i heart linen

The Artful Bird

So it looks like Spring is finally here in my neck of the woods. Yay! Perfect timing for the release of Abigail Glassenberg's new book The Artful Bird - Feathered Friends to Make and Sew published by Interweave Press!  Birds, birds, everywhere!  

I've been a follower of Abby's blog While She Naps for many years and I've always been fascinated by the work that she does.  Like many of us, Abby is a stay-at-home creative mommy who has managed to make a crafty career for herself doing what she loves! An extremely, extremely talented lady, her birds are simply AMAZING and I've always wondered to myself, "How the heck does she do that?".  

Well now we all can learn to make the lovelies that she creates in her new book!  There is quite a variety of birds to be made from a sweet baby chick to a lark, hens, crows, flamingos.  I know she hasn't covered every species of bird, but with this book you can certainly take what you've learned and create just about any type of bird you'd like! 

Well written and with a tone similiar to that of her lovely blog, Abigail covers everything and I mean EVERYTHING you need to know to make a fascinating and beautiful flock of your own.  I especially love the watercolor illustrations that accompany the project instructions.  Nicely done!

I've already chosen a few that I think I definitely need make to embellish our household.

A few of my favorite projects, If you please.........

 

This book thrills me to bits!  A definite must-have for your crafty library my dears. Thank you Abby for such a wonderful work of art and for inviting me to play along on your tour!

What's you favorite bird and why? Scared of birds? Do you even like birds? Have a funny bird story? Leave a comment here with anything bird related for a chance to win a copy of this lovely book! I'll choose a winner next week!

See more of Abby's work here:

Blog

Flickr

Etsy

...........and follow the rest of the tour to learn more about Abby and her stunning work! 

2/15                       Swallowfield

2/16                       Checkout Girl Crafts

2/17                       mummysam

2/18                       little love blue

2/19(today!)            i heart linen

2/21                       ClothPaperScissors.com

2/22                       elsie marley

2/23                       Birds O' the Morning

2/24                       Shiso Mama

2/25                       Craftsanity podcast

2/26                       Geninne's Art Blog

3/1                         One Red Robin

3/2                         WhipUp

3/3                         New York City Public Libray blog

3/5                         Mimi Kirchner

 

And the winner is............

Kitty says the winner of a copy of Bari J.'s Inspired to Sew is...........

Commenter #35

P H Y L L I S !!  

Yay!  Congratualtions Phyllis! 

And thank you to everyone for your comments!

Be sure to stop by the Stash Books blog for the end of the tour and another super awesome giveaway!

Why I'm always....Inspired to Sew!

I'm beyond excited to be stop number four on Bari J.'s blog tour for her new book, Inspired to Sew published by Stash Books!   I was so excited when Bari asked me to partcipate, because she's an artist that I have long admired and I totally want to be like her when I grow up! ^_^

For the tour, Bari has asked the lucky group of bloggers to share what inspires us to sew.  It didn't take me long to come up with an answer, as I'm inspired by oh so many things! There are just a few things that I just couldn't get out of my head as I went down the list. 

One of the first reason would be my Grandpa.  I found it quite ironic that Bari dedicated her book to her dear Grandfather, because I've dedicated a recent project of mine to my Grandfather as well.  He was my absolute everything and meant the world to me!  If it weren't for him, I don't think I would have continued to sew as much as I have.  Gosh....I'm even getting a little choked up while I write this.

He was a tailor back in the Caribbean.  He used to make his own clothes and would fashion them after Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.  He said he would go the the movies to see what they were wearing.  I remember that I would show him things that I made and he would inspect every single stitch and seam making sure that it was up to his standards.  He liked to see all of my sewing 'perfect' and would make me get the seam ripper if something didn't look right to him.  I'd secretly be really upset and I'm sure I grumbled to myself every now and then, but I'm grateful for his instruction as he has inspired me more than you know.  I wish he were here to see all of the things that I've been up to lately. I know he'd say something funny like, "Why are you sewing with all those old kitchen towels?!". Kitchen towels meaning linen! :P 

The other reason I'm inspired to sew is my children.  I know that may sound a little cliche, but it goes much deeper for me than just 'I sew for my children'.  I had a hard time growing up deciding what I wanted to do with myself after high school.  Fashion Design? Nah.  Fashion Illustration?  Nah. Graphic Design? Nah. Human Resources? Heck Nah!  ^_^

I've been so blessed to be able to do what I do now and I love for my children to see that the world is one's oyster!  I never thought it was possible to have a career doing what I love and I want my children to know that.  God has given us each a special talent and when we figure out what it is, it's our job to take that talent and do good with it, share it with the world, and inspire others in some way.  I love knowing that my children will learn that they don't have to make a career sitting behind someone's desk pushing papers all day.  Whether their talent be art, music, sports, writing.......embrace it, love it, enjoy it, and inspire others to do the same.  That's why I'm inspired to sew. ^_^

We're all so lucky that Bari has chosen to share her talent and love of sewing with us through her new book.  The images, projects are all so beautiful and amazing with a burst of color at every page turn!  As you can see I've shared a few of my most favorite projects from the book.  Leave a comment here (and even share what inspires you to sew if you like! ^_^) for a chance to win a copy of Bari's new book, Inspired to Sew!  

Be sure to follow the rest of the tour as well!

January 31
Mary Abreu:  Confessions of a Craft Addict

February 1
Jennifer Paganelli:  Sis Boom!

February 2
Jona Giammalava:  Stop Staring and Start Sewing

February 3
Rashida Coleman Hale:  I Heart Linen

February 4
Sarah Fielke:  The Last Piece

February 5
Jenny Doh:  Crescendoh

February 6
Cara Wilson:  Cara Quilts

February 7
Deborah Moebes:  Whipstitch Fabrics

February 8
Monica Solorio-Snow:  The Happy Zombie

February 9
Susanne Woods: Stash Books (giving away a stack of Bari’s Full Bloom fabric!)

 

Don't forget......

... to check out my new tutorial and to comment at Danielle Thompson's blog for a chance to win some of Melody Miller's RUBY STAR RISING fabric! ^_^