Friday, July 26, 2013

Modern Holiday Winners

Congrats to all the Modern Holiday winners from the blog tour.  Some bloggers won't announce their winners until the weekend but over here Anjeanette on Instagram and Terry Phelps on Facebook won on the last stop here.  Congratulations ladies!  Please send me your addresses...

I really wish I had Modern Holiday books to give everyone.  You all have had such lovely comments and I've so enjoyed reading them but haven't been able to respond to each one individually as I'm on a huge deadline that I'll reveal in a couple of weeks.  Maybe one day I'll be all caught up!  One can dream...

Happy sewing!
Amanda

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Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 13

It is the last day of the Modern Holiday Blog Tour.  Bloggers will be announcing winners by the end of the week if they haven't already.  The winner on the first stop of the tour here is Cecilia, who said:

I really love Christmas crafting and sewing! That is a super cute snowflake and I think I would definitely make the pillow, but in the colors of the quilt. Beautiful! 

For two last chances to win a copy of Modern Holiday:

I'll choose two more winners Friday.


Happy holidays a little early and thanks for following my Modern Holiday Blog Tour!
Amanda

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Monday, July 22, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 12

Tomorrow Laurie Wisbrun of the Scarlet Fig will be blogging about Modern Holiday and giving away yet another copy of the book.  Hooray!  Laurie designs fabric for Robert Kaufman and I used her whimsical "Brrrr" collection to make a quilt called Snowfall!



Gotta love those polar bears!  In this case, the border really made the entire design complete.



I loved the bears so much they inspired the label.



Thanks, Laurie, for the great fabric.

Don't forget to visit the Scarlet Fig for another chance to win!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 11

Only three more days for the Modern Holiday Blog Tour.  (No, I didn't count to see that there were actually 13 stops on the tour - that just happened.)  Today (due to troubles posting last night) Aurifil will be blogging about Modern Holiday.  I used Aurifil threads for the entire book - 50 wt. cotton for the piecing and 28 and 12 wt. for the applique.

I JUST LOVE Aurifil threads so much.  Here is proof...


See that jar in the upper right corner of the shot?  Those are just some of my Aurifil 28 wt. and 12 wt. spools.  I love using these bright threads in combination with a topstitching needle and blanket stitch to make fabric pop!

This is my second (or third or fourth) spool of a lot of these colors, so it isn't like they aren't well loved.I love each one - especially the aquas and greens... and the reds are great too.  And I do like the pinks.  And the blues.  Sigh.

I just found out Modern Holiday is going into its second printing in August so thanks to you all for all of your support!

Happy sewing and make sure to stop over at Aurifil today!

Amanda

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 10

Next up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour is Sherri of A Quilting Life.  I met Sherri at my first Market in Salt Lake City and just love both her and her blog.  She juggles a busy home life with four kids, teaching, and an absolutely unbelievable amount of sewing.  I was thrilled to find out that Sherri also wrote her first book this year with C&T and it is really great.  Make sure to visit Sherri's blog for another chance to win a copy of Modern Holiday.

Happy sewing!
Amanda

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 9

Next up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour is Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane Quilts.  Jennifer lives nearby and founded the Charlotte Modern Quilt Guild.  She also started Sew South, a great annual sewing retreat in the southeast, last year.    She's always making something fun - quilts or bags, or paper-pieced projects.  We are lucky to have Jennifer here is Charlotte.  Hope on over to enter for another chance to win!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 8

In just a few hours Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter will be blogging about Modern Holiday.  I've been following Amy's blog for a few years.  She has a great eye for color (which you can see on her Flickr feed) and she is fantastic at writing posts to which all of us can relate (like this one....)

So hop on over to Diary of a Quilter for another chance to win a copy of Modern Holiday!
Amanda

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Monday, July 15, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 7

Next up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour is Cherry of Cherry Blossoms Quilting Studio!  I actually met Cherry through Madame Samm, who had to talked to us both on the phone and thought we would become great friends.  She was right!  Since then Cherry and I have had booths at Market next to each other.  We have the same birthdays, same taste, and we even order the same food on our breaks from Market.  Kind of funny!

I wish Cherry lived closer so we could sew together but we share our work virtually all the same.  (She has the cutest bike quilt you've ever seen.)  She actually has been working on the Holiday Forest cover quilt and has teasing me with pictures of it.  I need her to stop because I don't have time to make another quilt!  Hers is so cute with the squares and greens and an added touch of red.

I can't wait for you to see it so hop on over to Cherry's blog and don't forget to enter for another chance to win a copy of Modern Holiday!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

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Sunday, July 14, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 6 and Quilty!

Hi everyone,
In just a few hours it will be Bernina's day on my Modern Holiday Blog Tour at their We All Sew blog!  It is only fitting since I sewed every single project in the book on a Bernina 580, which I love.  It is such a great machine - does lots of what the bigger machines can for a really reasonable price and it has such a compact design.  Here are some of my favorite feet I used with sewing Modern Holiday.
#57 - 1/4'' foot with blade for REALLY fast piecing

#18 Button sew-on foot (but I used it to attach yo-yos to velcro)

#38 Piping foot for applying trim

#20 Open-toe foot for appliqué

And of course the Bernina Stitch Regulator


Since this is Bernina's day, it is also a perfect time to show you the first project I quilted on the Bernina 780.  This is a quilt called Arbor Walk featuring my Bella line for Blend Fabrics and it is featured in the July/August issue of Quilty!




