State Fair 2010

Here are a few pictures of some beautiful quilts I saw at the 2010 State Fair!

Christmas in July

Check out this Etsy Store!

My Store

Time to start thinking about your Fall Jacket!!

I will be teaching a jacket class at Joanns in Manteca!


My first jacket class is July 28. What you will learn:
Garment construction basics
Basic hems
Setting a collar and sleeves.
Contact Joanns Fabrics for additional information and to register.
For those of you that know how to sew, be sure to check out McCalls "pattern of the week" for $2.99! It is a cool jacket!

About Fabric - Ramie

Continuing Fabric Class - today I am writing about a fabric called ramie. Ramie is often called China Grass. It is a plant fiber originally grown in China. Ramie fibers are long and very fine. They are lustrous and silk-like in appearance. The fiber has excellent strength but feels rather stiff. Because of its stiffnes, ramie is ofter blended with other fibers such as cotton or rayon. Ramie fabric can resemble fine linen or heavy coarse canvas.

Finally - My Sewing Room Pictures!

As promised -- long ago, I am finally posting some pictures of my sewing room. These are impromptu and just before a cleaning and organizing day!! I will post more pictures after the sorely needed room makeover. I am so happy to say that we recently had ceiling fans installed with overhead lighting. My sewing room will be a much nicer place this summer!

Summer Time - Kids!

Vogue Patterns Sale!

Check out this link for Vogue Patterns!

Etsy

About Fabric - Jute

Continuing fabric classes! We will talk now about Jute. Jute is a fiber that has been useful in coutries with low economic standards due to its being inexpensive. In fabric form it is frequently called burlap. Jute is a weak fiber and is limited mainly to products where durability is not important.

A Month To Remember

This QOV quilt is being shipped to a hospital in Germany. The quilt was pieced by Mildred Sheritt and quilted by me!


This picture is courtesy of the Quilt of Valor Foundation. This picture reminds me of why I give up some of my valuable time to donate quilting. Check out the foundation to see if you can help!

Threads Magazine

Checkout the sewing rooms. I will post a picture of mine tomorrow!

Project in the works!

I am on my way to teach a "Box Cushion" class, but, had to post a picture of my latest project in the works.

New Posting on Etsy

Pair of Pillow Shams. I made these cute pillow shams from fabric from Aunt Lindy's Paper Dolls Collection. The fabric was designed by Sibling Arts Studios for Blue Hill Fabrics and features small dressed paper dolls. The color palette includes pink, green, blue, brown, yellow and lavender on a natural background. I just love this theme and time frame. I am enjoying working with 1930's reproductions fabrics.

Vogue Pattern Sale!

Check out Vogue Patterns!

Pajama Pillow

Do they still use pajama pillows? They used to when I was a little girl. I made this cute little pillow cover, just perfect for a three to five year old's jammies.

Fave Links!

While telling one of my students about buying patterns on sale, I realized that there are probably others that do not know about good sites for sewing tips and pattern sales! Here are a few of my favorites:
Simplicity Creative Group will send you emails with tips and new patterns. And signup with Butterick, Vogue, and McCalls for emails when the patterns go on sale! Another good site for people that sew is Threads. I hope you enjoy these!

First Day!

Well, today was my first day teaching a sewing class. I only had two students but, that turned out great -- considering it was a class for the "Box Cushion!" Cutting out the bias takes a lot of room. I loved it! And I am sure I will get better as I begin to get used to it. It just feels amazing to have knowledge that other people appreciate!!
Tomorrow, I have a "Shorts or Skirt," class. The student can choose to make either one. I hope they lean towards the skirt! It is just so cute. No pictures today.. maybe tomorrow.

Busy Day

Open house at Jo-Ann Fabrics went well!! Lots of people and lots of questions. It was very interesting to talk to the other instructors -- Crochet, knitting and cake decorating! I really would like to learn crochet and knitting. Cake decorating is very popular!! Very nice day... met some very nice people and had some wonderful conversations.

