barbara @ QuiltSoup2 

September 17 - Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting 

September 18 - Leona @ Leona's Quilting Adventure 

September 19 - Margot @ The Pattern Basket  

September 20 - Sylvia @ Flying Parrot Quilts   

September 21 - Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts  

September 22 - Kim @ Aurifil Threads  

September 23 - Rebekah @ Don't Call Me Becky   

September 24 - Julie @ The Crafty Quilter 

September 25 - Mary Ellen @ Little Quilts  

September 25 - Mary Jane @ Holly Hill Designs 

September 26 - Daisy @ Ants to Sugar

September 27 - Melissa @ Happy Quilting

September 28 - Janet @ One S1ster

September 29 - Jenny @ Martingale& Co.

September 30 - Teresa @ Third Floor Quilts

Good luck and keep following the blog hop. I will be posting more photographs of the projects after all of the projects have been revealed.

85th Anniversary Giveaway

xo, LLDB

Jaftex 85th Anniversary Blog Hop

Happy birthday Jaftex! A long while back I started working on this special project for Jaftex the parent company of Henry Glass, Studioe Fabrics and Blank Quilting. It has been a long process but in the end it was totally worth it. 

I asked over 30 people to be part of a birthday blog hop. Fabric was sent to these designers, quilt industry friends and bloggers and all we asked was that they make us a special project for our blog hop. Special indeed. I got to see and photograph the projects. It felt like Christmas every time I opened the packages and Bryant Park/New York City Public Library was the perfect backdrop. 

There are prizes to be won too. Oh. My. Check out the widget below for details on how to enter. You can help your local quilt shop win some special prizes too.

Huge thanks to my friends at Janome Sewing Machines, Aurifil, and Schmetz Needles for their prizes. Make sure that you enter to win because all of the prizes are spectacular. You can also help your local shop win too.

Today my friend Kim Diehl is guest posting on the American Patchwork & Quilting blog. Her project is darling. Though the colors are out of her normal range, she still made an amazing project.  Heidi at Red Letter Quilts is up next.

Here's the rest of the schedule. Come back each day. I will post some of the extra photos for you to see.

September 1 - Kim Diehl guest posting @ American Patchwork & Quilting

September 2 - Pepper @ Pepper at the Quilt Studio

September 3 - Anjeanette @ Anjeanette Klinder 

September 4 - Leanne @ The Whole Country Caboodle   

September 5 - Mark @ Mark Lipinski's Blog

September 6 - Heather @ Heather Kojan Quilts  

September 7 - Heather @ Trends and Traditions  

September 7 - Martha @ Wagons West Designs  

September 8 - Linda @ Linda Lum DeBono 

September 9 - Heidi @ Red Letter Quilts 

September 10 - Jill @ Jillily Studios  

September 10 - Dana @ My Lazy Daisy  

September 11 - Penny @ Sew Simple Designs  

September 12 - Ida @ Cowtown Quilts 

September 13 - Liz and Beth @ Lizzie B Cre8ive  

September 14 - Melissa @ Sew Bitter Sweet Designs

September 15 - Yvonne @ Quilting Jetgirl    

September 16 - Amy @ Kati Cupcake 

September 16 - Barbara @ QuiltSoup2 

September 17 - Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting 

September 18 - Leona @ Leona's Quilting Adventure 

September 19 - Margot @ The Pattern Basket  

September 20 - Sylvia @ Flying Parrot Quilts   

September 21 - Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts  

September 22 - Kim @ Aurifil Threads  

September 23 - Rebekah @ Don't Call Me Becky   

September 24 - Julie @ The Crafty Quilter 

September 25 - Mary Ellen @ Little Quilts  

September 25 - Mary Jane @ Holly Hill Designs 

September 26 - Daisy @ Ants to Sugar

September 27 - Melissa @ Happy Quilting

September 28 - Janet @ One S1ster

September 29 - Jenny @ Martingale& Co.

September 30 - Teresa @ Third Floor Quilts

85th Anniversary Giveaway

Good luck!

xo, LLDB

Little Helper

I have one who started high school last week and this one is starting school this week. He is not so little anymore. How did that happen? Sigh. Little A has been a great help this summer. He has been my little assistant and at times my art director. I wonder where he gets that from. 

