Open for Business!

The ribbon has been cut and the doors are flung open...to my little Etsy shop, Mama Roux. I've already made one sale AND have been featured in another blog, The Student Knitter, by a gal that stumbled upon my shop while "window shopping". Very exciting! Along with my Little Totes I have also listed several fabulous pillow covers. Stop on by and make sure to check back often as I plan to list items as I create them. Currently in the works: handbags, quilts, scarves, dishtowels, pot holders and wall hangings...So much to look forward to!

County Fair Pillow Cover

Ginger Blossom Cottage Pillow Cover

Ruffled Floral Pillow Cover

Good Enough to Eat!

The sweat shop has been in full throttle, pumping out creations for the Mama Roux shop. I've pretty much locked myself in my sewing room and have refused to come out until I feel I have enough items for a respectable Grand Opening this Sunday, Jan. 31. I work well under pressure although I might get a little cranky at times (say it isn't so!)

Small Totes

Luscious colors, what fun I had !

It's true that fabric can make your mouth water!

Check out Sew and Tell Friday for even more delicious Eye Candy!

Inspiration

I love to blog-surf. It's like site seeing from your couch! I can visit other parts of the world and see what people are up to in Portugal, Australia or England. Blog-land is where I get much of my inspiration, beautiful creations of others who share their passions, a little piece of their world. I thought I'd share a few of my favorite images. I hope they tickle your fancy as they did mine!

Flossy Bossy - United Kingdom

Raglan Guld - Australia

Anna Maria Horner -Tennesee

Posie Gets Cozy - Portland

Pesky Cat Designs - New York

Fresh Lemons - Chicago

Trends and Traditions - Minnesota

One Shabby Chick - Hawaii

Saidos da Concha - Portugal

Film in the Fridge - Vermont

Fancy That - Colorado

Just a Few Things...

Well, I made it through the Holidays! Whew! Now I need to get my tokhes in gear and start posting the items I have been making for the Grand Opening of my etsy shop. My target date is January 31.

Here are a few Cool Little Totes I completed recently.

I hope you all like them.

Belated Christmas gift from Big Daddy. Warm and cozy my feet will be!

Added bonus...they match my dog!

Went to the Renegade Craft Fair at Fort Mason, San Francisco.

Saw a lot...

learned a lot...

walked a lot.

A very inspiring event, indeed.

Work in progress, darn it!

I had hoped to have a finished quilt to show off for Sew and Tell Friday but alas, I did not have time for sewing this week, imaging that! I've been too busy laying on the sofa, watching my soaps & eating bon bons. (I wish). This quilt top is almost finished. I just have to add a boarder. THEN I must create the back, make the sandwich, baste the sucker, quilt and bind it...all before Christmas Eve...no PROBLEM!! In the mean time here are a few photos of my ever growing fabric stash for Fabric Friday. Big Daddy (husband) gave me a gift certificate to an online fabric store for my birthday back in November and I have been enjoying my fabric deliveries nearly every week. What a good boy he is. I've trained him well.

Last week I mentioned that I would have some wonderful news to share, and I do! I thought it deserved a separate post of it's own, so just click here: WONDERFUL NEWS...I'm very excited!

Now, I would like nothing better than to relax with a hot bowl of Three Bean Turkey Chili, but my sewing machine is calling me back to work...Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's back to sew I go!

Something Wonderful!

I'm getting very excited! Plans are moving forward at a fast pace. My little shop is now listed on etsy and I will open my virtual doors sometime in January 2010! I had an excellent graphic designer, Jennifer Waddel of corduroystarfish, create my logo and I am ready to unveil the finished product. Wonderful! I have been working like a meshuggeneh sewing, creating, researching, planning, deciding to steer my life in a new direction. Most of you have had a little taste of my creations but there is much more on the back burner, soon to be served. As I have matured I began to look back at where I have allowed myself to settle for things that come easy or by doing jobs that serve others. Even though I have done very well and accomplished much I was not faithful or loyal to my own nature. I now understand that I need to challenge myself to learn more, express more, and become more of who I really am. There is still so much more of me to discover. You see, it is all very clear to me now, the whole thing, it's wonderful!

Busting at the Seams

Lots to do, lots to do! First of all it's Friday so that means Sew and Tell Friday AND Fabric Friday. For these two events I have made a festive, funky pillow! I used Kaffe Fassett Brokade Floral Red and then trimmed it with a ruffle of a funky zebra stripe leftover from the Baboo Quilt. This is the extent of my holiday creations this year as I am already quite busy with the three quilts I have been working on for my kids, not to mention my full time day job, so yeah.... I really liked this Kaffe print as it didn't scream "CHRISTMAS" at ya and the big pink flower is quite different from the usual wreath, snowman or santa.

On another note, one of my recipes is being included in the Quilters Cookbook! Cuban Pork and Sweet Potato Stew has become quite a popular dish and I'm excited to share it with even more hungry folks. The cookbook also features quilts (of course!) so I submitted Big Red. How fun is that? The Quilters Cookbook is a downloadable pdf and would make a great gift for the holidays! Check it out!

Next week I will be sharing some wonderful news that I'm very excited about, so stay tuned...

12/16/09 Addendum: Hop on over to Home Spun Holiday Show & Tell to see some fabulous Holiday creations! Just click here: