New Fabric Line

Hello Everyone
It has been a very busy Fall. We designed and made tons of projects for Fall Market, make sure to check out some of these fabric company's website to see some of the free patterns we did.
Timeless Treasure, Marcus Fabrics, Studio E, Henry Glass, Red Rooster, P&B Textiles and David Textiles.

I have also been to Atlanta, Tucson, Houston and New York since my last post and finally as the holiday season arrives, things are starting to calm down.
I am very excited to announce I have been working with Fabri-Quilt on our next line of fabric. It has been 3 years since my last line and it took teaming up with my partner and husband to get this group completed. Here is a sneak peak of our "Under The Sea" fabric.

This is one of the panels included in the group. It is based on our ever popular "Under The Sea" applique pattern. I have added some new friends to the fish. I think my favorite is the Octopus. Let me know which one is your favorite in the comments below.

I will post new pieces and the quilts we designed from it in the future. I am also excited to be working on two new collections for Fabri-Quilt and will share them with you once they are out of my head and onto paper.

Hope everyone is safe and well.

Until next time......

Heidi

Blogging on my Ipad

When I got my Ipad last year, it was my plan to use it for blogging, sketching and managing our facebook and website. It has been a year and I am finally getting to figuring these things out. Technology is moving so fast that as soon as I get used to one program there is a newer, faster and stronger program available. Here is perfect example.

When got my Ipad last year, I went to write a blog and could not figure out how to get photos in my blog, or a way to schedule the blog to post when I wanted it to. One year later, there are several apps to help post blogs with photos and the one I am using "Blogsy" seems to work very well. Of course this is my first post using this software. So lets see how it works over the long haul.

I also finally started a Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/thewhimsicalworkshop that I have started uploading our extensive quilt portfolio.

Hopefully all this new technology will let me post more often.

Until next time.....

Heidi

Posted with Blogsy

New friends

I met Wenche and Trond at last Fall's Quilt Market while we waited in this super long line. We spent a couple of hours in line so we got to know each other pretty well. These two came all the way from Norway to attend Quilt Market and to promote their quilting company "Northern Quilts". This Spring they had a booth to show her beautiful designs to everyone. They also dressed in traditional Norwegian costumes which were beautiful but a bit warm for the hot temperatures in MI.

Matthew and I were able to catch up with them for dinner the first night of the show and had a blast visiting with them. I wish them the best of luck on all the future endeavors and hope to see them again in the Fall.

Learning Something New this year

It is a new year, full possibilities. I have a ritual I do on the last weekend of every year. Clean up the old and get ready for the new. I go through UFO's (Unfinished projects) and sort them out as to what I will actually finish (or start) and what has been hanging around giving me a guilt trip. I take apart kits I am never going to do and put the fabrics back in my stash, I make a list of projects I need (or want to do) and move the important ones to the top of the pile. I give away the half-finished projects or toss them out.

I clean up my stash, if not longer have room for fabric, it is time to weed out the pieces I am never going to use and donate them to a charity group. I know some of you are freaking out at this suggestion but think of it this way. Fabric has a life too and don't you want it to fill it's potential. Isn't better if the fabric goes to live with a charity group that with put it to good use rather than sitting on your shelf wishing it had a purpose in its little fabric life. Just a thought.

Next up is my office, I clean out a years worth of job folders. This my chance to see what patterns and ideas we came up with through the year that can be recycled and used again. I get to review the design journey we traveled in the past year and reflect on what I have learned through these projects and believe me there is always something new to learn.

This is also the time I close the books for the year and get everything ready for the accountant. I go through those mystery piles we all have that creep up in our office over the year, things we do not know what to do with or don't want to deal with. I sort them out and deal with them. This way I know 2011 is at a close. I can move into 2012 with a clean slate (literally).

Because I do this yearly, it is not so bad and does not take long. This process also is a chance for me to look back on the year and the different projects I have done. I am able to reflect on my sucesses and my failures. I am mentally making my plan for the next year as I remove the mental and physical clutter from the past year. I am not sure when I started doing this process but I have done it for years and for me it is the only way to face the beautiful unknown road of 2012 with a happy, free spirit.
This year I am tackling knitting.......

Recharging your batteries

As the holidays start to wind down and I look at my travel schedule for the next 6 months. I realize how important it is to charge our creative batteries whenever the opportunity arises. For me it was just a couple of weeks ago
when Matthew and I escaped to Sedona for a couple of days. This is truly one of the prettiest places on earth. It was a quick trip but it did the trick. So next time someone offers you a chance to escape for a couple of days just consider this a chance for you to recharge those batteries.

Be Happy

Modern Blooms for McCall's Quick Quilts

I am finally willing to admit I am not a weekly blogger. I try and try and then forget to post for months on end. Perhaps in it is like other things in life. Once you stop trying sooooo hard, it becomes easier to do. If I remove the pressure I put on myself and stop thinking about it as a task, perhaps I will do it more often.

I am discovering all kinds of things like this and attribute it to turning 40 this year. I know many people do not like to get older but I actually embrace it. I am proud of the fact that I have made it this far and I hope I have learned things along the way.

Just this year alone I have learned to go with the flow, everything happens for a reason and perhaps instead of fighting it, I should stop, look and consider what can I learn from this event my life has thrown my way.

I am also learning that everything does not have to be perfect and what is perfect for others may not be right for me.

As I enter my 40's I have a new goal to try to always work towards things that make me happy. If something comes along that I do not want to do it or does not fit this goal, I am looking at it to decide;

A. Do I really need to do this, why am I doing it and if it really has to be done, do not procrastinate,
get it done and out of the way.

B. How can I make this something I enjoy. (Certain things like going to the dentist are never going to fit here so I go back to A and get through it.) If I have to go to an event I really don't want to be at, instead of being unhappy about it, I turn it into an adventure. I dress in clothes I love and arm myself with a positive attitude. It works (almost) every time.

As the new year approaches, I will promise myself to work towards this goal of Happiness. Attitude is everything and if I want to be happy, only I can make it happen.

So on this note, I want to share with you a quilt I did for this month's McCall's Quick Quilts. It is called Modern Blooms. Here is an example of taking a task that I needed to do and turning it into something that made me happy. They loved the fabrics and left it up to me what to do with them. So I sat down and sketched this quilt out. It was pure joy to work on this design. I used my favorite method and favorite color to create a quilt that made me smile. I hope it makes you smile too.
Until Next time.....

The latest Magazine Quilts

 

Tumbling Monkeys

Feather Friends     

   Opposites Attract

Happy Days  

Wee Witchey Kitty

Well another summer is coming to an end. Usually summers are pretty slow around here, but this summer has been super crazy. It started with moving the studio and ourselves (again) in June and the work started right after that. With the economy being what it is, I am so thankful for each job that comes our way. As a Freelance Designer, it is sometime a real roller coaster ride. Well now I can show you some of the projects we have been working on for this summer. We had several magazine features that came out over the past few months and I want to share them with you, Tumbling Monkeys, Feathered Friends, Happy Days. Summer Sparkler, Peep Squeaks, Animal Party II, Opposites Attract and finally Wee Witchey Kitty. I am posting some of these here for you with a link to our website www.TheWhimsicalWorkshop.com. We still have six more magazine features coming out before the end of the year, so check back and see what's new. Take care and happy quilting.
Until next time....
Heidi