V and Co: spring 2013 portland oregon market recap

truth is...i didn't take a single picture with my "good camera" and all i have are my instagram photos to go off of!
but that's okay cause i guess i did okay on taking pictures of...
oh my gosh...
selfies:

 well sort of. i mean i did have some people take pictures using my phone as well.
as you can see...i never really ventured out of my little section at the moda section. i got to hang out with miss sandy klop, bunny hill design, sweet water, and me and my sister on one of the design walls.

V and Co.'s section on the Moda design wall

speaking of me and my sister design. they have the best moda market write up! 

we had a blast over in that section and i am very happy that i got to spend time with all of them and to get them set up with instagram. well maybe. 

i mean i was like "oh look how cute they are all staring at their phones at the same time (yeah all of them like sandy klop, anne sutton, the sweetwater girls, and then later on the me and my sister gals jumped on board too, with further instructions from the social media queen herself camille roskelly  after i left. 

later i felt like i had done a bad thing to introduce to them this addiction. but actually now being 2 weeks out of market i love it that they are instagram junkies because i get to see what they are doing day to day. :) you should follow them they will be very excited if you heart their pictures...and well you will get to see susan's remodeling of her home... have i mentioned i'm obsessed with instagram too? yep shh don't tell my blog. oh wait i think it already knows. :P

anywho...

for some reason i don't eat a bunch when i'm at market.  but the stir fry i kept smelling was calling my name and i had to get some the second day and it was sooooooooooo good. like super yummy.

it was so yummy that i really still think about it. and can't wait to have it again some day. :)

okay wait what was i talking about...instagram, food...oh yeah market! 

okay

this new line of mine (due to hit stores in july) continues with the same theme as the first of ombre and play with color and prints. so of course i had to have an ombre print like i did with my first line with the dots. 

this time i went with chevrons. 

when i first started the draft drawing for the chevron i had a bag in mind and well i made a pattern for it the hampton bag  but i knew i wanted a skirt in it. 

and well i have to give a shout out to my skirt maker amy webb of amy lou who last year she made my skirt using my first line simply color and this time she made another one for me using my ombre chevron fabric for this new line simply style.

love this skirt...and have already worn them a few times after market as well. 

it's a simplicity pattern for the A-Line skirt. amy has some tips she's going to put up on her blog about sewing with this pattern and fabric. (i think she said on monday :))

she did a bang up job and i am so SO grateful for her help with making me skirts to wear at market. :) 

 portland showing off it's gorge sunset

so little known fact:

i get nervous in front of large audiences. yeah yeah nothing special, lots of people get nervous vanessa. but yeah, when i say i get nervous i mean i get down right want to panic nervous.
BUT i am working on it. i really am. i mean one on one i'm like golden...even like a small group of people... i can totally be my loud self.
HECK, put me in front of a class where i'm teaching with the sewing machine, i'll ease into my gig and be all kinds of me and relaxed...after my first initial panic mode...
but you put me up in front of a LARGE crowd and not for a long period of time... for some reason, my voice gets shaky and my eyes start a buggin' and all of a sudden i feel the need to speak a 100 miles a minute and i feel like i'm running a marathon. oh what? you want to see it? sure here it is... the fat quarter shop did a video of the moda school house. i make my awesome sauce appearance at 17:55

yeah i know, i look pretty darn amaze balls but the rapid speaking and the shortness of breath kind of give me away. 

the great news is...i'm doing leaps and bounds better than the first time i had to speak to a large audience. at least this time i didn't feel like i was going to poop my pants and toss my cookies...i just may have a couple of minutes here and there that i look like i wanted to throw up. 

baby steps. 

V and Co at Aurifil schoolhouse talking about who the heck knows what.

i figure in like a few more year's i'll be all swanky up there and so darn relaxed that people will put my face next to the word "totally relaxed" in the dictionary. and then there wont be any pictures like this one up above of me looking anything but relaxed to be had... (thank you to julie for capturing this gem of a picture which btw makes me laugh so hard every time i see it.)

just you see.

in a few years i'll be showing up wheeled in a bed and pjs and bed head, looking as relaxed as a college kid after all their finals to graduate. 

don't believe me? yep, me neither...but i'm sure it'll just keep getting easier. 

and well, since i'm still not that relaxed i do have to say thank you to a few lovely ladies and especially these two. erika is just one of those lovely ladies that  even though we've met a handful of times she's like totally like the longest friend you've had the second you meet her. she's just a little on the awesome side and i like her a lot. 

then there's megan who does a lot for me on the "calm your freak self down" on a regular basis. and not just during market time. at any given time of the year she'll get a rapid series of texts and she usually talks me out of it. she's a great person to mentally slap me with a "YOU DID FINE. GREAT EVEN. GO GET CHOCOLATE...AND CALM THE HECK DOWN ITS OVER"

she physically did that for me during market schoolhouse (well not literally slap me but you get what i mean.) on occasion she is of NO help to me like when we both lost our hotel key. it was funny though.

