Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Guild Show and Tell and Kantha Quilts

Hi there!

How is your week so far? Are you working on anything fun? I'm finishing up my "Love Grows." I just have to write the pattern. It takes me anywhere from 7 to 10 hours to write it, which doesn't include editing the photos. I must say, it is my least favorite part of being a designer. I will have the pattern and kits available next Wednesday.

Last Tuesday was my local guild meeting. Here's what the girls brought for show and tell.

The library display was lovely with all the flower themed quilts. This one is Gerri's. 


I'm not sure who made this one, but I love it!

This one is gorgeous too. I'm thinking maybe Mary made this one and the one above. Isn't the sparkle pretty?

Here is my buddy Renee with hers.

Our favorite Marine, Holly, made this beauty.

Lori made this pretty piece and we all thought she was super cool because it matched her outfit. Lori is so much fun.

Loleta told us how much fun she had "thread painting" her piece. I love the dimensional flower too.

Linda showed her cute tulips with embroidered bees. Check out her vest.

Next, Faye showed us this beautiful basket quilt. She's hiding behind it as she doesn't like to have her picture made.

My dear friend, Peggy, showed us her donation quilt for the kiddo's.

Then she shared her finished quilt for her grandie-daughter. Isn't it just drop dead gorgeous? I decorated an entire room in my mind with this beauty.

Then Peggy shared this cool piece she found at Holly's shop. It's a vase made from an old bed spring! Genius.

This is Mary (I think) she is new to our guild. She explained how she likes to take patterns and mix things together to create her own design. We all were oohing and ahhing over this piece. Gorgeous colors. So glad to have you with us Mary!

Sandy showed us her adorable little Easter bunny.

You know I had to get another photo of him. I love the little chick clips at the top. Too sweet!


As always, a great time was had by all. My guild girlfriends are the best.

Next, I wanted to share this article I read on Houzz the other day. I have always admired Kantha quilts. Probably because I like the look of hand stitching so much. I hope you enjoy the article (I have permission to post it here). 

So what do you think of Kantha style quilts? Have you ever made one?

Hope you have a great weekend. The bunnies will see you here next Wednesday with a little visit from one of our bunny friends.

Light, love and hugs to you,
Michelle, the Bunnies and Sabrina kitty too!

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Once a Week on Wednesday - New Beginnings

Well, did you think I got lost or ran away to Wilmington? hee,hee,hee. Truth is, I just needed a break to regroup, gather my thoughts and ponder some things about the future. I have so many irons in the fire right now and it gets a little overwhelming sometimes. There also comes a point when one has to just take a step back and look at what is working and not working in her life and get ready for a new adventure.

(My home the other evening. It's on the market now if you know anybunny moving to New Bern, NC.)

That being said, I realized blogging is one of those things that needed to change. I have been blogging since 2007 and while I enjoy sharing my life with you here, I find more people now connect with me on Facebook and Instagram. It's easy for me to share a quick photo of what I'm working on or what Sabrina and the bunnies are up to. Plus, everyone is so busy and most don't have the time to write comments anymore. If you want, you can "Like" my Facebook page and follow along with me there.


However, I still enjoy the intimate friendships I have here and basically the diary of my life being captured. So, I have decided to blog just once a week on Wednesdays. My posts will be about new Folk Art Fusion designs, what the bunnies and Sabrina are doing, my move and new adventures in Wilmington and whatever else I find fascinating in the world that I want to share with you. Bliss will be my guide.


 (Do cats always want to sit on the clean laundry when you are folding it?)


Another thing I have taken the time to ponder is the direction of my business. Next month will be three years since I took the hop of faith and started this journey. I have learned a whole lot along the way with only myself to rely on. Which sometimes means learning things the hard way. All in all things are really wonderful and I'm grateful I have learned from my mistakes and am stronger for them.



While working on this this new Folk Art Fusion piece - "Love Grows," I was reminded of the path I started in my book, Fabled Fusions. Somehow I got sidetracked and sucked into stitchery projects and a few other things again. How did I allow that to happen? I guess it always boils down to worrying about money and letting others influence my decisions.

