"Pretty Little Pillows" winner

The randomly drawn winner of the autographed "Pretty Little Pillows" book is......

Stephanie Sanders!

Congratulations! I will mail you the book this week!

Don't Throw That Away!

Skateboard bench
Book house

Bus stop made from a recycled bus- (Here in my home town of Athens, Georgia!)

Toilet paper tube bunnies

National Geographic magazine wall shelf

My new favorite website is www.recyclart.org . It is an online portfolio of innovative art made by many different artists that use recycled items in a new way. I can't stop pouring over all the great ideas!

The BIG 3-0

I just turned 30 years old yesterday. Crazy. Time sure does seem to fly by. So, I spent a little time reflecting on some of my favorite things I've done over the last decade. Here's a sampling:
2001- I fell in love big time in this very room at my campus ministry. Later my sweetie beat me in a pie eating contest here. This photo reminds me of a lot of good times.

2001- Studied painting, photography, and bookmaking in Cortona, Italy. Ate way too much gelato and loved every second of it.

2002-2010 I've been teaching art to a bunch of awesome elem. kiddos. We really got into Jackson Pollock with this project!


2004- Studied art history and photography for my Masters of Art Education in Bayeux, France. Here I am at the Palace of Versailles.

2006- Got married to the love of my life.

2007- That year I started Shutterstitch and began doing festivals and selling my travel photos and pillows.

2010- Gave birth to what I think must be the cutest baby on the planet. :)

Goals for the next 10 years:
1. Write more love letters to my husband.
2. Have more kids. Later. Not anytime soon.
3. Be a good mommy and wife.
4. Go to Ireland, Prague, Greece, and Japan, or at least some of those places.
5. Learn how to grow and sustain my own vegetable garden.
6. Continue to grow my business.
7. Breathe and take time to enjoy each day.

Mother's Day: It's the Thought that Counts

I just thought you might get a kick out of what I got for my first ever Mother's Day present. Since this is the first time I am a mother myself, I was kind of expecting some lavish treatment on that day. Instead I got a gray blob. Yup. You heard me. A gray blob. My husband attempted to make an impression of our two month old's foot and our son moved around so much that the impression ended up as just a blob of gel. He never got around to adding the plaster of paris to the gel base (which is step 2) because it didn't turn out. Oh honey, thanks anyway. It's the thought that counts. Maybe try that again when he's about 5 years old. :)

If anyone out there has successfully achieved this with an infant, let us know how you did it.

New Quilt for Sale

I just posted my latest creation for sale on Etsy. It is a sunny yellow play quilt, perfect for that summertime baby shower gift or tummy time for your own baby.

Favorite Artist of the Week: Michelle Stitzlein

As an elementary art teacher with a tiny budget, I love learning about how to use recycled products to make fabulous art. When I came across artist, Michelle Stitzlein, I thought her use of found materials to create new sculptures, was pretty awesome. She uses piano keys, broken china, fragments of old furniture, and other scraps to make butterflies. She also teaches workshops on how to turn bottlecaps into sculptures. Her book, Bottlecap Little Bottlecap, will also show you how to do it.

GIVEAWAY: Autographed "Pretty Little Pillows" book

I am so excited to announce that one of my pillow designs has been published in a book called Pretty Little Pillows by Lark Books. It's a really fabulous hardback book with the directions on how to make over 29 different types of pillows. Some of the featured designs are on how to make pillows with creative stitching, quilting, piecing, and other techniques. There are directions on how to make fold-out pillows, cushy toys, tooth fairy pillows, ring bearer pillows, eco friendly pillows, travel pillows, and gorgeous decorative ones too. Basically, just about any pillow you can think of! My featured pillow in the book is a quilted pillow (seen above) that is great to make out of scraps of fabric that you might have laying around the house. It's eco friendly and fun to make!

I AM GIVING AWAY ONE FREE COPY of PRETTY LITTLE PILLOWS. I'll even autograph it for you. :) You can enter to win the book by becoming a follower of this blog. Go to the light green side bar on the right side of this page. Scroll down until you see "Followers of Shutterstitch". Click on that and sign in. I'll be picking a follower of my blog at random on May 31 to win the autographed book. Don't miss your chance to own a copy!

If you can't wait that long to find out if you've won, then you can buy your own copy here.

Favorite Artist of the Week: The Wonderland Studio

I adore these fun and funky mobiles by The Wonderland Studio, available on Etsy. They come in a variety of colors and designs.

New Pillows

I'm finally getting back into making pillows again after being on maternity leave. Here are two lovable, huggable custom pillows that I made for Renee in Ohio. And yes, those are flamingoes in the pink/green pillow!

Snoogle Product Review

I know this is a silly picture to post. But as a pillow-maker myself, I have to rave about my all-time favorite pillow to sleep on. It's the Snoogle. It's designed as a pregnancy pillow to support your belly and back, but it's also great for nursing once your little one arrives. I just had the best nap of my life while snuggled up in it with my own newborn. I don't think I could have survived my pregnancy without it either. I have mild scoliosis in my upper and lower back and this really supported me well and helped me get some great nights of sleep. The only downside is the pillowcase wears out and pills up after a few months of washing. Plus the pillowcase is hard to slip on and off. Maybe I should start designing Snoogle covers with zippers on the side!

Marimekko Fabric

I recently discovered the most beautiful fabrics by Marimekko. My Aunt Cindy went to Finland, where the fabric is made and re-did her guest room in a new Marimekko bedspread and coordinating artwork. I fell in love with the crazy cow print. Too bad the cow print fabric is $150 for 2.9 yards. *Sigh*. I'll have to admire it from afar. But wouldn't that make some cool pillows?

Sneak Peek: Mike and Ema's Engagement Session

I can't believe my little brother, Mike, is getting married! Ok, he's not exactly little, he's 6 ft. 4 in., but he is my younger brother. He is getting married this summer to the beautiful and sweet, Ema. They are a great couple and I am really happy for him. Mike is a guitarist and both of them like heavy metal music so we went to a location with some great textured graffiti walls, rusty silos, and an industrial urban feel that I thought might go with their rocker personalities.