Announcing Feed Dog Flurry, a countdown to Christmas

As I mentioned in my snowman pattern post, I’m planning to celebrate Christmas with all sorts of regular goodies here on the Feed Dog blog. Maybe I’m shooting myself in the foot adding another task to the December to-do list, but I’m aiming for a post every day between now and Christmas. (OK, it’s in writing; now I have to do it…)

To kick things off, I’ve refreshed the blog template for the first time in, oh, forever. I made the festive snowflake background because snowflakes have become my holiday motif of choice (that sounds less cheesy than “theme,” doesn’t it? No? Well, if the cheese fits…) this year. And they fit so nicely into a hexagon, which of course is a quilterly shape if there ever was one. (That is, they fit into a hexagon if they’re six-pointed, as snowflakes are in nature. I’ll have none of this eight-pointed snowflake nonsense. OK, I’ll probably have a little of it this month, so don’t hold me to anything. But in my book a snowflake has six sides for authenticity and aesthetics.)

Everybody’s busy this time of year, so the tutorials and projects I come up with will be relatively simple. I’ve been obsessively making snowflake ornaments because they’re quick and fun, so expect to see some tutes for them—some with a sewing machine, but probably more often a glue gun will be all you need. I’m a quilter at heart, but this Christmas is bringing out the miscellaneous artsy-craftsy youth somewhere inside me. That, or it’s a Valium-popping ’70s housewife who sticks sequins on Styrofoam balls to numb the pain of boredom. If either of those characters sound familiar, then follow me for a flurry of posts from now till the big day.

Cyber Monday (or Tuesday) sale

If your credit card hasn’t worn itself thin yet with the post-Thanksgiving spending frenzy, head over to Feed Dog Designs for 40% off digital pattern downloads—a special price just for blog readers!
Use coupon code CYM10 in your shopping cart to get the discounted price, any time from now through the end of Tuesday, since I didn’t have my act together earlier…
Thanks for shopping the Cyber Monday/Tuesday sale!

Free Pattern: Snowmen for appliqué or embroidery

OK, OK; I know tomorrow is Thanksgiving. But I’ve been itching for Christmas since the Halloween accoutrements hit stores, and for once I’ve had no problem with Chrimbo being rolled out ridiculously early by the gods on Mount Retail. (But please, keep the effing holiday music away from me. Yech. This will forever be a playlist-free blog.) I’m dying to get the tree and ornaments put up, and I’ve actually already started covering our living room ceiling with snowflakes. Last Christmas was a bit of a non-starter, so I’m ready to put my Grinchy ways aside and spread some cheer, dammit.

What does this mean for you? Well, I’m planning to share all my crafty Christmas stuff (“crap” would’ve alliterated better, but I shan’t give you crap!) with you here—photos, tutorials, patterns, and other bits of fun. So to start with, a free pattern for appliqué (or embroidery, if you like)!



I made these tea towels for Middle Brother and his wife a couple years ago, fusing wool felt to the background to give the snowmen some dimension. A really narrow zigzag around the edge of the felt with matching or invisible thread rounds the edges rather splendidly.

Something was missing, though: how did snowman A, standing happily, become snowman B, melting into a sloppy pile of sludge? Snowman C, armed with a hairdryer, is the culprit:




Why is Snowman C so ill-spirited? You’ll have to supply your own motivation; I’m just supplying the pattern.
If you’re not feeling the appliqué, try a melting redwork snowman instead:



Two formats are available:

• Get the PDF to print out and transfer for your favorite appliqué or embroidery technique.
• Get the EQ7 project file to use the snowmen blocks (on the Motifs tab) in your own quilts or other EQ designs.

Designs are copyright © 2010 Feed Dog Designs, but you’re free to use them on Christmas gifts, decor, or whatever you like. Happy stitching, happy Thanksgiving, and look for more holiday goodies here soon!

Happy Halloween

It’s only fair that Felis Domesticus Minor be subjected to the same Halloween torment as her big sister two years ago.

Dog bed—or cat bed?

The Fall 2010 issue of Stitch is hitting newsstands now, with patterns for four of my projects in it. Phew, that was a lot of sewing! You already saw the ottoman slipcover when I tooted my own horn about being on the cover, so I thought I’d show you my Moroccan Medallion Dog Bed this time.

In the magazine, the bed was modeled by the lovely Chloe, but once the project made it back home, we had to see if it cut the mustard with our own Princess Fluffinstuff.

Look at that smile! She loves it! Of course, no sooner had she settled in than our newest home invader came by to disrupt the bliss.

Yes, we’re now a two-cat household. The Other found Felis Domesticus Minor at the hardware store garden center, and he couldn’t leave her to bake in the heat. And I couldn’t be the ogre that said otherwise, despite my aversion to the idea of the people being outnumbered by animals in our own home. Sigh.

Neither of the littlest pets had much of a chance with the “dog” bed, as their big sister Felis Domesticus Major has a rotten habit of claiming any and all beds as her own.

Check out Stitch to make a bed for your own pets to fight over!