Back of the skirt

Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores - Manteca - Open House

Open house today at Jo-Anns. I will be there from 1 to 3. Shown here are pictures of the "Box Cushion" in progress and the completed "Skirt." My box cushion classes are two 2-hour sessions, May 19 and May 26 from 10am to 12pm! The skirt classes are two-hour sessions, May 20 and May 27 from 6pm to 8pm. For more details and to purchase classes contact Jo-Ann Fabrics, 2210 Daniels Street, Manteca, CA.

Festival and Mother's Day

Well, things are finally getting back to normal around here! We made it through the Cinco De Mayo Fesitval hosted by South San Joaquin's Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. It was their first, so it was a little on the small side. However, I did have some sales so it wasn't that bad. Not sure if I want to sign up to do it next year though. Unfortunately, I was put right next to a group with a loud generator. I have to remember to start writing on my applications that I do not want to be near a food vendor!!






Mother's Day was very nice. My Mother-in-law was visiting and all of my children came over. I was surprised by this little stone garden angel. It made me sad at first but, it hit me that I do have a little boy angel in heaven. My nephew Aaron that left us way too soon. I will think of him when I gaze at my garden angel and remember the good times. I still want a large angel, like the one I saw at OSH though...

Tea and Roses...

Taking a few minutes this morning to smell the roses as I drink my tea and get ready for a very busy weekend!! Remember Mother's Day on Sunday!!! I hope to see all of my children, we shall see. Mother-in-law, on her way to spend the weekend with us! Here are a few pictures of some of our roses. They are just lovely!! Still waiting for my gardenia's to bloom...

Checking In

Just checking in real quick as I am getting ready for the Cinco De Mayo Festival tomorrow as well as the Open House at Joanns. Here is a picture of one of the samples in the making... this is for the Box Cushion class.

Fabric Class

I am putting the fabric classes on hold for now, while I get ready for Open House at Joanns and the Cinco De Mayo festival. Both are Saturday and I am trying to figure out how to be in two places at once!! When it rains it pours!

Class Schedule

Sewing 201—Box Cushion
Two 2-Hour Sessions
What You Learn:
• Welting
• Adding a zipper
May 19, Wednesday
10am-12pm
and
May 26, Wednesday
10am-12pm

Sewing 101—Skirt or Shorts
Two 2-Hour Sessions
What You Learn:
• Intermediate pattern reading
• Constructing a garment
• Creating hems, waistbands & pockets
• Working with different fabrics
May 20, Thursday
6pm-8pm
and
May 27, Thursday
6pm-8pm

For more details see
Joann Fabrics and Crafts
2210 Daniels Street
Manteca, CA , 95337-6706
(209) 824-2603

Flax

I am going to skip cotton now and write about it last! Saving the best for last. So I begin with Flax - Linen. Flax is considered the oldest fiber used in the western world. According to Wikipedia "Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. Flax is grown both for its seeds and for its fibers. Various parts of the plant have been used to make fabric, dye, paper, medicines, fishing nets, hair gels, and soap. It is also grown as an ornamental plant in gardens."
Flax fibers are very strong and can be made into fine yarns and sheer fabrics that are both strong and cool. Flax is popular for clothing because in addition to being cool, it is easily washed. Linen fabrics may be smooth and sheer, coarse, homespun in effect or highly patterned as in the jacquard weave. They are used for apparel and a wide veiety of domestic fabrics such as table cloths. Tomorrow, I will talk about jute fiber!

Fabric School

Thinking about topics to write about, I thought I would write about one of my favorite things - fabric. Really, I love fabric and I am addicted to it. I confess I am a fabricaholic, as most quilters are. My fabric of choice is, of course, cotton! As a matter of fact one of my favorite books is "Cotton, The Biography of a Revolutionary Fiber." It was really interesting to learn how much influence a little ball of fluff had on the world. And to learn that at any given time almost everyone on earth is wearing, using or eating something made with cotton! I just love cotton! But, there are many different kinds of fabric.