all in all this quilt market, being my sophomore one, was a nice little more on the laid back side, and i had a blast with people. last year i was a little too strung up to relax and would crash at the end of each day the minute i could back at the hotel room. it was a nice change and i enjoyed myself. :)

the highlight of my time was when i nearly started crying when i saw kay of sew serendipity  came to see me in person to show me her marilyn dress she made with my fabric.
i am still blown away with how gorgeous it is, and i am in such awe of garment sewers that i couldn't help it. i got a little verclempt.

so i had to leave early on sunday...
and well because it wouldn't be a V and Co trip without some kind of "story" that went along with it...of course the odds of an easy going trip home would not be in my favor.

so yeah... i left on sunday early morning for  what i thought was my 10 am flight. i got at the airport really early because i am like that and like to have a lot of time before i have to get on a plane...just in case. and well thank heavens i did...because when i got up to the line and was ready to get my plane ticket the lady looked at me and was like: "oh sweetie your ticket is for next sunday."

i just sat there and stared at the lady. blinked a few times and was like:
"excuse me?"
nice lady: "yeeeeah, see here," she says pointing to the date on the paper. "it says may 26. today isn't may 26. that's next sunday."

i stared at her again. mouth slightly agape and i think i made a little squeaking noise.

in my head all i could think was "of course its for next sunday because why would i have just a normal run of the mill experience going home from quilt market?"
crap.
uhhhhhhhhhhh......"what do i do?  i need to leave and get home today."
they told me for a reasonable price they could put me on standby for the next possible flight. oh no wait, no they couldn't because the connecting flight left before you got there...soooo maybe they could put you on this other connecting flight and then get you to denver and they you have a layover of just 1 hour and then you should be on your way to good ol iowa. or something like that. she explained it first and then needed me to say yay or nay that i was up for the challenge.
yup.
okay lets do that...i think...

dear heavens this isn't going to work.

while the lady's fingers hit her keyboard at rapid speeds trying to  reroute me she kept talking to herself "no wait that doesn't work, maybe if we do this, no that's san francisco, we want iowa, okay maybe we do this and it gives her time to get to there, but what about the luggage...hmm maybe this...and then we can...yep...i think that might work."
i just sat there like:

is it going to work?
she finally looked up and said "okay. here's what we're going to do..." then she explained how she was going to take my luggage and send it out first so that if i dont make the first standby it's okay because my bag will at least get there before me rather than after me, and then she told me all these hoops and dance moves my luggage was going to do to make sure it's there when i do get to my final destination.
i was pretty sure once i let her take my bag that would be the last time i would ever see it. so i said my final farewell and then started on my way. she waved and smiled as i walked away hesitantly looking back. and then thinking "alright. lets do this."

and i did.
when i got to the gate C which just so happens to be in the basement area of the airport. oh yes, yes it was. when i got there, i had to squint because it wasn't as brightly lit up as the upstairs main airport area, and then when my eyes adjusted i was a little taken back. there were like 20 people and half of them were asleep lying down in random places and corners.
"where in the...okay..." i muttered.
i asked the attendant at the front desk if this was where standby for flight so and so was. and she said "yeah. it is."
so i sat down. next to the guy covered in newpaper for a blanket (i'm exaggerating naturally) but it felt like the desolate area that no one knew except for all the standby losers like myself.
sigh.
the good news was that i got on my first standby plane. YES! my luck was on an upswing! i would be getting there right when i thought i would (slightly later but whatev)

i even saw my luggage getting on the wind up plane i was getting on and i was beyond excited at the turn of my events.
fight was great.
and i got to denver with ample time ( like 45 minutes) before i had to get onto my connector flight home.
booooyaaaaa.
so then i go to look at the screen to see what gate i need to hurry to, so that i can get a little bit of junk food to eat while on my second flight...
and well when looking up at the screen i see one "canceled" flight.
and yep you got it my face went from this:

 quickly to this:

and then to this:

of course. naturally it was the only flight canceled.

so i marched to the first person with an airport outfit on. and asked "my flight was canceled what do i do?" 

she answered " you go to guest services" 

so i go to guest services...only to find it like the sahara desert, with tumbleweeds blowing by with how vacant and desolate it was.

i go back the ever so helpful airport lady. "...and if there's no one at guest services..."

she answers without looking up (this i am not exagerating on) "...then you go to another guest services..."

"...and where exactly would that be?"

she waved her hand in a direction and then i turned and left and found the next place only to find out and be told that the next flight out would not be for another 9 hours. 

yep...

thankfully i only freaked out in my head like this. 

but i did do a maniac sort of laugh. which i think scared the lady helping. 

i calmed down. and then smiled and said 

"i'm having an awesome day. how bout you?" 

she looked scared but answered "oh i'm doin' alright...have a nice...fli..."

"stay? yeah i'll do that. i'll have a nice stay. thank you." she smiled and chuckled and i smiled and chuckled too. 

and well i sat and ate, and window shopped around the "B" section of the denver airport for 9 hours. 

i got on my plane (which i was pretty sure was going get canceled as well because of the tornados in the midwest happening that day) but it didn't. 

i got in at my rinky-dink airport at 12:30 monday morning. 

and had to sit there along with 100 other people for an hour. for our luggage to show up. 

i finally got my luggage. and my husband came to find me looking like:

but i was home.
and i had an awesome market.
can't wait to do it again.
well minus the last part.

