Ever have one of “those days”
Today was one….if I hadn’t of been working on my calendar and knew it was Friday I’d of bet it was a Monday all over again – except I had a good Monday this week….
Maybe it was the weather. I don’t do cloudy and dreary very well. Maybe it was the overload of clutter. Yep. That was probably it. Trying to unpack my suitcases full of quilts, get them either back on the wall, folded on the quilt rack, or folded down into a storage bin for the next event. That could have been it.
Or maybe it was the clutter around the desk as I was trying to mail a few packages with my stamps meter-thingie. Hum? Maybe even the fact that I needed to do laundry AND dishes…
Whatever the reason – by mid afternoon I’d had enough. Nothing could satisfy my restless mood – except the hum of the sewing machine and the fondling of fabric!
Into the Island Batik fabric shelf I went! It never disappoints! Next I pulled out my “By Annie” supply totes…yep yep yep – I was on a mission!
Call Me!
I dearly love Patterns By Annie – I’ve sewn with her Soft and Stable for years – everything from bags to placemats to a recent table runner. All my students know how much I love, use, and recommend her Stiletto and Pressing Tool. So naturally I have a nice collections of mesh, zippers, and fold over elastic tape – probably in every color – or at least all my fav tropical bright colors (grin) among other things like bag hardware and a fabulous collection of her patterns!
About a week or so ago my “outlaw” friend Lisa stopped by to pay her Onboard Quilting Excursion fee for our upcoming cruise together and we discussed this little project…okay..I know I’m from Texas but let me explain the outlaw relationship. Lisa is sisters with my husband’s brother’s wife… so technically we aren’t in-laws so we started calling ourselves out-laws. Besides this sideways family relationship we share the love of quilting….so anyways…
I shared with Lisa my idea to make by Annie’s Call Me name badge holder to use on the cruise and she thought it a grand idea…especially since it’s a free download along with a free add-on video.
Have to admit – Lisa beat me to it. Yep. She made her’s earlier this week and tagged me on Facebook. It’s adorable by the way – and she did a fantastic job. I do believe that she’s new to by Annie patterns but knowing Lisa, she’s as hooked as I am.
Chase Away the Blues
What’s a girl to do when she’s got the winter blues? Silly question!! Clear off the sewing machine table of course, pull out some yummy Island Batik fabrics, locate a matching zipper, mess, and fold over elastic – then sign in for the digital instructional videos and get busy!
I love the vinyl pocket that will hold my name badge when I’m at a trade show or on my Quilting with The Rambler & The Redneck quilting cruise this fall! See that little zipper? that’s a pocket big enough to hold my credit card, or cruise card (oh I’m so in countdown mode! 41 weeks and one day until we set sail!)
The back has a mesh pocket that will hold my huge iPhone – which of course has a screensaver of our sweet Reagan (grin). I like that the mesh stretches yet hugs the phone, and that it is tall enough I don’t have to worry about it falling out.
Calling All Quilters
I really appreciated Annie’s free video that walks you through all the steps…it makes it easy for me to recommend this pattern to ALL my quilting friends – her tips are with the beginner in mind, sharing how to use her Soft and Stable (foam interfacing), how to attach zippers, how to work with both vinyl and mesh as well as making and adding bias binding. Even some of us who have used her techniques can always learn a thing or two by watching her tutorials!
Yep! Nothing like the feeling of accomplishment especially on a day when things seem to be overwhelming with “too much to do”.
Bottom line – sewing is always good therapy, almost as much as quilting with friends or talking on the phone (love the pattern name CALL ME!) Trust me, you can’t go wrong with this pattern! I am going to highly recommend it to all the quilters on the upcoming cruise, and to my guild buddies for name tag holders….such a useful design. Thanks Annie!
Mission accomplished! Now I’m in the right frame of mind to enjoy my Friday night! Happy weekend y’all!
What a great name badge holder!! Where do you find the mesh…I’ve been looking but never have seen it.
Order it from byAnnie.com – fun color choices. I “accidentally” purchased another brand once at a chain store and it’s not the same quality