modkid dolls

I got those dolls made out of the modkid panel yesterday.  They're pretty cute.  I think they'd make great dolls for a little girl.  They're easy to make, colorful, probably pretty durable (though I haven't really tested that), machine washable, affordable (a panel is about $6, and you get three dolls per panel), and you don't have to worry about messing up their hair :)

Baskets, Dolls, and Stockings :)

My goodness, we just keep getting new things in.  It's like Christmas every day here :)

Today we got a few new fabrics from Michael Miller.  They're designed by the modkid people (the ones who designed the doll patterns I talked about earlier).  I am really thoroughly impressed with their products.  We got a panel with three different dolls on it that you can cut out, sew together, and stuff.  I am just so impressed by that panel.  I just cut it, and it is one of the best panels I have ever cut.  The first and last panels on the bolt were cut right on the line, so we didn't wind up with half of a panel or something, and the panels were perfectly lined up with each other on each side of the fold, so I could actually cut them apart with a rotary cutter!  If you've ever cut panels off of a bolt, you know they're notorious for not lining up, so you have to cut them with scissors, and the first or last panels are sometimes incomplete.  I just can't get over how great this panel is!  I couldn't take a picture of the whole thing without standing on a chair, so I just took a picture of each doll.

In this last picture, you can see the instructions for making the dolls.  Just like the clothing patterns, they're incredibly well written.

At Quilt Market, we saw these dolls dressed up and incorporated into a quilt top.  It was really cute.  We did get two bolts that coordinate with the panel.  I get to play with the panel and make some samples :)  Tomorrow's my day off, so I'm going to make some dolls, make my dirndl block, and modify another modkids pattern to make a dirndl for my American Girl doll (everyone at the store needs to have an Alpenfest outfit, so I think that includes her).

Moving on to the baskets and stockings I mentioned (actually, there's only one basket), Jan Bonarski brought in some adorable Texture Magic samples made out of some of our Christmas fabrics.  Didn't she do a great job?

I Spy

Diane and I got to pick out fabrics for an I Spy kit!  It was so much fun!  We must have pulled at least 70 bolts out.  We truly made this an I Spy quilt.  Diane got to make the sample, but I got to keep all the scraps :)

Doll Clothes and Fabrics and Ornaments with Strings...

I made a few samples of doll clothes, Mom made a sample of a Nancy Halverson advent calendar, and we just got new fabrics in!

The doll clothes are samples of a modkids pattern we have (we have a few other doll patterns from them, too).  It was probably the best pattern I have ever worked with.  The directions were crystal clear, and it only took about 2-3 hours to make each dress.  It was so much fun!  We got out my old American girl doll and Mom's old doll, and they're modeling at the store now.

Here's the advent calendar.  It has a set of buttons and beads that goes with it, and they give you a ton of buttons!  I think it's pretty cute :)

These are the new fabrics:

This is a line called "Oxygen".  I just absolutely love it!

These are some gorgeous new batiks:

New Stuff!

We have lots of fun, new stuff in!

We just got these today!  They are absolutely gorgeous seam rippers!  If you have to rip out a seam, you might as well do it in style. :)  The couple who makes and sells these stopped by today on their way to Wisconsin.

More baskets came in!  That blue, green, and tan one on the bottom left is a size extra-large.  It may not look too big in the picture, but I think it's huge!  You could fit a good-size quilt in it, or couple of kids, or a few puppies, or can you imagine it full of kittens?!

This just came in, and we have a few of the coordinates as well :)

This is a line called Oceana that just came in.

Just for fun, here's a picture of one of the flowers Mom got at the farmer's market:

Hand Dyed and Hand Marbled Fabrics!

No, we're not selling these, but we're offering classes this summer on dyeing and marbling!  (Dyeing classes: Saturday, July 24th; Marbling Class: Thursday, August 12th, 10am - 1:30pm) It's so addicting!  I thought I would just post some pictures of the things we've done over the years.

Here are some of the fabrics we've marbled.  I was pulling these out and going, "No, we didn't really make these, did we?  These are amazing!"

This is a wallhanging Mom made out of our marbles.  It's one of my favorites :)

She also used some marbles to make a log cabin heart:

Here's a quilt Mom made out of some of our hand-dyed fabrics:

...and here's the back of the quilt:

For a full class listing: delphinesquiltshop.com/classes.htm

Sale Fat Quarter Special!

We've been going through the shop and weeding out all of the fat quarters of fabrics that we no longer have on the bolt.  They've all been tossed into the sale fat quarter bin/tree/tower, and it's nearly overflowing now!  For the next two weeks (ending June 19), when you buy 12 or more sale fat quarters, they will be $1.25 each, instead of the usual $1.50 each (batiks will be $1.50, instead of $1.75).

Fun and Easy Projects

I just finished a couple of samples for the store.  They were so quick and easy!  They look great too.

We have a pattern for making roses out of Jelly Rolls, so I made a sample.  I didn't use a Jelly Roll; I just cut a few strips from some batiks.  These took almost no time to make, and I think they're really pretty.

I also made a sample for the "It's a Wrap" book by Susan Breier that teaches you how to make plates, baskets, bowls, and purses out of fabric-wrapped clothesline.  It's really surprisingly easy and fast.