Thimbleanna

Store

Charm Packs

Hi Boys and Girls!  Just a quick update to let you know that I’ve added two different Charm Packs to the little Thimbleanna.com store.

First is Kate Spain’s new Christmas line JOY.  There are some really cute prints in this collection which you can see HERE.  Wouldn’t they be cute in a Christmas tree quilt like this one from The Purl Bee?  This line won’t be released until June, so this is your chance to get a head start on those Christmas projects.  (Especially helpful for you guys participating in the Christmas Through the Year project hosted by Cheryl and Darlene!)

Charm Pack

Second, is the highly anticipated VINTAGE MODERN line from Bonnie and Camille.  I love this line and there are some really adorable prints in these charm packs.  If you have any of Bonnie and Camille’s older lines, these go perfectly with them — you can see the new prints HERE.  This line won’t be out until May — be the first one on your block to make something from Vintage Modern!

Charm Pack

You can find both of these charm packs HERE in my little store.

And, Ooohhhhh Look!  You’re not seeing a photoshopped photo here.  Those are four FINISHED borders WooHoo!!!  Doing a BIG happy dance here.  I just have to put these borders on a pieced top and I’ll have a finished top from a LONG time UFO.  Hopefully I can git ‘er done this weekend.

Borders

‘Cause the weekend’s almost here! Yipee!!!
XOXO,
Anna

Teddy Has a New Friend

Happy Weekend! Thank you for all the great comments on my market reports — I wish you all could have been there with us. And thanks to those of you who mentioned that you have a thimble similar to mine and love it — I can’t wait to quilt with mine.

Before I tell you about Teddy I just wanted you to see what’s finally arrived for my little store.

Bella Card

That’s the pretty new cover for the “new and improved” Moda Bella Swatch Cards. They’re back in stock at last. They’re new and revamped and I love them so much more than the old ones. The old cards had around 120 swatches, but these new cards have almost 160. They also show information about the Moda Bella precuts. And another feature that I really like is that they indicate which Bella colors are the top 50.

Bella Card

They didn’t tell us what suggested retail for these cards should be. Fat Quarter Shop is selling them for $34.99 which seems a little high to me, so I’ve priced mine at $26.99. You can find them HERE.

I’ve also received some new Divine Twine for the shop — it’s red and green twisted together, just in time for Christmas!  I love it and I can’t wait to use it on Christmas packaging.  If you need some ideas for how to use your twine, Pinterest is full of inspiration.  You can find the Christmas twine HERE.

Divine Twine

Ok, now for Sweet Teddy.  Do you remember Teddy?  He’s all grown up now and he’s adorable.  My youngest little niece is taking a high school photography class and she snapped this picture of Teddy a week or so ago.

Teddy

She calls it “Teddy has a New Friend“. I love it! She agreed to let me put the picture on my blog if I let you know that she’s for hire for all of your picture taking needs.  That girl’s a thinker!

Ok — off to watch a movie with TheManoftheHouse. Enjoy what’s left of your weekend.
XOXO,
Anna

Another Little Purse Thingy

Well, hello there — I hope you’re having a nice weekend! I’ve had a great one so far — I spent the day with my VBFF’s, the Quilty Peeps. Gurney hadn’t been to the Sock Yarn Store yet, so she jetted in to town to check it out. Then we went to a few other yarn shops and one quilt shop. Throw in a fab lunch and it was a perfect day. I do love my peeps — Thanks ladies for a fun time!

I managed a leeeetle bit of sewing this week. As you can see, my little coin purse was getting pretty ragged. I use it all the time and I was afraid it might fray all the way through if I used it much longer.

Purse

So, I made a new one (instructions here). This time I used a black and white fabric, to match my backpack (sitting there in the background). You can’t really tell, but I decided to try a scrap of black vinyl in place of that part that was fraying out. We’ll see if it lasts any better this time.

Purse

Hey — did you notice my sock monkey keys? I had two keys that I constantly mixed up, so when I saw these key covers, I thought I’d try them out. I think they’re really cute!

SockMonkeyKeys

And finally, it was a good mail week here in ThimbleannaLand. The Ruby Charm Packs that I ordered forever-ago finally arrived. (Which meant I could finally ship off the prizes from the guess-the-stove-knob-color contest – Yay!) The official Moda story is that Ruby won’t show up in your local quilt shop until October 11th, but we saw some in our local quilt shop today. And, if you’d like a charm pack or two, I’ve put some of these in my little shop.

RubyCharm

If you buy two or more charm packs, I’ll throw in a pair of those cute polka dotted scissors that I’ve been hoarding. (If you haven’t seen them, they’re pictured on the Ruby order page.)

Now I’m off to curl up with the latest Martha Stewart magazine that arrived earlier this week and was put aside until quiet time. I hope you get some quiet time too!

XOXO,
Anna

The Children are Here!

Look, Looky, LOOK! Sarah Jane’s Children at Play have arrived in ThimbleannaLand and I Luuuuvvvvv them so! They’re adorable and I even passed up a few hours of painting in the kitchen so I could play with them. (Ok, it wasn’t a stretch to give up painting for quilting.) I started by piecing a courthouse steps block — keeping the pink and aqua in separate ladders.

Children at Play

Then I decided to play a little in photoshop and copy the blocks. The plan for a quilt like this would be to use different little motifs in the centers of each block.  (And happily, my piecing skills at the sewing machine are better than in photoshop, but you get the idea.)

Children at Play

I also decided to do a little copy/paste in photoshop and edit the aqua steps out. For a more aqua quilt, I could have edited the pink out. (Sheesh, I think I need EQ7!)

Children at Play

After the courthouse steps block, I decided to piece a few star blocks.  I love star blocks — they’re so versatile and you can do so many things with their centers.

Children at Play

I could easily have spent a few hours playing with different layouts, but I ran out of time.  (That hopscotch print is killing me!  I spent many hours drawing chalk hopscotches on the driveway when I was a little girl — what fun memories.)

Children at Play

As I was putting my fabric away, I noticed that it matches some of my Divine Twine. How Fun!

Children at Play

There’s even twine to match the boy fabrics.  If only I could make those big toe grabber stitches with it.

Children at Play

I can see a TON of possibilities for this fabric. It’s my new Ghastlies and I might be a little obsessed. I couldn’t help it, so I put some of my favorite prints in the Thimbleanna.com shop. I hope you’ll love them as much as I do.

And Wait! There’s More! If you spend more than $50 in the Thimbleanna.com store, I’ll send you a free pair of ginsu knives these cute little polkadot scissors — another of my favorite little finds. (If you have a color preference, make a comment on your order form and I’ll do my best to honor it.)

Children at Play

And while we’re giving away ginsu knives, let’s have a little giveaway. Leave a comment by Monday, August 22 (Happy Birthday to my bigboy FirstChild) to win a quarter yard pack of my favorite boy prints.  In your comment, would you mind telling me which version of the courthouse steps layout you like best?  Aqua or white?

Children at Play

Good Luck!

XOXO,
Anna

A New Year Wraps Up Four

Is anyone still out there?  Boy, it’s sure quiet and I’m as guilty as the next guy. There hasn’t been much computer time here in ThimbleannaLand.  But lots of family time and goofing off, which is very important at this time of year.  I hope you’re all enjoying the holidays too — and having a wonderful time.

In the middle of it all (Christmas, New Year’s, and our anniversary (which is a number that makes me feel really old LOL)) there’s been a blogaversary here.  Four Years!  Gosh it hardly seems possible.  Thank you so much for playing along here with me.  For listening to me ramble on and for leaving all of your wonderful comments.  You guys are the best invisible friends anywhere.  I know other bloggers have said how much their blogs have surprised them and I feel the same way.  It’s been so fun to get to know many of you and to even meet some of you in person.  Each year brings new adventures and I can’t wait to see what will spring up in year five!

So, how ’bout a little giveaway?  A little Vera Bradley — a new passport holder and small make-up bag.  In pink, to match a pretty pink roll of divine twine.  (‘Cause I’ve added pink and airmail to the Thimbleanna Divine Twine corner.)

Giveaway

See?  Pink and Airmail.  (I love that Airmail — it’s red, white and blue wahoo!)  Aren’t they cute?

Giveaway

Oh, that was shameless, wasn’t it???  Thank you, Thank you for supporting my teeny little store.  I almost said “Most of all, thank you…” but it’s not most of all.  Really, I can’t tell you how much fun your comments and e-mails have been.  I can’t say much more without gushing all over us both and then … well… pass the kleenex.

Anyway, back to the giveaway.  No jumping through hoops.  Just leave a comment by, oh, let’s say midnight EST January 7th (Happy Birthday to SweetiePie) and I’ll draw a winner that weekend.

Giveaway

And Best Wishes for a VERY Happy and Safe New Year to all of you!
XOXO,
Anna

P.S.  If my comments happen to randomly shut off — which they do on a regular basis {grumble}{grumble} — just hang in there.  I’ll fix it as soon as I see it!