The world outside my window is covered in white and it’s not snow!
It’s frozen fog!

The trees and ground are white!

It’s like seeing the world in black and white film! The most amazing thing happened when I got up this morning. The fog moved in overnight and because it was so cold it froze! I had to run out and take some photos to show you. Here in Oregon they act like this is normal! Not for me…I’m staying inside today to sew (yes, Gloria I’m working on that spring quilt). In case you are wondering, these beautiful trees across the street from me will be surrounded by houses in a few years. I’m not so sure I’d call that progress.

My corner of the world in my little sewing studio

Another view of the studio (also known as the tiny former bedroom)

Oh My Sweet Baby! This is a present from Greg and Elena at http://www.gregorycase.com/

For some reason they know I love lambs!

Remember this perfect little basket I showed you last week?

This is how it looks now on my kitchen counter

My kitchen table is no longer a table

I’ve created a mess! When I got up this morning and looked around I realized that quilting is really a messy business. No other way around it. If you look behind the sewing machine you will see that I am using the fruit basket as a fabric hanger. Pretty creative don’t you think? I’m sharing this with you all for a reason. In May I will be creating my perfect studio and the pictures you will see will look more like they came from a magazine. We all swoon over how other designers have their studios set up, but the reality is most people sew and quilt wherever they can…me too! I have turned our entire house in Oregon into a sewing room. I have bits and pieces everywhere.

Now here is the key to successful sewing. Ready? You HAVE to clean up before you start a new project or design. Everything has to be put back in it’s place, neatly organized and the floor must be vacuumed. This is the rule I live by. My friend Anne Bryson asked me the other day if I work on several projects at once. No, not when it’s an applique project. I complete one, clean up the chaos, and start with the fresh little basket you saw above filled with new fabric. There is order in my universe! Until this new design is done, I won’t be having company. Not even the UPS man gets past the front door.