Ringing out 2012 with Quilter's World

Back in the fall of 2010, I made "Work more with magazines" a goal/pipedream for EPQD. While one could have interpreted my resolution as "make more cut and paste collages", and had things not gone as they did I certainly could have whipped up a cut up magazine and Mod Podge delight or two to fill the square, I'm thrilled that this has been one goal I've had some fun successes with this year.

I mean really, who can forget my crazed lunacy that quiet Wednesday morning when I found out I had a cover on Quilter's World ("Quite Contrary") and you heard me scream like a banshee even where you were?

Let the record show that 10 months later I'm not at all horrified by my behavior that day, and am happy to reenact it for you at any time.

Quilter's World has truly been a fantastic periodical to work with for my little company, and I've been so fortunate to have apparently become integrated into their little designers circle. Summertime saw my second pattern with them in their August issue ("Contemporary Nine Patch") and I am happy to announce that I'm ending the year having recently received my Feb/March 2013 issue, featuring my "All A-Flutter" Valentine wall hanging on page 88.

This was my first foray into the world of prairie points, and I absolutely loved designing this quilt. The three dimensional-ness of it is just way fun, and I know you'll all be shocked to hear me say this, but what a cool way to USE UP SMALL SCRAPS!  I never anticipated that designing quilts that use up scraps would become a bit of a modus operandi for me, but everyone needs a challenge now and then and I guess I have found my go-to challenge.

A couple of close-ups so you can see the cool fabrics I was playing with out of my box of pink scraps; I do love the look of pink and navy together.

One thing I truly love about Quilter's World is how they like to add related projects to some of their patterns. This was the first pattern they accepted from me that they then asked if I would add to it a smaller, related project involving prairie points, and I was glad to comply but a little freaked at the same time, since I wasn't sure what kind of small project would work - did they want another heart-y, Valentine-y thing? Did they want something totally different? Should I just ask, or would that make me look like an idiot?  I do love what I came up with - a 3" x 5" pincushion in totally different colors and using even smaller prairie points, and STILL made completely with fabrics from my stash.

It's cute even upside down. And true confession - I think I like the bonus project even better than I like the original! Maybe because it's so quick and bright. Just like me, don't you know.

So what are my goals and pipedreams for 2013? In regard to magazines, it's to see if I can get something published on a page that doesn't start with 8-. So far I'm three patterns and an article on page 80+, and while I don't know if that is a big deal or not, it might be fun to end up on page 47 next time to see what that is like. In regard to the rest of EPQD, I just sent in my booth contract for Spring Market in Portland, where I will be an exhibitor for the first time and I am freaked and thrilled over it, and I hope to continue to create cool patterns as they pop into my head and find their way to fabric.

In the near term, I've got a new group project coming up in January, and I certainly hope to run the best, most exciting, and most entertaining UFO-Bustin' event on the entire world wide web in February with "Drop and Give Me Twenty" starting February 1. If you haven't made plans to join in yet, what could you possibly be waiting for? Those UFOs aren't going to sew themselves, you know.

Happy New Year, Hotties! Thank you for a wonderful 2012 and in the humor of my 10 year olds, see you next year!