inspired by dresdens.

'nuff said.

i wish i was cool enough to make dresdens.
i really want some dresden pillows. and a quilt.
*big dreamy sigh*

to see all the resources to individual pillows, click the pic.
it'll shoot you over to flickr for the links.

♥ rachel

quilt album blog hop.

{comments closed.}
winner = sandi

welcome to the quilt album blog hop :)

our lovely hostess for this blog tour is none other than miss pat sloan.
yall know how i love pat sloan. {hi pat. xoxo.}

our sponsor for this blog hop is quilt album.
don't know who quilt album is?!?!
well i'll tell you what i know.

quilt album = a electronic quilty scrapbook.
using this software you can upload pics of your project{s}.
you record all the little details that might slip your mind later.
& you can even go a step further and make business cards and note cards.
{they even have a newsletter so you can stay up to date with all things quilt album-ish.}

it's quite the program if you're looking to catalog your creative process.
:)

since every blog hop needs fun questions:

what one item do you really want to add to your studio and why?!?!
this excelsior sewing machine poster.
in case you're new here, i'd addicted to the tv show friends.
this poster belonged to rachel green and it hung in her apartment for years.
me needs it.


what color would you paint your living room if you had to do it right now?!?!
we are currently, slowly i might add, repainting every room in our house.
the livingroom is next and it's destined to be gray/grey.
a good grey, not a depressing grey.


share a little known fact about yourself...
every spring i buy an insane amount of old navy flip flops.
i say insane because it drives my hubby crazy.
if you ask me...you could never own too many old navy flip flops.


what is the last piece of fabric you bought?!?!
it was these max & whiskers lovelies.
i can't wait to play with them.
i will one day. in my spare time. ha.


what is your favorite candy to find in your easter basket?!?!
i love me some peeps. frozen peeps to be more exact.
pure deliciousness.

no blog hop is complete without a giveaway!!!
one lucky ps i quilt reader will win their very own quilt album software.
just leave me a comment telling me what color you'd paint YOUR livingroom.
{winner will be drawn april 6th.}

and don't forget to visit all the peeps on our blog tour:
{they'll also be having giveaways!!!}

march 29th
rachel griffith - ps i quilt
benita skinner - victoriana quilt designs

march 30th
linda lum debono - dzyning things
vanessa christenson - v & co.

march 31st
geta grama - geta's quilt studio
michele foster - quilting gallery

april 1st
john adams - quilt dad
pat sloan

so happy hopping!!!

♥ rachel

playdate.

what today isn't about:
meeting a deadline

what today is about:
having a playdate with these lovelies

fabric = sweet pickins by darlene zimmerman for robert kaufman

♥ rachel

respect.

r e s p e c t.

i love yall.
yall know that.

i wouldn't blog if i didn't enjoy it.
i wouldn't blog if it didn't help, inspire or teach people.
really.

so why did i start a blog post like this?!?!

well i have google alerts set for me & this here blog.
you know...just in case.

99.9% of the time i get a notice & it's cool.
susy whatsherface at blahblahzee blog made my sruffily quilt.
so i comment and then the blogging world is a happy place.

today was different.

that little alert popped into my email and WHAM!
someone decided it would be cool to copy & paste my whole blog post into a forum.
not a good idea folks.

i work really hard on this blog.
it may not seem like it, but trust me that i put alot of time & effort into ps i quilt.

i do "get" that so & so was just trying to open the ripping vs cutting convo on a message board.
i can respect that.
it is a very interesting conversation.
but use your own words, please.

so i write this special post to say this...
RESPECT what bloggers put out there.
RESPECT their time & effort.
RESPECT copyrights.
& RESPECT the person behind the blog.

that is all.

edit to add:
i've had a few questions about google alerts...
basically you type in your blog name, your company name, etc.
and ANY TIME your name {or whatever you set the alert to} is put on the internet, you get emailed about it.
you can choose if you want to be notified per instance, once a day, once a week, etc.
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT FOLKS.