I have been working on a big project for Jaftex's 85th Anniversary [Henry Glass' parent company] and everyone will find out about it on Tuesday. I breathe a sigh of relief because most of the really hard work is done. There's still more to do but at least I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Do stop by the Henry Glass blog to see what the excitement is about.

xo,LLDB

Late Summer Thoughts

New York Public Library

This past week was a CRAZY one. I am not sure how I survived but I did. On Monday and Tuesday, I did some photography work in NYC and it was hot, hot, hot. I dragged Little A along at 5:45 a.m. and he carried my camera gear and the quilts all over Bryant Park and the New York Public Library.  He was a trooper and he also managed to offer some art direction! Our bus got into an accident on the way back Monday night so that was a slight annoyance. 

Tuesday morning we were out the door again but back early because I had to drive off to Newtown, PA to give a trunk show to the Newtown Quilt Guild. What a great group of qullters. I get a little nervous for two seconds and then I am good. A good group gives off a good vibe and that helps a lot.

Linda Mills, me and Newtown Guild President Diana Leslie

Linda Mills is a dynamo. She is in charge of getting the talent to visit their guild. She contacted me a long while ago to do a trunk show or to teach. I was just getting my schedule and contracts together but it wasn't at the top of the list. She persisted and after having dinner with her before my trunk show, I could see that the Newtown Quilt Guild has a true gem. Thank you Linda for inviting me to speak to your quilters.

 I have been doing some events on occasion and I find that the trunk shows that I give are quite inspiring because I get to see how other quilters see things. Often I work alone so the outside feedback is valuable thing.  I am so appreciative when the crowd is an engaged one. It's good for my creative soul to connect.

Nancy Haddad Lacy and I finally met!

I love it when I get to meet some Facebook friends too. Diana Leslie, you are a sweet and wonderful president. Llnda Mills, you are amazing and the guild is so lucky to have you. Nancy Haddad Lacy, you are so lovely in person! 

Thank you for having me. 

xo, LLDB

Hey There, I'm Over Here

Funny thing, I think about this blog a lot. I even visualize changes that I plan to make. As you can see, Facebook and Instagram took over. It was easier especially since my life had been taken over by some design work for other people because the opportunities came up just then and some everyday surprises.

I had read somewhere that it was the end of blogging. Lately though I think that blogging has to make a return in some fashion. Do you still read blogs? I am sure that people do but perhaps not quite as many. I do love reading blogs like this one. She has a sweet way of writing. Perhaps it reminds me of the time that I spent raising my babies while trying to run a business. I miss authenticity and story telling. 

The past while it was about compiling and marketing A Flair For Fabric with all of the Henry Glass Fabrics designers. This year it is about helping Jaftex [parent company of Henry Glass, Studioe and Blank Quilting] celebrate its 85th anniversary! If you were anywhere near Bryant Park last Monday, you might have seen me climbing all over the place doing the photo shoot for a project to help Jaftex celebrate a milestone. I was wearing a dress (I hadn't planned on being that physical that day), I wasn't arrested and it all worked out really well. Ha!

Some opportunities for me have come up recently by chance.  I am excited to see if they lead somewhere new and fun. Fingers crossed. Meanwhile, I have a trunk show next week in Newtown, PA and more photography to follow this coming week. The big reveal is coming soon. 

xo, LLDB

Outside The Lines

Funny thing happened the other night. Little A did not want to go to sleep so he pulled out a swatch in my Alabama Chanin stash and wanted me to show him how to stitch it. I started to stitch and then he continued.

What I realized in stitching the swatch was that the gratification came from stitching beside him (albeit at 9:30 p.m. on a school night but I digress) and not caring if he stitched on the lines or not.

Most of my work is more commercial than "artsy" meaning that it is more like a product in the Land of Nod catalogue than a handmade design. That means I quilt something that will look achievable and presentable for photography. It was nice caring more about the fact that we were stitching by hand and chatting about a difficult moment at school that day than hiding the knots or stitching on the line.

xo, LLDB

Merry Christmas!

Happy holidays from my family to your family! Thank you for your friendship and for being part of my creative journey.

xo, LLDB

Let It Snow Globe Tutorial & Winner

First, I have to announce the winner of the "A Flair For Fabric" blog hop. Forgive me for being late. A lot of personal stuff has taken over and I had been neglecting this task. 

The winner is:

CathyH 2 weeks ago 

I am really liking bright colors these days - and I seem to always use black somewhere in most quilts. Thanks for the giveaway!

Congratulations! Please send me your contact information and we'll get the fabric and book to you. 

I get a lot of requests for directions on how to make this ornament. Since I made it about four years ago, the details are somewhat vague but here goes. 