So, this brings me to the "Blessings of the Month" and the complete kits. I started the year off thinking I would do six of them, but frankly, I'm uninspired and burned out to complete the last two. I've decided to just move on from here and get back to what I love best, which is my Folk Art Fusion and teaching. "Love Grows"  will be a new class, a kit and a pdf pattern. I should have it ready sometime next week. The kits will contain the National Nonwovens wool felt, the thread, needle, background fabric and fusible. You will supply the other fabrics. Also, I will not be including paper patterns anymore. A PDF pattern will be emailed to you upon purchase of a kit. Of course you can also buy the PDF pattern alone from my Craftsy shop. I know some of you are probably pouting about the PDF pattern instead of the paper, but bottom line, I can no longer afford to continue losing money and printing those patterns is ridiculously expensive. Not to mention the amount of space it takes to store all that paper and the problems I continually have getting them printed. It's just not worth it.  It's all about focusing and simplifying my life. Sometimes we just have to take care of ourselves first. 

Thank you if you have stayed with me through this long post and thank you if you have been following me all these years. What a journey we have had together and what fun adventures we have to come. I'll see you next Wednesday.


Light, Love and Hugs,
Michelle and the fuzzy ones

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Slow, Exquisite, Stitching

It simply takes my breath away. I have shared the incredible work of Michele Carragher before.


She is an embroidery artist extraordinaire and costume designer for the HBO series, Game of Thrones.


Her work encompasses a large variety of hand stitching, beading and embroidery.

Below is her new You Tube video showing some of the latest designs. 



What did you think? Inspired? I will admit, I made me want to slow down and stitch something incredible and breathtaking. Sometimes, I just don't want to be in a hurry to get something finished.


If you hop over to Michele's Website, she will show you how she makes the dragon scale she created on this dress. You can even drag the photos to download the instructions.

There are also several other new galleries and beautiful things to see. We hope you enjoy the adventure into her extraordinary creative world. We sure did.  

Light, love and hugs to you,
Michelle, the Bunnies and Sabrina kitty too!

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

My heart is so happy!

Hi ya! Did you have a great Easter? Did you get a basket filled with goodies? I had to laugh because I was chatting with the cashier at the grocery store on Friday. He said he was hoping his parents would buy him a chocolate bunny. He said he knew he wasn't a kid anymore, but he really likes chocolate bunnies. Made me laugh and I was glad that he liked chocolate bunnies instead of getting a real ones.

Well, today I want to share two things that have made my heart so happy!


First, is what my customer/friend, Linda Jestes created with my Postal Fusions- Folk Art Valentines pattern. Instead of making individual postcards, she made a collage. I love it!!! The rick rack looks so cute and I think the center heart is an adorable touch. I tell ya, it makes me so happy and excited when my designs inspire you to play and have fun. Thank you Linda for sharing this with me!


You can purchase the pattern in my Craftsy Shop if you would like to play too. In fact, I would love to see photos of any of my designs you create and feature you on my blog. So send me an email! 

Next, I have been doing the Happy Bunny Dance since Friday! You know how much I love Wilmington, NC right? Well, David applied for a new job (still with the government) that would not only be a promotion, but would be closer to Wilmington. Well, HE GOT IT!!!!



So, needless to say, we will be moving from New Bern to Wilmington! We are getting our house ready to go on the market. If you know of anybunny who wants a cute house, in a great neighborhood, with the best neighbors ever, send me an email.

Well, have a good day and we'll see you back here on Thursday.

Light, love and hugs to you,
Michelle, the Bunnies and Sabrina kitty too!

Friday, April 3, 2015

Living with Easter Bunnies - Our annual post

Hoppy Friday! Well we know this is the big Easter weekend. We hope your day is sunny, warm and lots of fun.
 

The bunnies and I decided to repost our story, "Living with Easter Bunnies."  An important story is worth repeating.

Hellooooooooooooooo there! Hoppy Friday to you! Hannah here.

Seeing as Easter is Sunday, Harrington and I wanted to give you a very special peeky into our world and what it means to live with Easter bunnies. Yes, both of us are Easter bunnies. We'll share more on that a little later. First, let's get started with some facts about living with bunnies.


