AMY SCHIMLER-SAFFORD ILLUSTRATION AND PATTERN DESIGN

5/25/08

Portland and beyond... Part III - Seattle

It was really fun exploring Seattle. The food.... oh my gosh, the food.... every meal was incredible. One of our favorite finds was an intimate French restaurant downtown called Le Pichet.

When I wasn't eating (hee hee), I saw...

Salt and Pepper shakers-


Water -


Magnificent flowers -


Interesting fruit -


And my guys (Lucky me!) -

Portland and beyond... Part II - The City

I have decided the hippest, coolest people live in Portland. We had a blast...

Tree lined streets -


Architectural delights -


Great books at Powell's -


Passion - (80,000 people showed up for the Obama rally... wrapped around city blocks waiting for three hours on a hot day to get in.)


A sense of humor (these were outside a local Starbucks).


Portland and beyond... Part I - Quilt Market

Just returned from Quilt Market in Portland OR and an extended vacation in Seattle. Whew - exhilarated, jet lagged, beat, glad to be home, but really needed that break. The timing of the show was great... my son just returned to the states from studying abroad in SE Asia, so we met him on the coast just after the show and headed up to Seattle.

Let me start out by apologizing for the lack of photos from the show... I am not a big people picture taker and, frankly, I was too busy talking.
It was so great to meet so many people in person. First of all, the fabulous people at Robert Kaufman. I can't say enough good things about them. Everyone there has been so friendly, so nice, and so supportive. I am really happy to be working with them. The really good news is that the fabrics have been selling very well.... Thanks everyone!.... and that, of course, means more fabrics in the future. I will keep you updated on future collections, but we are hoping for October or January. It is going to be a really fun group, so stay tuned.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jill Mead, the editor for Better Homes and Garden Quilts and More magazine. You can also find her here. I am going to be featured in late fall with a fun project... more about that later.

I also met Gina Halladay from Quilters Buzz. Gina was instrumental in helping me get jump started with the whole fabric business, so it was great to finally meet her. She is as energetic in person as I imagined.

I met up with Lizzy and Cherri House. Love those guys... they are so talented. Keep an eye out for a new line of fabrics (Lizzy Dish) from Andover that Lizzy designed and new quilt patterns from Cherry House Quilts.

Also watch out for a new Free Spirit designer, Melissa from yummygoods.com who has a debut line coming out for fall market. We decided we could have a load of fun hanging out, we both love to bead, thrift shop and of course, love the fabric thing.

It was really fun seeing the Free Spirit booths and for me personally, it was awesome seeing Kaffe Fasset in person. I remember always leaving the library with a book of his work years ago when my son was a toddler. He has been such an inspiration to me. His knits, needlework, mosaics and now his fabrics and quilts are so fabulous. He is the guru of good color and design.

5/12/08

Northwest Bound

Heading to Portland and Seattle. Woohoo! I will be taking a two week break from blogging. Please check back after Memorial Day. If anyone has tips on where to go or what to see...please share! I have been getting some pointers, but happy to get some more.

In the meantime, here is a still life I just completed.



Acrylic on canvas.

5/11/08

Happy Mother's Day



Happy Mother's Day! Every year I get new salt and pepper shakers to add to my collection. Here is one of my favs... So fun, don't ya think?

5/2/08

Comfy

New bird pillow and new comfy couch. I just couldn't resist having this love seat reupholstered...
This is my last hurrah using this bird fabric... although I may make an apron with the leftover fabric...
Now it is time to say bye bye birdies and move on to new projects.