♥ rachel

to rip or not to rip???

so let's talk ripping vs cutting.

while i was in san antonio i talked with the owner of sew special quilts about this very subject.
fyi: they rip, but they will cut if asked.
while talking with her i thought...i wonder how everyone else feels about this.

i have seen it done both ways.
i have heard the positives & negatives to both sides.
i've heard the "that's how shops did it in the ol' days" rebutle.
i've even seen shops lose business because of the "cutting is against shop policy" line.

so i wanted to talk to a few of my fav quilt shops. {one brick & mortar. one online.}
i wanted to get views from both sides.
it just so happens that they're the opposite of each other in the ripping/cutting department.
which made my research go quicker. lol.

my fav online shop = fat quarter shop
they cut.
they cut so many layers & orders that it would take forever to live up to their SUPER fast shipping if they had to rip orders all day.
and on top of that when you rip, it damages about 1/2" on either side of your fabric by stretching & pulling.
they agree that ripping is good for straight of grain, but they'll stay cutters.

my fav brick & mortar = people, places & quilts - summerville, south carolina
they rip.
it's important to them that you have a straight of grain piece rather than pretty edges.
they recommend washing & pressing your fabrics to even out the distortion from ripping.
although they are firm believers in ripping, they will cut if asked.

so let's have an open debate...
to rip or not to rip???

are yall for or against ripping???
inquiring minds want to know.
if you're a quilt shop...i highly encourage you to jump in and give your two cents.

& because i know someone is gonna ask...
fabric = bliss by bonnie & camille for moda

♥ rachel

sherbet pips.

i've been busy playing with this stack o' fabric.
it's fansmashtastic.
:D

more soon.
promise.

fabric = sherbet pips by aneela hoey for moda

♥ rachel

for japan with love.

learn more here.

♥ rachel

sponsor giveaway: fat quarter shop

{comments closed.}
so the folks at fat quarter shop are SO cool that i get to announce FIVE winners!!!

winner 1 = rachel
winner 2 = ktquilts
winner 3 = audreypawdrey
winner 4 = jennifer
winner 5 = sew wonky

email me: rachel {at} psiquilt {dot} com

yayyy for sponsor giveaway day!!!
:D

today's sponsor is fat quarter shop.
yep. THE fat quarter shop.
oh happy day.

i have a wishlist the size of texas in my fat quarter shop cart right now.
not. even. joking.

wanna know what some of them are?!?!


clockwise:
ginger embrodiery scissors, wool bundle by moda, polka dotted buttons, bella solids fat quarter bundle
and that's just a tiny bit of things on my want/need/gotta have list.
*wink*

one thing that's ALWAYS on my list is bella solids.
yall know i'm addicted.
it ain't NO secret.

the gang over at fat quarter shop have THE BEST bella solids selection EVER!!!
and they wanna give some of it away!!!


one lucky ps i quilt reader is going to win SIX YARDS of bella solids!!!
that's right 6 freaking yards of my favorite fabric in the whole wide world.
and the winner gets their choice of colors!!! <--lucky duck!!! i wanna win my own giveaway, but i have to share the wealth instead. so who wants 6 yards of pure awesomeness?!?! all yall have to do is tell me what SIX colors you would choose if you win.
see your choices HERE.
{winner will be drawn friday.}

oh and fyi: moda is releasing a whole batch of new bella solids in april.
*big, dreamy sigh*

♥ rachel

just one star.

just one star can comfort a solider.

i've joined moda in their challange.
a challenge that is close to my heart.

moda's challenge is to piece, quilt & bind 100 quilts in 100 days for soliders.
and they need 1800 star blocks to reach this goal.

what does this have to do with you?!?!
well yall can help make these quilts come to life.

here's what you do...
make a star block.
sign it.
send it to moda.
easy peasy.
{fabric requirements, block pattern & mailing address HERE.}

it takes just a few minutes to whip up this star block.
a few minutes & a few scraps to make a serviceman smile.

the semper fi fund will help coordinate the donations of the 100 quilts.
it's such a great organization...and i'm not just saying that.
go read what they do.
it really touches the heart.

most of yall know that my hubby is a marine.
you can't say was a marine to a marine. it's doesn't bode well.
it's that whole "once a marine, always a marine" thing.
the corp is how we met & fell in love and i just flat out love the marine corp.
end. of. story.

all marines are like family to other marines. <--semper fidelis to the "t"
it's a honor that is well deserved.
and something to be very, very proud of.
so let's help my family.
let's comfort them with quilts!!!

we can make a difference.
♥

so who's with me?!?!
who's gonna make just one star for our boys?!?!
you?!?! your quilt guild?!?! a gal down the street that you're teaching to quilt?!?!

here's my challenge on top of moda's challenge...let's jump start just one star!!!
let's see how many of yall can make your block THIS WEEK!!!

make your block, take a pic & send it to me. {via email or flickr link}
let's do this by next monday.
i'm talking blocks en route to texas by monday.
i'm going to send one lucky peep a special "thank you" package. <--a goooood one!!! promise.

semper fi yall :D

♥ rachel

melly.

i'd like to introduce yall to melly.


i'm in love. again.
this one tugs on my heartstrings.
my daughter miss melanie was the inspiration for this quilt.
♥


so why was melanie my inspiration?!?!
i wanted a "hope chest" quilt for her.

