The Katydid Dress by ImagineGnats

Gratuitous kid picture time:   It’s been a while since I posted any pictures of the kiddos and Erica has grown so much! I know that’s what kids do, but seriously, enough is enough. She is so full of joy and whining and adventurousness and “No’s”, we can barely keep up. Last night I whipped up this cute little dress – the Katydid from Imagine Gnats.  When I say whipped, I mean WHIPPED.  This dress … Continue reading

It’s been a while OR, what I did in my year-long hiatus from blogging

baby laying on a color quilt

It’s been quite a year in Alyson-land.  I mean, I worked, I played, I made some quilts, oh and I had a baby. The heck you say? Yes, yes, I know.  Most of you already know.  But I did kind of leave the blog hanging and I thought i would catch you up, just in case.  So here she is, Erica Beth. Born January 31, 2014 at 7:22am. I couldn’t have been more surprised when … Continue reading

Birthday Bag & Matching iPad Cover

A few weeks ago I attended a special birthday party for a friend of mine.  As adults, we don’t get parties and special gifts as much as we did when we were kids, and I always think that’s sad.  Enter: The Birthday Bag. I bought this pattern several years ago in A.C.Moore – it is actually called the Serendipity Bag.  It’s meant to be used with a jelly roll and at the time, I had … Continue reading

Fabric Delivery!

I got home today and found a large box waiting for me. Yes, my fabric order from the weekend had arrived!  I needed some batting & backing pieces for all the quilts that I put together recently.  I also needed some neutral cotton solids to replace the ones that I used up! But…nestled in between the necessary, albeit awesome, yardage was a perfect little pile of FQs called Mod by Annette Tatum. I know, I … Continue reading

Like Father, Like Son

I wanted to make a tie for Caleb for the wedding and then I thought to myself, why not make one for Bill as well? I’ve had this nifty Alexander Henry dragon print lying around for ages, and I thought it would make a nice tie. I like the scalloped design in the background. I already reviewed the Burda Osman Tie pattern I used for Bill’s tie in my post Holiday Gifts: Necktie.  I went … Continue reading

Holiday Gifts: Necktie

Pirate ship Necktie Originally uploaded by alyson_olander Strictly speaking, this was not a holiday gift.  My dad’s birthday falls just a few days prior to Christmas and, because I understand how much it must suck to get a load of Christmas ‘n’ birthday combined gifts each year, I make a concerted effort to give him one gift for each. This year’s birthday gift was a pirate ship necktie. Now, be honest, a necktie is kind of … Continue reading

Holiday gifts: Jewelry Tote

Jewelry Pouches Originally uploaded by alyson_olander Welcome to the first in my series of holiday gift posts! I handed these cute little pouches out last night to our daycare providers during their holiday party.  I wish I could take credit for the design, but I can’t – they came from Quilting Arts Magazine special Gifts issue (2009/2010).  The pattern was designed by Margarete Steinhauer and appears on page 132 of the mag (almost all the way … Continue reading

Yesterday there was S.E.X.

Minds out of the gutter, please. We’re talking “Stash Enhancement eXpedition”, thankyouverymuch. A close friend of mine found an local interior decorator who was moving offices/going out of business/changing things up (we’re not quite clear exactly what the situation is) and was invited to take a look at the stuff that the interior decorator was getting rid of. She was astonished to find that “stuff” included ROOMS full of fabric: samples, yardage, upholstery, silk, cottons… My friend kindly invited … Continue reading

Artomatic 2009 is coming…

Adam and Alyson Painting a Wall Originally uploaded by Ninth Raven I’ve been keeping myself quite busy for the past few weeks with preparations for Artomatic, and now the show is finally upon us!  Walls have been painted, lettering has been added, postcards printed, paint touched-up and, most importantly, art has been made and HUNG!  Even though I completed my installation on Sunday, there is still a nagging voice in my head saying “What on Earth … Continue reading

Busy, busy, busy

All washed up Originally uploaded by alyson_olander It’s been a while since I posted. I’m so out of practice. I worked on this piece today. I know you can’t see much of it here, but it will be in Artomatic between May 29th-July 5th, so iffin you want to see it, you should come for a visit. Or, I will probably post a full pic when it’s done, so you could take that route as … Continue reading