I Am Surrounded by the Beauty of Autumn and Grateful for it.

This photo is from my morning walk . . .

And this is what I look at while I sew. Lucky me I am sewing today!

My advice for today: Do what you love, appreciate the beauty of our planet and your life will be RICH! Mine is!  Now back to the sewing machine . . .

Little Lonni's by Lonni Rossi for Andover Fabrics

Oooh la la! Have you seen the "Little Lonni's" collection from Andover Fabrics? I just received yardage from Lonni herself and will be playing with it next week! Yippee. Can't wait to see what I can come up with.  I feel like a kid in a candy store!

"Little Lonni's" Fabric Collection by Lonni Rossi for Andover Fabrics

Visit Lonni Rossi's website at www.lonnirossi.com

Whitby Gallery Show Report - Are you ready to be inspired?

The show opening was a success! I've included a few of the art pieces that are being shown. If you want to go the the gallery in person the show runs through October 24th. (More info about that at the bottom of this post.)

 (Photo above) Artists left to right;

Lucy Senstad (curator), Caron Lage, Mary Follett, & (me) Jamie Kalvestran

 

Below are works by Lucy Senstad

Contact Lucy 

© Lucy Senstad - Published with permission.

© Lucy Senstad - Published with permission.

© Lucy Senstad - Published with permission.

© Lucy Senstad - Published with permission.

© Lucy Senstad - Published with permission.

Below are works by Mary Follett

Contact Mary

 

© Mary Follett - Published with permission.

© Mary Follett - Published with permission.

© Mary Follett - Published with permission.

© Mary Follett - Published with permission.

Below are works by Caron Lage

Contact Caron

© Caron Lage - Published with permission.

© Caron Lage - Published with permission.

© Caron Lage - Published with permission.

© Caron Lage - Published with permission. 

 

 

Below are works by (me) Jamie Kalvestran

See closeups of them on my Artful Drygoods Blog

 

© Jamie Kalvestran

 FYI - Whitby Gallery, a showcase for works created by the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict and other local artists and artisans. A gallery area within the gift shop highlights creative works in various media during four annual art shows.

For more information, call 320-363-7113 or 320-363-7100. Get MORE info about the show.
Special thanks to Sister Ione and her staff for putting on a lovely opening!

I'm in Heaven . . . Hog Heaven that is . . . because Audrey went Whole Hog!

Audrey Hess has done it again. She sent this email and photos that made me smile ear to ear. Who said you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear? Ok, so it's a cotton purse. And it's the WHOLE HOG!
I LOVE IT!  (Audrey, you are awesome, thank you for your permission to share!)

Hi Jamie:
Well, I have been at it again (or still). Your Easy Zip Wallet pattern is addictive. It can be made with any theme in mind as long as I can find the fabric. I have been making them and adding them to my stockpile of Christmas gifts. They're fun to make and fun to give.This time I made the wallet for a friend whose family owns the local Harley-Davidson dealership. Keep in mind that they have a Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.) and that Harleys are referred to as "hogs". I fussycut the fabric to get as many "whole hog(s)" as possible on the pockets and in the lining. Notice I also used piggy pink fabric for the card slots and pockets on the inside. I added a  "hog" zipper pull to coordinate with the theme. My husband kindly photographed the "hog" wallet in the parking lot at the dealership with motorcycles in the background. See pictures below.
Sincerely,
Audrey Hess

This sewing pattern is available for immediate download at my online Shop.

Another GIVE AWAY! 5+4 for 13

5 Qualifiers plus 4 Questions and you could win 13 Scrap-bags™ Patterns!

Here is another chance to win thirteen Scrap-bags purse patterns, that's a retail value of $117.00! Comment below and YOU could be the LUCKY WINNER!!! Contest ends October 1st!

QUALIFIER #1 - To answer the questions you will have had to previously purchased one of my Scrap-bags™ patterns.

QUALIFIER #2 - Answer ALL four of the following questions.

#1 - What pattern did you purchase and why did you purchase it?

#2 - Did you consider buying a different brand of pattern and if so, what made you choose a Scrap-bag™ pattern instead?

#3 - What do you like about the pattern and the sewing process?

#4 - What do you like about the finished product?

QUALIFIER #3 - Make sure I can contact you via email if you win.

QUALIFIER #4 - Sign up for one or more of the following things (if you haven't all ready-see the column to the right)
1 - "Like" Scrap-bags Pattern on Facebook or
2 -  "Follow"with Google Friend Connect or
3 -  "Sign up" for emails notices of my posts
Then let me know how you follow me in your comment.

QUALIFIER #5 - Last but not least use one or more of the social network buttons below to share or post this blog post. The buttons include Email This, Blog This, Share to Twitter, Share to Facebook, and Share to Google Buzz.  Let me know which one(s) you used in your comment.


Thanks for being my customer.  
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.  
Thanks for being a follower.  
Thanks for sharing my info on your social network.

I appreciate you and I hope YOU win! Good luck!!! 

Gifts & Stationery for Quilters!

I hope you will enjoy my new Clematis Collection, shown here for quilters! To see the entire collection of licensed products click here. Enjoy!

Fan Quilt Greeting Card by JamieKalvestran

Clematis Fan Quilt Tee by JamieKalvestran Click on the image to see the front of the shirt!

Clematis Butterfly & Fan Quilt - Ladies Sneakers by JamieKalvestran

To see the entire collection of licensed products click here.

Wired

Here is one of the pieces that you could see at the Whitby Gallery in St. Joseph MN. It's titled "Wired" and is a quilted gel printed piece. For more info or to see all the pieces that I sent for the exhibition go to my Artful Drygoods Blog.

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New work from time well spent in the studio today!

A good days work - ©2010 Jamie Kalvestran 

Work Bench - ©2010 Jamie Kalvestran 

Grape Leaf Print - ©2010 Jamie Kalvestran 

Love this one!  - ©2010 Jamie Kalvestran 

Life is good! - ©2010 Jamie Kalvestran 

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Labor Day and the Labor of Love

Tomorrow is Labor Day. It got me thinking about labor and then my mind went directly to "labor of love". The definition I found on google for labor of love is - "productive work performed voluntarily without material reward or compensation."
Many of the projects we do (sewing and otherwise) fall into the category of "labor of love", wouldn't you agree? I know for myself, the patterns I write are a labor of love. I recently made bags and donated them to a Relay for Life fundraiser. Now I am thinking about holiday gifts.

I think a three piece ensemble,
1) Bag,
2) matching Wallet, &
3) matching Checkbook Cover
will make a great gift for a couple of ladies on my list. What about you?

Give it some thought . . .
Allow yourself the opportunity to express a "labor of love" for someone in your life!    

Happy Labor Day!

Enjoy your labor of love,

Fabric..Thread..Art show at Whitby Gallery - Sneak Peek!