growing up in the south, all young gals looked forward to a hope chest.
a hope chest is a homemade cedar chest that is filled with treasures you will need, use & love when you marry your special someone.

every girl needs a hope chest.
her daddy makes it & her momma fills it.
and NO hope chest is complete without a quilt!!! <--that's a fact.


my design notes for this quilt:
something timeless
show off bigger chunks of yummy prints
use simplistic piecing
utilize lots o' bella solids

i think i nailed it.
*wink*


quilt stats:
fabric = buttercup by fig tree quilts for moda
size = 65" x 65"
quilting = darla padilla

btw: miss lindsey is 6 months old now {eeek} & she's totally in love with her sister's quilt.


and guess what?!?!
yall can get kits at fat quarter shop. HERE.
single patterns are available HERE. {& HERE.}


fyi: flipside exceeded my expectation in terms of sales.
we had to send them out in batches. <--thanks yall!!!
so because of that...i've taken measures to ensure that melly makes it out the door faster. promise.
:D

if you are a shop that is interested in purchasing melly...
email me: rachel {at} psiquilt {dot} com

♥ rachel

lily & will II.

sometimes it's SO hard to cut into a beautiful piece of fabric.
this WHOLE line is like that.

please feel sorry for me as i hack this fabric to bits.
*wink*

fabric = lily & will II by bunny hill designs for moda

♥ rachel

the one with the paula deen cookware.

remember when i told yall that i love paula deen.
well love might've been too vague of a word.

btw: if you haven't heard my paula deen pie story...
run. do not walk. go as fast as you can & read it before reading the rest of this post.

back to what i was saying...oh yeah...i'm a little addicted to paula deen.
i inhaled that $8 pie. i own her cookbooks. i ummm get her magazine.
yeah. addicted.

enter my newest paula deen fix: her cookware.
*drool*

i've been holding out. really.
i wanted the "butter" cookware, but couldn't ever find it when i wanted it.

well then i came home from teaching in san antonio...and wham bam thank you mam!!!
hubby bought me two pieces of paula's "robin's egg blue" cookware.

so then yesterday happened.
*sigh*

we were standing there looking paula in the face...well her face on the box.
& i couldn't decide how far i was gonna push this paula deen purchase.
then my hubby actually said it: "get it all. you know you want it anyways."
*que the hallelujah chorus*


i have WAY more than two pieces of paula deen cookware now & this is my happy face =)

next up: painting my kitchen to "match" my paula deen cookware.
should i go all matchy matchy with robin's egg blue?!?!
or should i compliment my cookware with {pale} butter colored walls?!?!
decisions, decisions.

♥ rachel

san antonio. <--in pictures.

- university united methodist church aka uumc -


- my bedroom at claudia's house -
yeah i just about cried when i walked in & saw that MY pattern was the quilt on the bed.


- a real life longhorn -
he was just hanging out, eating his grass, looking all pretty.
so we rolled down our car window & he posed for me.
such a good boy.
*i bought a little metal longhorn magnet for my fridge, just so i can remember this fella*


- pinwheel sampler class -


- promo bookmarks used in local quilt shops -
yeah i was a little giddy when i saw them for the first time.


- THE ALAMO -
smaller than what you expect BUT it was awesome to stand there in real life.
very awesome and very surreal.


- claudia and me - & - san antonio palm tree -
no. i'm not wearing a bumpit.
it just so happened that my hair matched the alamo door perfectly.
note to self: next time i go to the salon and tell them my hair color...
refer to it as "the alamo door" just to see the response i get.


- san antonio trolly - & - marci and me -
ummm if yall ever go to san antonio...the river walk is amazing!!! seriously amazing!!!
take the guided river barge tour. SO worth the $8.25


- letter from the alamo -


- scruffily class -
i might've been telling marci how bad i wanted her scruffily quilt.
i'll never tell.


- scruffily class -
see how some of my class peeps were setting their charm squares on point?!?!
we had some ubber cool scruffily quilts born that day.


- h.d. gruene building -


- gruene -

general consensus: i had such a blast.
these pics only touch base on a little bit of my trip.
i was SO caught up with classes & being a tourist that i didn't quite take as many pics as i wanted.
{and i seem to be missing pics from the coin collecting class i taught. boo.}

oh & i'm pretty sure that i stimulated the economy more than i'll ever, ever admit.
especially in the local quilt shops.
a big hey yall to sew special quilts, memories by the yard & quilt haus. <--yall rocked my socks off.

i have more to tell, but i'll share more later.
promise.

i can't wait to reveal what my new addiction is. <--thanks to the uumc quilt guild.
yall stay tuned.

♥ rachel