I was inspired by my Aunt Eleanor's Quilt at the Hornby Island Quilt Show, so I decided to make a pillow in the same feeling. I love how it turned out. If you are interested in making one please click on the image below where you'll find the instructions and a free pattern.
The inspiration
Close up
If you make this pillow I'd love to see it you can send me a photo at
contact@teawithlavera.com
Click on the image above to see more of the Hornby Island Quilt Show.
Years ago, I wrote a book that was published by Chilton, called Cat Quilts and Crafts. It's a fun book (especially if you love cats). I have 37 cat designs, borders, and symbols.
It's now out of print but it still sells as a used book all over the internet. I thought it would be nice to make it a free downloadable book as a gift to my blog and website followers. If you're interested in Cat Quilts and Crafts click on the image below or the page bar above. Remember, if you only need certain pages you can choose just those when you're going to print.
I would love to see any work you do out of the book. You can email me photos at
My Uncle’s pottery studio has brought me countless hours of joy. It’s a very old building with planks on the floor the size of an old growth tree. The pottery wheels sit in front of large windows that look out over his farm across to his lovely home.
It smells like earth and the clay dust covers every inch. Giant barrels of glaze await the bisque fired pots. There are rows of pots drying at every different stage. In the winter the stove makes the studio warm and cozy.
The kiln when firing makes the studio even warmer and adds an excitement of something special to come. The outdoor showroom begins to fill with beautiful pots ready for the summer tourist.
My uncle is Heinz Laffinand his studio is on HornbyIsland
if you want to experience it for yourself.
I was a Fashion designer in New York
for years, I was considered a mass market designer that means I would translate
what was coming out on the runways and Paris
boutique’s so they would fit into most people’s life styles.
Fashion week has wrapped up in New York
City. What does that mean to you? Not much right now, unless
you can afford these great designer clothes. But in the next two years the fashion
you see today on the runways will show up in the stores you shop, tailored down
in price and style enough so that they’ll fit your daily life.
If you want to get a jump on fashion and be able to be “fashion
forward” for the next two years, here’s how I think it will translate.
Lots of Stripes especially large stripes, color blocking
mostly black and white with a dash of a primary color.
Prints look like they’ll be photo prints, some animal and
some polka dots. Over all not many prints unless we see some on the European
runways. I’ll let you know if I see any.
Colors: Black and white with dashes of primary’s and Fuchsia.
I agree with Bill Cunningham that shoes will play a big roll
in spring, how that will translate will be fun to see; hopefully they won’t
cause a lifetime of pain.
Golden Girl is a new piece I put on Etsy. Her life has been
touched by the most precious gift of all the gift of time. Being a teapot she
is lucky enough to have spent many hours gracing beautiful tea tables and
listening to wonderful conversations. She hopes to find a well used kitchen where
she can retire and spend her days smiling down from a shelf at the lovely
people within it.
When my boys were leaving for college I decided to make a
cook book of all their favorite recipes.
I included family photos and instruction pages, for example when to call
the doctor, how to set a table and meat roasting temperatures and times.
Both boys were glad to take it with them to college.
They ended up using them to cook for their friends and my oldest said he would sometimes just take out the cook book and look at the pictures. Now I have requests for the cook book from other family members.
If you'd like to do this project make your draft on photo copy paper and then take it to your local photocopy store and they will print and bind it.
Today was a beautiful summer day. My friend and I were
looking at her garden when all of a sudden an ambulance pulled up about two
houses down and across the street. Then chaos started with people running in
then out and in again to get a stretcher. The dog was barking and someone was
crying. We watched for awhile then went inside for a few minutes. When we came
back out the ambulance was gone and all was quiet. Soon the postman came walking
down the street and headed into the yard to leave the mail. Nothing in his day
had changed, nothing in our day had changed, life just continues on as if
nothing has happened. It makes you think.
Who would I be if I could be anyone in the world? Where
would I live if I could live anywhere in the world?
While thinking about these two questions, I was also
thinking I need to make a Birthday present for a friend and then the two
thoughts merged and this is what I got.
Marie Antoinette
Geisha
Turkish
Louis Vuitton Fall 2012/2013
Photograph your friend and size her image on your computer then print the image on matte photo paper and cut her out.
Lay her photo image under a piece of tracing paper and draw your own dress design over the image. Then photocopy the tracing paper onto card stock. Now color it in and cut it out making sure you leave tabs to fold over so the outfit stays on.
I packaged them this way.
“Life as a Paper Doll” was a great success; judging by all
the laughs.
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