Undeniably, we are adorable, soft, fuzzy, gentle, fragile and loving. You simply can't help yourself. You must fall in love with us. We're bunnies. It happens.


Second, we are very quiet. We don't make much noise at all. We will stomp our back feet if we are upset. You know, just like Thumper in Bambi. Pretty much, we sleep during the day. We are most active at dusk and dawn. This is when we jump and play and run around like little maniacs as Mama always says.


Like cats, we can be litter box trained. Pretty much we will go there on our own. Just add some Carefresh litter to the bottom and a little Timothy Hay on top. We'll hop right in!

 Please don't use that icky pine shaving stuff. It makes our kidneys stop and causes major allergy issues. It's like you sitting in a bucket of Lysol. Yuck. Plus, if you are a gardener, carefresh litter is made from recycled paper. You can empty our litter box into your compost pile for the perfect, natural, fertilizer. Our neighbors across the street are very happy to have it for their gardens.


**Doot Disclaimer: Please note that every effort is made to keep "doots" inside the litter box. However; occassionally through no fault of our own, these "doots" hop out of the box onto the floor. They are easily scooped up with dust pan and broom and returned to their proper place in the litter box.


Speaking of hay, it is the most important part of our diet. Timothy hay is what adult bunnies need. We have hay in our litter boxes as well as a big, full basket.


We have to mention the wonderful folks at Small Pet Select. Mama now buys all our timothy hay and pellets from them. We like the second cutting the best. Everything is fresh and tasty and delivered right to our door. 







 We need the hay for our digestive systems.


Like Sabrina kitty, we hate to be dirty and we don't need to be bathed. We groom ourselves and each other all day long.



Unlike cats, we can't cough up a hairball. Bunnies can't vomit. So, in order to get the hair out of our system, we must have the fiber in the hay so we can poop out the hair.


We also need fresh greens. Our favorite is the 5 lettuce blend. We get a giant salad plate of this every morning. Not all greens are good for us though. Spinach in large quantities can be toxic. Also, some bunnies can't tolerate the greens. Like humans, everybunny is different.


We also get 1/4 cup of Timothy based pellets. These are quite yummy and we wish Mama would let us have more, but we know we'll be fat little bunnies if we do.










Like most humans, bunnies have a sweet tooth. We will eat tons and tons of bad things if you let us. Mama doesn't eat junk food and she doesn't let us have it either. The above Fiesta mix is naughty.
Eating any kind of pellets with seeds, nuts and other items is the same as a human eating fast food every single day. Don't do it. Stick to simple Timothy hay based pellets. Be healthy!


We are allowed to have one snack per day. Baby carrots are a good snack. We could each have one half of one. Some of our bunny friends like a dried cranberry. However, we looooooooooove banana chips! Love them!

We get one chip, not package, but one individual chip per day. All natural and healthy.
Outside of that, we have plenty of fresh water. We prefer to drink from a dish rather than a bottle.

Bunnies are natural chewers and diggers. Like children, we also get bored very easily and need things to change around. The boxes that our hay is shipped in can be turned into fun new condos.


We enjoy redecorating them and adding more windows and doors.

For a long time we were allowed to run free in the Bunnyville studio. That is until we started chewing everything that stood still.

I was particularly thrilled with the taste of baseboard moulding.

Harrington enjoyed the flavor of furniture.

Mama...well let's just say she had a major fit and decided we needed to go to the penitentiary. Now Mama isn't one to shove pets out in the yard and forget about them. She loves all God's creatures and believes if you're going to have anything in this world, you should take care of it properly. Plus, bunnies are very social animals and enjoy the company of each other and humans. Nobunny wants to be lonely.


That being said, she got us a playpen system. However; since we are also her employee's, we told her we wanted a large corner office in Bunnyville. Mama also believes in taking good care of her employees. She got us three playpens and a really nice rug so we wouldn't slip around. The rug is made from sisal, so it is ok if we chew it. Jute rugs are also good. Bunnies tend to eat regular carpets and those fibers won't pass through our digestive tracks. This causes blockage, which then causes death.

We come out daily to run around and play, but she's always keeping an eye on us so we don't chew things up.


