If life gives you lemons...

 ...make a skirt.  I have had a "helper" in the studio for the last couple of days.  My Birthday Girl was feeling a little under the weather and didn't make the trip to Grandma's house with her sister.  The trip was a gesture from my Mom in order to help me get caught up on some work.  So... we have been getting some quality time together.  She has been a very good sport and was even really helpful in packing up orders!   But, none the less, I wasn't getting caught up on anything.  Then the walking foot on my machine broke in the middle of trying to finish up a custom quilt that needs to be done for a soon departing college freshman!  After a few curse words, I decided to throw in the towel and have some fun.  After discovering her love of a beautiful corduroy fabric we worked together to make a VERY simple skirt.

I never knew how happy a simple elastic skirt could make a-now-eight-year-old.

 We used some Amy Butler corduroy with a little ribbon accent from Ana Maria Horner.

Then the UPS guy dropped off a box with some pretty Orla Kiely soaps.  Things are looking up and maybe I will get some work done tomorrow.  In the meantime, I have a happy girl and clean hands!  

10 Years Later

I started quilting in 1999.  At the time the only other quilters I knew were my Mom and a few of her friends.  I had no idea what I was doing, so I did as I was told (except for my "overuse" of solids).  In 2002, I was told to enter a quilt in the MN State Fair.  "It's what quilters do".  So I did it.

 I entered this little wall hanging that I made with broadcloth remnants and some sheer embroidered ribbon. 

As a first time entrant and novice quilter, I didn't expect to win a thing.  I was just along for the ride.

 Imagine my surprise to find it hanging in the display.  I hadn't won a prize or a ribbon, but it was hung up for everyone to see!  

After noticing the absence of  Modern Quilts at last years fair, I decided to enter again this year.  Again, I don't hope to win a prize for my less than perfect quilting skills, but I do have a goal.

I contributed something in a non-traditional style (A.K.A Modern) in hopes of letting the "powers that be" know that WE ARE HERE and we love to quilt too.

Time is a jet plane...

 Summer is flying by like it ALWAYS does!  I'm not sure why every August I am suddenly surprised that summer is more than half over and I haven't gotten to nearly half of the things on my to-do-this-summer list.  

One thing that I didn't plan to do this summer was become addicted to Instagram! It is so fun to look back at the summer so far and realize that although there aren't a lot of checks on my to-do list, I have been spending my time wisely so far!

 

I've been hanging out with these two lovelies...

Spending some time here...

Spending more time than I wanted to here...

Selling my wares at the farmer's markets...

Packing up these lovelies for the move... 

...and doing not quite enough sewing.

Moving into my new space has given me some much needed new perspective and I have lots of thoughts and ideas about the direction(s) that I should go with my business, my craft and my career.  I am looking forward to whittling all of those ideas down into some manageable goals and having a PixieSpit "reboot" this fall.  In the meantime, I will suck every last bit of fun and sunshine out of the next few weeks as I can. You can follow along with me on Instagram or better yet...get on there yourself if you aren't already!