I bought cups, glitter, paint, sharpie,  glue, paintbrushes, card stock, spoons, plastic tub, Crayola Air-Dry Clay, and stickers for the top and ribbon.

I made noses ahead of time from the clay, painted them orange and added texture with black sharpie. Put them in ziploc to take along. Collected little twigs outside.

I cut circles with pinking shears slightly larger than cup by tracing the cup and cutting around outside of the cup.

I had a tub of glitter as one station with a parent or two. The kids (assume parent helper may do parts along the way so train them well) put a layer of glue along the inside of cup covering enough to be the backdrop (maybe a third or half). Sprinkle glue and shake off excess. Let dry. Remember less glue is better than a blob of glue.

At their desks, distribute enough of the paper clay stuff to make three balls for snowman. You may pinch off one ball each to make s, m, l and let them roll it around and stack into snowman.  You might want to do a trial run. Give enough for another ball. They will flatten this one to make a base. Put the snowman on top, add a candy cane (bought them in packs from Michael's). Don't forget to use sharpie to draw eyes.

Glue the base with snowman onto the card stock. Give them a pinch of polyester fiberfill for snow. Glue cup to cardboard. Hold in place. Attach the ribbon on top with a foam sticker. 

Enjoy!

-LLDB

"A Flair For Fabric" Blog Hop

I had always thought about putting a book together with the designs of my friends and this was the perfect time. Martingale & Co., Henry Glass & Co., and all of my fellow HG family were soon on board.  

It started when we were all sitting around waiting to re-book our flights because Hurricane Sandy was approaching the east coast. I got home safely but many others were affected by the storm. I felt that it was time to get people together to put a book together. The designers donated their designs, HG donated the fabric and Martingale published the book. Two years later, "A Flair For Fabric" was published. Royalties go toward the Red Cross.

It has been a crazy, busy but fulfilling experience. The book is much more than what I could have imagined and I am thankful to all who have been part of the process.

I am known for my fun, bright and whimsical designs. My design tip? Don't be afraid to use lots of different colors in one quilt. You can calm it down by using a black biinding as I did for my pillow "Close To My Heart" or a specially chosen fabric for a border as I did in my "Wrap It Up" project. The pink print unified the business of the quilt.

There are many beautiful projects in the book. Can you see where the designers have used a border or binding to tie the design together?

Today, I will be on the "American Patchwork & Quilting Podcast" with Pat Sloan. Make sure that you listen in today at 4 p.m. EST by linking here.

Make sure that you read some of my old posts on my old blog for some holiday fun.

I am giving away a bundle of my friend Leanne Anderson's fabric. Let me know what your favorite colors are when choosing fabrics for quilts. You have until Friday, November 28, 2014 at midnight to answer. One winner will be randomly chosen to win this lovely bundle of fabric! Good luck! NOTE: I forgot to mention that we are giving away an e-book copy of "A Flair For Fabric."

- LLDB 

"A Flair For Fabric" Book Hop

Suddenly I have my crafty mojo back. I have been swamped with background non-creative work and life. I have to keep telling myself that life happens but taking care of my creative soul should come first because the rest will fall in place easily. 

I brought the boys to a meeting that I had in the city during the teacher's convention week. They helped fold fabric in exchange for a visit to their favorite haunts like Kinokuniya Bookstore, Muji, Nintendo world, and yes, they even like my crafty destinations like Anthropologie and Purl Soho. I think that I would compare it to me going to the hardware store to find something to use in my crafty endeavors. They love looking at the little pins and cool scissors. At Anthropologie we found this lovely bundle of wool. What were we going to do with it? Little A bought a book on making fun pompom characters. We thought that the first thing we could make would be fun pompoms. We'll add some more pompoms. What do you think? Very fun garland, right?

It was a fun and quick thing to make. So what was distracting me from all of the easy fun stuff? Finishing this book, "A Flair For Fabric" and planning promotions for it took up a better part of my last few months. Today is the first day of the book tour. Along the way you will find out about the projects, get some great tips and perhaps win some fabric or books. Join the fun. Martingale is first up and my fellow Henry Glass designers and special guest, American Patchwork and Quilting take over from there. Join us won't you?

Mark your calendar for next Monday. I will be on APQ Radio to talk about the book too. Details to come.

"A Flair For Fabric" - Published by Martingale & Co.

