Do small things with great love

I hope everyone had a lovely holiday.  I sure did.  It was quiet and (relatively) peaceful and a fun time hanging out with my parents and sister and good friends.  And we ended up with a surprise white Christmas, which is almost unheard of in Texas.  It was quite magical.

{ catching snowflakes }

I spent the quiet days following Christmas working on an embroidery inside a quilt block inspired by this.  Amy over at NanaCompany creates so many beautiful things that it's hard not to just copy one of everything.  I love her aesthetic.  She provided a free pattern for the embroidery and set hers in a Dresden Plate quilt block, which is what I did too.  I think my mom would totally love this as a wallhanging, don't you?  :)  I dig the bright, girly, happy colors.

{ small things }

It's a new year now!  Seems strange.  But I'm getting back into my Thistle & Lilly work again.  One of the things I have the pleasure to do is go to a living history conference at the end of January.  I hope to meet tons of new people and learn more about doing living history, as well as promote my business a little.  I feel like it's taking a long time to get started -- I didn't anticipate the patterns taking so long, but it's better to take time to get them right than put out something premature and full of errors.

As part of my contribution to the conference, I'm making a little dress to put into the silent auction to benefit the state park and museum.  I'm making it out of sheer windowpane muslin - it looks similar to dimity, but is finer.  It seemed to scream "party dress" to me, but I decided to go with a simple gown with vandyked sleeves I've seen on an original, and dress it up with a silk sash.  I think it will be sweet when it's done.  I hope someone buys it and makes a bunch of money for the museum!

Amy xoxo