Hannah, that's not a good hiding spot. I'm pretty sure Mama can still see you.

Unlike dogs and cats, we don't have to have yearly shots and checkups.   This is a good thing as regular vets cannot treat us. We are considered "exotic" pets. Mama drives 2 1/2 hours one way if we need a doctor. We have also been spayed and neutured by these special vets. It keeps us healthy and keeps lots of bunnies from appearing. ;) These special vets are very expensive. Mama has had lots of bunnies over the years. Her cheapest vet bill was $450. Her most expensive was $3,500.

**Note** Our bunny friend, Wendy, of  The Crafters Apprentice, in the UK informed us that bunnies in her country need shots 3 times per year to prevent various diseases that affect bunnies there. Please check with the vets in your country to see what is required. You can also hop over and visit Wendy for further information.

Also, I now have an incurable disease called Pasteurella. It's like I have a chronic sinus infection. Mama has had to give me antibiotics.  I hate it and Mama is sad giving it to me. It's also very expensive. It costs Mama almost $200.00 for each round of antibiotics. However, since I have been on them for almost 3 years, my body is resistant to them. Mama's not sure what to do next. She gives me echinacea and dandelion leaves and uses a vaporizer to add moisture to the air in the dry winter. She also says "Thank you God" a lot for watching over me.
 
Bunnies teeth grow like fingernails. Yep, they grow! Most of the time we wear the teeth down with chewing on hay and eating. But sometimes, they have to be shaved down by a bunny savy vet. Our cousin, Mickey has to have this done almost every month.


Glad we don't have to go to the vet. Getting our toenails trimmed by Mama is bad enough.

Unlike our "Wild Hare" friends, domestic bunnies can live up to 10 years. Some of our bunny friends have lived beyond that. Domestic bunnies like us cannot survive in the wild. We don't know what to do and our digestive systems are different. Likewise, while it might be possible, it is very rare for a wild bunny to survive as a house bunny.  If a bunny becomes very scared, it can give itself a heart attack.

So, there you have some basic facts about what it's like to live with Easter bunnies. Oh yes, now onto the Easter bunny part.


Harrington and I were both purchased from a pet store as Easter presents for children. While we were loved and got lots of attention when we were babies, for some reason, as we got older the children no longer wanted us and the parents were too tired from everything else in their lives to take care of us.

Maybe it was because I got to be a big bunny and I shed. (Mama say's I'm her official dust bunny.)

Maybe it was because Harrington has a wonky ear.

Luckily, we were given to a lady who runs a rabbit rescue. If we would have been turned loose into the wild, we would have died. Again, we are domestic bunnies and we don't know how to camp.


What's even more lucky for us is Mama. All the bunnies she has had came from rescues. She never knows what she's going to get or how long we will be around or what kind of health issue we may have. All she knows is she let's her heart guide her. Mama has loved bunnies since she was six years old. Mama has friends all over the country who rescue bunnies and work in rabbit rescues. One of her most wonderful friends is our Auntie Christina. Auntie Christina is really an angel in disguise.

Mama doesn't care that we are messy and have parties and throw hay and paper all over the place, or that she has to vacuum three times a week to get our fur up from the floor.


All she says every single day is that she is truly blessed to have us. We bring her joy, we bring her love, we bring her inspiration. We are precious little creatures that hopped into her life. The best part of her day is seeing our faces in the morning, watching us dance around for treats,

 seeing us flop on the floor in crazy positions and watching us sleep.

So, now that you know some facts about what it's like to live with Easter bunnies, we would like you to consider this.


When choosing the bunny for your basket this year, if you decide to make it a real bunny instead of a chocolate or toy bunny, would you please consider visiting a rescue and adopting a bunny from Easters past? There are lots and lots of us out there just waiting for you to find us and love us and share your life with us.


In return, we will melt your heart.

Thank you and we love you. Happy Easter.

xx,
Harrington and Hannah, the Easter Bunnies

Lady Hannah Goldenhare - Nothing Gold Can Stay

Hello dear friends, It's been a minute hasn't it? My last post was over a year ago. I decided I wanted to stay in my bubble where it...