It is actually a really simple half-square triangle quilt.

I started out at the bottom of the quilt with a swirl motif, and worked my way up adding pebbling.




At the top of the quilt with swirls disappear completely and there is just the pebbling... like bubbles rising up from the ocean.


Thanks for letting me share and don't forget to stop by We All Sew in a couple of hours for another chance to win a copy of Modern Holiday!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

P.S.  Just a reminder... should you win a book on the blog just know it won't be sent out until the end of the tour.  I need to compile a complete list to send off to C&T first.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 5

In just a few hours Fat Quarterly's time to blog about Christmas in July in my Modern Holiday blog tour.  Brioni from Fat Quarterly stopped by my booth at Market and was interested in doing a book review so of course I asked her to help out on this tour too.  Make sure to stop by the Fat Quarterly blog for another chance to win!

Happy sewing
Amanda

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Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 4

Next up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour is Me and My Sister Designs!  I used some of Barb's and Mary's yummy fabrics in the cover quilt, Holiday Forest....


and also in the Advent calendar, Countdown to Christmas!



Barb and Mary are so nice it makes me really wish I had a sister (although having a brother is pretty great too, J!) - plus their fabrics were so playful and fun to sew with.  Be sure to check out Me and My Sister's blog (it is hilarious) and enter!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 3

Next up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour is Sara at Sew Sweetness.  I've known Sara online for years (she tested some patterns for me when I was just starting out) and she such a nice person!  She makes the most fantastic bags (and bag patterns) and is working on a book too!  When I saw her at Market in Portland I recognized her immediately because she was wearing one of her fantastic dresses.

So, if you aren't familiar with Sew Sweetness make sure to check it out and if you are familiar with it, make sure you hop on over for another chance to enter to win a copy of Modern Holiday.

Happy sewing!
Amanda

P.S.  If you are in the Charlotte area I'll be speaking at the Charlotte Quilt Guild tomorrow night (Wednesday) about embellishment ideas for your holiday projects...

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Monday, July 8, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Day 2

First up on the Modern Holiday Blog Tour after Stash Books is Madame Samm and her fantastically popular blog Sew We Quilt.  Make sure to hop on over and check out what she has been up to, how she decorates her tree, and get another chance to win another copy of Modern Holiday!

Happy sewing!
Amanda

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Sunday, July 7, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour

Hi everyone! I'm so excited because my Modern Holiday Blog Tour starts in just a few hours right here and over at Stash Books. The theme is Christmas in July and each day one of many great bloggers will have a book to give away! (Winner inside the US will win a hard copy; outside winners will receive a digital copy.) They will all be mailed at the end of July, after the tour wraps up. The theme is Christmas in July and people will be sharing favorite quilts, fabric collections, cookie recipes, etc.

I'd like to start off by talking about the quilt on the cover of the book. It is called Holiday Forest and it is our daughter's favorite.


I love it too but she was really convinced this one would be the cover quilt and she was right! I think the aqua and green color palette looks lovely on the cover, with all the presents in front and the big, fluffy rug on the floor. (For those who are interested, the fabric came from a collection called Ready Set Snow by Me and My Sister Design for Moda, and there are lots of Robert Kaufman blenders in it as well, including some by Patrick Lose.)  This quilt doesn't have to be made in strictly Christmas prints - choose a color palette you love and go for it!



Holiday Forest features three different sizes of trees. The biggest is over 22" in height, which means this quilt is sew-able in a weekend. I don't know if you can tell but the snowflakes are appliqued with metallic thread for a little bit of sparkle. Of course you could use a Cutwork tool for snowflakes if you have one, or you could even cut them out by hand. There are 4 snowflake shapes included in the book.


They are also used in this pillow...

And in these coasters...


You could decorate the trees on the quilt with buttons or trim and keep it out the entire winter! To enter to win for this first day of the blog tour, just leave a comment on this post telling me what whether you would most like to make the quilt, pillow, or coasters and what colors you might make it in. That's it!  One entry per person and the deadline will be this Friday, the 12th, at midnight.

 Don't forget to hop on over to Stash Books tomorrow to enter for another chance to win!

I'll be posting a link to each blogger on their day, but just so you have them all, here is the lineup:

Monday, July 8th


Tuesday, July 9th


Wednesday, July 10th


Thursday, July 11th


Friday, July 12th


Monday, July 15th


Tuesday, July 16th


Wednesday, July 17th


Thursday, July 18th


Friday, July 19th


Monday, July 22nd


Tuesday, July 23rd


Wednesday, July 24th


Thanks so much to all these talented people for helping me out!

 Happy sewing everyone!
Amanda

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Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Modern Holiday Blog Tour Starts this Monday!

My Modern Holiday Blog Tour starts this Monday and I can hardly wait.  The theme is "Christmas in July" and I have a great lineup of contributors who graciously agreed to help me out and each will be giving away a copy of Modern Holiday, so make sure to enter on each site for more opportunities to win!



Modern Holiday Blog Tour (July 8th-24th)
Monday, July 8th


Tuesday, July 9th


Wednesday, July 10th


Thursday, July 11th


Friday, July 12th


Monday, July 15th


Tuesday, July 16th


Wednesday, July 17th


Thursday, July 18th


Friday, July 19th


Monday, July 22nd


Tuesday, July 23rd


Wednesday, July 24th


Until Monday, happy sewing!
Amanda

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