Tuesday, November 18: Launch at Martingale’s Stitch This! blog 

Wednesday, November 19: Dana Brooks 

Thursday, November 20: Leanne Anderson 

Friday, November 21: AllPeopleQuilt.com 

Saturday, November 22: Janet Nesbitt 

Monday, November 24: Linda Lum DeBono

Tuesday, November 25: Anni Downs 

Wednesday, November 26: Kim Diehl 

Friday, November 28: Jill Finley (http://jillilystudio.blogspot.com/)

Saturday, November 29: Amy Hamberlin 

Monday, December 1: Margo Languedoc 

Tuesday, December 2: Little Quilts 

Wednesday, December 3: Lizzie B Cre8ive 

Thursday, December 4: Heather Mulder Peterson 

Friday, December 5: Jacquelynne Steves 

Saturday, December 6: Wrap up at the Henry Glass blog 

See you soon!

LLDB

Inspiration Under One Roof

A Flair For Fabric. Compiled by Linda Lum DeBono. Published by Martingale & Co.

I have been back from Houston for a week now and have finally recovered. The weeks leading up to the show were CRAZY and the people who were riding along were either equally stressed or wondering what just flew by them. Apologies to both parties!

A few weeks before Quilt Market my friend Jill Finley became ill and had to cancel her plans to exhibit at Quilt Market. Unfortunately, she also designs the Henry Glass booth but no worries though since Jill and I work on the general booth planning ideas together [I help guide but she truly does the design of the booth] I was able to put in a plan of action. I have to thank all of the HG crew for working on putting the booth together. Everyone from HG President Larry R. to HG crew, Karen and Harriet to designers and friends like Dana Brooks, Leanne Anderson, Mary Jane Carey, Mary Ellen Von Holt and Muriel from the Little Quilts shop in Marietta, GA. pitched in. Special thanks to Daryl Brooks and Ed Anderson for doing all of the hard labor! You guys were awesome!

Martingale Schoolhouse for "A Flair For Fabric"

On top of that frenzy, there was a lot of prep work for the new  book, "A Flair For Fabric" that I compiled and is published by Martingale. Thank you to Mary Burns for your effort, energy, and dedication to your job. There were book plates, post cards, and a million other things to put together and minor glitches to work around but girlfriend you are awesome! I think that I will have to make up some new thing so that Mary and I can continue to e-mail and chat. 

"Close To My Heart" designed and made by Linda Lum DeBono

Part of the promotional process included filming for Brewer Distributors. Orion Burns was a pro and Marketing Director April L. was so nice to stand in the filming with me. I am a good speaker when it I am talking to one or two people and not being filmed. This is another case.

Here I am in front of the the display in the Martingale booth!

We had a great book signing. I think that I had a few people worried because I told them that we were having an audition like on "American Idol." 

L to R: Dana Brooks, me, Mary Ellen Von Holt, Janet Nesbitt, and Leanne Anderson.

Now it's time to your local quilt shop and buy the book! Be back with more market photos soon.

-LLDB

A Special Delivery

It's here! After a long production time, an advanced copy of  "A Flair For Fabric" arrived at my doorstep yesterday. Here is a lovely shot of the cover with a note from Jennifer Keltner, Chief Visionary Officer over at Martingale & Co. 

More on the book in the next while as I gear up for Quilt Market later this month.

xo, lldb

A Flair For Fabric

The designers at Henry Glass are stoked! "A Flair For Fabric" is a wonderful collaboration and I am so excited for its release this fall! More details to come! Check out the Henry Glass blog for more images. http://bit.ly/1vtriNy

A New Book

The secret is out and I can only show you the sneakiest of sneaky peeks. I compiled this book of designs from my sister Henry Glass designers.

It all started with an idea that I had in my brain for the longest time. I wanted to compile a book of designs from my talented designer friends. Fast forward a couple of years, Hurricane Sandy was going to hit the East coast. As I sat in Houston trying to keep an eye on the storm and my flight updates, the conversation shifted and the HG crew talked very briefly about doing a book.

I got the last flight out of Houston the next day before all flights were cancelled. My family survived the storm and we were the lucky ones. Many others did not fare so well.

That's when the book idea came together. All of the Henry Glass designers contributed a design and proceeds from the book will help the Red Cross. Martingale will donate some proceeds as well. I can't wait for you to see the book. Look for it this fall. We are looking forward to showing it off in Houston.

xo, lldb

Bonjour!

We have been learning French. I took French classes at university. The boys think it's great to have secret languages between them.

A Walk In The Woods

Enjoy a great afternoon in the woods walking or cycling along a path.