Thursday, March 06, 2008

Fabric Swap?

Looking to add some fabric to your stash? As I continue to purge my studio, I have been going through hundreds of yards of fabric ... sorting and refolding. I've put together two groups of give-aways so far and thought I'd offer them up to you! So, I propose a swap. I'd love to swap for just about anything... buttons, trim, other fabric, craft books, your designs/artwork... you name it.






































Upholstery Weight...


The first pile consists of all upholstery weight fabrics. These are all new fabrics. From left to right (top photo) ... Medium weight denim with an aged look and floral type design; Screen printed blue on creme toile (5th Avenue Designs for Covington); Laura Ashley English Country Print; Ralph Lauren Paisley (2 pieces); Laura Ashley English Country Print (2 pieces); "Paysannerie" by Thibault. These are all decent sized pieces...some up to 2 yards +/-. I can give exact measurements by request.






































Silks, etc...

The second pile consists a variety of silks and unique fabrics. These are all new fabrics. From left to right (top photo) ... Cranberry Red Nylon Lining Fabric (4 or 5 yds.); pale icy blue silk with creme embroidered dots; Sage Green silk with embroidered flowers; Not sure what type of fabric this is...gold and black embroidered leaves (4 +/- yds. ); Gold dupioni silk with basket weave embroidery; Pleated sage silk lined with complementary colored silk with stitched folds; Variegated silk with black and light sage threads; Not sure what type this is...copper and gold sheen changes color with movement...pieced diamond patter. Amounts of fabric vary. I can give exact measurements by request.

So, leave a comment or send me an e-mail info (at) simplyjune.com and lets swap!



Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Caps for Kids



















My studio purge is continuing... Yesterday I went through my yarn stash. It is really unbelievable the amount of yarn I have for someone who only occasionally crochets and knits - maybe that is the problem! So, I sorted through a couple of bins keeping only my favorite fibers. Now what to do with all of the yarn? I got in contact with a lovely woman who makes hats, scarves and mittens for Caps For Kids via Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. These items are then distributed to children in various schools, shelters and organizations throughout the Boston area. I'm so excited that I can contribute - even in a small way!
Sampler Party at Spark Crafts

A few weeks ago my friend Zandra (of Zeal) and I headed out to Cambridge to the Sampler: Boston launch party at Spark Crafts. It was so great to meat Alison as well as a bunch of other indie crafters! I'm definitely excited to contribute to future Samplers...but in the meantime, I think she still has a few Boston Samplers left in the shop - go check them out. If you live in the Boston area, a trip to Spark is also a must. The shop was huge and had all of the best supplies from yarn to craft books and beads. The shop is also very welcoming with the sun shining in the store front windows and a little sitting area to curl up and flip through some of their books.

At the party, we each got a cool goodie bag and contributors got a cute tote bag designed by Marissa Falco over at marissaland.

Alison has now added some new bloggers to her website too...can't wait to see what she thinks up next!

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Craft Books & Studio Purge




















I have been purging my studio for the last few days. It is definitely a process of making it worse before it gets better... I literally have a mountain of stuff in one corner that I am trying to sift through and decide whether to keep, give away or throw out. We have been doing this process throughout our home in a quest for simpler living...a life of things we LOVE. I think as a visual person, I tend to keep things for sentimental reasons simply because they are visually familiar. I may have little or no real attachment to them, but I keep them for the comfort of familiarity. I have definitely grown as we have gone through the process and am actually finding it quite cathartic now. However, my studio is just a whole new prospect. I have an entire wall of shelving containing clear plastic bins. I'm not surprising a visual organizer. I like to be able to see what I have. I also like creating in the moment and being able to design based on the colors and textures around me. So, it is hard to know what items will bring such inspiration... what do I purge? On the other hand, if I have more than I can store effectively then I lose my creativity to chaos. So, I am trying to find that balance and I'm excited to get back to creating in my studio.

In the few quite moments that I have, I love to read craft books. I love getting inspiration and techniques from other crafters and designers. I am so lucky to have an amazing library system from which to borrow. I have the databases for all of the libraries in our network at my fingertips and am able to request books to be delivered to my local library...brilliant! So, here is a current stack I have been pouring over...