I was completely shocked and excited to find that my project made the cover of Creative Machine Embroidery! For all the juicy tips on how to turn a turtleneck sweater into this trendy little number make sure to pick up the March/April 2010 issue of the magazine for the full directions! The Hooping Knits in the video section of the site may be a good one to watch as you sit down for this quick make-over. This is a great issue to have as they are celebrating Earth Day and will have some green (eco-friendly) crafting projects as well.

I'm currently finishing up the next book. We've added some projects I know you guys will love and I am excited to get it out to you all. Hope you're staying warm!

I had some supply shopping to do at my local craft store and was excited to see the new Best of Sew Simple book in stores! This is a great collection of projects (a few of my projects found their way in there too!) that are not only fun and trendy but can be accomplished by beginning to advanced sewers. The technique section in the back is very informative and if used with the Videos section on the website you can't go wrong!

Happy 2010 everyone! I can't believe 2009 is gone. Done. The memories I have from last year are fabulous and I am looking forward to a new, amazing year as Nina grows and as Jeff and I welcome a new member to our family. We celebrated all of our Christmas' and I will update you all with pictures soon from that and the baby shower!

In the meantime I wanted to make sure you stop by your local craft or sewing shop and pick up a copy of the new sewing directory Sew It All. This is a special issue brought to you by the same lovely folks that publish Sew News and Creative Machine Embroidery.

There are some projects from me in there (like this super quick mesh eco-friendly produce bag) as well as other super creative sewing and embroidery projects to get your new crafting year started of easy and painless! Check them out at www.sewingdistrict.com too!

We had a massive burst of holiday cheer around the Dennis household this weekend. Saturday morning the cookie bug bit me! After ten dozen peanut butter blossoms were made I moved onto these delicious-even-in-pictures-caramels. I would highly recommend these not only for taste (they are super yummy) but they look great, you can't mess them up and the are very time and budget sensitive. They are an even better project if you have kids that can help you unwrap all the caramels and put the sprinkles on after you drizzle the melted chocolate.

The other holiday surprise was a call from the furniture company Saturday morning. The baby furniture was delivered Saturday afternoon and I think I've gone in every day since just to make sure it is still real! I am so happy with our decision and love the quality that Twin Locust provides. Jeff and I are super jealous of the baby now! We rounded out our weekend by finishing up our Christmas shopping...now I just have a few handmade projects to finish up!

On another exciting note, if you're a fan of Heather Bailey make sure to check out her new fabric line, Nicey Jane. So feminine, light and vintage. Beautiful designs and colors. If you get the QuiltHome.com newsletter you'll see they have a discount on this brand new line as well as 25% off Amy Buter's Midwest Modern and Midwest Modern 2 lines! Yay for the holidays!

Don't forget tobecome a fan of Nina on Facebook. 2010 will be full of fun stuff and we will be running Facebook only ideas, posts, specials and information.

I never thought about that until this week. Where would you turn if you had 17 projects to complete, proof, and send off in 5 days? I didn’t even look around me for help. I flew out to my mom and sisters. Although I felt like I was pushing child labor laws ( Ali is 11) to the limit almost every day I was there one of my sisters said something to me about how much fun they were having. Fun?! Yes, we’re a topsy, turvy group. We had so much fun sitting around sewing for hours on end it didn’t seem like work anymore. The deadlines disappeared and it just turned into being together.

While most of what we worked on I can’t show you yet, the younger girls, Ali, Clara and JoHannah finished up a king sized quilt that we have been working on…

Ali completed two baby sized quilt tops…

And Braeton took naps for all of us. He matches perfectly with Heather Bailey's Pop Garden!

I miss them all already and even the fantastic Japanese Steakhouse dinner wasn't enough to thank them!

It's time for a party! It is the one year mark for Nina. In that year how-to videos, free project downloads and posts have been seen by thousands. Thank you for your support and as a thank you the first 5 people to post comments about their favorite part of the website will win a fat quarter pack of Sew You, Sew Fun fabrics and a pack of Iris thread!

Sometimes it is hard to update the blog because so many projects I work on can't be talked about until a few months later. If you can, trust me that there are some super fun articles and projects coming! Some serious attention and work on my upcoming book has been surprisingly calming. It amazes me at times to be a part of such a huge project that will meet people I will never know, helping them along in their sewing journey.

Besides articles and writing I have been cheering on the Cleveland Cavaliers! It is pretty amazing what a little team can do to cheer a little midwest city. Go Cavs!

The rest of this week will be a blur of travel. Teaching a charity project the next few days. It is a really great opportunity to give and use my time to create for someone in need.

Then onto Spring Quilt Market! I am so excited to hug some friends and be inspired. Stops include my friends at Oliver+S, Amy Butler, FreeSpirit Fabrics, Art Gallery Fabrics and a few more. I promise to come back with too much to contain in one post.

Finally I'll stop at home to pick up Jeff and drive up to Michigan for a wedding. It will be a great weekend of visiting and celebration of love. A super stuffed week that will go by too quickly! Thank goodness for cameras!

I have realized lately how easy it is to let life get in the way of crafting and sewing. Sometimes it is too many activities. Sometimes it is not making it a priority. Sometimes it is because I feel I need a million hours to make something super impressive. So in honor of getting back to the basics, making time to create a quick project as a birthday gift or using your creative juices to relax...We're having a contest! I have created a group on Flicker called Sewing Easy. Upload your original easy to sew project that was made in 10 steps or less. You could be one of five people to win a package of beautiful Iris Embroidery Thread, an assorted pack of fat quarters or a signed copy of my book, Your Space. Leave comments on other's designs and the one with the most comments wins "Viewer's Choice" and one of each of the prizes!

I seriously can't believe March is gone. Easter is right around the corner and this article I wrote for Creative Machine Embroidery brought back all sorts of childhood memories.

When I was little, maybe 5 or 6 years old I remember decorating easter eggs with my Nana. She would take a safety pin, put a tiny whole in each end and then it was my job to gently blow out the insides of the egg. I remember being terrified about getting that guck on me so I blew super gentle, just like Nana said, so I wouldn't break the egg and make a mess. Once the insides were out, I would get to put the decorative plastic wrappers around the egg and Nana would hold it in place and pour the hot water on top. Magically, the plastic would shrink to just the right size and encase the middle of the egg in beautiful design. I also remember the coloring eggs with my mom. Watching those little disks of dye dissolve in the vinegar and being the designer of a perfect half-colored egg, learning how purple and yellow make a yucky looking color...these were creative experiences that I'll never forget.

So I'm reminding you. This year make a tradition. It doesn't have to be for a holiday. Maybe it is as simple as making everyone's favorite dinner the same day every month. Maybe you'll grab this magazine, use the project instructions to create these eggs with or for friends and family as a tradition for spring! At the risk of sounding cheesy...make a memory.

I was like a little girl who just found out I was getting the pony I've wanted my whole life. Electric Quilt Company and Amy Butler one of my favorite designers of all time have teamed up to offer this amazing new product called Softwares. In the package includes an interactive CD with 22 new projects for your home. Quilts, purses, and pillows all with the ability to personalize them in Amy's fabrics before you even buy the yardage! Amy Butler has kept her eco-friendly practices by putting this all on CD and eliminating unneeded paper printing.  

You can pre-order the Softwares now on her website and they will be available May 15th!