Citrus Fruit

Spoonflower always has such nifty little themes. An upcoming contest is revolving around the theme CITRUS. Check out my design below. 
I don't know about where you are, but here in Iowa, it is FINALLY warming up and starting to feel a bit like summer. I'm ready for picnics, ice cold drinks in jars, and sketching outdoors. I feel like this design captures that! What are you looking forward to this summer? 

Spring Market Quick Recap! 2013

Oh my---so many things to show from my trip to Portland for Quilt Market. It was such a blast. I got to hang with the lovely three--Linzee, Jenny, and Codi. And, we ate our way around Portland, sampling Voodoo Doughnuts, tasty local brews, and Salt & Straw's amazing selection of ice cream. It was pretty amazing----oh, and there was a quilt show too! ha. 

My favorite flavor. 

I tried out some new looks!

I tried out some new looks!

Iowa is just packed with creative ladies!
L to R: Linzee, Codi, Vanessa, Jenny, Me

 Happiness is the International Rose Test Garden! Oh how I wish we had scratch n' sniff blog. This place was so beautiful and divine.

My lemon thyme marinated chevre, tomato, balsamic mushroom, spinach waffle at the Waffle Window--yum! 

Bollywood Theater---by far THE. BEST. INDIAN. FOOD. EVER. EVER! 

Voodoo doughnut smiles. 

Codi loves it when I want to cuddle! :) 

The lovely ladies of Oliver + S, Made by Rae, and Wiksten

And, finally, Amy Sedaris now has a line of fabric with Windham! I think that I'd like to be an adopted member of the Sedaris family-----Thanksgiving's with David and Amy---sure, why not!? ha. Amy and I could chat fabric and crafts while David tells us stories. I can just see it! 

While at the Windham booth, I was lucky enough to get a fabulous little fat quarter bundle of her upcoming line "I Like You." It's pretty bold and wild, but as it should be right? 

There's a great catalog with Miss Amy herself in a few little get-ups made with her line and home decor galore featuring her ric arc and tulip designs. It's pretty great---check it out. 

 

I think my favorite might be this bold, stained glass-like print full of color. It would make a great dress. 

One of my favorite parts of market is always stopping by the booth of hand dyed Akonye Kena textiles. These fabrics are just so beautiful! I love the colors and always wish I had bought more--every time! 

You can really see the variation of color in this one. 

Spoonflower Blog Profile

My first entry into the world of surface design was through Spoonflower.  This amazing resource is an on-demand fabric printing service where anyone can get their designs, photos, or anything really, printed on a variety of fabrics. But, Spoonflower, for us designers is really so much more. There is a vibrant, engaged community of creative souls from around the world! It's pretty amazing. This unique community did and still does provide me with creative and moral support, critique, and advice. The weekly contests initiated by the crew at Spoonflower provide creative jump starts with design challenges on such themes as Mardi Gras, Nautical, Australian Animals, or Hand-drawn fabric. For a designer like me, those little challenges have been such fantastic inspirations, and really gave me the inspiration to create my first portfolio of fabric designs. I can't say enough positive words about it all. 

So, having Kim Fraser, one of the owners of Spoonflower, post a profile about me on their blog yesterday was a really pivotal moment for me. It was just amazing to see my name on that site--something I could never have imagined a few short years ago when I entered my first Spoonflower contest. 

If you have some time today---check out the post. I hope you enjoy it! 

(and, enter the give away to win a big fat bundle of fabrics of mine from Marcus and Spoonflower!) 

-Greta 

Coasters Galore!

I decided to do a little crafting before my trip back home to Louisiana for the holidays. I made these adorable little coasters for friends and family.
Out of one fat quarter I was able to make about 20 coasters! I made a few packs of 5 coasters each, and voila!---a great gift for anyone for any occasion. 
I guess this can't really be called a tutorial, since it may be fairly lacking in step-by-step directions, but it was super fun to do, and I highly recommend making some of these little ditties. 
I bought a couple of fat quarters of my Eclectic Kitchen fabric when Spoonflower was having a buy one get one sale a few weeks back. Check out the fabric on the site here. 
I just love how well the watercolor design printed on this one! 

I decided to fussy cut the piece up into pieces about 5x3 inches each. 

Then, I added a small strip of 2 inch fabric to the edge of each one to create a 5x5 inch piece. 

 I added a little batting to the back side, did a little quilting with a few fun little stitches on the solid color portion of the coaster. Then, I sewed them inside out, right sides facing, clipping the corners and making sure to leave a little opening to turn them the right side out. 

 Then, I just sewed that little part shut to finish it off .
For some odd reason I didn't seem to take any photos of the final products, but hopefully you get the idea. I think more of these are in my future. I really loved this project. I am thinking about doing some embroidery (my new love) and using some of my anchor fabric I just got in from Spoonflower. What do you think!!?? :)  

Mustard Gals

At this year's Quilt Market in Houston, I walked past a group of three women, two of which were wearing mustard-colored items. Thinking, "Hmm...who are those hip ladies?"......I stopped, introduced myself, and soon learned it was none other than Iowa's own Michele Rosenboom (winner of the Printed Bolt's Repeat contest), and Ellen and Madeleine who run The Printed Bolt's contest. They were just so delightful to meet. Michele's work is beautiful and was featured in a gorgeous quilt made by Iowa's other darlings---Modern Quilt Relish.  
I bumped into Ellen a few more times over the weekend, and a month or so ago they asked me to be one of the judges for this year's contest on The Printed Bolt. (yay!) I am so excited.

