Stitch 'n Dish

Category: Fabric

  • When the stash calls

    When the stash calls

    This week I felt the call of my stash. I had grown somewhat tired of crocheting after making multiple Dragon Egg Dice Bags. They were a lot of fun, but I was ready to do something different. I have been exploring some crochet patterns and am finishing a knitted scarf for myself but was feeling…

  • A good time to be kind

    A good time to be kind

    … as we navigate these and other challenges, it’s going to be increasingly important to be kind to each other; to have patience with those around us and to always take a step back (and a deep breath) when we want to complain about what WE want or what WE didn’t get. It’s not all…

  • A new bag pattern

    A new bag pattern

    I haven’t sewed for a little while and frankly, I was missing it. I think the last time I sewed was back in March when my sister and I attended a Quilt Retreat. I had favorited a cute pattern on Etsy for a yarn bag, and yesterday, knowing I had several fabric options in my…

  • I built a light box

    I built a light box

    Sometimes, we discount experiences, places, and even people, because of how they look at first glance. We sometimes judge things as “less than” because of that first impression, but we should take care to remember that beautiful end results can come from some pretty humble beginnings.

  • A shopping hack

    A shopping hack

    The other day I found myself “itching” to shop for yarn or fabric. I had a period of time (lunch hour) and a quilt shop within driving distance. I put the address into my GPS and headed out (10-minute trip). As I drove, I was having a conversation in my head asking myself about the…

  • My fiber refuge

    My fiber refuge

    The news cycle lately isn’t very comforting to anyone, but I am feeling a particularly angst-ridden as a Veteran, because I can feel – in the depths of my being – the great terror being experienced by families across this country (USA) who are impacted by the reality of a troop deployment into a war…

  • First Quilting Retreat

    First Quilting Retreat

    My sister and I sleep under quilts that were hand-stitched by our great-grandmothers (one of whom was a regular part of our lives as kids). We grew up with women who sewed, quilted, crocheted and knitted. We’ve been sewing for many years, and recently decided it was time to get serious about learning to quilt.…

  • Old school crafting

    Old school crafting

    I won’t pretend to know the perfect balance between using what we have and buying new, but I think it’s always a WIN when we at least consider some stash options in our creative projects. Here’s to BALANCE in our crafting, shopping and lives overall.

  • Stash-busting as therapy

    Stash-busting as therapy

    A brief look at the issue of craft supply (textile) hoarding, de-stashing, and the related psychological impulses that keep us well-supplied with more fabric and yarn than we’ll use in 3 lifetimes!

  • Fighting the Winter doldrums

    Fighting the Winter doldrums

    January and February in the American Northeast/Mid-Atlantic can be challenging in terms of our emotional health. It’s COLD, with snow – which is lovely when it first falls but then gets DIRTY from all the salt and traffic, and the dirty snow hangs around for weeks, making the cold, gray, days even MORE depressing. In…