V and Co: still alive

hello! yes, i'm here. 

what?

you wanna hear about market??

yeah i know. 

i want to write about market. i really do. and i have actually placed most pictures in a post (ahem all taken on a phone... i know i suck)...i just have to write the words. and tell the stories...so bear with me it's coming. :)

being home for a week after market and finally clawing out of luggage, emails, and followups...i've been able to also have one full week of just alone time with my mom.

 i don't know if it's the spring allergies or if it's the travel and stress, or a combination of the two that always seem to bring on sinus infections and illnesses at this time of year...but thankfully this year i only hit a few run down days prior and after market.
my mom was here to help so i'm sure that was part of the speedy recovery. :)
we had a great time walking the trails here in my neck of the woods in eastern iowa, and then i remembered growing up i was always either on a bike or trying to catch up with my mom's super speed in walking. man, her little legs flail as if independent from her body and i just had to buckle down and try to keep up this time around as well. i have a feeling this is going to be an ongoing thing as my mom and i both choose walking as our form of exercise/stress release. it was great to have her here and we were all sad to say goodbye to her this last weekend.

in other exciting news...this little 6 year old did her first almost completely independent sewing.
i placed my sewing machine on it's slowest speed, and gave her the borders for a block she wanted to make into a pillow.

she did pretty darn good.
i'll show more on her block AND pillow here soon.
i think this was the highlight of my year thus far.
okay off to sew a few final things before summer vacation officially begins tomorrow at our house.
ahhhhhhh! i mean YAAAAAAY i get to have my kids around 24/7!
can't wait for the first time i get asked a question while i'm on the toilet.
we'll talk soon.

V and Co: why yes...i'm still sewing.

 well, this week... wait...no, last week and this week have flown by in super hyper drive sonic speed. yep, couldnt decide which one, either way it was fast moving.
and why yes, i am still working on things for market. thanks for asking.

the kids had a day off on monday and we went to the lake... so i could bind a quilt in peace and not have to deal with the "mom, can i play video games?mom can i play with a friend?mom can a friend come over?mom can we do something?mom can i drive you insanely nuts by 9:30 in the morning?" bit. while they played in the sand and yes, even got in the water, i got to sit and bind a quilt, drink a diet dr pepper, and talk and laugh with a friend. i know i would hate me too. it really was such a gorgeous day. and if that were my life every day i would not write about it because i would feel like i was rubbing it in your face, which lets be honest, you wouldnt like that and i'm not that type of girl. no, but because you guys know the life i live (of surviving in a house of amateur comedians of all ages, and finding myself in horrific situations) when i get a moment of utter bliss like this, you and i both feel like "yeah, lady. you totally deserve that."
it's really what keeps me going you know.

 iowa has had some pretty crazy weather. it's been drastic. no ease into spring then into summer.
it's crazy that last week they were talking snow...which we didn't get but just got a lot of cold rainy days...but i know minnesota totally got snow and in some places still has snow on the ground. and now here we are in the high 70's. no complaints about the change we've seen, i like it i live for the heat, and hello we havn't had the humidity yet so yes:
the weather is gorgeous. wish it could stay like this FOR.EV.ER. and i will enjoy every minute i can!

 this last week i played with new ideas for future patterns.

and i had fun playing with both lines together and appliquéing.
more to come on this. but for now i continue to sew. :) and sneaking out every once in a while to get some of the yummy weather.
we'll talk soon!

V and Co: sewing sewing sewing

as i sew and what not i snap pictures here and there on my phone.
it's been nice to do a few "extra" prep for school houses.

and bonus on finding super cute shoes at target in the little girl section. they are slightly too big for me but they totally work for $10 and for the fact that when it finally STAYS WARM my feel will swell enough to fit better in them.
because as i have come to realize since moving to somewhere where there's humidity is that my hair and make up make me look like alice in chain, and i turn from a raisin to a grape during the summer/humid season.

oddly enough... right now, i'd take that over the projected snow we are supposed to get.
k. off to sew some more.

V and Co.: to market

these past few weeks i've had a lot of sewing mileage. quilt market being right around the corner means lots of sewing to display what your product can do.
i've been asked to show off my collection of threads with aurifil at a schoolhouse for aurifil, so i've been doing some fun projects that include my collection, like that little zippered pouch, and now these lovely flowers.

this is the twisted flower pillow i show you how to make in my craftsy class. back when i was filming the class my fabric line hadnt come out yet. i used different shades of the same color and it turned out pretty cute as well. but i'm happy how this pillow has turned out with the ombre fabric. i'm going to make a couple more in different colors to show how wonderful it is to have thread collections that go so perfectly with fabric lines so that when you create there's no guessing on which shade of color in thread you will need.

so off to go create a few more things. and i am of course working on a few how to's for here on the blog, and for a few other places. very busy and blessed i feel.

oh and hey: my craftsy class....it's on sale right now. :D
we'll talk soon! i'll show you more of what i'm making as i make it!!!
hope you are enjoying the little bit of spring that has finally decided to show up in some places!