Well, yesterday, the list of judges became public. So, I can actually talk about it now.
In the company of some really outstanding others, I am so so honored to take part in this project. I can't wait to see the entries and creative solutions. Check out the other judges below----whoa. right? :)

FREE HOLIDAY CARD DOWNLOAD

Hey Hey everyone! I decided to give a little freebie today!

Below is a link to a free card you can download and send to friends and family this holiday season.

It fits in a standard office envelope----3 5/8 x6 1/2 inches. Those are super cheap and I thought would be a good way to save some $$ this season! :)  I like to be a thrifty gal by using those, and I love to take a little time to decorate those little plain envelopes with hand drawn doodles. It's a fun touch in the world of mass manufactured cards. :)

The cards are one-sided, so you can write a little note on the back and send them off! They look great printed on some kind of cotton rag paper. I used Rives BFK and tore it down to size, but card stock or matte photo paper would certainly work well too if not better. You can leave a little deckled edge around them by tearing them out or cut them out neatly with scissors or an exacto. You'll get three to a page with Letter size paper.

INSTRUCTIONS: go to my website   http://gretasonge.com/home.html
At the top of the page go to the Navigation Section titled HOLIDAY DOWNLOAD
The PDF should automatically download to your computer.

Happy Holidays!
-Greta

One Yard Wonders -L'Artiste De La Mer

Next week, Spoonflower is hosting a contest in conjunction with the publishers of the One Yard Wonders books. This upcoming book is Little Wonders---projects for kid's items. The contest required us to use their pattern template for the shirt and to have a nautical design of some kind for a girl.

I sketched this out last week, and then eventually finished it today. I just love it. I've been drawing this little artiste for a while now. I'm glad she found a home. :)

Tova Dress + My fabric + St.Paul trip

Well, I think I might have made a match that was just meant to be-----my fabric from the Here to There collection----and Jenny's fantabulous Tova Dress pattern!!! 
I made a shirt earlier in the month (see previous post), but definitely wanted to take on the dress. I had some grey fabric in my stash and paired it up with one of the coordinates from my collection.
I have to admit, that since seeing that coordinate pattern printed up, it's been screaming to become something in the apparel world. I think this is it!

Jenny's pattern is so versatile. It is this great silhouette with that lovely little placket up top that allows for so much creativity in matching up fabrics to use. In this case though, I decided to add a couple of my own touches to the dress. I had this lovely buttons floating around for a while now that needed a home........

And, I decided to add a belt to cinch it at the waist a bit. While, I love the dress without it, I think it fits my shape better with the belt....plus---I've never made a belt. So, that was a lot of fun to try! 

Also, last weekend I got the chance to go to Minneapolis to visit one of my favorite people, my darling friend Marie. We spent the weekend sampling lots of goodies from around Minneapolis/ St. Paul including more craft beers than I should admit. It was such a great weekend. Admittedly, I have only been to the area once, when on a synchronized swimming team trip---and I can only recall going to the Mall of America. Needless to say, a grown-up trip was long overdue! Not to mention, that hanging out with her, Laura, Tim, and John was just a blast. Hanging with that group of great friends never fails to be a good time filled with laughter, conversation, and fun. 

I may have crushed someone with a very large cherry. oops. 

Marie gags John with a spoon

Farmer's market goodies! 

yes. this was delicious! 

When you're in a town with outstanding espresso and beer---you sometimes have to have both at once.  

Succulents galore at the Walker outdoor area! whoa. 

Fabric Scrap Animation

In the last weeks of summer, we hosted an animation camp at Iowa City's own Home Ec Workshop. It was so great! We used bits and pieces of the stash of scraps and remnants that the gals at the shop had on hand. With 3 elementary/middle school participants and three adults in tow, we created a simple story board to illustrate a basic truism...."A cat always lands on its feet."  We worked on it over the course of 5 days for a couple of hours a day. It was so so fun!!! And, the fabric scrap set makes for such a lovely aesthetic.

Check out the video on youtube here.

Kasia Skirt + Bronchitis!

Well, I can say that the only good thing to come out of this week of ridiculous sickness, as I battle some form of really lovely bronchitis, is that I finished another sewing project.
It's the Kasia skirt. This is a free, that's right FREE skirt pattern available on Burda Style's website. The link is this if you decide to make one! I highly recommend it. It was a little hard for this beginner sewing gal. I definitely took out more than a few stitches, but oh man, what a great skirt! The fit is PERFECT, it's stylish, and just so so cute. I'm so proud! It's my second garment from a pattern, and my first really successful one! ha!
I used some of the Oasis Canvas from Marcus, that has proved to be just such a great fabric for my last couple of projects. I just love it! What do you think!?

The main skirt panels ready to assemble

My first buttonholes! So proud 

Bunched little pockets added a fun detail

Zipper in place....a little jankety, but it get's hidden by the front panel....my little secret! :) 

...laying out a few options and deciding on what fabric to use with the buttons. I bought a handy dandy button making kit at Hobby Lobby, and just loved getting to make the perfect button for the skirt!

 The view from the front...high-waisted

I just love the final product! I may have to make a few variations of this.....maybe one for each day of the week....too much? ;)