First of all, you have to understand that fabric is made up of fibers, which after treatment, become yarn. Yarn is used to make fabric. There are numerous types of fibers. However, there are basically two categories of fibers -- 1. natural and 2. manmade.

Within the natural fibers category there are two categories -- 1. cellulosic and 2. protein. Natural cellulosic fibers include cotton, flax (linen), jute, and ramie. Natural protein fibers include wool, silk, mohair, and cashmere.

Manmade fibers include, rayon, acetate and triacetate, nylon, polyester, acrylic and modacrylic, and olefin.

Tomorrow, I will begin to delve more into the characteristics of each of these different fibers and how and why they are used.

When It Rains It Pours

What a day! I could not believe the amount of rain that poured from the sky today. And the wind... just yesterday we were lounging in the back yard enjoying the sun! And watching Mellie play in her new sand box.




Oh well, a rainy day is a good quilting day and I did get a little bit quilted on my QOV.



I need some motivation for the Cinco de Mayo festival coming up on May 8. That is around the corner. I guess a trip to the library is in order -- hopefully it won't rain tomorrow!

Time Slows Down With Tea!

The tea was an unexpected pleasure! I had never been to a "tea" and when my sister asked me, I have to admit, I wasn't sure I wanted to go. My sister does tea all the time and I think she really enjoys it, but, I wasn't sure I would.
This tea featured a fashion show and and an inspirational speaker. Both were very nice. Each table, and there must of been at least fifty tables, had a hostess. Each hostess chose a different theme. Our hostess decorated each chair with a lovely shawl and hat. I hope you can see it in the pictures posted above. Of course, there were the lovely little finger sandwiches -- very tasty -- you know, amongst others, cucumber sandwiches and my favorite chicken salad. And then tea and scones (and lovely jams)! As expected we drank our tea out of lovely little tea cups. What fun! I have been inspired to do some tea themed pieces... not sure what yet, but, my wheels are turning. And I am thinking that my next boutique will be an invitation only tea and boutique!! What fun!! Tea tasting for sure. My break was nice very nice -- thank you sister!

Busy, Busy, Busy

Life has surely been busy for me. It feels as if there are never enough hours in a day and that time is just flying. That used to be a good thing -- long, long, ago -- when I was in school and then later when I punched a time clock. But, then time dragged! Why does time fly now....? That is the demon I fight now, time. There is never enough time for all the things I want to do.

I guess I just really need to prioritize, and organize! At least I did finally load my fifth Quilt of Valor quilt, shown here!!

Tomorrow takes me to a tea at my sisters church. That should be nice. It will be good to meet some new people and hopefully time will slow down a bit.

What a Difference A Day Can Make

You know one of those days where you start out thinking that it will be a normal day and then it turns out to be one of the strangest days?! Yep, that was my day today. Of course, I haven't had a normal day since I was laid off in November of 2008. However, I was beginning to get used to my different lifestyle and so enjoying my Sewing Room days. I really never thought I would be able to spend so much time sewing. At least not until I retired.
Anyway, back to my day -- I had some wonderful news this morning and then some terrible news this evening. What a day...
First the good news!! Today, I was accepted as a sewing teacher at the local brand new Joanns Fabrics. I have already scheduled classes for May and June! I am really looking forward to sharing my passion with my students. Recently, someone told me that I was in a good business as no one sews anymore and that young kids are not interested in learning to sew. I can't believe it or I refuse to believe it. Anyway, I am going to try and do my part in igniting the love of the craft in my students.
The bad news, at least from my point of view, my son-in-law was offered a job in Tupelo, Mississippi!! I cannot believe that they are even considering going. Well, for now, it is only a consideration. My hopes are that God presents another opportunity. We shall see... as for me tonight, I will sleep uneasily.

Rainy Days

April showers bring May flowers!! Repeating that verse helps me to cope with the rain today! I am sooo tired of rain, especially after being rained out on my last day of my Crossroads festival.


