A Lovely Surprise

We have these crazy pinkish flowers that have been growing in a corner somewhere in our backyard. Then one day, my husband said that he thinks these flowers will be very pretty in a vase. And wow! He was right!

I am so in love with it!

It's amazing how these flowers look so different when they are cut up and placed inside this nice vase in our kitchen. I guess I will stop and "smell" the flowers more often? 

Remember this quilt I started awhile back? It has taken me quite awhile to hand quilt it, but take a look at these beautiful stitches. Sorry for the bad photo, but this lighting somehow shows off the stitches very well. I wish I could take a better photo to show you how beautiful these stitches are. 

I still have about 35 blocks to quilt... let's just say I can't wait to finish this. 

Anyone wants to bet when this will be done?

Spring Runner Sew Along - All Done

Take a look! I am all done! Here is the table runner I designed for the Stumbles & Stitches Spring Table Runner Sew Along. The requirements for this sew along are listed below:

1) Celebrate Spring

2) Be inspired by Rashida's runner in at least one way: the pattern, the linen, the zigzag, the tricolor theme, the vintage fabric.... 

100% handmade and hand quilted. 

The bunnies and squirrels have been so busy running in our backyard; my husband and I think that there is always something new happening in our yard this time of the year, such as a new flower blooming or new leaves budding. So I thought what better way to introduce spring than to bring these flowers onto our dining room table? I made this runner with linen, of course. It was my first time working with linen, and I must say... linen is not easy to work with! It moved around so much and was so stretchy! I ironed a medium weight interfacing to it, and it helped significantly. 

Close-up of the table runner.  

Had to include a ladybug here!

This was my first sew along, and I totally enjoyed it. I have also posted this photo in the Flickr Pool. Be sure to stop by on Wednesday, April 20 to vote for my table runner! 

Spring Runner Sew Along - Fabric Selection

Remember the Spring Runner Sew Along that I recently blogged about? Here are the fabric I used and I really like the way it came out. The piece is almost ready for its debut! Can't wait to share with you what I have made and to see what others have made.

I have linen and some of my favorite reproduction fabrics here. 

I know.... so pink, but I love pink!

I wonder what others are working on? This is my first sew along and I have to say, it's so exciting! Thanks to Stumbles and Stitches for hosting this. 

Simply Happy

Has anyone heard of this new series of quilting book/magazine called Cotton Life from Taiwan? I recently discovered this series from bloggers in the US! Pictures of projects by bloggers living in the US were featured in these books! And, these books are actually written in Chinese, which means I can read them! Wohoo!! No need to try to decipher Japanese here...

My mom returned from her trip to Taiwan today, I had asked her to bring me back the fifth edition (the most recent edition) of Cotton Life from Taiwan. And what do you know? She surprised me with ALL FIVE! I will say that again... A-L-L F-I-V-E!

Look at these books!

Here, let's count that again... one, two, three, four, five!

Cute bag! It's from the fifth edition of Cotton Life. 

Look at this bunny! Also from the fifth edition of Cotton Life.

Here is a close-up of the bunny in case you couldn't get a good look. Look at that tooth!

Thanks mom! These books are heavy, and I am sure it wasn't easy to get every edition of this magazine for me. She even called the publisher for me to try to set up auto shipment to me in the US! :) 

Spring Runner Sew Along

This past weekend has been an awesome weekend. Why you ask? Because I decided to sit and sew till my eyes were tired to keep up. I have been busy making a table runner for the Spring Runner Sew Along.

I recommend you hop over and take a look. April 12th is the last day to sign up. Rashida from blog I heart linen is also participating! I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with, till then... have a good week! 

Spring

Spring is my favorite season of the year. I love how there is always something going on in the backyard this time of the year. Check out these beautiful orange flowers I have near the steps towards my front door. 

And look! My cherry tree is alive!

It's such beautiful day today in California. I am off to enjoy this great weather, wishing you a nice and relaxing weekend! 

Embroidery

I have this thing for embroidery... I like to work on these little figures from time to time, but I never what to do with them? Take this dog as an example... should I cut it out and make a pillow with it? A kitchen towel? Kitchen towels with dogs on it are a bit weird, right? I love how easy it is to store everything you need when it comes to embroidery, not to mention the cheap threads! And embroidery is just something I can carry with me everywhere I go.

I took an embroidery class last year at Bobbin's Nest Studio in Santa Clara. I think was the only person in that class, so talk about undivided attention! Have you been to this shop? It's a really cute store with fabric, yarn, and some miscellaneous craft stuff. I really enjoy going to this particular store in my area.