Thinking about flowers though...Jerry is threatening to remove the last of my roses -sad face. He found a Japanese beetle already and he hates Japanese beetles! Oh my. I love roses. I mean I REALLY love roses. I love rose bushes, rose bouquets, just the actual flowers, rose pictures, rose paintings, and rose influenced fabric...you will see my love of roses reflected in some of my art quilts (one of them is shown above).




I love Gardenias too. I think that my love for Gardenias is partly due to childhood memories! One of my coziest safest childhood memory is of taking a nap on mom's cool bed linens (which, as I mentioned earlier, she made and matched the drapes). Mom had Dad plant huge Gardenia plants right outside her bedroom window. On cool, breezy days the Gardenia fragrance wafted through the window, bathing the entire house with the lovely sweet smell. I can almost smell it now.

So, of course, as soon as Jerry and I bought our house the first plant we planted, right outside my bedroom, were Gardenia plants. We have sliding doors so not only can I smell the Gardenias but, I can see them. They are beautiful in full bloom (see above). Gardenias have white petals with a lovely dark green leaf and are one of the most fragrant flowers..

Planning Charity

Here are a couple of pictures of my last QOV

Getting ready for bed -- I can't help but think about what tomorrow will bring. I know for sure I really want to load my last Quilt of Valor quilt. It is way over due. This will be my fifth quilt for this organization. I will post pictures when it is loaded.
It has been very rewarding helping out this great cause, but, I am looking into working with some other charities now. For instance the Binky Patrol. I would like to do some quilts for needy children.
A long time ago I read a story about a very smart man. He did great in school went on to get a great job - he was a scientist, but worked in some kind of manufacturing. He was very successful and made a lot of money. The moral of the story was that he was able to retire early and enjoy his time flying kites on the beach! All I could think of was what a waste of education and knowledge. Sure he was enjoying life but, maybe he could of found a cure for cancer... the story did not mention one thing he did for the benefit of his fellow man. It made me sad.
I began to realize that it is every citizen's responsibility to donate time for a cause that they are passionate about. I believe everyone has a calling, a gift. When my kids were growing up, I would tell them to do something constructive with their life "don't just take up space in this world -- be useful, contribute to humanity!" What good is a successful life if you do not contribute somehow in a positive way to your fellow man? That is what I think, anyway...

About Me and Sewing

Andrew, Adriana and Melody.

Adriana and Melody, one of my favorite pictures! Oh yeah, and Coco in the background!

My name is Patricia Valdez. I have four wonderful children. Two boys and two girls. Three of my children are married and the fourth (the baby) is just about engaged. I am also blessed with three beautiful grand children - two girls and one boy. My grand children are my life and I enjoy spending time with them. In addition, I am married to a wonderful man who supports my every whim -- including my sewing business!

Since being laid off from my paralegal job one and a half years ago, I have invested my time and energies into a small sewing and quilting service.

As far back as I can remember my mother sewed. I believe this contributed to my love for sewing and art, and has become a deep passion for creativity. My love for art is a huge part of my life, and it comes through in the care, love, and attention to detail that I put into every piece I create. I have a special passion for the fabric arts. As I mentioned earlier, I learned to sew in junior high school - almost forty years ago!

All of my items are handmade in my sewing studio in a smoke free home. I have one pet - a non-shedding Shih Tzu named Coco (who is not allowed in my studio anyway). I named my Shih Tzu after Coco Chanel, the designer. Coco is not allowed in my sewing studio because I am always dropping pins! On any given day Coco can be found right outside my studio door and he is never far from me wherever I go!

I am passionate about my sewing and quilting and take great pride and pleasure in my work and projects.

One project quilted!

What is a good day?

Today is a beaufiful day! Sunny and mild, a perfect day for taking pictures! Breaking out my new Sony Cybershot to take some new pictures of my items for sale to post on my Etsy Store. Of course, I will have to sneak in a few pictures of my grandbabies! And needless to say, even though my Singer Quantum Quilter is under the weather today, I will do some stitching. I am working on a couple of small wall quilts. One quilt is on the frame and one is in the binding stage. Today is a good day!!